Well, that's not exactly what we've come to regard as safe gun handling being demonstrated on the cover there, is it? We've come a long way in half a century, but most of it has not been in the right direction.There's plenty in this issue, including a look at "West Point's 'Library' of Guns," "Tommy Gun" marksmanship, Elmer Keith hunting lions, the story of "Pistol Pete" Eaton, and more, including the classic period gun ads.
But here's what really stands out:
No corrupt politician ever worked more cynically, or more successfully, to put over a deal that would perpetuate his power. "He knew, of course," a retired policeman told this writer, "that his own boys would keep on getting gats without papers." But he went about enlisting unthinking "reformers" to bat for his bill through press and pulpit.
"Sullivan Law: This Law Makes Crime Safe," is a must-read, and gives us an invaluable analysis and perspective on the background, effects and implications of this evil, unAmerican edict that provided the model for urban citizen disarmament.
7 comments:
"...the story of "Pistol Pete" Eaton..."
Hey, he's the school mascot of my alma mater, Oklahoma State Univeristy. He still carries his six-shooter at every football game and fires it when we score. I never thought of it before but that must irk the hell out of the anti-gunners, a college mascot that openly carries a gun =)
GO POKES!!
I'd read that the gunbashers actually got rid of the mascot's pistol for a while, but it's now back by popular demand.
New Mexico State also uses a "Pistol Pete" mascot and they took his pistol away a couple of years ago and gave him a lasso in an attempt to revamp the school's image. It actually made the news here that they took the pistol from their "Pistol" Pete and was it was a big joke at their expense for a while. In fact if you go to their athletics website you now see Pete with a lasso instead of a gun. I'm not sure if their Pete ever got his pistol back.
The "Pistol Pete" mascot for Oklahoma State has, to my knowlege, never been disarmed - nor is he likely to ever be given the rural and small-town backgrounds of many students and alumni of our university. I have heard that there have been attempts to rid him of his namesake sidearm, but for the time being Oklahomans have had the common sense to dismiss this idea as the steaming pile of politically correct, fear mongering poopoo that it is.
David - you're right in that the photo does show what is now considered inappropriate trigger finger placement. I do have a question though - and I'd be interested in feedback from other readers on this.
At least one - if not both of those revolvers are single action - for each shot fired the hammer must be cocked. It's also evident in the photo that neither revolver is cocked.
Now - if I were to cock a single action - and then delay firing - then I'd agree that the finger off the trigger and out of the guard would be appropriate. This is something that I would rarely do - though I can see where this could come up in a 'real life' situation.
Ordinarily - my training has been to regard the cocking and firing of a single action as a single process. Also - to de-cock a single action - trigger contact is necessary.
The above has led me to place and leave my finger within the trigger guard when grasping a single-action revolver, cocking it - and subsequently firing. When the gun it not cocked - it can't fire - and when it is cocked - the firing is imminent and intended.
So - do any single-action carry readers have any comments on this?
Those are Patton's guns--his Colt .45 SA, and his S&W .357.
All gun mfrs I'm aware of include the "keep finger off trigger" warning in their safety manuals for SAs--aside from pre-transfer bar technology (like Patton's), I have not heard of ADs or NDs with these in properly working guns, but that does not mean a mechanical failure could not happen.
The mfrs probably don't talk much about decocking due to liability if somebody screws up.
The problem with using a different set of rules for SA revolvers is that you develop instinctive habits that your body tends to follow. Keep your finger inside the trigger guard for single actions and you will find that when distracted or just not paying conscious attention you will do the same thing with all handguns.
IMHO the best answer is to train muscle memory to always revert to safe practices, no matter what. And of course one may argue that hey I never pay less than full attention to how I handle weapons. My answer is hey it's 2 am and you've just been woken up by a crash of broken glass. Your gun is in your hand and you aren't all that sure how it got there. My point is that if you have trained right you're still safe. You don't always have the luxury of sparing mental focus for which pistol you picked up. Your focus should be on identifying the threat and dealing with it, not on which set of rules do I have to remember for this gun as opposed to my others.
David, Uncle Lar - thanks for your thoughts and comments.
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