David Codrea:

The comment period for the HHS proposal will end in 62 days, on March 10. Comments can be submitted via an online form at Regulations.gov.

David is covering the proposed mental health rollout by the Justice Department as part of the new executive orders on gun background checks.  Go to the Examiner article for links to online forms for submitting comments.  This is something I will be doing.

We’ve covered this before, and you know my position.  The mental health profession cannot sustain the weight and burden being placed on it by the presuppositions inherent in the new rules.  It behooves us all to make comments so as to protect our neighbors as well as veterans who are swept into this category from PTSD and related maladies.

Kurt Hofmann:

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) reports that U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has written a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder and to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, asking how the BATFE will be defining “armor piercing” ammunition, which would thus be denied to the general public.

I’m glad that Kurt is following this.  I was unaware that this was still an issue, preferring to think instead, perhaps wishful thinking, that this was all just a bad idea floated by the tyrants to see how we would react.  This has become habit for them, i.e., law-making by federal register.  So would 5.56 mm “green tip” ammunition become illegal?

The secret courts have approved three more months of NSA phone snooping.  Of course they did.  And the number of times this has been done by the secret courts?  Thirty six.

I do love Jerry Miculek, but it appears that he has talked S&W into making a 9mm, eight shot revolver.  I’m not sure what Jerry was thinking, but I won’t be buying one.  Thanks, but I’ll stick with my .357 magnum (and maybe spring for a .44 magnum and .22 magnum).  I’m certain that Guns.com has it wrong when they say:

While there will always be people who want 9mm revolvers in service-sized and snub-nosed packages — 9mm offers a lot more power over standard .38 Special loads in a considerably shorter cartridge and doesn’t have the sting, flash and bang of full-house or even reduced-power .357 Magnums — in truth 9mm revolvers have never seen a lot of success in the U.S.

Sorry, this just has to be flat-out incorrect.  The 9mm cannot possibly offer more power out of a revolver than the .38 or .357 magnum.  The point of the 9mm in the striker-fired pistol is the high chamber pressure, which approaches 35,000 psi because of the confined space.  Put into a revolver without the enclosed chamber and the pressures won’t reach that high.

On a related note, there are two competing issues regarding chamber pressure in handguns.  First, the larger the round (and thereby the higher the charge), the higher the chamber pressure – up to a certain point.  For very large calibers such as the .45 ACP, the enlarged barrel opening through which pressure can relieve (almost half an inch diameter) causes a lower chamber pressure for the .45 (which approaches 25,000 psi).  The turnaround point for chamber pressure (i.e., the peak pressure where larger barrels reduces the pressure and smaller barrels reduces the load) is the S&W .40, which is why the .40 has such a “snappy” feel to it when you shoot it.

Mike Vanderboegh covers the issue the dishonestly named affordable health care act, veterans, PTSD and guns.  To all of my military and former military readers, please, please, please go read Mike’s piece.  And be very careful what you say to doctors, who you choose for doctors, and for what maladies you seek treatment.  Big brother is listening.

Finally, WRSA has a piece on urban centers and government center of gravity (CoG) operations within that context.  It’s an interesting article and I recommend it to you, along with the comments.  I have a piece coming at some point on David Kilcullen and his focus on what he sees as the future of state warfare being in littoral, urban centers.  I’m still developing my thoughts on the subject.