Sun Sentinel:

The families of two victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting on Wednesday sued the maker and seller of the weapon used in the rampage, claiming they should be held partially responsible for what Nikolas Cruz did with it.

The parents of Jaime Guttenberg and Alex Schachter want a judge to clear the way for them to claim damages against American Outdoor Brands, formerly known as Smith & Wesson, and Sunrise Tactical Supply. The Coral Springs store is where Cruz purchased the AR-15-style weapon used in the Feb. 14 shooting spree.

Fred and Jennifer Guttenberg, and Max Schachter “seek to hold defendants legally responsible for their complicity in the entirely foreseeable, deadly use of the assault-style weapons that they place on the market,” according to the lawsuit, filed in Broward Circuit Court.

Before the lawsuit can go forward, their attorneys said, judges have to clarify that gun manufacturers and sellers can be sued by victims.

“A confusingly written Florida statute stands in the way,” the attorneys wrote. “If the defendants claim that [the law] entitles them to immunity from such claims, and the courts agree,” the victims will be forced to pay the gun maker’s and seller’s legal fees instead of recovering damages.

The 2001 law, Florida Statute 790.331, explicitly prohibits state, county and city government agencies from suing businesses over the legal manufacture and sale of weapons that are later used unlawfully. The law is silent on whether victims can sue on those grounds.

The same law allows governments and victims to sue over defects in the weapons, but “the potential of a firearm or ammunition to cause serious injury, damage, or death as a result of normal function does not constitute a defective condition of the product.”

The Guttenbergs and Schachter want a judge to either declare that the law does not block them from collecting damages — or to declare the law unconstitutional.

Cruz, 19, bought his Smith & Wesson M&P 15 .223 rifle legally a year before the shooting in Parkland.

Messages left for the attorney representing Sunrise Tactical Supply were not returned Wednesday. Attempts to reach American Outdoor Brands were unsuccessful.

I suspect that the Florida statute is clear, as is the federal statute.  So one of two things happen here.  Either the judge is an activist totalitarian and declares that the suit can go forward, in which case S&W has to hire attorneys as does the Sunrise Tactical Supply, and potentially lose in court – or, the judge declares that the suit can’t go forward and S&W still has to hire litigation attorneys who will charge them a lot of money.

Although we may never be able to prove it, the lawyers for the victims may be funded by Everytown and Bloomberg (or Soros).  This should not be seen disaggregated from the holistic gun controller strategy which is a multi-front war on gun owners and gun manufacturers and sellers.  This is one manifestation of the legal battles we will face in the future, the other manifestation being law-makers at the state and federal level.

This is war.  See it that way.

Via reader Fred Tippens, Bearing Arms:

Now, Gunsite is trying to process this stuff through another company, so I hope they can recover most, if not all, of the money, but I also hope they take Intuit to court over these shenanigans. This isn’t right on any level. At all.

More than that, though, this is the kick of thing that needs to be punished. Intuit needs to be fought on this stuff each and every time it tries this if at all possible. It needs to be forced to figure this into its decision-making matrix before it pulls this with other companies.

The irony? If it wants people to be safer with guns, places like Gunsite are the kind of places it should support. It should want people to go there, train there, learn there, then bring it home to share that knowledge with their fellow gun owners. The reason is that Gunsite is known for being a very safe training academy, something everyone should want to support.

But no. They sell guns, so they must be punished, apparently.

Let that be a lesson to anyone else who has a gun-related business. Now you know who not to do business with.

Oh, it’s much more complicated than that, Tom.  This is another installment, albeit small, in the multifront war on gun owners and gun manufacturers, this time with the flavor of the day being training.

I’ve discussed it in detail, my readers know all about it.  The war is escalating.  The only good thing, as I’ve pointed out, is that the enemy has told us his strategy.  We should listen.

Not everything out there is bad news.  There are some upstart gun makers coming on line.

BROKEN ARROW, Okla. – Business owners in Broken Arrow said downturns in the oil and gas industry has pushed them to manufacture guns instead.

The owners of RISE Armament in Broken Arrow said they started the company in 2013 to focus on manufacturing oil, gas and aerospace equipment. A downturn in the industry, however, changed their plans.

Now, the company manufacturers AR-15 rifles.

The owners told FOX23 that the business near Kenosha and the Broken Arrow Expressway received new machinery this week that will allow them to increase manufacturing numbers.

They said the engineers they employ were able to transfer their previous industry skills to making weapons. They believe that they have been able to make their designs unique.

The owners said they are glad they made the business shift in 2015. They said they can now produce more than 1,600 triggers each week and feel they will soon expand even further.

Good.  I see that Rise Armament makes nice looking rifles, even if a wee bit on the pricey side.

Take this tip from us fellows.  Don’t get yourself entangled with corporate America, and work your logistics train with as little reference to major banks as possible.  Keep us posted on your progress.

A quick note – I do parts, component and gun reviews.  Just sayin’.

Following up the revelation via the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife that sticks and rocks are more effective weapons than guns against mountain lion attacks, reader Fred is still questioning that guidance.

POCATELLO, Idaho (AP) – Idaho State University officials are warning people to use caution after a second mountain lion was spotted on the Pocatello campus in less than a week.

On May 11, Idaho Department of Fish and Game officials tranquilized and relocated a cougar from a trail south of the university. On Wednesday, ISU officials issued a campus-wide alert after a resident reported spotting a mountain lion near the school’s Stephens Performing Arts Center.

ISU public safety officers, Pocatello police and state wildlife officials searched the area but didn’t find the big cat.

Mountain lion sightings in and around Pocatello, as well as elsewhere in the state, happen throughout the year, especially in areas that are on the edge of the urban-wildlife interface.

Since only the King’s men may hunt the royal forests (tip to reader Josh for the comment), Fred may have to test this hypothesis for us by going into the bush in Idaho without a gun to see if a stick is more effective against a big cat.  I think I’ll let Fred go on this adventure by himself.

Via reader Mack, this sad perspective.

Thousands of American high-school students on Tuesday will take the Advanced Placement calculus exam. Many are probably dreading it, perhaps seeing the test as an attempt to show off skills they will never use. What if they’re right?

I started thinking about this recently when my 14-year-old daughter was doing her pre-calculus homework. I couldn’t help wondering: Is this the best direction for children her age? Students need skills to thrive in the 21st-century workplace, and I’m not convinced calculus is high on that list.

The subtitle is “They’d be better off taking AP statistics or computer science.”  James Markarian is apparently the chief technology officer for SnapLogic.

Uh huh.  So James, have you ever taken a course in statistics?  I have.  What do you have to know to do statistics right?

At this rate America will trail the entire world in mathematics except Africa, leaving the engineering, fabricating, designing and difficult technological work to others.  Here is a tip for you James.  The corporations of the world can only take so many lawyers, HR overlords, managers and accountants.

Sooner or later, someone has to make a product.  Please do emphasize math of all categories with your children – algebra, statistics, calculus, trigonometry, and numerical solutions techniques and higher math.  I don’t expect James to listen to me, but perhaps you will.

Some days I modify my route just for unpredictability, but most days on my lunch walk I go by a public transportation hub in my city. There are often armed DHS agents there, along with local cops.

Today when I saw the group, all duded-up in their tac vests with plastic pistols, I said to myself, “Ah, there’s a fat-ass Fed.” Then I said, “Why, there’s fat-ass number two, and look, there’s fat-ass number three” (who was a local cop trying to elbow in on the yammering-and-yakking session with the DHS boys, none of whom were doing anything of value for their pay).  Uh huh, mama makes some good biscuits and gravy, doesn’t she?  Yea, I like the biscuits and gravy too, but it doesn’t like me so much any more.  A half dozen FedGov employees doing absolutely nothing, with a couple of local *.gov employees doing absolutely nothing.  Welcome to America.  It sounds like communism, yes?

Anyway, we can be better than that, regardless of age. The days that I could eat anything and do nothing and get away with it are long gone.  As a general rule, I go on a three mile walk every day at lunch.  In the afternoon, I climb fifteen flights of stairs.  In the evenings after work (three or four days a week) I go the gym and lift weights and do resistance work, and before that I might climb another 35-50 flights on the stair machine.  After dinner at night, I take the dogs on another 1.5-2 mile walk.

As a general rule I do my own yard work rather than pay somebody to do it (or leave it undone, which is the second worst option since entropy always increases). On the weekends I always try to do some sort of more extreme workout like hike with weight on our many mountains in the area, or better yet, ride some single track at Dupont, Lake James or Bent Creek.  Going down the mountains is exhilarating.  To go down, you have to go up, which is exquisitely difficult.  It’s always a thigh burner and lung scorcher.  And I make sure it hurts, and try to keep going when the lactic acid is screaming to stop.

I’ve cut carbs a good bit, and reintegrated (good) fat to my diet, along with high protein intake and protein shakes, and try to stick with steamed vegetables. I almost never eat bread any more, and I’ve cut my dairy intake to almost nothing (except for the whey in the shakes).  Lactose is sugar and will add belly fat faster than anything else you do except maybe eating potato chips or ice cream and apple pie.

Belly fat is a killer. It leads to heart disease, high blood pressure, reduced testosterone and loss of sex drive.  Get rid of it.  You don’t need it for anything.  It’s your enemy.  It’s your enemy because if you are 40-60 years old, you’re at your peak income-earning potential.  Your family needs you.

And your family needs you to protect them. If you’re weak and become easily winded, you can’t fight.  You may as well sell all of your weapons to me.  So am I some sort of physical specimen?  No, I’m a 58 year old man with asthma and RA.

I have RA so severely that the knuckles on my right hand are swollen enough from joint scarring to cause me to get rid of all of my cheap plastic pistols that have double-stack mags. I can’t grip them correctly, I just don’t get good purchase.  Every handgun in my safe now is a single stack 1911, which fits perfectly and holds well with my deformed hand (except for wheel guns or my FN5.7, which is also an internal hammer gun).  Every handgun I own now is a hammer gun.  Honestly, getting rid of the scratchy, crinkly, cheap-ass rubber-band feel of the striker fired handguns is probably the best outcome of having RA.

So again, I’m not a physical specimen. Believe me when I say that if I can do this, you can too.  We need to be better than those fat-ass DHS boys.  There are some of you who don’t need to hear this.  You get your PT by chasing Elk around Montana with guns.  Goody for you, not all of us can live in Montana.  Besides, you can do that all day long and if you eat Mama’s gravy and biscuits and drink beer at night, you may still have a gut.

One final word about recovery. In order to recover from this kind of exercise, you need good and protracted sleep.  Don’t be fooled by the supermen, the special operators, into thinking that long duration endurance runs or no sleep is actually a good thing.  My former Marine also did that sort of thing when he went for days without sleep in Iraq, or put on 120 pound kit and “humped” 20 miles in 110 degree heat.  He’s now healthier, leaner and in better shape than he was in the Marine Corps.

According to studies, “just as there are things men can do to boost levels, there are activities that lower testosterone scores. Endurance exercises, such as marathon training or cycling long distances, can lower levels, as can stress. Dr. Bhasin said that the kind of training endured by special armed forces — tough exercise, lack of sleep and food — can cause testosterone to drop to the levels of men who have been castrated — lower than 50 (ng/dL).”

WRSA sends us an article on Practical AR Enhancements.  Here is an excerpted list of things he discusses.

1. Chrome-lined barrel
2. Bolt parts
3. Buffer spring
4. Lube
5. Enhanced (and more modern) BCG finishes / coatings
6. Optics
7. Trigger upgrades

This is a good list and I highly recommend that you read the entire article, and it reminds me of the still highly read and very important article, “Making Your M4 Run Like A Gazelle,” based on work by Mike Pannone and written by WeaponsMan.

Mike has very extensive comments on the M4 at Defense Review, which stem initially from a discussion of fouling. We’ll just quote his conclusions from this piece below, and also recommend his article on reliability issues, and his follow-up on diagnosing the root cause. Conclusions from what we suppose you could call the “fouling piece“:

Fouling in the M4 is not the problem. The problem is weak springs (buffer and extractor), as well as light buffer weights (H vs. H2 or H3). With the abovementioned drop-in parts, the M4 is as reliable as any weapon I have ever fired, and I have fired probably every military-issue assault rifle fielded worldwide in the last 60 years as a Special Forces Weapons Sergeant (18B). An additional benefit of the heavier spring/weight combo is that it transmits the energy impulse of the firing cycle to the shoulder over a longer duration, lowering the amount of foot pounds per second and dramatically reducing the perceived recoil. Follow-on shots are easier to make effectively, and much faster, especially at 50 meters and beyond.

I reliably fired 2400 rounds (80 magazines) on a bone dry gun, and I would bet that is a lot more than any soldier or other armed professional will ever come close to firing without any lubrication whatsoever. So, disregard the fouling myth and install a better buffer spring, H2 buffer, enhanced extractor spring and a Crane O-ring (all end user drop-in parts). With normal (read “not excessive”) lubrication and maintenance, properly-built AR-15/M4 type rifles with carbine gas systems will astound you with their reliability and shootability.

via The Big M4 Myth: ‘Fouling caused by the direct impingement gas system makes the M4/M4A1 Carbine unreliable.

DTG writing at American Partisan also discusses AR builds, and we’ve seen some good ones come our way.

But I’ll also say that I’ve seen some very bad ones (when I say “seen,” I mean I’ve witnessed the failures first hand when a friend tried his build).  I’ve seen builds that couldn’t get through a magazine without two or three FTF / FTE.  I think this mainly had to do with mixing and matching of parts with the head space not being properly checked (although we suspected it could have been the choice of gas block location).

Colt, with its reliance of military contracts, had begun to have QA problems by the end of their contract, maybe before.  This is so well known as to go without question.  It doesn’t surprise me that guys were having to make modifications and work their M4s/ARs hard to keep them in working order.

But one thing I get with a completed “system” from a reputable manufacturer is tolerance QA and parts compatibility.  Replacing a BCG is nice, but if you don’t check head space, it might not work right.  Either way, relying on Rock River Arms and Daniel Defense (like I do) means that it works straight out of the box, continues to work, and is highly reliable.

I’ll also say a few words about two more things.  First of all, there has been a proliferation of articles on the Army and Marine Corps jettisoning the 5.56mm round in favor of 6.5 Creedmoor, the 7.62mm round for the .300 Win Mag (for DM guns), and a host of other changes.  Some of this will happen (e.g., the MC adoption of the 300 Win Mag), and some will not.  For a whole host of reasons that would take too long to explain, I think it’s highly unlikely that the entire Army or MC adopts 6.5 Creedmoor and throws away the 5.56mm round.  Some of that is just hype and propaganda for the purpose of attention and money.

On the other hand, I’ve never recommended that anyone make the 5.56mm round their only choice of caliber, and everyone should have a bigger bore gun.  If the Army or MC does use 5.56mm less, that’s good for me because it means less competition for ammunition and [hopefully] cheaper prices.  Regular readers know that I’ll never jettison my 5.56mm guns.  They’re too good, too reliable, too pleasant to shoot, and too easy on regaining sight picture from low recoil for me to consider anything else for CQB up to several hundred yards.  If your AR isn’t as reliable as mine are (I’ve never had a FTF / FTE in tens of thousands of rounds and wouldn’t know how to work a forward assist if I had to because I’ve never had to), you need new ARs or you need to work them as described above.  Don’t go budget or “rack” AR.  Spend a little more and get something with good QA and reliable.

Finally, I’ve noted before (comments section) that I don’t like piston guns or dicking around with Stoner’s design.

(1) Piston-device for AR pattern rifles: A stupid, unnecessary, additional failure mode for a gun that does nothing but add weight to the front end of the gun, virtually ensuring that after eight hours of room clearing ops and CQB, the shooter can no longer hold the weapon upright because of the stupidity of the design.

(2) AK pattern guns: A rifle design for conscripts who don’t give a shit about their equipment and refuse to clean it or care for it, that doesn’t shoot very accurately (minute of man rather than minute of angle).

(3) AR pattern guns: Guns made by engineers, for engineers, machinists, gunsmiths, mechanics and professional soldiers who care about precision, fine machines and accuracy (and don’t want to listen to the constant rattling of the poorly made AKs when they shoot them).

(4) Genesis chapter 2: Man is fallen, and it affects the entire universe.

(5) Second law of thermodynamics (based on number 4 above): Entropy always increases. Things get dirty and break. That means pistons in AKs too. People who refuse to acknowledge the 2nd Law also refuse to care for their guns, refuse to clean them, refuse to change parts, and throw their guns around like they are shovels.

Anyone who thinks that a machine can be made that doesn’t break or doesn’t corrode or doesn’t rust or doesn’t need to be maintained, coated, cleaned and replaced is an idiot who doesn’t believe in science. This includes conscripts who want a gun that they don’t need to work on.

Like my son tells me, if you work it, the AR is an exquisite weapon based on an exquisite design.

I’ve got many AR run-to-break and stress test videos linked, but I don’t need to see any of them.  My guns have never failed me.  I also don’t believe in throwing my guns around and abusing them.  I’m a thinking man.  I believe in entropy.

On one occasion a seller was putting a gun back in it’s case for me, and I asked him to use Rem Oil and spray it down.  “It’s Aluminum – it doesn’t rust,” he said.  I replied, “True enough, but Aluminum does corrode, which is a different failure mode, and my hands and your hands have salts on them.  Now, spray the gun down before you box it back up.”

Because I believe in thermodynamics.  Machines don’t run forever without breaking or needing maintenance, and if this fact causes you to conclude that the AR (or any other machine) isn’t any good, then you need to go back and read Genesis Chapter 2.

Via Codrea, we learn a lot about Michael Diamond from his confession.

Most Americans would be surprised, for example, at how little time military personnel in particular spend with their weapons over the course of a career. Apart from firing on highly structured firing ranges or routine maintenance, access to your weapon on base is rare. Military Police provide security, so soldiers move about the base unarmed. There’s a reason for this: In the military, anything that reduces accidents, homicides or suicides isn’t put up for a vote. It’s a requirement.

The military’s strict rules on weapon and ammunition access can apply to wartime as well, as my own experience demonstrates. In 1991, I was a military intelligence officer in the U.S. Army Reserve. My unit was mobilized and sent to Fort Bragg, N.C. Shortly before boarding a plane to Saudi Arabia I was issued my M16 along with several magazines of live ammunition.

Although I had fired countless live rounds over the years on various military weapons ranges, it’s a different feeling when you’re issued live ammunition before heading to a combat zone. This time it was real.

After a 16-hour trip — most of which I spent sitting on the hood of a truck with my back against the windshield trying to stay warm — we emerged into the intense desert heat. Because of the ear-splitting noise of departing jets we quickly inserted hearing protection, and then surrendered our ammunition.

That’s right. Once we arrived in an operational war zone, one of the first things the U.S. Army did was take our ammunition away.

Eventually, my unit moved north toward Kuwait, where we were re-issued ammunition just before the start of the ground war. Several weeks later, after successfully completing our mission in Kuwait City, we were re-routed to northern Iraq to address the Kurdish refugee crisis. On arrival, we once again surrendered our ammunition.

These military safety requirements are a stark contrast to civilian U.S. gun laws. Where the military requires background checks before a service member is allowed anywhere near a live weapon, the majority of U.S. states allow private gun sales without a background check. Where military personnel are trained to take a weapon away from a soldier who poses an extreme risk to himself or others, most states do not have laws enabling law enforcement or loved ones to do the same.

Compared to the weapons training that military and law enforcement personnel undergo, the training required of civilian gun owners is a joke — if it exists at all.

[ … ]

And where military and law enforcement undergo extensive training on how to make the right shooting decision quickly while under extreme stress, civilians receive no such training, contributing to avoidable deaths arising from poor decisions and petty disputes. In this context, the National Rifle Association’s favorite slogan about good guys with guns defeating bad guys with guns is more naive myth than solution.

It’s crucial that veterans now bring our voice and experience to the national conversation about reasonable gun reform. As a group, we understand guns and appreciate that responsible gun ownership is an important part of American life — but we also understand that a safe environment is achieved through training and regulation.

There’s a whole lot he isn’t telling you.  First of all, one of the main reasons crime is so low on military installations is that it is extremely hard now to get on board a federal reservation.  I saw this beginning when Daniel was in the Marine Corps, and while highly difficult at first, it was nearly impossible towards the end of his time in the Corps to get on board at Camp Lejeune.  They guard their borders, unlike some countries I know.  Do you understand what I’m saying?  They guard their borders.  No one gets in who doesn’t belong there.

Second, he isn’t dumb.  He’s a highly intelligent man, and what he knows and isn’t saying is that his recommended trust in the police (he says “Military Police provide security, so soldiers move about the base unarmed”) is completely misplaced.  Warren v. D.C. and Castle Rock v. Gonzalez is all the evidence you need to rightly conclude that there is no legal obligation of protection by any police, whether civilian or military.

Third, we shouldn’t have to suffer the claptrap from someone like Diamond when one of the most storied gun battles ever fought by the NYPD involved discharging 84 rounds at a single shooter, and missing with 83 of them.  Folks, I don’t know any cops named Doug Koenig.  Like all collectivists, Diamond turns LEOs into superhuman heroes.

Fourth, we shouldn’t have to listen to the know-it-all attitude from Diamond anyway.  I sent this article to my former Marine, Daniel, and he responded rather harshly.  “He’s openly admitting that he’s a POG and has absolutely no experience in weapons handling or shooting, much less actual combat.  He’s a dipshit.  He has it all wrong about who and what is dysfunctional [he could point the finger of blame at homes being wrecked by government agencies that contribute to the breakdown of home life, but doesn’t].  Furthermore, the guy is a coward.”

I thought about that some, and concluded that my son is right.  Diamond is a coward.  He’s recommending that I rely less on weapons for personal security, but refusing to provide that personal security by standing as armed guard in my home.  Also recall what I’ve said about men who write cantankerous prose without giving you a chance to weigh in with comments and email directly back to them.

Whatever you think of me and my writing, you can always send me nasty emails.  I won’t ignore them.  Sometimes I’ll even highlight them and publish them on the web site.  You can also disagree with my remarks in your own comments.  You won’t hurt my feelings.  Diamond gives you no such option, and doesn’t relinquish his email address.

What we do learn about him, other than being a coward, is that he is a traitor.  He took an oath to uphold the constitution, and now refuses to do just that.  He never believed in his oath to begin with.  He is of the same class as Stanley McChrystal and David Petraeus, both gun controllers.  Nothing he says can be trusted, nothing he does can be relied upon.

Avoid being around such men.  Turn your back on them.  Excommunicate them from your fellowship, not just because you have a disagreement with them, but because they are liars, one and all.

ABC Australia:

A hand grenade has been used to target a notorious family in a troubling escalation of gang violence in Melbourne’s north-west.

It is the first time a hand grenade explosion has been investigated in the state’s history, Victoria Police believe, underlining the fears of senior officers that underworld figures are increasingly accessing military-grade weapons.

A mother and her infant child were sleeping in a front room of the Tiba family’s Lalor house only metres away from the blast on November 19 last year.

The grenade, an M52 manufactured in the former Yugoslavia, is understood to have bounced off the house and detonated between the property and the nature strip.

A front window in the house was shattered and two cars parked on the street were significantly damaged in the explosion. No-one was injured.

The ABC has delayed reporting on the attack at the request of police.

It is unclear how the grenade was brought into Australia, or how many may be in circulation.

Hey wait a minute!  Isn’t this the land of draconian weapons control?  This simply can’t be.  You mean criminals will get weapons regardless of the law?  You mean prohibition doesn’t really work after all?

lehighvalleylive.com:

If Congress won’t close the “ghost gun” loophole — and that prospect seems unlikely, even with popular demand running high for common-sense gun restrictions — state legislatures must lead the way.

Ghost guns are rifles, shotguns or handguns that can be purchased legally, usually on the internet, and assembled at home. No registration or background check necessary — and no serial numbers. These weapons are a favored source of untraceable guns for criminals. They’re also a hit with many law-abiding gun enthusiasts and hobbyists.

Ghost guns have been used in single and mass killings across the country. The sales of these parts and kits can be banned outright — the New Jersey Legislature is considering this possibility now — but this can be a difficult flow to track.

At the least, gun kits should be regulated as other firearms are, requiring that sellers conduct background checks to ensure buyers are free of criminal records and mental health/domestic abuse restrictions. Gun components sold in kits should be identified by serial numbers. Sellers should be licensed.

Last week people in the Lehigh Valley learned through a local example how ghost guns can be obtained by felons.

Lehigh County District Attorney James Martin announced that a state trooper had been justified in shooting and killing an armed man, Aaron Ibrahem, in an Allentown-area Walmart in March. Martin said the weapon that prompted the trooper’s fire had been bought in parts and assembled by Ibrahem, even though he was prohibited by a criminal record from buying or possessing a gun.

Martin said Ibrahem was able to buy a serial-numbered slide/barrel, also known as an upper, for a Glock .40-caliber handgun, and then attached it a frame/receiver, or a lower, to make it functional.

“Ironically, this integral part of the pistol may be purchased legally on the internet (eBay) without scrutiny — no ATF form required,” Martin wrote. “It is not considered to be a firearm.”

The horror!  You can buy a barrel on the internet.  A barrel, for crying out loud?  A rifled tube of steel with a barrel lug!

If it wasn’t so amusing that someone thinks this is somehow complex manufacturing, it would be sad.  And I suppose it is sad that these folks know close to nothing about tool and die work, machinery, manufacturing processes, or metallurgy.

The editorial does essentially nothing except testify to the disconnectedness of people who write editorials with the great unwashed America who actually earns a living by the sweat of their brow, ingenuity, hard work, tenacity and patience.

From several readers, Dave Holmes writing at Esquire:

Anyway, I just wanted to drop you a line and let you know that I now actually do want to take your guns.

All of your guns.

Right now.

I’m concerned about a great many things in life, but not this.  Dave Holmes is going to take my guns?  Really?  This Dave Holmes?

Oh, and it looks like several folks have responded to poor Dave.

You cannot trust everyone to read past a punchy headline. That’s why plenty of people—plenty—ran right to their keyboards to say: “You’re taking my guns? You’ll get them bullets first.” I would also accept—and did, oh my God, so many times:

• “Go ahead and try, the streets will be awash in blood.”
• “Good luck confiscating all those guns yourself, really hope you don’t get murdered by law abiding citizens lol.”
• “Molon Labe.” (I’d never heard this one before, and it appears to be the gun lobby’s version of “Bazinga.”)
• Lots of memed-up screenshots from Tombstone and Deadwood, which, if you’re trying to convince me that 2018 America is not the Wild West, are less than encouraging.

This is not a problem that’s endemic to one side of one issue, by the way. Plenty of people of all political persuasions will get worked up over a headline and develop an opinion instead of reading the piece. But in my experience, only gun-rights activists will do this and then add that they’re going to shoot you.

Welcome to thunderdome, boy.  Hey, you’re the one who wanted to run with the big dogs.