On the Passing of a Family Member and Firearms
I morn the passing of my mother in law, Carolyn. She passed very unexpectedly last Friday from a heart attack. Is is survived by four children, 13 grandchildren and 2 greatgrandchildren. She is to be burried in Covington, LA on Wednesday. She will be sorely missed. Although we didn't have a lot in common other than my wife and three grandchildren she was an easy person to like. She had a great love of horses and for all living things. May she rest in peace.
Despite her decidedly liberal tendancies and disdain for the NRA, I learned today that she infact had a Concelled Carry Weapons permit and was armed nearly everytime she left the house. Amazing. My wife and I have talked on occasion about her getting a permit. Although we live in a state where thankfully the state allow you to exercise your second amendment rights with minimal interference from the state, I still would like her to take the course and get the paper if for no other reason than ensure her confidence. In all honesty I could probably do just fine teaching her if she wasn't my wife. And she wasn't left handed. And she wasn't so hard headed (some times). But I do probably have some habits that I might pass along. The local range offers courses a few time a year if there is sufficient demand. A "supportive environment" is the popular term.
What brought this interest in firearms on was an incident with a friend of ours. Apparently they had an attempted break in at their house while she was at home with her small children. She dutifully summed the law enforcement. She managed to scare the would be burglar off while awaiting the arrival of the troopers. Something like 20 minutes later the State Trooper arrived which as they told her, was a very short response time. These aren't people that live in the bush, but never the less fairly remote. We are even more remote with our nearest neighbor is only a hundred yards away or so but, he is very hard of hearing; other neighbors aren't even visible except for night in the winter months when the foliage is down. The fact that we live in an isolated area makes the potential unnoticed break-ins much higher.
The second reason for firearms is the possibility of bears. So far we haven't been the victim of a bear ransaking our trash but it can happen. My .300 winchester magnum is more than a match of a bear but it is a little awkward hauling it out everytime I take the trash to the barrels or up to the road for collection. So I am shopping for a bear gun. The Alaska standard is the Ruger .44 magnum; the more affluent opt for the S&W 629 or mountain gun. The more manly Alaskan might choose the .454 Casull. There are other revolvers to be sure but you really can't beat a .44 in bear country. Buds Gun Shop (www.budsgunshop.com) has a 629 listed at $604 which is much better than even Wally World but by the time I pay transfer fees it would be more than a wash.
One of the better writers about firearms and firearms related issues is Kim Du Toit (www.theothersideofkim.com). Kim has an encyclopedic knowledge of firearms and is a very practical source of information.
Despite her decidedly liberal tendancies and disdain for the NRA, I learned today that she infact had a Concelled Carry Weapons permit and was armed nearly everytime she left the house. Amazing. My wife and I have talked on occasion about her getting a permit. Although we live in a state where thankfully the state allow you to exercise your second amendment rights with minimal interference from the state, I still would like her to take the course and get the paper if for no other reason than ensure her confidence. In all honesty I could probably do just fine teaching her if she wasn't my wife. And she wasn't left handed. And she wasn't so hard headed (some times). But I do probably have some habits that I might pass along. The local range offers courses a few time a year if there is sufficient demand. A "supportive environment" is the popular term.
What brought this interest in firearms on was an incident with a friend of ours. Apparently they had an attempted break in at their house while she was at home with her small children. She dutifully summed the law enforcement. She managed to scare the would be burglar off while awaiting the arrival of the troopers. Something like 20 minutes later the State Trooper arrived which as they told her, was a very short response time. These aren't people that live in the bush, but never the less fairly remote. We are even more remote with our nearest neighbor is only a hundred yards away or so but, he is very hard of hearing; other neighbors aren't even visible except for night in the winter months when the foliage is down. The fact that we live in an isolated area makes the potential unnoticed break-ins much higher.
The second reason for firearms is the possibility of bears. So far we haven't been the victim of a bear ransaking our trash but it can happen. My .300 winchester magnum is more than a match of a bear but it is a little awkward hauling it out everytime I take the trash to the barrels or up to the road for collection. So I am shopping for a bear gun. The Alaska standard is the Ruger .44 magnum; the more affluent opt for the S&W 629 or mountain gun. The more manly Alaskan might choose the .454 Casull. There are other revolvers to be sure but you really can't beat a .44 in bear country. Buds Gun Shop (www.budsgunshop.com) has a 629 listed at $604 which is much better than even Wally World but by the time I pay transfer fees it would be more than a wash.
One of the better writers about firearms and firearms related issues is Kim Du Toit (www.theothersideofkim.com). Kim has an encyclopedic knowledge of firearms and is a very practical source of information.
posted by Biligaana at 8:26 PM
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