The Wandering Minstrel

I recently came into possession of this nice leather jacket courtesy of a deal from the National Rifle Association. This was one of the premiums they offered with an upgrade to life membership. I got it in a size large enough to be able to conceal Fat Man or Little Boy.

One of these days, the Better Half and I plan to hit the road for a long vacation. We’re going to travel to “flyover country” and have a look around at some of the attractions and drink in the local history, scenery and Americana. Also, I have a personal goal to visit the last two states where I have yet to set foot. This trip will do it.

I figured that since we are going to be in places we’ve never visited, that a good itinerary will be needed. I usually do a plan and use it as a guide and not a strictly disciplined journey. The inset map is for discussion purposes at this point.

Since we’re going to be bringing some of our arsenal for personal protection and possible sport, I further concluded that looking into the local gun regulations for states we may visit would be essential. Using data from the NRA-ILA Gun Laws by State page, I constructed the table below. Since we both have our Utah CCW, I included a column to indicate reciprocity.

Examination of the data in the Transportation Issues column reveals a wide range of things that must be considered while en route and when camping or lodging. Bottom line: we will avoid camping in states with quirky laws and no reciprocity with our CCW.

Disclaimer: The information below the fold should not be used to determine current laws.
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According to Mr. Completely, you should “Get Your Registration and Reservations in ASAP.” They have blocked out rooms for Wednesday the 9th, through Sunday the 13th. Damsel and I have already made our hotel reservations and continue to plan the trip. We’re going to drive from the Los Angeles area and plan to make some touristy stops going and coming.

As for the GBR-IV event, we’re looking forward to meeting other attendees, participating in the events and activities, and, of course, winning one or more of the door prize drawings. Ride Fast and Shoot Straight has a rundown on some of the events and prizes.

A quick update to getting a Nevada CCW permit: We won’t have enough time to get through all the hoops required for a permit - however, we think that open carry may be do-able. I’ll continue to do the research, but this is on the OpenCarry.org website:

Nevada is a traditional open carry state with complete state preemption of firearms laws. However, Clark County (Las Vegas) is grandfathered so as to continue a “Deadly Weapons” registration scheme. Fortunately, Nevada law exempts travelers to and through Nevada from these registration requirements for 60 days.

Open carry seems to be allowed in vehicles and on one’s person as long as the weapon is visible. We’ll continue to evaluate this option.

Cross-posted from Cap’n Bob & the Damsel.

It’s often falsely believed that dialing 911 will instantly bring emergency services to assist. In the case of police response to these calls, you will find that the crime is over and done with before the unit shows up to assist.

Underlying all gun control ideology is this one belief; Private citizens don’t need firearms because the police will protect them from crime. I’m certain that an examination of the following table will lead you to an entirely different conclusion.

Now think about what you can accomplish in eight to eleven minutes. Mow the lawn? Call your Mom? Take a shower? Rob a convenience store? Well, maybe not you, but you get the idea. Stare at the clock for the next eight minutes. It’s a very long time. Looking at the data above for response times in major cities leads me to conclude that being in a remote area would only exacerbate the already dismal response to 911 calls.

The book cover pictured above is from a very good read - “Dial 911 and Die” - the author, Richard Stevens gives these two reasons why dialing 911 is ineffective in protecting citizens from crime:

First, the police cannot and do not protect everyone from crime. Second, the government and the police in most localities owe no legal duty to protect individuals from criminal attack. When it comes to deterring crime and defending against criminals, individuals are ultimately responsible for themselves and their loved ones. Depending solely on police emergency response means relying on the telephone as the only defensive tool. Too often, citizens in trouble dial 911 . . . and die.

I posted about Mr. Stevens’ book back in March of 2008.

UPDATE: Welcome to 2A Roundup readers.

There are a couple of new right-to-carry bills before the California Legislature this session. One of the bills, AB357, would remove discretionary language and make the issuance of a CCW license imperative, rather than at the whim of an activist sheriff like Sheriff Sandra Hutchens or an activist police chief like former Torrance Police Chief Don Nash. These ‘only ones’ as David Codrea calls them, would be obliged to issue CCW permits without regard to their personal judgment.

AB357 would amend Section 12050 of the Penal Code:

SECTION 1. Section 12050 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
12050. (a) (1) (A) The sheriff of a county, upon proof that the person applying is of good moral character, that good cause exists for the issuance, and that the person applying satisfies any one of the conditions specified in subparagraph (D) and has completed a course of training as described in subparagraph (E), may shall issue to that person a license to carry a pistol, revolver, or other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person . . .

Removal of the ‘that good cause exists for the issuance’ language and changing ‘will’ to ’shall,’ enables permits to be issued providing the applicant is compliant with the character and training requirements of the code.

The second bill, AB1167, would establish reciprocity with other states’ concealed carry licenses or permits. This bill would deem persons who have a valid permit or license to carry a concealed handgun issued by another state or a political subdivision of another state to be authorized to carry a concealed handgun pursuant to provisions of California law, as specified. This provision would direct the California Department of Justice to enter into agreements with other states and to regularly publish a list of states with whom an agreement has been made.

AB1167 would add Section 12058 to the Penal Code:

SECTION 1. Section 12058 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
12058. (a) Persons holding a valid permit or license to carry a concealed handgun from any state or a political subdivision of a state shall be deemed a licensee under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 12050. (b) The Department of Justice shall enter into reciprocity agreements with all other states that have the legal authority to enter into those agreements so that licensees under Section 12050 may carry firearms in those states pursuant to the conditions imposed by Section 12050. The department shall each month maintain and publish a list of those states with which this state has established reciprocity.

Both of these bills need support from Californians. Ride Fast and Shoot Straight published contact information for the Legislature and also a list of gun control bills before the California Assembly.

Visit Gun Owners of California for more California resources.

Californians interested in personal protection - do the right thing and contact your legislators.

Click the following links to view AB357 (PDF) and AB1167 (PDF) in their entirety.

UPDATE: Thanks to Liberty Sphere for the mention in the Second Amendment Roundup.

I decided on a Barsony® Holster and GLock 30 combo for CCW. It took some time to become accustomed to the weight and bulk, but I’ll be OK with it.

I have to admit that I was wrong about this. I predicted that Kempthorne and crew would keep the status quo. Today, the Department of the Interior announced their decision to change the rule for CCW on Government Lands, and now, it looks like we will be able to carry on our Winter Cruise.

Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife and Parks Lyle Laverty today announced that the Department of the Interior has finalized updated regulations governing the possession of firearms in national parks and wildlife refuges. The final rule, which updates existing regulations, would allow an individual to carry a concealed weapon in national parks and wildlife refuges if, and only if, the individual is authorized to carry a concealed weapon under state law in the state in which the national park or refuge is located. The update has been submitted to the Federal Register for publication and is available to the public on www.doi.gov.

But wait! There’s more!

Now is the time to start thinking about how we can prevent the Obama Administration from undoing this sensible rule.

UPDATES:

Governor Sarah Palin’s Office on lifting the ban.

Link to the Washington Compost’s accounting of the revised regulations.

Sometime this month, Dick Kempthorne, Secretary of the Interior, is expected to rule on the right to carry in National Parks. My opinion is that there is no question that any citizen anywhere in the country has the right to carry.

Unfortunately, the majority of comments that were received from the public on the proposed rule change, opposed any change at all. I predict that the rule will remain as it is now, thus placing legitimate gun owners and all citizens in jeopardy. As we all know, there are no criminals who will respect the rule. There are no animals who will let you be just because you have no self defense.

From the Tacoma News Tribune:

Decision expected on rule about guns in parks

The Department of the Interior is expected to announce this month its decision regarding changes in rules governing guns in national parks and wildlife refuges.

When he visited Mount Rainier National Park for the Oct. 10 opening of the new Jackson Visitor Center, Interior Secretary Dirk[sic] Kempthorne said the announcement would be made soon.

“We’re going through the process. We anticipated we’d get a lot of responses, and we did,” Kempthorne told The News Tribune.

At the end of April, the department proposed a change that would allow people to carry a concealed firearm in a national park or wildlife refuge if the individual is permitted to carry a concealed weapon and is authorized to do so on similar state lands in the state in which the national park or refuge is located.

The department received 130,000 to 140,000 comments on the proposal, said Chris Paolino, deputy director of communications for the department.