Editorial

[IMGCAP(1)]In this space, I usually stick with discussions of politics or gun ownership that apply to broad audiences. This month is a departure from that formula, because of the unique nature of a stolen gun thats just come to light. That this priceless gun is one of a kind isnt so newsworthy; expensive firearms are stolen from individuals every day, here and abroad. No, this gun was stolen from a manufacturer, which itself is curious. And that the thief cherry-picked this specific item from among thousands is confounding as well. Heres the full story:

SIGARMS Inc. is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the individuals responsible for the theft and the...

Gun Tests reader Ben Shaw of Clarke County, Alabama, wrote me the day after the Clinton Gun Ban expired. His comments on the ban, the banners, and various talking heads on television parallel my own. I think youll enjoy reading what he had to say.

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The reason that gun experts laugh at these anti-gun legislators and lobbyists is that they do not know anything about firearms. An example: One of the features that was banned as causing a rifle to be an Assault Weapon was a bayonet lug. Will anyone please tell me when a bayonet mounted on a rifle was used in a crime?

How does one detect these ignorant anti-gun legislators and lobbyists? By knowing the proper terminology,...

JOHN KERRYS GUN-VOTING RECORD

According to the National Rifle Associations Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), John F. Kerrys voting record makes him the most anti-gun presidential nominee in United States history. NRA records show that since his election to the U.S. Senate in 1984, Kerry has cast 59 votes (NRA did not score 4 of them) on issues involving firearms rights and hunting.

In addition, Kerry currently is a co-sponsor of S. 1431, which would ban all semi-automatic shotguns, all detachable-magazine semi-automatic rifles and many other guns, calling the whole lot assault weapons.

In a 20-year career, Kerry has voted on nine separate occasions on issues...

It should come as no surprise to U.S. gunowners that much-ballyhooed gun-control efforts in Canada have failed to control crime since a new gun-registration program was started. Also, the registration programs costs have gone beyond the $1-billion mark, or more than 500 times what was originally earmarked.

As a measure of registrations failure, the Canadian government recently admitted it could not identify a single violent crime that had been solved through registration. But rather than scrapping the measure, some Canadian politicians may want to travel southward into the United States and impose the scheme here! This radical solution advocates going across the border to the U.S. and a...

Accidental gun deaths do claim childrens lives, but they are much rarer than you might think. During 2000 there were 37 accidental gun deaths for children under 10 in the U.S. In 1999 there were 31, and only six of these cases actually involved a child firing the gun. From 1995 to 1999, the entire United States saw only between five and nine cases a year where a child under ten either accidentally shot themselves or another child.

With more than 90 million adults owning a gun and almost 40 million children under 10, it is hard to think of almost any other potentially dangerous products kept in American homes that have as few accidental deaths associated with them. Over 1,260 children und...

This issue was just so packed with gun and other equipment reviews, I ran out of space for Short Shots. Herewith, then, is an abridged version for this month:

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GUN COMPANIES WELCOME. The legislature in Oklahoma has passed an invitation for gun makers to open manufacturing facilities in what The Daily Oklahoman calls this gun friendly state. An editorial describes the joint resolution from the Senate this way: The resolution notes that firearm manufacturers have plants in places that are hostile to gun ownership. Why not move here? Lawmakers have asked the Commerce Department to develop incentives to attract weapons makers. Murray State College, the resolution says...

OF AWARDS, GUNS, AND COOL CARS
At Gun Tests, theres only one award that ultimately makes a lot of difference to us, and thats your subscription. If you or a friend subscribe, and later renew, because you like our special brand of call-it-like-we-see-it product reviews, then weve done our job.

Still, I occasionally enter Gun Tests work in contests, mainly to get what I call a fresh read on the execution of the material. Having other professionals backstop our work can show me holes in what we do, and perhaps show me how to make the magazine better.

In March, I attended the Texas Outdoor Writers Association (TOWA) annual meeting in the friendly southwest Texas town of Uva...

Seven states now ban certain types of semi-automatic guns, and there has been a federal ban on certain semi-automatic guns since 1994. Gun-control advocates ominously predict that eliminating the ban will result in a surge in police killings or, as Sen. Carl Levin claims, a rise in gun crimes.

Yet, despite the rhetoric, there is not a single academic study showing that these bans have reduced violent crime. Even research funded by the Justice Department under the Clinton administration concluded merely that the bans impact on gun violence has been uncertain.

The 1994 federal assault-weapons ban applied to semi-automatics that fire one bullet per pull of the trigger. Rebuilding semi-...

Ohio Licensing Begins April 9
Ohio Gov. Bob Taft has signed legislation giving law-abiding and mentally competent Ohioans the right to carry concealed handguns.

The law will take effect April 9. Work already has started on the application forms and other material that county sheriffs will need to process applications and issue licenses.

Still, it could be as long as 60 days after the bill takes effect before Ohioans can start applying for licenses. When licenses do become available, sheriffs should brace themselves for a flurry of applications, if recent experience in Michigan is any guide.

Michigan revised its concealed-carry law in 2001, and the state received 62,902...

FIREARMS EXPERT CONVICTED. An antique weapons expert was convicted in December for his role in conspiring to inflate the prices of two historic pistols that he and another man sold to a wealthy collector, prosecutors said.

Michael Zomber, of Franklin, Tenn., was found guilty of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Goldman. He faces up to five years in prison under sentencing guidelines.

Zomber and Richard Ellis, a respected expert on Colt pistols, deceived a Pennyslvania collector, James Murphy, into thinking that he was in a bidding war for two pistols once owned by Texas Rangers Capt. Samuel H. Walker, prosecutors said. The guns, a pair...

GOOD ECONOMIC NEWS ON THE WAY?
Three different news bits supplied by the National Shooting Sports Foundation points to 2004 being a strong year for firearms activity. To wit:

• When the Justice Department audited National Instant Check System purchases during an 80-day period last year to ascertain how many potential firearm purchases were made by women, it found that roughly 12 percent of gun buyers are women. Translated into unit sales, that means females purchased about 1 million of the estimated 8 million long guns and handguns expected to be sold in 2003.That number comes directly from the question about the gender of the buyer on the BATF Form 4473.

• To...

DASCHLE PROTECTS GUN RIGHTS? You know that Democratic politicians have learned that gun-rights advocacy can save their jobs when Senate Minority Leader Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.) moves to protect gun manufacturers and dealers from legal liability when crimes are committed without their knowledge.

The vast majority of gun owners, manufacturers and sellers are honest and law-abiding, Daschle said of his support for the bill. It is wrong-and a misuse of the civil justice system-to try to punish honest, law-abiding people for illegal acts committed by others without their knowledge or involvement.

Daschle submitted an amendment to a current gun-liability law that would clarif...