Editorial

LOCKED AND UNLOADED. Knight-Ridder newspapers have reported that armed National Guard troopers deployed to airports for security following September 11 did not always carry ammunition in their pistols or M16 rifles, though they may have had access to magazines loaded with live rounds. National Guardsmen called up for security remained under the control of their states governor, who determined policy on firearms. According to Guardsmen who served at Philadelphias airport for seven months following the terrorist attacks, the armed soldiers at 16 airports around Pennsylvania were forbidden from patrolling with loaded firearms. The newspapers report that New York Guardsmen were also...

EXPLOSION INJURES CARTER. Ross Carter, a master gunsmith who has advised the Gun Tests staff on handgun and combat-shooting issues, and his companion Diane Hammond, were the victims of an explosion and fire at their North Arkansas home in early June. They were flown to the burn unit at St. Johns Hospital in Springfield, Missouri. At the time of this writing, Carter was in critical condition with third-degree burns over 50% of his body. Hammond was undergoing skin grafts. We consider ourselves lucky to know Carter, and have depended on him for honest, clear assessments of complicated issues regarding firearms design and application. We hope youll remember them in your thoughts and...

Ohio Court Says Concealed Gun Ban Unconstitutional. A three-judge panel of an Ohio appellate court has unanimously ruled that a state law barring the carrying of concealed firearms violates its citizens constitutional right to protect themselves. The 1st Ohio District Court of Appeals ruled April 10 that the 75-year-old law was vague and subjective, and effectively prohibits law-abiding citizens from bearing weapons. Ohios Constitution provides that the people have the right to bear arms for their defense and security. The plaintiffs in the case had argued that the state law prevented them from exercising that right. The appeals court decision upholds a ruling earlier this ye...

To improve the speed and efficiency of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft has announced new government initiatives to streamline the approval process as well as to prevent illegal aliens and other prohibited persons from purchasing firearms. Highlights of the announcement include:

• Increased federal assistance to help states update and automate their criminal history files, and also new federal/state efforts for prosecuting those who illegally obtain and sell guns, and prosecuting those who commit crimes with firearms on school grounds.

• Under new NICS rules, the FBI will coordinate with the Immigration and Natu...

Reader Bill Vogel recently had a question that periodically requires explanation. He said:

I have just subscribed and received my first issue. I have a question. I understand what Dont Buy means. But what is the difference between Buy It, Buy, and Conditional Buy?

Buy It and Buy are two ways of saying the same thing. Most often, our rankings take the imperative verb form of a recommendation, such as on page 24 in this issue. There, we write, Springfield Armory MilSpec 1911A1, $682. Buy It. But we could have just as easily have written, Springfield Armory MilSpec 1911A1, $682. We would Buy this gun....

Conditional Buy means there is some condition...

ARMING PILOTS
Youll have to hurry to make a deadline set by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requesting public comments on the issue of airline pilots carrying firearms and flight deck crewmembers carrying less-than-lethal weapons on board commercial aircraft.

Provisions of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA) would authorize the arming of pilots if certain approvals are granted.The deadline for comments is February 14, 2002, and comments must be identified by Docket No. FAA-2001-111229. Comments can be faxed to the Department of Transportation at (202) 267-5075, or can be filed by e-mail through the FAAs Web site at w...

At Gun Tests, we place a great premium on reader feedback. Because were subscription-driven, and not supported by advertising revenue, our readers are our lifeblood, so its important for me to stay plugged in to how our articles are perceived and received.

Thus, it helps me when a reader like Dan Dawley of Stockbridge, Vermont, writes in to comment on how he thinks were delivering the tough, critical product evaluations the GT brands stands for. Heres what he said:

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Greetings. To start off, I would like to thank you for producing a magazine that is one of each months most-looked-forward-to mail deliveries. For years now, I have read [other gun magazines] and will continue...

MCCAIN TO RENEW EFFORT FOR GUN SHOW BILL
U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has announced his intentions to force a Senate vote early next year on legislation that would require criminal background checks on all firearms sold at gun shows. The effort is driven by allegations by gun-control advocates claiming that foreign terrorists can easily obtain firearms from private sellers who are not required under federal law to conduct the checks.McCain, with the backing of Senators Mike DeWine (R-OH), Joe Lieberman (D-CT), and Charles Schumer (D-NY), will likely attach a gun show bill as an amendment to another piece of legislation, probably a homeland security measure, when the Senate con...

In a landmark ruling, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans held October 16 that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the right of individuals to keep and bear arms. The court rejected the arguments of the Clinton administrations Justice Department that the Second Amendment does not apply to individuals but merely recognizes the right of the state to arm its militia.

The case, United States v. Emerson, arose out of a Texas divorce suit in which a restraining order had been issued against the husband, Dr. Timothy Joe Emerson, who was subsequently charged with violating a federal law that prohibits the possession of firearms while under such a...

The events of September 11 are still fresh, and they sting, and even infuriate me. Every day seems to bring a new insult, either the mounting confirmed death toll (which seems to have settled around 6,000), or a new videotaped message from Osama bin Laden.

Beyond the daily irritations, however, more serious factors are at work. For instance, there is a new emphasis on security that Americans will have to live with, primarily at airports. I dont have a problem with that, except that I wont be able to carry my 3-inch Spyderco pocketknife on board airplanes any more. Thats a shame; it was handy for opening packages of crackers.

Since Ill have to put up with inconveniences small and la...

I am still shocked at the images on the television. Terrorists hijacked four airplanes today, September 11, 2001, and crashed two of them into the World Trade Center buildings in Manhattan, and a third into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. A fourth plane went down in western Pennsylvania. Its target, or even if it was part of this coordinated attack, is unknown as I write this.

Certainly we are all saddened by the human toll these attacks have wrought. Public officials in New York City and in Washington wont even hazard a guess yet. However, at the minimum several hundred died on the planes themselves and scores, likely thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, died in the explosions, fires,...

GUN BUYBACKS END. The Bush administration has announced that it will no longer fund a controversial gun-buyback program by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The legality of the program, which was launched by former HUD secretary Andrew Cuomo, was questioned from the start because it diverted federal money earmarked for eliminating illegal drugs from public housing projects.

A preliminary study of the HUD-funded program conducted by a University of Missouri-St. Louis researcher concluded that they are not effective. There is no evidence that they directly reduce gun violence in the form of assaults or gun homicides.

VANGUARD SAFETY UPGRADE. We...