Colonel Dan, SASS #24025

LL, When you look at what's going on now in many of our large cities, we're already in a limited civil war. If Trump wins, you can bet there will be increased violence which will entail firearms. How far it escalates is anyone's guess. Like you, I don't foresee an 1860's style civil war but hot pockets of extreme armed violence is the kind of factional civil war I see on our doorstep. Again, just the view from my foxhole...

My personal belief is that we are closer to civil war today than at anytime since the 1850's and 60's. I sincerely pray that I'm wrong. I don't want to see anything in this country like what I've seen in several worn torn countries. No sane people will ever want the "hell on earth" that war brings. Just the view from my foxhole....

Just FYI.....For anyone interested in buying this brand new offering from Glock chambered in 22LR and installing a laser sight, be aware that Crimson Trace doesn't yet have one advertised specifically for the G44. However, I researched this and found that the G44 runs the same frame as the G19. Given that, I took a chance and ordered the LG436 laser site that was originally designed for the G19 and a few other Glocks. It arrived yesterday and I installed it on my G44....it fits perfectly!

How many reports have we heard about killings in churches where most if not all, were or are unarmed? ANY PLACE that is declared a "Gun Free Zone" becomes a targeted and most preferred killing zone by those who are so inclined. It just makes sense. If you were planning on inflicting carnage, where would you most likely target; those areas where many are most likely armed or areas where they are unarmed? It doesn't take a high IQ to figure that out. http://www.darkcanyon.net/Common Sense Doesnt Require Statistics.htm

Having accumulated so many other guns over the years, I never saw a real need for a personal AR15 type rifle since retiring from the Army. However, I recently rethought my position given the current events unfolding across our country. I did the necessary research and decided on an FN...they make the M4 and M249 for the Army which are in my mind, the best small arms for soldiers we've ever had. The FN15 DMR II ( Designated Marksman Rifle) had some of the best reviews and the right specs for my purpose. Its design, build, and function were the same as those rifles I used for so many years! It was like coming home to familiar territory. I then saw where the DMR II was on sale at my local gun store for $600 off the MSRP. I walked into the store, told them what I wanted, showed them my driver's license and CCW, filled out the paperwork and gave them my VISA card. A grand total of 25 minutes later, I walked out with my new rifle, (4) 30 round magazines and 500 rounds of 5.56 ammunition. Obviously, I'd prefer that a CCW wasn't required but given what I've seen in too many other states, I'll reluctantly accept the reality of it...for now. Having said that, a relatively gun friendly state like mine is the way I feel it should be all over the US. But as I always say, that's just the view from my foxhole!

SASS Alias: Colonel Dan SASS# 24025 From: Central Florida Cowboy Action Shooting: 20 years

More on the good news front! Continue to soldier on my friends... CD ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dear Colonel Dan: I want to thank you for your activism earlier this week. After I asked you to contact your Representative in opposition to Obama's Social Security Gun Ban, the House took action this week. And the results were fantastic! I must say that having lived in the DC area for the past several decades -- and having endured Obama's oppressive regime for the last eight years -- the past month has been a breath of fresh air. Donald Trump and the Republican Congress are moving swiftly to reverse Barack Obama's vile anti-gun legacy of executive actions. Trump is apparently spreading out his executive orders over a longer period of time so that each executive order can be featured in a separate news cycle. But one thing which is already happening is Congress' effort to repeal Obama's Social Security Gun Ban. Because that action was promulgated as a formal rule, it can be most easily repealed by a congressional resolution -- passed under the Congressional Review Act. This act allows the Senate to repeal the rule by a simple majority vote, without the possibility of a filibuster. Social Security Gun Ban is Built on the Stinking Carcass of Gun Control You might remember that the Social Security Gun Ban was finalized in December. It was issued in a purported effort to implement the NICS Amendments Improvement Act of 2007 -- legislation also known as the Veterans Disarmament Act, which was vigorously opposed by Gun Owners of America. Under the Veterans Disarmament Act, over 257,000 law-abiding veterans have lost their Second Amendment rights, merely because they sought counseling from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The new Social Security Gun Ban would extend the precedent to disabled persons receiving social security benefits under Supplemental Security Income (SSI). This means, for instance, that the names of those who receive their social security checks through a guardian can now be sent to the NICS gun ban list. In some states, SWAT teams would be sent to their homes to forcibly seize the guns they have. The good news is that the House yesterday passed H.J.Res. 40, to overturn the Social Security Gun Ban. The vote in the Senate, expected next week, would send the resolution to President Trump's desk for signature. The vote in the House was 235-to-180, with only two Republicans voting anti-gun and only 6 Democrats voting pro-gun. ("Aye" was the pro-gun vote and can be viewed here.) The vote reinforces recent trends in which the Republican Party has increasingly become the "pro-gun" party in America, and the Democrats, increasingly the "anti-gun" party. We're optimistic that the Senate will approve the House-passed measure by a largely party-line vote. (S.J.Res. 14 is an identical version introduced by Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley.) Under the special Congressional Review Act procedures, this majority vote will be enough to send the measure to President Trump's desk. So please urge your Senators to vote for H.J.Res. 40/S.J.Res. 14 -- legislation to overturn the Social Security Gun Ban. Sincerely, Larry Pratt Executive Director Emeritus

President Trump hit a home run with this nomination. It's now squarely in the hands of Mitch McConnell to do whatever it takes to get this good man confirmed--including extending the "Nuclear Option" that Harry Reid first imposed, to include Supreme Court nominees! I suggest pressuring your Senators to push McConnell in that direction. This is extremely important for all gun owners--get involved. http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2017/01/31/trump-scotus-nominee-2nd-amendment-protects-individual-right/

I always have one with me..especially in places I can't carry...like airplanes...no one ever challenges it anywhere I go. Where I can carry, I certainly do and look at the cane as my first line of defense. Like was mentioned above, in the proper hands a cane can be a formidable self defense weapon. I highly recommend that if your considering this route do it right and get the training on how to effectively employ it in a threatening situation. If you don't, you may find yourself on the receiving end after its been forcibly taken from you. I've had just such training. It was very enjoyable as well as very valuable. Then as with all skills, practice, practice, practice. Just the view from my foxhole. A side note: I bought a stock cane from Tractor Supply for less than $20. It's a one inch thick piece of solid oak. I cut it to fit me for length, lightly sanded it then rubbed it with Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil. Looks good and is extremely effective.

Please join me in congratulating one of our own.... Our Team SASS Deputy Director, Allegiance, aka Joe DeBargalis, has been named Deputy Executive Director of General Operations for the NRA! This a absolutely super news...a great patriot has been duly recognized. The NRA has chosen an authentic top notch winner to fill this important position I salute my friend Allegiance and wish him only the very best.

Please join me in congratulating one of our own.... Our Team SASS Deputy Director, Allegiance, aka Joe DeBargalis, has been named Deputy Executive Director of General Operations for the NRA! This a absolutely super news...a great patriot has been duly recognized. The NRA has chosen an authentic top notch winner to fill this important position I salute my friend Allegiance and wish him only the very best.

Thus far, I'm very encouraged and optimistic about our pro-gun future! CD ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In one of the first pro-gun actions of his administration, President Donald Trump is expected to shortly move to revoke Barack Obama's illegal actions to effectively outlaw gun collecting. Obama's anti-gun "executive action" was announced on January 6, 2016 -- in the wake of Obama's unsuccessful attempt to scapegoat law-abiding gun owners for the actions of a Muslim terrorist in San Bernardino. Obama's action was implemented as a "clarification" because he knew that his lawless moves could never pass muster under the rule-making procedures of the Administrative Procedures Act. Under Obama's now-moribund "clarification," a gun owner could have been imprisoned for up to five years and fined $250,000 for "only one or two [firearms] transactions," according to a White House fact sheet. Note that, under Clinton, tens of thousands of licensees lost their licenses because they didn't have "brick-or-mortar" stores. Now, in a Clinton/Obama Mutt-and-Jeff routine, Obama proposed to imprison hobbyists who didn't have licenses because the government refused to issue licenses to them. Hence, a hobbyist who bought a firearm one day and sold it the next day at a profit could go to prison for five years. Obviously, the intent was to create such a cloud of ambiguity that gun owners would refrain from constitutionally protected activity (private firearms sales), for fear that they would run afoul of Obama's amorphous rules. Tragically, in some cases, Obama's unlawful actions had exactly the intended effect. But, thanks to President Donald Trump, Obama's unlawful action will soon be repealed -- as one of the priority actions of the incoming administration. Gun Owners of America is optimistic that this is only the first in a series of Trump actions overturning illegal Obama actions. We are also asking for Trump administration action: Removing the U.S. from the Anti-Gun UN Arms Trade Treaty; Repealing bullet and gun import bans going from Obama back to George H. W. Bush's semi-auto import ban; Repealing the suspension of health privacy laws with respect to gun owners; Repealing executive actions encouraging doctors to inquire about gun ownership and to enter this information into a federal health database; Restoring gun rights for 257,000 law-abiding veterans; Repealing Obama's efforts to strip Social Security recipients of their guns, merely because a guardian processes their checks. The work of restoring the Second Amendment to its God-given status has only just begun. But the important thing is that it has begun. Sincerely, Tim Macy Chairman

GG, Thank you for asking! I have exchanged emails with Misty and she is considering this. In the mean time, complete Chronicle editions are archived on the SASS website and you can access my articles that way. Soldier on...

Once again, I backed the wrong horse in this race. Just as I did in 1985, I was hoping for and backing the Glock but the Sig is a great pistol also. My final hope is for a .45 not the 9mm but that's just the view from my foxhole... http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2017/01/20/army-picks-sig-sauers-p320-handgun-to-replace-m9-service-pistol.html

Florida's first district is well represented! I sense a new awakening in America...and it begins in earnest on Friday. It will be up to us to keep this going my friends. Saddle up with Team SASS! CD ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.pnj.com/story/opinion/2017/01/17/rep-gaetz-second-amendment-negotiable/96686296/ Rep. Gaetz: Second Amendment not negotiable Congressman Matt Gaetz 3:54 p.m. CT Jan. 17, 2017 Liberal activist John Cork asks in a recent column, “Who is Matt Gaetz Protecting?” The answer: Gun owners and our Constitution. Some on the left believe the Second Amendment is negotiable, flexible – even forgettable. I don’t – and Andy Marlette’s cartoons provide the evidence. Our founders understood that America’s strength comes from empowering citizens, not government. In the words of Thomas Jefferson, “Laws that forbid the carrying of arms…disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes.... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man" (quoting 18th century criminologist Cesare Beccaria). Jefferson’s words ring true today – especially given increasing violence in society. When Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and Michael Bloomberg called for a repeal of Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, I proudly stood up to them. We didn’t weaken Stand Your Ground, we made it even stronger to protect those under attack. As a state legislator, I championed open gun carry in Florida. Forty-Five states allow open carry in some form. States that allow open carry have 23% less violent crime, fewer murders and fewer aggravated assaults. The numbers don’t lie – which is likely why Mr. Cork didn’t cite any. Congress can do more to restore the rights of law-abiding gun owners. Today, when a Florida conceal carry permit holder travels to Alabama, Georgia or any other state, they cannot carry absent duplicative permitting. I’ve joined Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC) introducing national conceal carry reciprocity legislation. In our state, conceal carry permit holders are remarkably law-abiding citizens. In fact, they are eight times less likely to commit crimes than members of law enforcement. We hope to pass this bill soon. Mr. Cork writes, “There are numerous effective strategies that reduce the odds of the mentally ill obtaining firearms. The NRA and Rep. Gaetz oppose them all.” That is a lie. And I can prove it. No person should be able to walk out of a mental institution and return to an arsenal. In 2013, I was Criminal Justice Chairman in the Florida House of Representatives. We worked with Democrats, Republicans, the NRA and others to pass HB 1355. According to nonpartisan analysis, this law prohibits the sale or delivery of firearms to someone “adjudicated mentally defective” or who has been “committed to a mental institution.” That’s just commonsense. Perhaps Mr. Cork should take better aim of the facts before publishing fake news. For eight years President Obama has blamed law-abiding gun owners for the tragic events caused by a disturbed few. In Northwest Florida, we proudly “cling to our guns and bibles.” We always will. And if anyone ever wonders who I am protecting by supporting the Second Amendment, it just may be you or your family. Because, in America, you always have the right to protect yourself. Congressman Matt Gaetz represents the First District of Florida. He serves on the Armed Services, Budget and Judiciary Committees and lives in Fort Walton Beach.