What could possibly go wrong? . . . Robotic security guards: the future of keeping people safe – “As new technologies continue to shape our world, one company hopes to use them to reduce crime. Silicon Valley-based company Knightscope is in Austin this week, talking to Texas businesses about their robotic security guards. The K3 and K5 Autonomous Data Machines utilize cameras, sensors, microphones and GPS technology as they patrol. They’re already on the job in California, being used in malls, hospitals, sporting venues and businesses.”

Reader Colleen asks: “I am planning my spring vacation from work and thought it would be fun to improve my long range shooting skills during that vacation. Where can a girl go with her own Springfield M1A and work to perfect the skills for 1000+ yard shots? The current set up is a basic M1A with the stock iron sights and the Archangel stock although a scope is in the future. I’ve seen a few places that have long range classes but they all provide the rifle and ammo (that’s great but I would like to work with my rifle.) I live in North Carolina and would prefer to travel west so I can see another part of the country though I will choose my airline carefully!” Your thoughts?

Sawed-off rifle among the weapons and drugs police seized in London – “Two men are facing multiple charges related to weapons and drugs following a raid at an east London home. London Police exectued a Controlled Drugs and Substances Act search warrant on Friday at a residence on Mornington Avenue. Police seized just over 1.5 grams of Methamphetamine, a sawed-off .22 calibre rifle, another .22 calibre rifle, a crossbow and an air soft hand gun.” Firearms in the UK? Shirley, you jest.

So the whole Trump-as-motivation-for-arming-up narrative was just fake news? . . . In 2017 women and minorities are buying guns. Here’s why – “These changes fit in with general national trends in gun use and ownership.   The number of concealed handgun permits has soared from about 4.6 million in 2007 to 14.5 million in 2016.  And over the last four years some data indicates that permit-holding has been increasing about 75% more quickly among minorities than among whites.  The number of women with permits has increased twice as quickly as the number of men with permits.”

Washington Post Uses A Gun Trafficker’s Boast To Blame Illegal Guns On Virginia – “Rather than wait for gun-trace data, the Washington Post relied on a boast from a member of a gun-trafficking ring to blame Virginia for illegal guns in New York. ‘So hats off to Virginia lawmakers for their success in making the commonwealth a place that illegal gun traffickers boast is the absolute best place for them to do business,’ WaPo claimed in a March 10 op-ed. WaPo relied on a wiretap that caught one of those arrested bragging, “I can go get 20 guns from the store tomorrow” in Virginia. The fact is that criminals steal guns or buy them on the streets, rather than try to purchase them at retailers or gun shows, where they must pass a background check. Buying a gun for a prohibited person (“straw purchasing”) is also illegal in Virginia.” All’s fair in pursuit of the approved narrative.

We’ve come to expect no less from America’s armpit . . . Legislature Moves to Undo Christie’s Concealed Carry Reforms -“The New Jersey Legislature has moved to undo Governor Christie’s concealed carry reforms that he passed by Executive Order last week. As we mentioned last week, this Executive Order was nothing to get too excited about and we warned that this is exactly what we expected to happen. Despite the fact that all his Executive Order did was allow victims of domestic violence like Carol Bowne a chance to potentially get a permit to carry, the anti self-defense bigots in the Legislature are determined to make sure no one can ever defend themselves with a gun in this state. The last thing they ever want to see in this state is a woman successfully defending herself with a gun from a violent attacker.”

Two civilian disarmament operatives look for glimmers of hope . . . Firing Back at the Gun Lobby – “Together, these rulings underscore the dawning acceptance that the American gun problem goes far beyond bad guys with guns. The twin decisions are major setbacks for the gun lobby, and not only because it has spent 40 years paying “scholars” and lawmakers to support its “guns everywhere, for everyone” agenda and sell more firearms. Six of the judges who rejected the NRA’s arguments were appointed by presidents named Reagan or Bush. Even for conservative jurists, the NRA’s push to monetize the Second Amendment has gone too far.”

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30 COMMENTS

  2. Ahh, don’t we all love the UK? They’re so incredibly anti-gun that their papers feel the need to point out that, in a drug bust, cops seized drugs, firearms, and a freaking AIRSOFT PISTOL. Yes, that last bit is totally relevant and newsworthy. I mean, if it’s a CO2 pistol, it probably chronos at MORE than 300 FPS as measured with standard .2 gram BBs. I mean, in the UK, under 300 is fine. But if it’s 301 FPS? Hoo, boy, we can’t have that, now can we? I mean, can you imagine the sheer carnage if they simply ALLOWED the unwashed masses to own airsoft guns that have a muzzle velocity of MORE THAN 300 FPS? I mean, that would result in nothing less than mild exclamations of “ouch”, err, I mean blood, filling the streets!

  3. Colleen, Rockcastle shooting range in Park City Ky — 1100yd – others for your viewing pleasure “http://www.scout.com/military/snipers-hide/forums/5550-member-link-up/13936333-list-of-shooting-ranges-over-500-yards-sticky-please”

    Enjoy and travel safely.

    • I have never been to Park City but only a few hours further (for me and, probably, for her) is K&M Precision. It is billed primarily as a precision range, but it has all kinds of of ranges for closer shoots. It has multiple 1200y ranges, a 300y and 500y mover, unknown distance range and plenty of things to shoot off of (depending on what you are after). They can teach anything from fast and accurate pistol (with 50y movers) to benchrest. It is a great range with with great instructors. Shannon Kay was an Army (I believe) sniper, Jason Redding was (is) a Marine instructor, then a Memphis PD instructor. If you would prefer a woman instructor, Christine Allen is a distinguished shooter that has helped me often.

      If they don’t have what you are looking for, just wait. I have never been there that they didn’t have something new.

      https://kmprecisionrifletraining.com

  4. I don’t know if the Trump as a motivation thing is true or not.

    What I see from the numbers in the story fits basically two things I’d expect.

    1) People who aren’t internet ninjas or bar tough guys are buying guns to defend themselves. The number of “macho” guys who say “I use my fists” is enormous. I’ve run into quite a number of these guys and it’s a “my balls are bigger than your balls” type of thing that’s generally meant to cover up the fact that they’re poor. Look, I’m not ragging on low income folks but when your idea of a Friday night out on the town is shots of straight Old Crow… well you’ve either got a penchant for nasty whisky or you ain’t got a lot of money. Judging from how they dress and act, I’d guess they’re on the lower end of the socioeconomic scale and basically can’t afford a gun, or at least not one they’d admit to carrying.

    2) People who are in groups that are statistically more likely to be victimized are also more likely to have been victims in the past themselves or to know someone who has been victimized. It’s a logical conclusion that they would seek things to protect themselves.

    As I said on here before, until I lived in a bad neighborhood I didn’t much see the point in handguns other than target pistols with the exception of big bores for bear country. A few weeks in “the ghetto” and I bought a 9mm pistol. Why? Because I saw what was going on around me and didn’t really feel that I wanted what happened to my neighbors to happen to me.

    • If only these poor “macho” plebs knew about the wonders of commie milsurps. You don’t have to have a lot of money to get a workable carry gun, and you don’t have to be a genius to replace ridiculously heavy trigger springs with good Wolff ones.

      • From what I’ve seen of the kind of people I’m talking about I don’t think they stop at dipping Vagasil regular strength anti-itch. [South Park reference].

    • Hey now, don’t rag on old crow. Sure it’s cheap, and sure it’s bad, but for a college student like me who doesn’t get along with vodka (which is the universal college liqour) old crow and other cheap bourbon is a life saver.

      • If you’re on a budget in college, something I understand, go with Ezra Brooks. More taste, less hangover, about a buck a fifth more.

        • I would go for Ezra, but the local shop doesn’t carry it. The bourbon selection skips from old crow to jim beam, and a handle of crow is about the same as a fifth of beam. I haven’t heard of sailor Jerry however, I’ll have to keep an eye out for that.

  6. Colleen: Have you asked Springfield Armory about finding long distance training with the M1A? Perhaps one of the long distance schools would be willing to teach you on your own rifle. The Gunsite Academy in southwestern Arizona (Jeff Cooper’s old school) has several rifle classes for which an M1A would be appropriate.

  7. The important thing about the increase in permits among minorities and women is that they were able to pass background checks. That means guns are getting into the hands of the right people.

    • I’d like to think that part of the reason is the success of Colion Noir’s YouTube channel.
      If it’s not on your feed, it should be.

      • I second that! CN is a good advocate for all, not just minorities. He’s smart, can defend his position from most assaults, and his show is entertaining and informative.

  8. Apparently there are still a few bugs in the system.

    “A young boy was knocked down and run over by a 5-foot-tall, 300-pound security robot at a California mall on Thursday.

    Sixteen-month-old Harwin Cheng suffered a swollen foot and several scrapes in the scary encounter at the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto”

    “The security robots are made by a company called Knightscope, located in Mountain View. The K5 version uses lasers, thermal imaging sensors, 360 video, air quality sensors, a microphone and various other technologies to deter and detect criminal activities. In the event of suspicious activity, the robot alerts local human authorities.”

    http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_57863670e4b03fc3ee4e8f3a

    • I see. So it’s a mobile security camera that does what a low-wage security guard does – observe and report but take no action other than alerting the authorities. Got it. When they get to a K9 model with teeth we can start worrying.

      • The robot should have seen the kid and not run him down. This is the same problem facing self-driving cars and trucks. They will be justified on the grounds that they screw up less often than human drivers. What will be ignored is that they screw up more often than competent drivers who are sober and paying attention. The difference will be offset by their screwing up less often than the drunk, distracted, incompetent and senile.

        • The insurance company actuaries will look at the raw data of number of accidents per mile of the robots being less than that of the meat drivers.

          And *that* is why self-driver vehicles will be the way of the future.

          (I’m one of the weirdos. Driving isn’t a chore or unpleasant for me. I’ve never lost my love of the feel of the machine in motion. At least as long as the machine is moving and not stuck in gridlock…}

  9. The next time you’re at the mall, chat with a security guard and ask him how he’s enjoying the $25-$30 an hour he’s knocking down. He’s more than likely making closer to minimum wage and the company he works for takes the rest. Roboflop …..

  10. The anti-gun article celebrated their court victories, but it could all be for nought for their side if Trump can successfully appoint a justice after Gorsuch to replace one of Kennedy, Ginsburg, or Breyer. If that court takes a gun case there’s a high chance that these lower court rulings are wiped out.

  13. “And over the last four years some data indicates that permit-holding has been increasing about 75% more quickly among minorities than among whites.”

    There is a sea-change in attitude change among minorities and gun ownership over the last 20 years.

    In our favor. That is *winning*.

    This ‘Guns Down’ organization needs to be closely followed. Look at this quote -“Igor Volsky is the director of Guns Down, which is dedicated to creating a movement for dramatically fewer guns in America.”.

    “dramatically fewer”, eh?

    Yeah, we know just what *that* really means…

  14. Fully automated cars:

    Unless every object on the street is automated, nothing can be. Motorcycles, bicycles, skateboards, kids, dogs……

    Commercial airplanes have the capability of fully automated flight and closely approximate it frequently but still require pilots. How many people want to get on an airplane bound for Toyko and see an empty cockpit?

    At street level the world is a chaotic place. You cannot predict what will happen down the road. Fast computers, smart programs and lots of sensors will not replace the human brain in evaluating the chaos for some time.

    Besides with full automation comes lots of information and …… oversight and control. By the government.

    They could track what time and where and who else was there.

  16. That .22 they seized in the UK looks a lot like my Winchester 67A. It’s a fun, old little rifle.

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