# # #
19981108
Best ( priced, make & caliber ) multi-purpose long rifle?
I'm considering a ( lightweight ) .22 caliber. Lightweight ammo, easy to find, and least expensive. Will I be able to take down decent sized ( <= 200 lbs. ) critters, though? ( Something my 102 lb. wife could handle gracefully? )
Best bang for the dollar is what I'm looking for.
I want to make thise gun purchase quickly. The government is on a Big Brother rush to register all future gun purchases. In the Y2K worst case scenario, declaration of illegal Martial Law could confiscate ( registered and unregistered long ) guns -- nullifying the Second Amendment, our last line of self-defense.
The first part of the item below is TRUE, the second part is JUST A SPOOF. Nevertheless, the "Bastard in Chief" is really doing this. The next thing you know, he will be try to control the private gun sales we conduct at our kitchen tables -- pre- & post-Y2K.
Regards, Bob Mangus
Clinton Directive Targets Gun Show Loophole
Associated Press
Sunday, November 8, 1998; Page A07
President Clinton set in motion yesterday a tightening of the Brady law aimed at stopping 5,000 gun shows around the nation from becoming "illegal arms bazaars" for criminals and gunrunners.
The government estimates that 5 million people a year attend gun shows. The Brady law requirement for five-day waiting periods and background checks does not apply to gun show purchases.
In his weekly radio address, Clinton said he ordered the Treasury and Justice departments to recommend executive actions within 60 days that will close that loophole.
Florida voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot initiative last week to let counties require background checks or impose five-day waiting periods for the purchase of firearms at gun shows. The federal government should now follow suit and require a so-called "Insta-Check" of the buyer's criminal history, Clinton said. "I believe this should be the law of the land: no background check, no gun, no exceptions."
Sarah Brady of Handgun Control Inc. issued a statement applauding Clinton's action but also pushing for waiting periods to apply to gun show sales. Brady is the wife of former White House press secretary James Brady, wounded in the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan.
Clinton said gun shows are popular in his home state of Arkansas. "They're often the first place parents teach their children how to handle firearms safely," he said.
"But at too many gun shows, a different, dangerous trend is emerging," the president said. "Some of these gun shows have become illegal arms bazaars for criminals and gun traffickers to buy and sell guns on a cash-and-carry, no-questions-asked basis."
On Nov. 30, the Justice Department is to implement the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which will give law enforcement officials access to a wider array of records than is now available.
Also as of Nov. 30, the background checks will apply to purchases not only of handguns but also of rifles and shotguns, and to firearm transfers at pawn shops. With that system in place, the number of background checks for gun purchases will increase from an estimated 4 million a year to 12 million, Clinton said.
) Copyright 1998 The Associated Press
=======================================================================
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Clinton directed his government Saturday to find a way to close a legal loophole that allows speakers/journalists to express their ideas at public places with no questions asked.
In his weekly radio address, Clinton said a ``dangerous trend'' is emerging at seminars and radio talk shows because the First Amendment permits people to express their ideas without background checks.
``Some of these talk shows have become a haven for criminals and hate-speech mongers looking to sway people on a no-questions-asked basis,'' Clinton said.
He directed Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and Attorney General Janet Reno to report back to him in 60 days with a plan to close the loophole in the Bill of Rights and to prohibit any free speech without a background check.
``I believe this should be the law of the land: No background check, no free speech, no exceptions,'' Clinton said.
In a fact sheet, the White House said that every week about 35 million people regularly listen to an estimated 50 conservative radio personalities such as Rush Limbaugh and G. Gordon Liddy.
On Nov. 30, 1999 the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System is set to take effect to allow quicker checks and approve speech license sales within minutes.
In addition, on Nov. 30, 1999 the law will be strengthened in two ways: purchases of all speech licenses, not just political, will be subject to Reno background checks as will Kinko's printing services, which are four times as likely to involve prohibited printed opinions.
Overall, the White House said, it is estimated that the number of background checks conducted nationally will increase from 0 million to between 10 and 12 million. Unregulated speech is ``an open invitation to criminals and right wing crazies,'' said Janet Reno, who chairs SpeechControl Inc. The Clinton law was named after the President, who was wounded in verbal attacks first launched by radio personality Rush Limbaugh in 1992.
California and Maryland regulate ``hate speech'', said Reno. Florida voters passed a constitutional amendment Tuesday giving counties the power to require a waiting period and a background check for speeches at political rallies and other public places.
# # #
-- Robert Mangus (rmangus@mail.netquest.com), November 08, 1998
Hmmmm. That's sort of like asking, "What's the best screwdriver?" Do
you want to drive Phillips or slot, or is it a Torx? How big is the
screw?
A rimfire is good for small game hunting and pest control (small
fourlegged pests like rabbits in the garden that is). It isn't an all
purpose rifle. It can be made to do a lot of things in a pinch, but
it will only do a couple of things _well_. Putting down medium sized
critters reliably (your 200 lb. definition) isn't one of the things
it will do well. Before everybody starts hollering, let me say that
1. yes, a .22 will kill lots of things totally dead 2. no, I would
not want to be shot with one. And yes, the Ruger 10-22 is an
outstanding little rifle- I have a couple of them myself.
I spent six years of misguided youth as an EMT. I have treated a
number of people shot with all sorts of various stuff. A .22 is not a
reliable stopper, period. Don't count on it for self protection. Its
power is too limited. Its range is too limited. Yes, it is better
than nothing. But it is _not_ better than a lot of other things that
are available for self defense. You should consider that carefully.
Now, I don't have fantasies about holding off a kamikaze charge of
the Fourth Mongolian Horde single handedly. I don't have an M2 .50
cal dug in in the front yard either. But I would be derelict not to
tell you that serious social work requires a serious rifle. Lots of
people like various 5.56mm carbines (Mini 14, AR15 etc)- they're OK.
Lots of other people like various 7.62X39mm's (SKS, AK47)- they're OK
too. So are the various 7.62X51mm's (M1A, FN FAL, HK91 etc). An M1
Garand is good. So are any of the GI bolt guns (M1903 Springfield,
M1917 Enfield). Even a good commercial centerfire sporting rifle
(preferably in .308Win) is a better idea than depending on a rimfire.
If your budget will handle an extra $175 plus ammo you can get an SKS
and be a credible threat out to 300 to 400 yards. Anyone who can
shoot a rimfire can handle a 7.62X39. It wouldn't be my first choice
but I still have a couple (for the in-laws who show up empty-handed).
A while back a friend of mine was worrying about pretty much the same
thing. He mentioned that he had his granpa's 1903 Springfield in the
closet. He dug it out and I helped him fieldstrip it and clean it
well- it was in very good condition and is quite capable of handling
current ammunition. We scrounged up a few stripper clips for it and
he bought a few hundred rounds of .30-06. He's comfortable shooting
it, is good with it and feels quite happy now, and with good reason.
I should mention he shot smallbore competition in high school (that
was about 20 years ago) and the discipline is still there though the
skills needed a little polish.
I think that if you think you need a rifle, you need a good
centerfire. Chances are you won't really need it. But I could be
wrong, and your place could be the nearest thing to Hogan's Alley for
miles around. You pays your money and you takes your chances. I think
you're wise to get whatever you're planning to do done by 1 Dec. And
good creative writing on the spoof above also.
nemo...
-- nemo (nemo@deepsix.com), November 08, 1998.