Simplifying Caliber Choices For The New Hunter

I don't do guest posts here often enough, I need to do a better job of seeking out contributions from people I respect on topics that interest me. Look for that more in the future....

The following is a guest post from Phil Maynard. Phil has helped me a number of times over the years to simplify some of the intricacies and see through much of the mythology with regard to shooting sports. Phil's handloads have taken game all over the US. He specializes in developing loads and calibrating optical drop correction systems for medium to long-range hunting. He is a data-mining geek with more spreadsheets than firearms. By weight.

At Phil's request I am stating that this piece is available for free use, reposting or printing with attribution to Phil Maynard of Montrose, PA.

                                                         Too Many Choices

There have been an incredible number of heated, passionate debates concerning the details of firearm selection for hunting. Caliber and sighting systems dominate, but every little feature has been analyzed ad-nauseam, often with such ferocity that one group will defend a feature or round as God's gift to mankind, while the other side denigrates it at completely, hopelessly inadequate for the task at hand.

How can such debates continue to rage?

The 49ers Harbaugh Transition....As viewed through the prisim of hindsight.

I was going to wait until the end of the 2012 49ers season to write this, but I've come to the realization that the record at the end of this year doesn't much matter to the conclusion of this piece so here it is......

With regard to the sports teams I follow, I’m a pretty pessimistic fella’. Growing up in the 70’s & 80’s as a fan of the San Francisco Giants will do that to you. Following the 49ers has as well provided long periods of bitter disappointment. They were largely hapless from 1973 to 1980 in the infancy of my fandom and again from 1998 to 2010 we endured another extended period of fecklessness with the exception of the 2001 & 2002 early playoff losses.

It was from this place of pessimism and bitterness that I wrote this piece ( CLICK HERE ) a couple of years ago. In that piece I made three core points about the transition into the “Harbaugh Era”.

1. Jed York promised a broad search for the best GM he could find.
2. That College coaches transitioning to the NFL have a poor track record and that Harbaugh had relatively little head coaching experience.
3. That York & Baalke handled the negotiation with Harbaugh in a somewhat sloppy manner.

Maybe, just maybe the guns aren't the problem....

Despite the myriad of studies, Federal & State crime data and testimony from law enforcement indicating that additional restrictions on gun ownership does not significantly reduce crime and/or violence the easiest target when there is a tragic shooting is guns & gun ownership. It's more difficult to look at other causes for violence be they societal, medical/psychological or cultural because looking at those forces people to look at themselves and that's hard. Often, the right thing to do is the thing that is difficult to do and in this case it's the discussion of mental illness and prescription medications.

Unless you are a serious shooting sports enthusiast you probably don't know the name John Noveske. He was the owner of Noveske Rifleworks in Oregon. His company builds civilian spec Semi-Automatic rifles, Military & Police spec rifles and accessories for both. The company is highly respected in Law Enforcement and Military circles and among civilian shooting sports enthusiasts as extremely innovative and highly responsive to their customers. On January 4th of this year, Mr. Noveske died in a car accident. His last external communication to his friends and customers via his facebook page is posted below....

DISCLAIMER: This is second-hand information. There may be errors.

Letter to Senator Diane Feinstein....

My position on the Second Amendment should be well....abundantly clear. I respect and understand the feelings of those who elect not to exercise their natural right codified by said amendment. Further, I respect, but disagree with those who elect to cling to an interpretation of the Second Amendment contrary to that which is made abundantly clear by the writings of the framers. Regardless of your position, be it an originalist advocate of literal interpretation, one who stands unopposed but chooses not to avail themselves of the right, or one who takes a position in opposition to the Second Amendment you have a duty to make your position known to our elected officials.

Lest we forget, we are NOT subjects under rule. Our elected officials do not impose their will on us, they are to serve OUR will. So if you agree with my position and stand firmly with me on the side of a Madisonian interpretation of the 2nd, that's great! Now grab a pen or pull up your email program and write. If you don't agree with me.....I want you to do the exact same thing. Take part in the process and by doing so make a tiny step toward reclaiming OUR government from those on either side of the aisle who have subverted it (Hamilton) from us.

Posted with thanks to YouTube Channel owner "NutnFancy" for the framework.

 

Dear Senator Feinstein,

You and many of your fellow members of the legislature are shockingly considering gun legislation that will make criminals of millions of the citizens, breaching a trust long held. I urge you to reconsider this path, to stand for individual liberty and trust in the citizenry, just like our Constitution affirms, clearly outlines and which is supported chapter and verse by the writings of many of the Federalist and Anti-Federalist framers.

I urge you in the strongest terms possible to halt this path toward an AWB and vote against any other legislation that proposes registration and banning of so-called "Assault Weapons" or places further restrictions on the 2^nd Amendment. These firearms are in THOUSANDS of households, held by good citizens, keeping the peace, and preserving their liberty. The percentage of criminal use of these guns is infinitesimal and statistically insignificant.

More importantly these proposed laws registering and banning this broad category of guns will have no affect on crime. You and I both KNOW this to be true. As we saw in the CT massacre, criminals and the dangerously mentally ill don’t obey laws. They will illegally obtain guns, ignore ALL laws, and in the end probably use any destructive device available to kill.

The fingerprinting, registration, and guaranteed future control of an owner of this type of firearm VIOLATES the Second Amendment. Represents a violation of your oath of office and is a glaring manifestation of an overreaching, out of control government...the very thing which our founders feared and wished to prevent.

This or other "assault weapons bans" will be unenforceable. In the end, only the criminals and the government will be armed. Is that what you want? In determining the course of this country this might be your most important vote ever. Firmly PRESERVE GUN OWNERS RIGHTS and accept no compromise. I will watch your vote with great interest and gratefully support you in any endeavor to defend of our Constitution.

Feel free to copy this and edit it as you see fit to send to Senator Feinstein or any other elected official.

Thoughtfulness.....

There's precious little of it going around these days. This cat has got it in spades.




There's a lot to chew on there, regardless of your point of view on guns/crime/violence. Question is, are you willing to THINK about it or have you let your emotions make your decisions for you?

Why does the 2nd Amendment Exist At All?

I submit to you, by way of explanation the words of James Madison......most probably won't bother to read the whole thing.

Hint: It has nothing to do with hunting.

Post Election Reflection.....

First a couple of brief, unrelated thoughts that I've been considering in the wake of our most recent elections:

- I said it in 2008 - I'll say it again now. I disagree with him about most everything but I sincerely hope Obama is able to make good on his promise. If he is, we all win......based on his track record however, I'm not feeling super confident in that.

- Entering this election cycle my most sincere hope was that our Nation's media would again return to the role of informing the populace rather than attempting to shape public opinion. To actually report facts and question the Government as opposed to serving as hagiographer. I held little confidence that this would occur and it seems my pessimism was justified. The mainstream press served as a marketing department for the incumbent rather than honest journalists and we are the worse for it. (...and before your reply "B,B,B,But Fox!" save it, they're biased too and at the end of the day it's one network vs CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, NPR/CfPB).

- A note to the GOP; Obama didn't win this election, you blew it. You allowed candidates in the races and topics into the discussion that had no place being there. Look, I hate the very idea of abortion and pray for any woman that is in a position to consider it but....Roe v Wade is settled case law. Debate whether it's good case law or not until you are blue in the face but it isn't going anywhere without a constitutional amendment. Nobody has the political will, let alone the political capital to make that happen...and honestly, I'm not convinced they should if they did. Knowing this to be true, there is absolutely no point in discussing it. It isn't going to change. Ever. Ever. No, really, not ever. Discussing it as an "issue" works like a charm if your goal is to fear-monger to those in favor of it or to gin up enthusiasm in those who would like to see it abolished but it's a pointless red herring that distracts from that which actually does bear discussion.