NSSF: Aiming for Accuracy

Waterfowl Guns Tested in the N.Y. Times. That's Right, The Times!

In the newspaper's Styles section today, above the fold and above a story about yoga and with a headline of "For the Holiday Hunter-Gatherer" (echoing the eco-friendly nature of the paper) is a gear test on waterfowl guns. The Times’ treatment is not much different than you'd see in any hunting magazine.

The Times' story starts . . .

There are 2.3 million people in the United States who hunt migratory birds, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. And in many parts of the country it is duck hunting season. Waterfowl guns are now more versatile than ever, with features that let hunters use shells of various sizes and keep a tighter pattern to their shots at longer ranges.

Beretta, Browning, Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing, Weatherby and Tristar Sporting Arms waterfowlers are reviewed by Paul Hunt, a hunter and police sergeant from Massachusetts. Bill Lyons, chairman of the state's Ducks Unlimited chapter, explains why the shotguns are camo dipped. Bass Pro Shops in Foxborough handled the transfers.

View the story as a slide show online.

Do we think this is the start of trend at The Times? No, we don't.

But if it were, we say, watch out, Outdoor Life!

Attorney General Backpedals on 'Assault Weapons'

From NSSF's weekly e-newsletter Bullet Points:

ATTORNEY GENERAL RETREATS ON COMMENTS ABOUT 'ASSAULT WEAPONS' BAN . . . Attorney General Eric Holder is retreating on the comments he made in February to reinstate the so-called ban on assault weapons, The Hill reports. Back in February, Holder said, "As President Obama indicated during the campaign, there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons."

Subscribe to Bullet Points.

Media Story About Basic Gun Safety

When mainstream media covers a fatal firearms accident, rarely does a story mention how basic firearms safety could have prevented the accident, but that's what St. Petersburg Times' reporter Michael Van Sickler does in "Basic gun safety in Hillsborough County shooting could have saved daughter."

For a refresher on firearms safety see NSSF's brochure, "Firearms Safety Depends on You" or visit the Project ChildSafe Web site at www.projectchildsafe.org.

Thanks for Say Uncle for making us aware of the story.

New NSSF Video Helps Public, Media Understand the Firearms Industry

From NSSF's weekly e-newsletter Bullet Points:

NEW VIDEO EDUCATES PUBLIC ABOUT INDUSTRY . . . "For more than 200 years a unique industry in America has made products that have been part of our country's great tradition of freedom, self-reliance and enjoyment of the outdoors." So begins a new video produced by the National Shooting Sports Foundation called "Lock, Stock and Barrel: Understanding the Firearms Industry" and that is now available as a DVD free of charge or to view online at www.nssf.org. Designed to educate anyone who wants to know more about the history, operation and regulation of the firearms industry, the video is particularly helpful to those who hold misconceptions about the industry. "It's important that an industry that produces a product -- firearms -- that is at times a contentious subject in modern society should be understood and appreciated for the many positive contributions it has made for centuries," said NSSF President Steve Sanetti. "I believe that people who watch this video, perhaps at the local Rotary Club meeting or library, whether they own firearms or not, will come away with a new-found appreciation of our great industry." Potential audiences for the video are the general public, elected officials, teachers and students, local service groups and the media. Members of NSSF are encouraged to show the video to their employees and in their communities to promote a better understanding of the firearms industry. "Lock, Stock and Barrel: Understanding the Firearms Industry" is approximately 15 minutes long. Individual or multiple copies of the DVD are available at www.nssf.org/industryvideo.  Watch the video.

"AR-style Rifles Spurring Some Debate"

In a story of that title, outdoor editor Bob Frye of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review looks at the growing popularlity of hunting with AR-style rifles and whether states like Pennsylania, which currently does not allowing hunting with semi-automatic rifles, will eventually change their regulations. Read the story.

Also, NSSF President Steve Sanetti talks about NSSF's recently launched education campaign about "modern sporting rifles" in a Shooting Industry Magazine article.

At Burlington Free Press, an Apology and an Op-ed

The Burlington Free Press today ran a letter of apology in its print edition after publishing a reader's letter yesterday that said, "I suggest that before the next annual [moose] killing season, other residents be awarded legal permits to kill hunters . . . ." 

The wording of the print edition apology was similar to that which appeared yesterday online. Here's the print version:

Moose-hunting letter inappropriate

Editor's note: The letters to the editor in Wednesday's editions and on the Free Press Web site included a letter about the annual moose hunt. The letter clearly violates the standards of the Free Press for submissions to the Opinion page by advocating for violence against hunters. The letter in no way reflects the views of this paper. We apologize for publishing the letter.

We were pleased to see that Wayne LaRoche, commissioner of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, provided an op-ed column explaining the value and culture of hunting, as we urged yesterday. Here is what Mr. LaRoche had to say about hunting and the state's moose population:

"Vermont has an abundant moose population. In fact, the moose population in the northeastern part of the state has increased to a level that has damaged their forest habitat and caused losses to forest landowners. The Department of Fish and Wildlife and its biologists carefully manage the moose and other wildlife populations using highly regulated hunting to sustain the healthy and abundant populations so that they do not destroy their own habitat or cause serious losses to landowners. Through time, hunting benefits the moose, the forest landowners, hunters and those of us who enjoy viewing moose."

The mistake of printing the letter having been made, we appreciate the quick response from the newspaper to correct it and applaud Mr. LaRoche for taking advantage of the opportunity to help educate readers about the role hunting plays in wildlife conservation.

Newspaper Prints Letter Advocating Killing Hunters

Shameful is the word that comes to mind for the Burlington Free Press and its decision to print a reader's anti-hunting letter, "Take a few hunters along with the moose," that was written in response to the Vermont paper's story about the opening of moose hunting season.

The letter was placed in the newspaper's online letters section as well and has now been taken down after responses from outraged readers. Hunters and non-hunters alike should chastise the paper for its decision to run the letter, and take the opportunity to educate readers about the role hunting plays in wildlife management. It would be nice to see Vermont's fish and wildlife department weigh in, explaining that trained wildlife biologists determine how to best maintain the state's moose population.

Here's the letter:

Take a Few Hunters Along with the Moose

On this beautiful day we learn that about 1,251 hunters are taking to the woods with legal permits to "pursue prized quarry." Certainly the members of various humane organizations do not approve. I suggest that before the next annual killing season, other residents be awarded legal permits to kill hunters who will be out to kill these beautiful, non-destructive animals. Or the government could just rule out all this primitive killing.

ETHAN A.H. SIMS
Shelburne

Here's the apology from the newspaper's editorial page director that appears online and which had better be in the letters section of tomorrow's print edition:

Today's letters to the editor included a letter about the annual moose hunt ("Take a few hunters along with the moose") that violates the statdards [sic] of the Free Press by advocating for violence against hunters. The letter has been taken down. We apologize for our error in judgement.

Aki Soga
Editorial page editor
The Burlington Free Press

While local readers' complaints have forced an apology, you may want to weigh in with your own letter to the editor. Send to letters@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com

A New Magazine for AR Enthusiasts

A new digital magazine, "AR Guns and Hunting," has launched. Content includes tips, history and discussions about equipment related AR rifles. The magazine, published by Grand View Media Group, is an indicator of the increasing popularity among hunters for AR-platform rifles. The launch coincides with NSSF's national campaign to educate sportsmen about the "modern sporting rifle."

Read Ralph M. Lermayer's editor's letter: http://www.arshunt.com/arshunt/200910#pg5

Read the magazine: http://www.arshunt.com/arshunt/200910

More Women Learning About Concealed Carry

With his story "Women Aim for Protection in Female-only Concealed Pistol Classes," Howard Meyerson of the Grand Rapids Press illustrates the growing interest among women in taking classes designed to teach safe and responsible handgun ownership. It's a trend that also can be seen in NSSF's First Shots program, where a recent study of program participants revealed that 74 percent of women who enrolled in First Shots classes were motivated by an interest in personal protection.

Watch the video, too, that accompanies Mr. Meyerson's story. The seminar he writes about was sponsored by the Great Lakes Outdoors Foundation.

Working to Prevent The Illegal Purchase of Guns

The video below gives a good overview of the Don't Lie for the Other Guy straw-purchase deterrent program.

Today in San Diego, the firearms industry, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will join forces to launch Don't Lie for the Other Guy. The goal of the program is twofold: to warn residents and visitors about the severe penalties associated with illegally purchasing a firearm, and to educate federally licensed firearms retailers on how to better detect and deter potential straw purchasers.

Straw purchasers are individuals able to pass the criminal background check required by federal law before the retail purchase of any firearm. However, these people are not the actual buyers of the firearm; instead, they use their good name to commit the crime of providing a gun to a person prohibited by law from possessing a one. The program's key  message is: Buy a gun for someone who can't and buy yourself 10 years in jail.

Over the past year, the Don't Lie program has been rolled out in Texas cities along Rio Grande, plus Houston, San Antonio and Tucson. The program was jointly developed by ATF and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.