Here are a few words from the National Rifle Association about Joe Nava: When he’s not training people how to live responsibly in bear country, speaking to the public on his radio show, Joe Nava’s Shooters Corner, or fishing for days at a time in one of America’s last true wilderness areas, you can find Fairbanks Alaska resident and past NRA Board Member, Joe Nava, preparing for his many activities involving the NRA. Of course our main focus is his work with the Eddie Eagle GunSafe® Program. Mr. Nava served on the NRA Board of directors from 1971-1994, and has been involved in the Eddie Eagle program since the beginning. He continues to work with the Fairbanks Friends of NRA to hold events and raise money for programs like Eddie Eagle in his state. Through the Friends of NRA dinners that Mr. Nava participates in he is able to speak to hundreds of people on the importance of the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program. He always makes sure to have materials on hand for the dinners and recommends that families share the DVD and materials with others to spread the word. Joe is also a member of the Fairbanks Optimist Club, whose motto “Friend of Youth,” was proven when they purchased an Eddie Eagle mascot costume for the University of Alaska Police Department. Mr. Nava has created a very successful ongoing relationship with the Fairbanks School System as well. The School Board has allowed him to teach the program in all schools, in any classroom that invites him. With so many invites, Joe receives help when needed from the Fairbanks Optimist Club as well as the Single Action Shooting Society in Fairbanks. They help to not only teach the program but contribute funding when needed. “In my years here at the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program, Joe Nava has always been a leading figure in bringing Eddie Eagle’s important safety message to the Alaskan community. I can’t thank Mr. Nava enough for all the hard work and dedication he has put forth,” said Eric Lipp, Program Manager of the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program. We want to show our gratitude to Mr. Joe Nava, the Fairbanks Optimist Club, the Single Action Shooting Society, and the Fairbanks Friends of NRA for their continued efforts in supporting the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program.
During Shooters' Corner, Joe addresses upcoming events in the shooting community and takes calls from listeners, relating to gun safety, firearms, ammunition, or anything else that has to do with guns! We've had a number of folks ask about the theme song Joe uses. RAGTIME COWBOY JOE is a popular song composed by Maurice Abrahams in 1912. The 1912 copyright version published by F.A. Mills credits Lewis F. Muir and Abrahams as composers and Grant Clarke as the lyricist. It was a number-one hit song for singer Bob Roberts in 1912. Over the years, it has been performed by a diverse group of artists, ranging from Eddy Howard to The Chipmunks. "Ragtime Cowboy Joe" was also the radio show theme song for New York City's long running Public Radio show, Cowboy Joe's Radio Ranch hosted by Paul Aaron, New York's Cowboy Joe. He played many versions of the song dating back to one sung by Bob Roberts from a 1919 78 rpm record. He also played versions by the University of Wyoming.
Good news for hunters! A positive depiction in film! The Winner of the 2012 Yahoo! / Sundance Short Film competition is : The Debutante Hunters NRA Insurance NRA membership brings free insurance for you and for your guns. Let’s talk about your insurance. Maybe you are a target shooter or a hunter. Those are NRA activities. If you are an NRA member you have $10,000 of life insurance if you are killed while engaging in any NRA activity or going to or from that activity. This covers a lot of your life if you are a gun owner in Alaska. Treat your family fairly and take advantage of this insurance for a membership fee of only $25/year. Your gun insurance is $1,000 per member. You can collect on it no more often than once each year as long as you remain a member. And you don’t have to tell them anything about your guns. You can also buy additional gun insurance at the lowest cost available in the US, for NRA members only. Call 1-877-672-3005 to buy more. I have collected on this gun insurance three times over the many years I have been an NRA member. It is easy to collect on. Go to NRA.ORG and join the Organization, or see me for a $25 application. Joe Nava 479-2340 Comments by Joe Nava about the Eddie Eagle Program in the Fairbanks Schools
I have spent the past 44 years of my life trying to prevent firearms accidents among the Alaskan Population, primarily its youth. I have done this part time for 25 years and full time since I retired from the University 24 years ago. I believe that if a parent wants a child to have a firearms accident-free life, then the best gift the parent can give to that child is firearms education. Every firearms accident I have seen in this area has involved a violation of one or more of the three basic rules of firearms safety. If we could get these safety rules across to our kids we could prevent accidents. The start of any educational program is with the earliest grades. That's why the National Rifle Association, in response to public demand, designed the Eddie Eagle Gun Safety Program for grades K-3. This is a non-political, educational gun safety program. It is used by millions of students in schools all across the County each year, with positive results and positive comments from the teachers who use it. This program does not address the political question of whether guns are good or bad. It only addresses the principles that youth should use when encountering a gun at that age. The three basic rules of gun safety can be taught later, and should be. But, at this early age the Eddie Eagle message is the one that will prevent accidents. In my opinion, anyone who does not want to see the Eddie Eagle Program in our schools has a political agenda, and does not have the safety of our community's youth at heart. That may sound harsh, but logic tells me that is true. We use education to fight against drug deaths, and smoking deaths, and automobile deaths, and drunken driving deaths, and sexually transmitted disease deaths. Why then, don't we use the proven method available to us to prevent accidental firearms deaths? I was the victim of a firearms accident when I was a teenager. That is mainly why I have devoted my adult life to preventing firearms accidents among others, primarily youth. I have prevented many accidents and deaths with my educational messages. I will never know how many or who, but I do know that I have prevented some. Guns are a part of life in Alaska. Please help our youngsters approach firearms with an accident-free attitude.
GUN STORAGE AT HOME: What I teach about gun storage at home is written in the textbooks of the NRA classes I conduct. “Store your guns at home so they are not accessible to children or unauthorized adults.” Families with small children must be particularly careful because children are more capable than parents think they are. It won’t work to lock your guns in a cabinet and then put the key on top of the cabinet. The youngsters are onto that. They can find the keys. Also, remember that you cannot keep your children away from your guns with words. That does not work. No matter how good you think your children are, they will do what they know they should not do when the peer pressure is there and the parents are not. It takes three things to have a firearms accident. You must have a firearm, ammunition, and a person. If you separate any one of these you cannot have an accident. A “lock box” for your gun is a good idea at home. They sell for $50 to $150, and usually come with a combination lock. If you put your loaded gun in a lock box and tell no one the combination, there can be no accident. A gun safe works just as well but is more expensive, usually from $1,000 on up depending on size and fire rating. Finally, as soon as your children start watching cartoons on TV you should show then the NRA Eddie Eagle Gun Safety video (or DVD). It teaches what to do if you see a gun. “Stop! Don’t touch! Leave the area! Tell an adult!” This message has helped millions of youngsters and can be a life saver for yours. You may call me to receive a free DVD, thanks to the Optimist Club of Fairbanks. Joe Nava 479-2340 ALASKA TRESPASS LAW
Trespassing notices must be printed legibly in English, be at least 144 square inches in size, give the name and address of the person under whose authority the property is posted and the name and address of the person who is authorized to grant permission to enter the property, be placed at each roadway and at each way of access onto the property that is known to the land owner. In the case of an island, signage must be placed along the perimeter at each cardinal point of the island. The sign must explicitly state any specific prohibition that the posting is directed against.
Discrete Carry
Yes, it is legal to carry your gun openly anywhere it is legal to carry it concealed. But, should you? That is an important question in Alaska today. We have a gun-friendly Alaska Legislature that appreciates the 2nd Amendment of our US Constitution, and they also appreciate our own Alaska Constitution. There is no legal doubt we have the right to carry concealed or openly, except in those few places where Alaska or the Feds say we cannot. Those places are few. In Alaska today many residents did not grow up here. They came from a place where guns are not as freely and legally carried as they are here. These people are concerned about guns. If they see a gun they think something is wrong. They get upset. They may even call the police. I once had a person call the police because he heard shooting in our neighborhood. The police responded, as they should. When the officer saw that I was safely teaching a firearms class, he went on his way. There were no threats or angry words. That’s the way it should be when a citizen is using a gun legally. But we should also carry our guns ethically. I urge discrete carry. Why upset others by showing your gun? In Alaska we do not have to prove our right to carry openly. Our pro-gun legislature assures us of that ability. Let’s carry our guns discretely and keep police contacts to a minimum.
Prepare for the future
The past two years have seen many dramatic changes to life in our Country. Many new laws have been passed by the current Congress that will have far reaching effects on our Country and on our lives.
The most important of these changes involve money.
The United States is now carrying so much debt that we may never get it paid off. Be realistic. We are now paying so much interest on our debt that we do not have enough money left to run the Country as we have been doing, or anything like it.
Other countries are now hesitant to lend money to us. They are demanding higher interest because of the higher risk. It has now come to the point where our Country is printing money to buy our own debt.
That does not make sense to anyone who has ever run family finances. The only way to solve the problem is to drastically cut spending. Realistically, that will not happen with the crew that is now running our Federal Government in Washington.
So, what does that mean to you? I recommend you put your money into something that will be of value in the future. You can be sure that is not the U.S. Dollar. U.S. money in the bank, or in a coffee can in the back yard, will only lose value in the future.
What do I recommend? Buy non perishable food, guns, and ammunition. If you have any money left to invest after that, buy gold. Nothing else will be as valuable, or serve you better, than these four items.
Good luck. Let’s all hope it doesn’t turn out as bad as some predict it will. I am an optimist. I don’t plan to see the complete failure of our currency. But, I am prepared just in case.
Joe Nava
Tell a Peace Officer.
Alaska Law now says that you must IMMEDIATELY tell any Alaska Peace Officer that you have the gun if you are contacted by the Peace Officer for any official purpose while you are in possession of a concealed handgun.
The word IMMEDIATELY is the important one. Not after you hand the officer your license and registration, but before you do or say anything else.
If you are in a car the officer will appreciate it if you do this with your hands in plain sight. If the officer cannot see your hands then the officer has a right to be nervous.
The Law says you must tell about a concealed handgun, but I urge you to tell the officer about any gun in the car. You may have a rifle in a case in the back seat. You are not legally required to tell the officer about that gun, but I urge you to tell. It will make the officer more comfortable to know that you told about the rifle right up front.
That’s any Peace Officer,any where, any time, for any official purpose.
Do it right and enjoy the officer’s respect.
Lost Guns
Keep track of your gun!
If you are a concealed handgun carrier, good for you. But, you MUST keep track of your gun. That’s your responsibility. The ethics of concealed carry dictate that you always know where your gun is, and know that it is protected from anyone else.
An example of poor responsibility would be if you have a gun in your purse and you put your purse in the cart at the grocery store. Someone can grab that purse and your gun is gone.
Another example is if you visit a public rest room and put your gun on top of the toilet paper holder while you are sitting down. You can easily leave the room and forget to pick up your gun. Your gun now belongs to the next person to use the room.
A third example is if you carry a gun in your car and you take your car to the garage for an oil change or other mechanical work. You leave your gun in the car and hand the keys to the garage employee. You may very well get your car back without the gun in it.
All three of these examples have occurred here in Fairbanks. Was that you? Will that be you in the future? I hope not.
If you are an NRA member you have $1,000 worth of insurance on your gun. But the insurance company MAY deny your claim if you were obviously negligent in losing it.
Your gun is your responsibility. Treat it that way. Always know where your gun is and know that it is protected.
Fish & Game Indoor Shooting Range on College Road, open to the public on a regular schedule, for a fee.
Tanana Valley Sportsmen’s Ass'n Indoor Range, off Airport Road across from Fred Meyers.
The Club meets every 2nd Tuesday. (Range now being rebuilt)
Nenana Public Range one mile south of Nenana on the left of the Parks Highway, 200 yards, 1 shooting bench, always open, unsupervised.
Anderson Public Shooting Range, drive through Anderson and turn left at the river to the range in a nice park complex, plowed out all winter, 200 yards, covered firing points, benches, always open, unsupervised.
Fairbanks Trap Club, 5 Mile Old Steese Hwy, Shotgun only, Wed. and Thurs. night and Sunday afternoon, in summer only.
In February of 2010 the law regarding carrying guns in National Parks and Refuges changed. State law now applies in all National Parks and Refuges. In Alaska that means we may now carry loaded guns in Denali Park. That’s great! But let’s be careful. We must carry ethically as well as legally. Carrying a concealed gun is legal and advised. Carrying openly is legal but not advised. Open carry will probably upset some tourists who are from other states where guns are considered “bad” or “evil”. It may frighten some tourists or make them uneasy. We, the gun owners, do not want to alienate the non-gun owners. We want them to remain our friends and respect our right to carry. That means we must respect their feelings. We can be just as comfortable carrying concealed as carrying openly. Also, we must remember that there is a federal law that forbids guns in federal facilities. A federal facility is any building where federal employees are present doing their daily work. That’s most every building in Denali Park. Keep it legal. Follow both State and Federal Law. No guns in federal buildings. One more important reminder! National Park Rangers are Peace Officers in Alaska. That means that if you do have a concealed handgun, and you are contacted officially by any peace officer, you must immediately tell the officer that you have the gun. Remember the word immediately. Now that we can carry loaded guns in Denali Park, let’s do it legally and ethically.
Who will take care of you?
The recent earthquake in Haiti should serve to remind us all that disaster may strike. It may strike in a way that we did not anticipate. It may strike without warning. Somewhere in the world, all over the world, it may strike. What does that mean for you and me? That means we must be prepared to take care of ourselves, our families and our neighbors. As we have seen in Haiti, help from others, governments or anybody, cannot provide for everyone who is stricken by disaster. We must be self reliant. We must be prepared to take care of ourselves. Do not plan on help from anyone in a serious emergency. Plan to rely on yourself. That means you should stock up on the essentials. We must store water, non-perishable food, medicines, guns and ammunition. An electricity generator will be very helpful for heat in the winter and to run your freezer in the summer. Keep your car more than ½ full of gas. Keep plenty of batteries on hand. There may not be any electricity for a long time. Yes, I did say guns and ammunition. You may have to protect yourself and your possessions from those who did not prepare. And, in a pinch, the ammunition will make good trading material. Stock up now. The necessities for survival in an emergency will only be more expensive in the future. You are the only one you can rely on to take care of you!
Yes, these two are related, and here’s how. We have just seen the Democrat-controlled Congress pass a Health Care bill that is not wanted by most Americans and will bankrupt our Country, or worse. They had to resort to bribery to get it passed, but I guess bribery is only a crime outside of the halls of Congress. What does that mean? It means that the Democrats in Congress and the White House can and will do whatever is necessary to promote their agenda. And, make no mistake about it, total gun confiscation is on their agenda. It has always been so, and they have not been shy about saying so. Brady, Boxer, Feinstein and Pelosi have said clearly that they are just waiting for the right time to fulfill their objectives on gun control. After they finish controlling the population though Health Care, they can then turn to Gun Control. They do not seem to care if they are ever re-elected, as long as they can complete their agenda of total Government control of the US population. The words in the US Constitution have been thrown out the window by those now in power in Washington. Government controlled Health Care is nowhere in the US Constitution. The US population is reaping the benefits of electing the representatives they did. The last election has put our gun rights in more jeopardy than ever before. Stock up on guns, ammunition and food. The need for them may be near. And, if we still have time, talk to your neighbors and friends about the next election. If we have one, it may be our last. Tyrannies mistrust the people, and therefore deprive them of their arms. Aristotle New Permit expiration dates. As of 9 October, 2009, all Alaska Concealed Handgun Permits issued will expire on the Permit holder’s birthday. Whether you get a new Permit or renew a Permit, the term of the Permit will be for 4 full years and then to your next birthday. The Alaska Legislature has done this to make it easier for the Permit holder to remember to renew the permit. This will not change the expiration date of any Permit you now hold.
OK! I have had it with gun stores that will sell any gun to a lady without concern for what that lady really needs. I now must talk about this. Too often I have a lady book a pistol class with me because she cannot use the gun she bought. Usually it is because some gun store clerk has sold her a semi-automatic handgun that she does not understand and cannot manipulate. It is not just that she cannot manipulate it safely. She cannot manipulate it at all.
Today many adult ladies are choosing to take up pistol shooting for personal protection or recreation. They have no history of firearms use or knowledge. They do not know what gun they want or need. So, they trust whatever a gun store clerk tells them. Unfortunately, too many gun store clerks do not know how to help the lady make a good decision. Too often the clerk tells the lady she needs the gun that he thinks is best for him. Too often this is a semi-automatic handgun. Wrong!
A person’s first handgun should be a revolver. Why? Because it is simple to understand and easy to operate. All double action revolvers are very much alike. If you learn one, you can safely handle and shoot any of them. Semis, on the other hand, are all very different. You cannot know how to safely handle all of them just by learning one. The dependability of the revolver is what the lady needs for personal defense. Semis do jam, no matter how infrequently.
Ok, what is the solution? Send the lady to an expert. If a lady decides to buy a gun, she should first take a pistol class form an NRA certified Instructor. She will see and handle many handguns and learn what gun is best for her and the purpose she will use it for. She can then make her own decision about what gun to buy.
If you ask the National Rifle Association they will give you a list of Certified Instructors in your zip code area.
I do not mean to denigrate all gun store clerks. Some are very good at this, but many are not. They should tell the lady to take a pistol class and then come back and buy the proper gun. Also, I suggest that the gun stores should encourage their clerks to take the training and become NRA Certified Instructors. Or, at the very least, those clerks should attend the class required to obtain an Alaska Concealed Handgun Permit.
Families are the future of the shooting sports.
All across the United States we hear that the shooting sports are dying. That theme is particularly loud in the big cities of the lower 48 states. We hear that fewer people are hunting. Many organizations are trying to find ways to stop the decrease in hunters. But, I think the answer is not in new programs to get new shooters into our sports. I think the answer is in the family.
Most people I talk to got their start in shooting through a family member, usually a dad or an uncle or a grandfather. Nowadays some get their start from their mother.
If I get an adult person, in one of my beginning firearms classes, who has never fired a gun, that person usually says that no one in the family had guns or shot or hunted. Most of those people grew up in Lower 48 cities where the schools taught them that guns are bad and dangerous. Many come to my classes with a definite fear of guns, any guns.
Hunter Education courses are taught by all 50 states and all Canadian Provinces. These courses are not aimed at increasing the number of hunters. They are aimed at making hunters more safe and ethical.
There are many programs out there now that try to increase the participants in the shooting sports. I have seen no evidence of success from any of these programs. That doesn’t mean those organizations should stop trying. They should continue, and perhaps they are slowing the lack of growth in the shooting sports.
You and I are part of the only possible answer I see. We all must be sure to pass on our shooting heritage to the next generations. If you have sons or daughters or grand children, be sure to give them the opportunities to embrace the shooting sports.
There are some families out there, actually quite a few, who do not have a family member to teach the youngsters how to shoot properly. We must reach out to those families and offer to be the mentors for those youngsters.
Ask yourself this question. How many youngsters have I trained to replace me in the shooting sports when I am gone? That is the important question. Make sure your answer is one you will be proud of.
We have become “civilized”, but we cannot become too civilized. That would be harmful. We are in danger of that now.
Societies that are somewhat civilized continue to hunt. Societies that are too civilized stop hunting. Think about this idea: Civilized people do not kill other living beings. That is the credo pushed by many “Animal Rights” groups.
They are wrong. Being too civilized causes grave problems, such as:
In Germany the Wild Boars have taken over the suburbs because of decreased hunting.
In Nepal an elephant killed 11 people but they will not hunt it because it is protected by an international treaty.
In Great Britain foxes can spread rabies to humans and other animals because they are not hunted and have reached high populations.
In the USA the deer in eastern states have become a serious problem for cars, planes, and flower gardens because they are not hunted. Populations are far too high for their habitat.
Waterfowl are a menace at airports in cities because they are no longer hunted enough to keep the population in check.
The wolf populations are too high in many states because of over protection. That damages the wolf and the prey species, which we depend on for food.
Furbearers are a serious problem in many states because the trapping and hunting of them has been severely curtailed. Beaver are flooding roads and removing forests.
Hunting is necessary for our future. If we give it up we trade our future for what we currently call “civilization”. We will lose all our civilization if we do not hunt and harvest our renewable, natural resources.
Take a youngster hunting!
There have always been bad people who attempt to kill many other people. That is a fact of history, and a fact of life today. It is true all over the world. It will continue, and there is no way to stop it. We must expect more attempts at mass killings here and overseas. So, what can we do? If we can not stop the attempts, we must lessen the results. If everyone in Fort Hood had been armed, the killer would not have shot so many people before being shot himself. That also holds true for the Virginia Tech shooting, and the Colunbine shooting, and all other shootings in places where the “good Guys” are prohibited from carrying the means to defend themselves and others.
The solution is reasonable, and proven to be effective. Allow all citizens of good repute to carry arms anywhere anytime, just as the US Constitution says. “…the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” What part of “shall not be infringed” do they not understand?
Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY)
Shooting is a legitimate recreation. Shooting deserves as much attention, consideration and respect as any form of recreation. 80 million homes in the USA have guns in them. Gun ownership in Alaska is far higher per capita than in any other state. These people who own guns for recreation need, and deserve, a place to shoot. There are not enough shooting ranges in the Fairbanks area to take all of the shooting the gun owners want to do. We need more shooting ranges.
During the 1980s the State of Alaska spent 6 million dollars building shooting ranges all over Alaska. The South Cushman Street Shooting Range was one of those built. It was given to the North Star Borough. That Range is not adequate. It is very much over used. The shooting range built by the State Division of Parks at 36 mile Chena Hot Springs Road is small and short and far out of Town.
The shooters of this area tried to buy land to build another shooting range. The people who lived in the area said, NIMBY. The seller backed out. The same thing happened previously at 25 mile Chena Hot Springs Road. The people who lived in the area said, NIMBY. The Borough mayor scrapped the project, which was already funded and planned.
The same thing is occurring in Palmer. The Department of Natural resources is trying to build a shooting range in the Butte area. The people who live in that area are saying NIMBY. The purpose of these ranges is to concentrate shooting in a safe place instead of having shooters recreating all up and down the roads and in all the gravel pits.
The shooters in this Borough deserve shooting ranges, just as people deserve softball fields, soccer fields, hiking trails, ski trails, dog sled trails, ice hockey rinks, etc. Shooting ranges are safer, with fewer accidents, than other sporting venues in this Borough.
Shooters pay an 11% tax on guns and a 10% tax on ammunition. This money goes to the Fish & Game Departments for Hunter Education, range building and wildlife research. What other recreation is supported by the users that way?
Give shooters their due. You may already have adequate facilities for your chosen recreation. The shooters do not have adequate facilities in this State. Be a good neighbor. Shooting is no louder than a softball game or your neighbor hammering shingles onto a roof. Shooting is safe, and not that loud, and not at all hours of the night. Be considerate. Help the shooters find a place to pursue their chosen recreation.
Why join the National Rifle Association?
There are three obvious, and important, reasons for you to join the NRA.
• You get the magazine of your choice form THE AMERICAM RIFLEMAN, THE AMERICAN HUNTER, or FIRST FREEDOMS.
• You get $1,000 worth of insurance on your guns, without doing anything or telling any one about your guns. This insurance comes automatically with membership.
• You are joining over four million other gun owners to support the organization that has fought for over 100 years to protect your 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms.
We would have far more gun control and far fewer gun freedoms if it were not for the NRA. Join today. You can’t go to Washington, D.C. to lobby, but the NRA can do the lobbying for you.
Joe Nava, former Director of the NRA 1971 to 1994
Gun storage
Store your guns so they are inaccessible to unauthorized users. That’s what the book says. I say, store your guns so nobody but you can get them. If you want to keep a loaded gun in your home, use a lock box. That keeps the gun and the ammo together but excludes the person. Only you know the combination to the box.
Buy a gun safe. Buy a big one so you can add more guns later. A gun safe will keep your guns safe from accident, theft and fire. It’s a worthwhile investment. Store your important papers in the gun safe also.
Pay attention when visitors are in your home. Make sure they can not accidentally come across a gun stored incorrectly.
And, lastly, it does not work to tell your youngsters not to touch your guns. No, it doesn’t work. You may think it does, but when you are not there, and the peer pressure is there, they will get the guns and play with them. Your child may know gun safety but the visitors may not. So, it is your child who may get hurt. Don’t risk it. Don’t take that chance.
Store your guns so accidents cannot happen. If you own guns, that is your responsibility. Gun safety is no accident.
The word WEAPON
Too many people use this word when they shouldn’t. It has too broad a meaning to adequately describe what they are talking about. Just think about that. What is a weapon? It is a knife, a club, a taser, a stun gun, a bow & arrow, a can of bear spray, a sword, a gun, a cannon, a bazooka, an ICBM, etc. That word has too broad a meaning to convey what you are trying to describe.
Unfortunately, in the media, the word weapon is most often used to describe any firearm. I would think a reporter, who has been trained to get the details right, would use a more descriptive term for what he is describing. Too often it is reported that a person shot himself with a pistol. Then, in the next sentence the writer will refer to the pistol as a weapon. Why? He has already told us what it is – a pistol. Then he refers to it with a broad word that does not really describe what it is. Why?
Could it be that the word weapon gives the gun a bad connotation? The word weapon sounds a lot more evil than handgun, rifle, pistol, revolver, etc. Could the media be using that word purposely to make the gun sound bad? I often wonder, because wise use of the English language would not recommend that word in that context.
What does the word mean anyway? My dictionary says the word weapon means any instrument, such as a gun or sword or cannon that is used aggressively in combat or war.
Surely that does not describe the guns I use to teach gun safety. Neither does it describe the guns you use for hunting or target shooting, or even for self defense. These guns are not used aggressively in combat or war.
So, I suggest that you be more specific when referring to any gun. Call it exactly what it is, a rifle, pistol, shotgun, etc. Then we will know what you mean, and we will not be thinking of implements of war. I understand that police and military do use their firearms as weapons of war. But in the civilian world, let’s not use that term unless it is truly appropriate.
Shooting economics
Shooting is usually a recreation, but sometimes a self defense proposition. We don’t use a lot of ammunition for self defense, but we can (and should) use a lot of ammunition for practice no matter what out main purpose is. We should also have a variety of guns for whatever purposes we choose to shoot. How does all this cost play out economically?
First let’s consider the guns. They are an investment. In the future the guns you buy today will be worth far more than the dollars you pay for them now. I have a Colt revolver I bought for $85 in 1961, which I could easily sell for at least $300 today. You might say that is the rise of inflation over those years. Maybe so! But, the $85 hasn’t kept up with the cost of inflation if I now need $300 to buy the same thing. Guns protect your money from the loss of inflation. Holding onto your money does not.
You might decide to invest in the stock market. Bad idea, I say. Why? It’s because the value of your assets in the stock market may go up or down. The value of your guns will not go down in the long run if you take good care of them.
If there is fear and panic in the stock market your stocks may go way down. If there is fear and panic in the gun market the value of your guns will soar. You can pass your guns on to future generations knowing that their value will increase. You cannot be sure of that in a paper (or electronic) market.
Second let’s consider ammunition. Has the price of ammunition ever gone down? No, not really. In the short term you might run into a good sale. But in the long run you will always pay more for ammunition each year. Thus it makes good sense to buy the ammunition now that you will be shooting in future years when the price is higher. I used to buy .38 specials for my shooting classes at 20 cents per round. Now I am paying .40 cents per round. It might come down a bit, but I don’t ever expect to see it at 20 cents again.
You have to take care of your guns to retain their value. You also have to take care of your ammunition. Store it cool and dry, or cold and dry. Excessive heat may damage your ammo, but cold won’t. And, keep it in the original boxes so you will always know exactly what you have. That’s the safest way to handle ammunition.
So, I am not a licensed financial advisor, but here’s my advice for what it is worth. Buy guns and ammunition today and you will be very happy in the future that you did.
The American Hunters and Shooters Association IS A SHAM!
This fairly new organization seems to be having more success than it should. So, I have to repeat my warning about it. The American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA) is a sham. It is not an organization FOR the shooters. It is an offshoot of the anti-gun organizations in this country.
A group of the most anti-gun organizations in our country got together and started this sham, with top personnel taken mostly right from those anti-gun organizations. Their plan is to take resources away from the pro-gun organizations like the National Rifle Association (NRA).
AHSA was created with the specific intent to provide political cover for anti-gun politicians by allowing them to claim support from a “sportsmen’s” group. In truth, the anti-gun credentials of AHSA’s leadership is well documented. For instance, AHSA president Ray Schoenke has a long history of giving political donations to some of the most anti-gun politicians, including Al Gore, John Kerry, Barbara Boxer, Bill Clinton, Dianne Feinstein and Ted Kennedy. In 2000, Schoenke donated $5,000 to Handgun Control, Inc. (now the Brady Campaign) and the Ray and Holly Schoenke Foundation also made donations to the Brady Campaign. AHSA Board member John Rosenthal remains the leader of Stop Handgun Violence, the Massachusetts anti-gun group. And one of the leading organizers of AHSA is Bob Ricker, who has been a paid expert witness against gun manufacturers in a number of reckless lawsuits. (the information in this paragraph is from the NRA Institute for Legislative Action)
If you read their website you might think they are pro-gun because they talk about teaching gun safety and protecting the rights of hunters and shooters. But, one thing clearly reveals the true nature of AHSA. Notice that they talk about “reasonable regulation” of your firearms rights by the government. Clinton, Gore, Pelosi, and Brady all believe in “reasonable regulation”.
Anything the AHSA has said does not support your right to keep and bear arms. Their wording is carefully scripted to make you think they support the gun owners, but their actions on national and state gun issues does not show that support.
A careful scrutiny of their expenses will show that they spend nothing to support your firearms freedoms. Their money is spent to promote themselves so they can take resources away from the real pro-gun organizations. So, don’t be fooled. Put the AHSA right where it belongs, alongside all the other anti-gun organizations in our country.
AHSA would be more correctly called the “American Association for the Protection of Anti-Gun Politicians.” No gun owner or sportsman should fall prey to its carefully crafted lies and deceptions.
Our “RIGHT” to keep and bear arms.
The U. S. Supreme Court, in the Heller case, has said we do have the individual right to keep and bear arms. That does not surprise those of us who have read the U. S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. We know the founding fathers intended that right to protect us from an oppressive government. The government has powers, given to it by the people. We, the people, have rights. Firearms ownership and carry is one of those rights.
But wait! The Supreme Court decision was 5 to 4. What in the world could those other four justices have been thinking as they wrote an opposing opinion to the majority view of the other five? I will try to tell you what they were thinking.
First look at the justices and try to remember what president appointed them. You will see that the Clinton appointees were among the minority who wanted to erase your firearms rights from the constitution. Just think, if we had another president rather than George Bush for the past 7 years, who might have been appointed to that court, and what side they would have voted on.
I firmly believe that all nine justices can read and understand the English language. If they all can, then they must all come to the same conclusion about the meaning of the 2
nd amendment. But, they did not. How can two justices read the same passage and interpret it in the opposite way?
There is only one way they can. That is for a justice to first make up his (or her) mind as to what they want the amendment to say, and then try to produce an argument to prove their opinion. I believe that is why we get 5 to 4 decisions out of the Supreme Court.
What I am saying is that we have had a very close call here. We almost lost one of the precious rights given to us by our founding fathers. Just one more justice with a dissenting view and the minority opinion would have become the majority opinion. That’s scary to me.
Think ahead to the next time this question, or another similar question, comes before the court. It would only take a change of one justice to have the decision go the other way. And, here’s the important point, the next president of our Country may appoint as many as four new Supreme Court justices.
So, register to vote, and figure out which candidate is most likely to protect you rights by appointing justices who will do just that.
Clean shooting ranges by Joe Nava
Shooting is a recreation, particularly for Alaskans. That’s because so many of us own guns. We hunt and compete and defend ourselves with our guns. But, the main use of our guns is recreation. Shooting is no different from any other recreational activity. We need a place to engage in our chosen form of recreation.
The Fairbanks North Star Borough accepted the money form the State (through the ADF&G) to build the shooting range at the end of South Cushman Street. The Borough Dept. Of Parks & Recreation makes an attempt at cleaning the range about once each week, but sometimes they fall short of a perfect job.
Why? I think it is because some of us shooters do not clean up after ourselves when we shoot. We leave targets and spent shells and “objects” we use to shoot at for someone else to clean up. Why do some of us do that? Would you trash your own property that way?
But, wait a minute. The Borough shooting range is your property. You pay for its upkeep with your taxes. You, the Borough residents, own that range. Why not treat it as if it was your own back yard? Why not clean up after yourself when you use the range.
Recently Roy Roehl and his family and friends spend many hours cleaning up the Borough range so it would be clean for the Youth Hunter Education Challenge. They did a good job, but they would not have had to do that if you (we) would clean up after we shoot.
We find old computers, and other large pieces of equipment people have brought to that range to shoot at. Those items are left, after they are shot full of holes, for someone else to clean up. That’s not right. We should all clean up after ourselves.
Recently, also, a Boy Scout Troop cleaned up the shooting range at 36 mile Chena Hot Springs Road. It was a mess also. That range was built by the State Div. of Parks and Recreation for the purpose of drawing shooters to it instead of having recreational shooting all along the Road. The Div. of Parks asks that all recreational (target) shooting be done at the range at 36 mile.
OK, now one more thing! If someone does leave a mess at a shooting range, and you see it, clean it up. We do that on the streets around Fairbanks every spring because some people will not stop being slobs. Let’s do the same thing at the shooting ranges. Clean up the other person’s mess and leave the range cleaner than you found it.
If we all do this, the shooters will look better in the eyes of the public.
The soccer fields are not a mess. The softball fields are not a mess. Why should our shooting ranges be a mess?
Pepper Spray for bears
It is spring and the bears are out. A black bear was seen recently on the UAF campus. We inhabit the same areas so we have to be on the lookout for bears. Some people carry guns for bear safety, but some people do not carry guns. Those people should carry pepper spray.
Does it work on bears? Yes. I can say that because I have sprayed two black bears with Bear Pepper Spray (BPS) and they both went the other way. I can also say that because of a recent research article in the JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT which studied the use of Bear Pepper Spray (BPS) on bears in Alaska over the past 20 years.
This article says that BPS was effective in 92% of the cases when it was used. It made the bear go the other way. In only 3 cases was a person mauled after spraying a bear. In all 3 of those cases hospitalization was not required. This may mean the mauling was light because the bear had been sprayed. These are good results.
All BPS today is registered with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) because they have decided it is a “pesticide”. The pest just happens to be a bear. So, always look on any can of BPS you buy to be sure it says “EPA Registration # XXXXX”. That way you know there are 8 or 9 seconds of spray in the can and that it is the highest concentration needed to repel a bear.
Most BPS cans will shoot spray 20 feet. The spray comes out so fast that it may be lightly affected by the wind but it will not be negated by the wind. In no case studied did they find that the wind made the BPS ineffective. Just be careful the spray doesn’t come back on you. Leave the area immediately.
It does not work to spray a tent or other object to keep the bears away. When the aerosol is gone, there is only a faint taste of pepper and the bears may even think that tastes good. It must be sprayed in the face of the bear. It must get into the bear’s airway.
BPS works on other animals also. I have seen it be effective on dogs, wolves, caribou and humans. But, be sure to get BEAR Pepper Spray. Do not try to use a personal defense spray on a bear. It is not the same and may not be effective. The can must say it is for bears or must have a picture of e bear on the can.
Canada will not let you enter their country with a spray can that does not say it is for bear protection. Canada does not allow the use of pepper spray against humans, only bears.
So, buy a can. It is much cheaper than a gun. And, it will not kill the bear. It will merely reinforce to the bear the lesson its mother taught it, that humans are dangerous and you should stay away from them.
Stay safe in bear country (all of Alaska).
GUN SAFETY by Joe Nava It is time to post an article about gun safety. We talk about that all the time. I try to teach gun safety to everybody I can. But the question is: what to teach.
That question occurred to the 4-H headquarters back in the 1980s. They were getting more deeply involved with 4-H shooting programs, in conjunction with the National Rifle Association. After looking all around, the 4-H realized that almost everybody was teaching different gun safety rules. They decided to change that.
The 4-H called a conference at their national headquarters just outside of Washington, D.C. in Maryland. They invited all the units that were involved with guns. All the major gun makers were there, along with the ammunition manufacturers, and the Boy Scouts, Future Farmers of America, etc. About 50 people in all attended that 3 day workshop for the purpose of deciding on the most effective gun safety rules to teach.
I was there as the Chairman of the National Rifle Association’s Junior and Collegiate Committee.
We spent three days working out what we all could agree on as the most effective gun safety rules. The first rule proposed as the “Golden Rule” was: “Treat every gun as if it is loaded”. We worked with that for a while, but soon realized that when you say that to a person you have not taught that person anything. You have not taught that person how to treat a loaded gun, so to tell him to treat every gun that way is useless. He does not know how to treat a loaded gun.
We finally came to the agreement that positive statements must be made. The “Golden Rule” that was accepted by all was: “Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction”. That tells the person what to do. If that rule is followed no one will ever get hurt by a gun.
The second rule was then accepted as: “Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot. That rule will eliminate the accidental discharges.
The third rule was: Always keep the gun unloaded until ready to use”. That would prevent accidental discharges by someone who handled the gun and did not know how to use it safely.
After these three rules were agreed upon, a further, short note was added. It said: “Treat every gun as if it is loaded”. We could now say that because we had taught how to treat a loaded gun. This did not become one of the three rules.
The NRA has followed these rules precisely, and still teaches them today. They are still the most effective rules to teach to eliminate firearms accidents. They are in all the NRA teaching materials.
Unfortunately, I am now seeing people take on the chore by themselves of determining their own rules. They are different, and usually not as effective. We see 4 rules or 10 rules or different rules. One old one that is still used today is: never point a gun at anything you don’t want to kill. That’s not good for many reasons. The main reason is that it is negative. It does not teach what to do. We must teach positively to be the most effective. That wrong rule also says nothing about target shooting. We do not intend to “kill” anything when we practice our marksmanship toward the Olympic Games.
Anyway, I hope you get the point, and I hope you will always teach the three most effective gun safety rules that about 50 experts could devise. Follow the “Golden Rule” and no one will ever be injured by a gun.
The NRA Eddie Eagle Gun Safety Program for elementary schools
Eddie Eagle does a great job of teaching youngsters how to be safe with guns. I take him into elementary school classrooms and he tells the students what to do if they ever find a gun. Eddie Says to: Stop! Don’t touch! Leave the area. Tell an adult.
This is a very effective safety program designed by educators for grades K-4. The program has been presented to over 22 million youngsters across the Country already. We have a full sized Eddie Eagle costume that stays in the Fairbanks area. It works best for Eddie to appear at all the class rooms in one elementary school on the same day. He only waits to be invited by the principle or other school official.
Eddie doesn’t talk. Of course not, he’s an eagle. But he brings volunteers along with him to show the Eddie Eagle video and do Eddie’s talking for him. Eddie likes to get hugs from the students, and he helps them do the Eddie Eagle shuffle as they all say the safety message together.
Eddie leaves work books, coloring books, and decals for the students to work on in class or to take home. He also leaves one of his videos with the school.
Eddie has visited all the elementary schools in North Pole, the Two Rivers Elementary School, the Salcha Elementary School, and the University Park Elementary School. He only needs an invitation to visit the school where your child goes. Talk to your child’s teacher or principle and see if Eddie can visit your school and teach an effective gun safety lesson to your youngsters.
Research has shown that this message does work to keep youngsters safe.
Stop! Don’t touch! Leave the area! Tell an adult!
Yes, guns do belong in schools. Let me tell you why. -- Opinion by Joe Nava, published in the Delta News, 1999 There have been guns in schools as long as there have been schools. There are good people and there are bad people, but there are no good guns or bad guns. Guns are tools which can be used for good or bad purposes by people. Guns have been used for good purposes in schools for a very long time, and they should still be. Let me make my case. Shooting is a Varsity Sport in some schools. And, it should be for many reasons. Most Olympic shooters get started in a 4-H or Boy Scout or NRA junior shooting program and then get on a High School or Junior High School Shooting Team. If they are good enough, they get a scholarship to a college with a shooting program (like the University of Alaska Fairbanks). After College, the best of the shooters may go on to a National Training Center to prepare for Olympic or other International Shooting competition. Why is this good for the schools? Shooting is the least violent of all the school sports. Shooters don’t grab, tackle or check the opponent. They don’t even bump into the opponent. Also, shooting, as a sport, has an unequaled safety record. There are more injuries in Table Tennis than there are in shooting competitions. The greatest benefit of guns in schools, for the youngsters, is the self-discipline the gun teaches. Shooting takes much self-control. Any high school or college shooter learns this. It takes mental self-control to ignore all else around you and concentrate on the goal at hand. This mental self-discipline learned through shooting, carries over into schoolwork and life. Shooting Teams in schools are always at the head of their class in academics. Shooting teaches the discipline it takes to excel in school. I have never heard of a case, anywhere in the United States, of a School Shooting Team Member being involved in the criminal use of a gun. Never has any gun used for a school shooting program been used illegally. This doesn’t happen. Joe Nava’s Shooters’ Corner is brought to you each Thursday on KFAR by: · Arctic RV · Sentry Hardware/Frontier Outfitters · Rogers’ Auto Repair
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