Who Is Rooster?

On February 26, 2013February 26, 2013 By Tom LindsayIn Blogs4 Comments

As you may notice, I don’t use my real name when I post on this blog, nor on my Twitter account. Recently another gun blogger opined that all gun bloggers should use their real name if they want to be taken seriously by gun manufacturers.

I thought I would address the issue of anonymity, and why I choose it.

Throughout history, people have chosen to remain anonymous for many reasons. For some like Poor Richard, the threat to their families and property, were they revealed, was obvious.

My reason boils down to essentially the same thing – I don’t need the hassle if certain people find out what I do here. However, unlike Poor Richard, my work wouldn’t be seen as seditious as much as it might be misunderstood.

You see, I am an engineer by training, and a recruiter by profession. I have professional relationships with clients and candidates who need to have confidence in me and my skills, in order to complete the transaction that I bring them together to fulfill. Only when those two groups find peace with each other do I get paid.

Now, as we know, there are people in this world who do not understand guns, and who, in fact, fear them. The incident in Newtown, Connecticut, last December has shown that this fear is pervasive, and doesn’t respond to logic or reason.

Somewhere, the sets of [customers and candidates] and [those ignorant or hostile to guns and gun owners] intersects, and I don’t see any point in making that an issue.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not misleading any of my clients or my candidates. In fact, when the time is right, I’ve made it known clearly. I even work with some gun manufacturers.

But the truth is, it doesn’t matter whether most of my clients or candidates know I write this blog, because it doesn’t affect how I fill jobs.

Now, that other blogger seems to assume that my goal with this blog is to impress gun manufacturers.

But I write the blog because I like shooting and I like to share what I like with other people who like shooting. If that includes gun manufacturers, that’s great, but they should not expect me to bow down and give them a Guns&Ammo review just because they like me. In fact, you can look at my reviews and see that I tell it like it is, and that may not be good for a manufacturer if they can’t live up to our standards.

Interestingly, the companies I do reviews for know me by my name. They trust me to give them an honest opinion, and I do.

And, when I attend industry events, or visit the gun show or a gun shop, I have calling cards with my name on them. I introduce myself as “Rooster* of the Fill Yer Hands gun blog.”

But to me that’s no different than introducing myself to prospective engineering clients as “Rooster* of the Fill Yer Jobs Staffing Agency.”

After all, it’s who I am.

* I use my real name. Duh.

Give To A Great Cause

On February 22, 2013February 22, 2013 By Tom LindsayIn Projects1 Comment

Honored American Veterans Afield, HAVA, is an organization which helps returning injured servicemen and servicewomen to better integrate back into their pre-war lives, by sponsoring a great variety of outdoor events like hunting and fishing.

Linoge over at Walls of the City is raising money for this group, and there are prizes. Go give, and sign up, and win something.

A Compromise On Universal Background Checks

On February 19, 2013 By Tom LindsayIn Gun Rights, Politics6 Comments

Just kidding. I don’t want to compromise. I want to give them exactly what they want. Background checks.

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Congress will vote soon on something regarding the recent gun control proposals. Just what they vote on remains to be seen.

Senator Feinstein has called for bans on nearly all semi-automatic firearms, and if you think I am exaggerating, then you need to re-read her legislation.

Simultaneously, some are calling for an expansion of the background checks required for the sale of new firearms, to include all used firearms.

I”m here to say that this is the area we should give in to, to let them have their victory.

But not in the way the anti-gun crowd thinks.

Here is what the anti-gun crowd thinks when they hear universal background check:

Bill has an assault rifle, a Bushmaster KidSlayer Deluxe 3000, with a pistol grip, a 1,000 round assault clip, and a shoulder thing that goes up. He bought it at a gun show in 2005 after the AWB expired, for $100 from a guy named Leon, with no background check, right in front of the policeman taking money at the door, who said nothing.
Alan wants to buy the Bushmaster KidSlayer Deluxe 3000, so Alan and Bill go together with the gun down to the county courthouse. At noon, sharp. Because the Gun Background Check Office is only open from noon to 12:15PM every other Thursday.
They stand in line. Both men get fingerprinted, photographed (both with and without the Bushmaster KidSlayer Deluxe 3000), weighed, and have blood drawn. Both submit their full identification, including last year’s tax forms, and they fill out a form 4473-A, which looks like a form 4473, except for the 17 extra pages asking about relatives and secret bunkers.
Once all the forms are filled out, they leave them with the County Clerk, along with the Bushmaster KidSlayer Deluxe 3000, for a minimum of 10 days. Of course, the office is only open every other Thursday, so it’s really more like 2 weeks.
Alan gives his money for the gun to the county clerk for holding. Good faith, you know.
Both men report back to the courthouse to find out if they are approved. Once approved, the photos get laminated onto the back of their drivers licenses, they are given the gun, and are free to go. The record of the gun ownership is published every night in the local newspaper at the bottom of page 2, as well as added to a local scrolling feed at the bottom of their Facebook pages.
Bill gets the money, less a small handling charge (10 percent), on a government debit card, so they can track where he spends it.
No, you cannot use government debit cards to buy another gun. Because we said so, that’s why,

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Here’s more what I think we should aim for: wristbands.

When I go to a sporting event where alcohol is served, I have to have my ID checked to buy it. But rather than slow down every beer buy, many venues get smart. At the entrance is a booth where you show your ID, and, when you prove you’re over 21, you get a wristband. Then, when you buy a beer, instead of showing your ID, you show your wristband as proof that the ID has been checked.

Here’s my Firearms Wristband proposal:

If you decide you would like to buy a firearm in the next (insert some period of time here, like 5 years) you go to the county courthouse and fill out a form 4473-B, which looks just like a form 4473 except it has no place to record the firearms being bought. Then, the background check is run, and you get a wristband.

Actually, you get a stamp on your CCW or your Driver’s License or your passport, or a card. Wristbands are a metaphor. In fact, since most CCW’s include a background check, you’re done if you have a CCW, which is why I only sell my guns privately to people with Georgia Weapons Carry Licenses.

Then, when you decide you want to buy a gun, you arrange the sale, and you fill out a form 4473-C which has your name and wristband number (remember, it’s a metaphor) and you take it to your local FFL holder. He or she confirms the wristband number and the gun serial number with the ones on the 4473-C, and gives you and the seller a copy, and keeps the original. You pay the FFL holder a nominal fee, maybe $5, and you’re done.

You’re done.

There is no need to call the CCW office, or the NICS, or anybody. You’re wearing the wristband.

You’re done.

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But, what if you decide not to follow this procedure?

Well, you’re in violation of the law, just as you are now, if you buy a new gun from someone without a background check.

But what keeps guns out of the hands of criminals?

Good question. What keeps them out of their hands now? What makes you think they are going to follow the Universal Background Check that Bill and Alan did?

Seriously, if you have ideas on that one, let’s hear them.

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Here’s a summary of my point, at last.

The other side wants universal background checks. Fine. Let’s give them universal background checks. But nothing more. No registration, no oversight, no right of approval. If the buyer has a valid background check, the government’s work is done here, move along.

Otherwise I say we tell them to take a flying leap. After all, we have the votes, we have the political power. Let’s use it.

Project Vera – Update 2

On February 15, 2013February 15, 2013 By Tom LindsayIn AR, Projects

I had saved enough money to order an upper for my AR, Project Vera, by Thanksgiving, but, like a dummy, I hesitated ordering.

Then, a maniac coward killed 26 people in school in Connecticut, and the AR world went crazy.

Two days after the incident, I ordered what I considered to be the perfect upper, and the website said it would only be 1 to 2 weeks for it to ship. This was confirmed by an email from the president of the company.

Sadly, that was 2 months ago, and they tell me they have no idea when it will be shipped.

I can’t say that I blame that gun shop. After all, they are as much a victim of the panic as I am. They are a small shop, and I’m sure they can’t put much pressure on their suppliers.

So, I decided to look for another upper. Finding one that was in stock was difficult, until I found a thread on AR15.com where the latest news of uppers in stock is posted by members. So I stalked it out for a couple of days until I found something I liked.

This is from Palmetto Stated Armory in Columbia, SC. Granted, it isn’t everything I wanted. It has no bolt carrier group or charging handle, so I will need to buy them separately (First World problem), and I’m not a big fan of the M4 front sight, but I can change that, too.

Here’s what we do get, though:

Upper: Forged 7075-T6 upper receiver, with M4 Feed ramps and T-marks.
Barrel: 5.56 NATO, 16″ chrome moly vanadium, 1 in 7″ twist rate, with chrome lined chamber, made by FN. Heat and pressure treated, then metal particle inspected, then phosphate coated.
F-Marked Front sight post
A2 Flash Hider
Sling Loop
Standard Hand Guards w/ heat shields

Best of all, they say it will be here in 3 weeks, which, coincidentally, is my birthday.

Now, to find a bolt carrier group and charging handle . . . .