In an incident that I can find no other word to describe besides “pathetic,” a single round of ammunition led to the complete stoppage of repair work at a home in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, a small town in central England. Workmen were replacing a fence panel, but “had to abandon their work after discovering a bullet in the garden.” The workers knocked on the door and told the homeowner, a pregnant mother of three, that they were calling the police because they’d found the live ammunition. “I couldn’t believe it,” she said. . .
“I’ve got to keep the kids out of the garden until it is removed. I’m worried what else could be there.” Not so much for the mom-to-be, but for the workmen, I have no words. That not a one of them would take it upon themselves to move a single cartridge so they could get on with the job absolutely dumbfounds me. Once upon a time the men of England were some of the most adventurous and daring on the globe. Not so much anymore, it seems.
Your Lockdown of the Day™ comes from Lockport [HA!], New York. An empty ankle holster was found inside Starpoint High School just after 7 a.m. on Wednesday, leading to a two hour lockdown (before students were even there) and a search of the entire building. It turns out that an off-duty police officer dropped the empty holster in the parking lot after a school event Tuesday night. Another parent, thinking it was sports equipment, left it on a ledge just inside the door so the owner could reclaim it. “The decision was made to keep the students out of the school, on the buses, until the entire building was searched and was determined to be safe,” Starpoint Superintendent Dr. C. Douglas Whelan said. Parents were notified by phone and email that school would be delayed, but no explanation was given as to why. The lockdown was lifted and students were let into school just after 9am.
Joe Nocera at the NY Times started writing The Gun Report just over a year ago. A few days back, he published a brief one-year analysis. I’ll let you read the whole thing if you want (it’s only about 8 paragraphs), but here’s his conclusion: “The idea that guns, on balance, save lives — which is one of the most common sentiments expressed in the pro-gun comments posted to The Gun Report — is ludicrous. On the contrary: The clearest message The Gun Report sends is the most obvious. Guns make killing way too easy.”
Long Mountain Outfitters is cramped. The sales staff is on top of you. It’s also visibly armed. The customers are focused on the stock. There is very little eye contact. The store is functional, almost sterile. And in that way it’s just like every other gun shop in the U.S. But once you step behind the counter it’s clear this is no ordinary retail store. What truly separates LMO from the average gun shop is Dan Shea’s reference collection. He’s been building it for 35 years. Shea’s library contains over 4,000 weapons. It is one of the most diverse collections in the world, and you would never expect to find it here in a drab complex of low-slung commercial buildings just outside of Las Vegas. Read the rest over at www.polygon.com. [h/t Pascal]
ShootingTheBull410 previously gave G2 Industries’ R.I.P. ammo the thorough going-over that he’s known for in a two-part series. (Part 2) Now Richard Ryan gives it his world-class high-speed slow-mo treatment.
I think the best part was watching the drywall dust come blasting back out of the block as the expansion cavity collapsed. I haven’t checked out his extra footage from the R.I.P. tests, so if you do, let us know what’s worth seeing.