“Investigators believe the young Army veteran who killed five police officers here legally purchased the weapons used in the shootings online or at a gun show,” wsj.com reports. Hold on a second there Pilgrim. Which one was it? Until the facts are known, that’s entirely unhelpful conjecture.
What the Journal’s really saying: Micah X. Johnson purchased his Izhmash-Saiga 5.45mm — or maybe an SKS rifle — from a private seller, doing so without a background check. Which is perfectly legal in Texas. As it should be.
But you just wait: the howls of righteous indignation from the Civilian Disarmament Industrial Complex, calling for the feds to close “the gun show loophole” and ban gun sellers from using the internet, will be long, loud and unrelenting.
Meanwhile, the “bomb making equipment” found by police investigators at Mr. Johnson’s house — and widely reported by the mainstream media — may not be quite as lethal as it was originally portrayed.
At the home he shared with his mother, investigators found two more rifles, as well as approximately one pound of Tannerite, an explosive powder, and a can of acetone.
That’s nothing compared to, say, the C4 explosive the Dallas police used to blow Mr. Johnson to smithereens. Tannerite fans note: you’re not the only ones looking at media vilification. Civilian firearms training — of all things — is sure to come under the gun, too.
From foxnews.com:
The Associated Press reported that Johnson received training from a private self-defense school that teaches firearm tactics, including “shooting on the move.”
A person who said he was in charge of the organization told AP that Johnson received instruction at the Academy of Combative Warrior Arts in the Dallas suburb of Richardson about two years ago. The man refused to answer additional questions and would not give his name.
The academy website refers to one of its courses as a “tactical applications program,” or TAP.
“Reality is highly dynamic, you will be drawing your firearm, moving, shooting on the move, fixing malfunctions, etc. all under high levels of stress,” the website says. “Most people never get to train these skills as they are not typically allowed on the static gun range.”
“Not allowed.” Why do those words give me a frisson of fear? Anyway, the gun control games continue, as the President visits the city to calm the racially charged atmosphere he helped create, and fan the flames of civilian disarmament.