Editorial

In January, the California State Court of Appeals overturned one of the most restrictive gun bans in the country. In 2005, NRA attorneys sought an injunction against the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to prevent it from enacting a gun ban. NRA won the injunction, but the city’s mayor and Board of Supervisors ignored the court order and approved a set of penalties, including a $1,000 fine and a jail term of between 90 days and six months, for city residents who owned firearms. '[The] decision by the California State Court of Appeals is a big win for the law-abiding citizens and NRA members of San Francisco,' declared Chris W. Cox, NRA’s chief lobbyist.

The upcoming Supreme Court review of District of Columbia v. Heller, which will examine Washington, D.C.’s gun prohibition, has allowed a variety of views about the Constitution to creep into the sunlight for examination. Herewith are three excerpts on what the 2nd Amendment means, and doesn’t mean. Two of these we at Gun Tests wholeheartedly agree with—Halbrook’s and the NRA’s views. One we consider dangerously misguided—Gaillard—but we include it because we need to know what the other side is thinking. We start with the worst first:

I am generally a disciplined gun buyer—you don’t see the range of guns that comes through this office without having some restraint, else you’d be living in a tent with gun safes all around to block the wind. But this year, I have a powerful craving that might only be satisfied with the acquisition of new blued steel. For that, I blame my cohorts, whose names appear at the right. Each Gun Tests writer has his own thing, and it is their collective knowledge and enthusiasm that threatens my wallet this year. As I redacted the material in the Guns of the Year ‘07 feature that begins opposite, I got re-interested in guns whose specs I’d reviewed before—largely because I could trust what I was reading as the informed opinion of someone who knew more about a given gun than I did.

Fear about guns seems greatest among those who know the least about them. Children face greater dangers from common household items than from guns. In 2004, the overwhelming number of children under 10 who died-more than 1,400 children-were killed by cars. More than 90 drowned in bathtubs. Perspective: In 2003, 28 children under 10 died from accidental gunshot wounds.… Weird product news of the day: Savage Sports Corporation has purchased the Eugene, Oregon-based BowTech company. Other Savage subsidiaries: Savage Arms (centerfire rifles), Savage Range Systems/PortaTarget (shooting ranges), Stevens (budget firearms), and Fox (high-end shotguns). Savage is the largest rifle manufacturer in the U.S.…

In early September, the District of Columbia formally asked the Supreme Court to hear its appeal of Parker v. District of Columbia. The case is now officially called District of Columbia v. Heller. History: On March 9, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled in Parker v. District of Columbia that D.C.s prohibition on the possession of a handgun, and keeping any gun assembled and loaded in the home (the condition required for self-defense), are unconstitutional. The court agreed that the Second Amendment protects a pre-existing right of individuals to possess handguns.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced it will significantly revise a recent proposal for new "explosives safety" regulations that caused serious concern among gun owners. The proposed rules included restrictions that would shut down most gun shops, sporting goods stores, and ammunition dealers. After continued publicity and after dozens of members of Congress complained about the rules impact, OSHA decided to go back to the drawing board.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed new rules that would have a dramatic effect on the storage and transportation of ammunition and handloading components such as primers or black and smokeless powder. The proposed rule indiscriminately treats ammunition, powder, and primers as "explosives." It could wreck the gun business

Since Remington Arms Company was acquired by Cerberus Capital Management for $118 million in cash and assuming Remingtons $252 million of accumulated debt, Remington executives were rightly worried that changes were coming. Cerberus is known for bringing in its own management teams to run the companies it has acquired

Among the more shameful items resulting from the Virginia Tech shootings was the political haymaking that anti-gun politicians and gun-control groups tried to create. I thought the NRAs stance of "no comment for now" was the right and reasonable way to proceed, out of respect for the families and loved ones.

Ted Szabo, the president of Para-Ordnance Mfg. Inc., passed away on March 28, 2007, at the age of 60. Szabo founded the company in 1985 with his friend, Thanos Polyzos. Their first offering, introduced in 1987, was an all-plastic, selective-fire paint ball gun called the Model 85 "Dye Marking Tactical Machine Pistol." In full-auto mode, this pistol fired at a rate of 1,200 rounds per minute, and was designed as a close-quarters-combat training device for law enforcement and military personnel.

Thompson/Center Arms, a Smith & Wesson company, has introduced the Icon, its first bolt-action centerfire rifle."While developing the Icon, our engineers and designers worked with numerous master gunsmiths, tactical shooters and hunters to better understand what features they desired in a premium bolt-action rifle," said Gregg Ritz, President of Smith & Wesson Hunting.

Thompson/Center Arms, a Smith & Wesson company, has introduced the Icon, its first bolt-action centerfire rifle."While developing the Icon, our engineers and designers worked with numerous master gunsmiths, tactical shooters and hunters to better understand what features they desired in a premium bolt-action rifle," said Gregg Ritz, President of Smith & Wesson Hunting.