Dad's, be very careful what you tell your sons.

Being an NRA Certified instructor and working with the Boy Scouts has been one of the highlights of my life. Being able to teach a young man safe gun handling, and life skills, is a reward that only those who have been teaching understand. We had our November camp out at my gun club. The Troop covered the shotgun and rifle basics, and then shot skeet, trap and .22 rifles. The weather was perfect and we also tried to allow the dads that were there to also shoot

After a great day of shooting we were all sitting around the campfire telling stories. Pictured on the left is the club right at sunset. Terry, one of the new dads, was telling a story on his own father. His dad had such a dry sense of humor that no one ever new if he was kidding or not.

Many years ago when Terry was about 9 years old he had his first lesson with the family .22. His dad had taken Terry out and showed him how to use the rifle and he had his first gun safety lesson. Several days later his dad said "Son go and shoot the cow we are going to butcher her tonight". Well a young man of 9 years old walks down to the barn and leads the cow to the house and shoots the cow right between the eyes. While we were deathly quiet around the campfire listening and waiting for the punch line, Terry continues and says he remembers his mother holding his dad down and saying "You told him to shoot the cow".

He described the event as being horrific, because they had to stop and butcher the family pet. I asked Terry if his dad had ever said anything to him, and he smiled and said no but his dad never made a joke like that again.

The reason this story is so important is because boys listen to their fathers. I have been able to see a difference in boys that have dads active in their lives and those that do not. If we are going to leave this country in a better condition for our grandchildren, we as men need to take the time and talk to our kids. We also need to take the time to give them the right directions the first time.

Happy trails and keep the lead down range. Clark -Carryconcealed.net

NRA - It is not what it seems.

On the Friends of the NRA event web page this was posted.

"The National Rifle Association has selected three of its top Junior Members to receive the 2007 Outstanding Achievement Youth Award, recognizing them for their active participation in the community, the classroom, and the shooting sports. Overall, $10,000 in scholarship money was awarded to the winners thanks to a generous donation from Brownells, Inc., the world's largest supplier of firearms accessories and gunsmithing tools."

People have decided to label the NRA with a stereo type that is not correct. They have painted the NRA as the giant gun lobby that is trying to throw it's weight around and force politicians to bow down to their will.

If people would actually stop and look at what is going on and who is making those claims against the NRA. Let's take a little walk down history lane. In fact it was the NRA that helped minority towns to help defend themselves during the racial turmoil of the 50's and 60's. They were there when no one else would stand up for the minorities.

They are still very involved in training, and while doing so end up saving lives. The NRA trainers across the country are holding training classes every day because the NRA helped put training materials, and certification programs together. These programs are the very reason that we are able to implement the 2ND Amendment that we hold so dear. With out the trainers and the work that the NRA does, there would be millions of people shot accidentally, robbed or raped. There are several different reports showing that Americans save their families thousands upon thousands of times a year that do not get reported with the proper use of firearms. It is the ones that were not trained or did not follow the safety procedures that the news media publishes.

As an NRA Certified Instructor, I can not begin to tell you the satisfaction of having an underprivileged young man go through one of our camps and learn how to shoot a black powder or a .22 rifle. The fact that they can have a better understanding of what our forefathers had to do when they went hunting for food, or just learning the life skills regarding firearm safety. Their smiles are rewards enough, but it does not compare to when I train a family that has been receiving death threats. They are afraid they may be dead or raped before help can arrive, and there is no better feeling that one can get than helping a family have a fighting chance against the bad guys.

So the next time someone sitting next to you says something nasty and degrading about the NRA, ask them....How many organizations can actually have a rich history of giving back to the communities through scholarships, training communities in danger, and fighting for our rights to defend ourselves? If they still look at you like you are a right wing nut job, just smile and ask them how long it takes for the Police to arrive at their house?

Happy trails and keep the lead down range. Clark -Carryconcealed.net

The Perfect Home Defence

Let me tell you a short story. 13 years ago my wife and two kids were in the mall and walked by the animal adoption spot. As soon as they walked in I knew that I was dead meat. A pit in my stomach rose to my eye balls as I knew I was going home with a dog. While I have always had dogs; I had two kids, who needs a dog with kids around?

My son and daughter picked the ball of fur that ran right out of the pack and landed in their laps. There was no getting out of this one. Hank was only several months old and was a Blue Healer/Austrian Shepard mix. He grew faster than the kids and thought he was one of the kids.

Within the first year he had taken over his job as our protector. I was out of town on business and he normally slept in our bed room. He heard something and went to the front of the house and attacked the front door. The next morning my wife found a big muddy boot print on the front door and part of our retaining wall broken in as the bad guy was running to get away from Hank. This turned out to be only one of many times that he saved my family from bad guys, mountain lions, and lots of insurgent squirrels. He even was instrumental in saving our neighbor from a home invasion from folks that could not understand English.

As he was getting along in years we decided to get a buddy for him and that helped him stay young. We were surprised, but he took the lead and taught the new puppy all of the tricks, including potty training and who was the bad guy. At night we would say "Night Night" and he would go up to my son's room and the other puppy would sleep in our daughter's room. He would never miss a beat and let me know if some one was around. My wife and I really had a feeling of being protected with a dog in each of the kids rooms.

He again was getting along in years and we got another dog from the adoption folks to have him train the next one. With three dogs in the house it was a little wild. He again stepped up to the task and even seemed like he was going to live forever. The new puppy was trained in no time and we had a pack of protection. It was a good time for years to have a night time routine and have the dogs head upstairs to each of the kids rooms and then have Hank in our room. However, this could not last forever.

He and I had our last trip to our favorite place at the lake. We spent hours sitting and just going over the old times. He seemed to enjoy the time and even seemed to let me know he was going to be alright. On the way back up the hill to the house, he collapsed. He was not able to go on.
We may have lost our protector, but he has trained two wonderful friends. They are a great source of joy and still know their place in our family. Right in the middle of everything we are doing.

The purpose of this story is to let you know that if your are looking for protection, it can come in many different ways. One can be just as easy as going to your local pet adoption place and look for a "Hank". He or she will be a friend, companion and the best protection money can buy.
I only hope that I can live up to the person that Hank thought I was. I will miss my best friend. Happy trails, and keep the lead down range. Clark - Carryconcealed.net