A Republic . . . if you can keep it . . .

 

Election season again and the typical words flying around about saving the Democracy.  I’m sure they’re heartfelt – but terribly misplaced.  We do not now, nor have we ever, had a Democracy.  We are a Constitutional Republic.  And it is that fact that has enabled our nation to endure for the past 248 years.  Let me say a few words on what it means to be a Constitutional Republic and then a few more on how our political parties decide and proclaim what they stand for are and wish to enact if elected.

A Republic is - a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law (Merriam-Webster Dictionary).

Our Republic is guided by the Constitution.  While it outlines our form of government and the duties and responsibilities of each different segment to me the most important are the “Bill of Rights” – in particularly the First Amendment – freedom of speak our minds, Second Amendment – right to defend ourselves against a tyrannical government and the Tenth Amendment that states – “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” – meaning that the government is constrained in their actions and can only do what is explicitly listed in the Constitution and that THE PEOPLE are in control of the country, not those that sit in Washington DC.

To facilitate the voice of the people, our nation is divided into 50 states and each state is divided into smaller geographic regions called counties.  Within those counties the people represent their individual positions through the participation in political parties.  Your individual voice is as large as you choose to make it, up to and including become a Supervisor, Councilman, Mayor, Governor, State Representative or Senator, US Representative, US Senator or even the President of the United States.  But it begins with the County and your parties’ goals and desires for their constituents.  This is the beauty of our system, its power and its strength.  And it’s the core strength of the individual citizen working through like-minded people.

Much has been made of the Heritage Foundations working document called Project 2025 . . . all 900+ pages of it.  There are some determined to hang this boat anchor around the neck of Donald Trump and the Republican party.  Sadly, for them, all have disavowed this particular behemoth of verbal diarrhea.   Here’s a clue . . . if you cannot clearly and concisely explain your position in a single page – don’t bother printing it because NO ONE is going to read and digest a 900+ page document.  And if you cannot be clear enough to state your major goals in a single page – you will never muster the support needed to get them passed.

This is the beauty of County party conventions.  County party delegates come together to hammer out what is important to their constituents in their county, and they hammer out a county platform that details them concerns and desires.  Here the idea that is clear and simple will win the day.  The state convention then takes all the county platforms and molds them into a Party Platform for the state.  States then meet in a National convention and mold all these platforms into a single Party Platform that began in small towns across America and this year will end with Platforms being written in Milwaukee and Chicago.  For the Republicans, this has been done.  You can find it here . . . Republican_Party_Platform_2024.pdf (ballotpedia.s3.amazonaws.com) .  Twenty  Specific goals are defined – from securing our borders to bringing unity to our nation.  They take up a single page.  These are expanded on with methods to accomplish them with an additional 15 pages being added.  16 Pages – NOT 900+.  That is what Candidate Trump and the Republican Party have signed their name to.  That is what you should read and see if they fit with your individual goals and ideals or not. 

When I search for the Democrats 2024 Platform I am greeted with a page filled with promises . . . DNC Releases 2024 Party Platform Draft, Outlining Historic Record and Bold Agenda for President Biden and Vice President Harris to Finish the Job - Democrats

Yet, when I follow the link to the actual platform (Where We Stand at the top of the page), I am greeted with a 91-page document entitled “2020 Democratic Party Platform”.  Well, President Biden is moving a bit slow of late, I’m sure the platform will catch up in Chicago next month.

The advantage to this approach to governance is that it IS NOT EASY, IT IS NOT FAST!  And that was the goal of the founders, to slow the process down and make it deliberate enough to ensure each citizen that wishes to participate in their governance – can.

Democracies have been called “Tyrannies of the Majority”.   And our individual states have been called “Laboratories of Democracy”.  Meaning that individual states can experiment, within the confines of their borders and within the guidelines of the Constitution, on how they want themselves to be governed.  We, as fellow states, can then observe, take a look at how their decisions worked for them and then choose to follow suit or not.  In today’s America we seem to have settled into “Red States” – meaning primarily Republican and conservative majorities and “Blue States” – meaning primarily leftist and Democrat majorities.  Some generalities have bubbled out of observing Blue states.  Taxes are higher, crime in their major cities – think NYC, Chicago, Portland, LA, San Francisco to name a few – is simply off the chart.  Police forces are being “reimagined” and their citizens and corporations are fleeing to the safety of “Red States”.  The value to the country of this process is that we can observe this Red and Blue experiment to see which serves our nation better.  For me, the answer is obvious.

Our nation is a marvel.  The fact that you can have as loud or soft a voice as you choose is unique.  And that we freely allow multiple experiments in governance to be conducted in tandem is unique on the planet.

This coming November 5^th, you will choose the next State Representatives and Senators.  You will choose the next Congressional Representatives and Senators to represent Iowa in our nation’s Capital.  And you will choose the next President of the United States to lead our nation.  Your vote helps determine who represents us, what their platform will be and who will lead the nation and our Constitutional Republic.  Find out what each party has signed their name to, do your best to ignore the propaganda of the parties and focus on the individual Party’s leadership’s written word and the actual choices the parties have made in the past, and then make your choice come November 5^th. 

Cause that’s how our Republic works!

I’m new to rifle shooting – where do I start?

Like most avid shooters, I subscribe to a number of different Facebook Groups regarding firearms.  This post deals mostly with the more advanced elements of shooting – precision shooting, use of Scout Rifles and precision rifles and the use of the 22LR rifle.   It’s not unusual to see brand new shooters joining these groups a couple times a week.  Their posts usually revolve around the rifle they purchased, and it’s associated “furniture” – bipod, scope, muzzle break, whether they need to change their stock to get better precision and accuracy . . . along with a host of other typical “beginner” questions.  And many times, I respond to their questions coming from my experience in introducing new and inexperienced shooters to rifle shooting – everyone from kids with a new BB Gun, to Scouts working on their Rifle Merit badge, to adults learning to shoot a rifle for the first time, to patrol officers working to get better with their patrol rifle.  But . . . it takes a lot of words to fully explain the things that I believe are important.  It occurred to me, while my wife and I are traveling on a winter vacation, perhaps the easiest thing to do would be to simply post a comprehensive post for a new and inexperienced shooter to lend them a hand to get started.  And that is the purpose of this post . . . where to start and how to start.  Grab a sandwich, this could get to be a long puppy!!

 Let’s start out with expectations.  If you’re a new shooter and have been watching YouTube videos of shooters nailing steel plates out to 500 to 1000 yards easy-peasy . . . you might be in for a bit of a wakeup call.  The same holds for the shooter who went to the range for the day and posts a single photo of a target with a 5-round group all occupying approximately the same hole.  Let’s be frank here – they’re only showing a single photo for a single reason – the rest of their groups just “may” be a bit more open – just sayin’.  So, what is reality?  We’ll over the past 50 years of shooting my experience is that most rifles are capable of a 1-MOA or less group – once in a while.  Hence – their manufacturer will call them 1-MOA guns.  That does NOT mean that they will shoot such a group every time you send 5-rounds downrange – but, if YOU DO EVERYTHING PROPERLY, if you use good ammunition, if you shoot when the wind is calm and if you purchase a reasonably good rifle – you too can shoot a 1-MOA group once in a while.

Let’s also define a couple of other terms here.  Accuracy – the rounds go where you are aiming.  And, Precision – all the rounds go to the same place.  My goal is to have all my rounds to land in a 1-inch group within a 2-inch circle at 50 yards.  Moving out to 100 yards, I want all my rounds to land in a 2-inch group within a 3-inch circle.  Honestly, this is where I spend most of my time – at 50 and 100 yards.  It is where you can work on all your fundamentals, your shooting positions and learn about the need to do all the little things correctly.  It is where you will learn to run your rifle.  Where you will learn the discipline to do all the fundamentals exactly correctly each and every round to achieve your overall goals of Accuracy and Precision. 

 So, let’s chat a bit about “DA RIFLE” . . . what to buy, what to buy.  The reality of things is that you CAN buy precision by the rifle and ammunition that you purchase.  You CAN NOT buy accuracy – that is squarely on the shoulders of the person you look at every morning as you brush your teeth.  I usually recommend buying a “klunker” – an older, used, single shot, bolt action with iron sights only.  Mine is shown in the photo of me behind the gun.  It is a Stevens 53B 22LR.  I have about a half dozen similar rifles that I use for firearms training for new shooters and Scouts.  I’ve had hundreds of Scouts shoot their 5 qualification targets with such rifle and earn their Rifle Merit Badge.  This is where I encourage you to begin.  Your goal is to shoot a 1-inch group, within a 3-inch circle at 50 feet.  My argument is that if you cannot do this on demand – with a 80% success rate – why spend money on a larger caliber gun?  You learn the fundamentals while shooting ammunition that costs $.10 per round rather than $2.00+ a round.  That just makes sense to me.

 Your first step will be to zero your rifle.  All rifles and aiming systems have their own quirks.  You will need to learn each and become proficient in zeroing each rifle.  For the Stevens 53B there is a screw on the rear sight that you can loosen and then move the sight left or right in the same direction you wish to adjust the “windage” on the rifle.  If you want the bullet to hit 1-inch to the left, you move the rear sight notch slightly to the left.  And visa-versa to adjust to the right.  The movement is slight, even at just 50 feet.  It’s even less at 50-yards.  For elevation there is a movable, stepped bar that moves forward and backward under the rear sight.  This is what you will move forward or back to elevate your point of impact or lower it.  Zeroing is typically only done once, and seldom needs adjustment unless your hardware is loose or there is a drastic change in the performance of your ammunition.

 Next is mounting the rifle to your shoulder.  I suggest you start shooting from a bench rest position until you have all the little things down like – mounting the rifle into the pocket of your shoulder, finding a good cheek weld on the comb of the stock, having a grip that does not affect the point of aim while you smoothly press the trigger straight to the rear.  It is the place to learn sight alignment – the front blade is in the middle of the rear notch and the top of the front blade is even with the top of the rear notch.  Finally, you can learn sight picture” – the above mentioned “sight alignment” is placed on the target in such a way that the top of the front blade lays just below the center dot of your target.  If you do everything correctly, you point of impact will be in the center of the black dot on your target.  Your goal should be that for 50-rounds, that is 10 targets at 50-feet with 5-rounds per target, your groups should be 1-inch in diameter or less and they should all lay within a 3-inch target.  Your goal should be to be able to accomplish this 80% of the time.  Again, if you cannot accomplish this, why spend money on an expensive rifle with expensive ammunition to learn and become proficient with the fundamentals?

Once you’re proficient with your “klunker”, think about “moving up”.  I have two bolt action 22LR rifles that I purchased new.  One is the Ruger American 22LR with a bipod and Vortex 2-7x Scout Rifle.  And, I have a Ruger Precision Rifle in 22LR with bipod a Vortex Crossfire II Scope.  Periodically, I will return to the Stevens 53B for a couple boxes of 22LR, but most of the range work, both at 50-yards and 100-yards is done with the Ruger Rifles.

I believe that many shooters believe that if they spend lots of money on the rifle and the scope and associated gear, they will shoot better.  Honestly, again, most issues do not lie with the gun, but the shooter.

I suggest you begin each session at 50-yards with a single box of 22LR.  Each rifle will “like” a certain 22LR ammunition.  Most of mine like Eley Club that runs about $10 per box.  You can spend much more – and gain little in precision.  But you can spend much less – and simply fail to come close to your precision goals.  Eley Club is a good middle ground for me.

 My target is a 2-inch circle for 50-yards.  I expect to shoot a 1-inch group that is within the 2-inch circle.  And, I expect to do this for a minimum of 8 of the 10 targets I will shoot at 50-yards.  This is typically my starting exercise for my range trip. 

 Next, I’ll move to the 100-yard range.  My target will change to a 3-inch circle for 100-yards.  Here, I expect to shoot a 2-inch group that is within the 3-inch circle.  I expect to do this for a minimum of 8 of the 10 targets I will shoot at 100-yards.

 I use the same targets with the same expectations with my Ruger Precision Rifle in 22LR for both 50-yards and 100-yards. 

I realize that everyone likes to shoot the big rifles - .308, .338 or maybe the lowly .223 but, but – the mechanics are exactly the same for each rifle (fully acknowledging the recoil mitigation is significantly between 22LRs and the larger calibers).  Mounting the rifle, getting a good cheek weld, acquiring your sight alignment and sight picture, loading the bipod, using the rear bag, a smooth trigger press straight to the rear, running the bolt, reacquiring the target, and reengaging the target.  If you successfully do all those things with the 22LR, you are wiring your neural pathways that will function exactly the same with your larger caliber rifles.

 For larger caliber rifles, I have a Ruger Precision Rifle in .308 with a Vortex Viper scope and bipod, a Savage 110 Scout in .308 with a Vortex Scout Scope and bipod, and a Ruger American Predator in .223 with a Vortex Crossfire II and a bipod.  My experience is that if I do my work with the 22LR rifles, the transition to the larger caliber rifles is straight forward and I can consistently meet my shooting goals. 

One thing with the larger caliber rifles that I learned was to reduce my group sizes to 3-round groups with 5 minutes between each target.  This is due to barrel heating.  When I shot 5-round groups, by the time I got to the 4^th target on up, the groups would open up because the barrel heated affecting the precision of the rifle.

 That pretty much wraps it up . . . if you are starting down the path of rifle shooting, I’d offer that you should begin “small”, work on and polish your fundamentals – then work your way up to the larger caliber rifle of your choice.

 Enjoy the journey . . . hit the range . . . and be safe!!