By Chris Covert
Rantburg.com
Deliberations for the trial of the seven individuals charged with felony conspiracy in the occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge have begun.
You can browse the the public broadcasting website for their version of the story, but another story lies beneath the one the government tells.
On Facebook, watching video reports by John Lamb, two matters jump out. (You'll have to scroll down to watch the videos. He doesn't allow external links to his presentations.)
As far as I can tell, and from memory, at no time did the number of occupiers exceed 50 total, yet what came out in the trial was that the federal government had 15 paid informants occupying the park along with the 24 who were arrested and charged with felony conspiracy.
Think about that for a moment. 15 people were reporting directly to federal security agents, for a ratio of 3 occupiers for every paid informant, if my WAG numbers are correct.
According to Lamb, of the 15 that the government admitted to being in the park, three were named and used by the government. One of the three actually wound up testifying for the defense. One of the main contentions of the defense during the trial was that all illegal activities were done by paid informants, not by the defendants. Additionally, of all the firearms federal agents seized when the occupation was shut down, not one of them belonged to those charged.
The 15 informants are just the federal informants. They do not include state, county or local snitches. Just the federal ones.
The second matter is how the trial was conducted. According to Lamb, no mention of the Constitution was allowed in any part of the trial, not even in closing arguments. That is stunning. That means that the individuals who claimed the government mantle of justice in no way want justice to be carried out, because the basic law of the land interferes with what they are trying to accomplish.
So in federal jurisprudence, paid informants have a stake in helping the government arrest people by committing crimes and claiming others committed crimes with them, and no -- as in zero -- mention of the Constitution, the law of the land, is allowed in a federal courtroom. The Constitution has no place in federal jurisprudence.
Two items from Bob Owens, who runs Bearing Arms website:
The first is a summary, as it were of an attempted assassination of two police officers in Vallejo, California by a man with an AR-15.
The photo in the link shows a weapon that was put together in slapdash fashion with the butt stock taped together and a stovepiped cartridge casing still in the ejection port. Apparently the bad guy, identified as Adam Powell, fired the rifle, only to have a second round jam. As he left, the cops followed him and shot him to death.
Powell did not know enough about his rifle to clear the jam, apparently panicked and ran away. According to Owens, the jam was easily clearable.
The second item is about a gun control person, identified as Ricky Paul Smith, in Kansas who swiped a firearm from a man carrying concealed, and then attempted to kill the carrier.
Tragically, Smith survived the incident without getting shot.
Finally, a tip on controlling a rifle's recoil.
Loads.
Rantburg's summary for arms and ammunition:
Prices for pistol ammunition were mostly steady. Prices for rifle ammunition were mixed.
Prices for used pistols were mostly higher. Prices for used rifles were mostly lower.
New Lows:
None.
Pistol Ammunition
.45 Caliber, 230 Grain, From Last Week: +.02 Each
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Cheaper Than Dirt!, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .24 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 500 rounds: Ammo Mart, Own Brand, Brass Casing, Reloads, .23 per round (From Last week: -.02 Each)
.40 Caliber Smith & Wesson, 180 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (2Q, 2016)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Ammo Mart, Buffalo Cartridge, FSFP, Brass Casing, Reloads, .20 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: Ammounition Depot, Own Brand, TMJ, Brass Casing, Reloads, .20 per round (From Last Week: +.01 Each)
9mm Parabellum, 115 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (2 Weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Cheaper Than Dirt!, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .15 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: Surplus Ammo, Maxxtech, FMJ, Brass Casing, .15 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (2 Weeks))
.357 Magnum, 158 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (2Q, 2016)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Cheaper Than Dirt!, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .23 per round
Cheapest Bulk: 1,000 rounds: Wideners, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel cased, .23 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (2Q, 2016))
Rifle Ammunition
.223 Caliber/5.56mm 55 Grain, From Last Week: -.02 Each
Cheapest, 20 rounds: LAX Ammunition, Hotshot, FMJ, Steel Casing, .21 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: LAX Ammunition, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .21 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (7 Weeks))
.308 NATO 150 Grain, From Last Week: +.05 Each (!)
Cheapest, 20 rounds: Natchez Shooters Supplies, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .39 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 500 rounds: Target Sports USA, Tulammo, Steel Casing, FMJ, .39 per round (From Last Week: +.05 Each After Unchanged (8 Weeks))
7.62x39mm AK 123 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (2 Weeks)
Cheapest, 20 rounds: Munire USA, Wolf WPA, Steel Case, FMJ, .22 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: TrueCaliber.com, Wolf WPA, Steel Case, FMJ, .22 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (3 Weeks))
.22 LR 40 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (6 Weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds (10 Box Limit): Ammomen, Federal, RNL, .06 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 500 rounds (10 Box Limit): Browning Ammo and More, Armscor, RNL, .06 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (8 Weeks))
Guns for Private Sale
Rifles
.223/5.56mm (AR Pattern Semiautomatic) Average Price: $546 Last Week Avg: $551(-) ($616 (2Q, 2015), $476 (3Q, 2015))
California (279, 263): Mixed Build: $480 ($650 (1Q, 2015), $400 (2Q, 2016))
Texas (250, 264): Rock River Arms LAR-15: $500 ($700 (1Q, 2015), $350 (2Q, 2015))
Pennsylvania (145, 150): Ruger AR 556: $550 ($700 (2Q, 2015), $300 (3Q, 2015))
Virginia (164, 165): Mixed Build: $600 ($750 (1Q, 2015), $475 (24 Weeks))
Florida (371, 384): Smith & Wesson: $600 ($650 (2Q, 2015), $380 (1Q, 2015))
.308 NATO (AR-10 Pattern Semiautomatic) Average Price: $970 Last Week Avg: $1,089(-) ($1,359 (2Q, 2015), $820 (3Q, 2015))
California (71, 72): DPMS: $1,050 ($1,700 (4Q, 2014), $850 (3Q, 2015))
Texas (90, 92): DPMS: $900 ($1,500 (4Q, 2014), $700 (14 Weeks))
Pennsylvania (27, 26): DPMS: $900 ($1,500 (1Q, 2015), $700 (3Q, 2015))
Virginia (47, 47): Mixed Build: $1,000 ($2,750 (39 Weeks), $800 (50 Weeks))
Florida (81, 81): Palmetto State Armory: $1,000 ($1,950 (25 Weeks), $500 (3Q, 2015))
7.62x39mm (AK Pattern Semiautomatic) Average Price: $634 Last Week Avg: $612 (+) ($668 (14 Weeks)), $450 (3Q, 2015))
California (58, 52): Century N-PAP: $699 ($800 (20 Weeks)), $320 (4Q, 2014))
Texas (83, 80): Wasr 10: $600 ($800 (40 Weeks), $350 (3Q, 2014))
Pennsylvania (49, 56): AMD 65: $600 ($750 (1Q, 2015), $375 (1Q, 2015))
Virginia (51, 38): CAI M70 DF: $675 ($700 (20 Weeks), $350 (1Q, 2015))
Florida (98, 94): IO: $600 ($700 (33 Weeks), $300 (4Q, 2014))
30-30 Winchester Lever Action Average Price: $444 Last Week Avg: $495(-) ($495 (2 Weeks), $296 (3Q, 2015))
California (5, 4): Winchester 94: $700 ($1,000 (2 Weeks), $180 (2Q, 2015))
Texas (14, 13): Marlin: $400 ($550 (1Q, 2015), $300 (1Q, 2015))
Pennsylvania (12, 13): Marlin 336: $350 ($450 (1Q, 2015), $250 (4Q, 2014))
Virginia (5, 6): Winchester 94: $395 ($670 (24 Weeks)), $250 (46 Weeks))
Florida (21, 21): Marlin 336W: $375 ($500 (1Q, 2015), $250 (2Q, 2015))
Pistols
.45 caliber ACP (M1911 Pattern Semiautomatic Pistol) Average Price: $450 Last Week Avg: $490(-) ($515 (11 Weeks)), $350 (51 Weeks))
California (205, 200): Rock Island Armory: $495 ($800 (11 Weeks), $300 (3Q, 2015))
Texas (248, 242): Para Ordnance: $500 ($600 (4Q, 2014), $325 (3Q, 2015))
Pennsylvania (160, 151): Rock Island Armory: $425 ($550 (2Q, 2015), $300 (2Q, 2015))
Virginia (161, 161): Taurus: $430 ($575 (38 Weeks)), $250 (4Q, 2014))
Florida (365, 343): Llama: $400 ($500 (37 Weeks), $250 (1Q, 2015))
9mm (Beretta 92FS or other Semiautomatic) Average Price: $286 Last Week Avg: $280(+) ($358 (34 Weeks), $245 (26 Weeks))
California (271, 273): Kahr CW9: $350 ($500 (34 Weeks), $200 (50 Weeks))
Texas (326, 328): Taurus: $275 ($355 (1Q, 2015), $200 (3Q, 2015))
Pennsylvania (268, 266): Kel Tec PF-9: $265 ($350 (4Q 2014), $200 (3Q, 2015))
Virginia (218, 234): Smith & Wesson SD9VE: $300 ($425 (42 Weeks), $189 (29 Weeks))
Florida (560, 568): Taurus PT111: $240 ($400 (31 Weeks), $190 (11 Weeks))
.40 caliber S&W (Glock or other semiautomatic) Average Price: $348 Last Week Avg: $331(+) ($399 (39 Weeks), $262 (19 Weeks))
California (97, 88): Smith & Wesson SD40VE: $350 ($560 (41 Weeks)), $250 (4Q, 2014))
Texas (135, 136): Smith & Wesson SD40VE: $300 ($425 (4Q, 2014), ($210 (4 Weeks))
Pennsylvania (95, 89): Kahr P40: $290 ($450 (28 Weeks), $200 (8 Weeks))
Virginia (68, 72): Ruger SR40: $400 ($450 (2Q, 2015), $275 (1Q, 2015))
Florida (159, 151): Smith & Wesson SD40VE: $400 ($400 (1Q, 2015), $199 (38 Weeks))
Used Gun of the Week: (Indiana)
Winchester 1894 Carbine in .32 Winchester Special