The shortening days are starting to have effects on the color of the trees.  The first day of summer produces a rich green color that is similar to almost all of the deciduous trees.  Now as you drive along, those same trees are showing variations in the color of green.  This is a sure sign that Fall is tiptoeing upon us.

Showing the power of Chicago’s approach to crime is the case of Steven Kelsey.  In 2015, he was charged with attempted murder, illegal gun possession, aggravated battery, and unlawful discharge of a firearm.  He was paroled.  He was soon arrested again for illegal gun possession and released on $10,000 bond. He was required to wear an electronic monitoring device.  On July 12, a woman was eating lunch in her car when two masked, armed men carjacked her car.  Two days later, two officers from the Illinois Department of Corrections were doing a routine parole compliance check and found the key fob of the lady’s car who had been carjacked in Kelsey’s pants pocket.  In checking the electronic monitoring records of Kelsey, they show him walking to the scene of the crime and driving away in a vehicle.  This shows the preventive power of the electronic monitoring devices and what a deterrent they are. Har-de-Har-har.  Not!

Last year, Chicago’s Police made arrests in just 12% of the cases.  This are arrests, not convictions.  In more violent crimes like homicide, sexual assault, robbery and aggravated battery, the arrest rate was only 6%.  Once again, no conviction rate.  I am guessing we are looking at about 2%.

Hats off to Winchester for their new venture called Shoot United (Shootunited.com).  This is a refreshing addition to the shooting sports community.  Take a few minutes and explore their website.  There are several instructional videos all under three minutes long.  One of the interesting facts they point out is that about 60,000,000 Americans participate in the shooting sports each year, far beyond any other recreational activity.

The ATF reports there are 24,446,000 AR15 and AK type firearms in the United States.  By far, most of these are AR15s.  One of the tests on the constitutionality is the “in common use test”.  I would say these firearms pass the test. 

I can break the law, but you can’t, seems to be the ever emerging motto of government bureaucracies.  The latest case in point is an ATF agent in Arizona caught illegally using her personal cell phone to photograph customer’s personal information in Black Metal Firearms, a local firearms dealer, Acquisition and Disposition (A&D) book.  An A&D book is required for all firearm dealers.  The attorney for Black Metal Firearms points out this is clearly an illegal act.  The Biden Administration claims it is cracking down on “rogue gun dealers”.   The fact is they are just trying to run firearm dealers out of business to make it harder for law-abiding citizens to buy firearms.  They are using simple clerical errors as an excuse to revoke a FFLs license. Don’t drink the Kool Aid the ATF is giving away.

Reports from the National Matches are beginning to come in again.  Right now, the ISRA Junior Smallbore is competing.  One of the international matches juniors compete in is the Drew Cup.  The Drew Cup is made up of the best junior shooters from each of the English speaking countries.  These countries include the United States, Great Britain, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia.  Each country selects its 12 best juniors for the Drew Cup Team.  I am proud to say that five of the twelve shooters representing the United States are on the ISRA Smallbore Team.  They are Kenly Downey, Marissa Hughes, Dylan Gregory, A.J. Hotko, and Isabelle Gratz.  Their coach is Joe Miller.  This will be the last year for Dylan and A.J.  They will be shooting on University teams next year.  Don’t be surprised if any of these five shooters show up on Olympic Team tryouts and maybe on the team itself in the future.
In the two-person 3 position team match, ISRA Gold is the new National Champions.  The team was made up Dylan Gregory and A.J. Hotko.  ISRA Silver took 4th place with team members Isabelle Gratz and Kenly Downey.  An outstanding job by all!

Individual scores in the 3 position Metric Match are in.  Metric means the match is shot in meters, not yards.  Dylan Gregory 2nd, Isabelle Gratz 4th, A. J. Hotko 6th, Kenly Downey 10th and Marissa Hughes 17th.  Well done!  That is it for Smallbore.

Congratulations to ISRA shooter Mike James for finishing in the top three in the 1000-yard Service Rifle Match. 

Wednesday afternoon we learned that H.R. 1808 will not be called.  Nancy Pelosi and the anti-gun crowd do not have enough votes at this time.  Nice work to all those who contacted their congressmen and asked them to oppose this bill.  Of course, one of the reasons this bill was not called was that it is an election year.  Law-abiding firearm owners are mad, and they should be.  H.R. 1808 would ban almost every type of semi automatic pistol, rifle, and shotgun. 

Some of you who called in reported the arrogant, unpleasant nature of the anti-gun staffers who took their calls.  This will happen again at some point.  Don’t stoop to their level; be nice, but don’t forget how you were treated.

Tidbits:
July 28, 1914 - World War I begins.  Austria-Hungry declares war on Serbia one month after a Serbian National assassinates Archduke Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, heirs to the Australian-Hungarian throne.  The declaration of war by Austria-Hungry triggered alliances all across Europe, plunging 30 countries into WWI.  There were many forces at work in Europe in 1914.  Economically, Europe was doing very well, at least for some people.  The American Revolution and the French Revolution had sown the seeds of democracy and liberty in the minds of Europeans from all countries, something that many of the monarchs who controlled Europe were opposed to.  These monarchs called up the young men of their various countries, forced them in the Army, and turned them into “cannon fodder”.  Millions died.  In the Battle of the Somme, the British suffered about 56,000 casualties, for example.

When WWI broke out, Czar Nicholas II was absolute ruler of 150 million people.  He began to roll back democratic reforms he had agreed to.  The Russian Army suffered terribly.  The Russian Army had 5 million soldiers but only 4.6 million rifles.  Unarmed soldiers were forced to line up behind armed soldiers so they could pick up the rifle of the soldier in front of him when he was shot.  The total output of Russian ammunition factories was only 13,000 rounds a day.  Russian soldiers were simply slaughtered by order of the Czar.  Working conditions in Russia were terrible.  Store shelves were empty.  Three years later, Czar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate, and he and his family were murdered, ending the three centuries on Romanov rule.  Russia was out of the war. 

The Russian Monarchy was one the first to fall but not the last.  By the end of WWI, the only monarchy in Europe left was The British monarchy.  It had been reduced to a figurehead role.  WWI was a clash of 19th century tactics and 20th century weapons.  In the European militaries old ideas hung on to the detriment of the soldiers.  For example: in the French military headquarters, telephones were not allowed making it impossible to communicate quickly.  The French high command thought all communications should be handwritten and delivered by messenger.  World War I changed the world and set the stage for the world we live in today.  Most of the time, we think of the geo-political changes and the map of Europe and their colonial possessions.  But there is more.

The main change was the elevation of the United States as a world power.  The employment of women as nurses, munitions workers and multilingual telephone operators moved the Women’s Suffrage movement forward.  The black soldiers’ outstanding service pushed the equal rights movement forward.  The United States Army, which Europeans viewed as substandard, became a force equal to any power.  The United State Marines which were looked at as primarily a security force to protect ships and ports, became recognized as an elite fighting force.  Plastic surgery which had been practiced on a small scale was widely used to rebuild the horribly disfigured faces of soldiers and became a multibillion-dollar part of the medical profession. 

The study of WWI and its aftermath is a topic one could dedicate his life to and never get through it all.  Remember WWI did not end with a Peace Treaty but an Armistice.  The second act of WWI was WWII.

July 28, 1868 - The 14th Amendment is adopted.  The 14th Amendment is, in my opinion, one of the most important amendments after to first 10 amendments.  The 14th Amendment was adopted after the Civil War to guarantee all citizens have equal protection under the law.  The focus at the time of its adoption was to give formerly enslaved people all the guarantees of citizenship.  It has also been used to guarantee Constitutional Rights to citizens when local and state laws, ordinances, or rules have prevented citizens from exercising those rights.

July 28, 1945 - A B-25 Mitchell bomber becomes lost in the fog and crashes into the Empire State Building.  The fuel on the bomber exploded, killing 11 people, including the crew but did no damage to the integrity of the building’s structure.  They knew how to build them in those days.

July 30, 1968 - Medicare is signed into law.  We have all been hounded by companies wanting to sell us a Medicare supplement ever since.

August 2, 1776 - Members of the Continental Congress sign an enlarged copy of the Declaration of Independence.  Eight days later, it was delivered to King George III and Parliament.  Wouldn’t it have been fun to be a fly on the wall when they read it?

Thanks for being a member!

For more information, visit www.isra.org

Saturday, July 30, 2022
Armed Women of America

Sunday, July 31, 2022
Glock Summer League

Monday, August 1 & 8, 2022
Military Bench Rest League

Tuesday, August 2 & 9, 2022
Tuesday Night Irregular Rifle League

Wednesday, August 3 & 10, 2022
F-Class Rifle League
Bench Rest League
Paper & Steel League

Thursday, August 4 & 11, 2022
ISRA Smallbore Prone/F-Class League

Saturday & Sunday, August 6 & 7, 2022
MTG Advanced Handgun Skills

Saturday, August 6, 2022
Range Work Day
ISRA Steel Challenge

Sunday, August 7, 2022
Bonfield Muzzle Loaders
ISRA 3Gun

Gun & Trade Shows

DeKalb County Sportsman’s Show – Genoa, IL
Genoa Veterans Hall
Date: July 31, 2022
Hours: Sunday: 7:30-1:30
Admission: $5.00

Crown Point Gun Show – Crown Point, IN
Lake County Fairgrounds
Dates: August 20 & 21, 2022
Hours: Saturday: 9:00-5:00
             Sunday: 9:00-3:00
Admission: $5.00

Belleville Gun & Knife Show – Belleville, IL
Belleville Fairgrounds
Dates: August 27 & 28, 2022
Hours: Saturday: 9:00-5:00
             Sunday: 9:00-3:00
Admission: $6.00