Daily update July 28

DC: Resident 'fires back' at anti-gun rally
Washington Post

"Amid the rapid clip of anti-gun speeches last night, Eric Wright fired back. The five-year city resident stepped before a microphone and said he had been attacked three times by homeless people and shot at as he drove through Rock Creek Park.'I deserve the right to defend myself. I deserve the right to carry a weapon by my side,' Wright said at an anti-gun town hall meeting at Shaw Junior High School in Northwest Washington. 'I'd like to know why people believe I don't have that right.'" .... Overwhelmingly, residents, some of whom had lost loved ones to gun violence, delivered passionate speeches .... Resident Margaret Hollister recalled the day an armed robber entered her home. He knocked her teeth out. He forced her to kneel before a toilet. He ran off with her valuables. "What good would it have done for me to have a gun in the house?" she asked." [Editor's note: This wins the prize as the dumbest statement of the week-MLS] (07/28/05)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/27/AR2005072700034.html

-----

Utah: Resident with concealed gun scares away robber
KSL News

"A resident told police he used his concealed gun to chase away a knife-wielding robber in downtown St. George. The resident suffered a minor cut on his neck, police Lt. Mark Brklacich said. He said the man had cashed a check at about 1:45 p.m. Tuesday at the EZ Cash drive-up window. As he pulled into traffic, he saw a man near a dark SUV waving him over. Thinking the man was having car problems and needed help, he pulled over. The resident said the assailant approached him, put a knife against his neck and demanded money. But the resident "reached down and pulled out his concealed weapon and pointed it toward the suspect," Brklacich said. The robber ran back to his own vehicle and drove away." (07/29/05)

http://tv.ksl.com/index.php?nid=5&sid=221868

-----

Texas: Former cop opens fire on robbers
KCBD News

"Just after noon today, a burglary in Central Lubbock turned deadly. Former Lubbock Police Lieutenant James Kimber returned to his residence to find things out of order. The garage was cracked, the back door wasn't closed and he heard noises inside. Moments later Kimber saw two Hispanic men in his home. After hearing the sound of a cocking gun, Kimber got his own weapon and when charged he fired multiple shots.One suspect died on the scene and the other was taken to University Medical Center with gunshot wounds. Kimber was not injured, and according to police responded in self defense." (07/28/05)

http://www.kcbd.com/Global/story.asp?S=3654184&nav=CcXHchJn

-----
Selling guns to the gun shy
Wall Street Journal


"Experiencing sluggish sales largely because hunters represent an aging demographic, the $2 billion-a-year gun industry has launched bolder marketing pitches to attract novices into the world of weaponry. Gun makers see potential growth in the self-defense, security and target-shooting markets, and the young, edgy, camouflage-clad Gen Y crowd is squarely in the cross hairs. "You don't have to be a hunter to go shoot," says Scott Blackwell, division manager for manufacturing, product development and law enforcement at Beretta USA. .... Taking advantage of a prevailing pro-gun political climate in Washington, a fear of terrorism, and the steady liberalization of gun ownership spreading through statehouses across the country, Smith & Wesson and other makers and sellers of guns are touting a host of new products and features." (07/28/05)

http://tinyurl.com/8z7kd