www.roanoke.com

In the past few days I've recieved lots of advice and suggestions -- in comments here, e-mails, phone calls and personal conversations with friends -- regarding my considering applying for a concealed carry permit -- plans I had long before this blow-up.

I also received a number of invitations to training classes.

I really appreciate all of the generous offers to help.

As many of you know, obtaining a permit is no simple process. "Concealed Carry," in a comment to a previous blog entry, offered what I thought was a pretty good and concise rundown of the process. For those of you who didn't see it, I'll paste it at the end of this blog entry. For the more detailed guide available through packing.org, click HERE.

One thing I learned was that a military DD-214 (discharge form) showing an honorable discharge can help expedite the process because veterans have typically had some firearms training.

Even though I was in the Navy I still got quite a bit of small arms training.

Many of the crew on our ship had to show proficiency with small arms.

I recall qualifying with a .45 pistol at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. I can't remember the exact details, except I know we were at close range, maybe 10 yards from the target. The target was a silhouette and the Marine gunnery sergeant who was overseeing the training told us, as only a gunny can, to shoot only at the torso. "I don't want you all shooting at the head!" I couldn't blame him as he was used to dealing with plenty of people who'd never shot before.

I think we got 25 shots and had to hit 15 or something to meet the requirements. Again, this wasn't for any kind of medal; just a basic proficiency thing.

Not that I was an expert, but I wasn't going to miss the torso at 10 yards. So after connecting with my first 20 shots I was looking for more of a challenge. When the gunny saw those five holes in my target's head he gave me this angry look. I shrugged and said, "It must shoot high when the barrel gets hot." He just gritted his teeth, shook his head and walked away.

I was part of our Ship's Self Defense Force (SSDF) so I got some additional training.

As part of SSDF school we actually got to do some exercises with paintball guns. One of the drills was in a building at Little Creek that was built up to simulate the interior of a ship.

In one drill I was part of the defense force and we were being hit pretty hard by a big group of hostiles. I was in a position behind an open hatch (that's door for all you non-Navy folks) when I saw a hostile slowly approaching from the adjacent compartment. It's not like these hostiles were Navy SEALs or anything. They were just other members of the class, and this guy had left himself pretty vulnerable. We all were wearing heavy-duty protective gear but it just so happened that the best shot I had at this guy was at his neck, which was bare and shining like a beacon in the dim light. Well, I took it and I didn't miss. Have you ever seen anyone hit on bare skin by a paintball at a range of 12 inches? That welt was something to behold.

We were an amphibious ship so we had Marines on board during our cruises and long exercises. Sometimes they would hold "famfires" on our helicopter pad. I would join them whenever I could. We got to shoot everything from 9mm and .45 cal sidearms to good old Ma Duce, the Browning M2 .50 cal machine gun. They would time the famfires with our garbage dumps (back then we just threw bags of trash right off the ship) so that garbage would be our targets. You can guess what a .50 cal round does to a bag of trash. On the way back from cruise they wanted to burn through a bunch of ammo so they didn't have to deal with it when they got back to Camp Lejeune. We shot for hours.

The irony is that when we actually were armed on board -- and we were over in the Med after Desert Storm so things were kind of sketchy at times -- we didn't actually carry ammunition. The guns were just for show. We were worse off than Barney Fife.

Even with that past training I would take a class before applying for a concealed carry permit because there are lots of different issues and responsibilities when it comes to carrying and/or transporting weapons in the civilian world.

Enough about the good old days. Here is that wrap-up I promised, courtesy of commentator "Conceal Carry":

"First. Sign up for and attend an NRA certified basic pistol course fees may vary. This course consists of classroom training, a book, a written test and proficiency with a firearm at the range (shooting the gun) upon successfull completion you will receive a certificate with the NRA logo and instructor information and the date you completed the course.

Second. Go to the clerk of the court of the city or county of your residency, present your driver's license and ask for an application for a conceal carry permit. The application will ask for specific information and you will have to answer questons similar to those that are found on any Federal Firearms form. Answer the questions and otherwise honestly and completely fill out the information. Upon completion your application will be reviewed for accuracy and completeness and you will be assesed a fee for a backround check and processing. This background check can take as little as one week to no more than one month, during that time your history will be reviewed and your name will be put through the FBI and other agencies.

Third. Upon approval you must go back to the court where they will issue the permit only after your fingerprints have been added to the computer.

Fourth. Stay safe and get to the range to practice, practice and practice."

The mysterious package at editorial writer Christian Trejbal's home turned out to be a box of blank DHL mailing labels. Here's the latest news update.

Moments ago we posted a story on the Roanoke.com Web site that a bomb squad has been called to the home of editorial writer Christian Trejbal, whose Sunday column and role in posting an online database of Virginia concealed handgun permit holders has prompted outrage among gun owners. Click HERE to read the story.

Man, I hope this is a misunderstanding.

It gives me an opportunity to highlight what I felt were some powerful comments Jeff Buchanan posted to an earlier blog entry:

"I was troubled to see some on my side of the argument attempt to shed light on Trejbal's family's whereabouts such as schools his children attend, etc., because that is NOT what the 2nd Amendment crowd is about. We are not about retribution or intimidation, but we are about accountability. We support the protection of life, limb, and property from those who would deny us those things and we proactively take measures to prevent those denials from occurring."

I just got word that the concealed carry database has been pulled off our site. A statement is likely forthcoming.

I don't have time to offer more comments because I'm late to pick up my kids from the babysitter.

What a day...

I invested quite a bit of time and thought on my Sunday column on the despicable practice of some celebrity hunters, including Jimmy Houston and country music stars Ronnie Dunn and Troy Gentry, taking shortcuts to pad their egos and resumes.

I was pleased to get a fair amount of supportive feedback on the column, but another Roanoke Times column from Sunday has pretty much, ahem, blown me away.

In an editorial in the New River Valley Current, Christian Trejbal wrote about his efforts to obtain a list of New River Valley residents who have concealed handgun permits. This was his way of kicking off Sunshine Week, during which we citizens can celebrate the fact that the public has access to many government records. You can read the column HERE.

As I type this, the column appears to have generated 312 comments on an attached message board on our Roanoke.com site. I write "appears to" because I can't open the message board. I know Trejbal's column has gone national on shooting and hunting boards so it wouldn't surprise me if the feedback has overwhelmed our server.

As a journalist, I'm a big supporter of open government. The Freedom of Information Act helps us -- and concerned citizens -- locate information that can shed light on misdeeds of government officials. For example, a few years ago it helped expose spending misdeeds within the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Under Virginia's system, the list of concealed weapons permit holders is part of the public record (just like boat registrations, among other things, by the way). Which means anyone who's willing to pay for the processing of the request can get their hands on the information. Trejbal got the list, which was in turn posted on the Roanoke.com website and can be accessed through his column.

Trejbal is catching some heat for this passage: "Local celebrities generally don't carry, but at least a half dozen elected officials do. I'll leave it to readers to figure out which ones so you can avoid annoying them at meetings."

I think that was supposed to be funny, but if you were one of those permit-holding elected officials, what would you think about that sentence?

But this is the passage that's getting most of the attention: "A state that eagerly puts sex offender data online complete with an interactive map could easily do the same with gun permits, but it does not."

Judging by e-mail and Internet message board chatter, some concealed carry permit holders aren't too happy with the implication that they and convicted sex offenders be treated similarly, particularly since permit holders must undergo a background check to ensure they are not convicted felons, so they are pretty much on the opposite end of the criminal spectrum.

But the real question is, should that kind of information be EASILY accesible?

Would it be used only by law-abiding citizens who want to make sure their neighbors, babysitters or carpool drivers aren't, as Trejbal writes, "packing"?

Some critics of the column are pointing out that criminals could also get their hands on it, and not necessarily so they know which houses to avoid for fear of encountering an armed homeowner intent on protecting his property and/or family.

Rather, they could wait until the resident leaves then burglarize the home in hopes of scoring more guns, because, let's face it, a concealed carry permit holder likely owns more than just one gun.

Granted, criminals intent on stealing guns already get some help pre-qualifying potential victims because many love to advertise their passion through window and bumper stickers. Should it be made even easier?

Prompted by a neighbor who just took a concealed carry course, I had actually been thinking recently that I should also take the class and get the permit. No, I don't want to start "packing." But the law regarding concealed weapons is pretty tough and I want to make sure I'm compliant when driving to the range, etc.

I was thinking it would be interesting to write a column about the process, so I guess it wouldn't be a secret for me. Because I write about shooting and hunting, anyone who's paying attention, and that includes my neighbors, knows I own guns. And they also know I keep them all locked up from kids and burglars. But I appreciate that I can put that information out there under my own terms. And I also appreciate why most concealed handgun permit carriers would prefer to keep that information more than just a simple mouse click away.

If you haven't already gotten burned out from posting on other boards, I'd love to hear what you all think about the topic.

In a career spaning over 40 years, Zim Zumbo established himself as one of the country's .leading hunting writers.

That career is reeling in the wake of some controversial comments Zumbo wrote in his blog on the Outdoor Life site. Zumbo had heard that a growing number of predator and varmint hunters were using guns such as the AR-style rifles for their sport.

The ARs are rifles that share their appearance with the famous military M-16 (and its derivatives). But they are semi-automatic, just like many sporting and hunting rifles. Well, Zumbo wrote that he felt such "terrorist" and "assault" rifles (his words, not mine) have no place in hunting. Etc, etc.

Ooof!

It's not unusual to see that kind of stuff from commentators who are uneducated about guns. From a guy who makes his living around guns, no.

As one could guess, the outrage was strong and swift. Zumbo has apologized, and even written that he's set up a trip with Ted Nugent to learn more about such guns. But that hasn't stopped a number of sponsors, including Remington and Cabela's, from severing ties with the sportsman. Outdoor Life has also dropped the blog.

So, this appears to have been a career-killer, one that shows that when you bite the hand that feeds you, that hand can bite back. Hard.

We might not be able to hunt on Sunday in Virginia, but we can shoot.

Sunday afternoon I decided to spend a few minutes shooting my air rifle in my basement range. OK, calling it a range is a bit generous. It's 10 meters from my position to the target, which translates to just a bit over nine meters from the end of the barrel. But 10 meters is normal air gun target range so I don't feel too guilty.

So, this was my first target. Decent shot, huh? Actually, this is FIVE shots. I was sitting, and had a rest. I had my scope cranked to 12X. Still, it's hard not be happy with a group like this, especially considering the gun I was shooting.

Under the conditions listed above, the gun is a more important part of a group like this than a shooter's skill or lack thereof. The rifle in this case was a .22 caliber Beeman Kodiak, which is Beeman's renamed version of the English-made Webley Patriot. It's a high-powered spring-piston rifle that has earned lots of praise for its hunting capabilities (I bought it for hunting squirrels) but has been criticized by some for being harsh and inaccurate. It is hard to cock and it kicks so hard it has a reputation for destroying scopes (although the inexpensive BSA scope I have on mine is holding up OK). But there is no way to call a gun that can shoot this kind of group innaccurate.

It is so much more accurate than my other squirrel gun, a stock Ruger 10-22, that it's not even funny. That rimfire gun can't put five shots in a 3-inch circle at 20 yards. (I've sent it back to the factory once already. Maybe Ruger just assumes everyone who buys a 10-22 is going to upgrade the stock, barrel and trigger.)

This group was shot with a JSB Exact pellet. The next five shots I took were with the heavier Beeman Kodiaks, and the group was almost as good. The next shots were with Predator pellets, which have a polymer tip and are designed for hunting. That was the worst group by far. (Still all in the black.)

That short session not only reaffirmed my satisfaction with this gun, which I got for a great price just over a year ago, but also got me thinking that I really need to get out for at least one more squirrel hunt before the season ends.