Update from Country

23 Oct 07

This note has just been received from Gunner Danny Luke in Iraq. Some requested items have already arrived, and more are in the pipeline. Additional, needed items are mentioned below:

"John,

I appreciate all the support you and your friends have offered. I'm just now getting back to e-mails that have been sent my way. I ask that you forward this to your friends as an explanation for things I have asked for and one more thanks for you and their support.

I have asked for bore snakes due to the heavy "Moon dust," as we call it in our AO. Additionally, the request for heavy duty 2" to 3" paint brushes is for the same reason. These items expedite the daily cleaning process of all weapons. Saving even five minutes in our schedule helps like you would not believe.

I have asked for squeegees because of the same conditions. We require all vehicle glass to be cleaned before every patrol to aid in the detection of IEDs, unusual items on the patrol route, and personnel surveillance.

Cordless power tools we need for construction of many things. We don't have nearly enough extension cords, so the "cordless" feature is critical. I believe my request has been filled for these tools and am very appreciative!

The baby wipes are for health and comfort. Our head facilities are mostly burn-crappers. Not much has changed since Vietnam, eh?

"Canned air" is for our computers. Believe it or not, we are in the computer-war-fighting era!

"Tuff-Stuff" spray-in foam is extremely useful in sealing cracks in plywood shelters we sleep in.

Again, we are here for you and appreciate everything done for us.

Semper-Fi!"

CWO Daniel K Luke 3/23 H&S BN Gunner Unit 73142 FPO AE 09509-3142 _daniel.luke@aa.mnf-wiraq.usmc.mil_ (mailto:daniel.luke@aa.mnf-wiraq.usmc.mil)

/John

SR9

23 Oct 07

New Ruger SR9:

At long-last Ruger, it seems, finally "gets it," at least some of it! Ruger 's new SR9 is a Glock-like, autoloading pistol. Striker-fired, plastic-framed, and with variable grip-geometry, this pistol is designed to compete directly with Glock and S&W's M&P series. Adhering to Ruger's MO, it is attractively priced at well under $400.00. Ruger has finally realized that heavy, maladroit autoloading pistols with, user-hostile, two-stage, manual decocking levers are of no interest to police-department purchasers.

Unfortunately, Ruger has equipped this otherwise promising pistol with their version of a magazine safety. It is the worst of the worst! With the magazine removed, the trigger functions normally, dropping the hammer, butthe gun is prevented from firing. Magazine safeties on S&W pistols simply make the trigger go slack, which is sensory input to the shooter that the magazine has become unlocked or is not inserted at all. Either way, the shooter instantly knows what to do to correct the problem and get his pistol running. With the Ruger, the magazine safety, when activated, will still allow both trigger and hammer to function normally. It simply blocks the firing pin! Upon hearinga "click," instead of a "bang," the shooter knows little, because the pistol has told him little. Chamber might be empty. Might be a dud round. Magazine may be unlocked. To me, this is a source of needless confusion. Happily, the SR9's magazine safety is easily removable, at the option of the owner. Upon acquiring a copy, this would be my first act!

The pistol also "features" ambidextrous, two-position manual safety levers. A manual safety on a pistol like this is, of course, a silly redundancy, but it can be easily ignored, which is what I'd do if I carried one.

The pistol is nicely rounded off, devoid of sharp corners and edges. Trigger is similar to SIG's DAK.

On balance, the SR9 is a positive development. Ruger is a grand, old American gun company, and it is in all our best interests that they be successful. After floundering in irrelevance for decades, Ruger, at long-last, has a main-stream, serious pistol that will compete legitimately with Glock, S&W, H&K, Beretta, Kahr, et al. I only wish they would spend at least some of their time talking with people who actually carry guns for serious purposes, rather than just lawyers, nanny-state politicians, and purely-recreational, target shooters!

/John