A Brief History On this Independence Day we would like to acknowledge the important role firearms and guns of all types have played in the formation of and preservation of the United States.  Especially with the 1996 movie, Independence Day and the 2016 sequel, Independence Day: Resurgence,  we also recognize the prominent role firearms and weapons have played in Hollywood movies and television productions.  On June 27, 2016, Shooting Illustrated, an NRA affiliated publication, published a list of “Top Ten Guns of American Pop Culture” giving us inspiration for making our own list. Digging Deeper 10.  Take Down Sniper Rifle.…

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A Brief History On July 4, 1966, The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was enacted, with an effective date one year later, July 4, 1967.  In keeping with the wondrous and mysterious ways of Washington, DC, the FOIA was repealed the next day!  Not to worry, a virtually identical FOIA was enacted on July 5, 1967, and was effective from July 4, 1967. Digging Deeper This goofy, confusing political posturing is exactly why the FOIA was needed.  On the other hand, far from making government transparent as the FOIA was intended, self serving interpretations and vague wordage caused the 1974 Privacy Act…

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A Brief History On July 4, 1910, heavyweight boxer Jack Johnson, an African-American, knocked out former champion Jim Jeffries, a white man, to become the premier boxer in the world.  An indication of the state of racial relations in the US at that time were the riots that broke out across the country in response! Digging Deeper Johnson was the first African-American heavyweight boxing champion, a title he earned in 1908.  He had grown up in Texas, a former slave state in the deepest South, and faced racial prejudice at every turn, including being denied a championship fight for years.…

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A Brief History On July 3, 1969, the Soviet Union’s dreams of a moon rocket went up in smoke and fire on the launch pad as the largest explosion of any rocket in history.  The Soviet N1 rocket booster was a giant rocket meant to carry objects or people beyond Earth orbit, basically to the moon.  Its first stage is the most powerful single stage of any rocket ever made, and that includes the American counterpart, the Saturn V. Digging Deeper The 5 stage monster N1 rockets were 344 feet tall and almost 56 feet in diameter.  Weighing in at…

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A Brief History On July 3, 1940, the Royal Navy (on purpose) pounded a French fleet moored at the Algerian port of Mers-el-Kebir, sinking three French battleships.  Usually when we discuss “friendly fire” we are talking about same side or allied forces accidentally targeting other friendly forces, or technical problems that result in one side’s own weapons striking their own people or equipment. Digging Deeper In this case, the attack was quite deliberate, as France had been overrun by the Nazi juggernaut and the desperate British feared the powerful French fleet would be turned over to Germany for their own…

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