piece now - peace later: an anarchist introduction to firearms

7/31/2019 piece now - peace later: an anarchist introduction to firearms

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an anarch is t i nt roduct ion to f irearmsPEACE LATER


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PIECENOWPEACE LATER

a n a n ar ch is t i nt ro d uc ti on t o f ir ea rm s

F U R T H E RR E A D l i N GA N D R E -S O U R C E STHE BONNOT GANG ~ R i ch a rd P e rr yAsSATA ~ As sa ta S ha ku rNEGROES WITH GUNS ~ R ob er t F . W i ll ia ms(JANE'S) GUNS RECOGNITION GUIDE~ Ian H oggand T erry G anderPACIFISMAS PATHOLOGY~ Wa rd C h ur ch il lPOLITICIANS LOVE GUN CONTROL ~ S we et T eaDESIRE ARMED! d is tr ib ute d ~ K an sa s M u tu aiA idI,PHOOLAN DEVI ~ P ho oi an D e uiLESSONS OF THE SPANISH REVOLUTION~ V ern on R ich ard sDIXIE CLASSIC GUN SHOWS (in NC only)www.dixiegunandknifeshow.comwww.gunbroker.com(it .slike e- bay for guns!!)THE PINK PISTOLS (GLBT organization thatorganizes shooting trainings for queer folksall over the country) www.pinkpistois.org

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http://www.dixiegunandknifeshow.com/http://www.pinkpistois.org/http://www.pinkpistois.org/http://www.dixiegunandknifeshow.com/


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ual County Sheriffs. Some Sheriffs do little more than collectthe fees and hand out permits to the "law-abiding," becausemore than that isnot necessary. Others implement ridiculous,intrusive requirements that either discriminate on awholesalebasis or are selectively applied so that discrimination can bemore personalized. Durham and Orange Counties are gener-ally recognized ashaving the most intrusive procedures of anyNC county for acquiring a handgun.

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Table of Contents4. INTRODUCTIONII.GUN TERMINOLOGY AND ANATOMY12 . TYPES OF GUNS13. ON AMMUNITION22 . "WE ARE DETERMINED NOT TO PAYTHE TAX."25. GUN SAFETY27. AN INTRODUCTION TO MILITARy-STYLE RIFLES32. FIELDSTRIPPING THE AK34. CLEANING YOURWEAPON35 . "NONVIOLENCE EMBOLDENS THE RAmSTS."38. SHOOTING TECHNIQUES41. TRAINING TIPs AND TRICKS43. GUN LAws, FEDERAL AND STATE48. "FORBIDDEN TO OWN OR BEAR FIREARMS . "51. FURTHER READING AND RESOURCES


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IMIGHT SEEM AN UNUSUAL TIME for agroup of anarchists to create a how-tomanual on firearms. While anarchists havebecome increasingly present in awide rangeof struggles and achieved drastically morevisibility in the last ten years relative to pre-vious decades, our "movement" is currentlyin a stage of rebuilding and reevaluation ofpriorities. The transition (in the UnitedStates) from a largely successful, horizon-tally organized movement against capitalistneoliberalism to the failing, mostly hier-archically oriented anti-war movement hascreated a need for a shift in focus that haseluded us. There are many more of us nowthan there were immediately post-Seattle,

In many areas Blackpeople formed their own "UnionLeague" militias to defend their communities. In places likethe South Carolina back-country, where Black people were anumerical majority, the Blackmilitias kept White terrorists atbay for long periods and were able to secure a relative degreeof community autonomy. Nevertheless, White militias andKlansmen were forcibly disarming Black freedmen in mostof the South. Despite the 14th Amendment, Supreme Courtcaseswere repeatedly giving the green light to the South tocontinue its disarmament of the Blackpopulation. As Recon-struction ended, the Jim Crowe era of White racism wasim-posed upon communities that had been effectively disarmedand deconstructed by a White Northern government whichhypocritically claimed to have "emancipated" Black people.The freedmen were made defenseless against this new phase ofgenocide. Any attempt to understand the failures of Recon-struction, the systematic dismantling of Black communities,and the striving for Black autonomy and self-determinationin the face of Southern and Northern White interference hasto be looked at in the context of this disarmament.

In the Jim Crowe period of the early zorh centurysome Southern states attempted to show deference to the 14thAmendment while in practice keeping Black folks totally dis-armed. The most common legal method for this waspistolpurchase permit laws. North Carolina's Pistol Purchase Per-mit lawwaspassed in 1919, and is a classic piece of Jim Crowlegislation. Racist members of the State Legislature in Raleigh(and the KKK that washeadquartered a couple blocks away)knewthey could not overtly prevent minorities from purchas-ing handguns for protection. Instead, they passed a lawwhichallowed local Sheriffs to discriminate with impunity at the 10-cal levelwho could and could not own handguns. Blackpeoplewere thereby disarmed in much the same waytheywere disen-franchised.

Even today, the Pistol Purchase Permit law is imple-mented in an arbitrary and capricious fashion by100 individ-

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rbiddenT O O W N OR B E A RF I R EA R M S ... ""

A FTERTHEENDOFTHECIVILWARand the~assing of the 14th Amendment, Blackpeople in the South should have legally gainedthe right to bear arms. Not surprisingly, thisright came under immediate and drastic as-sault. The Special Report of the Anti-SlaveryConference of 1867 stated that in most areasfreedmen were "forbidden to own or bearfirearms and thus rendered defenseless againstassaults" byWhites. Mississippi's Black Codesmade it outright illegal for freedmen to ownweapons, and stated that if aWhite person in-formed the government of a freedmen's arms,they were entitled to receive the forfeitedweapons. A letter printed in an 1866 editionof Harper's Weekly said that" [t]he militia ofthis county have seized everygun found in thehands of so-called freedmen ... "

but there is not a publicly visible engagement which focusesour energies and magnifies the relevance of anarchist per-spectives.

Our response to this has largely been to shrink backfrom the public visibility of big mobilizations, street fighting,and large-scale direct actions and into the local projects thatwe already know how to assemble: eco-defense campaigns,prisoner support, pirate radio, food not bombs, neighbor-hood and workplace organizing, sexual assault preventionand education work, infoshops, animal liberation campaigns,etc. These kinds of things are important. Without projectsand campaigns like these our black blocs and street actionswould remain a spectacle for most people, an idea theycould"interact" with through the television but not encounter intheir hometown. Nevertheless, this current milieu of small-scale projects represents aplateau. They represent the currentlevel, in terms of both size and risk, of anarchist activitythatwe are either willing or able to assemble.

Sothis raises the question, whynowof all times publisha beginpers' manual on firearms? From the vantage point ofour current plateau, it hardly feels like the time to start rob-bing banks, liberating prisoners, or attacking police stations.Fewanarchist communities are so rooted in their neighbor-hoods that community self-defense programs make muchsense, and copwatch programs probably aren't ready to armthemselves any time soon either.

The reason for beginning to share firearms skillsnowis that the ability to conduct successful armed actions, evenona small-scale, does not emerge overnight. While our experi-ence with affinity groups and spokescouncil organizing could(and has been) undoubtedly be used for the purpose ofarmedstruggle, the ability to safelyand effectivelyuse a gun, in con-c,ertwith others, takes time to learn. In the same waythat an-archists needed to know carpentry and roofing and cookingskills l o n g b e fo r e theyparticipated in radical relief efforts in NewOrleans, so too willweneed firearms training years in advance

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of the need or ability to use that training.In addition to learning skillsin advance, it isalso true that theUnited States isunique in that in most states civilians are ableto legally own (non-automatic) military-style weapons with

Ino registration. The authors of this zine feel tfat the "crazywingnuts" at gun shows are being very reasonarle when theyhypothesize that this "right" will fade away10 g before anyapocalyptic, capital-R revolutionary situation. 0, even if thevast majority of anarchists in this country have no intentionof using guns in the immediate future, or even training withthem, it still makes sense for us to own.them. This is part-ly because of how gun control legi~lation in th US tends tooperate, where new purchases of certain kinds f guns mightbe regulated or prohibited altogether, but weap ns manufac-tured and/or purchased before a certain year refain legal andunregistered. This can depend on the state oni. lives in, butit is a safe bet that politicians aren't about to f,ryto confis-cate the 120million small arms floating aroun the trailers,apartments, housing projects, suburban homes, and collectivehouses of middle America. Despite all the stortes we hear ofthe rock-throwing, Molotov-hurling, anarchist maniacs fromoverseas, fewof the revolutionaries in those cou tries havere-liable access toweapons that would actuallyallowthem to chal-lenge or at least defend themselves from the mig t of the State.We feel that itwould be foolish for anarchists in the US not totake advantage of our unusual situation before anti-capitalist,anti-Statist ideas become such a threat that gun wnership getscriminalized ~ltogether.

There are a few disclaimers that shoul be made inthe introduction to this zine. First and fore,ost, this zinewas not designed to be a place for discussion jDout violenceand Nonviolence. This is partly practical: theri is no waywecould present an adequate introduction to fireafms basicsandalso make room for the endless discussion that [UrrOUnds thetopic of violence. This not to saythat discussion around whendifferent kinds of violence are or are not appr priate is not

the backseat. The best place isin the trunk or a locked box asfar awayfrom the passenger compartment as possible. Ifyouare stopped bya police officer, put your hands on the steeringwheel, immediately tell the officer that you are carrying a gunand its location in the vehicle, and that you have a concealedcarry permit (if applicable).

RESOURCESNC FIREARMS LAwsNC Department ofJustice , LawEnforcement Liaison Section(919) 716-6725FEDERAL FIREARMS LAwsUS Department ofJustice , Bureau ofAlcohol, Firearms, To-bacco, and Explosives

Charlotte, NC (740) 716-1800Raleigh, NC (919)-856-4366

A NOTE ON REGISTRATIONN eit he r h an dg un s n or lo ng g un s ( sh otg un s a nd r ifl es) m us t b e " re gis -tered" i? Y s ta te l aw i n N o rth C ar olin a. I n o th er w or ds , d esp it e n ee di ng ap i st ol p u rc h as e p e rm i t to bl 9 a h an dg un , a nd a b a ck g ro u nd c h ec k f o r a'9k in d o f g u n, p u rc ha se d f ir ea rm s a re n ot r eg is te re d in s ome g i an t s ta t e-r un d at ab as e. B ac kg ro un d c he ck s c an b e v ery q ui ck a nd e a~ ; o ne o f th ea ut ho rs b o ug ht h is A K at a g un s ho w w h ere h e p as se d th e b ac kg ro un dch eck a nd w as o ut w ith g un in h and w ith in th e h ou r. H ow ev er, there m C 9be l oca l r equi r emen t s to r eg is te ry ou r g u n, s uc h as in D u rh am C o un !y .

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To possess a concealed hand-gun in North Carolina, youmust:Carry your permit and avalidform of identification withyou at all times.Disclose the fact that you havea valid concealed handgunpermit when you are ap-proached or addressed by anylawenforcement officer inNorth CarolinaInform the officer that you arein possession of a concealedhandgun.Present both the permit andvalid identification at the re-quest of an officer

N O TE : Y ou sh ou ld n ot a tte mp t to dis-p lq y e it he ry o ur w e a po n o ry o ur p e rm itunless direc ted to i? Y an officer.

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RECIPROCITYIf you have a concealed car-ry permit issued by anotherstate, it is valid in NorthCarolina if that state hasa concealed carry permitagreement with North Car-olina. Likewise, if you havea North Carolina concealedcarry permit, it will be validin those states. 30 statescurrently have reciprocitywith North Carolina. Notethat specific laws regard-ing where and how you maycarry a concealed handgunvary from state to state, andit is your responsibility toresearch those laws beforebringing your handgun toanother state.

important, though we are pleased to note that few anarchistsin the US remain chained to the moralism, religiosity, anddogma of Nonviolence codes. The role of militant resistance(and its consequences) has historically fallen on the shouldersof those outside "the belly of the beast," while those of us in-side the US maintain "solidarity" ~ith the Global South butinvent Nonviolence codes to protect ourselves. mether ornot guns play an immediate role, the authors of this publica-tion feel that this needs to change.

It needs to be said that this zine is in no wayan at-tempt to pull people awayfrom community and direct actionorganizing to become full-time soldiers-in-training. AssataShakur once wrote quite eloquently that if ever the decisionhas to be made between the armed struggle and "social pro-grams," a revolutionary movement should alwayschoose thelatter. The free grocery programs, sexual assault prevention,social centers, and neighborhood organizations we partici-pate in are amicrocosm of the world(s) wewant to livein; thearmed combat that will have to happen to make those worldsa reality is not. A small movement which understands itselfbut is incapable of self-defense is a seed that can grow, buta movement that can defend itself but possesses no self-un-derstanding is a hollow shell. Rather than calling for peopleto abandon their current projects, we hope this publicationencourages basic skills and training which can continue alo:n:gwith folks' current endeavors.

Another disclaimer needs to be made about us, theauthors. mile we have been learning to use a variety of fire-arms for several years, none of us have extensive military ormilitia-type training. We have also had little to no access tothe weapons commonly encountered in the US police andmilitary, partly because the civilian versions of these weapons(such asthe AR-r5 and its variants) are much more expensive,and because non-civilian versions of these weapons are oftenautomatic and therefore illegal and difficult to obtain. We dohave experience with a wide variety of guns that are used for

TRANSPORTING FIREARMSIfyou don't havea concealedcarry permit, you should besure that your gun is not in aplace where it would be con-sidered concealed and read-ily available while transport-ing it. It is illegal to concealany firearm, including longguns. Don't carry your gununder the seat, in the glovecompartment, or in a bag in

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combat, such as the Glock 17handgun, the Remington 700sniper rifle, theAK-47 assault riPe, the Ruger Mini-14, vari-ous shotguns, and an assortment of other commonly encoun-tered firearms.

We feelit isalso important to make note of the genderdynamics and patriarchy inherent to gun culture and combatin the US. We do not hold the illusion that by revolutionar-ies and feminists owning guns, gun ownership itself becomes"revolutionary" or "feminist." Most of the gun-owning anar-chists we know are men, and it is readily apparent that it willtakea tremendous amount ofwork, on both men and women'spart, to make basic firearms skills accessiblebeyond the man-archist milieu. Though this zine is primarily an introductoryprimer on guns themselves, we feel that discussion of thesedynamics and efforts to remedy them is extremely important,and hope that by putting this publication out there we can atleast spark more discussion on this topic. If anyone in anar-chist circles needs to own guns, it is the most marginalizedamong uswho faceviolence on a dailybasis.

If this zine can accomplish nothing else, wehope thatit will serve to demystify and de-romantisize firearms. Gunsare objects, made of metal and wood and plastic, that are im-bued with avariety ofmeanings depending on the culture onecomes from. Gun culture is primarily the domain of men,and guns themselves are the product ofthousands of years ofcivilization, patriarchy, and most recentlyindustrial capital-ism. This can on the one hand result in radicals romanticiz-ing guns, like we're flirting with the devil, and on the otherhand can mean 'a total mystification of something "foreign"and "dangerous." We anarchists have a tendency towards theidealistic and purist, often meaning an initial policy of avoid-ance or escapism (rather than engagement) when it comes todifficult topics like gun ownership. We hope that this publi-cation can undermine that tendency and help people to un-derstand guns in the same waythat weunderstand many otherobjects like cell phones or cars: that these are tools produced

CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMITPermits to carry concealed handgunsare issued by the county sheriff, arevalid anywhere in North Carolina for5years (unless revoked), and cost $80.People convicted of certain crimes,including misdemeanor assault, areineligible for the permit. "Conceal-ing" aweapon means having a weaponhidden anywherewithin one's conve-nient control and easyreach, not juston one's person. Whether the weaponisloaded or not is irrelevant.

In N orth C aro lina , con cea le d ha nd -guns m C D J n ot b e c ar ri ed :In lawenforcement or correctional facilities such asa prison;In financial institutions such asa bank;In any space occupied bystate or federal employees, includ-ing state and federal courthouses;In schools or on school grounds;In areas of assemblies, parades, funerals or demonstrations;In any place where alcoholic beverages are sold and con-sumed (such assome restaurants);In any area where concealed handguns are prohibited byfederal law;In any place of business that has posted a sign banning con-cealedweapons on its premises;By any person while consuming alcohol or while under theinfluence of alcohol or any controlled substances (unless ob-tained legallyand taken as directed bya physician).

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(cont) Persons con-victed of a crimepunishable by impris-onment for a termexceeding Iyear (thisexcludes most mis-demeanors in NorthCarolina)Fugitives from justiceDrug users or addictsPeople adjudicatedmentally defective orwho have been com-mitted to a mentalinstitutionDishonorable dis-charges from the U.S.armed forcesPersons in the U.S.illegallyPersons who haverenounced their U.S.citizenshipPersons convicted ofa domestic violencemisdemeanor involv-ing physical force orthreatened use of adeadly weapon.

N OT E: N orth C arolina p ur-c h as in g r es tr ic ti on s g e ne ra lJ yfo llo w fe de ra l p ur ch as in g r e-strictions.

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North Carolina Restrictionsby our enemies that we can, while conscious of their source,use critically and creatively to get us closer to the societies wewant to live in.

Towards that end, we have broken this zine up intoseveral different part~.We have included a glossary of terms,gun and bullet anatomy, and a section on different broad cat-egories of guns, which we hope will provide the reader withsome basic firearms terminology; There is also a section onassault rifles and specifically the AK";47, because that weaponis so affordable, reliable, available, and easyto use. We haveadditionally included some basic advice on gun safety, shoo~-ing techniques; where to buy guns, and how arid wheretotrain. Also.present are several radical history pieces and rel-evant lawson gunbwnership and purchasing in North Caro-lina.' We made the history and legal sections specific to ourhome of North Carolina partly because gun laws can differtremendously by State, and partly with the hope that otherswould become inspired to make similar publications relevantto their own areas.

AGEYou must be 21 to purchase a hand-gun and 18 to purchase a long gun.Persons under 18 may not possess orcarry a handgun in North Carolinaexcept under certain conditions.

PERMITSTo give, sell, or otherwise transfera handgun in North Carolina, thepurchaser or receiver must have ei-ther a pistol purchase permit or aconcealed carry permit. This is trueeven for transfers between privateparties. No permit is required fora long gun.

PISTOL PURCHASE PERMITThe pistol purchase permit is issuedby the sheriff in the county wherethe purchaser resides and costs $5.Each permit isvalid for the purchaseof one handgun. There is no limiton the number of handguns that canbe purchased, but counties will of-ten limit the number of permits is-sued in one year to 5.

w ritten a nd p ub lish ed ~ the N orth C aro lin a P iece C orp s

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GUN LAWSF E D E R A L A N D s i A T ENorth Carolina Firearms LawsThis information is meantto serve as a general intro-duction to firearms laws inNorth Carolina. It is not legaladvice, and is current onlythrough December 2007.Much of this information isdrawn from the North Caro-lina Firearms Lawsguide pub-lished by the North CarolinaDepartment ofJustice. It isavailable online at HTTP:#'WWW.JUS.STATE.NC. Us/NCJNNCFIRE-ARMSLAWS.PDF.

Purchasing Firearms andFederal RestrictionsBefore selling a firearm,federally licensed firearmsdealers must submit an in-quiry to the National InstantCriminal Background CheckSystem (NICS), operatedby the FBI. The NICS wiilrun a background check onthe prospective purchaser todetermine eligibility. Cer-tain exceptions to the NCISrequirement are recognized,including having a validNorth Carolina pistol pur-chase permi t.

The following people are ineligible topurchase a firearm under federal law:

Persons under indictmentor information in any courtfor a crime punishable byimprisonment for a termexceeding Iyear (cont. onnext page) 43


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mon round like 7.62 or .2'23 makes this easier. Buyi,ng am-munition in bulk can save money, meaning more training foryour buck.

Find a reliable place to shoot. There are at least twowaysto approach this. Ifyou have accessto private land that is asafe distance from other houses, that's the wayto go. Shootingon private land is more relaxed, and free. Make sure its coolwith any neighbors, and scout the land extensively to make sureyou're not accidentally firing your rifle over the head of some8-year old on a trampoline. Ifprivate land isn't a possibility,we suggest checking out public gun ranges in your area. Theyusually charge a fee of some sort by the hour, but provide youwith targets, safety courses, and sometimes gun rentals. Avoidat all costs buying ammunition from these places, as it isusu-ally double the price. Some state parks also have gun rangeswith yearly memberships being very cheap. It's important tonote that half the people at gun ranges are probably military,cops, or ex-cops, so dress down a little bit if necessary andbe prepared for some shitty interactions. Ifyou can stand thecompany, gun ranges can be great places to learn all sorts ofuseful advice.

Speaking of useful advice, go to gun shows! This can'tbe said enough. Once again, ifyou can stand being surroundedbyoutspoken, often racist white dudes for a couple hours, gunshows are an incredible source of knowledge and information(not to mention great deals). Most folks at these shows love tohear themselves talk, and will generally answer any questionsyou may have. These can also be good places to find tacticaltraining manuals and pamphlets on DIY home defense. Ifyoureally want to be proactive, you could follow in the footsteps ofsome Kansas anarchists who've started to tabling at gun showsthemselves, and have successfully confronted the racist Min-utemen there on multiple occasions. Go team!

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G U N T ER M IN OL OG Y &

CHAMBER: baseof the barrel usedBOLT: movable to hold the car-metal block that

SIGHT: deviceused for aimingusuallyby align-ing af ront an< t_ rear sight ~

STOCK:

end ofthebarrel through which theprojectile exits

BARREL: metal tube through which theprojectile travels:n.>~'''T'''''ir.front portion 01the stock extending

under the barrel infront of the receiver: usually held bythe non-trigger hand to helpsupport the firearm

NE: container on a repealing firearmthat holds am--munitionbefore it's loaded into thechamber; usually tubesor boxes attached to the receiverIGGER: smallever that is pulled or

squeezed to start the firing process

BUTT: the part ofthestock that you holdagainst your shoulderwhen shooting

TRIGGER GUARD: piece that surrounds the trig-ger to protect it from being squeezed or bumpedaccidently

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T R A I N I N GT IPS ANDT R I C K SENTIRE BOOKS have been written just for this section, but. to help you get started, we thought itwould be worthwhileto provide a fewtips from things we've learned. First, if yourethinking oflearning to shoot, find a mentor. Gun culture inthe US can be really scary and awful, so it helps to learn fromsomeone you already knowand trust. Hopefully, asmore of uslearn these skills this willjust get easier. Eventually, it's agoodidea to have not just one shooting buddy but a whole crew,so that you can practice moving quickly and safelyas a group,running drills, etc.

Start simple: it's much less intimidating learning toshoot with a low-caliber gun with less recoil. .~~ caliber pis-tols and rifles are good for this purpose, and Glocks and AK' sare very easyto understand guns aswell.. ~~ ammo is alsoex-tremely cheap.

Alwayswear ear and eyeprotection during target prac-tice, and washyour hands after shooting. Lead from gun pow-der residue left on your hands and facecan make you sick.

Share ammunition! Try to coordinate what kind ofguns you and your comrades own, at least to the extent thatyou can share ammunition. Owning a gun that fires a com-

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can again pull the trigger to fire another shot. Learning wherethat "click" is thus allows one a higher rate of fire.

Breathing also plays an important role in howwell youshoot. It can be tempting to hold your breath when about tofire a shot, but it's a bad idea. Deprived of oxygen for anylength of time, the brain begins to channel your attention toits needs, and awayfrom your sight picture. Gentle rhythmicbreathing up to the point of the shot being fired is desirable.As you are exhaling, stop midway, gain your sight picture,squeeze off the shot, and resume breathing.

Mter you fire the shot, the muzzle of the gun will kickup. It's important to practice regaining the sight picture af-ter this happens by bringing your firearm back in line withthe target. Once learned, this will become an automatic reflexthat improves your ability to shoot accurately and quickly.,

RIFLES

Broadly 'defined, rifles are firearms designed to befired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a p3.ttern ofgrooves (rifling) cut into the barrel walls. The rifling servesthe purpose of causing the bullet to spin which increases theaccuracy of the shot. There are a couple main categories thatrifles are broken up into which wewill discuss here. They are:hunting rifles, military/assault rifles, and submachine guns.

Hunting rifles aredeSigned and used for

exactly what the name says,hunting. Typically they holdno more than 3-5 rounds in

their magazines and they are mostcommonly bolt-action but some semi-auto hunting rifles

can be found. They can be had in just about any rifle caliberthat exists and they are typically longer barreled and heavierbeing geared toward accuracy rather than high rate of fire.There is some overlap that exists between hunting rifles andmilitary type sniper rifles, such asthe Remington 700which isboth a popular bolt-action hunting rifle and also widelyusedby the police and military in the U.S.

Military/assaultrifles can be broadlybroken down into thecategories of 'battle' riflesand assault rifles. The most common dis-tinction between a battle rifle and an assault

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rectly atop the front post much like a cat on a fence. When us-ing open sights, concentrate your focus on (he front sight, noton the target or the rear sight. The eye can only hold sharp fo-cus on one thing. Make it the front sight. 1'm currently learn-ing how to shoot with both eyes open. This gives better depthperception, makes it easier for me to keep my eyes open tosee where my shots are hitting, and helps to regain the sightpicture after a shot is fired. This also compensates for my left(dominant) eye being shitty.

Proper trigger control is also very important. For rifleand pistol shooting, the trigger must be squeezed slowly andsteadily. A s the sight picture takes shape, increase preswre onthe trigger in a motion drawing the finger and trigger straightto the rear. The instant the trigger disengages the sear and theshot is fired should come as a surprise, because your concen-tration is focused on the sight picture. For semi-automatic

weapons, a technique called "catching the link" can be use-ful. After a shot is fired, a trigger usually does not have tobe completely released to reengage the sear (as you slowly letthe trigger release, you will hear a click). After that click, one

rifle is that a battle rifle fires a full-power cartridge such as.30-06, for the MI Garand, or 7.62x51mm NATO, for theM14 and H&K G3, and may be bolt-action, semi-automatic,burst fire, or full automatic with many capable of selective fire.Assault rifles typically fire smaller, "intermediate" roundssuch as 5.56x45mm, for the MI6 family or 7.62x39mm, forthe AK47. The battle rifle's range and accuracy make it well-suited for engaging targets at long distances, while its lengthand weight make it cumbersome in close quarters. An assaultrifle is smaller, lighter and more suitable for close quartersand ammunition is typically supplied from a large capacity,detachable box magazine. True assault rifles have selective firecapability. There are many misconceptions regarding whatfactors place a rifle in this category, most of these miscon-ceptions stemming from the now defunct 1994 Federal A s-sault Weapons Ban. The most commonly used military riflesan have civilian, commercially available counterparts that arelimited to semi-automatic fire. For example, the M-16's ci-vilian counterpart is the AR-15, the AK-47's is the WASR-IOand the M-14's is the MIA. All of these civilian versions arecommonly sold at gun shows and gun shops across the U.S.with only some legal hurdles in certain states and cities.

11111A

SUBMACHINE GUNS eIIIsubmachine gun (SMG) is a firearm that combinesthe automatic fire of a machine gun with the cartridge of apistol, and is usually between the two in weight and size. Theyare typically used in urban and close quarter situations wherehigh rate of fire is preferable over accuracy and where riflecartridges would be overly powerful. These are common-ly used by police SWAT teams and military commando typegroups . . A . s SMG's are predominantly automatic weapons theyare heavily regulated and generally not accessible to the publicat large, with the exception of a few civilian models that are

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S H O O T I N GT E C H -N I Q U E S

S IGHT ALIGNMENT IS EXACTLYTHAT. Thefront and rear sight must be alignedtogether and with the target. Typical opensights are found in the following styles: FrontPost and Rear Open, Front Post and RearAperture, and Front and Rear Aperture.The Front Post/Rear Open configuration isprobably the most common and familiar tothe beginning shooter.

Proper alignment places the frontsight exactly in the center of the rear sight'sopening (see picture). The top of the frontsight should be exactly level with the top of therear sight. The same principle applies to othervariations. With the Front Post/Rear Aper-ture, the front post must appear in the abso-lute center of the circular aperture of the rearsight. Equal amounts of "daylight" should beseen to either side of the front sight.

Traditional sighting instruction rec-ommends a sight picture that has front andrear sights aligned and the target sitting di-

strictly semi-automatic. The Uziand the H&K MP-5 are both ex-amples of submachine guns.

Shotguns are smooth-bored firearms that typically fire a number of small pellets(shot) and that are usually designed tobe fired from the shoul-der. Shotguns are generally only effective at closer ranges dueto the rapid loss of velocity and the spread of the shot after itleaves the gun. Several types of shotguns are break action (sin-gle shot & double barreled), pum? action,

semi-auto, and au-tomatic shotguns.

Break-action shotgunsare typically used forhunting applications

and are character-ized by the reloading mechanism where they appear to

'break' when the action of the gun is opened to be reloaded.Single shot and double barrel shotguns typically fall into thiscategory.

Pump-action shotguns, while also used for hunting,are also widely used for home defense, police and militarypurposes. Shotguns in this category can typically hold any-where from 3 to 8 shells in the magazine tube underneath thebarreland are loaded after a shot is fired by sliding the pump

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backward to eject the spent shell and then forward again toload anew one. These can havea variety of barrel lengths andall can fire a wide variety of shot shells depending on theirspecific use. These types of shotguns are typically incrediblysimple in design, inexpensive, and at close ranges are much~ore powerful and effective than either a handgun or a rifle.Two common examples of pump-action shotguns would bethe Remington 870 and the Mossberg 500.

Handguns are small firearms designed to be held inthe hand when used. In this section wewillcover the twomostprevalent types of handguns: revolvers and semi-automaticpistols.

terror that wasvisited upon integrationists whenWhite, paci-fist Freedom Riders came to Monroe to picket later that year.fu the weekwent on, Monroe's jail was filling up withwhiteand black youth, slowlybleeding to death from the beatingsthey had received on the outside from white people embold-ened bythe Freedom Riders' nonviolence oath.

At first the victims were all Freedom Riders and the lo-cal non-violent students, but bythe last day of the picket Blackfolks were being attacked indiscriminately as the mob fannedout all overMonroe. Blackpeople from throughout town be-gan calling the NAACP house that afternoon to join armedgroups to defend their community. Ultimately, it wasonly thecombination of this armed threat and the "kidnapping" of aWhite couple (who had been driving through a black neigh-borhood with a banner reading "Open Season on Coons")that prevented a complete pogrom of Monroe's Black com-munity.

Nonetheless, Williams wasforced to leave North Car-olina byStateTroopers and the threat of the National Guard,and fled to Cuba. There he continued agitating for severalyears via apopular radio program called Radio Free Dixie. Hisbook NEGROESITH GUNS,which documents the struggle inMonroe and advocates armed self-defense in the cause of civilrights, washighly influential on the Black Panther Party andthe black power movement in general. For many, the NAACPchapter in Monroe proved to folks throughout the US thatthere would be no freedom or equality for Black people inAmerica without armed self-defense.

Semi-automatic and automatic shotguns appear simi-lar in design to pump-action shotguns but function in thesame manner assemi-auto or automatic rifleswith the force ofthe fired round used to cyclethe action to load the next shell.Semi-auto shotguns are typically more expensive than pump-actions but are faster firing. There are alsosome shotguns thatcan be switched between pump-action and semi-auto such asthe Benelli M3. Automatic shotguns fallunder the same heavyrestrictions that govern ownership of automatic rifles and thusare not easily available or accessible. Some examples of semi-auto shotguns are the Remington noo and the Benelli MI.

HANDGUNS

A revolver is a repeating firearm with a revolving cyl-inder that rotates with each cock of the hammer, moving thenext unfired cartridge into position to then be fired. Mostrevolvers hold either fiveor six rounds at a time but depend-ing on the size of the gun and the caliber, some can hold upto ten rounds. Revolvers run the gam~t in terms of size and

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This was the same chief of police that had placed two policecars in a Klan motorcade that attacked the Black communityof Monroe in 1957.

Fortunately, the Monroe chapter of the NAACP hadbeen started by a militant WWII veteran named Richard Wil-liams, and was composed largely of other working-class vet-erans "who didn't scare easily." That chapter quickly gained areputation for being the most militant NAACP group in thecountry, and repeatedly emphasized the need for Black folksto learn how to defend themselves. This iswhat allowed chap-ter members to repel an armed attack by the Klan in 1957,and ultimately resulted in cityofficials banning the Klan fromMonroe entirely. While this created tension within the largelymiddle-class and pacifistic NAACP, itwasa crucial element inearly civil rights victories won by the chapter as well as in theconflict over the public swimming pool.

The 1961 picket line at the pool did not stop after be-ing fired upon. One Sunday, while on his wayto the picket,Williams' car was rammed into a ditch by another car. Whenthe White driver emerged from his car carrying a baseballbat, Williams calmly pointed an Army .45 in his face. Theman with the bat backed off immediately. At this point a hugeWhite mob of thousands had gathered around the cars, andhad begun shouting, "We're not going to swimwith niggerslKill the niggers! Pour gasoline on the niggers! Burn the nig-gers!" Williams disarmed one of the policemen present, andanother Black student who was part of the picket used a pistolto prevent other police from drawing their weapons.

Eventually the State police arrived and agreed to clearthe highway and escort the picketers safely from the area. Wil-liams writes about this incident, "As a result of our stand andour willingness to fight, the state of North Carolina had en-forced law and order. Just two state troopers did the job andno one got hurt in a situation where normally a lot of Negroblood would have flowed."

Williams compares this conflict with the week of

caliber, ranging all the wayfrom the tiny .17 HMR round tothe giant .500 S&WMagnum. There are a couple basic typesof revolvers in regards to the operation of the firing mecha-nism. The two main types are referred to as single action anddouble action. With single action revolvers, the shooter mustcock back the hammer before every shot. Simply pulling thetrigger is not sufficient to fire the gun. One of the most fa-mous single action revolvers is the Colt Single Action Army,designed in 1873 and fires the .45 Colt cartridge. Most mod-ern revolvers are double action, meaning that the shooter hasthe option of manually cocking the hammer back before firingin order to make for a lighter trigger pull or the shooter maysimply the trigger straight awaywhich cocks the hammer backitself and then releases the hammer to fire at the end of thestroke. Some common types of double action revolvers are theSmith &Wesson Model 36 chambered in .38 Special and theRuger GP-IOI which fires both the .357 Magnum and the .38Special. There are several advantages that revolvers have oversemi -auto pistols. Revolvers are much simpler andtypically more durable and rugged. Theyusually have no complicated safety mecha-nisms and it is nearly impossible for a re-volver to jam while firing, unlike a semi-autopistol. Another benefit is that spent shell casings stayin the cylinder, which is good for folks who like to reloadtheir spent casings and for those who want to minimize theforensic evidence they leave behind.

Semi-automatic pistols are probably the most widelyused and carried types of handguns. These handguns operateby using the energy from a fired shot to eject the spent casingon the rearward stroke of the slide and to load a new cartridgefrom the magazine to the chamber on the forward stroke atwhich point, the trigger can be pulled and the gun fired again.Semi-auto pistols come in a very wide range of sizes and cali-bers and most use a : removable magazine that slides up into

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the handgrip of the gun. Some of the most common and wellknown semi-auto pistols are the MI9II in .45ACP, the Beret-ta 92 in 9xl9mm which is the current standard issue sidearmfor the U.S. Armed Force, the entire line of Glock pistols,especially those chambered in 9xl9mm, 40S&W, and .45ACPwhich are also commonly issued to police and federal agents,and the Ruger Mk.II and Mk.III in .22lr which are excellenttarget shooting/practice pistols. One of the biggest advantagesof semi-auto pistols over revolvers is the ability of many typesof pistol magazines to hold double or triple the number ofcartridges of a revolver. The ease of reloading by popping anempty magazine out and putting a full one back in rapidly isalso worthy of note.

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'NO 'NV IOLE NC EE M - B O l D E N S

E RAC ISTS'IJUNE OF 1961, AFTER TWO BLACK BOYSDROWNED WHILE SWIMMING IN A CREEK,THE NAACP CHAPTER OF MONROE, NORTHCAROLINA BEGAN A RENEWED CAMPAIGN TOINTEGRATE THE TOWN'S SWIMMING POOL.After two days of picketing the pool, the Chapter'smembers began taking their lunch breaks in a picnicarea reserved for "White People Only." White folksresponded byfiring shots over the heads of the pick-eters, and the chief of police refused to intervene.


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C L E A N IN G Y O U RW E A P O N

CLEANING YOURFIREARMS IS ESSENTIAL to keep-ing them safe and functional. Excessive powderresidue and debris buildup can cause jams during fir-ing and could potentially injure the person firing theweapon. (Iwill say, though, that one urban legenddoes attest that one can bury the unusually reliableAK underground for half a century, unearth it, andfire it like the day it was made.)

MANY RIFLES COMEWITH CLEANING kitswhen purchased and have space to store said kit intheir butt, but cleaning kits with gun lube and pow-der solvent can also be bought cheaply at most sport-ing goods stores. Ideally you should clean at leastthe barrel of your weapon after every use. To do so,insert a clean cloth patch soaked with powder solventinto the end of your cleaning rod, and slide the patchin and out of the barrel. Then replace the patch withthe cleaning brush, and swab the barrel again. Repeatthis process again with the solvent soaked patch, "andthen with a clean, dry patch.

THE INSIDE OFYOUR GUN CANBECLEANEDby fieldstripping the weapon, removing any powderresidue with solvent, and then lightly oiling all metalparts to prevent rust. Much like bike chains andgears, using too much lube can actually attract dirtand other debris. Do not let ammunition come incontact with gun oil, as this can cause misfires. Rustcan be removed from metal parts by soaking the partsin WD-40 and then reassembling.

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Case - usually madeof brass and containsthe powder charge, theprimer and the bul-let. Before develop-ment of the metalliccartridge, the term wasused to mean a roll orcase of paper contain-ing powder and shot.Centerfire metallicsinclude all pistol andrifle cartridges thathave primers in thecenter of the base.

Bullet - a single pro-jectile fired from afirearm. Some mistak-enly consider the entireround of ammunitionto be the bullet, in ac-tuality it is only the tipof the round.

Crimp - the portion ofa cartridge case that isbent inward to hold thebullet in place.

Caliber - term denot-ing size of the round,in length and width(i.e.7.62x39). It canbe measured in milli-meters or inches.

20

STEP 4: S lid e th e b ol tc ar ri er a ss emb lY t o t her ea r o f th e r ec ei ve r. I tw ill th en b e a lig ned w iths lo ts c ut in to th e r ec ei v-er, a nd you w ill b e ab le to lift the rea r of th e ca rrierup ward and remove it ~ sliding it backw ards out ofth e g a s tu be ( th e h ole b el ow th e rea r sig ht).STEP 5: R em ove the b olt from its ca rrier ~ p ullingit o ut w h il e tu rn in g.STEP 6: R aise th e lever at the rea r of the g as tub e toabout 90 d eg rees, a nd p ull o ut th e g a s tu be.STEP 7: R em ov e th e cle an in g ro d f rom its reta in in gs lo t n ea r th e m iu z] .

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Powder - the general term for any chemical compound ormixture used in firearms that burns upon ignition. The gasesproduced by this rapid combustion propel the bullet downthe bore. One major type is black powder, which is a mixtureof charcoal, sulfur and saltpeter. It's used in older cartridges.Another major type is smokeless powder, which is principallyused in modern ammunition. It's a granular nitrated chemi-cal compound.

F I E LD ST R I PPI N G

Primer - the collective term for the chemi-cal primer compound, cup and anvil. When theprimer is struck, it ignites the powder charge.

STEP 1: R emo ve th e m ag az in e b p re ss in g th e r el ea se fo r-w ard w ithy ou r thu mb and ro ta ting the m ag azine d ow n a ndforw ard (to the rig ht in t he photo).

R im - the edge on the base of a cartridge case. It'sthe part of the case gripped by the extractor toremove it from the chamber. In some cartridges italso prevents the case from entering the chamber.

STEP 2: Removet he r ec eiv er c ov erb p r es si ng th eb utton on there ar o f th e c ov er(u nd erth um b inp ic tu re ). D o n't

I p in ch yo ur th um b!STEP 3: Removet he a c ti on s p rin gb p us hin g it alittle fo rw a rd a ndl if ti ng upwards .

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BEGINNING IN THE EARLY 1760'S, A LARGEGRASSROOTS REBELLION IN NORTH CAR-OLINA BEGAN TO GROW OUT OF SEVERE DIS-CONTENT WITH THE POLICIES OF LOCAL GOV-ERNMENT AND SHERIFFS IN VARIOUS NORTHCAROLINA COUNTIES. FUELED BY POPULARANGER OVERHEAVYTAXES AND EXTORTIONATEFEES IMPOSED BYCORRUPT PUBLIC OFFICIALS,AND CALLING FORARADICAL REDISTRIBUTIONOF WEALTH, THE REGULATOR MOVEMENT AR-GUABLYPOSED THE MOST SERIOUS CHALLENGETO THE INTEGRITY OF COLONIAL GOVERN-MENT IN BRITISH NORTH AMERICA BEFORETHE REVOLUTION.

tween 800 and 1000 dollars for anAR-I5 at a gun show, andthe ammunition is about twice asexpensive aswell. The AR-I5is also less reliable in bad weather. It is riota coincidence thatthe AK has been the weapon of choice by insurgents who findthemselves in adverse environmental conditions, Comparedwith the AK used bythe Vietcong, the MI6 functioned terriblyin the jungle conditions of Vietnam.Primarily for reasons of expense, but also due to sim-plicity and availability, the authors of this zine have not hadthe opportunity to shoot an AR-I5. We do shoot AK's, andhave also shot a few SKS's, and have found the AK to be ex-tremely reliable, easy to learn to use quickly, and accurate. Itis also much cheaper to train with 7.62 ammo, which costsabout $4.50 a box and can be shared with folks shooting theirSKS or Ruger Mini-30. It should be pointed out that we havealso not had experience with the Ruger Mini-I4, which wasbased on the US MI and has been adopted by many para-mili-tary and police forces around the world. Many revolutionarieshave written very highly of the accuracy, reliability, and af-fordability of this rifle. Overall, the AR- 15generally receivesmore attention, in that there is an infinite amount of partsto be purchased and exchanged, but for your average cash-strapped revolutionary there is no better short to medium-range rifle than the AK.

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in 1947, it is estimated that over 50 million variants oftheAKhave been manufactured throughout the world, more thanany other assault rifle. This is not counting the millions ofsemi-automatic versions made, which in the US are usuallycalled the WASR-10. It is inexpensive to manufacture, firesthe cheap 7.62x39 round, is easy to maintain, and its durabil-ity is legendary. Like such rifles generally, it was designed forcombat within 300 meters. The AK was designed for slightlysmaller people than the US infantry rifle. The AK was alsooriginally designed with heavily gloved Arctic soviet soldiersin mind, and is therefore very easy to take apart and has few ifany small moving parts. New or used AK-style semi-automaticrifles can be bought throughout the US for a little over 300dollars (sometimes less). Its Soviet predecessor, the longerSKS, fires the same cartridge and can still be found in largenumbers at gun shows for as little as $125. Unlike the AK,however, the SKS is known to jam during rapid fire and ismo re difficult to 'reload quickly.

The Colt MI6, and its civilian counterpart theAR-15,is the US military's workhorse. Ifyou see a picture of a US

soldier walking aro urid some desertor jungle where

they have

Partly catalyzed by class tensions between the colony'sBritish ruling class and overwhelmingly poor majority, andpartly brought about byWestern Carolinians' desires for auton-0my from the predominantly Eastern government, the Regula-tor rebellion began as a series of minor, violent clashes with taxcollectors and sheriffs. At that time taxes were collected by localsheriffs supported by the courts, who had sole control over theirlocal regions. The entire system depended on the integrity oflocal officials, many of whom engaged in extortion; taxes col-lected often enriched the tax collectors directly. At times, sher-iffs would intentionally remove records of their tax collection inorder to further tax citizens. The system was in turn endorsed bythe colonial governor, who feared losing the support of the var i-ous county officials.

Early conflict with this system mostly took the form ofrefusals to pay taxes and attacks on sheriffs. In r764 these actionssuccessfully pushed Governor Arthur Dobbs to issue a procla-mation against illegal taxing, though this did little to change taxcollectors' behavior. At one point, three Regulators were ar-rested in Hillsborough for shooting up the home of a legisla-

no reasonb e i n g , they are

probably carrying some variant of this rifle.The Mr6 and AR-r5 are made of mostly synthetic parts-and shoot the slightly smaller .223 or 5.56 NATO round(depending on whether it is a civilian or military rifle, re-spectively). This leads to a lighter weapo n overall. These riflescontain more small, moving parts, and are more diffic~lt tofield strip, though they are very adaptable; nearly every part onan AR- I5 can be screwed off and replaced with some fancy newthing that just popped up on e-bay. These rifles are generallyconsidered to be a little less user-friendly, a little more accu-rate, and a lot more expensive. It is not uncommon to pay be-

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24 29

tor and clerk named Edmund Fanning, and were broken outof jail by an armed mob of 700 men. This action caused theRegulator cause to spread far and wide, and greater amountsof property destruction, riots, and attacks on courts followed.In 1770 ,for example, 150 men armed with sticks and switchesled by the pacifist Quaker and propagandist Herman Hus-band broke into a court and dragged the judge, lawyer, and afuture signer of the Declaration of Independence through thestreets. This same mob then returned to Edmund Fanning'shome and burned it to the ground. The rebellion had a greatdeal of popular support; it isestimated that in Orange County6-7,000 of the county's 8,000 residents were supporters orparticipants in the Regulator uprising.

The War of Regulation reached a climax in 1771, whenan army of 2,000 Regulators were confronted by paid mili-tias led by General Waddell. The Regulator strategy dependedprimarily on a show of force, and did not expect an immediatearmed response from the government. Because of this hesita-tion, the rebellion was eventually crushed at the Battle of Ala-mance on May 16th.

A large number of lessons can be drawn from this his-tory. In terms of current gun rights debates, the Regulatorrebellion serves as an excellent counter-example to the tradi-tionalAmerican assumption that adissenting individual's rightto own weapons runs in parallel rather than in conflict withthe existence of a State-supported militia. While the move-ment uhimately failed in any radical redistribution of wealth,it did result in the prolonged tax relief of tens of thousandsof Carolinians. Historians also argue that the Regulators' un-dermining of British authority precipitated and perhaps cata-lyzed the broader Revolutionary War, though this revolutionincluded few if any of the poor farmers' more radical goals.

old cartridge to be ejected and a new round to be chambered.Generally, semi-automatic weapons will fire as fast asyou canpull the trigger. These are the weapons you will most likely beencountering and using. The US Military teaches the semi-automatic.and three-round-burst system as its primary tacticfor riflemen and other combat troops. These methods con-serve ammunition, and although having an automatic weaponis nice, the semi-automatic can be just as effective and usefulas any other military weapon.

-ASSAULT RIFLES AND THE AK-47

In terms of tactical or combat training, it makes senseto train with a regular infantry style rifle, namely some varietyof assault rifle capable of rapid, reliable semi-automatic (ifnot automatic) fire. More or less every military in the worldequips its soldiers with some kind of assault rifle as their ba-sic weapon. As already mentioned, in militariesthese rifles are usual capable of switch-ing between semi-auto-matic and automatic firedepending on what thesituation calls for. Somemilitary rifles, like guns modeled after the US' M16, havethe third option of "three-round burst," which simply meansthat holding down the trigger will cause three successive shotsto fire and then stop. In the civilian world of the US, it isdifficult if not impossible to legally have an automatic rifle,though it is relatively easyto convert some semi-automatics tofull auto.

There are many kinds of assault rifles in the world, butthe majority are modeled after either the Kalashnikov familyof Russia or the MI6/AR-r5 of the United States. First made


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GUNS A F E T YM

OSTOLDER and antique military rifles are bolt actionweapons. The are called bolt action weapons because

you must manually eject the spent cartridge by pulling backa lever attached to the firing bolt on the rifle. This also loadsyour next round, and the bolt must be manually closed be-fore you can fire. A bolt action weapon can be a single shot ormagazine fed firearm. 'These weapons are generally still usedfor hunting. The long range capabilities of the larger caliberbolt action rifles make them useful sniper weapons, and somehunting rifles like the Remington 700 have become commonfor police and military use.

Most modern militaries rely on weapons capable offully automatic fire. A full auto weapon will fire as many bul-lets as are held in its magazine as long as the trigger ispressed.Automatic weapons are only legal to possess if you are certi-fied with a Class 3 weapons license. These licenses are hardfor known revolutionaries to get and reuire training and test-ing to acuire legally. It is possible to convert a non-automat-ic weapon to fully automatic, but this is illegal and a felony.Many manuals and online tutorials exist to guide you thr:oughthis extra -legal process. There are alsowaysto legally achievea full automatic firing rate without much change to the rifle.The authors have heard about, but have not personally hadany experience with these methods.

Semi-automatic weapons are very common weaponsthat are available to the general public in the United States.The most common semi-automatic weapons are "gas pow-ered," meaning that as the bullet is fired, the air emitted bythe bullet leaving the barrel forces the bolt back and allows the

1.ALWAYS keep the gunpointed in a safedirection.This isthe primary rule ofgun safety. A safe directionmeans that the gun is pointed 3. ALWAYS keep the gunso that even if it were to gooff it would not cause injuryor damage. Don't point a gunat another person even if it isunloaded. A gun pointed atthe ground issafer than onepointed in the air; better toshoot your own foot than forthe barrel to drop and shootyour friend in the head.

2. ALWAYSkeep your fingeroff the trigger until ready toshoot. When holding a gun,rest your finger on the trig-ger guard or along the side ofthe gun. Until you are actuallyready to fire, do not touch thetrigger.

unloaded until ready to use.Whenever you pick up agun, immediately engage thesafety device if possible, and,if the gun has a magazine,remove it before openingthe action and looking intothe chamberfs) which shouldbe clear of ammunition.Ifyou do not know how toopen the action or inspectthe chamberfs), leave thegun alone and get help fromsomeone who does.

4. NEVER train with fire-arms while intoxicated inany way.This isjust com-mon sense, but isworthmaking explicit.

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A N I N T R O T OM I L I T A R YL ER I F L EA N D T H E A K

5. Know the range of your weapon and thekinds of barriers the bullet will penetrate.Some rifles can fire shots that travel over twomiles; don't underestimate the range onlyto end up shooting in an unsafe location.Knowing what kind of barrier a bullet from acertain kind of gun will pierce isworthwhileboth for safety and self-defense reasons. Thenext time you have to hide from some angrydude with an AK, you'll know not to duckbehind some dry wallor awooden palate (cus'they won't help you).

Q 7

piece now - peace later: an anarchist introduction to firearms

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