Galluping Toward Christmas
Sometimes, The Best Gifts Don’t Come Wrapped
No, the headline is not misspelled, and as we head toward my yuletide birthday — the 75th if it’s anyone’s business — I got an early gift. It didn’t come from Santa but from the famous Gallup polling firm
A recent Gallup survey revealed public support for a handgun ban is near the all-time record low, and even among Democrats, the idea has declined an impressive 16 points since 2023, down to 33%. That’s really not bad, considering how Democrats are overwhelmingly in favor of making gun control laws even stricter than they are right now. According to Gallup, “89% of Democrats (support) stricter gun laws compared with 56% of Independents and 25% of Republicans.”
Let that sink in while you’re doing your last-minute Christmas shopping. If the recent national election taught us anything, it would be that the “party of gun control” is woefully out of touch, as are their cheerleaders in the establishment media.
The Gallup survey didn’t get much attention, and the numbers pretty much explain why not. According to the Daily Caller, something else worth noting was that 59% of people who voted for Kamala Harris last month said gun control was a “very important” issue, according to a September Pew Research poll. Well, no wonder the far left was on the losing side. For most people, the economy, border security, rising crime and the cost of living were priorities that drove them to the voting booth.
A majority of Republicans (59%) favor keeping firearms sales laws as they are now, while 15% prefer less strict laws. Among Independents, 31% would like to see gun laws kept the same and 12% support stricter laws.
Not surprisingly — though somewhat disappointing — 52% of Americans still support a ban on so-called “assault weapons. However, that’s down from the 55% who backed a ban in 2022. Of course, within those figures, 82% of Democrats support a ban, while only 27% of Republicans do, and Independents are split, with 50% support.
Considering all of this, let’s just say I didn’t have to unwrap anything to have a big holiday season smile.
Time Marches On
Time. We never seem to have enough; it goes by faster the older we get, and when our time is up, it is the one commodity we cannot borrow, buy, beg or steal.
The holidays remind us of this, maybe me more than most people because of my Christmas birthday. Those of us whose lives are blessed with hours, days or even weeks in the outdoors perhaps understand more about the use of whatever time we have than couch dwellers.
A few days prior to writing this, we saw the first serious snow on mountains just east of my front door. I call it “termination dust,” a term that originated in Alaska. According to something called the “Wictionary,” termination dust is “a light, high-altitude snowfall that indicates the end of summer.” Reflexively, I broke out the hunting packs, loaded up my .22-caliber pistol and started planning a little trek in the woods to find late-season grouse or snowshoe hares.
Christmas and New Year’s Day both fall on Wednesdays, and since we’re talking about time, it never occurred to me that I’d have this much. As this year comes to an end, I can look back at the hours I spent at the range or up on a ridge where my older son helped me produce a couple of short videos or the solo hunts I did this past autumn. None of that time was wasted, although others may disagree.
I did a little rough research this year about how much time I spend on reloading individual rifle cartridges. This is important since I own rifles in at least five different calibers, so every time I press a trigger, I can estimate how much time it’ll take to restore my ammunition supply.
By my calculations, it takes an average of maybe 10-12 minutes per cartridge when I include the case prep (sizing, trimming, chamfering and priming), except for tumbling, which takes at least 2.5 hours for a batch of brass. Then I add in measuring the powder charge and finally seating the projectile. It all adds up to enjoyment, so on a scale of things, I’m probably ahead.
But what about other rewarding uses of time? Earlier this year, I spent a few pleasant hours with my younger son driving over a mountain pass in his new 4×4 pickup — just me and him — to buy a box of bullets, a pound of pistol powder and, quite by surprise, a 100-count bag of Starline brass for my .41 Magnum revolvers. The return trip took us off the pavement and way up into the mountains, where we burned a little powder, punctured a few targets and enjoyed some truly fresh air.
In September, I encountered a big blue grouse, a bird known for its often-surprising stupidity, and this one didn’t break the pattern. He took off but landed on a tree limb about 35 yards away and stayed there long enough for me to stick a magazine into my Ruger 10/22, work the action and conk him with a 40-grain RNL bullet. It has never bothered me that I didn’t pop a grouse with a shotgun instead of using a rimfire. At the dinner table, they eat just as good either way. I’m hoping Santa isn’t one of those annoying purists who think a bird must be taken with a shotgun while hunting over a dog.
It was later that afternoon when I drove up to a couple of guys zeroing a muzzleloader in a big gravel pit, and one of them turned out to be a reader! Spending several minutes with those guys talking about guns and loads was clearly time well spent.
Holiday Hunt
With the appearance of snow, I broke out my Ruger New Vaquero in .45 Colt, filled up one of my cartridge belts, slicked up the holster and started making plans for a late-season grouse and/or snowshoe hare hunt. That was definitely time well spent; the anticipation of a hunt is often as enriching as the actual event.
I’ll use a shotgun or .22 pistol for the game. The sixgun might come in handy in an emergency.
When I was a kid, I read a story in one of the outdoor periodicals of the era about a guy who bought his younger son a .410 shotgun for Christmas. They subsequently hunted cottontail rabbits with the aid of a beagle, and it struck me even then how much of a gift from father to son that was.
My younger son doesn’t hunt, but he can shoot pretty good when the notion hits him. One of the best times I spent with him was showing him how to repair a battery cable in a family car he was driving. He later said it was one of the best times we ever had, and the remark was worth more to me than a bank full of cash. I also showed him how to save money by changing his own oil and filter — skills which apparently not enough dads seem to pass on to their kids — and he does it rather well. Maybe it’s in the genes since my dad was an auto mechanic.
November Back Story
This time last month, I was covering a fiasco in Washington State involving a breakdown of the State Patrol’s background check system, which is part of a larger statewide court computer system.
It turned out that background checks were suspended for 17 days while the techs tried to get the system back up and running. It may have been the threat of legal action by the Second Amendment Foundation that added urgency and momentum to the repair process. As of this writing, we still haven’t learned the exact nature of the problem, but I did get a text message from a State Patrol spokesman who revealed that over a 24-hour period after the system came back online, more than 13,000 backlogged checks were conducted and completed.
After about 36 hours had passed, the system was perking anew. However, the problem still needs to be solved. Washington doesn’t use the NICS system, opting instead for a state-level check system and a 10-day waiting period. I personally dislike waiting periods because a right delayed is a right denied. I don’t know of a single violent crime, including some mass shootings, which was prevented by a waiting period.
The time invested in hounding the state over this may result in a lasting fix, with a backup plan in case of another failure.
Memories are Gifts
Time spent with a pal in the High Lonesome, sharing a campfire and after-dinner libation allows us the opportunity to laugh at memories of previous misadventures while making more memories in the process.
Driving across the state in May to pick up a little puppy we’ve named Cooper is a memory I’ll cherish. I wrote about this little guy months ago.
I recently wrote about a weekend trek with my longtime hunting buddy Brian Lull and shooting his .22-caliber pistol in our remote camp. This guy is a hunter’s hunter, and absolutely reliable off the pavement. We worked together several years ago, but even though our careers took different roads, autumn leaves and the smell of wood smoke, bacon sizzling in the pan, and the prospect of lead in the air bring us back together.
Be sure to give your pals a call over the next few days. Send them a card. Start making plans for an adventure over the horizon. Get them a gift subscription to American Handgunner and/or GUNS Magazine.
MAILBAG:
Rock On!
Just wanted to drop you a line and tell you how much I enjoyed your piece on The Rock (Insider Online, Nov. 15). It’s been too long since I fired up my old Coleman (which was my dad’s when I was a kid), but I remember how excited I was when he showed me how to light a strike-anywhere on a zipper. Probably about as thrilled as I was later when I figured out I could use the checkered mainspring housing on my Colt. I don’t seem to manage either all that well these days — like you said, those blasted green ones …
Again, nice work!
— J. Clough
Dave replies: Jeremy, it’s often surprising to me which of my subjects hits the right chord. The Rock appears to have been one of those because it also garnered the next messages from other readers. Like you, I’ve struck matches on a checkered mainspring housing, the file blade of a folding knife, and other rough surfaces, but The Rock prevails. Thanks for reading Insider Online.
Good stuff, Dave! “Early high country buck hunts” are magic words to my ears. You weren’t by any chance hunting up in the Pasayten Wilderness, were you? I used to go up through Billy Goat Pass every September …
— Glen Fryxell
Dave replies: Glen, that particular hunt was up on the southeast corner of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Central Washington, on the trail to Rachel Lake. Be sure to enjoy the holidays, and thanks for or reading.
Fabulous story that opens the floodgates of deer camp days of yesterday year. The bump cap insert is a noggin’ savior for me around the RV when we are hooking up the fifth wheel. Thanks for the memory shared.
— David Helms
Dave replies: I’ve got to admit that bump cap insert continues to protect my bony head and I’ll be wearing it on future misadventures. At my age, I don’t need any more whacks on the head! Stay safe, shoot straight and thanks so much for reading Insider Online. Best wishes for the holidays and the New Year ahead.