Rounds Downrange

Pretty good day at Knob Creek — excellent filming...you guys are going to love this stuff!

Spent a little more time with a 7.62 Krink...I gotta say, I should just suck it up and have Marc Krebs build me a short-barreled rifle semi version. It's still the best AK derivative I've ever shot. Tomorrow I'm going to sneak off for a few minutes and shoot John Ross' .500 5-inch blaster. Most intelligently designed big revolver I've ever handled. With that tensioned barrel, John is getting awesome long-distance groups from his scoped version.

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SOOOOOOOO, two major gun announcements [hopefully] next week, including the long-awaited overhauled-from-the-Euro-version Sig Sauer P-250 9mm and Ruger's super-secret blaster. I've shot both of them and of course have exclusive video for DOWN RANGE, and I have to say that I think shooters are going to be pretty happy. I certainly was. The baseline just keeps getting better and better.

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And in the never-ending Boulder Embarrasses Itself cat saga, the Colorado Division of Wildlife will not charge guy who capped our neighborhood lion, since he "acted to prevent injury to human life," to wit, his own and his family's.

Howver, this little ditty, courtesy of the Boulder Daily Camera via Jim Shephard of the Shooting Wire:

Advocates with the Boulder-based Sinapu Carnivore Protection Program said Kocar should face criminal charges in the incident for "baiting" the lion by leaving the dog tied up outside overnight.

Wendy Keefover-Ring, director of the program, said Thursday she was "disappointed" but not surprised by the Division of Wildlife's decision.

"I think the Division of Wildlife is sending a poor message," Keefover-Ring said. "The Division of Wildlife is a conservative agency. They're going to give you a ticket if your dog is chasing a deer, but they're not going to give you a ticket if a mountain lion is attacking a dog that you've put in a vulnerable place."

Keefover-Ring said media attention given to the shooting has sparked both praise and criticism of the protection group.

"I don't think I've ever worked on an issue where there was so much attention," she said. "I was surprised at the reaction. There was no middle ground."

Keefover-Ring said her group shut down a blog on its Web site, www.sinapu.org, because posted comments were becoming "nasty."

Rob Edward, director of Sinapu's Carnivore Restoration Program, posted a note on the site about the tense dialogue.

"Although there were several thoughtful posts on both sides of the debate, several people, posting under false names and e-mail addresses, chose to make personal, vitriolic attacks against Sinapu and our staff," Edward wrote. "The needless death of this mountain lion raises serious questions about our responsibility to be thoughtful stewards of wild and domestic creatures. If you disagree, that's your right, but that doesn't make you right."

Okay...I admit it...I have suggested that we stake out local politicians for lion bait, but I'm revising that now. Based on her incisive commentary on the "baiting" with pets, I suggest we cut the politicians some slack and stake out Ms. Keefover-Ring for the next kitty. Maybe toss in her boss, too. Nothing personal, or vitriolic; just practicing thoughtful stewardship and letting natural selection take its course. And if they disagree, that's their right, but that doesn't make it right.