"Dennis P. Chapman, a West Point graduate and retired army infantry officer who served in campaigns in Somalia and Iraq, conducted a study of military training manuals published from 1923 through 2012 and concluded that `there is not the slightest evidence` that pistol grips `were developed or deployed intending to facilitate the spraying of fire from the hip.` Such manuals devote almost exclusive focus on firing from the shoulder.

"Some earlier military manuals mentioned, as a minor technique, firing from an underarm position (not the hip), but this had nothing to do with the presence or absence of a perpendicular pistol grip. The Thompson submachine gun had a pistol grip, but firing from the hip was denigrated as `relatively ineffective.` The M1 Garand, the first U.S. semiautomatic service rifle, had no protruding pistol grip but could be used to fire `well-directed shots`—not to spray fire—from under the arm at short distances."

From Halbrook, America`s Rifle: The Case for the AR-15, p. 26.
.
.
.
#AmericasRifleTheCaseForTheAR15 #gunhistory #tommyguns #wwiimarines #sprayfire ...

"Protection of life and liberty, whether from private criminals or governmental aggressors, required that individuals be armed. Well aware of that, the British stepped up their campaign to disarm Americans, individually and as communities. As Thomas Paine wrote:

"`...Were the back counties to give up their arms, they would fall an easy prey to the Indians, who are all armed: this perhaps is what some Tories would not be sorry for. Were the home counties to deliver up their arms, they would be exposed to the resentment of the back counties, who would then have it in their power to chastise their defection at pleasure. And were any one state to give up its arms, that state must be garrisoned by all Howe`s army of Britons and Hessians to preserve it from the anger of the rest.`"

From Halbrook, The Founders` Second Amendment: Origins of the Right to Bear Arms, p. 115-116.

Painting: "A Matching Of Instincts" by Dann Jacobus
.
.
.
#thomaspaine #thomaspainequotes #americanrevolution #2ahistory #lifeandliberty #thefounderssecondamendment ...

Did you know that during World War II, some American military dogs were trained to carry up to 30 pounds of supplies over rough terrain? Dogs served in the U.S. military in a variety of roles during WWII, including as sentries, scouts, messengers, sled dogs, mine-detection dogs, and pack dogs. Some were trained to carry ammunition and other supplies where vehicles couldn`t easily go.

America`s WWII War Dog Program began in 1942, and thousands of dogs were trained for military service. The Army`s largest war-dog training center was at Fort Robinson, Nebraska, where as many as 2,000 dogs could be in training at one time.

One of the most famous was Chips, a German Shepherd–Collie–Husky mix donated by his family in New York. He served with the 3rd Infantry Division in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France, and Germany and became one of the most celebrated American war dogs of WWII. One example of Chips` courage:

"On the morning of July 10, 1943, Pvt. John P. Rowell and his sentry dog, Chips, hit the beach during Operation Husky. When a hidden machine gun nest opened fire, pinning down the platoon, Chips tore free from Rowell and charged straight into the fortified position. He seized the gunner by the throat, silenced the weapon and forced four Italian soldiers to surrender." (from military.com)

Photo: "Chips and Rowell meeting Eisenhower near Salerno, shortly after Chips nipped the General’s hand." (U.S. Army Photo, military.com)

Today is National Dog Day, which recognizes the many roles dogs play in people`s lives.
.
.
.
#nationaldogday #internationaldogday #wwiidogs #usmilitarydogs #wardogprogram ...

In 1824, "...the Supreme Court of North Carolina upheld indictments with language and under reasoning reflecting the legacy of the Statute of Northampton, as including both going armed and doing so in a concrete manner to terrorize specific people. In State v. Langford (1824), the indictment alleged that the defendants `with force and arms, at the house of one Sarah Roffle, an aged widow woman...did then and there wickedly, mischievously and maliciously, and to the terror and dismay of the said Sarah Roffle, fire several guns....` As the court stated, `men were armed with guns, which they fired at the house of an unprotected female, thus exciting her alarm for the safety of her person and her property. This is the corpus delicti....` The court recalled the words of Hawkins that `there may be an affray when there is no actual violence: as when a man arms himself with dangerous and unusual weapons, in such a manner as will naturally cause a terror to the people....`"

From Halbrook, The Right to Bear Arms: A Constitutional Right of the People or a Privilege of the Ruling Class?, pgs. 215-16. "Hawkins" refers to English commentator William Hawkins and his book Pleas of the Crown (1716).
.
.
.
#StatuteofNorthampton #affray #ncsupremecourt #pleasofthecrown #therighttobeararmshalbrook ...

Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led an incredible expedition from St. Louis to the Pacific Ocean. Known as the "Corps of Discovery," the expedition lasted from 1804-1806. The men carried a variety of firearms, including muskets, rifles, and pistols, along with blunderbusses. But the firearm that seemed to impress the Native American tribes that they encountered the most was Lewis`s Girandoni repeating air rifle. Developed in the late 1700s and used by the Austrian military, the Girandoni had a magazine holding 22 balls that could be fired rapidly.

"William Clark recorded an instance on January 24, 1806, in which members of the Clapsot tribe in the Pacific Northwest witnessed an expedition member shooting elk, `which has given them a very exolted opinion of us as marksmen and the Superior excellency of our rifles Compared with their guns; this may probably be of service to us, as it will deter them from any acts of hostility if they have ever meditated any such.` He further wrote that `our air gun also astonishes them very much, they Cannot Comprehend its Shooting So often and without powder, and think that it is great medison which Comprehends everything that is to them incomprehensible.`"

From Halbrook, America`s Rifle: The Case for the AR-15, pgs. 125-26.

Image: "York, 1804" by Michael Haynes (1999). York was Clark`s enslaved man. On the expedition, he was an active hunter and field member. Clark repeatedly recorded York hunting buffalo, deer, and other game with his own rifle.
.
.
.
#lewisandclark #lewisandclarkexpedition #corpsofdiscovery #Girandoni #AmericasRifleTheCaseForTheAR15 ...

Mark W. Smith of 4 Boxes Diner ( @thefourboxesdiner ) and I recently discussed the Silencer Shop and Jenson v. ATF decision by Judge James Hendrix. I believe that the decision represents a major constitutional blow to the NFA`s regulation of suppressors and short-barreled firearms by eliminating its tax-based foundation, and caution that the practical impact is still unfolding and depends on the scope of the injunction, state law, and what ATF/DOJ do next.

Our interview is titled "BREAKING NEWS! HUGE NFA VICTORY BREAKDOWN WITH STEPHEN HALBROOK" (August 18, 2026) and is available on "The Four Boxes Diner" YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXv_YIKDzMw

You can also access the link on the homepage of my website, in the "Presentations" section.
.
.
.
#thefourboxesdiner #guncontrolact #nationalfirearmsact #2acases #stephenhalbrook ...

Line up boys! It`s time for an adventure. This photo`s caption is "Hunting with Granddad" (Iowa, 1959). Granddad has a Winchester model 12 shotgun. The boy on the left has a Daisy model 25 BB gun, the middle boy has a Winchester model 67 rifle, and the boy on the right has a pop gun.
.
.
.
#huntingwithgrandpa #winchesterrifles #daisybbgun #teachthemtohunt #vintagegunphoto ...

Several days after Lexington and Concord, General Gage moved to disarm the inhabitants of Boston. He promised that all firearms that were surrendered would be under the care of the selectmen and eventually returned to their owners. "According to the historian Richard Frothingham, `the people delivered to the selectmen 1778 fire-arms [muskets], 634 pistols, 973 bayonets, and 38 blunderbusses.`..."

"There survives “A List of the Persons Names who lodge their Arms with the Selectmen pursuant to a Vote by them passed yesterday & also of the Number by each delivered.” It shows a total of 321 names, the types of arms each surrendered, and the total number of arms each surrendered. ...

"The most prominent name was Paul Revere, but he was the son of the famous patriot, who left Boston with the family. Paul Jr., who stayed in Boston to take care of the family’s properties, turned in three guns, a bayonet, and a pair of pistols. The merchant John Rowe...surrendered two guns. As noted above, apparently, one of the sons of John Cookson, who advertised repeating muskets in 1756, turned in a chest of barrels, locks, and other parts. While it would be interesting to know more about the others who surrendered their arms, the inventories exhibit a society well-armed for both military service and self-defense."

From Halbrook, America`s Rifle: The Case for the AR-15, pgs. 99-100.
.
.
.
#disarmedcitizens #GeneralGage #americanrevolutionarywar #AmericasRifleTheCaseForTheAR15 #2ahistory ...