Outdoors shows, snow and House Bill 61

As I write this, the weather forecast is for another six inches of snow over the next day or two. Will it ever end? At least we can look forward to the Great Alaskan Sportsman Show coming up this weekend (April 14th through the 16th) at the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center in downtown Anchorage. I was able to attend the Mat-Su show a couple of weeks ago and, as a result, probably won’t attend the Anchorage show.

If your cabin fever levels are high or you just need to get out, plan on attending, assuming the roads are passable, and the snow is melting (boy, wouldn’t that be nice!)!

Things are beginning to happen with the legislature in Juneau. This past Tuesday, House State Affairs Committee heard House Bill 61, which is intended to ensure that Second Amendment rights remain protected for Alaskans during emergencies.

Quoting from information I received via email, “House Bill 61 prohibits state and local government entities from closing lawful firearm businesses or restricting an individual’s access to firearms, ammunition, and component parts during declared states of emergency, unless such closures and limitations apply to all forms of commerce equally. This prevents anti-gun officials from interfering with Second Amendment rights under the guise of a declared emergency, when citizens need them the most. Further, the bill provides legal recourse for people who experience unjust infringements on these essential rights.”

If you remember the hurricane about ten years ago which struck Louisiana and caused massive damage and destruction, then you might also remember the news reporting how police and national guard troops went around confiscating firearms from those lawful citizens who choose to remain in their homes in the New Orleans area. Some of the worst looting and physical assaults occurred in these areas where these law-abiding citizens were denied their Second Amendment rights and were unable to protect themselves when there was no police response to calls for help.

As I understand things, this Alaska House Bill 61 seeks to avoid a situation like what occurred in Louisiana should any major emergencies occur in Alaska. Between earthquakes and volcanoes, that’s not an unheard-of situation here. If you support this concept, you will want to contact your state representatives and senators and urge them to support House Bill 61.

This has been a bit of a stressful week so far. The biggest problem was that I made the mistake of clicking on a Facebook story I thought would be interesting to read and was immediately listening to the bells and alarms of a seriously infected computer with some kind of ransomware. I had never encountered this type of computer problem before.

The condensed version was that I called a computer repair shop I had never dealt with before, explained my problem and the fact that I needed the computer within a day to work on this column and how soon could it be fixed. The good news was that the shop could get right on the repair, and I picked up my computer the next day in as good of condition as it was before the virus infection. I think I’ve found my new place to keep my computer running properly! It’s nice to know someone who understands computers!

I was also able to pick up a couple of firearms I had with a gunsmith for repair. Both were revolvers. One firearm required a parts replacement. The other involved a reshaping of the trigger guard to repair damage from the 2018 earthquake and a refinish of the entire firearm. The first revolver I had bought used, and I found out about the need for a new part while shooting the gun. I asked the gunsmith to inspect the entire gun and he declared it in decent shape after the new part was installed.

The second revolver I had bought new several years ago and I really enjoyed shooting it. When I discovered the trigger guard damage, I was not a happy camper. The gunsmith was able to recontour the guard and had the gun Cerakoted. This finish is basically a paint job which is baked on in an oven after application. The coating is bonded to the gun metal and provides an exceptionally durable and weatherproof surface.

Since I bought the revolver primarily to use while hunting, I wanted a finish which would protect the blue, carbon steel firearm. I think I got that protection with this finish. I also found some reloading powder I had been looking for.