The Possum Post: 1
Iron Insights
by W. Speare
Your Uncle thinks you’re an idiot. Like many of us, your interest in firearms may only be in its sophomore year. That’s great, and we’re glad to have you! But as someone new to the community, you may receive some bad advice, so we’re here to help you avoid these pitfalls. Spoiler alert! A lot of the bad input you’ll get is from Boomers who are underestimating you. Let’s get into some of the things you’ll hear as a new gun owner:
“A revolver is simple and reliable!”
This is true. Sort of. But that doesn’t mean you should get one as your first gun.
People will tell you to get a revolver as a first gun (one with a pink grip if you’re a cis-woman) because the revolver is simple to operate as far as firearms go. Do you know what else is simple? Learning how to use a compact semi-automatic 9mm. Seriously. It isn’t that hard to learn. I’ve taught over a dozen people who have never seen a gun in person before how to not only use a gun, but hit a target at 10 yards out reliably in one afternoon. Why do they tell you this? Because it’s got less buttons. That’s it. You put the ammunition in the cylinder with lead pointing away from you and you pull the trigger several times. That’s all there is to it. Easy Peasy.
Why is it bad advice? For so many reasons. A subcompact semi-auto holds more rounds, is slimmer and easier to carry than a revolver, and isn’t meaningfully more difficult to operate. Another consideration is trigger pull. Most revolvers don’t have a mechanical safety. The safety on a revolver lies in the extreme weight and length of the trigger pull.
“Get yourself a pump shotgun for home defense! The sound of racking it alone will make them shit their pants!”
Shotguns can be fantastic home defense weapons. But unless you’re reading this with acres between you and the next house, they are both overpowered and underpowered for what you need. They are also very simple with regard to modern firearms. The two main types of ammunition they take are pellets and slugs. Pellets are a bunch of BBs and inflict minor damage to a very large area, while slugs are really large slabs of lead that will inflict a tremendous amount of damage to a specific area. So why do people recommend shotguns? Because they’re intuitive to point and operate, and also because boomers think you don’t need to aim them. (You do.) Why is it bad advice? There are a ton of reasons why you wouldn’t want to use a shotgun for home defense. For starters, shotguns don’t have a universal way to mount a weapon light, the way most handguns do. In my opinion, if your home defense weapon doesn’t have a light – you don’t have a home defense weapon. The whole “Just rack it to scare them off” thing is more boomer nonsense. It’s all based on the “Brother’s cousin’s coworker’s second roommate’s ex’s best friend’s mechanic” level of storytelling. A firearm isn’t a deterrent. It is the last and final line and should not be deployed unless all other options are exhausted.
“Don’t dry fire – it’s bad for the firing pin”
Once upon a time this was an absolute truth. But that was also back when tubes ran the television and a single job could support a family of four. Why am I being told this? Modern firearms have been designed in ways that make the old concerns no longer relevant. But there are some particular guns you shouldn’t dry fire, such as rimfire guns, but that’s a discussion for a later column. Why is it bad advice? Well, if you haven’t noticed, ammo is expensive. And dry fire (practicing operating the gun without any ammunition present) is a valuable training tool for becoming proficient with your firearm. If you’re still not sure, you can always check the owner’s manual for the firearm you have to make sure it’s ok to dry fire. So there you have it! These are some common things your favorite “Uncle” might tell you about guns that you’re welcome to ignore! In the next issue we will be tackling what your Uncle means when he is talking about “Kids these days”. I’m uh… not looking forward to that one.
Mutual Aid
Pro-Choice Clinic Escorting
by “krbr”
Since its creation, the Northeast Ohio Women’s Center and its patients have been dealing with harassment and even physical confrontation from a variety of anti-choice Christian protesters for the Center’s healthcare services. Just a single step outside its doors and you will not be able to avoid the angry faces and indiscriminate shouts of the belligerent protesters that hound anyone that nears the facility. For many patients, this is the most difficult moment of their lives. However, without any regard to the client and their wellbeing, these “Pro-Life” protesters proceed to ruthlessly berate them. The protesters that line the sidewalk around the clinic have attempted to block the driveway of the healthcare facility. They have resorted to using false information to enter the facility – a tactic known as a Red Rose Rescue, due to the red roses they sneak inside their clothes to hand out once they enter and cause a commotion.
In response to the incessant harassment, and in support of our human right to bodily autonomy, the Northeast Ohio Pro-Choice Action Clinic Escorts was formed a handful of years ago. Every day, Clinic Escorts stand outside of the clinic and serve as a buffer between clients attempting to exercise their legal right to healthcare and anti-choice protesters that would like to take it away. Easily recognized by the pink vests that read “PRO-CHOICE CLINIC ESCORT” and umbrellas to conceal the vulgar signs of the protesters, you will also notice quite a few patches on those same escorts that read “NEO SRA”.
The Northeast Ohio Socialist Rifle Association joined the fight against Christo-fascism in Cuyahoga Falls in the winter of 2020. Throughout that time not a single week has gone by in which an SRA comrade was not present at the clinic alongside NEO-Pro Choice. Rain, shine, or snow, committed anti-choice protesters stand outside in front of the clinic. So, in opposition, we do too. This work requires self-discipline and grit. Being a Clinic Escort places you in between the patient and the protester. Even though the protesters may be volatile, Clinic Escorts must remain focused and abide by the non-engagement policy. At all times, the primary goal is to ensure that the patients are able to enter and exit the facility with minimal issues, disturbance, and without escalating any situation.
NEO SRA will continue to stand in solidarity with those that fight for the preservation of our human right to bodily autonomy and healthcare, as we recognize this as a clear form of self and community defense.
Misn’formation
From the beginning, the law in America has been a tool of repression – wielded by the state to cement the power of capitalists, subjugate BIPOC and ethnic minorities, criminalize LGBTQ+ individuals, and undermine class-conscious activism. Laws are often intentionally vague, using cryptic phrasing which requires interpretation by bourgeois judges to apply to any given case. These interpretations by judges are called “precedent,” and judicial precedent has the same legally binding effect on the people as the statutes which the judges interpret.
Access to the rulings by judges which constitute “precedent” is exceedingly difficult for the average person, usually requiring a subscription to costly legal research software to review in any meaningful sense. Attorneys are trained in how to access these rulings and apply precedent to a set of facts, but thanks to the gatekeeping function of expensive law schools and state bar admissions, attorneys often charge exorbitant fees for these services.
The following segment is authored by a lawyer who believes the people deserve to know the state’s laws - so that the state’s attempts to frustrate revolutionary activism may be more effectively resisted. This segment should not be construed as legal advice specific to any one person’s situation, but a tool to help educate and inform the people generally. If you have specific legal questions or are subject to criminal prosecution, I advise you to seek an attorney to counsel you about your specific circumstances.
Misn’formation
Marijuana and Gun Ownership
by “M”
As marijuana is increasingly decriminalized in Ohio and it becomes more common for people to obtain medical marijuana prescriptions, it can be easy to forget that the drug war is still being waged at the federal level. As of this writing, marijuana remains a schedule 1 controlled substance under federal law, and possession of any amount – even for personal consumption or medical use pursuant to a medical marijuana card – can result in a misdemeanor sentence of up to one year in federal prison and up to $1,000.00 fine for just a first offense. See 21 U.S. Code §844. But even if you are aware that simple marijuana possession remains a misdemeanor at the federal level, you may not be aware of the felony implications for firearms owners who are also marijuana users.
Under federal law, there are nine categories of persons prohibited from possessing a firearm. These are:
- people convicted of or under indictment for any felony
- fugitives from justice
- unlawful users or addicts of any controlled substance
- persons adjudicated mental defective or committed to any mental institution
- any illegal alien or person admitted to the US under a nonimmigrant visa
- anyone dishonorably discharged from the armed forces
- any US citizen who has renounced their citizenship
- anyone subject to a restraining order from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of that partner
- anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence 18 U.S. Code §922(g).
It is a felony offense to knowingly possess a firearm under one of these disabilities, and carries up to a ten year sentence. 18 U.S. Code §924(a)(2).
Marijuana users could possibly be “unlawful users” of a controlled substance and thus may not legally possess or acquire a firearm. But what exactly is an “unlawful user of a controlled substance?” The term isn’t defined by statute, and so we must look at court rulings to see the “precedent” establishing the meaning of this term. Federal courts have held that an “unlawful user” is not someone who has used a controlled substance once or even occasionally, but someone who “engaged in use that was sufficiently consistent and prolonged as to constitute a pattern of regular and repeated use of a controlled substance.” The government must establish a pattern of regular and repeated use of a controlled substance during a period that reasonably covers the time a firearm was possessed." United States v. Burchard, 580 F.3d 341, 352 (6th Cir. 2009). A prosecutor can introduce evidence that a firearm owner was regularly and repeatedly using marijuana at the same time they were in possession of a firearm, and at least one federal court has determined that a medical marijuana card is evidence of regular and repeated use of marijuana. See United States v. Bellamy, 682 F. App’x 447, 451 (6th Cir. 2017). Firearms owners who are regular and repeated users of marijuana or who have a medical marijuana card are at serious risk of being convicted of a federal felony offense.
Additionally, whenever a firearm is purchased from a dealer, the purchaser must complete a form 4473 as part of the sale process. The form requires the purchaser to attest that they are not an unlawful user of controlled substances. Answering “yes” to this question will result in termination of the sale, however answering “no” when the purchaser knows they are in fact an unlawful user of marijuana is also a felony offense carrying up to a ten-year penalty. 18 U.S. Code §922(a)(6). And even though it is legal to sell or transfer a firearm to a comrade without filling out a form 4473 or performing a background check, you may also be committing a federal felony offense if you know or have reasonable cause to believe that person is subject to any of the disqualifications we discussed earlier – including if they are a regular and repeated user of marijuana. For instance, if your comrade has casually mentioned to you that they have a medical marijuana card or that they regularly use marijuana, you would likely be committing a felony offense to sell or transfer a firearm to them. Plainly stated, there are very serious implications for firearms owners as it relates to marijuana use.
Given the historic scrutiny of leftist organizations by law enforcement and recent attempts to infiltrate leftist organizations and bait comrades into committing illegal acts involving firearms, leftists must be on high alert. It is possible for law enforcement to try to entice leftist firearms owners to transfer firearms to someone who they know is a regular and repeated user of marijuana, or to simply admit to being a regular and repeated user of marijuana while also owning firearms. With the current permissive climate for marijuana use generally, it would be easy to fall into such a trap and put yourself in a position where you are faced with serious felony charges or pressured into becoming a confidential informant.
A firearms owner who is a regular and repeated user of marijuana should strongly consider either stopping use of marijuana entirely or transferring their firearms to someone who is not prohibited from owning firearms until federal marijuana regulations are revised. Anyone who is a regular and repeated user of marijuana, and especially individuals with medical marijuana cards, should ALWAYS avoid self-narcing; posting videos of yourself on social media using marijuana, casually informing others you regularly use marijuana or have a medical marijuana card, engaging in the use of marijuana in public or in front of others, all of these create a record that a prosecutor can use to convict you. And of course, if you are arrested on charges of being an unlawful user of marijuana in possession of a firearm, say absolutely NOTHING to law enforcement – plainly and clearly state you are invoking your right to remain silent, and that you wish to speak with an attorney, then REMAIN SILENT.
Bread Crumbs
I Used to be Wrong
by an anonymous contributor
The first time I came across the concept of non-binary genders was around 2012. I remember being at work and one of the guys I was close with asked me: “Hey, you heard about these kids saying they’re not a gender?” I don’t remember my exact response, but I know it was something along the lines of denial. “No. That’s not an option. That’s not how science works.” He would have agreed with that and we would have had a decent laugh and moved onto something else.
It is important to note that even though this was a decade ago, we were both firm believers in LGBTQ rights. I’ll even give us credit and say that us being pro-trans at the time was a tiny sliver ahead of the curve for mainstream Americans. But there was that hesitation, huh? A hesitation that came from ignorance. It wasn’t that I knew the science well enough to say with certainty that this wasn’t an option – it was the opposite. I knew so little about the science that I had an opinion born of ignorance, and that opinion was wrong. When this came across my radar again, I took the time to read and see what was actually going on. I changed my opinion based on the new information.
I could bring up dozens of examples of this in my life, and I’m sure you have your own as well. We should all have these stories. There are good stories and it is okay to be wrong in the past. Just so long as you are open to learning. It is important to remember that when speaking with someone who is wrong. They might just not know that they’re wrong yet and that just because you’re right currently – doesn’t mean you were born that way.
So many people in my life have said ignorant things to me without knowing it. So often I’ve taken the time to go over the misconceptions they’ve held and helped them realize that just because their parents told them something or mainstream society leans one way – doesn’t make it true. We should all take some time and ask ourselves why we have that opinion, not just accept it.
Obviously, you cannot get through to everyone; some people will just yell and leave. That’s fine. This isn’t about them. This is about someone who will talk to you. In the rare instance that you get a friend, neighbor, relative, coworker, whomever: please don’t let this rare instance be wasted.
In 2019 I was eating lunch in the break room alone. A coworker I knew well walked in, saw me, said “What’s up, f*g?” and laughed. After my confused reaction of “Jesus – is it fucking 2006 or something in here?” I walked over to him while he was chuckling to himself. I asked him if he knew the origin of that slur. If he knew about the hundreds of years of oppression.
The blood stains that a few years of marriage equality in the States hasn’t washed away. This co-worker, he was a little more somber now. Maybe he hadn’t heard of this before. Maybe this was the first time someone called him out on it. He ended that conversation with this: “This is why I like you; you’re willing to actually talk and not just yell.”
Sure. He could have just been trying to get a rise out of me. “Liberal Tears” and all that. He could have backed down because I stood my ground and nothing changed. It is also just as likely that he has empathy and when asked to co-sign this hate, realized he didn’t want his name on that ledger.
Don’t waste an opportunity to help someone get a new outlook on life just because you forgot you were once wrong as well.