Well, I've got the 360 back. It took Microsoft a bit longer than expected, but three weeks isn't bad. Of course, I had the misfortune of having it malfunction just before they acknowledged the prevalence of the problem and extended the warranty to three years. As a result, mine was only one unit being returned in a deluge of others, so this was to be expected.

Still, three weeks or so isn't too bad of a wait considering I was dealing with what amounts to a massive corporate recall.

Another neglected stray finds a loving home:

It's a classic K-Frame, manufactured in 1988. The actual model number is 66-3. With this iteration, the recessed cylinder was abandoned, but the gun was given an endurance package to reduce cylinder endshake. The firing pin is still mounted to the hammer, which is the way it should be.

Unless you're in the industry, you probably haven't heard of OSHA's proposed 1910.109 standard. The new standard would have effectively made it impossible to operate a gun store or indoor range of any sort.

Here are the essentials:

The definition of "explosives" would be expanded to include "small arms ammunition, small arms ammunition primers, [and] smokeless propellant," lumping such things in with dynamite and high explosives
As such, any facility containing ammunition or components thereof would be subject to the rules governing high explosives
No person would be allowed to carry ammunition or firearms in such facilities. This would also affect police departments and military installations
No person would be allowed to smoke within 50ft of the facility
Facilities containing "exlosives" would have to be evacuated during any "electrical storm."

One of the biggest myths is that, if our friendly Federal Government had control of all transactions, we'd all be safe from guns.

The reasoning goes that, since criminals obtain the majority of their guns through illegal and surreptitious connections, life should be made harder on those who sell guns legitimately.

Go ahead and read that again.

"That punk pulled a Glock 7 on me! You know what that is? It's a porcelain gun made in Germany. It doesn't show up on your airport X-ray machines, and it costs more than you make here in a month!"

–John McClane, Die Hard 2

Gotta love Hollywood when it comes to gun education. You'd be surprised how many times I've been asked about the infamous "Glock 7."

Too bad it doesn't exist.

On to myth number two: hollowpoint bullets. We know all about these, don't we? They can puncture body armor, they blow people across the room, and doctors have to be careful removing them from the victim, lest they explode during excavation.

Sounds a bit silly, doesn't it? Well, I've seen all three of those scenarios enacted in prime-time television dramas within the last year. You'll hear all of them soon in electorial posturing, too.