The Alabama Shootings - An Op/Ed from TexasFred

The mainstream news media is a tool for the anti-gun crowd, that’s all I can say. One story says, Ala. gunman was ‘just a normal person’, and I realize that these are the observations of folks that supposedly knew this guy, but normal people don’t go off on shooting sprees, killing innocent men, women and children. That is NOT the workings of a normal thinking person. There were some indicators that this tragedy was about to happen, unless this guy just snapped, and went over the edge in one big move, there had to be at least some indicators. Perhaps his neighbors didn’t know what to look for, or maybe they were too close to the situation, too trusting perhaps. There’s a level of trust that is gone forever.

A normal person doesn’t make a hit list either. Alabama gunman kept a list of those who had ‘done him wrong’.

All the stories I have seen so far seem to be running along the same line of thought, Michael McLendon was just one of the guys, he was never in trouble with the law, he grew up with them, played Little League baseball, graduated from the local high school and worked by their sides at local factories, and his neighbors considered him to be normal. Regardless of outer appearances, this young man was anything BUT normal. There were some deep rooted mental problems at work here, there had to be. I hope the investigators can get to the bottom of this but I don’t know that they will.

Police: Ala. gunman’s motive may remain a mystery, that’s the story from USA Today, a paper with a FAR LEFT and anti-gun tilt. I would venture to say that this would be their final take on it if other news sources weren’t still hammering the story and looking for more facts and possible reasons, reasons that appear to have been missed by the majority of MSM news sources.

FOX News is NOT the normal MSM news source, Alabama Gunman Was Depressed Before Massacre. It seems the folks at FOX have a different take on the normality of Michael McLendon. Someone saw the signs, someone knew that something wasn’t right in this mans thinking. That doesn’t necessarily make them culpable in this massacre, as I said prior, they may not have known what exactly they were seeing, but someone actually saw this transformation from normal neighbor to mass murderer.

There are many questions that remain. Some can be answered, like, where did he get the weapons? Were they obtained legally? Some questions will go to the grave with McLendon, all of the real reasons why. Why the list?? Why the random shooting at people guilty of nothing more than sitting on their front porch? Why did he shoot little kids? Just exactly WHAT is it that these people did to you that made you take these actions against them? Those are questions that mental health professionals will ponder for a long time to come.

I am certain that the anti-guns people are salivating. This is red meat before a starving animal and is only going to serve to further hurt the millions upon million of sane, legal and responsible gun owners that have done absolutely nothing wrong. WE will be the ones that are castigated for the actions of one very disturbed individual, and if the anti-gun cabal has their way, WE will be the ones that pay the ultimate price of their lunacy. The lunacy that says if ALL guns are removed, this type of thing can’t happen.

Here is the whole truth, ALL guns will NEVER be removed from this earth, and these things, mass shootings, sadly, will continue to happen from time to time! The insane among us will find a way to kill great numbers of people. If it’s not guns, it will be other implements of death. That is the nature of the beast!

Springfield XD-45 Tactical - Love at 1st Blast

I have been a serious hand-gunner since I was about 15 years old, that’s over 40 years ago. I have owned many different handguns over the years and a .45ACP has always been my favorite.

I have had Colt 1911 Govt Models, Colt Mark IV Series-70′s and a Jim Clark Custom, built by Jim, not Jimmy, and I have got to tell you folks, this new Springfield XD-45 Tactical beats em ALL. I can sing the praises of the XD-45 all day long but read some of the reviews by professional hand-gunners.

Springfield Armory’s design engineers were able to offer this high-capacity, big-bore loading by only slightly enlarging the pistol’s grip circumference. I was pleased to see that the comfortable feel of the XD pistol grip has not been significantly changed with the addition of a 14-shot .45 ACP to the group.

I received both the .45 ACP Service and Tactical Models for testing, and both guns had the standard black finish and the other features we have come to appreciate from the Springfield XD. The sights are the popular three-dot combat version, made of steel and dovetailed into the pistol’s slide. Barrels are all hammer forged and have an integral feedramp to ensure positive chambering.

More Here: Springfield XD .45 ACP

And then there ‘s this review:

For those of you who aren’t hip on Springfield Armory’s newest plastic pistol, the XD-45 is their latest expansion of the XD line. The XD design was born in Croatia, and Springfield quickly bought it up, changing it’s name from the HS-2000 to Xtreme Duty. In recent years, the XD has been heralded as one of the most reliable, affordable, and best shooting pistols since Gaston Glock blessed us with his marvelous invention. If you’ve been a reader of mine for any amount of time, you also no doubt have seen me champion this excellent pistol; as I’ve already said, this is my second XD, I already own an XD-40. (You can find a review of it elsewhere on the site.)

This specific XD sports a 13+1 magazine capacity, which is actually a round more than found in it’s .40 S&W and .357 SIG brethren. It’s also equipped with a 5.5-7.0 pound single action trigger, and has 3 safeties. (One striker block, e.g. “drop proof�?, one beavertail 1911 safety, and a Glock-esque trigger safety.) The service model has a 7.25�? overall length, 4�? barrel, 1.2�? wide frame, and weighs a manageable 30 ounces with a magazine.

More Here:
Tactical Application » Review: Springfield XD-45ACP

There’s a lot more to be said about this wonderful pistol, but there’s one word that sums it up quite nicely I think. SWEET!!

My son is a Sheriff’s Deputy and he was carrying an XD-40 service model, he fired over 12K rounds thru it and NEVER had so much as 1 malfunction of any kind. He now carries an XD-45 Tactical, shoots Remington 230gr Golden Sabers and has fired over 3K rounds through the new pistol and has yet to experience ANY malfunction, of any kind.

I recommended the XD to him, without having fired one myself, simply based on the reviews I had read and from glowing praises by the people I know that have them and love them.
And yeah, I have mine now, an XD-45 Tactical, and oh yeah, it was love at 1st blast.

The Springfield XD Series is everything you can want in a pistol, high capacity, total reliability, easy breakdown for maintenance and cleaning and it just feels great in your hand. Try one, if you’re a serious hand-gunner, you’ll buy one.

EDIT 03-09-2010: To further show you how much I like these Springfield XD-Series pistols, this weekend I bought another one, this time I got an XD-40 Sub Compact.

This is one sweet little pistol. With the short magazine I can tuck it into my waist band, drop it in my side pocket, whatever it takes, and I have 10 rounds (9+1) of .40 180gr Golden Saber on me at all times. It also came with a 12 round magazine for a 13 round capacity, but the shorter mag is perfect for almost any concealment requirement!

As I said before, if you’re a serious shooter, try an XD Series pistol, you’ll spit every time you hear the word Glock from that point on.