May 5, 2022
Firearms Owners Identification Card (FOID) holders have started receiving notifications about their renewal from the Illinois State Police (ISP). If you have not yet received a notice, you may get one in the future. Don’t get excited. These notices are going to people who have both an ICCL and FOID card. What is happening is the ISP is combining FOID cards and ICCLS to match up expiration dates. The purpose is to make the renewal process easier. The ISP will extend your FOID card at no charge to match your ICCL expiration date. Your FOID will remain active in the system. Your new card will combine both your ICCL and FOID. Just as a reminder, you may now apply for your FOID card 180 days in advance of the expiration date. The application time for the ICCL remains the same at 90 days. If you are an ISRA member, we will assist you in applying for both your FOID and ICCL applications. If you are uncertain about the process, call us first because if things get botched up, it is a real mess.
Predictably, warm weather has brought an increase in crime. Early on Saturday morning, one of three armed robbers was shot while robbing Ryan’s Pub in Frankfort Township. Three men entered the pub and began robbing customers. A customer, fearing he would be shot, began firing at the suspects, killing one of them. A video of the incident verified what happened. It turned out the robbers were using replica firearms. The only thing dumber than taking a knife to a gun fight is taking a fake gun. On Saturday afternoon, two men left a store on the south side of Chicago. As they were walking to their car, another person walked up to them and started talking. When the first two got in the car, the third man jumped, uninvited, into the back seat, hit one of the men who was in the front seat with a pistol and announced he was robbing them. One or both persons in the front seat jumped out of the car and fired at the would-be robber, striking him three times. The armed robber died later in the hospital.
I am unsympathetic toward these dangerous criminals. The only thing better than killing two of these bums would have been to kill three or four of them. Just wait until January 1, 2023, when the “No Cash Bail” law goes into effect. The two that got away will be out in a matter of a few hours even though they are part of a homicide. There are going to be hundreds of criminals let loose to prey on innocent victims. Like it or not, some of us are going to be involved meeting these criminals face to face. They have no qualms about killing you, me, or anyone else. What do you think will happen to the witnesses of crimes when they know the perpetrator, or perpetrators, will be out of jail before they can get home? There are not going to be as many witnesses, if any. Remember, the police are under no obligation to protect any individual. We, my friends, are on our own.
There are other scams which target good-hearted unsuspecting people and turn them into victims in their own homes. In Texas, a retired lady heard a knock on her door and when she went to answer it, saw a man wearing scrubs with a stethoscope around his neck. She asked him why he was there, and he informed her that he was from home health services to check on her. She told him she did not need home health services and had not contacted anyone about it. The guy then began breaking down her door and entered her house. She had her gun with her. The lady is from Texas, after all. She shot him dead as he was advancing on her.
A few years ago, there was a similar scam in southern Illinois. A woman would knock on a door with what appeared to be a baby in her arms. The baby was crying, and she was asking for help. Once the person answered the door, the woman and two guys would push their way in, robbing whoever was inside. The baby was a doll and the crying was a tape recording. Several people were robbed and some hurt because they opened the door.
I know people don’t like to think of incidents like the ones so far described, but they do happen and are going to happen more frequently. You need to be ready; you may not only get hurt, you might also die. If you are not ready, the odds of bad things happening to you go way up. Not only do you need to take training, you should also enroll in several classes. This is not a one and done deal. You can’t absorb everything you are taught in one class. That is why you need to take more than one class. I know classes are expensive, but not nearly as expensive as being a victim.
As if freedom didn’t have enough obstacles in the United States, the Department of Homeland Security has now come up with the Disinformation Governance Board (DHSDGB). Stephen King couldn’t come up with a more horrifying idea. The title reveals more about what they are trying to do rather than what they are supposedly trying to prevent. The woman recommended to head this new Biden Administration “Ministry of Truth” is Nina Jankowicz who is considered to be a crackpot by some. I am sure if the Disinformation Governance Board happens, it will be staffed be every left-wing crackpot they can get. Of course, they will get paid so it will also become a life support system for those that hate America. The DHSDGB and its board members wouldn’t know the truth if they stepped in it in a cow pasture.
Don’t be fooled, the DHSDGB exists for only one reason and that is to promote the polices of the Biden Administration and suppress all those who dare to disagree. The DHSDGB will be a taxpayer funded political arm of the Biden Administration. This is exactly what happened in Nazi Germany when Joseph Goebbels became Minister of Propaganda. Goebbels used radio, print, media and films in those days. We will see every form of media used if the DHSDGB comes into existence. Goebbels succeeded Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany. In the end, he drugged his children and then killed them with cyanide. He and his wife committed suicide. Maybe the DHSDGB will have a happy ending as well.
The winning number for the 12-month drawing #2 is 117. Congratulations to the winner. We still have three tickets left for the 12-month drawing #3. Call the office if you are interested.
Tidbits:
May 5, 1955 – Allies end the occupation of West Germany. In 1954, West Germany joined NATO and was allowed to establish a military again. Their armed forces were limited to 500,000 Soldiers.
May 6, 1942 – All American forces in the Philippines surrender unconditionally. They were under the command of General Jonathan Wainwright but were out of food, water, and ammunition. There was talk of the United States sending supplies and reinforcements, but it never happened. The Japanese thought they would capture the Philippines by the end of December 1941. General Wainwright and 11,500 American troops tied up Japanese forces for several months. General Wainwright and his troops caused the Japanese to expend resources that they didn’t want to use in the Philippines. General Wainwright was on the deck of the U.S.S. Missouri during the Japanese surrender. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
May 8, 1945 – V-E Day (Victory in Europe) is celebrated in the United States and Great Britain. Every city, town, village, and hamlet celebrated. Everyone either knew or had someone in WWII. Still, the thought of invading the Japanese islands was a sobering thought. Troops who had served in Europe faced the grim reality of going to the Pacific.
May 10, 1869 – The Union Pacific and the Central Pacific Railroads meet at Promontory Point, Utah, to drive the last spike connecting the East and West. As early as 1832, people knew the need to connect the East and West coasts. In 1853, Congress appropriated money to survey routes to the Pacific coast. Over 20,000 Chinese immigrants built the west end to the Transcontinental Railroad. The East end was built by first and second generation Irish, many fresh from service in the Civil War. The Transcontinental Railroad was finished ahead of schedule and under budget. The time to travel from one coast to the other was reduced from months to days.
May 10, 1775 – Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen, and his Green Mountain Boys attack and capture Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York. While this was celebrated, the real work had not yet begun. Fort Ticonderoga had 59 heavy cannons, George Washington, and the Continental Army needed these cannons. Washington assigned the most unsung of the American Revolutionary heroes, Henry Knox, to do the job. Henry Knox was born into an impoverished Irish family. His father had abandoned the family when Henry was 10 years old. Young Henry went to work for a bookbinder. Henry read everything he could and while he had only a third-grade education, he taught himself engineering and military science. He was a witness to the Boston Massacre. He formed several patriotic paramilitary groups and joined the Continental Army when war broke out. Despite his hardships, Henry Knox loved America and became a fierce fighter.
Washington assigned then Colonel Henry Knox to get the cannons from Fort Ticonderoga and deliver them to Washington, not an easy task. The 59 cannons weighed 60 tons. Knox was only armed with axes, sledgehammers, hand tools, determination, and Henry Knox’s brilliant mind. They would have to manhandle these 2000 pound plus cannons one by one.
It was winter before Knox and his men reached Fort Ticonderoga. They built sleds to haul the cannons and the parts that went with them. They had to be pulled by oxen. Knox and his men got there and built the sleds, oxen yoked, and started the 300-mile trip south, crossing rivers and mountains. In 53 days, he had the cannons outside of Boston. Not wasting a minute, he and his men built emplacements in strategic locations to break the siege of Boston. This was the greatest logistical operation of the Revolutionary War by either side. Knox was promoted to Major General and became Washington’s ‘go to guy’ for most everything. Henry Knox never got the credit he deserved, but he was a Patriot in every sense of the word. He was not a prima donna. He is known as the father of American artillery. The Founders of the United States were tough, smart, and selfless, not like the swamp creatures that presently inhabit Washington D. C. and its environs today.
May 11, 1947 – B.F. Goodrich announces the development of the tubeless tire. Later, Michelin developed tough rubber cording called plies. By 1955, tubeless tires were standard on all new cars. The invention of the tubeless tire was the single most significant development in the tire industry since the invention of the tire.
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Upcoming Events: ISRA Calendar
For more information, visit www.isra.org
Saturday, May 7, 2022
Range Work Day
Woolard Brothers Memorial
Sunday, May 8, 2022
Handgun Drills
Marksmanship League
Tuesday, May 10 & 17, 2022
Tuesday Night Irregular Rifle League
Wednesday, May 11 & 18, 2022
F-Class Rifle League
Bench Rest League
Paper & Steel League
Thursday, May 12 & 19, 2022
ISRA Smallbore Prone/F-Class League
Saturday, May 14, 2022
New Shooter Highpower Rifle Competition Clinic
Sunday, May 15, 2022
Joe Brown Highpower League/Edward J Neumann Match
Saturday & Sunday, May 21 & 22, 2022
ISRA Academy NRA Basic Rifle Class – spots are still available
Sunday, May 22, 2022
ISRA Bullseye Match & Combat Match
Saturday & Sunday, May 28 & 29, 2022
MTG Defensive Rifle Course
Gun & Trade Shows
Villa Park VFW Gun Show – Villa Park, IL
Villa Park VFW
Date: May 14, 2022
Hours: Saturday: 10:00-3:00
Admission: $5.00
Kane County Sportsman’s Show – St Charles, IL
Kane County Fairgrounds
Date: May 15, 2022
Hours: Sunday: 7:30-1:30
Admission: $7.00
Kankakee Gun & Sportsman’s Show – Kankakee, IL
Kankakee County Fairgrounds
Dates: May 21 & 22, 2022
Hours: Saturday: 8:00-3:00
Sunday: 8:00-2:00
Admission: $6.00
McHenry County Gun Show – Woodstock, IL
McHenry County Fairgrounds
Date: May 22, 2022
Hours: Sunday: 7:30-1:00
Admission: $5.00
Crown Point Gun Show – Crown Point, IN
Lake County Fairgrounds
Dates: May 28 & 29, 2022
Hours: Saturday: 9:00-5:00
Sunday: 9:00-3:00
Admission: $5.00