BigDaddy’s Firearms Training

Raymond Sherwood

Nevada 2016 Ballot Question 1

There is a lot of debate going back and forth about Nevada Ballot Question 1 (Q1), and a lot of people have questions about what it actually is. I will try to answer and clarify these questions.

One question is whether or not Q1 really closes the “gun show loophole”?

To answer this, we need to clarify some facts. Can a felon or another prohibited person buy a gun at a gun show or online? NO.  If you buy a firearm from a Federal Firearm Licensee (FFL) at a gun show, they are still required to conduct a background check; so, no. Can a felon or other prohibited person buy from a private person at a gun show? NO, it is still illegal for a felon or other prohibited person to buy or possess a firearm AND if you knowingly sell a firearm to a felon or other prohibited person, you are guilty of breaking a federal law. When you buy a firearm online, yes, you can buy it; however, it has to be shipped to an FFL who is required to conduct a background check. So, NO.

No one goes to jail for swapping guns while hunting or at the shooting range, right? Partially true. According to the language of Q1 the few exceptions to the mandatory background check are as follows:

(c) such transfer occurs and the transferee’s possession of the firearms following the transfer is exclusively:

(i)   At an established shooting range authorized by the governing body of the jurisdiction in which such range is located;

(ii)  At a lawful organized competition involving the use of a firearm;

(iii) While participating in or practicing for a performance by an organized group that uses firearms as a part of the public performance;

(iv) While hunting or trapping fi the hunting or trapping is legal in all places where the transferee possesses the firearm and the   transferee holds all licenses or permits required for such hunting or trapping.

So, you and your buddy are hunting and you hand over your rifle to cross an obstacle, fine, as long as you both have licenses and tags. You’re at a “government approved range”, fine. You’re out on BLM managed land shooting (over 90% of target and recreational shooting in Nevada does), ILLEGAL: a category C felony.

Another question is, “I am currently exempt from background checks because I have a current Nevada CCW, would I be exempt from this too?” The short answer is NO. Currently, background checks are done through the Nevada Central Repository, which meets BATFE requirements; the new law would require a National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) background check, which is operated by the FBI.

What if you go on a trip or you’re in the military and go on a deployment, can I still leave my firearms with a friend or neighbor? Short answer is YES; however, a NICS check must be done by an FFL. Here is another problem with Q1; the proposed law leaves no provision for firearms, plural, so a NICS check would technically have to be done for EACH firearm, and the writers left it that way intentionally. How much would that cost you?

How about this one, this was put on the ballot because of a grassroots effort by Nevadans. FALSE. This ballot question was put on the ballot because of an initiative that is being bankrolled by a coalition of billionaires including former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, his gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety, along with billionaires Sean Parker and Elaine Wynn. (Lobbyists registered in Nevada for Everytown linked directly to all three billionaires)

Nevada’s 2016 Ballot Question 1 isn’t going to stop any criminals. A study conducted in 2012 of inmates found that less than 1% of convicted criminals that used firearms, got them from a gun show or any other legal source.

My Logo

So I’ve been asked what my logo represents or means to me, so I’ll try to explain it to you all.

First is the coiled rattle snake ready to strike in the background.
The first Marines enlisted in the city of Philadelphia; they carried drums painted yellow, depicting a coiled rattlesnake with thirteen rattles, and the motto “Don’t Tread on Me.” This is the first recorded mention of the future Gadsden flag’s symbolism.
At the first Continental Congress, Continental Colonel Christopher Gadsden represented his home state of South Carolina. He was one of seven members of the Marine Committee who were outfitting the first naval mission. Before the departure of that first mission in December 1775, the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the Navy, Commodore Esek Hopkins, received the yellow rattlesnake flag from Gadsden to serve as the distinctive personal standard of his flagship. It was displayed at the mainmast. The rattlesnake symbol was first officially adopted by the Continental Congress in 1778 when it approved the design for the official Seal of the War Office.
So, chose the Yellow Coiled Rattlesnake and borrowed the symbolism directly from the Gadsden flag to represent liberty and freedom.

Second is the twin 1911’s.
I hold the belief that, with the exception of the 10th amendment, which is a state right, the rest of the bill of rights are individual rights protected by, not granted by, the US Constitution. That being said, I strongly believe that without the 2nd Amendment there is no protection for the rest of the rights we as American citizens enjoy. I also believe that self-protection is not only a right, but also an individual responsibility, and that if you are willing to take that responsibility, I will help facilitate it.
So, I chose the twin 1911’s to represent my dedication to our rights, to include the 2nd amendment, and honor the history of service protecting those rights that the 1911 embodies.

Third is the “Deaths Head” pirate flag.
Yes, yes, I know pirates were criminals; however, if you disregard all that thievery, murder, mayhem, and so on; they had a good system. Let me explain. The pirate system was actually one of the first true democracies, that wasn’t a representative democracy; every person had a vote and every person got a share of the “booty”. All leadership positions and positions of importance were voted upon by the crew and the ONLY times the captain had absolute authority was while perusing a target and during combat.
So, I chose the “Deaths Head” pirate flag as a representation of democracy.(And I wanted my own cool pirate flag)

That is how I came up with my own “pirate flag” logo and the symbolism behind it.