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By Charlie Cook: Riding Shotgun With Charlie
4.9
1616 ratings
The podcast currently has 219 episodes available.
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#216
Mark Keefe
NRA Managing Director of Editorial & Public Affairs
Like everyone who has read any of the NRA’s magazines or watched American Rifleman, or even seen some shows on The Outdoor Channel or The History Channel, I’ve seen Mark Keefe for years. Emails between the NRA staff and me while setting up the show with Doug Hamlin (RSWC #213), I saw that Mark was on the email last. I had to ask if he would be available and interested. And he was. I was pleasantly surprised when Mark came out before I interviewed Doug to check and make sure everything was good to go.
Mark has been shooting since he was young. His grandfather used to drink beef from a can. When the beer got old, they used to shoot the beer cans with the beer in them while using a BB gun. That’s quite a reactive target, for sure! As a young teenager, the family elders decided he was “old enough for the Thompson.” But it was only semi-auto until he was older. He also did some shooting in the Boy Scouts.
In 1988, Mark wanted to be a Shooting Sports Director for the Boy Scouts so he could teach rifle, shotgun, and archery. To do this, he had to become an NRA Certified Instructor. In this process, he reconnected with Phil Schreier (RSWC #182). His interest in collecting historical firearms really took off. Mark told me the story about Phil getting a job volunteering at the NRA Museum and telling him that you never know where it will lead and you have to grow up sometime. The following year, Phil ended up offering Mark the weekend work at the Museum saying… you never know where it will lead and you have to grow up sometime. Mark has been there 34 years, and Phil has been there 35 years.
After being at the Museum a few years, he started as the assistant technical editor for some of the magazines. He worked through the ranks as associate technical editor, managing editor, and finally editor and he ran American Rifleman for 21 years. In the early 2000’s, he was encouraged to start a column so the readers could learn more about the NRA contributors. That was the beginning of The Keefe Report. He still kept reviewing guns, the current issues, and his regular duties.
In the late 1990’s/early 2000’s, the NRA started having the staff and writers get out and gain experience with the firearms they were reviewing. That’s when Mark had the chance to travel the world and do some training and hunting. Learning to shoot a rifle at moving game is different from hunting in the United States. These hunting trips and experiences really gave them the chance to experience the usefulness and dependability of the firearms they were using. While using firearms in the field, he began to see why some of the designs of rifles or cocking methods or stocks were built the way they are. It made more sense once they put them to use in real situations.
In the early 2000’s Mark was on a hunt with people from The Outdoor Channel. They told Mark there really needed to be an American Rifleman TV show. But he didn’t have a lot of video experience. He, his staff, and Phil came up with a plan to get the show going and what the content would be. He told me a great story about someone who went back to Europe and was able to find brass from rounds fired by Alvin York! It’s an amazing story!
Mark’s most recent title is the Managing Director of Editorial & Public Affairs. He’s got his hands in many things NRA and media related, from The Keefe Report to American Rifleman, but also keeping up with the new trends in social media. Mark is NRA to the core. And a firearm guy through and through. He told me after we were done filming that we didn’t even get to any of the hunting stores. I can’t wait for those.
Favorite quotes:
“I think he’s probably old enough for the Thompson.”
“You can’t really slap a rifle trigger, but you can pull it quickly.”
“We wanted to take people places they couldn’t go.”
“We blend the story of the people who used these guns.”
“We’re involved in things that we just don’t get credit for.”
National Rifle Association
https://home.nra.org/
American Rifleman
https://www.americanrifleman.org/
NRA Publications on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@NRApubs
NRA Explore/NRA Programs
https://explore.nra.org/
NRA Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/NRA
NRA Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/nra/
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on: iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#215
Keith Barry (KB)
51Fifty Rifles/Optimum
At the NRA Annual Meeting, I got a message from Frank Johnson to meet him at the 51Fifty/Optimum booth. I was asked to be on Frank’s show Range Report earlier in the year, so I wanted to meet him in person. At the 51Fifty booth was Keith Berry (KB). I was very impressed at how fast Frank was able to take down their AR style rifle. Legit, I looked away to see if my bag was still on the ground and the rifle was apart. They have a Rapid Access Cam that connects the upper and lower receivers. With the flip of a lever, similar to a safety switch, you can do the lock and take the rifle apart.
Recently, I got the time to go out and meet with KB. He’s only in western Mass so it wasn’t far of a drive to get together. He gave me a tour of the building and how they build their rifles. They’ve got a room in the back where they do all their videos with a number of “wall decorations” as their backdrop.
KB grew up shooting since he was young, like for years old! His father ingrained the safety rules at a young age, which gave him a strong basis on safe gun handling. He progressed from BB guns, to pellet guns, to .22 rifles. His father served in Viet Nam and was much of the inspiration and motivation for the beginning of 51Fifty. Their first rifle was a tribute to KB’s dad. Once he started making rifles, he would ask his dad what he would want for this part and for that part. That’s what KB was putting together just for his dad. One of his dad’s life long goals was to become a certified gunsmith, which he achieved before passing away.
Many of the rifles made by 51Fifty have been made to commemorate things like the slaying of the five Dallas police officers a few years ago. They remade the rifle for his father and added some coating to make it look distressed and used. The company that worked with them asked them to join them at SHOT Show, which they were happy to go along with.
Before getting into the firearm business, KB spent 20 years doing printing. Due to health issues from printing, he needed a new career. He got into working in the auto industry and financing. Within a year, he got into helping non-compliant companies and did that in five states for the next 20 years.
When KB was based in Texas, there was a lot of back and forth between the Lone State and the Bay State, where the parts were being built. Building parts were in Mass while painting and assembly was in Texas. So KB and his wife moved to New England to help run the business and the shop from here.
One of the things 51Fifty prides themselves on is listening to what their customers want. Their rifles are in several countries with their troops. When they give feedback to 51Fifty, they listen, take notes, and make changes. They’re addressing issues that have been around with the AR platform since the beginning and they’re working to make superior rifles for everyone, whether in the military, law enforcement, or civilians. At their first SHOT Show, a veteran was going by their booth in a wheelchair. He couldn’t believe how fast the disassembly of the AR was done.
There are several big name folks that have the 51Fifty rifles. They make a lot of specialty rifles and they donate several of them to charities. One of their rifles is a .308 and is worth about $50,000. It only gets brought out for big charity events. The engraving on it is just incredible. They are doing a big event for SHOT Show 2025, so if you’re in the media, make sure you stop by and try out their rifles. If you can’t make it, please visit their website and check out all the cool and wild designs they’ve got.
Favorite quotes:
“You take the curiosity away. You don’t make it taboo.”
“We need to do something to help these families.”
“Right now we’re not Goliath we’re David, but we want to slay Goliath.”
“If I had had this system, I’d still have my legs.”
51Fifty Rifles
https://51fiftyrifles.com/
51Fifty Rifles Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/51FiftyRifles
51Fifty Rifles Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/51fifty/
51Fifty Rifles X
https://x.com/OP51_usa
51Fifty Rifles YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@OP51USA
51Fifty Rifles LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/company/51fifty/posts/?feedView=all
51Fifty Rifles Truth Social
https://truthsocial.com/@51Fifty
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie #214 News2A Shawn Abramson & Grant Kielczewski
Last year, I filmed a show with Shawn and Grant from News2A. Due to camera issues, we decided to scrap it and do it another time. That time was in Knoxville, Tenn, at the Gun Owners of America’s G.O.A.L.s event. Since we first tried this, Grant up and moved from New Jersey to middle Tennessee, so this was the ideal time to make it happen again.
Shawn grew up in a mostly non-gun house, but he and his brother took any chance they could to go out and shoot with their father’s friends. At 18, getting an FID and joining the NRA was on the top of the things he wanted to do as an adult. For Grant growing up in the Midwest, guns were just tools. Also buying his first gun at 18, he spent years just being a casual shooter. In the last five years, things changed for him. He’s been more active in taking courses and in helping others get started on their gun owning path. He’s been working more towards becoming a better instructor.
Shawn and Grant were both New Jersey guys with an idea to start a website with a focus on the Garden State. News2A (N2A) was launched after the Bruen decision in June 2022. New Jersey finally caved, kicking and screaming, to allow their peasants to have pitchforks. And allow them to carry their pitchforks. For a while, it was a hotbed of overreaching government having a post-Bruen hissy fit. There were lots of things going on. The gents thought there needed to be a place where people could get the up to date and correct info on the goings on.
We spend some time talking about the differences between states like, New Jersey & Massachusetts, versus other states, like Florida & Tennessee. It is bad in Jersey. You cannot carry in sensitive places so you have to disarm in your car and do a lot of administrative loading and unloading. Post Bruen, New York and New Jersey really tried tamping down the rights and abilities of gun owners.
When the guys started getting more involved, they went to Trenton to watch the testimonies and see how the sausage is made. And it ain’t pretty. None of the things we may have been taught in school, or from Schoolhouse Rock, really happens like that. It was an education and eye opening for them.
At one point, John Petrolino, RSWC #093, reached out to me and asked if I wanted to do some writing. He said that N2A was looking for writers and contributors for their website. He said I could send things to him to edit, then I could pass it along to N2A. In the meantime, he wrote to Shawn and Grant, saying that maybe they could publish some of my writings there. It’s been a great outlet for me as a writer. I was able to cover the nonsense of the Gun Law Listening Tour in early 2023.
The website is chock full of writers. Covering topics of politics, gun rights, training, editorials. They’ve got about eight writers plus Shawn and Grant contributing to the site. Some I’ve had on the show and some still need to get in the stagecoach. They also have sections on the site that are great resources for Jersey residents, where you can carry, how to carry, how to apply for everyone. And, of course, safety tips, too.
Let me tell you, the gun folks from Jersey have aggravation in their blood about their process, licensing scheme, and the nonsense they have to deal with. There’s only a handful of states that the Bruen decision really affected. These states are the most egregious about doing their best to make sure that lawful and responsible citizens have a hard time with owning, possessing, and carrying firearms. Fortunately, they’ve got Shawn and Grant putting in time, love, and money in keeping everyone informed and on top of the situation.
Favorite quotes:
Shawn: “You meet the right people, too. They have the right values. They’re just friendly people willing to help others in general.”
Shawn: “They only care about making sure their party’s agenda happens.”
Grant:”We’ve tried to take this very complex information and make it as applicable to people as possible.”
Grant: “I know people underestimate the value of training.”
News2A Website
https://www.news2a.com/
News2A Twitter/X
https://twitter.com/News2ATeam
News2A Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/news2a/
News2A Gab
https://gab.com/News2A
US Law Shield (Code:NEWS2A)
https://www.uslawshield.com/?affid=ad008c31-331d-11ef-bda8-0615552639c3
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on: iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#213
Doug Hamlin
NRA, Executive Vice President
It’s not everyday you get to interview the Executive Vice President of the National Rifle Association, let alone take him for a drive around Fairfax. But when the chance comes up, you take it. I owe a huge Thank You to Amanda Suffecool for making the connection. It’s pretty cool when Mark Keefe, who I’ve seen on TV and in magazines, comes out to make sure everything is ready for the interview.
Like many folks, firearms were a family tradition for Doug. He learned to hunt from his grandfather and they had a “healthy collection” of firearms, many which were military surplus. When he was old enough, Doug joined the Marines. The years in service were very beneficial in forming the self confidence that people need. It also taught him that life is competitive and that you need to step up or step out.
After the Marines, he had a friend who was working with Petersen Publishing Company in Detroit. His friend was doing well. He asked his friend to put in a good word at the Petersen headquarters in LA. He got to meet with Mr. Robert Petersen and was offered a job at Guns & Ammo magazine in the late 1980’s. Mr. Petersen, of course, is the largest donor to the National Firearm Museum at NRA HQ.Petersen was a big role model and mentor to Doug. He moved from ad sales to publisher in 4 years.
Eventually Petersen moved Doug over to publish MotorTrend Magazine, which was a very important property to Petersen Publishing. Being a bit of a car guy, this was a good fit. The day after getting the new job, Petersen jetted him off to the New York auto show. Doug got to travel the world with Petersen, including trips to London. Often, they’d stop at Purdy and Holland & Holland to “make an investment”. Many of these investments happen to be in the NRA Museum. His NRA roots run deep!
Having lunch with Ken Elliot, his former boss at Petersen, it came up that Joe Graham was retiring from NRA Publications. Ken asked if some NRA folks, including Wayne LaPierre, could join them for lunch. Having Doug as the executive director of publications came up in the conversation. He started the position in early 2014, and spent 10 years working as publisher.
When LaPierre stepped down in February, there were going to be changes on the Board. There were the “old guard” and the “reformers”. It came down to Doug and Ronnie Barrett. Doug speaks extensively on what happened at the meetings and election. Getting back to NRA HQ after the election and with almost no sleep, Doug got right to work.
Doug has ignited a spark to the staff. Everyone at NRA has a much brighter outlook on the future of NRA. They’re working to rebuild the trust with membership, as well as grow it to what it was just a few years ago. There’s only a small percentage of gun owners who are members. With around 100 million gun owners and only 4 million NRA members, there's a lot of room for expansion.
The NRA has several publications and over 40 programs. Things from helping ranges get started, Eddie Eagle, lobbying in every state, several websites,and training. Their publications have been rebranded as NRA Media, and Mark Keefe is the leader there. (And the interview with Mark will be dropping soon!) With all their media, they’re reaching 20 million people a month!
We do need a strong and stable NRA. I’ve said this several times, the NRA is taking the arrows from the antis while the other groups are doing work. The antis don’t know about the other groups since they are smaller than the NRA. I did get a chance to interview a few others at NRA while I was there. Everyone loves their jobs at NRA and enjoy working there. It’s good to see and hear this. Like I said, we need a strong NRA.
Favorite quotes:
“You better step up or step out.”
“They also understand the significance of a strong NRA. It benefits the entire industry when you have a strong NRA.”
“You can count on us. You can trust us.”
“NRA is a tremendous institution and we’re doing a lot to get us back on track and rebuild our membership.”
National Rifle Association
https://home.nra.org/
Friends of NRA
https://www.friendsofnra.org/
NRA Foundation Grants
https://www.nrafoundation.org/grants
NRA Explore/NRA Programs
https://explore.nra.org/
NRA Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/NRA
NRA Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/nra/
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on: iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#212
Irv Gill
Blackbelt Ammunition
I love it when a plan comes together. I was heading to New Jersey and it was a vacation week, so I had some extra time. I’d been in contact with Irv Gill from Blackbelt Ammunition and we were able to meet at Tanner’s Sports Center in Jamison, Pa. I met Nayara Andrejczyk there last year to film a show with her. It isn’t too far from Reading so we all met there.
Irv has been a long time shooter and hunter, like many folks. His grandfather taught him to shoot and he got his first .22 rifle around 12 years old. During his junior high and high school years, he joined the rifle team. He bought some muzzleloading handguns and it felt like reloading since you have to apply all the components of ammunition. He also started casting his own bullets as well. By 18 years old, he got his mom to buy him his first revolver.
When he was younger, he got into hunting boar with handguns. It was much more exciting because you have to get a little closer to the animals. During those years, he got into reloading his own ammunition. Then started loading it for friends and family, too.
This led to getting some single stage presses and reloading ammo. He does say that no one really saves money by reloading because you end up shooting more and needing more supplies. Even though it works out to be a few cents a round and you’re shooting more, it’s more about control of the ammo and the bullet.
Irv is also a black belt in martial arts and has been practicing for years. He even wrote a book about the martial arts. Self defense training in its various forms is something he’s been doing his whole life. Back in 2020 when things changed, he decided to take this hobby of making ammunition and making it a real thing, a real business. He wasn’t sure what to call it. While his wife was napping one day, she woke up and said it should be Blackbelt Ammunition. His plan was to cater to local gun stores who had a hard time keeping stock. Then he met a woman who helped Blackbelt with online sales.
After studying various types of bullets and ballistics, he decided it was time to move forward and make this dream come true. Irv compares his ammo to small batch micro brews or whiskeys. He isn’t cranking out thousands and thousands of rounds. He’s got small batch ammo that specializes in self defense and not bulk target ammo. I love that he calls the big ammo companies “Rem-Fed-Chester”, short of Remington, Federal, and Winchester. They can produce all the target ammo but he’s got them beat for self defense ballistics. His bullets expand more and transfer more energy to its intended target. Another good thing about being a small business and doing small batches, if he wants to make a change, it doesn’t take too much work.
One of his newest rounds is the Red Devil. It’s for customers in New Jersey. In the Garden State, someone cannot use hollow point or hollow tip ammo. If there is an insert in the tip, then it is ok to use or carry. Another brand has a red ball inserted into the tip. Blackbelt has a steel BB that they use for the Red Devil. He’s been in contact with the powers that be in New Jersey to make sure it will be ok to sell there. If you’re in Jersey, check Blackbelt’s social media. Irv and his team are often at local gun shows selling ammo.
This is a good episode. It’s great to hear someone who has a dream and makes it happen at any age. Irv obviously loves what he’s doing and he’s doing a great job at it. Please check out his socials and buy some of his ammo.
Favorite quotes:
“You have to dedicate time to it.”
“I got into martial arts because I’ve always been into self defense.”
“I got into martial arts so that you didn’t have to shoot somebody.”
“We don’t need more regulation. We need smart regulation.”
Blackbelt Ammunition
https://www.blackbeltammunition.com/
Blackbelt Ammunition Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/blackbelt_ammunition
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089942570085
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts & hoodies, stickers & patches, and mugs at the store!
http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on: iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#211
Dick Heller
Heller v DC
Back in 2018, I was heading to hear some friends speak at the Heller 10 Celebration hosted by Second Amendment Institute. I got a call from one of my friends and she said “we’re going to Heller’s house”. I wondered “who’s we? Is it her? Am I part of we?”. She called back and I got to go hang out at the Heller resident. The next day, I found myself being asked/told that I was going to give an impromptu speech on the Supreme Court Steps. I’ve seen Dick at a number of events and got to film this show on our way to go shoot sporting clays at the M&M Hunting Preserve in New Jersey. He was the keynote at a fundraiser the night before. We shot clays with John Petrolino (RSWC #093), Gabby Franco (RSWC #), and Eric, who was helping get Dick around for the weekend.
We’ve all heard of the Heller decision. We all know what happened in the Heller case. It’s been cited and referenced in cases upon cases. It’s referenced in the McDonald v Chicago and NYSRPA v Bruen. If you haven’t read that “magnificent Scalia decision”, you need to do some homework.
The Heller case was ruled in 2008, but it started years before. Getting a case to the SCOTUS takes time and money. And lots of both. Several years before, Dick was friends with a fighter pilot and instructor and Vietnam veteran. He was also an Olympic shooter in 1980. Dick rented him a room. So he came over with a truck full of guns, which was illegal at the time, and said they’re all going to jail. The friend got the guns out of DC and decided that he was going to go to law school to fight this nonsense. Heller said he was going to become a cop and they’ll give him a gun to protect them, but he won’t be able to protect himself. This is the beginning of the case.
When the case was done, Heller had to sign 12 more papers for another case just so the lawyers would get paid. He points out that the government pays to fight us with our own money in the form of taxes. And we also have to pay with our own money to fight the government. Heller’s team of lawyers were able to win the case despite the unlimited funds that DC has.
The case went to a federal court since it was a Constitutional issue. But it didn’t rule in Heller’s favor the first time. So they appealed to the DC Circuit Court. There they prevail. During one of the trials, the opposing attorney admits to the judge that they just don’t want guns in DC. The lawyer hadn’t seen or heard the news that crimes in DC at the time was rising and a very violent city to live in.
Heller also shares that with his ruling in 2008 and with Sandy Hook happening in 2012, he was posed with what kind of influence his case could have been responsible for that incident. Ultimately, each individual has to be responsible for their actions. His ruling shouldn’t, and didn’t, have anything to do with other acts of evil people.
For years now, Heller has been associated with Gun Owners of America because they are the group that will not compromise our rights away. He’s been to a number of the Coalition of New Jersey Gun Owners and Women for Gun Rights events up and down the east coast. And he’s been to several of the other national 2A events around the country. If you get a chance to see him and hear him speak, you need to take that. He’s a national treasure. And you can hear some of his story here.
Favorite quotes:
“Everybody out there can do a little bit of something.”
“The city has unlimited funding in the form of our tax dollars… with which to hurt us with our own money.”
“You don’t whimp your way to the Supreme Court.”
“In the arrogance of government, they thought they would have the high court voting on their side of the law.”
“Sometimes you have to pull up your big boy pants and understand who you are and what you’re doing.”
Heller Foundation
https://www.hellerfoundation.org/
The Heller Decision
https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/usrep/usrep554/usrep554570/usrep554570.pdf
Gun Owners of America
https://www.gunowners.org/
Coalition of New Jersey Firearm Owners
https://www.cnjfo.com/
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts & hoodies, stickers & patches, and mugs at the store!
http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on: iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#210
Don Mann
SEAL Team 1, 2, & 6, Author
It’s great when someone calls you and says “Hey, Don Mann is looking to do some media. Can I give him your contact info?”. The answer is “of course”. Thanks to Rich Yumul from Gun Owners Radio for reaching out. I called Don and talked with him. I had some time off from work and it was easy to plan.
I’d heard of Don’s name. A couple people I knew have been on his TV show, Surviving Mann. It’s a reality competition show that involves lots of shooting and lots of physical exercise. I listened to the show with my friends on the drive down to the Blue Ridge Mountain area of Virginia. It was very enjoyable to listen to, more enjoyable if I was able to watch.
I headed up the mountain to Don’s house.The house faced the Blue Ridge Mountains. It’s a spectacular view! Besides being a SEAL, an author of 23 books, and hosting some TV shows where he sets the mission, Don is a motivational speaker. This really is a mix of all the things I like. It’s like Jeff Cooper meets Zig Ziglar.
Don was raised in New England. He joined the military at a young age.. As a young man, he enjoyed working out. He knew he wanted to become a SEAL but he also knew it took lots of work to get there. He spent several years training and preparing to get into BUD/S. It also took him a few tries before he was able to succeed.
Not completing BUD/S training gave him the chance to develop a method of success. Working this way gave him a way to think and achieve his goals. He talks about the macro goals and micro goals you need to achieve success. This worked for his training, but it’s worked in several other ways, too.
The overall goal of everyday for Don is to do four things everyday. If he can do those, he can be better and get better at everything he does. And he emphasizes that anyone can, and should, do these four things. These things will make you better and make you a better person.
One of the things he enjoys is physical training. He really enjoyed pushing himself to and beyond his limit. When he wasn’t training the SEALs he was off doing high adventure. Things like Ironman competitions, climbing Mt Everest, and just all around pushing his limits. He likes to find out what the limit is and just get to that line then back off.
When he retired, he was approached to write a book about firearms. Obviously, he is very well versed in all things gun related. After writing the book, the editor had to cut it down because it was too much. The result is called The Modern Day Gunfighter and it’s just over 400 pages.
With all his SEALs experience, he was asked to write a book about being a SEAL, but he can’t really talk about what they did. So he developed a fictional book about life as a SEAL and some potential missions in the future. That went well and became a series of books, each book having new characters and a new nemesis.
He was offered a reality show. Don was to train them all then face all of them in an elimination contest. With contestants in the 20’s and 30’s, he had to convince the producers it would be better if they did the training, eliminated contestants, then had a final mission to rescue someone. This is a show called Surviving Mann. Currently, Season 3 is out there for people to watch. He did say that maybe I could come for an All Stars season, but only to record interviews. Whew! I’d never survive.
This really was a motivational episode. Don has careers writing books, filming TV shows, and as a motivational speaker, too. I get the RSWC is about people in the firearm community, but having someone that is inspiring as Don Mann, it’s truly an honor to have some time with him and get his uplifting stories out for everyone to hear.
Favorite quotes:
“The SEALs were everything and more than ever I could wished for a lifestyle and a career.”
“I’d think ‘Today was hard, but it wasn’t nearly as hard as I thought it was going to be’.”
“It just proved to him that he can do a lot more than he thought he could.”
“You have to have the mindset and the ability to think real big.”
“The only way to do it so people don’t get hurt is to make training really easy. But then you go to war and you’re going to get slaughtered.”
Don Mann Website
https://www.usfrogmann.com/
Don Mann Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/usfrogmann
Don Mann Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/us_frogmann/
Don Mann Speaker website
https://speakerdonmann.com/
Surviving Mann
https://survivingmann.com/
The Mission
https://www.usfrogmann.com/the-mission
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts & hoodies, stickers & patches, and mugs at the store!
http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Or listen on: iTunes/Apple podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#209
Mike Harris
Gun Owners Action League, Director of Public Policy
A couple years ago, I got a call from Jim Wallace from Gun Owners Action League (GOAL). He was sending out a couple of the GOAL staff to Gun Rights Policy Conference. He asked if I would introduce them to folks. Not a problem. One of the staff was Mike Harris. He’s a great guy with a lot of personality, good stories, and he’s worked on Beacon Hill. Mike also joined me with the Women for Gun Rights episode, RSWC #180, last fall.
There have been a lot of bad things happening in Massachusetts for gun owners. It started with the Gun Law Listening Tour from January 2023-June 2023. It was hosted by State Representative Michael Day. Day said he didn’t know what the new bill was going to look like. At some point, Day met with Gabby Giffords, who is wildly anti-gun. I assume she gave him what she wanted in the bill with a hefty check for his services rendered.
The bill was dropped just days after the end of the GLLT. The MA gun laws were overhauled and not in a positive way. The bill was shut down by the Bay State gun owners who called and wrote their representatives and senators. But Day was determined to get the bill through the House. It passed in October 2023. In early 2024, the MA Senate needed to write their version which was bad, but not as extreme. It was still littered with infringements. It ended up passing the MA Senate then headed to a special Conference Committee of only six people.
They dropped the Bill on July 17, 2024. It was 116 pages of new restrictions on the subjects of the Commonwealth. Things like new definitions for firearms, including calling a rifle handguard a “barrel shroud”, more confusing dates for so-called assault weapon bans, adding rifles and shotguns to the approved weapons roster, and limiting possession of any semi automatic rifle or shotgun to anyone under 21 years old. The bill was signed by Governor Maura Healey (D) on July 25, 2024. It’s been a mess since then. There was confusion on the start date of the law from August 1 to August 2 to October 23.
Mike called me and asked if I would sign as a registered voter a form to call for a referendum on the law. And if we could film a show driving into Boston to drop the form off. We were met near the State House by Garet Holcomb, President of GOAL, Toby Leary, owner of Cape Gun Works and host of Rapid Fire Radio, and Jessica Kedziora. There were enough correctly certified signatures for the referendum to go to the Attorney General. The next steps include waiting for the AG to write the question and get it approved. Once completed and approved, there will be signature sheets that can be distributed and signed in all the counties and towns across Massachusetts. There needs to be 50,000 signatures of registered voters to get this on the ballot.
This is the worst post-Bruen temper tantrum by any state since 2022. It is going to make it more difficult to get an FID/LTC in Massachusetts. It makes the training requirement more stringent and difficult. It's going to put a burden on the local police to do more for the law abiding, background check passing citizens. There are things like gun registration which is a problem. But they did not lay out how this is going to be funded or where the information is going to be held. Not that I want them to have the registration at all! The new curriculum for approved courses hasn’t been developed so the state police are allowed to accept the current courses until October 23, 2024. It is bad. It is all bad.
If you’d like to join or donate to GOAL, there’s a link below.
Favorite quotes:
“We’re never the aggressor, we’re the ones reacting to things.”
“They basically cut off half the legislative process by holding an unusual hearing.”
“It was a gigantic burdensome, self-referential, piece of gun control wishlist nonsense.”
“If we gather enough signatures from across all 14 counties, we will be able to repeal the bill.”
Gun Owners Action League
https://www.goal.org/
GOAL Gun Law Info Page
https://www.goal.org/gunban
GOAL 135 Referendum Page
https://www.goal.org/petiition
GOAL Testimony from 11/28/2023
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jK
QU5NEe7gk&t=10s
GOAL Join & Donate
https://www.goal.org/join---donate
Cape Gun Works YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/@CapeGunWorks
Bringing the Chap 135 Referendum to Boston
https://www.youtube.com/live/6TiEmqjrj5Q?si=Wt3o5oGEb0KDS-Nu
Mike, & Jason Guida with Toby Leary
https://www.youtube.com/live/y3WSJK3xMW0?si=qh9-o-z2fOvIa4Kd
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts & hoodies, stickers & patches, and mugs at the store!
http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#208
Lucretia Hughes Klucken
This is a name you want to know. And a person you want to follow. I learned about her with the Women for Gun Rights group. I saw her testify in front of Congress. She lost her son to gang violence but she didn’t turn into an anti-gun red shirt. She donned the teal and knew that it wasn’t a gun that killed her son. I got to have Lucretia in the stagecoach at an event in New Jersey recently. She is an unstoppable force to be reckoned with.
Lucretia grew up in Georgia in a small country town. Her father raised her and her eight siblings in a junkyard. Whatever the boys would do, she would do so she was considered a tomboy. She had three fathers: one was a leader of the Black Panthers and the other two were in the military during Vietnam. Her grandparents were the first interracial couple in the area. She grew up shooting and hunting like her brothers. By the time she was 20, she had four kids.
She worked hard to make sure that her kids didn’t grow up in the situation she did. She lived in the hood and wanted to get out. Of course, she grew up in a Democrat household as she thought black people were supposed to vote that way. But she realized the Democrat party wasn’t doing anything to help her. Being involved in gangs and the thug lifestyle, going to funerals of friends, she knew she was the only person that could make changes and get her family out of that lifestyle.She worked hard to get her and her kids out of that way of life.
When the NRA Annual Meeting was in Atlanta, she went at the encouragement of a friend. While there alone, she was talking with lots of folks. A photographer saw her and realized she had something. He dared her to go talk to “that short man over there”. It just happened to be Wayne LaPierre. She didn’t know this. She told him her story and he gave her his phone number. Six months later he reached out and invited her to Texas to be part of the Board of Directors nominating committee.
She is also associated with the Women for Gun Rights group. Being around women like Dianna Muller (RSWC #059 & #164) and Amanda Suffecool (RSWC #009 & #180), she’s learned a lot. She’s had to learn to refine her story, skills, and be a positive role model. WGR help prepare her to speak in front of Congress and share the story about her son being murdered.
One of the things Lucretia does is a daily show, from 5-7 pm et, which has been growing to reach hundreds of thousands of people. Through the show, she met her husband. The show is called Real New with Lucretia Hughes. One of the people watching her show was Star Parker. She’s the author of Pimps, Whores, & Welfare Brats. Star went from a tough life into a conservative. Lucretia’s story is very similar. They did have a chance to meet and become friends. .
She’s got some amazing stories, like driving up to DC for an event, with a pistol on the passenger’s seat, and going up a one way road the wrong way. Fortunately, she was pulled over by a black police officer who was also from Georgia and he advised her to go home. She talks about getting off the welfare system and working hard to do so. She worked in federal penitentiaries in the medical department. These are the amazing stories I loved to get out for all to hear.
Besides the show, she’s also working on running for the NRA Board of Directors. She was on the nominating committee that helped Dean Cain and Mark Keith Robinson get voted onto the BOD. Like I said, she’s a force. When she spoke at the CNJFO/WGR dinner, she got everyone going. If you search her name, you’ll find her from Turning Point USA to Real Clear Politics to FOX News. And now RSWC.
Favorite quotes:
“I won’t bow down. And I won’t kiss no ring.”
“I learned to stop beating up on myself because no one is perfect.”
“I got tired of looking at death.”
“They changed a lot of women’s minds and their hearts.And a lot of women are now wanting gun rights.”
Lucretia Hughes Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/lucretia.b.hughes
https://www.instagram.com/reallucretiahughes/
Rumble Real News with Lucretia Hughes
https://rumble.com/user/RealNewsWithLucretiaHughes
FallBackUSA2 Shop
https://fallbackusa2.myshopify.com/
Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/
Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.
Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts & hoodies, stickers & patches, and mugs at the store!
http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/
Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/
Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/
Buy a Powertac Flashlight, use RSWC as the discount code and save 15%
www.powertac.com/RSWC
SABRE Red Pepper Spray
https://lddy.no/1iq1n
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