Like hunting? It’s time to take our September 1st dove opener seriously. If nothing else, it sharpens the eye for ducks and pheasants. Carry a small cooler with you, and pop out the breasts as you shoot them. After the hunt, fillet each breast into two bite-sized chunks and skewer them on a stick. Now deep fry them. You just created tasty dove chislic!

Our South Dakota Game, Fish, & Parks Department does a good job of keeping us informed about new developments. I generally do not repeat this information unless I have an opinion, but I do depend on magazines to keep me informed on issues of importance to us.

The November 2019 issue of Guns & Ammo magazine featured the story “Best States for Gun Owners” by Keith Wood. As South Dakota then ranked 29th from the top, I intended to see how we might improve the low ranking. I learned that we still needed to improve our Use of Force Laws which could go a lot further in protecting victims of violent crime.

I’ve acted on this in the past. When I learned years ago that North Dakota was the first state to free crime victims of liability when a perpetrator was killed or injured, I brought the issue to then senator Frank Kloucek of Scotland. Our efforts were successful, and Frank was instrumental in enacting a similar new law for us.

Getting back to “Best States for Gun Owners,” the September 2020 issue of Guns & Ammo magazine features an update by Keith Woods. We now rank 7th from the top! We no longer need a permit to carry concealed, our reciprocity with other states is excellent, and our self-defense laws have improved significantly. This gives me one more reason for being grateful that I’m a South Dakotan.

In rank order, the six states more gun friendly than our own are Arizona, Kansas, Idaho, Kentucky, New Hampshire, and Alaska. How “unfriendly” can a state be? Number 51, Hawaii, bases its concealed carry permits on urgency, and hasn’t issued a permit in recent years. Personally, I’m thankful that we are not mired down with mandatory classroom instruction and live-fire range time. With my tremor, I could never qualify in some states although some perp would be in a world of hurt if he confronted me at point blank range.

Do we South Dakotans need to concern ourselves with concealed carry? An old adage states that it is better to have a gun and never need it than to need it and not have it. We live in a relatively safe state. Still, in the last year I have been amazed at the number of my friends who carry concealed. Personally, I do not carry a handgun as I don’t see it as being necessary anywhere in South Dakota.

I saw on the news last night where Chicagoans were afraid to go for a neighborhood walk or stand in front of a window at night. We are not Chicago. Still, a shotgun in the bedroom corner and ready access to some shells isn’t a bad idea. If I were to travel to the Twin Cities, I’d have my Ruger under the front seat as Minnesota does not require me to notify police of my gun unless I am asked. In spite of our not being required to have a permit in order to carry concealed, a permit might be a good idea if any traveling is done as many states recognize our permit to carry.

Guns are good property and will only increase in value during these troubled times. With some of our major cities defunding their police, self-defense becomes more important. The coming election will say a lot about the looting, vandalism, and violence that plagues our nation.

Last February I had deep brain stimulation surgery for the tremor in my left hand. It required the placing of a battery in my right shoulder, a battery that could be negatively affected by rifle or shotgun recoil. In hope of alleviating this problem, I will switch from my .30-06 to my .270 Winchester for big game hunting, and from my 12 gauge to a 20 gauge for bird hunting. I hope these modifications work.

When our government sent me the $1200 stimulus check, I stimulated the firearms industry by buying myself a Franchi over & under 20 gauge shotgun. It is one sweet gun. I would rather have seen these monies go to struggling small businesses rather than retirees with a fixed income like me, but that would have led to further mismanagement like the unemployment compensation checks that exceeded actual paychecks. When will Congress get it together? See you next week.