The ring of the first bell at SHOT Show Bob Morrison (left), President and CEO of Taurus International, was pleased to announce NRA Secretary Edward J. Land (USMC Ret.), as the 2011 Taurus Defender of Freedom Award recipient.

There is still a great demand for custom holsters and accessories, made one at a time from leather, though I am well aware that Kydex and other forms of synthetic materials are on their way to dominating the gun-carrying business. That's progress, I guess and I have to confess that I often use such holsters when attending various shooting schools. There are many advantages to synthetics, not the least of them being the reduced cost of materials. But, having carried various pistols and revolvers in my military and law enforcement years, I am inclined to fondly recall the leather holsters that were then the norm. “Leather” was even the policeman's slang for the entire ensemble of belt, holster and all the various other pouches and pockets that went along with it. It was cool stuff and the best of leather gear displayed exceptional quality.

Like most guys, I love a good shoot’um up movie, but I’m always irritated when the protagonist dives behind a couch, or some other flimsy object, right before the bad guy sprays the object with bullets. And even though the object would have never stopped a bullet—much less multiple bullets—the hero jumps up unharmed and drops the bad guy with a well-placed shot.