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MARCH 28, 2024

In observance of the Easter holiday, we will not be publishing any wires on Friday, March 29. If your news needs to be distributed before April 1, 2024, please have it in our hands no later than 5PM Eastern time on Wednesday, March 27. News arriving later will not make Thursday’s final editions for the week.
Faxon Firearms is honored to announce its recent victory in the highly coveted Shooting Sports Retailer (SSR) Gold Awards. Faxon Firearms has been awarded in two distinguished categories: Aftermarket Barrel and Favorite New Product.
John O’Donnell, 66, of St. Louis, Mo., was a force at the Civilian Marksmanship Program’s 2024 Talladega Spring Classic, carrying wins in the .22, Center Fire and .45 Pistol matches, the Pistol 2700 Aggregate and the Military & Police and As-Issued 1911 competitions.

Bushnell and Hoppe’s congratulate pro shooter Jessie Harrison for winning her 12th consecutive Ladies Open National title at the U.S. Steel Nationals near Smyrna Beach, Florida, March 15-17. Harrison’s reign at the top of the US Steel Nationals dates back to 2013.
ZeroTech Optics announced Alix McFarland's achievement as the Top Woman Shooter at the opening match of the 2024 Australian Precision Rifle Series tournament, held in Monarto, South Australia.
Luth-AR announced Henry T as the lucky winner of the Superstition Mountain Mystery 3-Gun Giveaway Grand Prize. Henry is now the proud recipient of the very first 1-8 1/2 Fractional Twist complete upper barrel assembly.

SIG SAUER will kick-off the popular 2024 ROSE Seminar Series featuring Team SIG professional shooter Lena Miculek at SIG Elite Dealer Vance Outdoors in Obetz, Ohio this Saturday, March 30, 2024.
Safariland announced the release of new fits for the redesigned, RDS compatible IWB IncogX holster. The IncogX, developed in partnership with Haley Strategic Partners, now accommodates the Smith & Wesson Shield, Shield+, Shield EZ, and M&P models.
Davidson’s, one of the nation’s top firearms, ammunition, optics, and accessories wholesalers, is excited to produce another broadcast in its series “Dealer Education Seminars”

Camfour announces the addition of KleenBore to their vendor lineup. The KleenBore mission is gun care and helping gunowners preserve the condition of their firearms.
NSSF® celebrates Kentucky House Bill 357, informally called the Second Amendment Privacy Act, passing into law. This NSSF-supported law protects the privacy and sensitive financial information of people purchasing firearms and ammunition in Kentucky.
MidwayUSA announced that it has earned the 2023 Bizrate® Platinum Circle of Excellence Award. The award is based on Customer feedback and recognizes retailers who go above and beyond to provide exceptional online services and experiences.

Alpha Silencer, a manufacturer of firearm suppressors, announced today that it has rebranded to ANECHOIC. ANECHOIC has also revealed its new product line, AnechoX. All AnechoX suppressors come equipped with the X-Baffle Anechoic Chamber System.
The SIG SAUER ROMEO Series has once again received a top industry rating in the recently released 2023 Hunting & Shooting Equipment Brands Report from Southwick Associates as the most frequently purchased brand in the red dot and reflex sights category.
Tedder Industries announces the appointment of Andrew Williams as its new Vice President of Finance and member of the leadership team. With a distinguished background in leading finance teams for global corporate giants such as Walt Disney, Walmart and Ford Motor Corp, Williams brings a wealth of experience and strategic vision to Tedder Industries and Alien Gear Holsters.

The Second Amendment Foundation and its allies in a federal lawsuit against New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s prohibition of lawful carrying of arms in Albuquerque and surrounding Bernalillo County have filed an appellant's reply brief with the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Safariland has announced new GLOCK fits for the Solis OWB holster. In 2023, Safariland introduced the Solis holster to accommodate subcompact duty pistols with lights and optics. Now available for GLOCK 17 and 19 models, Solis offers law enforcement officials and nonsworn civilians a new OWB carry option from the originators of holster retention.
Following their introduction of the 1-8 1/2 Fractional Twist barrels, Luth-AR announces the availability of 1-8 1/2 Fractional Twist Complete Uppers, featuring either MLOK or Keymod 15" Palm Handguard.

XS Sights now offers its popular R3D 2.0 Tritium Night Sights for Colt, Kimber, and Springfield Armory 1911 pistols. Designed for improved speed and accuracy in any light, these new second-generation tritium self-defense sights are brighter, stronger, and even easier to install than the original R3D models.
Real Avid recognizes that hammers and punches are two of the most essential tools for do-it-yourself gunsmiths. For 2024, the company releases its new Armorer’s Master Hammer along with the Armorer’s Master Hammer and Accu-Punch 11-Piece Standard Pin Punch Set.
RTS Tactical, a manufacturer of ballistic armor protection for military and civilian applications, has recently completed a restructuring and redesign of its website. The new function and look of RTSTactical.com parallels the company’s ongoing commitment to providing its customers with the best service.
Bear Creek Arsenal has the ultimate truck gun now in a 9mm bufferless option. Coming in with a 5” barrel, this AR pistol skips over the brace issue altogether and gives you a firearm that you could have in the trunk, under the seat, or stored in a case without getting in the way.
The Department of Natural Resources Ortonville, Pontiac Lake, Rose Lake and Sharonville shooting ranges will be closed for the Easter holiday Sunday, March 31. The ranges will reopen Monday, April 1.
 

Tomorrow is Good Friday, the first day of the Easter weekend, 2024. Despite the best efforts of the Cadbury bunny, the holiday isn’t about hiding eggs, eating candy and celebrating the eventual arrival of spring.

For Christians worldwide, it is a sacred religious holiday.

Like many of you, we will observe Good Friday.

Meaning? No wires in your inboxes.

No, there’s no shortage of news happening.

From the untimely demise of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, to the ongoing shenanigans by the NRA to the battle over the company presently known as Vista Outdoors, there is no shortage of news.

Fixating on the normal doesn’t seem to be appropriate for this weekend. The normal turmoil of modern life is actually counter to the spirit of Easter.

Easter isn’t about the normal, it’s about the extraordinary.

We might all be better off if we acknowledged more of the extraordinary in our lives instead of focusing on the troubling.

Despite the fact we’re still having ridiculously wild weather nationwide, spring is arriving.

If you’re anywhere near Washington, D.C., the National Cherry Blossom Festival is in full swing. And the National Park Service reports the Yoshino cherry trees are currently at peak bloom. That apparently happened on March 17 and the peak (actually a sustainable 70% bloom) is expected for several more days.

Originally a gift from Japan, the Yoshino cherry trees that surround the tidal basin in Washington, D.C. are a site worth seeing. National Cherry Blossom Festival photo, with permission.

The Yoshinos around the tidal basin, if you’ve never seen them, are an experience. blossoms are reportedly blooming at a level unheard of in recent years. If you’re not able to make the trip, you can check them out yourself courtesy of the live “#BloomCam” supplied by EarthCam. If you want an event in early April, the National Cherry Blossom Parade is set for Saturday, April 13, 2024 from 10AM-Noon on Constitution Avenue between 7th and 17th streets. The parade is free, but seating is available at the East and West ends of the parade route for $25-30.

No April Fool joke..the long-established White House Easter Egg roll is set for Monday after Easter. White House Historical Society photo.

On “Easter Monday” the White House will host their annual Easter Egg roll on the South Lawn of the White House. We’re told it’s an “EGGucation” event, and cornball jokes aside, it will honor thousands of military and veteran families, caregivers and survivors. The first White House egg roll, FYI, was held April 22, 1878 after President Rutherford B. Hayes agreed to open the White House grounds on Easter Monday to children who wanted to roll Easter eggs. Apparently, the idea of egg rolling is an old European folk custom. Normally held during “Easter season” the “frolic” was a competition of kids rolling eggs down a hill during spring festivals.

As Easter baskets are being prepped, adults are seeing first-hand one of the biggest price hikes in years. Cocoa prices are literally “off the charts” this year-and that increase is being reflected in the costs of putting chocolate candies into Easter baskets.

For the first time -ever- cocoa prices topped $10,000 a metric ton on Tuesday. The world is facing what commodity brokers and chocolate makers describe as the largest cocoa shortage in the past 60 years. Black pod disease and swollen shoot virus have ravaged cocoa trees in Ghana and the Ivory Coast -the world’s largest cocoa suppliers. The two countries account for about 60 percent of the world’s cocoa output.

Choco-holics already know about the shortages. Many candy bars have experienced “shrinkflation” - smaller sizes at the same price as larger bars, or seen prices skyrocket. And skyrocket isn’t an exaggeration. In the past 12 months, cocoa prices have tripled -and are already up 124 percent this year.

Most of you already know by now, but chocolate has become one of the most expensive candies out there. In 2024, prices are already up 124% with no relief in sight. When you’re paying $8 for 7 ounces of chocolate, the gold paper isn’t entirely inappropriate.

Chocolate makers like Hershey and Nestle have seen their profits drop as they’ve delayed passing on costs. Hershey’s stock price has dropped twenty-two percent over the past 12 months. Nestle’s down thirteen percent.

In response, they’re trying to shift consumers over to “non-chocolate Easter treats” like “cookies ’n cream bunnies” and alternatives to the once-ubiquitous chocolate bunnies and eggs. One new candy is the Kit-Kat lemon crisp bar. Another tactic to help ease the chocolate withdrawal is Hershey’s mixing Haribo gummy bears in its assortment bags.

Easter, FYI, is the third-largest occasion in the U.S. for candy. Halloween is the largest, with the “winter holiday season” a close second.

Anyway…hope you get beyond all the chocolate uncertainty, the long list of other problems that occupy most of our time and attention -and have a blessed Easter weekend.

Back Monday — no fooling. And, as always, we’ll keep you posted.

— Jim Shepherd

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