It's Back-to-Back gun rights cases on the docket today in California as the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco will hear two important cases brought by the Calguns Foundation. In Silvester v. Harris, the three judge panel will hear a Second Amendment challenge to California's 10-day waiting period. A District Court previously ruled in the Calguns Foundation's favor in a 3-day bench trial….The second case, Tracy Rifle and Pistol v. Harris, challenges California's ban on some truthful, non-misleading handgun related speech by firearms dealers. Calguns is arguing against that ban based on First Amendment rights. The oral arguments are actually available live on the Ninth Circuit's YouTube Channel at: https://www.youtube.com/user/9thcirc/videos.

No one's saying anything formally, but there's plenty of back-channel "buzz" after an email announcing the breakup of one of the longest-term relationships in the firearms industry …For the past 25 years, Norman, Oklahoma's Blue Heron Communications has been the agency of record for Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation. That includes Smith & Wesson and Thompson/Center Arms. No exact count, but that tenure has serviced about a dozen presidents and about third that many owners. No longer.

A short email from Blue Heron Communications President Gary Giudice late yesterday afternoon announces an end of the quarter-century relationship. For many of us in the firearms media, the announcement is the equivalent of the classic "man bites dog" story. Agencies seldom dismiss blue-chip clients. That makes what is an interesting "inside baseball" story into a legit business one. Yes, we're checking…but look for a Dragnet story "just the facts ma'am." Many of us have good friends on both sides of this breakup.