Bear with me
A lone black bear believed to be hibernating in Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge in southern Indiana is likely to be awake by now. According to the Indiana DNR, this black bear was last spotted in November in the refuge, and wildlife officials believe it spent the winter there. Bears often emerge from hibernation in late winter or early spring to find food and water.

ATF moving to remove some gun restrictions
A high-ranking official at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (and Explosives) has written a proposal that could see the removal of many restrictions on gun regulations in the United States. Ronald B. Turk, associate deputy director and chief operating officer of the ATF, wrote an 11-page “white paper” that calls for the end of regulations on suppressors for firearms. The paper also speaks to: New Federal Firearms Licensees (FFL) dealing exclusively at gun shows (or online), armor- piercing ammunition, re-importation of certain Department of Defense surplus firearms from foreign countries, firearms arm or stabilizing braces, reissuing a new sporting purpose study, creation of a database of Agency rulings, suppressors, firearms industry proposals to allow interstate sales of firearms at gun shows and destructive devices.

It sounds like help is on the way.

So sue me
In February, the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation, the Alaska Professional Hunters Association and two rural Alaskans filed suit against the federal government seeking to overturn two Obama-era restrictions governing the management of National Wildlife Refuge and National Preserve lands within Alaska’s borders. The Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation and APHA believe the rules are an overreach of the federal government into the traditional state role of game management, and that this action in Alaska sets a dangerous precedent that puts hunting at risk on hundreds of millions of acres of public land nationwide. The 96 million acres of National Wildlife Refuge and Park Service lands at stake in this lawsuit cover an area slightly larger than Montana, the fourth-largest state in the union. Are we finally getting sensible?

Maybe we are getting sensible
The Republican-led Senate has voted to revoke an Obama-era regulation that nullifies the “Implementation of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007.″ According to Click On Detroit, the Obama administration measure required the Social Security Administration to include the names of beneficiaries with mental health issues who also have a third party to manage their benefits. Critics called the rule “too broad” and claim it “unfairly stigmatized the disabled.” The vote scored 57 to 43 in favor of revoking the regulation, which is now on its way to President Trump’s desk where it’s expected to be signed.

Fake Glock magazines seized at border
U.S. Customs and Border Protection at the Savannah Port of Entry seized a container of manifested firearm magazines and found over 500 cartons of pistol magazines. Upon further inspection, the magazines were all fraudulently stamped with the famed Glock trademark. The magazines, all 59,100 of them, reportedly have a suggested retail price of $2.1 million.