I’m not sure what it says about NRO readers, but I am learning much, much

more than I really wanted to know about the interactions between bullets and

human heads. A reader reports knowledgably: “I’m pretty sure that the

service pistols used by the Soviets were called Markarovs and fired a

proprietary shell called a 9mm Markarov, which was a shorter, underpowered

little brother to the 9mm europellet. Couple that with the ’standards’

usually associated with soviet industry, and its no wonder the bullet never

escaped the cranium. Try it with a modern shot and you’ll have a nice messy

wash on the wall.”