12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 525,600 minutes, 31,536,000. That's how much time has passed since former Marine and Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed in an ambush by a thug armed with a gun purchased from a Phoenix gun store at the urging the federal agency charged with preventing that very act.
In that time, we've heard all kinds of things around the operation known as Fast and Furious (Gunwalker to the intimately familiar). Things like it was a botched operation, that it got out of control, and that it was a rogue operation. We've heard all manner of excuses from those who support what happened: It was the NRA's fault, it was the fault of the Republican Party for not confirming a permanent director, we even heard it was all George Bush's fault.
We know two gentlemen who have done the heavy lifting and yeoman's work of making sure that we know what we know: Mike Vanderboegh and David Codrea If you would like a complete round up on Fast & Furious/Gunwalker, check out David's Examiner site. If you would like a daily play-by-play, check out Mike's place.
What we have found out in the last 12 months is that this operation wasn't botched at all. The objectives of the operation we met with precision, and that supervisors up and down the chain of command in main Justice and the ATF were giddy with excitement at the numbers of victims racked up with weaponry connected with F&F.
One thing that hadn't been put forward in all this blame 'x', is the race card. Until now. The Tuscon Citizen posits that all this hubub is really a racist attack on Messicans and black people. Why else would those evil racist Republicans be going after Eric Holder? I mean, it has to be because he's black, right? It can't be because he's the most incompetent person to hold the post of Attorney General at all. Nope, that can't be it.
And just to make sure we get this all tied in together, let's throw in obligatory references SB 1070 and go after a local Congressman who's part of the process to get the incompetent ass who's in charge of this circle-jerk thrown out of office, by accusing him of racism as part of a great big racist conspiracy to get Eric Holder.
I don't think I've seen that much left-wing hate in one piece since, well, the last time I tried to watch MSLSD. But it absolutely amazes me still that for a group that touts itself to be so 'tolerant', they sure tend to be pretty bigoted and intolerant themselves.
Just so we're clear here: Agent Terry, RIP.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Friday, December 2, 2011
Never Bring A Knife (or sword) To a Gun Fight
Evidently this MENSA reject didn't get the memo.
Fortunately (or not, depending on your views on mixing samurai swords and law enforcement) our intrepid candidate for a Darwin Award was only taken down by a couple of 12 gauge bean bags.
And if you're thinking how much could the guy have done with a couple of gift shop wanna-be blades, these were the real McCoy, sharp and nasty, and in the hands of a deranged loon intent on getting his Ginsu on with the RCPD.
Any guesses as to how many neuroses he had?
Fortunately (or not, depending on your views on mixing samurai swords and law enforcement) our intrepid candidate for a Darwin Award was only taken down by a couple of 12 gauge bean bags.
And if you're thinking how much could the guy have done with a couple of gift shop wanna-be blades, these were the real McCoy, sharp and nasty, and in the hands of a deranged loon intent on getting his Ginsu on with the RCPD.
Any guesses as to how many neuroses he had?
Saturday, November 19, 2011
A Note
To the driver of the red Dodge Durango at McDonalds this morning, thanks dickhead.
If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have known one person could take so long at the drive-through by placing an order for everything on the menu. Also, your time management skills seem to need a little tweaking. See, you should be placing your order for everyone on the planet while you are talking to them on your cell phone instead of taking notes before placing said order. And with incoming traffic coming in just fast enough to preclude me from backing up and going around your sorry ass just makes it that much more galling.
That you did this at 1025, right before the cut-off for breakfast tells me you are a procrastinator of the highest order.
So next time asshole, get the list together before you drag your sorry ass down to the drive-through. Or if that is too much to ask, walk your happy ass into the restaurant.
/Rant off\
If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have known one person could take so long at the drive-through by placing an order for everything on the menu. Also, your time management skills seem to need a little tweaking. See, you should be placing your order for everyone on the planet while you are talking to them on your cell phone instead of taking notes before placing said order. And with incoming traffic coming in just fast enough to preclude me from backing up and going around your sorry ass just makes it that much more galling.
That you did this at 1025, right before the cut-off for breakfast tells me you are a procrastinator of the highest order.
So next time asshole, get the list together before you drag your sorry ass down to the drive-through. Or if that is too much to ask, walk your happy ass into the restaurant.
/Rant off\
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Take The Second Amendment Quiz
Now new and improved!
I got 10 correct, but to be honest I think I got all 12 right. The CSM had two questions wrong. I think they let their biases cloud the question regarding the scope of the amendment, and I'm pretty sure Bonnie and Clyde, Machine Gun Kelly, John Dillinger, and Pretty Boy Floyd were the catalysts for the NFA, not Al Capone and the St. Valentines Day Massacre.
I got 10 correct, but to be honest I think I got all 12 right. The CSM had two questions wrong. I think they let their biases cloud the question regarding the scope of the amendment, and I'm pretty sure Bonnie and Clyde, Machine Gun Kelly, John Dillinger, and Pretty Boy Floyd were the catalysts for the NFA, not Al Capone and the St. Valentines Day Massacre.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
The PSH Is Strong In This One
Last week there was a shooting down on Bourbon Street in N'Alens. The smoke has cleared, the blood, while not completely dry, is tacky, and the press is all over the issue.
It's almost a typical hit piece. Quote from an anti-gun organization? Check. Reference MAIG? Check. Drag the ATF into the piece? Got it. Get any quotes or statements from the NRA or similar organization? Not a chance.
Of course, it wouldn't be a hit piece without the usual distortions, half-truths, and outright lies.
So, a scumbag shoots a bunch of people. That he did so doesn't register on their agenda. That he used a handgun that can accept a high capacity magazine, well that just ain't right. I would like to see one of these 50 or 100 rd mags for a handgun. Leaving aside the AK-type pistols that take all the standard mags that come with the platform (yes, that includes the 75 and 100 rd drums), I wonder just what a 100 rd mag for a Glock 17 looks like?
We get into the lies when we mistakenly represent the 1994 AWB as 'outlawing' them is such a blatant lie it bears correcting. The '94 ban did not outlaw anything. It simply placed manufacture and import restrictions on new ones. 33 rd Glock mags were readily available on Sep 15, 1994 (the day after the ban went into effect), and were still prevalent on Sep 13, 2004 (the day before it sunset). What changed was cost.
So, after all that, we get to the crux of the article. It's a puff piece for Mayors Against (All) Illegal Guns. They're pushing their 10 ways to screw private gun ownership.
They are:
1. Allow criminal penalties for buying a gun for someone else.
(Already a federal crime. It's called 'straw buying' and is punishable by up to 10 yrs in Club Fed.)
2. Allow criminal penalties for buying a gun with false information.
(See #1, above.)
3. Allow criminal penalties for selling a gun without a background check.
(There is absolutely no way to enforce this. You can no more make people go through the NICS check for a private sale than you can a felon. Oh wait. I forgot. The 5th amendment protects felons from this little gem because that would incriminate them. Silly me.)
4. Require background checks for all handgun sales at gun shows.
(Since they don't mention abolishing private sales, I can only surmise that after all the 'stings' they did over the last couple of years, they didn't learn anything. All licensed dealers do background checks, regardless of where they set up, whether it's at a table at the gun show or behind the counter at the store.)
5. Require purchase permit for all handgun sales.
(Three words: Cold Dead Hands.)
6. Grant law enforcement discretion in granting concealed carry permits.
(And this has worked out soooo well in NYFC, LA, SF, and Newark, NJ hasn't it. Are you famous? Are you politically connected? Know somebody who can hook you up? If you answered no, then you're screwed. Just ask the residents of those cities who have verifiable need to CCW and have been denied how that's working out for them.)
7. Prohibit violent misdemeanor criminals form possessing guns.
(What is a violent misdemeanor? Jimmy and Bob get into a dust over Cindy-Lou at closing time? Or is it K-Dog who beat Old Man Smith half to death for his pension check. Misdemeanors are just that. Not as bad as felonies. Now if that misdemeanor carried a sentence of one year or greater in the city/county slammer, I've got a newsflash for you. Disqualified. Funny thing about them federal gun laws. They seem to cover that one just like they did in items 1 and 2.)
8. Require reporting lost or stolen guns to the police.
(Hmmm, this one is interesting. These laws have been on the books in several cities for a few years now, and I can't seem to find any reports where this has actually worked, let alone been used to prosecute anyone. Can you say solution desperately in search of a problem?)
9. Allow local communities to enact gun control.
(Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen. First you've got McDonald, then you have those pesky state preemption laws that don't really allow for that kind of thing.)
10. Allow inspections of gun dealers.
(This one is interesting. The ATF usually inspects them. Probably not as often as these fools would like, but they do get looked at. Just ask Red's Trading Post. Or are they thinking about the morons who work for Furious Mike who know nothing about guns, stores, or both trying to tell these guys how to run their business?)
I guess the bottom line question I've got to ask the MAIG folks is this. Since you've recommended all these little wish lists, just how is this going to help? I mean, if you're trying to stem the flow of illegal guns (and not ban them or nothing), just how does this help? Just looking at the biggest gun running operation in the last, I don't know, 50 yrs, [cough...Operation Fast and Furious...cough] all the dealers involved tried to call off the sales, and yet our own government overruled the better judgement of the proprietors. Funny how all the legislation in the world won't help when the Gun Cops tell you not to enforce them.
The more I think about this, the more it comes down to trying to be a mouthpiece for something that is on the cusp of becoming irrelevant.
It's almost a typical hit piece. Quote from an anti-gun organization? Check. Reference MAIG? Check. Drag the ATF into the piece? Got it. Get any quotes or statements from the NRA or similar organization? Not a chance.
Of course, it wouldn't be a hit piece without the usual distortions, half-truths, and outright lies.
So, a scumbag shoots a bunch of people. That he did so doesn't register on their agenda. That he used a handgun that can accept a high capacity magazine, well that just ain't right. I would like to see one of these 50 or 100 rd mags for a handgun. Leaving aside the AK-type pistols that take all the standard mags that come with the platform (yes, that includes the 75 and 100 rd drums), I wonder just what a 100 rd mag for a Glock 17 looks like?
We get into the lies when we mistakenly represent the 1994 AWB as 'outlawing' them is such a blatant lie it bears correcting. The '94 ban did not outlaw anything. It simply placed manufacture and import restrictions on new ones. 33 rd Glock mags were readily available on Sep 15, 1994 (the day after the ban went into effect), and were still prevalent on Sep 13, 2004 (the day before it sunset). What changed was cost.
So, after all that, we get to the crux of the article. It's a puff piece for Mayors Against (All) Illegal Guns. They're pushing their 10 ways to screw private gun ownership.
They are:
1. Allow criminal penalties for buying a gun for someone else.
(Already a federal crime. It's called 'straw buying' and is punishable by up to 10 yrs in Club Fed.)
2. Allow criminal penalties for buying a gun with false information.
(See #1, above.)
3. Allow criminal penalties for selling a gun without a background check.
(There is absolutely no way to enforce this. You can no more make people go through the NICS check for a private sale than you can a felon. Oh wait. I forgot. The 5th amendment protects felons from this little gem because that would incriminate them. Silly me.)
4. Require background checks for all handgun sales at gun shows.
(Since they don't mention abolishing private sales, I can only surmise that after all the 'stings' they did over the last couple of years, they didn't learn anything. All licensed dealers do background checks, regardless of where they set up, whether it's at a table at the gun show or behind the counter at the store.)
5. Require purchase permit for all handgun sales.
(Three words: Cold Dead Hands.)
6. Grant law enforcement discretion in granting concealed carry permits.
(And this has worked out soooo well in NYFC, LA, SF, and Newark, NJ hasn't it. Are you famous? Are you politically connected? Know somebody who can hook you up? If you answered no, then you're screwed. Just ask the residents of those cities who have verifiable need to CCW and have been denied how that's working out for them.)
7. Prohibit violent misdemeanor criminals form possessing guns.
(What is a violent misdemeanor? Jimmy and Bob get into a dust over Cindy-Lou at closing time? Or is it K-Dog who beat Old Man Smith half to death for his pension check. Misdemeanors are just that. Not as bad as felonies. Now if that misdemeanor carried a sentence of one year or greater in the city/county slammer, I've got a newsflash for you. Disqualified. Funny thing about them federal gun laws. They seem to cover that one just like they did in items 1 and 2.)
8. Require reporting lost or stolen guns to the police.
(Hmmm, this one is interesting. These laws have been on the books in several cities for a few years now, and I can't seem to find any reports where this has actually worked, let alone been used to prosecute anyone. Can you say solution desperately in search of a problem?)
9. Allow local communities to enact gun control.
(Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen. First you've got McDonald, then you have those pesky state preemption laws that don't really allow for that kind of thing.)
10. Allow inspections of gun dealers.
(This one is interesting. The ATF usually inspects them. Probably not as often as these fools would like, but they do get looked at. Just ask Red's Trading Post. Or are they thinking about the morons who work for Furious Mike who know nothing about guns, stores, or both trying to tell these guys how to run their business?)
I guess the bottom line question I've got to ask the MAIG folks is this. Since you've recommended all these little wish lists, just how is this going to help? I mean, if you're trying to stem the flow of illegal guns (and not ban them or nothing), just how does this help? Just looking at the biggest gun running operation in the last, I don't know, 50 yrs, [cough...Operation Fast and Furious...cough] all the dealers involved tried to call off the sales, and yet our own government overruled the better judgement of the proprietors. Funny how all the legislation in the world won't help when the Gun Cops tell you not to enforce them.
The more I think about this, the more it comes down to trying to be a mouthpiece for something that is on the cusp of becoming irrelevant.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
File This Under 'Duh'!!!
Let's see, how many rules can one person break before it finally catches up to them?
Ask this guy. This reeks of so much stupid it's hard to watch.
Darwin woulda been proud, trying to chlorinate the gene pool like that. I wonder, are the Darwin Awards still given out? Because this guy should be a finalist!
Ask this guy. This reeks of so much stupid it's hard to watch.
Darwin woulda been proud, trying to chlorinate the gene pool like that. I wonder, are the Darwin Awards still given out? Because this guy should be a finalist!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Here We Go Again
As with most apologists for the current fiasco at the Department of JustUs, there's plenty of blame to go around, except where you know, it's actually supposed to be.
From this piece, another in a series funded by the Joyce Foundation through Media Matters, we hear about how all of this gunwalking nonsense could have been avoided if Texas had all the coolest and latest gun control schemes.
Because, you see, it's the gun laws of Texas that made a desperate woman commit a federal felony by straw purchasing guns for the cartels. Or something.
See, because Tejas didn't pony up to the Brady/VPC/MAIG playbook by banning sport utility rifles like the G3, FAL, AR 15, and WASR 10; or register gun owners like cattle; or require a waiting period to exercise a civil right, well by Gawd this young lady would still be free to get in other kinds of trouble.
Oh, and let's not forget that the USGOV running guns to Mexico is the fault of the weak gun laws in those states. Not that it would've made a difference...Gun dealers being ordered to proceed with sales they knew where wrong to people who until the NICS system was played with couldn't have made the purchase in the first place.
Which begs the question. How does a guy with a known felony record walk into a gun store and fill out a 4473? How does that happen? I'm no expert on the field of felons, but would it stand to reason that somebody told these felons to go to the store and make the purchase? They obviously had to know they would be flagged if they tried, right? I'm having a problem getting my head around that issue.
From this piece, another in a series funded by the Joyce Foundation through Media Matters, we hear about how all of this gunwalking nonsense could have been avoided if Texas had all the coolest and latest gun control schemes.
Because, you see, it's the gun laws of Texas that made a desperate woman commit a federal felony by straw purchasing guns for the cartels. Or something.
See, because Tejas didn't pony up to the Brady/VPC/MAIG playbook by banning sport utility rifles like the G3, FAL, AR 15, and WASR 10; or register gun owners like cattle; or require a waiting period to exercise a civil right, well by Gawd this young lady would still be free to get in other kinds of trouble.
Oh, and let's not forget that the USGOV running guns to Mexico is the fault of the weak gun laws in those states. Not that it would've made a difference...Gun dealers being ordered to proceed with sales they knew where wrong to people who until the NICS system was played with couldn't have made the purchase in the first place.
Which begs the question. How does a guy with a known felony record walk into a gun store and fill out a 4473? How does that happen? I'm no expert on the field of felons, but would it stand to reason that somebody told these felons to go to the store and make the purchase? They obviously had to know they would be flagged if they tried, right? I'm having a problem getting my head around that issue.
I Think They May Finally Be Getting It...
That gun control in it's basest form is racist.
That BET would give this piece space is telling. Our side is winning, and JFPO is starting to have an impact. It ain't every day that a piece talking about gun controls angry, racist past gets to appear there.
It starts out good, acknowledging the role the Klan had in making sure negroes stayed disarmed, even mentioning that Dr. King applied for a permit. I think he could have brought up the Deacons for Defense, though. I find it interesting that when the Deacons were around, the Klan wasn't.
The author gets going really good, only to loose it in the end with "And one has to consider whether winning the right to carry handguns everywhere was really that wonderful a victory."
Just when you think the lamp will finally light in this guy's head, it gets brushed aside as quickly as it occurred.
That BET would give this piece space is telling. Our side is winning, and JFPO is starting to have an impact. It ain't every day that a piece talking about gun controls angry, racist past gets to appear there.
It starts out good, acknowledging the role the Klan had in making sure negroes stayed disarmed, even mentioning that Dr. King applied for a permit. I think he could have brought up the Deacons for Defense, though. I find it interesting that when the Deacons were around, the Klan wasn't.
The author gets going really good, only to loose it in the end with "And one has to consider whether winning the right to carry handguns everywhere was really that wonderful a victory."
Just when you think the lamp will finally light in this guy's head, it gets brushed aside as quickly as it occurred.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
This Got Me To Thinking
Just the other day at work, I was talking about my first deployment in the military. Then, I see this piece over at Weer'ds place, which got me to thinking about that deployment all over again.
See, in 1995, the US was in serious face-saving mode in Central America. It seems that we had supported the federal government in El Salvador for the first 9 yrs of their 12 yr civil war, and the rebels the last 3.
So in an effort to make nice with the locals, we were tasked to deploy down to San Miguel, El Salvador to assist in building a couple of schools in the area. What we found out when we got down there was the town we would be working in was a former stronghold for the FMLN, the rebel group that fought the federal government down there. I mean it stands to reason that we were in their old backyard, considering the was FMLN graffiti everywhere.
Anyway, what got me to reminiscing was the subject of the linked post, US military placed in harms way un/under armed. See, in the area were going there was technically still some activity, a couple of months before we got there, the rebels had shot down a UH-1 helicopter carrying some important muckety-muck, so because of this, the UH-1 was not allowed to fly.
So in to this mix we go. 30 Air Force Engineers with a couple of small towed concrete mixers, a Bobcat with a backhoe attachment, and all the assorted hand tools a bunch of guys could use to work concrete, cinder block, and assorted other implements for maintaining a base camp and doing construction work. Oh, and 30 M16A1s. And only 300 rds of ammunition for the entire 30 man team. (As an interesting aside, we weren't allowed to open the caskets containing our weapons unless the fit really hit the shan.) Our counterparts in the ES Air Force routinely carried at least 300 rds......EACH, just to put that into perspective.
Anyway, when we arrived on our job site, we were 3 weeks behind schedule. None of the preliminary work was completed by the previous team. Meaning we had to clear the site, dig the footers, and get started on a semi-permanent latrine. (More on that in a bit.)
As a pavements and construction equipment guy, my job normally would have been to run the equipment to help clear the site and dig the footers, but since this was an Army-led project and deployment, we had to wait on them to bring in the front end loaders and the dump truck to get rid of all the crap we cleaned up.
In the mean time, there was that latrine that needed built. The location for this dig was in back of the existing school, right next to the old latrine. The only prep work done when we arrived was the cutting down of an old oak tree to make room for the new potty-box. Using tow straps, a handy man jack, a hydraulic jack and a lot of man power, we succeeded in removing the stump and getting to digging. For the next week or so, I got to ramrod digging a latrine that was 4 feet wide, 14 feet long, and 9 feet deep. Let me tell you, working in a 9 foot deep hole in sub tropical heat, even if it was the 'dry' season, made for some sweaty work. As we got deeper in the hole, the time we could spend in it got shorter and shorter. It was during this project I found out I could throw a shovel full of dirt 12 feet over my head and about 15 feet out.
What the wonder brains in the Corps of Engineers designed for us on this latrine was a hole in the ground lined with cinder block. Only, they had the block laid in in rows instead of staggered like every other brick wall in the world. Nobody ever said Big-Brained Engineers were smart, right?
Well any way, as the lone pavements guy in this side project, it fell to me to mix up the mortar for the block. Something I'd never undertook before. Let's face it, in the States, when in comes to mixing any kind of concrete, it's just phone call away, right?
I did such a good job with the mortar, I was put in charge of running the mixers when we got to really pouring concrete on the main job.
By the time we had the latrine dug, the rest of the project was caught up. So it was all hands on deck to pour concrete. What we found out was that there was distinct lack of river sand for our concrete. So we had to improvise. During the digging of the latrine, we had a couple of folks who didn't really have the skills for anything else working a sifting screen. All of the rock we had available to us was lava rock. So they sat for days, with a spade and some window screen, sifting all the volcanic rock to get us enough fines to mix with our portland.
So since I was the man on the mixer, I was dared by the LT on the project. The dare was that there was no way a 2-inch slump could be achieved in a portable mixer. He was right. I couldn't mix a 2" slump in a portable mixer. I did 1.5" instead. And to really get his goat, we did a field strength test on the cone of crete I mixed up, which consisted of picking up the cone and dropping it on a piece of granite. The results? I chipped the edge of the cone and actually broke the aggregate in the test piece.
The day we started pouring 'crete, we had 2 1/4 cubic yard and one 1/3 CY portable mixers to work with. Did I mention the Army in all this was worthless? They had an M-series concrete truck at camp that sat there the whole time. The crew did nothing. So we had to basically mix 50 CY of concrete in 3 portable mixers. And once you start, you can't stop until the job's done. So that's what we did. Wheel barrow after wheel barrow. The next day, we did the same thing, only this time we were pouring the floors. In 2 days we poured 150 CY of concrete.
Remember those fines we used in place of river sand in our concrete? Yeah, after we poured the pads, we had to go back and do the finish work on all that concrete. It was the most amazing thing. You could kick over a 5-gallon bucket of water and watch it disappear in less than 5 minutes into the pad. W were always having water hauled over to keep our areas wet while we worked the paste to get everything finished up.
When we arrived at that job site, we were 3 weeks behind. When we left 37 days later, we were almost a month ahead of schedule. During that trip, I learned some interesting stuff like how to lay cinder block walls. And I learned that never, under any circumstances, put Air Force Engineers in a base camp where farm animals are located with any spray paint.
See, in 1995, the US was in serious face-saving mode in Central America. It seems that we had supported the federal government in El Salvador for the first 9 yrs of their 12 yr civil war, and the rebels the last 3.
So in an effort to make nice with the locals, we were tasked to deploy down to San Miguel, El Salvador to assist in building a couple of schools in the area. What we found out when we got down there was the town we would be working in was a former stronghold for the FMLN, the rebel group that fought the federal government down there. I mean it stands to reason that we were in their old backyard, considering the was FMLN graffiti everywhere.
Anyway, what got me to reminiscing was the subject of the linked post, US military placed in harms way un/under armed. See, in the area were going there was technically still some activity, a couple of months before we got there, the rebels had shot down a UH-1 helicopter carrying some important muckety-muck, so because of this, the UH-1 was not allowed to fly.
So in to this mix we go. 30 Air Force Engineers with a couple of small towed concrete mixers, a Bobcat with a backhoe attachment, and all the assorted hand tools a bunch of guys could use to work concrete, cinder block, and assorted other implements for maintaining a base camp and doing construction work. Oh, and 30 M16A1s. And only 300 rds of ammunition for the entire 30 man team. (As an interesting aside, we weren't allowed to open the caskets containing our weapons unless the fit really hit the shan.) Our counterparts in the ES Air Force routinely carried at least 300 rds......EACH, just to put that into perspective.
Anyway, when we arrived on our job site, we were 3 weeks behind schedule. None of the preliminary work was completed by the previous team. Meaning we had to clear the site, dig the footers, and get started on a semi-permanent latrine. (More on that in a bit.)
As a pavements and construction equipment guy, my job normally would have been to run the equipment to help clear the site and dig the footers, but since this was an Army-led project and deployment, we had to wait on them to bring in the front end loaders and the dump truck to get rid of all the crap we cleaned up.
In the mean time, there was that latrine that needed built. The location for this dig was in back of the existing school, right next to the old latrine. The only prep work done when we arrived was the cutting down of an old oak tree to make room for the new potty-box. Using tow straps, a handy man jack, a hydraulic jack and a lot of man power, we succeeded in removing the stump and getting to digging. For the next week or so, I got to ramrod digging a latrine that was 4 feet wide, 14 feet long, and 9 feet deep. Let me tell you, working in a 9 foot deep hole in sub tropical heat, even if it was the 'dry' season, made for some sweaty work. As we got deeper in the hole, the time we could spend in it got shorter and shorter. It was during this project I found out I could throw a shovel full of dirt 12 feet over my head and about 15 feet out.
What the wonder brains in the Corps of Engineers designed for us on this latrine was a hole in the ground lined with cinder block. Only, they had the block laid in in rows instead of staggered like every other brick wall in the world. Nobody ever said Big-Brained Engineers were smart, right?
Well any way, as the lone pavements guy in this side project, it fell to me to mix up the mortar for the block. Something I'd never undertook before. Let's face it, in the States, when in comes to mixing any kind of concrete, it's just phone call away, right?
I did such a good job with the mortar, I was put in charge of running the mixers when we got to really pouring concrete on the main job.
By the time we had the latrine dug, the rest of the project was caught up. So it was all hands on deck to pour concrete. What we found out was that there was distinct lack of river sand for our concrete. So we had to improvise. During the digging of the latrine, we had a couple of folks who didn't really have the skills for anything else working a sifting screen. All of the rock we had available to us was lava rock. So they sat for days, with a spade and some window screen, sifting all the volcanic rock to get us enough fines to mix with our portland.
So since I was the man on the mixer, I was dared by the LT on the project. The dare was that there was no way a 2-inch slump could be achieved in a portable mixer. He was right. I couldn't mix a 2" slump in a portable mixer. I did 1.5" instead. And to really get his goat, we did a field strength test on the cone of crete I mixed up, which consisted of picking up the cone and dropping it on a piece of granite. The results? I chipped the edge of the cone and actually broke the aggregate in the test piece.
The day we started pouring 'crete, we had 2 1/4 cubic yard and one 1/3 CY portable mixers to work with. Did I mention the Army in all this was worthless? They had an M-series concrete truck at camp that sat there the whole time. The crew did nothing. So we had to basically mix 50 CY of concrete in 3 portable mixers. And once you start, you can't stop until the job's done. So that's what we did. Wheel barrow after wheel barrow. The next day, we did the same thing, only this time we were pouring the floors. In 2 days we poured 150 CY of concrete.
Remember those fines we used in place of river sand in our concrete? Yeah, after we poured the pads, we had to go back and do the finish work on all that concrete. It was the most amazing thing. You could kick over a 5-gallon bucket of water and watch it disappear in less than 5 minutes into the pad. W were always having water hauled over to keep our areas wet while we worked the paste to get everything finished up.
When we arrived at that job site, we were 3 weeks behind. When we left 37 days later, we were almost a month ahead of schedule. During that trip, I learned some interesting stuff like how to lay cinder block walls. And I learned that never, under any circumstances, put Air Force Engineers in a base camp where farm animals are located with any spray paint.
Monday, August 22, 2011
A Pox On America?
That's what the editorial staff at the West Virginia Gazette seem to think.
See if you can follow this line of thinking...Chicago, IL and Toronto, CA are roughly the same size. Yet one of these cities has a horrendous homicide problem. So the answer to said problem is to adopt the gun laws of the other city.
An interesting question arises: The city they would like to emulate more actually has less restrictive laws than the other.
After you wade through the whole 'Chicago vs Toronto' thing, we get to the crux of their issue: Them danged old American gun laws. See, if we had gun control laws like they do in Europe we wouldn't have...Oh wait. That happened in Norway. What about...Nope it happened in Finland, too. Germany? Nuh-uh. It happened in Germany. (I would bring up Japan, but that's a category all its own: Samurai Sword violence. Not really apropos to our discussion here.) All countries the anti-freedom crowd thinks we should emulate when it comes to OUR gun laws.
They then seem to be taken aback that the foundation of the modern pro-rights arguement can be traced back to the Radical Black Panters of the late '60s, and that the seemingly pro-gun NRA was very much anti gun when it wanted to be back in the '20s and '30s. (And even in the '60s. GCA 68 anyone? The NRA has had its hand in all the major gun control legislation in the last hundred years. It's only in the last 20-30 yrs that they have begun to take on the very legislation they themselves supported.)
They even get apoplectic when they find out that Martin Luther King, Jr applied for a carry permit (though he was denied). I bet what they DIDN'T know was that the good Reverend surrounded himself with a group dedicated to the defense of black people all over the South. Some of you may have heard of them, the Deacons For Defense. While Dr. King talked about non-violence, he had at his side good men who were not afraid to use a little to defend their cause.
It's always fun to see the anti-freedom crowd have their nifty little world view smashed like candy glass. That the narrative they've worked so long and hard to craft comes crashing down around their ears is a good thing, even if it is only for a split second. For we all know that nothing, absolutely NOTHING, can intrude on the narrative, not even those pesky little facts.
See if you can follow this line of thinking...Chicago, IL and Toronto, CA are roughly the same size. Yet one of these cities has a horrendous homicide problem. So the answer to said problem is to adopt the gun laws of the other city.
An interesting question arises: The city they would like to emulate more actually has less restrictive laws than the other.
After you wade through the whole 'Chicago vs Toronto' thing, we get to the crux of their issue: Them danged old American gun laws. See, if we had gun control laws like they do in Europe we wouldn't have...Oh wait. That happened in Norway. What about...Nope it happened in Finland, too. Germany? Nuh-uh. It happened in Germany. (I would bring up Japan, but that's a category all its own: Samurai Sword violence. Not really apropos to our discussion here.) All countries the anti-freedom crowd thinks we should emulate when it comes to OUR gun laws.
They then seem to be taken aback that the foundation of the modern pro-rights arguement can be traced back to the Radical Black Panters of the late '60s, and that the seemingly pro-gun NRA was very much anti gun when it wanted to be back in the '20s and '30s. (And even in the '60s. GCA 68 anyone? The NRA has had its hand in all the major gun control legislation in the last hundred years. It's only in the last 20-30 yrs that they have begun to take on the very legislation they themselves supported.)
They even get apoplectic when they find out that Martin Luther King, Jr applied for a carry permit (though he was denied). I bet what they DIDN'T know was that the good Reverend surrounded himself with a group dedicated to the defense of black people all over the South. Some of you may have heard of them, the Deacons For Defense. While Dr. King talked about non-violence, he had at his side good men who were not afraid to use a little to defend their cause.
It's always fun to see the anti-freedom crowd have their nifty little world view smashed like candy glass. That the narrative they've worked so long and hard to craft comes crashing down around their ears is a good thing, even if it is only for a split second. For we all know that nothing, absolutely NOTHING, can intrude on the narrative, not even those pesky little facts.
In Other News...
Found this horking around the intertubes today. Aside from shooting himself in BOTH legs, his bad day got worse when his stash of dope was discovered.
This almost ranks up there with the poachers who were shot by the turkey they allegedly 'killed' out of season.
I have to wonder though, was it the .45 LC or the .410 shot that got him.
This almost ranks up there with the poachers who were shot by the turkey they allegedly 'killed' out of season.
I have to wonder though, was it the .45 LC or the .410 shot that got him.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
As Promised...
A few pics of the shoot last week.
Here's an overview of what we were shooting.
On the line:
Here's the M240B/MAG 58, the next day we got 2 more MG42s. Which was a good thing since of the belt fed guns we had on the line, it was the next most popular next to the '60.
Mr. Popularity himself the M60E3, and two of our 6 1919s (the little one in tiger stripes is an 8mm job)
M1919 in .308, Polish PKM, and the .50 Target rifle
1910 Russian Maxim and Mr. Ronnie Barrett's finest invention the M82A1
Here's the back row, the shoulder fired, magazine fed stuff.
Left to Right: 3 of the 6 1919s we had, M2 Carbine, M1918 BAR, MAC 10 9mm, Romanian AK 74, AMD 65, Romanian AK, Chinese AKS, and the hybrid Romanian/Yugo underfolder.
Left to right: Mauser 98K, the last of the 6 1919s, a pair of Uzi's, S&W 76, Sten Mk I Have No Idea, M3A1 Grease Gun, and a couple of the M16s we had (more in the next pic)
Left to right: 9mm M16 (the only gun we had with burst capabilities), standard M16, and a SWAT special with EOTech sight, MG42 without a barrel, 2 M1927 and 3 M1A1 Thompson submachine guns (interestingly, we started out with 4 50 rd drums and by the end of the week we were down to 2).
Left to Right: Inert Bulgarian RPG, H&K G3/CETME, and 4 of the MP5s (2 in 9mm, one in .40 and the other 10mm)
Left to right: UMP .45, Type 2 FAL, Type 1 FAL with grenade launcher attachment (we had 3 up, 2 were FN rifles and the other was an Imbel. The third FAL went down with spring issues in case you were wondering), .500 S&W, M1 Garand and semi M14 with an inert AT 4 laucher on the floor.
Between the AT4 and the RPG, we LOTS of inquiries about shooting them. Fortunately (or not depending on which side of the line you were on) the only thing we shot with those launchers were pictures.
And lastly, the Queen Mum herself, Mother Deuce.
Quite an eclectic mix of guns to shoot. In the 4 yrs I've been working out there, this is the first time all of the guns got shot. Granted, some only had a mag or two put through them, but by God they all got in on the action.
Next time, some behind the scenes stuff.
Here's an overview of what we were shooting.
On the line:
Here's the M240B/MAG 58, the next day we got 2 more MG42s. Which was a good thing since of the belt fed guns we had on the line, it was the next most popular next to the '60.
Mr. Popularity himself the M60E3, and two of our 6 1919s (the little one in tiger stripes is an 8mm job)
M1919 in .308, Polish PKM, and the .50 Target rifle
1910 Russian Maxim and Mr. Ronnie Barrett's finest invention the M82A1
Here's the back row, the shoulder fired, magazine fed stuff.
Left to Right: 3 of the 6 1919s we had, M2 Carbine, M1918 BAR, MAC 10 9mm, Romanian AK 74, AMD 65, Romanian AK, Chinese AKS, and the hybrid Romanian/Yugo underfolder.
Left to right: Mauser 98K, the last of the 6 1919s, a pair of Uzi's, S&W 76, Sten Mk I Have No Idea, M3A1 Grease Gun, and a couple of the M16s we had (more in the next pic)
Left to right: 9mm M16 (the only gun we had with burst capabilities), standard M16, and a SWAT special with EOTech sight, MG42 without a barrel, 2 M1927 and 3 M1A1 Thompson submachine guns (interestingly, we started out with 4 50 rd drums and by the end of the week we were down to 2).
Left to Right: Inert Bulgarian RPG, H&K G3/CETME, and 4 of the MP5s (2 in 9mm, one in .40 and the other 10mm)
Left to right: UMP .45, Type 2 FAL, Type 1 FAL with grenade launcher attachment (we had 3 up, 2 were FN rifles and the other was an Imbel. The third FAL went down with spring issues in case you were wondering), .500 S&W, M1 Garand and semi M14 with an inert AT 4 laucher on the floor.
Between the AT4 and the RPG, we LOTS of inquiries about shooting them. Fortunately (or not depending on which side of the line you were on) the only thing we shot with those launchers were pictures.
And lastly, the Queen Mum herself, Mother Deuce.
Quite an eclectic mix of guns to shoot. In the 4 yrs I've been working out there, this is the first time all of the guns got shot. Granted, some only had a mag or two put through them, but by God they all got in on the action.
Next time, some behind the scenes stuff.
Monday, August 15, 2011
2011 Buffalo Chip Machine Gun Shoot Roundup
Sorry for not posting daily-ish updates on the shoot, we were busier than the proverbial one-legged man in an ass kicking contest. I split my time between home and the shoot site, coming home every other night to at least see my smiling bride, kiss the chirrens, and get a hot soothing shower.
Days started, whether I drove from here or camped there between 06 and 0800 each morning. When I was home, it was feeding the chirrens and playing with them a little before hitting the road for the 33 mile, hour to hour and a half journey to the shoot site. When I was out there, it started around 0800 with dragging my butt out of the tent to grab something cold to drink (no it wasn't beer, that was the night before manning the booth inside the campground), taking a shower in a can (baby wipes work great for a shower on the go) and then it was off to do range maintenance, untarp the guns, swab barrels, load magazines and otherwise get ready for the inevitable rush that came when we dropped the line at 1000.
Invariably, there would be folks wanting to shoot at 0800, but when you have a booth inside the Buffalo Chip, there's no getting to bed earlier than midnight at the earliest, or in the case of some of our younger help, daylight at the latest. There was absolutely no way we could get anybody rousted that early.
So at 1000, the line came down and shooting started. I don't know why it worked out this way, but we always had someone who wanted to shoot an exploding target right away. It kind of got to be a joke that we woke the Chip up every morning with a bang and a boom. There's something about a 2.5 lb Star Target being shot by a 700-grain API round fired from a Barrett M82A1 that really gets the blood pumping.
With that said, the most popular weapons this year were both new additions to the lineup. The Barrett (mentioneed above) ran like a champ. The only issues we had with it were ammo related. Stuck cases are the bane of every gun, and ours were no different. The Little Fitty ran. And ran. And ran. I can tell you that at a conservative estimate that gun went off somewhere north of 70 times a day. Usually 2 rounds per customer, sometimes 4, but only twice did someone load all 10 rounds in the magazine and have a go. The last guy fired it like a semi AK clone and ran 10 though it in about 30 seconds. His 10 shots were kind of a waste if you ask me. The rifle is designed for precision work at very long distances, and to use it as a common plinker was kind of an insult. Everyone else who fired it, and I mean everyone, took their time and made their shots count (not that there was much to shoot at by the end of the week, mind you). Oh well, he paid for the ammo, and we did tell everyone they could shoot as fast or as slow as they wanted, but still you know?
The other most popular gun was the M60E3. From opening day until it finally went down Saturday afternoon, more rounds were fired from that gun than any other all week long. Everyone from Vietnam vets to urban mall ninja types and folks who had never even seen one ran 50 rounds at a time through it. I guess it was the allure of being able to fire her from either the bench on the bi pod or from the shoulder with the front grip that made her so popular. Or it could have been letting 550 RPM down range, it's hard to tell. It was kind of interesting watching a lady who's only experience with guns came from time with us over 2 days firing the '60 from the shoulder. (I think her husband/boyfriend/sugardaddy had a good time that night.)
Of course who could discount the Queen of the Ball, Mother Deuce? She ran fairly often throughout the week, with the only issues again being ammo related. Some stuck cases, some blown out cases that stove piped, and the odd occasional one stuck in the extractor, but she ran all week.
Shoulder fired stuff was mainly the 4 big ones from last year. Uzi, AK, M16 and Thompson all had a good run. This year, was a first. All of our guns got fired. From the obscure S&W 76 to the M2 carbine, to the H&K G3. Everything had at least one mag put down range.
The best part of the whole week? Nothing went down hard-broke until the very end. Eventually stuff does break, parts go bad and things stop running. The M60 went through 2 bolts, but it too eventually succumbed to parts breakage. The S&W 500 went down with a busted firing pin and the G3 just went down.
.50 caliber ammo was the hot ticket all weekend. We ran out Thursday and had to call for more from a local source to get us through the weekend, and we almost didn't make it that far!
So there's week in review. Tomorrow I'll try to get some pics of the shooting line up, and maybe some of the more interesting things and people that were, shall we say, experienced.
Till then...
Days started, whether I drove from here or camped there between 06 and 0800 each morning. When I was home, it was feeding the chirrens and playing with them a little before hitting the road for the 33 mile, hour to hour and a half journey to the shoot site. When I was out there, it started around 0800 with dragging my butt out of the tent to grab something cold to drink (no it wasn't beer, that was the night before manning the booth inside the campground), taking a shower in a can (baby wipes work great for a shower on the go) and then it was off to do range maintenance, untarp the guns, swab barrels, load magazines and otherwise get ready for the inevitable rush that came when we dropped the line at 1000.
Invariably, there would be folks wanting to shoot at 0800, but when you have a booth inside the Buffalo Chip, there's no getting to bed earlier than midnight at the earliest, or in the case of some of our younger help, daylight at the latest. There was absolutely no way we could get anybody rousted that early.
So at 1000, the line came down and shooting started. I don't know why it worked out this way, but we always had someone who wanted to shoot an exploding target right away. It kind of got to be a joke that we woke the Chip up every morning with a bang and a boom. There's something about a 2.5 lb Star Target being shot by a 700-grain API round fired from a Barrett M82A1 that really gets the blood pumping.
With that said, the most popular weapons this year were both new additions to the lineup. The Barrett (mentioneed above) ran like a champ. The only issues we had with it were ammo related. Stuck cases are the bane of every gun, and ours were no different. The Little Fitty ran. And ran. And ran. I can tell you that at a conservative estimate that gun went off somewhere north of 70 times a day. Usually 2 rounds per customer, sometimes 4, but only twice did someone load all 10 rounds in the magazine and have a go. The last guy fired it like a semi AK clone and ran 10 though it in about 30 seconds. His 10 shots were kind of a waste if you ask me. The rifle is designed for precision work at very long distances, and to use it as a common plinker was kind of an insult. Everyone else who fired it, and I mean everyone, took their time and made their shots count (not that there was much to shoot at by the end of the week, mind you). Oh well, he paid for the ammo, and we did tell everyone they could shoot as fast or as slow as they wanted, but still you know?
The other most popular gun was the M60E3. From opening day until it finally went down Saturday afternoon, more rounds were fired from that gun than any other all week long. Everyone from Vietnam vets to urban mall ninja types and folks who had never even seen one ran 50 rounds at a time through it. I guess it was the allure of being able to fire her from either the bench on the bi pod or from the shoulder with the front grip that made her so popular. Or it could have been letting 550 RPM down range, it's hard to tell. It was kind of interesting watching a lady who's only experience with guns came from time with us over 2 days firing the '60 from the shoulder. (I think her husband/boyfriend/sugardaddy had a good time that night.)
Of course who could discount the Queen of the Ball, Mother Deuce? She ran fairly often throughout the week, with the only issues again being ammo related. Some stuck cases, some blown out cases that stove piped, and the odd occasional one stuck in the extractor, but she ran all week.
Shoulder fired stuff was mainly the 4 big ones from last year. Uzi, AK, M16 and Thompson all had a good run. This year, was a first. All of our guns got fired. From the obscure S&W 76 to the M2 carbine, to the H&K G3. Everything had at least one mag put down range.
The best part of the whole week? Nothing went down hard-broke until the very end. Eventually stuff does break, parts go bad and things stop running. The M60 went through 2 bolts, but it too eventually succumbed to parts breakage. The S&W 500 went down with a busted firing pin and the G3 just went down.
.50 caliber ammo was the hot ticket all weekend. We ran out Thursday and had to call for more from a local source to get us through the weekend, and we almost didn't make it that far!
So there's week in review. Tomorrow I'll try to get some pics of the shooting line up, and maybe some of the more interesting things and people that were, shall we say, experienced.
Till then...
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Another Sturgis Rally Is Upon Us
And that means the Guns of Freedom guys will be back at the Buffalo Chip Shooting Complex for what should be another great Rally shoot.
New additions to the firing line include an M60E3, a Russian PKM, and an M82A1. This, on top of the old standbys; M1919s, 1910 Russian Maxim, MG 42s, M240B, and of course Her Highness, Mother Deuce. I'm not sure if the bowling ball cannon will be making a return trip this year or not. If I find out one way or the other, I'll post it up.
No big changes on the shoulder fired stuff. We're still gonna have the AKs, M16s, FALs, G3/CETMEs, Uzis, Thompsons, H&Ks in 4 calibers (9mm, .40, .45, and 10mm), plus the Sten Gun and Grease Gun.
As usual, I'll try to post day reports as I can, plus any celebrity sightings. Rumor has it Uncle Ted Nugent is playing the Full Throttle next week. I've got a feeling if he hears gun fire, we'll be seeing Uncle Ted before the week is over.
New additions to the firing line include an M60E3, a Russian PKM, and an M82A1. This, on top of the old standbys; M1919s, 1910 Russian Maxim, MG 42s, M240B, and of course Her Highness, Mother Deuce. I'm not sure if the bowling ball cannon will be making a return trip this year or not. If I find out one way or the other, I'll post it up.
No big changes on the shoulder fired stuff. We're still gonna have the AKs, M16s, FALs, G3/CETMEs, Uzis, Thompsons, H&Ks in 4 calibers (9mm, .40, .45, and 10mm), plus the Sten Gun and Grease Gun.
As usual, I'll try to post day reports as I can, plus any celebrity sightings. Rumor has it Uncle Ted Nugent is playing the Full Throttle next week. I've got a feeling if he hears gun fire, we'll be seeing Uncle Ted before the week is over.
Makes You Wonder What 'Lawful Deposit' Is
Every once in a while, you get some interesting headlines in the local cat box liner.
Take this little gem.
Destruction of property, OK. That one fits. But unlawful deposit? Am I the only one who scratched their head after reading that?
Take this little gem.
Destruction of property, OK. That one fits. But unlawful deposit? Am I the only one who scratched their head after reading that?
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
I Don't Care Who You Are...
That's FUNNY right there! That anyone would dress like that is one thing, but to put it up as your avatar on Facebook? That's rich!
Tip of ye olde hat to Say Uncle for the link.
Tip of ye olde hat to Say Uncle for the link.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Another Idiot Comes Out On Gunwalker
So now that Gunwalker has hit the prime time on networks other than CBS News and Fox, the shills for the administration are all over what they believe is a non-starter of a scandal.
Witness Ruben Navarrette, Jr from CNN. I can't tell if he's ignorant, stupid, or both.
See, in his little world, the whole 'Gunwalker' thing is actually the fault of the Republican Party. Between calling for the border to be secured and stepping up enforcement of immigration violations, the Party of Socialism (Lite) forced the ATF to do this operation. Like the repugs brought the Acting Director of ATF in to a super secret squirrel meeting and said 'We want you to arm the cartels on the border'.
How, exactly this is the fault of the Party of Socialism (Lite) is not quite explored. We have gracious examples of supposedly racist behavior on the part of the State of Arizona. Add in the supposed blood-thirstiness of the NRA, and well, ATF just had to do something, right?
What is apparently lost on this poor excuse for a shill, is that this operation was designed from the outset to aid in one thing: justify further encroachments on that which shall not be infringed. That main Just Us was hounding ATF SACs for numbers and information is just now coming out, but it is there.
Calling F&F a misguided operation is like saying that Custer's expedition into the Little Bighorn took a wrong turn. Both operations were run by supposedly competent individuals, yet both ended very, very badly.
What shills like Navarrette can't seem to wrap their heads around is that Operation Fast & Furious and the new reporting requirements are two heads of the same snake. They are not exclusive of each other. You can't have reporting requirements for multiple long gun sales without F&F, and in order to justify the long gun requirement, you have to have F&F. He sees this new requirement as something independent of what happened that just needed to be done, regardless of the true facts in the case.
What he, and all the others who are late to the party seem to forget is that this operation was approved all the way up the chain. How far is still a mystery. But the pieces of that puzzle are beginning to fall into place.
Witness Ruben Navarrette, Jr from CNN. I can't tell if he's ignorant, stupid, or both.
See, in his little world, the whole 'Gunwalker' thing is actually the fault of the Republican Party. Between calling for the border to be secured and stepping up enforcement of immigration violations, the Party of Socialism (Lite) forced the ATF to do this operation. Like the repugs brought the Acting Director of ATF in to a super secret squirrel meeting and said 'We want you to arm the cartels on the border'.
How, exactly this is the fault of the Party of Socialism (Lite) is not quite explored. We have gracious examples of supposedly racist behavior on the part of the State of Arizona. Add in the supposed blood-thirstiness of the NRA, and well, ATF just had to do something, right?
What is apparently lost on this poor excuse for a shill, is that this operation was designed from the outset to aid in one thing: justify further encroachments on that which shall not be infringed. That main Just Us was hounding ATF SACs for numbers and information is just now coming out, but it is there.
Calling F&F a misguided operation is like saying that Custer's expedition into the Little Bighorn took a wrong turn. Both operations were run by supposedly competent individuals, yet both ended very, very badly.
What shills like Navarrette can't seem to wrap their heads around is that Operation Fast & Furious and the new reporting requirements are two heads of the same snake. They are not exclusive of each other. You can't have reporting requirements for multiple long gun sales without F&F, and in order to justify the long gun requirement, you have to have F&F. He sees this new requirement as something independent of what happened that just needed to be done, regardless of the true facts in the case.
What he, and all the others who are late to the party seem to forget is that this operation was approved all the way up the chain. How far is still a mystery. But the pieces of that puzzle are beginning to fall into place.
They Wonder What She Was Thinking
Gee, I don't know, maybe a little lesson in respect?
61 y/0 woman is arrested and charged with sexual assault for groping a female TSA agent.
See, it's ok if they grope you and feel up your children, grandparents, and disabled people, take naked pictures of you and then save them to look at later. But when you do it to them, well that's just wrong.
There's probably more to this story, but to me it sounds like a little bit of 'let me do this to you and see how you like it'.
61 y/0 woman is arrested and charged with sexual assault for groping a female TSA agent.
See, it's ok if they grope you and feel up your children, grandparents, and disabled people, take naked pictures of you and then save them to look at later. But when you do it to them, well that's just wrong.
There's probably more to this story, but to me it sounds like a little bit of 'let me do this to you and see how you like it'.
Monday, July 11, 2011
A Crisis Averted
Or in this case, manufactured to justify further encroachments on gun owners.
So, the Just Us Dept has, in effect, created a crisis involving multiple sales to illegal straw buyers, who in turn ran these guns all the way to Mexico. Against the judgement of the stores affected, against street agent advice, and in contravention of any moral or legal code known to man.
See here, here, here, and here.
And don't forget David Codrea and Mike V's coverage of this still unfolding scandal here and here.
Because of this manufactured crisis, Just Us has deemed that multiple sales of long guns will require the same reporting requirements used in multiple hand gun sales.
Great. How long do you think it'll be before weapons from other, unknown, 'Fast and Furious' -type operations running at various locations around the country justify this requirement across the board? I think the answer will be sooner than you would think or expect.
So, the Just Us Dept has, in effect, created a crisis involving multiple sales to illegal straw buyers, who in turn ran these guns all the way to Mexico. Against the judgement of the stores affected, against street agent advice, and in contravention of any moral or legal code known to man.
See here, here, here, and here.
And don't forget David Codrea and Mike V's coverage of this still unfolding scandal here and here.
Because of this manufactured crisis, Just Us has deemed that multiple sales of long guns will require the same reporting requirements used in multiple hand gun sales.
Great. How long do you think it'll be before weapons from other, unknown, 'Fast and Furious' -type operations running at various locations around the country justify this requirement across the board? I think the answer will be sooner than you would think or expect.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
What Part of No Don't They Understand?
Via a link from WoG, comes this little gem from Mercury news.
Setting aside the other obvious BS spouted by the author of this piece, I would like to focus on one part, the quote David used in his post:
They didn't call David, or anyone else for that matter, and I'm pretty sure I'm so low on their list of names to call for a comment that I don't really matter much to them, but I'll give it a try anyway.
No. Nyet. Nada. Nein. Non. Mei. Nai. Uh-Uh.
For too many years, gun owners have been portrayed as knuckle dragging neanderthal hick hayseeds. For over 70 years we have given ground to a group whose sole idea of compromise is to give them everything they want in order to save, well something.
We hear things like compromise and common sense, all the while being portrayed as blood thirsty, willing to kill old people and babies to satiate our blood lust.
We gave in 1934, in order to pass the first real federal gun control act, to make sure that possession of certain types of vilified guns and accessories like a Thompson, or short-barrelled rifle/shotguns, and suppressors were made taboo and only available to the wealthy.
We gave in 1968, while more of our freedom and liberty were sacrificed in order to keep the Sirhan Sirhans and protesters of the day from getting their hands on weaponry. We stood by while easily affordable firearms were deemed too cheap to possess, while a petty tyrant sitting in a cushy office in a far away building decided for us what was 'sporting' and what wasn't with the stroke of a pen.
Even in our victories we've seen defeat. A bill to protect gun owners from an out of control bureaucracy (seems something never change, do they?) we got the shaft again, this time by a still controversial amendment that banned future manufacture of fully automatic weapons thus ensuring that only the truly wealthy can afford them.
We stood by in 1993 and 1994 while tragedy after tragedy was laid at our feet and more restrictions were placed upon us. Magazine capacity bans. Bans on cosmetic features. Bans on names. None of this did anything to stem the tragedies, but it made the hanky-wringers happy. We could debate the effectiveness of this particular law all day long, but the long and the short of it is it didn't work. It didn't ban anything. Weapons specifically named under the ban were still available, only they had different names and offending features such as bayonet lugs and threaded barrels were removed. Standard capacity mags that were readily available before 14 Sep 1994 were still available after 14 Sep 1994, they just cost a little more.
The only bone thrown to us in this mess was a sunset clause. 10 years, if left alone, this law would disappear. It was a contentious issue, a president who touted his NRA creds baffled gun owners by saying that if the extension came to his desk, he would sign it. When that law failed to garner the support it needed, I cheered. And I waited. I got my first no-ban gun a month after the sunset.
In those 7 years and change since that law sunsetted, crimes committed with sport utility rifles, and other weapons with standard capacity magazines have not gone through the roof. The only thing that has gone up is the media hysteria over such crimes when the do occur.
The Virginia Tech shooter didn't need extended mags. He needed the standard capacity mags that came with his gun, because he had time to reload. The Tuscon shooter stupidly used a 33 rd magazine used by competition shooters and hobbyists that is known to jam, thinking he could do a lot of damage. He did some, but because his weapon jammed, because he was using a magazine known to do so, he was able to be subdued by bystanders.
So, mister editorialist, I leave you with these questions. What exactly is a 'high capacity magazine'? I mean, I have rifles whose standard capacity is between 4 rds and 100. There are belt fed guns, perfectly legal for us mere peons to own, that take belts of 5 rds up to 250 or more. I have had pistols whose standard capacity is anywhere from 6 to 19 rds.
If, as you all like to claim, no one needs these magazines, and that possession of same is evidence of a desire to kill as many people as possible, then why on earth do the police need them? Are they somehow protected from the urge to kill large swathes of people by the magical talisman on their shirt? Are they imparted with some power during training at the Police Academy that wards off this urge, this desire?
What say you, Mister Gun Grabber?
Setting aside the other obvious BS spouted by the author of this piece, I would like to focus on one part, the quote David used in his post:
They didn't call David, or anyone else for that matter, and I'm pretty sure I'm so low on their list of names to call for a comment that I don't really matter much to them, but I'll give it a try anyway.
No. Nyet. Nada. Nein. Non. Mei. Nai. Uh-Uh.
For too many years, gun owners have been portrayed as knuckle dragging neanderthal hick hayseeds. For over 70 years we have given ground to a group whose sole idea of compromise is to give them everything they want in order to save, well something.
We hear things like compromise and common sense, all the while being portrayed as blood thirsty, willing to kill old people and babies to satiate our blood lust.
We gave in 1934, in order to pass the first real federal gun control act, to make sure that possession of certain types of vilified guns and accessories like a Thompson, or short-barrelled rifle/shotguns, and suppressors were made taboo and only available to the wealthy.
We gave in 1968, while more of our freedom and liberty were sacrificed in order to keep the Sirhan Sirhans and protesters of the day from getting their hands on weaponry. We stood by while easily affordable firearms were deemed too cheap to possess, while a petty tyrant sitting in a cushy office in a far away building decided for us what was 'sporting' and what wasn't with the stroke of a pen.
Even in our victories we've seen defeat. A bill to protect gun owners from an out of control bureaucracy (seems something never change, do they?) we got the shaft again, this time by a still controversial amendment that banned future manufacture of fully automatic weapons thus ensuring that only the truly wealthy can afford them.
We stood by in 1993 and 1994 while tragedy after tragedy was laid at our feet and more restrictions were placed upon us. Magazine capacity bans. Bans on cosmetic features. Bans on names. None of this did anything to stem the tragedies, but it made the hanky-wringers happy. We could debate the effectiveness of this particular law all day long, but the long and the short of it is it didn't work. It didn't ban anything. Weapons specifically named under the ban were still available, only they had different names and offending features such as bayonet lugs and threaded barrels were removed. Standard capacity mags that were readily available before 14 Sep 1994 were still available after 14 Sep 1994, they just cost a little more.
The only bone thrown to us in this mess was a sunset clause. 10 years, if left alone, this law would disappear. It was a contentious issue, a president who touted his NRA creds baffled gun owners by saying that if the extension came to his desk, he would sign it. When that law failed to garner the support it needed, I cheered. And I waited. I got my first no-ban gun a month after the sunset.
In those 7 years and change since that law sunsetted, crimes committed with sport utility rifles, and other weapons with standard capacity magazines have not gone through the roof. The only thing that has gone up is the media hysteria over such crimes when the do occur.
The Virginia Tech shooter didn't need extended mags. He needed the standard capacity mags that came with his gun, because he had time to reload. The Tuscon shooter stupidly used a 33 rd magazine used by competition shooters and hobbyists that is known to jam, thinking he could do a lot of damage. He did some, but because his weapon jammed, because he was using a magazine known to do so, he was able to be subdued by bystanders.
So, mister editorialist, I leave you with these questions. What exactly is a 'high capacity magazine'? I mean, I have rifles whose standard capacity is between 4 rds and 100. There are belt fed guns, perfectly legal for us mere peons to own, that take belts of 5 rds up to 250 or more. I have had pistols whose standard capacity is anywhere from 6 to 19 rds.
If, as you all like to claim, no one needs these magazines, and that possession of same is evidence of a desire to kill as many people as possible, then why on earth do the police need them? Are they somehow protected from the urge to kill large swathes of people by the magical talisman on their shirt? Are they imparted with some power during training at the Police Academy that wards off this urge, this desire?
What say you, Mister Gun Grabber?
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