Kids and guns

Stories like this are obviously fabrications, right? I mean they just can't happen. Robberies at gunpoint being carried out by kids in Wilmington? That's unpossible. Teenage kids can't buy guns, they can't carry them, and it's illegal to rob people. Hell Delaware even has "common sense" child access prevention laws that should have stopped this.

Clearly what we need to do is ban private sales, ban internet and mail-order ammo and institute an assault weapons ban. It's "for the children", right?

Something I need to get off my chest

This has nothing to do with politics, guns, law, current events, big bums, beer or any of the things I usually talk about here, but this is my forum so why not write it here.

My father has an thoracic aortic aneyurism. He's had it for several years now, usually it stays the same size, occasionally it'll grow a fraction of a centimeter. This is the kind of thing where if it blows there's a good chance they're not going to be able to save him. My grandpa died of a massive heart attack in his late 50's with no symptoms, warning signs or previous heart trouble. According to dad the autopsy said something to the effect of "it looked like a bomb went off in his chest," so the assumption is poppop probably had the same thoracic aaortic aneyurism dad has.

Since he got the diagnosis dad's been under strict orders to lose weight, change his eating, lifestyle, stress* level, drink less beer and avoid anything beyond light/moderate physical exertion. He's also not supposed to lift anymore than 20 pounds or so. He hasn't done most of these things all that well and trying to look out for him is like talking to a brick wall. The man is more stubborn than I am for christsakes.

When we get significant snow I'll pack a bag, drive to my parents' and shovel everything. Despite my coming home specifically so he will not shovel he'll be right out there with me no matter how strenuously I object. Hell, last during last winters dumping he and my 87 year old grandpa were out there shoveling with me despite myself, my sisters, and my mother repeatedly telling them to go inside. To make matters worse he'll come in after doing something like that and then complain about not feeling well. *headdesk*

I visited this weekend to take Zack to the park and what was dad doing when I pulled up? Oh, just hauling a 50 pound bag of dogfood out of the trunk and into the house. He'll also sit in a 103-104 degree hottub for half an hour or more which I damn well know he shouldn't do, but he refuses to turn the heat down.

I don't know, it just frustrates me to all hell, because nothing I do or say makes one damn bit of difference. In fact, it's usually met with annoyance that I dare tell (suggest) him what to do or a pessimistic "I'm gonna die anyway." The man may frustrate me like hell and we may not always get along, but I'd like to have him around for another 10-15 years at least.

*It's a good thing I don't live there now. Dad doesn't really have my demeanor. My presence often tends to cause/exacerbate bouts of narcissistic rage that are made worse by the fact that I don't react in kind. Such episodes can't be good for his heart (or my stress level)

**Nearly 1 in 5 patients dying within a month of having surgery on a thoracic aortic aneyurism does not sound "encouraging" to me no matter what the headline suggests. Note that this is for endovascular repair, which is supposed to be less risky than open heart and which dad isn't a candidate for.

OK, there's my mindless, uninteresting rant for today. The free ice cream is shitty today. Deal with it folks.

Hoppity hop hop

My sister and her boyfriend recently tried Dogfish Head's 120 Minute IPA on their last trip to the brewery. They raved about it and I now realize I'll have to make a trip down state to pick up a couple bottles (at $8+ per bottle! Ouch!)

Drink With the Wench calls it the "Holy Grail for Hopheads" and commenter 1winedude calls it "the Chuck Norris of hoppy beers" so given that I'm somewhat new to IPA's maybe this isn't the smartest thing I'll ever do. Oh well, I'm all for pushing the envelope and trying new stuff, and this is one of my New Year's resolutions afterall.

It's 20% ABV and ~450 calories, so I think one in a sitting will do just fine.

Sadly, as the Wench points out in her post, 120 minute has been deemed too awesome by the State of Ohio, making it damn near impossible for some hopheads to get.

Quote of the day

"The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of ones time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all."

-H.L. Mencken

This quote hits at the heart of one of the issues with being libertarian. I don't know how often espousing a posiiton that is obviously in favor of liberty is met with scorn, disgust or amazement. Defending the rights of felons, the "mentally ill," Nazi's, racists, or Westboro Baptist church protestors isn't something that's popular. This is especially true when talking to liberals. Espouse certain views that aren't even Big L libertarian and you may as well have said you drown puppies in your bathtub in your spare time.

If I truly value freedom I can't throw everyone else under the bus to save my own neck, no matter how despicable those people may be. I've realized more and more as I've gotten older (don't laugh...) that this is a minority viewpoint. What should be a simple, obvious concept in defense of liberty makes me the "crazy uncle."

Carry at home?

A question for my readers / fellow bloggers. Do you carry your gun at home?

I suspect those who ccw daily are more likely to. I don't carry everyday, but 99% of the time if I'm in the apartment & not drinking I'm carrying. Oftentimes that might just mean throwing the 432pd in a pocket. If I've been OCing I'll often just leave the gun on.

Pictured is a Sig P229R DAK in .357 SIG carried in a Blackhawk Serpa holster with a belt from Michael at The Holster Site.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Clayton Cramer on Open Carry

From his article in Pajama's Media, and I quote,

"Guns are great, but exposed firearms will never be normal."

Well with an attitude like that exposed firearms certainly won't ever be "normal." As Opencarry.org's slogan says "A right unexercised is a right lost."

Maybe I'm way off base here, but it's always seemed to me that open carry was the very epitome of the right guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment. If I have to pay a fee, take a class and get a government permission slip to stick a pistol in my pocket or under my shirt I'm not really exercising a right.

H/T to Sebastian

Guess What?.....Chickenbutt!

I like big butts and I cannot lie.....butt I really don't want you to die.

"Thousands of British women are so desperate for a bigger bottom they are risking their lives by taking pills designed to fatten up chickens."*

Ah, the place where Great Britain used to be. Look, I have it on good authority from various sources that bacon & beer are vital ingredients in the creation and maintenance of a nice, voluptuous derriere. Not only are they tasty, they're also 100% natural. Who knows what's in those chicken pills. Thankfully the bacon and beer approach isn't working for me despite my love of bacon & Guinness.

The elusive "white chick with ass" is elusive for a reason. There's no magic pill that'll give you a bum like this or this, (Links NSFW) just like there's no pill that'd make my "gun" a foot and a half long if by chance I felt the need to "compensate" for my snubby. It seems that Americans aren't the only ones stuck on the idea of instant gratification combined with a total lack of common sense.

*heh, the current ad below the article is for a cheeseburger.

This story brought to my attention via e-mail by a blogreader who claims to be a Honkeus Donkeus.

Also, a serious shirt for an undeniably serious topic of discussion. Happy Friday everyone (and payday / pick up 1911 day for me!)

Just go read and watch

If you read anything today it should be this incredible story from Sean and this video at Weer'd's.

What are you still doing here? Scram! Click on those links!

Shipping fail

At this rate my new gun is going to arrive at my FFL's before USPS tracking has updated anything beyond "electronic shipping info received." Gee, and people wonder why the U.S. Postal Service isn't a viable business. Just think, these same incompetent bums could be in charge of your health instead of just your mail.

I'm hoping the 1911 will be in my hands this weekend.

The violent left - Union protestors

We all know about violence by leftist SEIU protestors (no thanks to the MSM) and here we have a young woman being assaulted by a union protestor and the left predictably blaming the victim. This is my shocked face. Look, I don't care if the guy didn't like a camera in his face or couldn't handle a little discourse, it is never justifiable for a grown man to strike a 5"1' woman.

I guess we should be happy this Liberal wasn't there as well.




If this had happened to a member of the left during a Tea Party Protest what do you think would be on the national news for the next who weeks? Instead it'll be "nothing to see here, move along." The right gets blamed for non-existent violence and "rhetoric." When the Left engages in actual violence it gets whitewashed by the media. Once again, thank god for the internet and alternative media allowing these thugs to be exposed.

More at The Daily Caller

Quote of the day - Arms and slavery

"No slaves shall keep any arms whatever, nor pass, unless with written orders from his master or employer, or in his company, with arms from one place to another."

Thomas Jefferson - A bill concerning slaves - 1779

One of the greatest moral shortcomings of our Founding Fathers was that they saw blacks as property. Even so, they understood a truth inherent in slavery. That is, in order to enslave men you had to disarm them.

Lefties

New Jovian Thunderbolt's post about the thumbs forward grip and lefties made me think of something an old friend of mine said to me years ago.

"Stupid lefties, no one likes you. Because of you, Steve Young is considered special. Because of you, there has to be 2 batters boxes in basesball. Left wingers are always the worst people on the field. And desks??? You make us righties have to sit elsewhere. I think its not fair to righties that you exist. Go back to your other planet, freaks.....maha. "

-Right Handers Anonymous

What Bells said back in 2004? makes me laugh even now. Those silly goddamn Canadians! Don't worry though, with Pinky & the Brain on our side us Lefties are going to take over the world! We just have to be sure to write our plans in notebooks with ink that doesn't smear everywhere as we write...

Quote of the day - Arms and personal freedom

"in all countries where personal freedom is valued, however much each individual may rely on legal redress, the right of each to carry arms -- and these the best and the sharpest -- for his own protection in case of extremity, is a right of nature indelible and irrepressible, and the more it is sought to be repressed the more it will recur."

- James Paterson (1877) Commentaries on the Liberty of the Subject and the Laws of England Relating to the Security of the Person

I'd say Paterson was correct on both points here, particularly since gun grabbers have been some of the best gun salesman here in the U.S.

U.S. Beer Map

Via Nerdalicious, a beer map of the United States. According to the map Idaho doesn't have a brewery. I don't know how Joe Huffman does it.




Abita Brewing Co.'s "Purple Haze" is an awesome name for a beer, though the reviews don't seem too hot.

As for Delaware's own Dogfish Head. I had the chance to try their My Antonia over the weekend while the power went out in my apartment complex. I'm not really a fan of Pilsner's at all, and when I hear the word I think "crap American macrobrew" ala Bud, Miller, Coors. The My Antonia was certainly better than expected though, probably due to the fact that there were actually hops in it. When I got done the bottle I couldn't believe it was 7.5 % ABV. Could have fooled me.

It's very light and not a very complex beer but it'd be a nice lighter beer to enjoy on the beach or on a nice sunny spring day. Ah, writing this while there's snow outside makes me long for warmer weather.

I still need to try and track down a few spare bottles of Bitches Brew since it was a limited release.

Ch-Ch-Changes

It looks like there will be some changes to Utah's CCW, and not the good kind. SB36 would only apply to those states which already have reciprocity agreements with Utah. Residents of those states wishing to apply for a Utah CCW will now be required to have a permit issued by their state of residence.

Laura alerted me to this. It will not apply to her since she's in Maryland, but since I'm in Delaware and currently hold a Utah Non-res permit it'd apply to me come 1-1-2012. My current Utah permit is valid until 2013. I guess I'll have to get a Florida or Virginia non-res now.

The current amended bill is SB36 Substitute

The stupid, it BURNS

"When our founding fathers enacted the 2nd Amendment, the concept of political change through non-violence, the kind we saw in the past couple of weeks in Egypt and Tunisia, did not exist....The premise of a potentially necessary violent overthrow of an existing government has been superceded by non-violent politcal revolution."

- "Dog Gone" - An anti-gunner who I shall not link to.


The concept of political change through non-violence didn't exist in 1791? Our founders utilized every form of recourse with the King before taking up arms. They exhausted all options without seeing change. The concept of non-violent change existed, but as history shows us it doesn't always work.

I'm pretty sure the U.S. had gone through "political change" in the form of several elections from 1776 through 1791 and onward. To say that the concept didn't exist in unbelievably stupid, but then these are the words of an anti-gunner, so stupidity is a default condition.

As for using Egypt & Tunisia as proof that violent overthrow isn't necessary, well that just shows astounding naivety. Time will tell whether the despots in many of these Middle Eastern nations actually relinquish power. The reason the Egyptian revolution "worked" to the extent that it has so far is because Mubarak lost the support of the men with guns. If you're a dictator and the Army turns on you, you're screwed.

A dictator can quell even a massive uprising of the unarmed fairly easily if he retains control of the military and has no issue using it against the people. (See Iran in 2009) Also, who is in power in Egypt right now? The people? No. The military controls the country.

I saw this quote in the comments over at Ben Smith's piece in Politico,

"The peaceful nonviolent protesters, despite their "moral force" and spiritual vibes, get mowed down by security forces with guns, and die. Alot of politicians and pundits are taking credit for an outcome that was due only to one fortuitous thing: the Egyptian military's restraint. They could have blasted them all to smithereens."



Exactly. The outcome laid out above is significantly more likely when the populace has been disarmed. There's substantially more risk to government officials trying to kill people en masse when those people can shoot back. That's a good thing. It's exactly the way things should be in a free and civilized society. We've seen the slaughter of the unarmed masses carried out by a comparatively tiny number of armed government agents far too many times throughout history to deny the dynamic present. Anti-gunners will of course deny that reality, but then they're anti's. Like the Terminator it's what they do, it's all they do.

Quote of the day - the sword

“And they are ignorant that the purpose of the sword is to save every man from slavery"

-Marcus Annaeus Lucanus

I cannot think of a single instance in history where a person or persons enslaved were not first disarmed. It gives you pause when considering the intentions of those who would like nothing more than to disarm us because it's the "progressive" thing to do.

Snobs get snubbed!

President Obama & Michelle didn't get invited to Prince William's Royal wedding. I'm sure I'm not the only one happy to see elitist snobs like the Obama's get snubbed. Good. One less opportunity for he and his rude wife to embarrass my country.

One poor ass list

So Complex.com compiles a list of the 50 hottest white chicks with ass. I can only conclude that whomever was making the list was smoking good stuff and had only brief moments of lucidity between bong hits.

The first paragraph of the article* had me laughing out loud, but the list itself was just assinine.

Honestly how do you put Olivia Wilde, Kate Hudson and Kate Beckinsale on a list of white women who've "got ass" especially given some of the names left off? And how were they so far up on the list?

*I can confirm that the elusive "honkeus donkeus" does exist. One wonders if JMB (PBUH) invented that masterpiece as well.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Run Forrest Run!!

That movie is what I think of when I see this pic.







Bellevue State Park maybe 100 yards from the finish line. Judging by the shoes I'll say 1999. Damn I was one skinny kid.

I wanted to be just like my big sis. Turns out I ended up running on the same XC courses she had a decade earlier. Wishful thinking, but maybe one day I'll run a marathon just like her too.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Quote of the day - Infighting

"I’d rather have these OC activists restricted than me. They seem to want to push and push until something gives, so I’d much rather they lose their ability to scare disinterested parties than I lose my ability to defend myself and my loved ones. "

- Mike - Commenting at Sebastians

I'm sorry, but it's comments like this from pro-gun folks really irk me. I have no problem with us disagreeing civilly on tactics and hearts & minds issues. What I do have a problem with is people who want to see the rights of fellow pro-gunners restricted. I may disagree with the manner in which you exercise your rights from time to time, but you won't see me here blogging about how I want your rights restricted because the exercise of said rights has the potential to negatively impact my rights.

Go ahead and throw the OC crowd under the bus and see what happens. I suspect you'll find that they are a key ally. We are all on the same side here folks. The last thing we need are "pro-gun" folks calling for restrictions on the rights of other gunnies simply because they disagree with the way in which some choose to legally exercise their rights.

Ben Franklin once said,

"We must all hang together or most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”

We may have differences but that does not mean we shouldn't be defending the rights of ALL gun owners. I'll defend the free speech rights of Nazi's, KKK members and the jerks at Westboro Baptist Church, * why would I not also defend the rights of OC'ers with whom I ultimately have only minor disagreement?

*for the record I am not in any way saying the actions of MOC were comparable to Nazi's. KKK members or the Westboro Baptist Church. Just thought I'd clarify that.

Also, go read Robb's OC post. Bravo!

If it's illegal it can't happen....

If it's illegal then people can't do it. That seems to be the belief of everyone's favorite "commonsense" anti-gunner.

In the real world criminals get guns and ammo on the black market. Restricting the legal market doesn't hinder their abilities. This felon on probation in New Castle had 31 guns and 10K rounds of ammo. Clearly if we just banned private sales and instituted a waiting period he wouldn't have been able to get any of these. Right. Somehow I highly doubt this buy went down to his local FFL or to the one small gun show in Delaware to get these firearms.

I'm looking at you Jack Markell. Felons like this laugh at your recent gun control proposals, just like they laugh at the dozens of gun laws they're already breaking.

Quote of the day - Be nice

"Good manners can replace morals. It may be years before anyone knows if what you are doing is right. But if what you are doing is nice, it will be immediately evident. "

-P.J. O'Rourke

I can't say that I'm a "gentleman" but I do always try to be nice. This is very tangentally related to a post I've been meaning to write. Maybe I'll write it soon.

Quick thought exercise

Which is the better way to turn non-gunnies into people sympathetic to gun rights?

1. Scream "SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED" at anyone and everyone who will listen*

2. Take a calm, rational, multi-faceted approach and break down ignorance, stereotypes and prejudices gradually.

It's a gradual process folks, whether you're trying to turn one person or society at large. At least in my experience #2 works better at a micro level. I'll remind you that the civil rights movement was not successful in one day, nor did they subscribe to approach #1. They needed the support of the broader community in order to change both the legal and social climate in their favor. There will always be bigots, but ultimately we need the support (or at least ambivalence) of Joe blow and Suzie soccermom.

*I will admit this is sometimes tempting.

Quote of the day - Open carry normalization

"If the intent of the OC movement was to “normalize” open carrying that was a massive fail....The open carry movement should be about taking the scary out of firearms in public, not about being a “but it’s my right” dick. So start by actually carrying the firearms you’d actually carry into a library or restaurant instead of what will get the best shock value."

Melody Byrne in comments at Uncle's

The intent of the OC movement should be to "normalize" OC, unfortunately it seems that a small subset of OC'ers are big on shock value and attention rather than simply going about their daily business with a gun on their hip.

Look folks, this is just stupid. You have the owner of the steakhouse who is sympathetic to your cause and OK with you holding an OC get together, then some jackass shows up OC'ing an AR-15 and they all get asked to leave. Be honest, when's the last time any of you seriously thought "I think I'll carry my AR-15 out to lunch today?" No one carries long guns around Michigan suburbia. It's legal, and I'm NOT saying that should change, but it is not "normal." Get people used to the idea of folks carrying pistols before you start pulling out the big, scary guns."

If you want to normalize open carry don't do so by doing something which is far from normal even amongst OC'ers. You want to normalize open carry? Great. Go be normal and let non-gunnies see you doing so. Don't be so "in your face" about it. Remember, "It's just a thing I do."

Action >> Reaction

As an activist you should always take the approach that is most likely to result in a favorable outcome. Why? because actions have consequences. How you present yourself matters.

Case in point, folks OC in library, so Michigan State Rep. introduces legislation to ban Open Carry in libraries


The actions of the Black Panthers resulted in the passing of gun laws that are still on the books today, most notably the Mulford Act passed June 28, 1967 in California, banning the open carry of loaded firearms in the state.

H/T to Breda

Foxey!

Still not feelin' it, so here's some Jimi to liven things up around here. Foxey Lady, one of my favorites. That said, I still think Electric Ladyland was his best album.

No free ice cream today

Eat something healthy for a change ya bums, or go peruse my archives. Oh, and go read today's post from the homo-Glock loving, gay porn watching, dainty fingered Tam if you haven't already. ;)

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentines Day readers! If you have a special someone spend time with them today, if not then love yourself & enjoy some bacon or some other delicious delicacy.

Don't be an asshole

There was a bit of a kerfuffle over at Breda's about Michigan Open Carry members OC'ing in a public library. I don't want to speak too at length about that particular incident, but I do think it brings up an opportunity to talk about open carry more generally.

First off, I seems to me that many folks are quick to jump all over Breda for what she said. Could she have put it in a way to make it a bit more amenable to others? Perhaps, but ultimately we're all on the same side here and I don't consider anything she said to be all that controversial. I re-read her post and the comments and am honestly surprised by the reaction.

Nowhere did Breda suggest it should be illegal to carry in a library. Nowhere did she suggest people shouldn't be allowed to open carry. No, she suggested that perhaps it would be beneficial to the cause for OC folks to carry themselves in a particular way. As the title of her post said "Manners Matter."

Even if I didn't know Breda personally and hadn't been reading her since our respective pre-blogger days I wouldn't take her post to mean she was an anti-OC "Fudd." I can personally attest to the fact that she OC'd much of the time she was in Phoenix. Hell, she posted a pic of herself open carrying around Phoenix two years ago AND said the following,

"As a gun owner, there are few better feelings than walking down the street in a freedom-friendly town with a pistol on your hip."

She is one of us folks. If the manner in which you're presenting your position puts you at odds with her and some of the more fervent, liberty-minded gunbloggers imagine how you look to the average non-gunnie. Just something to think about.

There is a significant difference between open carry as "just a thing I do" and open carry as a form of political activism. When you're carrying specifically for political reasons you need to be even more cognizant of your actions. This true in the MOC case Breda discusses, as MOC members chose to open carry in the library specifically as a means of political activism. Like it or not, in politics perception is everything. OC'ing a long gun in suburban Michigan is legal, but it is not helpful.

In a perfect world we could walk around exercising our rights in whatever manner we wanted so long as it was legal. In the real world our rights aren't dependent upon the consent of the majority, however that majority can make the practical exercise of said rights far more difficult. I could legally OC my AR-15 into Chuck-E-Cheese or Pump It Up, but that'd be a great way to scare the shit out of people and galvanize them against my cause. The fact of the matter is that in much of this country it is not socially acceptable to OC a long gun in public, especially while acting like an asshole.

Martin Luther King and his followers understood what I said in the preceeding paragraph. King was originally a supporter of the "black power" movement, the Stokley Carmichael's and of Malcolm X's more militant approach. What he realized however was that "scaring the white people" would ultimately be fatally damaging to his cause. That didn't mean he chose to forgo the exercise of his rights or failed to stand up for his principles. No, it meant that he tempered and tailored his approach in a way that was most likely to be successful and garner support for the cause.

When you go out in public open carrying you are an ambassador for the cause whether you want to be or not. We need to remember that as OC'ers and gun rights advocates we are far outnumbered by average citizens and fencesitters. We need to consider our actions with that in mind, especially when engaging in carry as a form of activism.

If we scare the shit out of them and are rude and/or antagonistic we are screwed. We need to win hearts and minds. At a minimum we want the masses to be ambivalent to our cause. First impressions are everything in life, not just in this context. Using common sense and common decency before you act can go a long way towards furthering whatever cause you seek to promote.

You don't normalize gun ownership and carry by "scaring the white people" nor by hiding in the shadows in shame. To be sure, some folks aren't going to support your right to carry regardless of how you comport yourself while doing so. That can't be helped and I am not telling anyone not to carry because they might "offend' such people. If that were the case I'd never bother OC'ing. That's not the point. The point is that it can't hurt to abide by certain "rules," as Breda lays out in her post. ("Andrew" in her comment section had great suggestions too)

I said the following in a post about "Threepers" back in 2008 * and I think it's applicable here,

"If all we accomplish is to scare people then what we'll have done is alienated people and marginalized ourselves. It's hard to have a broad, positive impact once you've done that."

Exercise your rights folks, but keep the above quote in mind before you act.

*in fact, you may want to read my 2008 post before this one, just to get an idea of where I'm coming from.

All Hail JMB!

My 1911 won't be here till at least late next week, but someone else just picked up her 1st 1911 earlier today. She may have influenced my recent purchase.......just slightly.

Congrats Laura! JMB (PBUH) smiles upon you.

Quote of the day - Can reason conquer?

"Reason is not automatic. Those who deny it cannot be conquered by it. Do not count on them. Leave them alone."

-Ayn Rand

That'd be nice if we could just leave them alone. Unfortunately they're the ones who want to strip us of our rights. If we leave them alone we lose.

Random Friday observation

I realized today that I do not own a single pair of cargo pants, no camo, and no camo cargo pants. This must be remedied.

Fascinating I know! Aren't you happy I shared that little tidbit with you all on this glorious Friday?

Gov. Markell's "Gun Safety Legislation"

Governor Markell has unveiled four new "gun safety measures" today to "protect public safety." Color me shocked! A Democrat pushing gun control! Gee, and folks wonder why I rarely vote for Democrats. This is why folks, because they're idiots and have no respect for my rights as a citizen of Delaware and the U.S.A.

I've mentioned Markell's gun grabbing tendencies here before.

As usual we see gun grabbers blatantly misrepresenting the non-existent "gun show loophole.

Now, there does appear to be one good thing here, that is the proposal to scrap the redundant state level background check in favor of the NICS system and improve reporting to NICS. If that were the only thing proposed I'd fully support it.

I'll have to track down the actual legislation and read it later tonight, because some of what's written in the article makes absolutely no sense to me.

Quote of the day - TJIC Irony

"The irony almost unbearable. The man cheers on the shooting of a Congresswoman because he thinks the government is taking away fundamental rights and is becoming tyrannical. The gov't response? The police unilaterally violates his first amendment and second amendment rights.... no due process , no trial , no jury of his peers just some summary action by the executive branch of a municipality that doesn't even have jurisdiction over the internet! If that isn't proof of the tyranny this man fears I don't know what is."

- Indio007 - Commenting on a Boston Globe article about TJIC.

Isn't it amazing how the actions of the government prove us liberty minded individuals right almost without fail? TJIC believes the government is becoming more tyrannical, so they prove him right by stripping him of his 1st, 2nd, and 4th Amendment rights. Hell, I think the government is becoming (already is) tyrannical and wantonly violates fundamental rights. I'm sure I'd feel even more strongly about that if I lived in a shithole state like Massachusettes. Individual liberty has been dead in Mass for quite some time. What happened to TJIC is just another example of their attempts to eradicate liberty in what was once its birthplace.

I suspect that if Madison, Coxe, Franklin, Washington etc. were alive and in Mass. today the things they'd be writing about the dismal state of freedom there would pale in comparison to what TJIC wrote. In fact, I wonder what'd they'd do if told they had to surrender their firearms?

Do the happy dance

I will soon be the proud new owner of a 1911. My 1st 1911. I suppose I should have purchased it exactly one month ago instead of today, but hey, better late than never.

I'm doing the happy dance in my head despite the sticker shock.*

*but not the Elaine dance...

If you've been living under a rock, 1911's have been the topic of much discussion of late. Don't worry though, this one is not a miniscule, MIM filled Kimber.

Owie! My junk!

So last night I hit my junk on the doorframe of my bedroom. Thankfully my junk is made of solid stainless steel, so it came away from the whole ordeal just fine. Everything looks good, there are no weird marks, and I suspect it'll keep shooting whatever loads I choose just fine.

I am of course talking about my Sig P220ST, not my family jewels. The only people who still think guns = penises are anti-gunners. Unless they've figured out a way for a certain part of the male anatomy to shoot lead at ~1100fps (and equip women with the same) they're wrong. Then again when are anti-gunners not wrong?

Also, since I know you all want to see it, a picture of my junk.* Isn't it awesome!?


Your regularly scheduled more serious posting will resume when I feel like it.


*Dear TSA - Don't touch my junk! It might bite.

Quote of the day - On your own

"There is no Constitutional right to be protected by the state against being murdered by criminals or madmen."

- Bowers v. Devito (1982) - 7th circuit court of appeals

And of course who can forget Castle Rock v. Gonzalez in 2005, where the Court ruled that Jessica Gonzalez was not entitled to police protection nor was it mandatory for the police to enforce the restraining order she had against her husband.

Two ladies on my blogroll really drove this point home in recent posts. First Jennifer, who said,

"No one heard her scream. No one was there to help her other than herself."

In the case Jennifer links to, the woman who was raped was not alone in some seedy area of town at 2AM nor was she was not out in the woods by herself. She was in a public ladies room. People are conditioned to believe that you're safe in public because someone will come save you. Unfortunately reality is quite different, as the Kitty Genovese tragedy illustrates.

Laura also offers her thoughts on women and self-defense in a post you really should read, saying,

"danger doesn’t just stick to the bad parts of town – it will show up where you least expect it, and usually when no one else can or will help you."

While I'm at it why not recycle another QOTD from Breda way back in July, and I quote,

"Never depend on another person to protect you. You are all you've got."

In the article Breda discussed a woman and her sons were stabbed to death while the police waited outside her door. Men with guns came and still three innocent people ended up dead.

The key point in all these quotes is simple. You are on your own. You and you alone are responsible for your own safety. That's a truism I wish more people, particularly young people, were willing to accept. You have to come to terms with that before you can take proactive steps towards your own personal safety.

Update - Kevin has more on the Bowers v. DeVito case, including a more complete quote. Go read!

What's "need" got to do with it, got to do with it?

What's need, but a second hand emotion?.... Hey Ike, get Tina out of my head!

"Need." There's a word that comes up consistently when you're talking to someone on the left, particularly when the topic is guns. Why does anyone need a "silencer?" Why does anyone need an assault weapon? a small, easily concealable gun? Big, powerful gun? etc. etc. etc. The list goes on and on. With regards to anything they don't like or are ignorant of the contention is that nobody "needs" said thing.

Need is irrelevant. I didn't need bacon on my sandwich this morning, but I wanted it. If something is avaliable and I have the means by which to obtain it nothing more is necessary. I need not justify my need to purchase any particular commodity, not to you, sue, or joe blow the anti-gunner down the hall.

Why do I need more than 10 rounds? Simple. Because I wanted 12, or 15, or 30. Not to mention that if round 12 saves my life then 10 just ain't gonna cut it. The moment someone brings up "need" in a gun control discussion you can be sure they mean to restrict your rights. At that point any technical or practical justifications for your needs plays right into their hands. You've allowed them to put you on the defensive and frame the debate for their benefit. Don't make that mistake.

Green Bay Packers are Super Bowl XLV champions! Go Packers!

That is all.


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Quote of the day - Truth

"Who needs your truth if it stands in our way?"

- General Aleksei Yepishev - Chief political commisar of the Soviet armed forces

Truth has always been the enemy of all those who stand against individual freedom, be it Soviet communists, Nazi's or anti-gunners.  Objective truth is the one thing they must deny for the sake of ideology.

An incredible resource

The document library at TeachingAmericanHistory.org. They don't have much in the way of SCOTUS cases, but there's still a ton of great reading there.

Quote of the day - Advocating violence

"Slavery is not only a wrong done to the slave, but an outrage upon man — not merely a curse to the South, but to the whole Union, and has no rightful existence anywhere. — Slaveholders have no rights more than any other thief or pirate. They have forfeited even the right to live, and if the slave should put every one of them to the sword to-morrow, who dare pronounce the penalty disproportioned to the crime, or say that the criminals deserved less than death at the hands of their long-abused chattels? "

-Frederick Douglass - February 9, 1849

Douglass is basically saying he wouldn't have any problem with slaves killing every single one of their slaveholders. Apparently Douglass is TJIC too. And for the record, I may not have agreed with TJIC's statement, but I'm in full agreement with Frederick Douglass here.

I haz it!

BACON that is. I haz it! Scrumptious, delectable, undeniably nommable bacon, on two sandwiches with whole wheat toast, cheese and scrambled eggs.

Something to stress

New blogger Chris reminds us to stress the "shooting is fun" aspect of gun ownership and lay off the politics. This is a good reminder, as it's something I'm guilty of at times. Obviously we know it's fun, but that's something we absolutely must stress to win folks over. Don't bog things down with political crap, rants about Obama, talk of black helicopters. Educate newbies without all of that. Focus on safety & fun and try to keep everything else to a minimum. Newbies are already going through information overload when just getting into shooting / gun ownership, so keep it simple and fun, with an emphasis on the FUN. If you don't do that you're going to lose folks who might've been easy converts to our side.

Honestly, putting all of the rights issues aside, we own and shoot guns as a hobby because it's FUN. If there's one thing we need to convey to the non "gunnies" that's it. Chris brings up a great point. I think we do often tend to lose sight of that, at least a little bit.

And then there were three

As of yesterday another Mike W. joined our family. The other Mike W. and his wife had a Mike W. Boy, this is going to get confusing at family gatherings. Someone says "Mike" and all three of us respond.

Quote of the day

"How a politician stands on the Second Amendment tells you how he or she views you as an individual; as a trustworthy and productive citizen, or as part of an unruly crowd that needs to be lorded over, controlled, supervised, and taken care of."

- Dr. Suzanna Hupp

Dr. Hupp is right of course. The 2nd Amendment is a litmus test. If you don't trust me with guns why should I trust you with the power granted to a government official?

Impressive!

Sigforum member Snake207 posted this photo of the 165 grain .40 S&W Speer Golddot. Quite impressive. I rarely use my .40 S&W barrel but this Golddot load is my ammo of choice.

Doubletap Ammo

I'm thinking about picking up a few boxes of ammo from Doubletap. I'm particularly interested in their .357SIG, .light .40S&W and 185 gr. 45ACP loads.

Anyone have any thoughts, opinions, experiences with Doubletap ammo?

What about Reed's Ammunition and Research? Anyone shot their stuff? I Googled em' and didn't read anything bad. Also, they still have some of the Airweight S&W 432PD's left.

Dear Festering Asshats

This one's for you asshats in MA who stripped a man of his ability to lawfully exercise his 2nd Amendment rights because he had the gall to exercise his rights under the 1st Amendment. You're all a bunch of sniveling, sanctamonious fucktards. That's putting it lightly. You don't like me saying that? Oh well. I've got no permit for you to revoke, so shove it.

Look, the right to free speech is meaningless if it doesn't protect that which is most outrageous and controversial. Was what TJIC wrote in bad taste? Perhaps, but that's irrelevant. The 1st Amendment does not have a disclaimer that reads " *except that speech which might get some tight-assed liberals panties in a bunch" No, it protects speech, and that's true whether you like what a particular citizen has to say or not.

The fact is that this man did nothing wrong. He broke no law, all he did was say something that the powers that be in MA didn't like and they used force of law / men with guns to teach him a lesson. That's not something that happens in a free society and it's not an action which would be taken by a truly limited government.

There's a practical effect of what the State did to TJIC that I think is somewhat overlooked here. Yes, there was the confiscation of his firearms, revocation of his permit, and overall massive dump taken upon his 2nd Amendment rights, but this goes beyond that. The State is sending a clear message to other MA gun owners. Say the wrong thing, offend the wrong MA burecrat and YOU might be the one we come after next. Me thinks that might have just a teensy bit of a chilling effect upon free speech for MA citizens.


Part of free speech means we are going to be exposed to speech we don't like and which we find offensive. I find Keith Olbermann despicable and I think Rush Limbaugh says a lot of stupid crap. I don't exactly hold folks like those at Delaware Liberal, Southern Beale or Foggy Bottom Line in high regard either. They are bigots and I don't tend to have much respect for such folks.

That said, I will fight for their right to spew what they do, even if I find it ignorant, contemptible or reprehensible. I will fight for their right to speak despite the fact that they use that speech to advocate for the infringement of my civil liberties. Why? Because how can I expect others to respect my rights if I don't respect theirs? Who will fight for my rights if I throw my fellow Americans under the bus simply because I don't like their message?

The ironic thing about this whole situation is that it is exactly this kind of government abuse that increases the risk of government officials being shot. I in no way condone "shooting the bastards" at this point I'd rather we throw such authoritarian statists out, push them to political extinction and charge them under Federal Civil Rights laws.

That said, if crap like this ever started happening in say, Texas, you might just start seeing citizens cross that "line in the sand" and start shooting back. you are bringing the full force of the government down on an innocent man and literally inviting armed conflict. When the government starts sending armed men to people's homes without a warrant, confiscating their firearms / personal property all without official charges or due process you shouldn't be surprised if some Americans go "Claire Wolfe" and take "Molon Labe!" quite literally.

The totalitarian assbags in MA might want to stop and consider the possible consequences of their actions. Start pressing boots to the necks of the wrong citizens and you might just push them past the point of responding with only harsh words.

Quote of the day - Fruits of labor

"To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his fathers has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers, have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it.”

- Thomas Jefferson - letter to Joseph Milligan, April 6, 1816