Crazy Croc 08: Jungle Run and G.R.

I showed up for the first day of the Crazy Croc match today, and I had a wonderful time. Lots of folks were there and stopped by to say howdy, and ask after SWMBO. (Sorry: her name is Sandie.)

I talked to a lot of people, took a bunch of pictures (more video!) and generally had almost as much fun as if I had actually been competing .. except I had no stories about how I would have ended up with a much better score if only... [insert your own alibi here. Extra points will be given for creativity.]

Eventually I ran out of camera batteries and storage space on the video storage devices (SD). That was okay, because I ran out of energy at about 2:30 pm, when everyone who was competing still had another stage to go before their day was ended.

As I said to Mac: "In this context,I'm self-employed. My word day is over when I say it is over, not when the Schedule says I am done."

Shortly before the end of my working day, and late enough that the light was not 'right' for filming on most stages, I found my self on the Jungle Run stage.

Actually I had clambered down the hill immediately after shoot- through competitor Gary Pete Ray to ask CRO Loren if I could film some of his clients in the Jungle Run stage, "Paradise Valley".

He said "Okay By Me, Pal" in the most gracious way, and suggested that Sherrie would appreciate seeing the Jungle Run Stage in action.

Loren and Sherrie work on this stage all year long just to get it ready for this match.

I'm working from a laptop, and under some significant time constraints, so I won't go into the reasons why I think it's important to post this video 'tonite'. I only want to recognize the support that Sherrie and Loren have provided for SWMBO, and for me.

Well, I also want to emphasize the bald-face fact that many competitors at The Croc Match have found themselves saying: "I would travel here for this Jungle Run Stage only, even if the rest of the match wasn't so fun."

Let's go to the video:

Tim Holm - Part II

Last month we told you about an Oregon L.E.O. who was severely injured in an accident. The Columbia Cascade Section of USPSA invited all members to send a card or letter to Tim in the hospital, expressing their wishes for a speedy recovery.

The section also established a series of Tim Holm Benefit Matches, all proceeds to be donated to Tim's famil for their maintenance while he is laid up.

This week the Section Secretary published the results of those efforts:

Thanks to all who participated in the Tim Holm Benefit matches. We made approx $4000.00 for Tim with the matches. Tim still has a long road ahead of him with Rehab.

It's significant that not only did the participants in these matches participated in record numbers, but they gave up the "extra" match fees which are intended to pay auxiliaries to tear down the stages at the end of the match. They still paid the fees, but they did their own stage tear-down.

Activities such as this are the hallmark of strong volunteer organizations who are interested in more than simply spending a nice day at the range.

The host clubs also contributed their normal fees, including the cost of material.

EVERY cent of income from these matches went to the cause of supporting a wounded brother.

Accolades to the good people at the Albany Rifle and Pistol Club (ARPC), and the Tri-County Gun Club (TCGC).

"Do you eat a special breakfast?"

The Executioner's Song

Saudi Government-Appointed Executioner for Mecca, Abdallah Al-Bishi, Discusses His Calling and Demonstrates His Weapons and Methods

The Middle East Media Resource Institute [MEMRI.ORG] translates a Saudi Television interview with the Official Executioner of Saudi Arabia.

Quotes taken from the (abridged) transcript:

Reporter: Abu Bader's swords have cut off a hundred heads and more. His eldest son, Badr, is training in the same profession. He inherited this profession from his father, Sa'id Al-Bishi. He remembers how, when still a small boy, he accompanied him to the beheading of a criminal in Mecca. That sight, Abu Badr says, was the turning point in his life.

Abdallah Al-Bishi: I was at school, and an execution was set for my father in Mecca. It was to take place in front of the King Abd Al-'Aziz Gate. Before all that happened at the Al-Haram Mosque, the executions were held there. We showed up. I was a little boy. The first thing that came to my mind when people talked about executions was the digestive system. I wanted to see it. At that time, we had an exam at school on the digestive system, and we had to explain about the digestive system and whatever... So I came along, and the moment my father executed the man, I ran to see the digestive system, but all I could see was the man's head flying, and where the neck used to be, there was a kind of well. It went down. That's it. I couldn't take it anymore. I woke up in the car on the way home. At night, I tried to go to sleep, but couldn't. I had nightmares, but only once. Then I got used to it, Allah be praised.

and ....

First TV host: Abu Badr, what time do you get up? Do you eat a special breakfast? All these details are very important to us.
Abdallah Al-Bishi: I cannot elaborate on the work itself. On the personal level, I am very normal. I get up in the morning, pray the Al-Fajr prayer. My breakfast is prepared, and I eat it. Allah be praised. I wait for the police car to pick me up, and I go to work. It's all very normal. I finish the job, and go home. It's all very normal.

MEMRI TV is an independent organization which translates Middle-Eastern television shows to English, and then posts the result to the internet.

I selected this video for presentation here, because I wanted to depict the great cultural differences between America and our very strong allies, Saudi Arabia.

No executions are depicted on this video, and it should be considered SFW (Safe For Work).

However, it is often more revealing at levels beyond the obvious.
For example, one of the reporters is a beautiful woman. As she asks The Executioner about his work (which he describes as his "mission"), she smiles.

Second TV host: Abdallah, what was your most difficult beheading? Have you ever beheaded someone you knew?
Abdallah Al-Bishi: Yes, I have beheaded many people who were my friends, but whoever commits an offense brings it on himself.

... she continues to speak, and smile. But when The Executioner begins to speak, she shuts up immediately and turns into a poker face.

She recognizes this person as a killer, and becomes a very still, small mouse in the corner.

In America, we hear much from Feminists who shrill that America is Chauvinist and repressive.

They have no idea. THIS ... is the face of repression.

2008 Croc Match Stages

Thanks to Evil Bill ("I am but a lowly stage designer, trying my best to provide some sort of shooting challenge"), we have the stage designs for the 2008 Labor Day Weekend "Another Day in Paradise " High Round-Count match at Dundee, Oregon.

This match is scheduled for Auguste 30-31, 2008. That's Saturday and Sunday. If you haven't already signed up, be sure to get to the match early. You can find sign-up information here.

You can download the stage designs and procedures at the marked links. File sizes are marked on each stage. Although I don't plan to compete in this match (don't have ammo loaded, etc.), after a look at the stages I may show up just to take pictures. Maybe even some video. (See Below #1)

Stage Bay: 1
Title/Link: The Long and Short of It [59 kb]
Designer: Keith Tyler
Round-count: 54/270 points
Targets: 24 IPSC, 6 plates
Description: Comstock Field Course
Comments: Box activates 2 swingers, shoot from the box. Lots of vision barriers.


Stage Bay: 2
Title/Link: Shooting Paradise [391 kb]
Designer: Eric Falkner
Round-count: 55 /275 Points
Targets: 24 IPSC, 2 PP, 5 Plates
Description: Comstock Field Course
Comments: The "5 plates" are on a Texas Star/ Narrow bay, trees are probably hard-cover, shooting through ports and around vision barriers ... including especially the Texas Star. Four shooting positions, plus a bottle-neck 'free fire zone' in the middle; watch your 180 there!


Stage Bay: 3
Title/Link: Over the TipTop [71 kb]
Designer: Mike McCarter
Round-count: 48/240 points
Targets: 18 IPSC, 12 USP
Description: Comstock Field Course
Comments: The USP (U.S. Poppers) are in 4 groups of 3, stacked in front of each other. A Lateral COF, with 3 ports between vision barriers plus shooting around the ends of the vision barriers ... all shooting from "Box A Only". Use of the term "Field Course" here is incorrect, of course, because of the "shoot from the box only" restriction. As is typical of a Croc Match, this stage defies being categorized. Just ... do what you have to do. Note that the IPSC targets are arranged in six arrays, glued on top of each other with limited access to 2/3 of the targets. This will be an Accuracy-intense stage. Good news? This is decidedly NOT Revolver-Friendly. (Okay, I was kidding about the "Good News" thingie.)


Stage Bay: 4
Title/Link: Darn Popper [151 kb]
Designer: Trevor Ott
Round-count: 51/255 Points
Targets: 25 IPSC, 1 PP
Description: Comstock Field Course, although all rounds must be fired "from within fault lines and Box A", and an irregular hexagon fully enclosed by 'fault lines' as of this writing. Again, defies categorization in this respect.
Comments: The single Steel Target (a Pepper Popper which appears to be partially hidden behind a (low?) vision barrier on the far end of the bay must be engaged from within the starting Box A. Note that "Still will flip up T11 and T12, which are also behind the "low(?) vision barrier". As a further complication, there appears to be a vision barrier within the fault-lines, running from uprange to downrange; it seems to be intended to force the shooter not to engage all targets from a single point. It may not survive Stage Construction. The stage design features many barrels between shooting position and targets. The stage procedure does not specify whether the barrels constitute hard-cover or soft-cover, but Croc Matches typically define them as soft-cover. This is because time available does not allow for complex Range Officer decisions about whether a shot is a legal hit or not because there is a hole in the barrel.

Stage Bay: 5
Title/Link: Paradise Island [105 kb]
Designer: Paul Meier
Round-count: 59/295 points
Targets: 25 IPSC, 7 USP, 2 Pepper Poppers
Description: Comstock, shooting from with fully-enclosed fault-lines and from atop a platform.
Comments: Start sitting in a chair, unloaded pistol on a table, ammo on person. At least two moving targets (swingers?) activated apparently by shooting either USP or Pepper Poppers. This is probably presented in the "Punch Bowl" bay; very close shooting, a lot of walking up and down the hill to score, tape and reset the targets. Again, another slow stage. Bay is in the hot sun, you'll get tired of walking up and down the hill for a minute's rest in the shade of the Rifle Bench-rest area. Bring lots of water and sun block. (See Below #2.)


Stage Bay: 6
Title/Link: Just Another Set of Standards [69 kb]
Designer: Brad Sitton
Round-count: 48/240 Points
Targets: 6 IPSC
Description: Fixed Time
Comments: Six strings, 6 seconds per string. From different distances, with different stances and grips (kneeling, freestyle, strong hand, weak hand, mandatory reload). This will be a very time-consuming stage. Prediction: it will slow up the match, their will be penalties for following the wrong procedures from at least one distance/shooting position/array; this will be the most hated stage in the match.

Stage Bay: Croc Bay
Title/Link: Freestyle Paradise [438 kb]
Designer: "Evil" Bill Marrs
Round-count: 66/330 points
Targets: 25 IPSC, 4 Pepper Popper, 2 USP, 10 Plates
Description: Comstock, legal shooting area defined by fault lines. Starting position is of interest: "Any body position, any hand position, any safe "gun ready" condition and position that complies with the rules. You can not start a stage touching the gun or ammo! (rule 8.2.3)"
Comments: "All props are soft cover -- except the barrels." Note that this stage features the "Evil Oregon Star". Note that this stage features at least 4 IPSC targets which seem to be activated by hitting steel plates. There have been issues with this arrangement ... what if you hit the plate and it doesn't bring up the IPSC target? What if the 'head' of the IPSC target is bent to the point of inaccessibility by the repeated action of being rapidly moved from a prone to a vertical position? Look for this stage design to be changed before the start of the match; there are some potential administrative problems associated with the stage design as I have interpreted it, so don't take this as fact. This is the biggest stage of the match (in terms of number of targets and points available.) Still, it looks like the most fun stage of all. I want to shoot this stage!

* See Below #1:
I may show up for the match, and I hope to take pictures and films some videos.
Heck, I would love to shoot the match. But, as I have frequently mentioned here, considering the dramatically increased cost of components, I don't feel that I can afford to shoot a "Lost Brass Match".

This match is not publicized as a "Lost Brass Match". However, there are so many rounds fired on each stage, the shooting positions are so far apart, and the pace of the match is so fast, there is no time to do much brassing. Even after a stage is completed, you just want to get off the stage and on to the next one.

Folks, this is not intended as a criticism of the match. On the contrary, this is the most exciting and downright FUN match in the country today. I'm describing a personal decision here, and it probably doesn't apply to you. Don't assume that I'm trying to talk you out of shooting this match, because I wouldn't want anyone to miss it because of something I have said.

* See Below #2
Friends, if you're not accustomed to shooting matches in Oregon, there's some things you should know.

First: During the month of August, the weather is hot hot HOT! Bring lots of water, sun-block (pf 25 should be a minimum, and refresh it every 2 hours), wear light clothing.


Second: After Labor Day, the weather changes dramatically. We get rain, and sometimes it turns into a real drizzle. Prepare for it by bringing Rain Gear, hats, towels, and anything else which you expect to need to continue to compete during a downpour.

Third: Sometimes, the Weather doesn't understand the calendar so well. Expect to encounter the First conditions. Prepare yourself so that if the Second conditions prevail, you will not be uncomfortable in the rain.

Here's the weather report. Doesn't look like rain to me. (Click to see full size.)

_______________________________________
Oh, yeah.

You want to know what a Croc Match stage looks like, when it's Done Right?

Once again, here's Stage Winner Yong Lee on Stage 5: The Doors.

This is the 2005 Croc Match.

Phishing for Gullible Geeks

Four days ago I wrote an article called "Comcast Hell".

It was as long, and as difficult to read, as a Melville novel.

Moby Dick:
This was a long, convoluted story of my attempts to resolve a billing problem with my Internet Provider, Comcast. (Note: no, it has not yet been resolved to my satisfaction. I estimate it will take 45 to 60 days to get all of the billing issues resolved. Perhaps as much as 90 days, if the Comcast Service Representative didn't actually do all the things s/he said s/he did.)

After I published the article I read it. I thought "That's a lot of whining for one post, even for a Geek! I ought to just delete it. But it's late, I'll sleep on it first. " (Not the first time I've had that thought, and from time to time I have acted on it. You may not have noticed. That suggests that it's usually a good decision.)

However, I didn't. Call it Sloth. Call me Ishmael.
__________________________________________

The Phisher:
A couple of days later at 6:13 am, someone who represented himself as a Comcast employee posted a comment offering to help.

All I had to do, he said, was to email him my phone number, and my Mother's phone number.

The return email address he provided was "cable.comcast.com". (Which, according to Whois.com, is not a properly formatted domain name. But email routers often have extensions like this.)

The guy must not know me for the cynical, suspicious Geek that I am. The idea that I would send personal information to a stranger from a strange land is just something that I cannot Grok.

How did this purportedly concerned Comcast employee know that I had a problem with Comcast? Comcast knows me by my Primary User Name, which is certainly not public knowledge ... certainly not something which is available to someone who knows me by Blog. Of course, he didn't know that for sure. But with a phone number, and an email address, it may be possible to access a commercial account and (if you're a fast talker) convince the CSR to allow you access by, among other things, resetting the password.

Given the Primary User Name, and a password, the amount of damage is literally incalculable. It depends upon their skill as a Hacker.

So I didn't send him any phone numbers. Instead, I replied to the email address and told him that if he was Legit, he could look up the company records and contact me by a more secure method.

This was, of course, an attempt to get HIM to reveal more about himself.

In the meantime, I contacted Comcast and described the situation. I contacted the Help Desk, and also the Vice President in charge of Operations. I asked them to vet this person, if they could; I also asked them to tell me if they had ANY idea who that person was.

I've received a reply from Comcast (not with the same "cable.comcast.com" email format, by the way) stating that they had nobody like that anywhere in their organization. They advised me to reject any requests from that source.

That was easy to do. All I had to do was to accept that he was Phishing for information which would allow him to steal from me, and not respond as he had requested.
_________________________________________

The White Whale
The reason I'm boring you with all this is to impart a message:

If you use the Internet, someday somebody may come up to you and say: "Just give me your personal contact information, and I will solve all of your problems. If I am lying, may the Jack of Diamonds jump up onto your shoulder and piss in your ear."

Friends, resist the natural inclination to believe in this person. As sure as you do, you will end up with wet ears.

If you find yourself with yellow ear-wax, what can you do?

Consider the scene in "True Grit", where Rooster Cogburn discovers that he is sharing his domicile and his dinner with a large, gray Rat. First he tried Legal recourse:

"Mr. Rat, I have a writ here says you're to stop eating Chin Lee's cornmeal forthwith. Now it's a rat writ, writ for a rat, and this is lawful service of the same. See, doesn't pay any attention to me."

When that doesn't work, he shoots the rat.

That's the best way to deal with a Phisher, too.

Tell them that you heard it here, first.

2008 Croc Match

The Croc Match (*) is alive and well, thriving with eight (8) stages and requires 400+ rounds MINIMUM to complete the match.

I knew you would like that last part.

The link to all information for the match is here, and even though the URL suggests that this is information for the 2007 match ... trust me, it's everything you need to know for the 2008 match.

This is perhaps probably the premier "High Round Count" match for the season. Expect to shoot much more than the minimum "400+" rounds. Expect your gun to be over-heated to the point where you wish you had an ice bucket to store your pistola between stages (and why not? I've done that!) And expect that you will have more fun than you previously thought possible without taking your clothes off.

The match runs for two days ... August 30/31, 2008 ... which fits nicely into the LONG Labor Day Weekend. (They planned it that way.)

Paul will probably be the MD, and Evil Bill will probably be the RM. Look for the most evil ... sorry, I mean EVIL stage designs, targets and props you would never imagine.

There WILL be Revolver Shooters at the match. If you've never watched anyone making 9 or 10 reloads to complete a single stage, this is your chance.

Shooting Production, Single-Stack or Limited-10 Division? No problem. I've shot this match more than once with a 1911 Single Stack, using a mix of 10-round and 8-round Chip McCormack magazines. Yes, the other members of my squad did actually say 'We only found Jerry at the end of the stage by following his trail of expended magazines". (If they didn't say that, exactly ... they meant to. And they should have.)

What they actually said, when they saw me shooting 50+ round stages with 8-round magazines, was: "I felt so sorry for Jerry".

Never mind. I hear that a lot even when I'm shooting a 'regular' match with a hi-cap Open Gun.

We're talking Trail of Tears, folks, and if you ever decided that you had 500 rounds of loaded ammunition that you wanted to shoot up, and leave it on the stage because you were too tired to pick up your own brass, this is the match for YOU!

Registration is limited to the first 120 entries, but chances are good that it's not too late to register.

This match isn't for just anybody. Come on out, shoot your aspirations out, and prove to yourself and to your friends that you are Man Enough to take on the Iron Man Match From Heck.

(No, I'm not man-enough this year. Also, I don't have enough ammo loaded. But don't let that stop you.

Stoke 'Em Up, Brother! You'll need every magazine you own, and you'll laugh more than you cry.

Probably.

2008 Area 1 Multi Gun Championship

2008 Area 1 Multi Gun Championship

... I missed it.

I was sick that weekend, didn't go to watch (and report on) the match even though it was only 20 minutes away from my sick bed.

Didn't talk to anybody. Didn't get any photographs or videos. .

I couldn't even find a link to the match results, year.
Watch this space. As soon as I learn anything, I'll pass it along.

(With luck, someone who was there will be able to provide a link to the match results in the COMMENTS section, and I can update this article with the link URL.)

Sorry, folks. Not saying I'll do better next time, but at least I recognize my own failings.

Olympic Sport: Sheep Sheering?

Australia targets Olympic sheep shearing

Peter Artridge, of Sports Shear Australia, one of the industry's governing bodies, said: "We think shearing has as much right to be called a sport as any Commonwealth or national games event.

"Shearers should be up there with other Australian sporting champions.

"Some of these guys train for months to be at their physical best. They're going to the gym and doing yoga and following special diets. They're outstanding athletes.

"If people could see the skill that is involved, they'd be interested."

Sheep Shearing? And the IOC doesn't think that Practical Pistol is a worthy addition to the Olympic Games?

Bloody Hell!

Day by Day Cartoon Fund Raising

Day by Day Cartoon by Chris Muir

It may not be obvious to the Casual Observer, but from time to time I do present a fund raising appeal here on Cogito Ergo Geek.

They're all based on the Internet because, like, I'm a Geek.

When I read about something or someone I'm interested in, I like to throw a few coins into the metaphoric hat.

There was Michael Yon, some poor 80-year-old retiree in NYC who got mugged in an elevator and lost his Social Security Check ... you know; whatever catches your attention. It may be organized, it may be ad hoc, but charity is among the Good Works demanded of a civilized person. We get to choose the beneficiaries, and if with you it's usually your church or your adult kids or your ne'er-do-well brother in law, that's okay. It probably isn't a lot, but while you got it, you can share it.

It's not condescending, it's lending a hand. You can even brag about it, if you feel the need.

The thing about giving when you don't need to give, is that it makes you feel good. That's okay, too. Most of us "do" for others because it meets a need that we have, as much as it meets a need that they have.

Money, time, a ride to church, take a cake to a wake, spend an evening listening to a friend who is down, donate a holster to a Junior USPSA member drive, buy a raffle ticket 'to a good cause' when you know you'll never win ... all of these are "charity". Also known as being a responsible member of your family, your church, your community, your society.
__________________________________________________

Reason I'm saying all of this is that I have been reading Chris Muir's Day By Day cartoons every day for a couple of years now, and it isn't even a subscription service. It's just out there, every day, and I go read it and laugh or shake my head. Or both.

Chris gives something to me every day: an appreciation for a point of view that doesn't always agree with mine, but even then it's entertaining.

I spend a lot of money on books every month, because they give me hours of entertainment.

I read DBD every day, and I pay nothing for the minute or two of enjoyment it brings me. You probably do, too.
______________________________________

Chris put out an appeal for funding today. He sent out a first appeal last year and received sufficient funding to support his art for a year, in a single day. Unfortunately, it didn't last for a year. It lasted for 8 months. Immediately, he lost his Day Job, and has since been subsisting on his contributions. Which are drying upl

Many blogs feature DBD on a feed ... mine is always at the very bottom of the page, and the pages are often very long so you may not have noticed it. (Just hit the END button right now, and you'll see his latest cartoon. Then come back here.)

Read the text below the cartoon. It'll be in place for about a week, but in case you don't get around to reading this, here's the essential part:

1031 people came through in the last Fundraiser; according to 'The Long Tail' theory of internet readers, there's usually a core 1% that come through for internet publishers. All donations are critical, and I also ask again of that '1000'. Look what Leonidas did with the 300-except I don't have a 6-pack, I'm not a leader, and the thought of all of you in G-strings frankly worries me a bit.

But we share the same beliefs, I think.

The site's been redone, there's a forum coming up, there's an email subscription, searchable archives, new avatars, a new DBD banner that shows the strip in a popup (so you have more advertising space on your own blog),twitter, free Wowio DBD ebooks, and when you donate to DBD you receive pdfs of never released drawings of DBD's start back in 1998 (yes, 2 years before DBD went up), examples of just how different Jan, Damon, Sam, and Zed were before 2001.

Depending on which of the 4 Donation Levels you select, there is also a DBD Playing Card deck, Sam posters, plus Original DBD hand-written script sheets complete with hand-signed strips that derive from those scripts.

That was the carrot, now for the stick, and...I don't have a stick. I'll still try & get DBD out.

I kind of like his determination to continue the website, as long as he can. Starving artist, while admirable in the abstract, are not very appealing in real time. They tend to end up pumping gas into your Ford Explorer. This guy offers something too valuable to be lost, and I would like to see that he is recognized for a much higher contribution to society.

Here's the bad news: Chris can only accept donations via PAYPAL. If you don't have a PayPal account, or if the funds are currently deleted, you can transfer funds in three to five days. (You can set it up to add to the PayPal account online directly from your checking account.)

Here's the good news: There's a "DONATE" button in a box in the upper right-hand corner of the DBD website, and there's also an AMAZON.COM donate button just below it.

Maybe there will be a PayPal direct pay button added, just to make it easier to donate and reap the benefits of receiving a variety of DBD products depending on the amount of the donation.

Frankly, the best reason to donate is to ensure the continued availability of The Further Adventures of Jan, Damon, Sam, and Zed.

Go to DBD, read The Whole Thing.

Then (as Doctor Laura would say) ... Do The Right Thing.

Political Differences

Sharing: A lesson on human nature

I was talking to a friend of mine's little girl the other day. I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up and she replied, "I want to be President!" Both of her parents are liberal Democrats and were standing there. So then I asked her, "If you were President what would be the first thing you would do?"

She replied, "I'd give houses to all the homeless people."

"Wow - what a worthy goal." I told her, "You don't have to wait until you're President to do that. You can come over to my house and mow, pull weeds, and sweep my yard, and I'll pay you $50. Then I'll take you over to the grocery store where this homeless guy hangs out, and you can give him the $50 to use toward a new house."

Since she is only 6, she thought that over for a few seconds. While her Mom glared at me, she looked me straight in the eye and asked, "Why doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50?"

And I said, "Welcome to the Republican Party."

Her folks still aren't talking to me.

Also from the same source:

The Democrats have suddenly developed a keen sense of morality. John Edwards has been banned from making a speech at the Democratic convention for having an affair and lying about it.

In his place Bill Clinton will be speaking.

The Hobo Brasser

"A liberal is a person whose interests aren't at stake at the moment."
-- Willis Player

"A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, which debt he proposes to pay off with your money"
-- G. Gordon Liddy

"The only difference between the Democrats and the Republicans is that the Democrats allow the poor to be corrupt, too."
-- Oscar Levant

Now what?

'Guns in the hands of good people' - The York Daily Record

Kim du Toit

You're driving down the road minding your own business, when you suddenly see a Road Rage; two out-of-control guys react to a minor fender bender, and attack a car driven by a woman, another woman and an undetermined number of children in there with her.

The guy car rams the car with women, and block their escape. The guy driver, hostile and loud and abusive, threatens mayhem at the top of his voice.

You've followed them into the parking lot where they ended up. Your wife is in the car with you.
What do you do?

In the actual event, one man ends up dead ... the attacking man.

One man ends up in handcuffs ... the non-involved, defending man.

On June 28, 2008, Brian Fentiman shot and killed Doug Needs, who threatened a carload of female drives, Fentiman, and Fentiman's wife.

Fentiman was not a party to the original road-rage incident: he was a witness, and stopped to render what help he could to the two victim females (and their children) and, when Need threatened the Fentimans, he used his final defense ... a pistol, which he was legally licensed to carry.

This may be one of the most revealing and cogent tales in recent history of a man who just wants to defend victims of violent crime ... which threatens to degenerate.

(For a comparative example of Road Rage Gone Wrong, see "Minor Wreck turns into Deadly Trauma in Florida" ... an unrelated incident.)

Is this GEEK enough for you?

I was getting ready for bed, emptying the pockets , and looking down on the contents of the nightstands it occurred to me that these were the pockets of a Geek.

Whoa! Who knew?

Some of you may think that the appellation of "Jerry The Geek" is a pejorative term, but I so named myself 12 years ago and I have never found reason to reject the nomenclature. Witness the contents of my pockets ... the stuff that I carry EVERY day.


In fact, these objects (along with my keys) are my SHTF objects. I can get into my car and my home, where more GEEK stuff is stashed in case I really, really need it. But that's the context of another, very much overworked meme.

Here's the inventory of what I carry in my pockets every day:

• Moneyclip: includes analog battery driven clock, cash, and all credit/identity cards (including Concealed Handgun License)
• Cigarette lighter, small version (I smoke, but this is also useful for 'other purposes)
• Small knife, very sharp, one locking blade
• Small LED flashlight
• Cell phone: this is my only phone, I have no 'landline'. All of my contacts are here. Also GPS capable; Blackberry capable (but not activated); backup watch.
• At LEAST one Flash Drive. It's only coincidence that I have two with me today, but I have all of my computer signons and passwords (all encrypted) here.

A note about the proliferation of Flash Drives:

A few years ago I bought a Cruzer Flash Drive, my first, with a capacity of 256k for about $35.
Two years ago I bought a 1GB Flash Drive for just under $100.
A few months ago I bought the 2GB Flash Drive (seen here) for $9.95. I bought two.
Two weeks ago I bought the 8GB Flash Drive (seen here) for $28.95. I bought two.
Friday, I found another 8GB Flash Drive at TigerDirect.Com for under $25.

I hadn't yet unwrapped my second $28.95 8GB Flash Drive.

It's axiomatic in Geekistan that as soon as you buy Computer Stuff, it is obsolete.

But my 2GB Flash Drive holds 95% of My Music, which was loaded to my personal computer from CDs that I bought. Any three of the 80+ CDs in that directory cost more than did the 8GB Flash Drive, which now holds the entire directory ... plus a backup copy of my current "big" programming project from work, plus another work-related file folder. And it is still not full.
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This is a First Generation MEME. I've sent it out to a dozen bloggers. Let's see how geekish THEY are.