YouTube - Debate Over 'Assault Weapons'

YouTube - Debate Over 'Assault Weapons'

Wayne Lapiere and Pennslvania Governer Ed Rendel debate "Assault Weapons" on"Face the Nation".

Rendel's basic argument is "What honest citizen needs and Assault Weapon?"

hen pressed, Rendel changes his argument to "What honest citizen needs more than ten rounds in a magazine?"

LaPierre has little time to respond in this TV "Debate" to get to the nitty-gritty of the question. I wish he had said something like: "Why should we deny an Honest Citizen the right to use any magazine?"

In the actual fact, he (LaPierre) made the point that the defnition of "Assault Weapon" is ot appropriately applied to semi-automatic ... with the implication that laws which restrict access to "Ugly Guns" apply equally to almost ANY Semi-Automatic gun.

Another wish: LaPierre (given time) may have said something along the lines of
"The 1994 Assault Weapons Ban was established with the provisio that, after 10 years in effect, it could be statistically proven that the restriction had reduced crime, homocidem or other violence. When the law was reviewed, NOBODY was able to step to the forum and confirm that it had made ANY difference in terms of reducing crime. President Bush confirmed that he would sign any bill which Congress could pass; but Congress could not pass a bill to continue the Assault Weapons Ban. In the final analysis, it did NOT meet its stated goals, and the only effect was to emplace unreasonable restrictions on law-abiding citizens ... who for their own, perfectly legal reasons, choose to purchase semi-automatic firearms and magazines with greater than a 10-round capacity."
He never said this. He could have, but he did not have to.

In all, I think LaPierre held his own in a strictly formatted forum. I couldn't have done so well, when I had to know the answers before the questions were asked.

Going Home

I'm not much for Spectator Sports ... generally speaking, I'd rather play a sport poorly than watch one played well by others.

There are great moments in competition. Usually, they are considered "Great Moments" because one player, or a team, has performed some exceptional feat of athletic prowess.

But what do you call it when it goes beyond athletic prowess?

Watch this video, and find your own answer.



Sometimes you can win more than a game, whether you win or lose the game.

That's the true Spirit of Competition.

(H/T: The Hobo Brasser)

ARPC Points Match (11-APR-2009)

No match this weekend, but here's a video of how one squad handled Stage 6 ("Walls & Barrels") last weekend.

The first and last competitors shown are both juniors. The first, Chase, is safely completion his "Certification" match. He was actually in the squad before us, and we were lucky to watch him shoot this stage because it was the only chance I had to see him compete in this crucial (to him) match. The last, Dontae, has already certified. I listed them both as "10 years old", but that's a guess.

At my age, anyone under five feet tall appears to be 10 years old.

And yes, that IS Ageism.
The video lasts 4:57 minutes.
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TECHNICAL NOTE:
You will see my (gloved) hand over the top of the image when FISH starts shooting. This is to provide a hood, keeping the morning sun out of the lense.

In the next segment (GEEK), the lens is not shaded; the bright sunlight washes out the image in a Purple Haze, until the view shifts further to the south.

I take pride in timing the musical lyrics to that portion of the video:

"Sometimes the light's all shining on me,
Other times I can barely see"

Well, we take our successes when we can.
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UPDATE: 23 April, 2009

The original video included the song "Truckin'" by The Grateful Dead.

YouTube took exception to this, probably because the owner of the song asked them to disallow "their" music on embedded videos. Consequently, the original is without any soundtrack at all.

(See the COMMENTS section)

I've republished the video without the music, but with the full-volume soundtrack of shots fired, range commands, and incidental comments from bystanders. Perhaps it's a more realistic appreciation of the actual experience.

But I hate giving up the music, which not only provides an 'extra dimension' to the vide but also introduces a great song.

Besides, I worked so hard to choreograph the music to the visual images. What a waste.