Saturday, December 03, 2016

"I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"

"No shit, I was there, this really happened!"

Yep.   Tuned into my local radio station and they're running vintage "Christmas Season Songs" (not carols, but the schmaltzy stuff that I remember from my very early childhood".

I'm tempted to keep tuned until they play "All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth", but I don't want to spoil my dinner.

But I don't mind spoiling YOUR dinner!



Friday, December 02, 2016

Hard-Charging Congressional Examination by Senator McClain (2005)

The Greatest Congressional Testimony Ever Given - YouTube:
 Published on Dec 1, 2016 this guy does not care about anything he says whatever he wants video from 2005



No, I have no idea what this is all about.

Apparently, at least some of the participants are equally clueless.

I kept waiting for Drew Carey to appear.  He couldn't make it so he sent this guy.

Actually, I was hoping for Mimi Bobeck's testimony.


The Grown-ups Win One

I'm pleased that at least one California judge understands the difference between Fantasy and Reality.

Shooting Wire:
(December 02, 2016)

 NEWTOWN, Conn. - A California Appellate Court has reversed the Fresno Superior Court's dismissal of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) and the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI) lawsuit seeking an injunction to block enforcement of the state's ammunition microstamping law and remanded the case back to the lower court to hear arguments. 
 "We are pleased by today's ruling because it means we will now be able to prove in court that this ill-considered law must be enjoined because it is literally impossible to comply with its requirements, and the law never requires the impossible. We have long maintained that this nascent, unproven and unreliable technology should not have been mandated. When we ultimately prevail in this case, law-abiding consumers in California will once again be able to purchase new models of pistols this law currently prevents our industry members from selling in the state," said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel.

What this means, of course, is that California shooters may have one less Impossible Thing to do before breakfast.    Doesn't it feel good when you fight the Jabberwocky, and win?



Wednesday, November 30, 2016

The YouTube School of USPSA Competition

I'm looking forward to teaching my Introduction to USPSA class this coming Saturday because it's going to be SO EASY!

The class is only 3 days away, and the sign-ups have been available for a month, but so far nobody has contacted me to pre-register!   Which is surprising, because it is sponsored by my home club, and we don't charge you for the class.

And it's too bad, because when you get a chance to learn about USPSA competition and it doesn't cost you anything but a few hours of your time (one Saturday afternoon) and a couple of boxes of ammunition.

That's a bargain that's hard to find.

 Looking at the USPSA website, I can't find any place where people can look up clubs which offer this training.  I think that information should be available for potential new shooters.   And I wouldn't expect to find it on the official website, because most of the people who are doing this training are offering private or semi-private lessons/classes.

But private classes take enough time to deal with each individual shooter to correct problems, provide guidance, and evaluate student performances.  Those which teach a group, rather than an individual, allow students to learn from each others' mistakes as well as their Good Practices.

One resource which I have found (for those who can't find or afford a private class) is You Tube.

I've spend the past  couple of evenings surfing YouTube channels for videos of training sessions.   I haven't seen anyone teaching an actual class, but several are available showing individual training sessions.

Unfortunately, even long videos don't show you everything you need to know to begin competing in USPSA matches.

Usually, the videos are limiting their content to one of three categories:

Monday, November 28, 2016

Practicing "From The Holster"

I ran across an old (2010) article at "The Truth About Guns" titled How Not To Draw A Gun From a Holster

From the article:
The holster action starts at 1:19. The wisdom of holstering a gun on an empty chamber is open to debate. The main disadvantage: racking the slide is a complicated maneuver at the exact moment in your life when you don’t need any complications.
I'm glad to see these young men practicing; they clearly need it.  One guy took about 10 seconds to engage 3 pepper poppers; it took him five shots to knock them down.

Here's the video:


(Turn the volume down ... the music is annoying and too loud)

I'm glad to see them practicing, because they clearly need it, but they'r practicing bad habits.

Here's how it should look:



Her time: 13 seconds

Of course, she started with a loaded pistol in her holster.

Sunday, November 27, 2016

But his honesty is terrifying

ALL Celebrities are ... almost without exception ... liars, egotists, over-achievers and often insecure.  This category includes specifically Entertainers and Politicians.

If this sounds like an overly broad castigation of people whose names we all know, it's not.

In order to present themselves in front of an audience, these people NEED to be driven to success in their chosen fields.   I couldn't do that, and perhaps you couldn't either.


There's a story about James Dean in the movie GIANT:  he needed to go on camera for a major scene in the movie, and there was a huge crowd of 'civilians' watching the filming at the outdoor location.

When called for the next scene, Dean got out of his chair,walked over to the corral, unzipped his trousers and urinated all over the fence posts.  When he finished, he zipped up and told the Director (George Stevens)"   "Well, if I can piss in front of a hundred strangers, I guess I can do this scene."

That's why Entertainers and Politicians need to be so extroverted:   they have to do the things that not everyone can do.

And that's why politicians need to be Bigger Than Life.  (Ronald Reagan was the perfect exemplar of both, by the way.)

Which leads us to the main point: Joe Huffman

'House Of Cards' Star Neve Campbell Admits She's 'Terrified Of Donald Trump White House Victory' | The Huffington Post:
(01/03/2016 14:52 | Updated 01 March 2016)
“He’s an ideologue, he’s got extreme ideas, and people are looking for a big change at the moment, at the opposite end from Bernie Sanders. “And there is a good amount of ignorance in America, of people who are angry and disappointed but don’t educate themselves in why, and how it can be fixed. “They see someone off the cuff and broad, and they think ‘ok, that’s the voice we need, just someone honest. “But his honesty is terrifying.

"Off The Cuff and Broad ... Honest .. Terrrifying"

Well, yes.   That's the way it should be.  An American President should be all these things.  If the President Elect of the United States of America can't inspire awe in a television actress, how can he be expected to inspire respect and awe in the contentious diplomacy needed to maintain America's image of the Big Dog on the international political scene?