Politicians And Other Scoundrels

Are we becoming the "New Jersey of the West?"

Oregon is joining the ranks of anti-Constitutional states by toying with the enactment of laws which defy the Second Amendment.

More than one lawmaker cried on the House floor while discussing the damage that a raging person can do with a gun. The chamber's bipartisan adoption of the bill coincidentally came one day after a gunman killed 17 people at a Florida high school.

Will Not Comply!

What's the issue?  Oregon Legislators are considering inflicting even more oppressive restrictions on firearms ownership by law-abiding Oregonians.

And Oregonians are ignoring our own elected representatives, on the grounds that they do not "represent" our Constitutional Prerogatives.

We're not the first state to find ourselves defending ourselves against our own elected legislators:  consider New Jersey:

Open rebellion? | The Price of Liberty:

...  perhaps as many as one million residents of New Jersey have failed to turn in “high-capacity” magazines by the statutory deadline of 11th of December, 2018. This requirement (turn-in or take out of state) is part of a law signed into law in June. The penalty for being found with a magazine with a capacity of greater than 10 rounds, regardless of caliber, is a fine of up to ten thousand dollars and up to eighteen months in jail.  Having possession is a class four felony, which means that anyone convicted would permanently lose their right to own a weapon. 

Ex Post Facto Laws are those which make illegal an activity which was legal at the time the activity occurred.  buying a 15 round magazine They are odious because they impose a fine or other penalty upon the citizenry, and because they often require the citizen to relinquish previously legal possessions without compensation.

"Sometimes, the only way to win is not to play"

But even if compensated by the state, they are just one small step on the road to abrogating the rights of the citizen.   These laws are invariably political in nature and often unconstitutional ... as are the ban on "high-capacity magazines" in several states, soon coming to a state near you.

(Oregonians ... are you listening?)

If the Oregon legislature can impose a ban on "high-capacity magazines", they can impose a ban on the firearms which you purchased legally (which can
accept a high capacity magazine), which is a ban on the Second Amendment ...  which was enacted by the Founding Fathers of our country to protect the rights of the individual citizen against the hypothetical dictatorial government seeking to tyrannize its citizens.

Question:  if the Army can load a 30-round magazine, and you cannot ... how do you defend yourself against an Army which is tasked to undermine the Second Amendment?

That " Hypothetical Dictatorial Government" is here, now, and it's here to stay  ... unless you take action to protect your Constitutional rights in the face of a government, recently imposed by the Party which is becoming more powerful every day.

It is lead by "fearful people".

Don't make the mistake of assuming that the party in power will protect you; they will not.  They do not wish to acknowledge your rights, and they will undermine them until you have no rights at all, except those which are becoming increasingly inconsequential.

Such as the right to vote.

The party in power is not that which is elected, but that which counts the votes.

Don't you wish you had a voice in choosing who counts the votes?

GUNS, MURDERS, AND THE CONSTITUTION

A scholarly thesis from 1990 addresses the negative public vision of firearms ownership by law-abiding citizens.

Essentially, it disputes the "common" thesis that people who own guns have anti-social tendencies:

GUNS, MURDERS, AND THE CONSTITUTION: As early as 1976, it was estimated that more had been written about "gun control" than all other crime-related topics combined.[2] Yet this pre-1976 academic literature was both fundamentally flawed and severely biased. The bias stemmed from the crusading zeal of academics who, by their own admission, could "see no reason ... why anyone should own a weapon in a democracy"[3] and who felt gun owners embodied an American soul that is "hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer."[4] Naturally, this bias led academic crusaders to discuss gun ownership as a social pathology rather than as a value-neutral sociological phenomenon. 

You may want to spend some time reading the entire study summary: I did.

I found that it supported the inalienable Constitutional rights which we currently enjoy. 

And if you want to discuss "Gun Control" with people who don't under stand why you wish to "own a gun", this may provide you with some useful talking points.

I don't now about you, but I soon tire of arguing my rights against the fears of friends and neighbors .. those who only read about one side of the issue.

This article talks about the "other side" ... our side.

"To Protect, and To Serve"

Parkland shooting: Judge says school, cops had no duty to protect kids:

John Bacon, USA TODAYPublished 11:01 a.m. ET Dec. 19, 2018 | Updated 2:52 p.m. ET Dec. 19, 2018

A Florida lawyer representing 15 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High students says he is "exploring all of our options" after a federal judge ruled that law enforcement and school officials had no legal duty to protect students during a Valentine's Day rampage at the school that left 17 people dead.  (emphasis added)

"Legal Duty" isn't necessarily the same as "Moral Duty".

*(H/T: David Codrea)*

"Stupid Is as Stupid Does"

You may recall Forrest Gump saying that line.

But now New Jersey has decided to compound their institutional stupidity:

 Former NYPD Commissioner Bernard Kerik slammed New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy over a gun law that bans off-duty officers in the state from carrying magazines holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Kerik tweeted a leaked memo to law enforcement signed by Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo, which said violating the law would result in a fourth-degree crime.

NJ cops are protesting this law, on the grounds that it puts them at a severe disadvantage when they encounter criminal actions during off-duty hours and are required (by their terms of service) to intercede when possible.

The cops are also uncomfortable because the laws reduces their ability to defend themselves as "private citizens".

But what about the other "Private Citizens"? Don't they get to defend themselves?   

Out on the street, criminals can't differentiate between off-duty police (in mufti) and private citizens.    The difference doesn't matter to the mugger or the car thief who will steal your property while menacing you with a club, fists, knife, gun or just harsh language.   And if you take a few lumps during the process, or perhaps get stabbed or shot, isn't that better than a lot of "private citizens" running around with hidden guns in Trenton? 

(And cops can't tell the difference between armed private citizens and armed thugs, which is their story.)

If cops can potentially be under-armed with 10 round magazines, aren't their non-LEO neighbors equally at risk?

Smarter than the average bear

ATF caves on "accessory" classifications.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Taxes and Firearms (ATF) has officially declined to impose regulations on devices which it has designated as an "accessory".  Specifically, those federal employees would not touch the "Bump Stock" issue with the proverbial 10 foot pole!

ATF Discontinues Accessory Classifications – Prince Law Offices Blog: if an individual or company submits an accessory to ATF for classification and it is not attached to a firearm, they won’t be rendering any decisions on it. Some readers inquired what would happen in a case where the accessory made the firearm subject to the control of the NFA. In the past, ATF has returned those items to individuals or companies that hold the appropriate type of SOT. If the individual or company lacks the appropriate SOT, ATF has not returned the item. To the best of my knowledge, ATF has not previously charged any individuals with GCA or NFA violations for seeking a determination.

You may be forgiven for considering ATF to be the one Federal Department which is staffed by "people who know better ...:

What I Like About "New Jersey"

The more I learn about New Jersey, the more I appreciate that they live 3000 miles away from me.

Why?

Not only DO they want to take guns away from their honest citizens, but they're proud of it!

If you live in New Jersey, you must relinquish your "hi-capacity magazines".  But there's an up-side:

You can sell them to New Jersey State Troopers, who CAN own those magazines which are a threat to domestic tranquility.

A Powerful Dissent Charges Judges Who Casually Uphold Magazine Restrictions With Disrespecting the Second Amendment - Hit ; Run : Reason.com:

New Jersey, which has banned magazines holding more than 15 rounds since 1990, imposed the stricter limit last June in response to mass shootings. The law requires owners of "large capacity magazines" (LCMs) to surrender them to the state, render them inoperable, modify them so they cannot hold more than 10 rounds, or sell them to authorized owners (such as retired police officers, who are exempt from the ban) by December 10. New Jersey residents who fail to comply by Monday will become felons, subject to a maximum fine of $10,000 and up to 18 months in prison for possessing previously legal products.

(Emphasis Added)

Well, isn't that lovely.  The State of New Jersey can not only deprive you of your legally acquired property, but they can coerce you to arm the minions of The State.   You know ... the fellows who will be required by law to confiscate your legally acquired property.

Funny thing is, we always thought that the whole idea of the Constitution was to protect the private individual against the predatory powers of The State.   But today, you can feed the Power of The State by selling your "High Capacity" magazines to New Jersey State Troupers.  (Will they give you a dime on the dollar when they confiscate purchase your high-capacity magazines?)

I wonder what they are going to do with them.

Sucks to live in New Jersey!

Wasn't the purpose of the Second Amendment to protect private citizens against The State?  Now, in New Jersey, they're forcing encouraging their citizens to ARM the very people who can use your legally acquired magazines against you.

Two good things about this:

(1) at last you have acknowledged who The Masters Of Your Fate  are (and it isn't you)
(2) you can rest assured that the only guns which can be used against you are in "Good Hands" ... the State Troopers.

Good bye, New Jersey.  Americans will miss you.

OOPS!

I have tripped, and hit the back of my head on the concrete patio.

Hurts a bit, it does, and so I have gathered a bunch of ice cubes in a bag and currently am trying to hold it against my head, with hopes of keeping the swelling to go down.

Here's a bit of a hint: if you must trip, don't arrange it so that your head-first point-of-impact is something as unyielding as a concrete patio.

It hurts, a lot. And for a long time.

I'm trying to type with my right hand while my left hand is holding a sandwich-bag of ice on my pate.
It's not working well, but I can only imagine the pain if I was NOT freezing the knot on my head.

NOTE: It's a "Good Idea" to wrap the ice cubes in clothe, like a wash clothe, so you aren't reduced to holding freezing hard ice cubes against your "oowie!";

The ice cube remedy takes a while to be effective, I guess.  I'm getting tired of holding the plastic bag against my head.    It's hard to type like that.  more later .... or not..

(22) All Hell Breaks Loose After Tucker Asks Jorge How Many Caravan Migrants He’ll Will Take In(VIDEO)!! - YouTube

(22) All Hell Breaks Loose After Tucker Asks Jorge How Many Caravan Migrants He’ll Will Take In(VIDEO)!! - YouTube

Do NOT assert your 2nd Amendment rights.

The police WILL arrest you if you're too 2nd Amendment!

(22) Debate with anti gunner leads to arrest at White House - YouTube:

AdamKokesh Published on May 7, 2017 SUBSCRIBE 243K Adam was arrested on a bogus warrant and did a week in jail as a result of this. He was held for Maryland to pick him up from jail in DC and they never did. This is not some big conspiracy, just another case of petty harassment of activists that is a feature of modern America, where everything I want to do is illegal. ;) 

FORTY NINETY EIGHT

This will be the 8641th post I've written to this blog since December of 1998.

But it's only the 4098th post I've actually published.   The other 4562 I sat back after I wrote and then said to myself:  "Hmmm ... that's just stupid" ... and never published them.

Given some of the *(often repetitive)* tripe I've published in the last 20 years, you can imagine the amount of embarrassment I've saved myself by declining to publish the other half of them.

So I want to thank my "constant readers" ... all four of them ... and the rest of you who somehow noticed that something I said may have seemed reading through to the end.

PS:   Yes, I noticed that the published and unpublished counts don't add up to 8641.   Blame it on the software .... they found the one extra post, I didn't.

So enjoy your turkey and trimmings.  I have my dinner cooking and it's in a pot on the front burner, not cooking for hours in the oven.

I've got to go now before the pot boils over.  I hate it when that happens.

Stolen Firearms Part II

I've received comments suggesting that, considering the ease with which the burglars managed to enter my home WHILE I WAS THERE, I need to establish more stringent security measures.


I've begun hooking the chain on the front door, besides ensuring that both locks are locked.
(My landlord assures me that only he and I have keys to the lock ... which confirms that I didn't make that extra check on Wednesday night.   My bad.)

.  I've received permission from the landlord to change the locks on the door.   In the meantime, I'm leaving the interior lights on 24/7 to dissuade return visits.   Unfortunately I'm a sound sleeper, but I reconfirm that all doors and windows are locked before I go to bed.

I know ... locking the barn door after the horses have been stolen.   All I can do is all I can do.

I don't have much ... a little cash and some old credit cards ... I've called my credit card vendors requesting that my old cards be cancelled and new cards sent to me via mail. All firearms are either locked in the safe or by my side. 

The thing is, I don't go out much.  Mostly, just a trip to the grocery store once a week, and the house is locked up then, too.

The burglars left long guns which were laying in the open (I was writing down the serial numbers to confirm my records, and went to bed before securing them .. this one night, only!)

I've been laboring under the delusion that I just "tucked them away someplace" when I went to bed, but I've now confirmed that the firearms are no longer resident here.

Now that I'm certain that it wasn't just a matter of forgetting where I put them, I'll be getting the police involved.  I should have done that immediately, but I tend to be forgetful and I needed to check the whole house.

I've done that; they're gone.

So now I have to enter a claim to my insurance company.

Unfortunately, they also found my wallet with all my credit cards, so I've been contacting card issuers to shut off the cards (no purchases have been made as of today) and request new credit cards be issued via mail.   I still have cards issued from local stores, so I'll visit them to request the old cards be cancelled and new cards issued.    They also got away with the $80 cash that was in my wallet.

This is a traumatic experience for me.    I've had trouble sleeping, I have no appetite.  It's not just  that I've discovered how vulnerable I am to theft, but that someone in this neighborhood knows that I have valuables worth stealing, and they were so comfortable with their thievery.

The only good news is that they missed the valuable competition guns (in the safe) .. it was a "Smash And grab" ... just took the handguns, which they could conceal in a bag, and then they split.  I'm concerned that they seem to have either taken the time to search the downstairs (I don't THINK they cam upstairs, where I sleep), or they were familiar with the layout.  That suggests that they have been inside my home before.  Both of those theories give me no rest.

So I'll spend another sleepless night.   And we'll see what kind of help the police can provide when I finally am able to identify all the firearms by serial numbers ... which I should have recorded LONG AGO!

Curmudgeon Blogging Not Allowed!

The reason I keep writing here is because I have this really terrific "Support Group" of people who, when I get all cranky anc curmudgeonly ... they remind me  that I'm among friends and I don't have to be The Cranky Guy (at least, not all the time(*).

*(see the comments here)

IN OTHER NEWS:
Still can't find the 'missing firearms", still concerned, still searching the house in hopes that I've merely "misplaced them".  Not expecting a good outcome at all ... which feeds my curmudgeonliness.

I've got to go to the County Sheriff on Monday and admit that I've not stored my firearms completely in compliance with Oregon new laws.    You can write me in care of Birmingham Jail.

Guns Stolen (?)

Somebody got into my house while I was asleep a couple of days ago.

They found a couple of handguns (a .38 snubby & a 9mm carry gun) out in the open on a bookshelf, and waltzed away with them.

 I had brought the guns out while I reviewing my firearms inventory, intending to make sure I had the recorded serial numbers. Started with the long guns, then got sleepy and just went to bed.

I didn't notice for a day that the handguns were not where I put them. I thought I had put them back in the safe (which was the reasonable thing to do) until I checked; they weren't there. And the front door was unlocked.

I checked with my landlord and he said only he and I had keys to my house.

My guess it that it was a target of opportunity ... but is someone checking my front door every night to see if I left it unlocked? (I "always" lock my doors, even when I'm awake and in the house. Maybe this time I forgot the check? I can't believe that.)   And as far ask I know,  my neighbors don't know that I own firearms.   How could they?  I never talk to them ... they move in and out of the neighborhood (all rental townhouse duplexes in a college term) every three to nine months as they enter and exit the local college.

Since nobody else had keys, and my landlord was out of town (has been for a week), I have to conclude that I left it unlocked. It was closed and latched, I'm certain of that.

 And I keep my porch light on 24/7/365 ... that light has been burning for seven years on the same 60 watt bulb.   It was intended to make burglars think twice before attempting entry.

 Well that didn't work and locks didn't work. What's next, booby traps?

Now I have to go to the police and report the stolen guns. That will prove awkward, as I don't have serial numbers for both handguns. I have the original box for the automatic, but I don't have any record for the revolver. I missed it by THAT MUCH! (Actually, I did write down a number but I'm not certain that the tall vertical marks are "slashes" or "ones".)

They also took my money clip, with about $80 in cash and ALL my identification (drivers license, CHL) and two or three credit cards plus my bank card.

Monday I'll go around to my bank (haven't seen any withdrawals) and the police to report the robbery. I'll get with my credit company ... I have old cards, so I have my account numbers and I can also contact them online.

I don't mind the money, and the cards and drivers license are an inconvenience. Identity theft is an issue, although all the cards are password protected so they could not be used. 

But I'm concerned about a couple of loaded handguns in the possession of burglars.

I'm thinking it was kids. Teens. There were two rifles in plain sight ... I was checking their serial numbers, too ... and they weren't touched. There were guns in a nearby *temporarily unlocked* closet that I planned to record next but hadn't got around to, and they weren't touched.

There's a moral lesson out there for someone, or for everyone.  Maybe a couple of them.

(1) Make sure you have ALL your serial numbers, plus take photos of the firearms (including close-ups of the serial numbers to confirm ... which I was in the process of doing when I went to bed without properly storing my firearms).

(2) check all your doors before you go to sleep.  I do this religiously (I think) and someone still got into my house.

There's another issue:

Oregon is playing with a law which requires that all firearms be under lock and key, when they are not on your person.  There may be a civil liability ... I could go to jail ... if I report stolen guns where were not locked in an "adequate" container.  I've always said my apartment was always locked, and so my firearms were secured.  I'm in a quandary whether I should report the guns as stolen.

I WANT to report the theft *(or maybe I just "mislaid" them)* but can I ... WILL I? ... be prosecuted because I considered my locked doors adequate security.

The problem with new gun control laws is that it makes felons of innocents. However, in spite of my good intentions, I still lost guns which I considered to be secure.

All of my handguns are now in the safe, except for the one which I keep by my bedside.   And a few long guns, in my bedroom closet.  Obviously, I need the immediate availability of at least one firearm ... even in a neighborhood which for over 20 years I have considered to be "safe".

I guess I need to start wearing a gun on my person 24/7 ... which is certain to frighten my neighbors.

I don't like being  'The Bad Guy".

Incomprehensible Retro Rock: Karma Chameleon:

What WERE we THINKING???


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmcA9LIIXWw

Passing on the Honors ... credit where due

The link below describes a Real American Hero.
On this month of Honor to Veterans, perhaps we need to remember what a Real Hero looks like:
H/T: Irons in the Fire: People who have to pad their testicles:

In the history of the U.S. Navy only seven men have earned all of the “Big Three” valor awards: Medal of Honor, Navy Cross and Silver Star Medal. Six were World War II officers, including one aviator and four submarine commanders. The seventh was enlisted sailor James Elliott “Willy” Williams in Vietnam.

Oh, so now it's OUR fault!

The Republican Party can't find electable candidates to retain control of Congress, and now it's the fault of "gun owners".

Incumbent House Losses Not a National Rebuke of ‘Trumpism’: U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)- With the turnover of the House of Representatives to the Democrats in Tuesday’s midterm elections, those who predicted a “Blue Wave” are ecstatic and pointing to a national “thumbs down” for the Donald Trump administration and its policies. While a surface “analysis,” (meaning no real effort besides parroting “progressive” talking points) may look like that’s what happened, a closer look suggests Democrat “wins” owe plenty to gun owner apathy over turning out to reelect “RINO” squishes. That and changing demographics.

emphasis added

The fact is,  the Republican Party hasn't been able to find an 'electable' candidate for years.  President Trump was only elected because he "wasn't Hillary" and many of us had to hold our nose in order to vote for him (regardless of his vow to support the Second Amendment;  a sucker bet for Constitutionals ... which most gun owners are).

I'm personally insulted by the insinuation that a small, but significant, minority of Republican voters who happen to be firearms owners are accused of failing the Republican party's candidacy.  Perhaps it would have attracted more votes if they had been more attuned to the tenor of the party members. 

I'm half-way convinced that Trey Gowdey could have been a much stronger candidate than Trump, if he had been selected and supported by the GOP in the last election.

For that matter, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R, UT-3) who retired recently, may have been a viable Presidential Candidate; he had as much respect as Gowdy has.

Ammoland, rather than parrot accusations from political fault-finders, would better serve their customers by noting that gun owners are overwhelmingly the strongest constituency for the GOP.

And the GOP needs to grow a pair, if they want to remain the party of the Constitution.

Paul Phillips

RIP Paul Philips ... 1923 -1944

My mother's "little brother" (Paul) was killed in Italy, during WWII.  He was an infantryman, he was in a unit that had landed in Italy and was working their way inland.  He was walking through a farmyard when a sniper's bullet cut his young life short.

I'm short of details.  I once asked my mother about "Uncle Paul" (who died years before I was born) and she teared up, could not talk.  This was 50 years after his death.  Paul was her  "Little Brother", and she never got over her loss.  I had to ask other relatives to learn even this much.

I had asked her about Uncle Paul a couple of years after I got back from Viet Nam.    And it wasn't until that moment that I realized how difficult it was for her to say goodbye to me, the day I shipped out to Viet Nam (on an airplane, an overnight trip ... not the weeks long ship voyage that Uncle Paul must have endured).   She couldn't even talk about him; she grieved for him all over again.

I understand now that she suffered more fear for me than I did for myself.   But she wrote me warm letters about the family and little incidents while I was gone.  And I tried to write back a couple of times a month, but it was not always possible; rain, pencil, wet paper ... I always had an excuse.

She saved my letters, and years later she gave them to me, wrapped in a red ribbon.  I was surprised about how few there were ...  the stack was only an inch thick, and this represented a year's correspondence to my parents?   It was inexcusable, if I had understood A Mother's Fears.  I can only imagine her concern for my safety.

I began to understand when my son ... "The Squid Kid" ... joined the Navy as a career.

Good news: he's in the Navy.  What "Bad Things" could happen to him?

Bad news: he chose "Master at Arms" as his MOS.

This isn't like "Shore Patrol" when they just go after drunken sailors who don't report on time after shore leave; this is like a Navy Cop, who deal with crimes and criminals in the Navy.

But he is strong, intelligent, well trained.  Much of the time he is based on Whidbey Island Navel Air Station in the Puget Sound where his family lives; most nights he gets to go home to his wife and his many children ... when he's not TDS deployed (for a year at a time) in some place I don't know how to spell.

He never writes, he rarely calls .. but when he does phone me, we talk for hours about things that don't really matter.    It just matters that we can talk to each other; I think he does it because he knows I worry about him, although I try not to show it.

He's a lot better about keeping in touch than I was.

I've become "My Mother"; worrying about my beloved soldier/sailor/airman, grateful when I hear he's still okay.

I don't want to become "My Mother", fearing the loss / weeping for decades over the loss of my beloved family member.   And I'm determined not to take counsel of my fears.

On this Veterans Day (previously "Armistice Day", celebrating the end of WWI),  I'm thinking of The Squid Kid, and his family (and many of my grandchildren), and how proud I am of my son who made it his life work to defend his country.

And I know I won't be like my mother, spending the better part of her life mourning for the beloved relative she lost during "The War To End Wars To End Wars".

So ... Ben, remember this: it's a sin for a child to die before his parents.  Be careful out there.

Alleged intent of gun control vs. actual observable goals

They say that we peace loving Americans shouldn't have guns because of public safety ... but who will take guns away from those who threaten us with violence?

This is one of the best written, and most understandable articles on Gun Control I've read recently for a LONG time!  It starts out like this:

Alleged intent of gun control vs. actual observable goals - AllOutdoor.comAllOutdoor.com:

 Pushers of gun control state the disarming the population is necessary for the safety of that same population. The punitive measures they are willing to employ to make that hypothetical safety happen look a lot like “he beats her because he loves her”. Or, as the old Soviet joke went: “We will fight for peace so vigorously that there’s (sic) won’t be anything left standing.” Gun control can only be enforced with other guns, so it’s all about concentrating military power in the hands of a small group that would keep others down forever. While some gun control supporters may be honestly deluded, many are lying from start to finish.

Read the whole thing.

If you think you need a gun to protect your self/family/home ... can you explain why?

If you don't accept the right to keep and bear arms as "legitimate", perhaps you can explain why not?

Gun Control via "Tracking Devices"? Nyet!

Is it possible to prevent school shootings by knowing when a gun owner nears a school?
The Russians think so:

Gun Control: Russian Police Proposes To Outfit All Civilian Weapons With Trackers -The Firearm Blog: the Russian Police Institute, responsible for research and development of specialised (sic) equipment and communications, proposed to outfit all civilian weapons with trackers. So when a gun owner is in close proximity to a school or university, there would be an alarm in the local police station and a SWAT unit would go out to arrest him for coming too close to an educational institution.

That wouldn't work here.   Not for me, certainly.

I live in a "college town". I have a Concealed Handgun License. This kind of extreme law would make that license worthless.

"Back in the day", I was a student here and a member of the (Gallery) Rifle Team.  I owned my own competition rifle.  That wouldn't be possible today, under such laws, without setting off alarms.   The University has 'outlier' facilities covering several square miles, and I live within a mile of the main campus.   If such a draconian law were to be imposed in my state, I couldn't even go to the grocery store ... three blocks away ... without setting off an alarm. 

Of course, the Russians don't care about freedoms; they just care about control.   There's a lot of folks in America who have the same kind of "control issues".

There's a fine line between "reasonable" and "unworkable" gun control laws.  Most folks who are champing at the bit to control guns are perfectly willing to sacrifice their freedoms for a little ... mostly elusive ... safety.

Benjamin Franklin had something to say about that.

Grounds for Impeachment?

No; he actually cannot do that.

Trump vows to end birthright citizenship with executive order:

President Donald Trump said in an interview that he plans to sign an executive order ending "birthright citizenship" for the children of non-American citizens who are born on U.S. soil, a move that would likely be challenged immediately in the courts over its constitutionality.

American Democrats have been waiting for President Trump to make a misstep, and he just tripped over his big mouth with this statement.

The office of the President is an "executive" position, which means he is responsible for executing the law.  He cannot make, change or delete laws ... which are based on the Constitution.

Trump's declaration that he can end "birthright citizenship" puts him in the political position of attempting to undermine the Constitution, and that might reasonably be grounds for a move for impeachment.

Which will certainly happen.

Impeachment isn't necessarily the same as removing him from office, but it certainly is justification for requiring him to resign (as did Nixon) with a sufficient number of responsible Republican Congressmen to reinforce the inevitable Democratic motion.

He has crossed the Rubicon, and he's not an American Caesar ... he's not strong enough to defeat all of his enemies when his own party concurs that he has overstepped his authority.

I voted for Trump on the basis that he was "Not Hillary"; but this move puts him in the same category as the power-mad Clinton family.

If there's a small town in America who is looking for a new dog-catcher, I can name a candidate.
Although it may offend the dogs.

Here's the bad news: his replacement is likely to be the vice president; and can anybody even remember HIS name?

"Trick or Treat" is no longer an American Pastime

Sigh ..

I tried.  I really tried to encourage that Great American Moment ... Halloween.

It didn't work ... for me, or for "here"

I compromised by putting out  candy where the neighborliness kids could just .. just come take it.

No need to knock on the door, or yell "Trick Or Threat, or even just hold out their bags for the expected goodies.

I just put out a barrel of candy .,.,. individually wrapped ... for them to come  by and scarf it up.

ZERO TAKERS!



I am despondent  Kids don't trust anyone any more. 

I suppose that's A Good Thing, in this age, but I had hoped that we had got past "apples with razor blades" and other nasty things by now.

I guess all of us ... adults and children too ..have learned to be cautious of feebies.

I do not LIKE this America, when Children cannot  trust Adults to be caring, loving, supportive.

( I do not like the word "Supportive"   ... I'm not sure what it means; but I THINK it means that Mom and/or Dad go out trick-or-treating with their children, if only to keep them safe

I guess I'm a product of the sixties, when we knew our neighbors and trusted them. In the blocks within a half mile of me, I reaped a lot of goodies.  I liked to wait until after 9pm, and  then work the neighbors; they NEVER had given out all the candies and goodies, so even though I was a little too old to be "Trick or Treating: them, they were glad to get rid on the last of the Candy Bowl.
p=
(I never ate the apple which some of them gave me .. Too Organic!)

Amazon.com: Watch Thank You for Your Service | Prime Video

Amazon.com: Watch Thank You for Your Service | Prime Video

"Trick or Treat" ... or "Scaredy Cat"?

I can't say that I was surprised ... although I was disappointed ... that I welcomed no "Trick or Treaters" at my doorstep this year.

I live in a culdesac in a univiersity townm, and I really didn't expect to receive any children at my front door ... encased in bizare costumes and yelling "TRICK OR TREAT!" when I responded to their knock.

It's a scary world out there, and parents are disposed to keep their children at home on this night which was expected (in my day) to be more treats to the kids, and a few tricks to curmudgeons.

I was forewarned this afternoon when I went to the store to buy candy for my neighborhood children (of whom there are only two ... it's a college town) and the shelves were FILLED with delectables.

I chose my favorite ... peanut butter in chocolate (AKA "Reese's Peanut Butter Cups" (miniatures), because they're individually wrapped, delicious, and because ... if nobody showed up, I like them as an occasional snack.

Good choice.   They're individually wrapped, and if the trick-or-treaters are too thick, I can give them only three, rather than the five or six (depending on degrees of "cuteness" their costumes displayed).

Nobody showed up.

I know have enough Peanut Butter Cups to last me for some time.

I don't blame the parents; there have been so many scarey stories about razor blades in apples,  and poisons in candy, that it's a rare parent who will let a child go Trick-or-Treating when escorted, let alone without parental guidance

I'm not going to beat the dead horse of "poisoned apples", because you've heard all the stories.

I'm just disappointed that our society has changed so much that we are no longer "comfortable" allowing our children to go outside after dark and portune our friends and neighbors for ... 
Treats.


There are only two children in my lonely Cul-de-Sac, and if I thought it would be appreciated, I would go to their door in the morning and offer all of my candy treats to them ... just to show them that their Neighbors adore and appreciate their play-time, their childish squeals of glee during play, their spats, their homely dog (whose name I don't even know, but he's a lop-eared mongrel who enjoys more love than he has earned), and their youthful enthusiasm.

We don't get enough of that last part: enthusiasm is a fading economy, and we need to encourage it.

---

I would knock on their door, offer all my accumulated "TREATS" for their children.  If only to demonstrate a spirit of neighborliness, and to show that they could have trick-or-treated at one door, at least, and been safe.

But their parents would reject my overtures, in defense of their children .., politely, I'm sure.
Yet firmly.  And I would go home with a fistful of melting chocolate dollars, and everyone would be sad.

Because we no longer trust our neighbors, who are strangers.
And we no longer start the morning by hand-watering our lawn and shouting "Hellow, Neighbor" across the street.

In my day, "our children" were "everyone's children", and we watched over them as if they were our kin.  Today .. awww, I don't want to think about it.

It sickens me the way we treat America's Children.   when they don't know, or trust their neighbors, then there's some endemic sickness in America which we're too frightened to confront.

And that's all I have to say about that.

(Say, anybody want a bag of peanut-butter-and-chocolate candy?  It's really, good.  You'll like it!)

Don't come any closer!

View From The Porch: Don't come any closer!:

So, if a dude was going for a gun, would you consider that enough of a threat to warrant shooting him?

Good Question.

Me?  I'm a product of the "late" 1960's, so maybe I could just plead: "Hey Dude, Why So Angry?"
You know, talk him into a peaceful place.

Unfortunately, I split the 1968-1970 years in an un-peaceful place. So I was never, like, really into the "Easy Peaceful Feeling" thing.  Like, y'know man?

Best response I can come up with is:
 (1)  OPEN CARRY MAKES YOU A TARGET and
 (2) AT MY AGE, THERE'S ONLY TWO KINDS  IF FIGHTS; THE ONE YOU WALK AWAY FROM, AND THE ONE YOU DON'T.

Walk away if you can.

It beats the hell out of crawling away.

RIP Dave Skinner

I wanted to write about Dave Skinner .... and while researching him,  I learned that he had died.

It's hard to write about a friend.   Maybe more remembrances.

Maybe later.

Much later.

WHAT argument about guns should be "won"?

Posit: The comparison between death/injury by automobiles v. firearms is facetious and misleading.

Tripping through the Way-Back Machine, I found this April 2018 article by Nicholas Kristof, one of my favorite Liberal (Anti-Gun) writers.

Opinion | How to Win an Argument About Guns - The New York Times:

You liberals are in a panic over guns, but look at the numbers. Any one gun is less likely to kill a person than any one vehicle. But we’re not traumatized by cars, and we don’t try to ban them. It’s true that any particular car is more likely to be involved in a fatality than any particular gun. But cars are actually a perfect example of the public health approach that we should apply to guns. We don’t ban cars, but we do work hard to take a dangerous product and regulate it to limit the damage.

(Emphasis Added:  Read the whole article to put this paragraph in the perspective of its author.)

The comparison suggests that since we've found ways to make cars less dangerous, we should be able to make guns less dangerous, too.

Well, that's just silly.
Although Nicky (who perhaps doesn't keep or carry firearms) conflates the two mechanical devices, he elides over the salient point:   Guns are dangerous because that is their purpose.

(Perhaps he proposes to "limit the damage" by making them more difficult to ... uh ... take the safety off?  Okay, that's silly, too.  I was just trying to imagine what measures Nicky was thinking of which would still keep them easily available in a self-defense situation.  I am confounded.     You think maybe Nicky didn't think it through? )

True, cars are intended for transportation.  But guns are designed to bore holes through their targets. 

Usually, that target is a piece of paper or some other inanimate object.  A tin can?   Often, a gun is used to kill an animal ... such as Bambi or The Easter Bunny. 

And once in a while a gun is used to dissuade a would-be felon from rape, mayhem, or murder.   In those cases, you don't want to piss on them, you want to step on them HARD!

Personally, I've never deliberately aimed a rifle or a pistol at a living human being; in Viet Nam, I preferred the M18 Claymore Mine or the M79 Granade Launcher ... More Bang For The Buck!
(My favorite weapon was the PRC-25 Radio, with which I could call in anything from mortar or artillery fire to an air strike.   Sorry, I digress.)

For personal/home defense, I have always preferred a 1911-style pistol in .45 ACP caliber.   Or 10mm. Or any caliber where the first digit was at least a "4".

(more overleaf)

"Oh, you're so paranoid; nobody does home invasions any more!"

Terror for the Beckhams as masked raiders attempt to break in to their Cotswolds home | Daily Mail Online: David and Victoria Beckham have been left distraught after a group of balaclava-clad burglars attempted to break into their Cotswolds mansion.  Police were called to the couple’s  6 million home in Great Tew, Oxfordshire, last Friday after their 24 hour security surveillance team noticed the intruders on the property’s CCTV.  Guests at the nearby Soho Farmhouse, which is just a stone’s throw away and a favourite haunt of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, spotted them too and ran to scare them off.

Actually, home invasions do occur to "Normal Folks", too.
(details deleted)

That Was No Lady, That Was My Mom!

Been there, done that, paid the price, never did  it again!

There comes a time in a young man's life when he just HAS to rebel against authority.

I once stole my mom's car for a joy ride while she was shopping.  Didn't get it back in time ... but I DID get it back to her.

Not every young man is as lucky:
Some moms are more ... proactive ... than my mother was.

You can rail against "Corporal Punishment", but that's one young man who now understands that you don't compromise all of your in-home security measures just for a joy ride!

He won't be sitting down for a while.

Texas Mom Punishes 14-Year-Old Son With Belt After He Takes Family’s BMW - YouTube:

Good thing she caught him in his formative years; if he had continued to "get away" with this anti-social behavior, he might someday wind up in the Oval Office!

You want Irony? I'll give you IRONY!

Mexicans are now securing their own Southern Border against a flood of "Illegal Immigrants"!

(How do you like them apples?)

BREAKING. Caravan of Central American Illegals Turned Back By Mexico: A caravan of migrants near Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala on Friday has turned back from its planned sojourn to the U.S. in the face of a heavy presence of Mexican and Guatemalan law enforcement officers, according to media reports. The Associated Press reported that thousands of migrants stopped about two blocks from the Guatemala-Mexican border crossing before turning around, saying they would wait another hour or so. The border post, reports the AP, is guarded by a heavy security force and tall metal gates. Dozens of Mexican federal police officers are on the border bridge, with hundreds more behind them. In Guatemala, government authorities closed its border gate and are standing guard with dozens of troops and two armored jeeps. Mexico’s ambassador to Guatemala says his country has decided to enforce a policy of “metered entry” since thousands of migrants are clamoring to cross, says the AP.

Yes, I'm aware that this action has been taken because (our President) Trump has threatened to withdraw all "aide" (money we've been paying them off with) from both Mexico and Guatemala if the mob reaches America's border with Mexico.

Yes, I can use the "mob" word here.

Yes, I can also use the word Schadenfreude here.

The HillaryBeast would have welcomed the mob with open arms.   I'm finally glad to acknowledge Donald Trump as the most presidential President we've seen for a long time.

We needed a leader who could make the hard decisions.

Halloween

Great Jumping Jehoshaphat.

After all these years, just watching the intro to HALLOWEEN still sends shivers up my spine.


I tried to copy the link to the movie, and what I got back when I pasted it to this page, was ..

love

I don't know where that  came from, but it rates a great big WHOA!!! 

(If you don't have a premium  connection, don't bother trying to find the online version of the movie.)

I'm tempted to segue this article to pissing all over internet proprieties, but you already know it.

Just .. go search the movie title and watch it.  It's worth the effort (great movie!) and it's  a wonderful excuse to search the "net", get pissed off, and blog something about restricted access to legitimate files.

And if this doesn't give you an entire new perspective on the theme of "horror",
I don't know what will.

Just my minor contribution to Early Halloween ...

BTW, did you know that "HALLOWEEN" is shorthand for "All Hallow's Ever"?
That's right,  The first day of November is "All Saints Day", so "Halloween" actually means

All Saints Day Evening

Yes, I know this is just a little bit early for a "HALLOWEEN" article.
I claim "FIRSTS!" on Halloween articles this year.

Animal Farm

If you're reading THAT, you should be reading THIS.

Opinion | The Rich White Civil War - The New York Times

I don't think that the NYT intended this as humor.

There will not be a quiz at the end of the class.

I just thought you ought to know that people in New York think that you are all Neanderthals with no sense of civic virtue nor acceptance of people who may be "different from you".

It's a waterfall of bullshit.  I thought of making paragraphs to separate the issues, but i decided it's better that you enjoy the stream of consciousness. You can go to the link to appreciate the original.

All emphases are added:

Opinion | The Rich White Civil War - The New York Times: (T)he report is that ideas really do drive history. Progressive Activists and Devoted Conservatives organize around coherent philosophical narratives. These narratives aren’t visions of a just society. They are narratives of menace — about who needs to be exorcised from society. Devoted Conservatives subscribe to a Hobbesian narrative. It’s a dangerous world. Life is nasty, brutish and short. We need strict values and strong authority to keep us safe. 

 Ninety percent of Devoted Conservatives think immigration is bad, while 99 percent of Progressive Activists think it is good. Seventy-six percent of Devoted Conservatives think Islam is more violent than other religions; only 3 percent of Progressive Activists agree. Eighty-six percent of Devoted Conservatives think it’s more important for children to be well behaved than creative. Only 13 percent of Progressive Activists agree. Progressive Activists, on the other hand, subscribe to a darkened Rousseauian worldview. People may be inherently good, but the hierarchical structures of society are awful. The structures of inequality and oppression have to be dismantled. Ninety-one percent of Progressive Activists say sexual harassment is common, while only 12 percent of Devoted Conservatives agree. Ninety-two percent of Progressive Activists say people don’t take racism seriously enough, compared with 6 percent of Devoted Conservatives. Eighty-six percent of Progressive Activists say life’s outcomes are outside people’s control; only 2 percent of Devoted Conservatives agree.

Okay ... if you really want to read more, it's available "below the fold".

Bumpstock Ban

David Codrea's article on "Trump's Bumpstock Ban":

Trump's Pending Bumpstock Ban - Firearms News: "In order to eliminate -- terminate -- bump stocks, we have to go through procedure. We are now at the final stages of that procedure," President Donald Trump declared in an Oct. 1 Rose Garden press conference marking the anniversary of the Las Vegas shootings. "We are knocking out bump stocks. I’ve told the NRA -- bump stocks are gone.

Read the whole thing, of course.  Nobody is more erudite nor so well reasoned as Codrea.

My opinion counts for very little, and that's because I'm a "FUDD" when it comes to Bumpstocks.

Oh, what's a Fudd?   That's a pejorative term aimed at shooters who only care about hunting.  Deer, Elk, Quail, Lions ... or Skeet, Trap, etc.  it doesn't matter; as long as the Feds don't mess with their gun sport, they could care less about any other 2nd Amendment issues.   (It's actually defined in the Urban Dictionary.)

It surprised me to learn that I was a FUDD, but actually I have no use for a Bump Stock (spelling varies).  While I've written about the issue before, I find I can't get all that worked up about it.  I mean, who needs a Bump Stock?

On the other hand, who needs an M15?   (semi-automatic version of the M16 Assault Rifle ... which unlike the M16 is NOT capable of "Selective fire").   I don't own an M15, because I have no use for it.

The point is, most people think there is no difference between the M15 (semi-auto only) and the M15 (capable of full auto fire), and so the CIVILIAN M15 is denigrated almost as vigorously as the M15.

The difference is, the people who are pushing to ban the M15 don't know the difference.
And they don't care.  They just want it banned, because it looks dangerous.

All guns are dangerous; that's the whole point.

But the "Bumpstock" does not meet the criteria of the ATF, so it's still legal.  And when the feds get around to it, they will ban the ATTACHMENT because they don't like it, even though it's currently legal.

There are various bloggers describing the future consequences of banning "attachments" and "modifications".  One of the most popular is:

Suppose you lighten the trigger pull on your firearm.  Is that to become an illegal alteration?

Would the addition of a trigger shoe (to improve the ability to touch of an accurate shot, as I did when I was 16 and competing in .22 caliber "Gallery Rifle" matches) become a banned attachment?

When the ATF becomes involved in nuances of equipment to otherwise legal firearms, it may be that they are over-reaching their mandate.

Or I may be wrong; perhaps that is precisely their "mandate".

The trouble is, we don't know what that mandate is, except that we can expect it to be "floating" ... it means whatever they say it means, and will probably be enforced by Rule Of Law.

And there's very damn little we can do about it.

I'm just in ignorant old man, but there's a difference between LAW and REGULATION ... or is there?

Can a "Regulatory Agency" put you in jail because your gear doesn't violate either law or regulation, but they just don't like it?   Can you become a criminal even though you haven't committed a criminal act?

There is only ONE RULE to Gun Safety

Omaha Outdoors has a GREAT article about firearms range safety (see *overlink*), which I recommend highly for everyone no matter how long you have been shooting.

A few years ago I volunteered at my local club to instruct in an "Introduction to USPSA".   I taught the Rules of Competition, and coached new shooters on techniques which they would find useful.

And although almost every student in the class was familiar with the Three Rules of Safe Shooting, I boiled it down to One Sacred Rule:

DO NOT SCARE THE RANGE OFFICER! 

If a student, at the end of a stage, reached down to pick up his dropped magazine before holstering his pistol, I yelled STOP! 

I was scared that he would trigger a round into his hand. (Sure, he had already cleared his pistol because I was standing there to ensure that he had done so.  But what if he was practicing alone on the range and there was nobody there to tell him to "unload and show clear" and "holster"?)   The training was as much in safety as in competition; and if they didn't learn range safety ... they failed.

One of the stages I set up for them was to start facing up-range with a loaded gun; at the buzzer, turn and engage the targets.

I would stand one foot in front of them while they were facing uprange.  I would look right in his eyes, and say:  "okay, at the buzzer, turn and draw and engage the targets.  If you draw before you turn, your gun will be pointed at my feet.  Don't do that. "

Because Rule One was always: "Don't Scare The Range Officer!!!"

New shooters are usually apprehensive; the scary ones are those who are not apprehensive.

One weekend (the weekend immediately following the class) I attended a match where three of my new students were on their "maiden match".   After one of the students (the cocky one) finished his stage and returned to the spectator area to reload magazines, I stood on the other side of the counter and confronted him, saying: 

"Nice run.  Now what did you do wrong?"I don't know.
What did the RO say when you finished shooting?   Exactly?Uh ... "if you are finished unload and show clear.  If clear, hammer down and holster."
And what did you do next?Uh ... I cleared, then picked up my magazine.
And did you sweep yourself because you hadn't holstered?No, I did not.
No, but The RO didn't say "The Range Is Clear" so you could be DQ'd even though you had finished the stage and the gun was unloaded.    

That earned me a dirty look, because I was treating him like a newby.   Which he was.

His range experience had been unsupervised for the years he had been shooting ... and he was a military veteran with lots of range time.   He thought he knew all the important stuff.

But he had not learned to shoot competitively under the direction of Range Safety Officer who was using the required commands to ensure the safety of everyone ... not least the shooter himself.

Both USPSA and IPSC (and other organized competitive shooting sports) consider SAFETY to be the most important consideration; which is a difficult concept for very competitive people to assimilate because all they think about is to get good hits as quickly as humanly possible.  They want to be winners.

Range officers accept that, but their most important consideration is the safety of everyone on the range.   They want everybody to be survivors. (Okay, then there's obeying the stage rules, the range rules, and not using the "F-bomb" every time a reload fails ....)


ORIGINAL ARTICLE FROM OMAHA OUTDOORS: *overlink*

Yeah, what HE said!

Great Rant posted on Never Yet Melted.

It's one of those moments when you fall back in awe, saying to yourself:

"Gee ... I wish I had said that!"

I won't provide the link or the URL to the original youtube video.
The full credit (and hits-count) goes to the source:

https://neveryetmelted.com/2018/10/14/rejoinder-to-the-remoaners/

England doesn't allow guns, so they have "Acid Attacks"

England is so proud of their lack of "firearms violence".

So instead, their citizens are throwing acid in the face of their victims.

Hmmm ... getting shot or getting your eyes and face burned out.
It's difficult to choose which is worse, isn't it?

Weekly Rate Of Acid Attacks In U.K. Hits Staggering Number, Khan's London Hit Hardest | Daily Wire: 

New police figures reveal that the U.K. is averaging at least 15 barbaric acid attacks a week. The figures, first reported by The Mirror, show a total of 2,602 reported attacks from January 2015 to May of this year, averaging out to 15 per week. In comparison, there were only 100 total attacks reported from 2007 to 2011. Stunningly, nearly 75% of such attacks have been carried out in London, a city often praised by the Left for its multiculturalism and tolerance.

Somehow, I don't think that "GUNS" are the problem.   But your mayor thinks CARS are!

The problem is that Some People are vicious, aggressive, and they just want to do the most harm possible to their fellow citizens.

I'm unconvinced that GUNS are the problem; ever look at your mix of immigrants?
(You English are quite proud of that, aren't you?  Funny how nobody has identified their attackers .. oh, but the victims are blind, aren't they?  Darn, how inconvenient!)

I think it's society .. the people who walk past you every day on your way to work ... who are the problem!   England, I'm talking to you.  (And I hope and pray that this never comes to America!)

What's worse?

Is it worse to be permanently disfigured (blinded?) by having acid thrown in your face, and live with that?   Or is it worse to be shot, and possibly die?

Tough to choose, isn't it?

Me?  I'd rather be dead (and having had the choice whether to be armed to defend myself).

Portland has become the Canker Sore of Oregon

I use to live in Portland (the largest city in the state), back about 40 years ago.

I sold my house for "$2000, and you take over the payments" on my GI Bill loan. 

Ten years earlier, $30,000 for a cottage on the East Side of Portland was (in the words of our real estate agent when my wife and I bought it) a "steal".

But I got divorced, and gave my ex-wife the proceeds from selling the house.   At the time, I regretted having give up a 2-story house with a front and (fenced) back yard, detached garage, and a basement with an extra bedroom.

Now ... I realize that I could not have foreseen what a Liberal Hell-hole Portland would become.   And I'm glad I got out while "the getting was good".

What happened to Portland is what's happening to America.  Our elected officials are allowing violence by people who call themselves "anti-fascists", but who are in fact becoming the most violent fascists in America.

What happened in Portland is fanatics who wear masks and hoodies and assault total strangers on the mean streets of our most "Progressive" city.   

It's difficult to understand what these Rebels Without A Cause want, but they are more than willing to engage in anonymous violence to achieve their bizarre purpose.

It's just a guess, but I think what they want is anarchy.   So I'll call them Anarchists; people who have no clearly defined goal but mob rule .... and they do it because they can.

The state of Oregon, the city of Portland, have made no effort to curb these Anarchists even while they commit crimes of assault against innocent passers-by.

...

I remember, back in the day, driving 'home' to Portland and being greeted by a huge neon sign of a prancing White Stag (the emblem of a well-known outdoor clothing company)

That sign was ... well, it felt like coming home to me.   It was a comfortable welcome to the Portland of my era, and I loved it.

I don't know if that sign is still up; I have passed through Portland a few times on my way up the I5 Interstate highway, but I no longer look for the White Stag sign.  In fact, I try not to look at anything but the road; it's all too gruesome and disgusting to drive through this "Major City".

Portland, Oregon: The canary in a coal mine for the violent Left:

The last time I passed through Portland, Oregon, I was treated to the sight of a bum squatting with his trousers around his ankles, dumping a huge load of poop on the pedestrian walkway of the Morrison Street bridge. 

This was not the Portland of my memories. It was a Third World hell-hole, which I had become accustomed to in Viet Nam ... but not in My America!

This was a consequence of the progressive permissiveness which seems, to me, endemic to extend "Liberality" to the point where laws are not enforced,  anarchy is tacitly permitted, and basic rules of respectable human behavior are ignored.

Forget the riots, forget the protests, and forget the concept of human dignity.

If anyone wonders why I am a convicted Conservative, it's because I think that in an America which is becoming increasingly populated by people who have no concept of "Correct Behavior" ...

I don't want to be known as a part of that America.

This is not the America which drafted me, which sent me to war, or which expected me to act like a responsible human being in a country that I didn't care whether it went communist or was free.

Because I was, and I remain, an American.   I have my standards ... and I insist that those standards are respected and accepted by every American.

Don't shit on the bridge.
Don't shit on the Constitution.

Is that too much to ask?

Ask The Man Who Owns One

) What Happens When Democrats Run Your State? - YouTube:

Here's What Happens When Democrats Run Your State Government.

Shit Happens.
The good news? Actually, there is no good news.

California Sucks.  Wonderful climate, Horrible politics.
Welcome to California ... you're screwed!

Hotel California is so  "out of date"..

The Great Martian War

I found this this  ... a version of H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds ...while looking for something else on the internet.
Pretty good lead-up to halloween, I think.

Getting Shot: "It Hurts!"

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2018
Quora Question: What does it feel like to be shot with a .22 caliber firearm?

Strange as it may seem, there are still people out there who deliberately coax people to shoot them ... just to see what it feels like.

Have you ever had your curiosity overwhelm your good sense?

Well, of course you have.  So have I.  But chances are, neither of us have taken it to this degree of inanity.   I've seen people get shot, and I have no doubt that it hurts.  More-over, it typically results in a degree of leakage of "Precious Bodily Fluids". 

Usually the leakage is blood, but I've seen grown men piss themselves after being shot too ...  I'm not sure which is the most embarrassing, but apparently when you're bleeding a lot you don't care much about being "embarrassed".

Here's my advice about being shot:   Avoid it.

Kavanaugh

Well, this finally convinced me that Judge Kavanaugh is a moral and temperate man:

Feinstein hid an allegation of sexual assault against Kavanaugh - Vox:

Sen. Dianne Feinstein didn’t tell fellow Democrats on the Judiciary Committee that she’d received a letter accusing Brett Kavanaugh of attempting to force himself on a woman while both were in high school because, as the New Yorker reports, she didn’t want his confirmation hearings to be about his private life.

Anything that DiFi says about a Republican must always be a step to her goal of eliminating Conservatives from having any influence on American politics.

That she had this poison pen letter, and didn't use it immediately, is indicative that even she doesn't believe it.   (Speaking of believing; I don't for a minute believe that DiFi has any qualms about using personal character attacks against her foes ... and a Conservative Supreme Court Judge certainly qualifies.)

Kavanaugh's apparent anger at the accusations thrown at him  confirm  (for me) his sterling qualifications for the post.  Any man who won't react to unjust and unsubstantiated slurs on his character ... has no character.   The Washington Examiner says:

... if half the political machinery of the federal government, the leaders of one party, and about half of the media came after you with a campaign of lies — which is what this is, if Kavanaugh isn't guilty of rape and sexual assault — you would be angry.

... and while I'm no great fan of Washington newshawks, I'm inclined to agree with this statement.

I'm determined to be "not political", and I've tried to resist the urge to comment on this confirmation process.   But this whole fol-de-rol sounds too much like a political hatchet job to be ignored.

Nobody knows, really, what his relationship was with the teen-age chippie at a beer party umpteen years ago.   Still, it's perhaps telling that the WORST thing his political opponents (*cough* liberals *cough* ) can find to say about him is that he might have got fresh with a girl when he was 19 years old ... I think they may be so desperate to torpedo the political career of a Conservative that they're willing to go to any extreme to paint him black.








x

c

Is it Ignorance .. or apathy?

Judge Kavanaugh no longer teaching at Harvard Law School

John Lott's Website: Seriously, only a little over 700 signatures by Monday with students and alumni who graduated from as far back as 1959. Harvard has about 500 entering students each year. Over say the last 30 years that would be 15,000 graduates. There are currently 1,990 enrolled law students. So the number of signers equals only about one-third of those currently enrolled, let alone all the alumni who have graduated over the decades.

As far as I know, this is "Breaking News".

I never wanted to get into this purely political free-for-all, but at this point the controversy over Judge Kavanaugh's Supreme Court selection has become the number one political issue ... and it should not be.

The Liberal issue seems to be over "Abortion Rights", or the rights of a woman to terminate a pregnancy.   I'm not aware of any other "political" issue which would suggest that Judge Kavanaugh might not be a viable Supreme Court Judge.

WTF do they care?  Most of the Liberal congresspersons are too old to beget congress-children.

And those who are not "Too old", have political issues in mind; issues which do not affect them personally.

While the "abortion" issue is a legitimate controversy, this seems to be an issue which is better handled in the courts; it's not a presidential issue until he makes it so, and Judge Kavanaugh does not strike me as an judiciary who is determined to rule by fiat.

So, what's left?  The Left just doesn't want another Conservative on the Supreme Court .. and that's a legitimate concern ("dead babies" not having a vote.)

 With an odd number of judges among the Supremes, it's no wonder that the Left is worried that The Court might demonstrate a powerful shift to the Right upon confirmation of Kavanaugh's addition to The Court.

Bump Stocks Commentary

"What we've here ... is FAILURE ... to COMMUNICATE."

SayUncle: A year after Vegas shooting, ATF emails reveal blame, alarm over bump stocks. ATF stated they were suddenly thrown into the political by NRA, who pointed out they were ATF approved. 

What began as a "National Tragedy" has evolved into finger-pointing and a search for someone to blame for the insanity of one man.

Did I say "someone"?

Anyone! 

(Anyone except for the demented mass murderer who used a loophole in the law to arm himself for what is for all intents and purposes a "loophole" in the law.)

The hammer is going to fall on the ATF, and maybe that's legitimate; but maybe it's not.

Speaking of hammers, I'm pretty sure I'll get hammered for what I'm about to say:

Because of the Las Vegas Massacre, the ATF will eventually be mandated to severely regulate every accessory and replacement part to your firearms   (starting with firing pins, which will be required to "stamp" a serial number on the primer or base of your ammunition)  ... new rules, regulations and laws. 

Your access to replacement parts will be subject to federal oversight; including a firing pin (needs a serial number!), a trigger shoe, or adjustment to effect a lighter trigger pull. 

A "Normal Capacity Magazine" will be legally restricted by the Federal Government.

Your 12-gauge shotgun could be registered as a "hand cannon" because it is capable of shooting slugs (which are the only gun currently legal for deer hunting in some states) and may be designated a "Hand Cannon".   (Okay, I'm making that up. )

I'm not even going to try to address the possibility that you can't replace or modify the stock on your rifle with a "custom made" stock; that, too, will be serialized.

Why? Because the national hysteria about guns makes your deer gun a sniper rifle; your 12 gauge Quail Gun is an instrument of Mass Murder, and your WWI 1911 pistol will be illegal because it can accept a magazine of more then (5, 6, 8, or ten round) capacity.

This will result in arcane rules which make no sense to the Common Man, make it more expensive to own a firearm, and the government will become even more intrusive in your day-to-day life as a firearms owner.

Count on it.   Today, Government is not here to help you, but to turn you into a nameless plebe with even more limited rights.

And people say MY "game" is dangerous!

After competing in shooting sports for 60 years, I can only attest to one minor injury to a shooter.

Football?   Not so safe.

I've railed before about the dangers of head injuries to high school students. 
Same thing for college students.

Tennessee State LB Christion Abercrombie in critical condition was injured on normal 'football play' - AOL News:

It was just a normal “football play” that resulted in a serious injury for Tennessee State linebacker Christion Abercrombie. According to The Tennessean, TSU head coach Rod Reed said in a radio interview Sunday morning that Abercrombie “was taking on a block” in the second quarter against Vanderbilt when he suffered what has been deemed a serious head injury. “It wasn’t anything malicious or dirty or anything like that. Just an unfortunate situation,” Reed said.

(emphasis added)

Maybe he'll quit football and take up competitive shooting .. if he recovers.

Slippery Slope

The issue of bump-fire stocks has created an entirely new aspect of the Second Amendment.

Whether a bump-fire stock (see below) obscures the fine line between  "semi-automatic fire" and "Full automatic fire" is either an excuse for the Federales to impose new restrictions on the (supposedly) impermeable Second Amendment,  or it's a "loophole" which law-abiding American Citizens are using to grandfather a new generation of (more or less) "AUTOMATIC WEAPONS" which had not been anticipated by previous law-makers; that is the question.

I personally have no use for a "Bump-Fire stock".  I'm not "flock-shooting" so I have no dog in this hunt.

But (if and) when the Federal Government arbitrarily decrees that a technological innovation "cleverly" eludes their published laws, they either need to change their laws (imposing the possibility of a "grandfather" effect on previously owned weapons) or they need to think whether their Federal mandate covers their ass.   

Which it does not.

If I read this clearly, Uncle Sam has three options; any of which will probably not meet their goal of keeping fully-automatic weapons out of the hands of law-abiding AMERICANS:

(1) Write a bunch of rules specific to "Bump Stocks" which will be obviated as soon as the firearms manufacturers change one tiny feature of their product:
(2) write some other rules which SPECIFICALLY deny the "Bump Stocks" by name;
(3) give it up, and let the manufacturers build whatever they want;  and ... by the way ... delete the "full automatic" rules currently in place.

My best guess is that none of these arbitrary measures well be adopted, or enacted as LAW, because people will always find a way.     It's better to just delete all the fully-automatic weapons laws and let Americans seek their own best protection. 

What ... gangsters don't already have machine guns?
Why shouldn't we?

Want to start a rebellion?

Impose the  most strict laws possible, then wait and see how many people disobey the law; you will have lawsuits up the ass trying to resist the natural instinct of otherwise law-abiding citizens who recognize a bad law when they see it.   Many people, otherwise law-abiding, will deliberately violate laws  which they believe stomp on the Constitutional Rights which we have all been assured will be protected by our elected representatives.

Gun Owners Foundation Submits Comments to ATF Over Proposed Bump Stock Ban: If this administration outlaws bump stocks, without regard for the limitations on ATF authority under federal law, it will put into place a slippery slope for future, anti-gun presidents. If ATF chooses to ignore the statutory definition of a machinegun [sic], and instead creates a new definition based on anything that “increases the rate of fire” of a semi-automatic firearm, then far more is at risk than mere bump stocks.

Would-be lawmakers want to pay close attention to the Maverick personalities of the American Citizen.   Many people would deliberately disobey such ... a law if only to register their disgust at the distrust of their government to assume that owning a "questionable" firearm is equivalent to violent intentions.

I've been to war, and I didn't like it; but when it comes to American Constitutional Freedoms, any administrative official who tramples on our (narrowly defined) Rights must be prepared to discuss just WHY he doesn't trust the honor of the people who voted him into office.

That, which is specifically prohibited, is prohibited.
That which is not prohibited, is allowed.

vs:

That which is specifically allowed, is  allowed;
that which is not specifically allowed, is prohibited.

Which world-state would YOU prefer?

2nd Amendment Felonious?

Going for a Sunday drive?

Got a gun in your car?'

Under "certain circumstances" and in "some areas", you may be treated as if you were a felon if you're pulled over, and if a subsequent search of your car reveals that you are in possession of a gun.

Apparently, it doesn't matter that you don't have a criminal record, or that you are not a "fugitive", or that you have a Concealed Carry Permit..  All that matters is that you are someone who they don't know personally, and you are in possession of a firearm (see: Second Amendment).

I don't know more about the issue than you can learn from the link (below); but I know that it infringes on MY Constitutional Rights.  If I can be disarmed ... or arrested ... by police simply because I have a gun in my car, then my Second Amendment rights have just been abridged.  And the Constitution says that is "NOT OKAY!"

Curious ... I wonder if I can confiscate the firearms worn by the police who would search my automobile; certainly, if they can take my guns, why can't I take theirs?  They have no more rights than I do,  (Well, they have the force which they may impose upon me ... but is that American?)




Robinson v. US:

On July 24, Gun Owners and Gun Owners Foundation filed a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in the case Robinson v. United States. Click -the link above - to read the brief. This brief urges the High Court to review a court of appeals decision that authorizes the police to search and disarm a gun owner at a traffic stop — even if the firearm is being lawfully carried under state law.    (emphasis added) The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit had ruled that the police are justified in treating anyone who may have a gun as if he were an armed and dangerous criminal — including drawing their guns, ordering him out of the car, and disarming him.

Our brief argued that lawful gun carriers actually are among the most trustworthy people in our society, and pose virtually no danger to the police. Not only did the Second Amendment’s framers trust gun owners, most state governments do as well, along with the overwhelming majority of police officers. It appears that it is only unelected, liberal federal judges distrust lawful gun owners. We explain that a citizen’s exercise of his Second Amendment rights to bear arms should not cause him to waive his Fourth Amendment rights to be free from searches and seizures of his property. Lastly, our brief dispelled the notion that firearms themselves are “inherently dangerous,” and that the lower court’s opinion will only serve to create problems between the police and gun owners during traffic stops.

I suggest that I have had more rounds aimed at me .. by weight and count ... from "Friendly Fire" than nine out of ten police have cringed under. I have had mornings in Viet Nam when I had to shake out my bed-tarp to rid it of shrapnel,  myself having spent my night in a tree.

It's not that policemen are wimps; it's just that they take incoming fire more personally.
But when the Democrats come after me because I have a gun in my car , even though I have a concealed carry permit (and even though I am protected by the Second Amendment), I begin to wonder just whose side they are on.

Certainly, they're not on MY side; they don't want me to have a gun because ... I don't know; they don't trust me to be armed and not a felon?  (Considering the recent legislation, which seems to provide more rights to convicted felons, I wonder if the Democrats like them more than Registered Republicans~!)

femiistas more more Maacho?

Criminals and the Guns They Carry

This 2015 article about crime guns contains some information which  you may find interesting.

It speaks to the caliber and conformation (eg: revolver vs pistol) of firearms commonly carried by criminals, and more interestingly describes the maintenance level which felons use in their weapons.

Most importantly, it speaks to the various actions which you might take (or not take) when confronted by an assailant .. whose gun may or may not be functinable.

Criminals and the Guns They Carry | Active Response Training:

“If you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss.” Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu said this over 2000 years ago in his book The Art of War It’s hardly new advice. Yet it is just as useful now as it was so many centuries ago.

Curiously, the article suggests that criminals are often not familiar with their weapons, to the point where they are not aware of basic maintenance procedures.   Some guns taken from felons have been found to be non-functional; that means, they don't work.

Don't assume, ever, that their weapons are not functional!