Le Morte de le Beloved Kimber: A Toy Story

I broke my Kimber Custom 1911 in .45acp pistol at the match today.

After 17 years (I bought it for under $300 in 1998) and untold thousands of rounds punched through the gun ... I broke it.

I was at an IPSC [USPSA] match at the Albany gun club, and not doing all that well because I haven't been attending many matches lately I'm out of practice. when I found myself on the Third Stage with a gun that wouldn't allow me to reload a new magazine.

Let me be a bit clearer:

I tried to do a reload, but the magazine would only go halfway in.  I tried everything; I even leaned over and whispered softly:  "I promise I'll still respect you in the morning" but that didn't work.

So I quit the stage with one magazine fired in what I had expected to be a three-magazine problem (8-round magazines), and took a zero on the stage.

[NOTE:  I had a GREAT time:  about 11 seconds on a 30-second stage, but I got a zero score of course because I ONLY SHOT EIGHT ROUNDS.]

After I signed the score sheet, I took my broke-dick gun to the safety table to get a good look at it.  After I field-stripped it and found some strong sunlight, I could look down at the magazine well through the top of the frame, and the right-hand side of the trigger yoke was protruding into the magazine well a good eighth of an inch.  It didn't look as if it had broken (at least in that part I could see), but it was at least bent.  Into the magazine well.  

And here I always thought I had a delicate finger on the trigger!

Which explained why I couldn't even drop the hammer to clear the stage: by IPSC rules, the gun didn't leave the stage "loaded" but I wasn't "clear" in the strictest sense.

I gave The Beloved Kimber to my friend, The Hobo Brasser (THB), to do the mechanical stuff involved in removing the old trigger.  I'll be ordering a replacement trigger from Brownell's (I guess), and have it delivered to THB.

 I have as much mechanical ingenuity as a hog in a sty, except perhaps not as much manual dexterity.

(I once tried to replace the floater bulb in an old-style toilet:  I broke the porcelain tank in the process.  I ended up having to buy a new toilet and hiring a plumber to install it.  THAT is how much of a mechanic I am!)

TO CONTINUE:
My friend THB said "I've got a back-up 1911 in the car, you can finish the match with that", which generous offer I gratefully accepted.  I finished the match with a gun that felt a LOT different (it was a Taurus, and the grip safety ... unlike The Beloved Kimber ... had not been pinned).

But wait: there's more!

"...Conflicting Rights...." Yes, but .... No More Snarling Dogs!

I read that there's a lot of outrage about the recent Supreme Court decision accepting the concept of Gay Marriage.

I don't understand that.

What's the difference between a Gay Person and a Black Person?

Borepatch: Conflicting Rights and Our Ongoing Discussion:

In a free state, there can be no special rights. We take our rights equally. If the cake bakers had said they wouldn't bake a cake because one of the women was wearing a Confederate flag on her t-shirt, how would the press have handled it? It used to be I got to decide who I would buy things from and what I would buy. The businessman got to decide who he would sell to. It is no longer that way and it will not come back. Now I can be forced by law to buy things (healthcare, as a start) and businesses can be forced by law to sell.

Equal Rights .. it's a wonderful thing!

But some people have lately been saying that some people shouldn't marry some other people.


One thing President Obama has done for this country (or perhaps what he has done TO this country) is that he has forced us to look at societal issues from a new perspective.

President Eisenhower forced us to look at our society from the perspective of a Black Person when he integrated schools and lunch counters in the 1950's.

The 1950s were a good time to be alive. ... It must have seemed to most Americans that God had truly blessed America. ... But an important change had been occurring in the nation. In the post-war period a massive demographic change began to occur. Blacks in large numbers started to move out of the South to other parts of the country.

So ... if you don't like the way a vendor sells his wares,  you don't buy from him.  Okay, I get that.  It's a Free Country.

We thought we had finally got our minds around the whole Black Thing when Ike took on the racial bigotry of Alabama.  No more apartheid, no more 'separate but equal' bull-crap.  No more water hoses, no more snarling dogs

Okay, we're still trying to get that "Black Thing" figured out.  We'll do it, though.  This is America.  Land of the Free, Home of the brave.

Except we're not yet brave enough to see ALL minorities in the same light as we are now (sort-of / kinda) seeing Racial differences.

Gay Marriage

There use to be this really awful term :"miscegenation".

It referred to marriage between people of different races.   Horrible word, I'm embarrassed that there's even a dictionary word for this ... this expression of acceptance between two people regardless of their race.

But we got past that, and we're a better people for our acceptance that people will find love where it happens, and the rest of the world be damned.

Now we're getting equally all worked up because persons of ...not a DIFFERENCE but a SAMENESS ... have grown to hope that their country will learn to accept them as readily as they did Black/White relationships.

Gays.

Queers.

Lesbians.

Dykes.

I read so many rants about how Gay Marriage is going to undermine the Sanctity of Marriage.  But I'm not quite sure how that works.

As near as I can tell, the purpose of marriage (according to what I read) is to bless the conjugation of a man and a woman to produce children.

I married twice.   My first wife and I were blessed with two beautiful children who have grown up to be wonderful people.

My second wife and I produced no children.  She and I both had children by previous marriages, and she was no longer able to have children.  It did not matter to me; I love both my children and hers, and I felt no drive to be fecund.

So if the people who say that the purpose of marriage is to produce children, then my second marriage was an aberration?

Funny, it didn't seem that way to me.

Can someone please explain to me why it's okay that I married a woman who could no longer bear children, but if I had married a man who (obviously) could not bear children, then that would have undermined the sanctity of marriage?

The entire outbreak of outrage over gay marriage seems so queer .... I just don't understand it.

But the Good Thing is ... nobody is going to introduce aggressive canines and fire hoses at the marriage ceremony of Adam and Steve.

It's a Free Country.  This is America!

You may not like it.  I may not like it.  But it's none of our business, so ...

STFU

The Importance of Being Earnest

Sometimes you receive email from someone who sounds so real and the content is so earnest, you cannot resist replying ... even if the content is so bogus that you just KNOW it's a sham.  But you must resist the temptation anyway.

I recently received the following email:

Dear *****  

I just sent you an email note and apparently this got confused with sp*a*m. You may recall my earlier correspondence regarding our defending gun rights, including the work by our Research Fellow Stephen Halbrook, the renowned Second Amendment legal scholar, author and attorney:

xxxxx DELETED LINK TO STEPHEN HOLBROOK PROFILE AT INDEPENDENT INSTITUTE xxxxx

Hence, would you be so kind as to advise your email provider to remove your spam complaint?
Thank you again!
Best regards,
David

[obfuscatory text and highlighting added]

He didn't send me a previous email, nothing was 'confused' (my software works differently), and if an earlier email had been quarantined by my security software, then this email would have suffered the same fate.

I have not, of course, been corresponding directly with any member of the Independence Institute.  The premise is bogus, as is the entire email.

NCIS performs criminal backgroiund checks on firearms purchasers?

Private Gun Ownership on the Rise in US (Infographic) | Worldwide Gun Ownership & Firearms: Private Gun Ownership on the Rise (Infographic) by Ross Toro, Infographics Artist January 04, 2012 03:01pm ET

I ran across a firearms-related link *  to LIVESCIENCE today, and I was appalled by the political bias demonstrated in their articles.

There I found this infographic:

No, it wasn't a typo.  This 'scientific' website was so certain of itself that it took the acronym NICS, scrambled it to NCIS, and then looked up that acronym.

Note the source of the information.  I'm pretty sure that the FBI knows that background checks are really conducted by the National Instant Criminal Background System, not the Naval Criminal Investigation Service.

Or by a television series.

Perfect is the enemy of Good

In response to an article about point shooting, I have some opinions about this:

When I was going through Advanced Infantry Training (AIT) in 1969, one day our instructors took my class to the range to show us what Point Shooting really means.

They gave us BB-guns ... spring loaded, so very low powered (and also very inexpensive to teach the lesson) ... and told us that they were going to teach us to shootcoins out of the sky without using the sights.

Actually, the guns had sights, albeit crude ones.  But we soon learned that the instructors were correct.  In one afternoon we learned to point-shoot moving objects without really using the sights, and with an impressive degree of accuracy.

We started out shooting quarters out of the air.  We had to supply our own quarters.

As the exercise progressed (they actually gave us two or three hours to practice), we found that quarters were too easy to hit.

I found that I could get one-shot hits on dimes tossed into the air with a surprising consistency.

Which is to say ... after a while, I couldn't miss!

Independence Day and Flashback

There are two days of the year when Americans act like crazed Savages.

New Years Day, and Independence Day.

This is the second of those days, and my neighborhood sounds like a war zone.

It's the fireworks.

Usually, I don't mind loud noises.  Hell, I spend as much time as I can on a firing range, contributing to the general miasma of Gunsmoke.  Sometimes I look around for James Arness, but he's not there, so .. I expect the noise and the light and the smell.

But when all of my neighbors are shooting off fireworks, sometimes I get that "Flashback" thingie.

I can handle the strings of firecrackers, although too often it sounds like a squad initiating an ambush with their M16s.

The big aerial bombs, though, they sound like the CRUMP! of a B52 strike from a distance.  Sometimes like claymore mines, or even hand grenades.  It depends on how far away they are when they go off.

This is the one day a year when it gets me.

I've learned that it's easier to handle if I go outside and watch the displays .... at least it helps me to put the noises and the flashes of light into the perspective.  I tell myself: "It's okay, it's just fireworks.  people are having fun.  Relax and enjoy it."

A few years ago a group of folks who enjoy shooting together in USPSA matches gathered at a friend's house for a Fourth of July celebration.  After dinner, we gathered at the curb while the host set off fireworks.   I recall that, when a string of firecrackers went off, The Hobo Brasser (a certified Chief Range Officer) was counting off:

Two Alpha, Two Alpha, Two Alpha ....

In the context, it was great.  It was fun, and fine, just good friends enjoying the display.

Papal Opinion on Guns is like my opinion on God

On the pope, gun laws and hunters:

June 28, 2015
Last week, hunters took notice as the pope questioned whether gun manufacturers could call themselves Christians, and the U.S. president again suggested we start limiting firearms.
 Pope Francis said: "It makes me think of ... people, managers, businessmen who call themselves Christian and they manufacture weapons. That leads to a bit a distrust, doesn't it?" The pope didn't make an exception for hunting weapons.
,,,, every pope for centuries has been protected by an elite military force called the Swiss Guard. Though these defenders of his holiness carry swords, they also carry submachine guns, specifically the Heckler & Koch MP5.

I may have not offended my friends sufficiently with my last article.

So whether or not I am forgiven for my criticism here might be difficult.

World Leaders may be anti-gun, but they use hired goons with guns to defend their own person from anarchists, terrorists, assassins and louts.

Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage may pave way for expanded gun rights.

Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage may pave way for expanded gun rights.:
(June 27, 2015)

With the high court’s latest ruling on same-sex marriages, some contend the decision could lead to increased gun rights, specifically national CCW reciprocity, by using the same argument. Friday the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the Fourteenth Amendment requires a state to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and recognize those sanctioned by other states. “No longer may this liberty be denied,” Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for the majority in the landmark decision that arguably made same sex marriage a reality in the 13 remaining states that continued to ban the practice.

With all due respect for those who do not agree with this decision, I do not understand what the controversy is all about.

This is a Freedom ruling; it allows everyone to determine their own preferences, and live under the same rules for Homosexuals as are accorded to Heterosexuals.

I acknowledge that some people consider that this undermines the sanctity of marriage.  I don't see that anywhere in the Constitution, which generally acknowledges rights, rather than establishing limitations on The People (which is NOT the purpose of the Constitution!)   I've heard the expression "Sanctity of Marriage".  Is this something which must be 'protected'?  Or is it something which speaks for itself?

So, why should I care if homosexuals marry?   You don't agree with me?  First Amendment Protection .. rail away, I 'get' to say this because I CAN.  (Of course, you can be vehement in your disagreement; it's your right, too.)

 With similar logic applied, gun rights advocates argue that the nation’s patchwork of firearms laws governing the concealed carry of handguns are now circumspect under the same guidelines. In short, they reason if marriage equality is guaranteed from state to state, then so should concealed carry rights.

(emphasis added)

WAPO LamentsThat "Feelings Based" Anti-Gun Proposals Are Unsuccessful ... But They Got GAME!

Look away from the Confederate flag to what Mr. Roof held in his other hand - The Washington Post:

The Washington Post admits that Gun Control Laws would be unproductive for the pruposes they have been proposed ... prevent "mass shootings":

By Editorial Board June 26

Adding to the feelings of defeat is the sense that many of the gun-control policies that seem politically feasible wouldn’t necessarily have stopped the country’s most spectacular mass shootings. Mr. Lanza used his mother’s gun collection. Mr. Roof apparently didn’t set off alarms in a background check. None of the defeatism is warranted. Mass shootings draw attention to the nation’s relationship with guns. They should spur us to action because they demonstrate the easy, efficient horror that guns are capable of inflicting, and they make us wonder about permissive gun policies.

 .... but they think that Gun Control Laws should be enacted 'anyway', because ...

Public policy can’t prevent every gun death. But it can do a lot more than it is now: make it harder for the mentally ill, family abusers or criminals to obtain and keep firearms; crack down on gun trafficking; require proper gun storage; and reconsider laws that seem to encourage people to use guns in situations they consider threatening. 

The odd thing is,  most of the laws which they seem to espouse have been enacted here and there, with no apparent influence on those "mass shooters" who commit these heinous crimes.

But they still want to enact them universally.

Point/Counterpoint

Rieder: No, not 'too soon' to talk gun control:

POINT:
Rem Rieder, USA TODAY3:48 p.m. EDT June 22, 2015

Of course, gun control is hardly a panacea. It won't mean an immediate end to our hideous series of mass murders. And the measures gun-control advocates push will hardly mean endangering Second Amendment rights and wrenching all guns from the hands of law-abiding Americans, no matter what the National Rifle Association tries to tell you. Most of the measures are modest; Obama's centerpiece measures after the Newtown carnage would have established background checks for those buying firearms at gun shows and online and banned assault weapons.
 But at least they are a start, an effort to deal with the recurring bloody episodes that have become an all-too-common part of the American landscape. That beats unctuous hand-wringing. The president's remarks about Charleston marked his 14th statement about shootings — 11 of them in the U.S. — since he took office, according to CBS News' Mark Knoller, who keeps track of all things presidential.

COUNTERPOINT:

Writers like Mr. Reider have already heard the arguments of pro-gun advocates and have rejected them as being either specious or inadequate.

Much like our opinion of Mr. Obama's "modest measures".

The difference is, those modest measures (a) would do nothing to prevent the recurrence of similar tragedies, (b) disarming the public would put even more Americans at risk ["registration", for example, invariably leads to even greater infringement on the Constituional rights of Americans], and (c) the entire article is nothing more than "unctuous hand-wringing".

Turn in your own firearms, sir, but please have the courtesy to avoid undermining our freedoms.

My second amendment protects your first amendment.   But then, reciprocity is not a Liberal quality.

Machete!

Man charged with assault after allegedly slashing woman with machete in Bryant Park | New York's PIX11 / WPIX-TV: MANHATTAN —
(June 23, 2015)

A man went on a machete-swinging rampage in Bryant Park Tuesday morning, slashing a woman who had just left a yoga class in the park in a startling burst of violence on the great lawn. 

An hour after the random attack, Kyle Newberry described the incident as “just another day in the city.” 

Officers received a 911 call of an assault about 11:30 a.m. near 42nd Street and Bryant Park, an NYPD spokeswoman said. When they arrived, they found a 31-year-old woman with a slash would to her right arm. Members of the park’s private security team followed the slasher with folding chairs for protection as members of the NYPD eventually caught up with the suspect at the south entrance off of 40th Street.S

(H/T: Borepatch)


That must have been especially traumatic for a woman who has just left a Yoga class, with the obvious intent to improve her physical health.   One YOB with a Big Knife has just chopped her life style into bloody shreds.

And there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.  Legally.

In my extended dialogue with a London (England) "Bobby", in 2008, my British friend pointed out that the total ban on firearms has ensured that those citizens who were the victims of random violence didn't die.  Yes, they might have got beaten bloody, sliced and diced, but they didn't die.

What he failed to acknowledge was that Brits are unable to defend themselves against arbitrary attacks by bigger, stronger, better armed and more violence-prone assailants.  (Just as NYC Citizens are similarly made vulnerable,)

KOPS And KIDS

Here in the Pacific NorthWet  we have an amazing bunch of local cops who participate in IPSC and Speed Steel type matches.

They're pretty good.  In fact, a few of them tend to win many matches, to the point where (when the civilian Local Heroes are absent) they compete between themselves. Most of the rest of us are just hoping for Third Place.  One local cop was even the USPSA Board Member for our section for a while.

Yes, they actually are that good: not just politically, but so competent as shooters that they have garnered a lot of respect from their peers in the "Competition Shooting Community".

I have watched other PDs running their officers through drills on the range, and I was singularly unimpressed. But the Linn/Benton County guys seem to have their shit thoroughly together in a tight group.

That's not true of ALL LEOs, but in this little section of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, I think that anyone who knows these Bad Boys respect  them.  The local cops (not all of them, but enough) not only demonstrate their expertise at monthly matches at the three local clubs, but they participate as 'members of the community".

Last month the 'local' department held their nth Annual "Toys for Tots" match.  They have established an outreach program where they host an annual match, all profits going to buying teddy bears for abused children.

(Sometimes Family Tragedies leave the children behind as '"un-involved non-participants".  But when Mommy and Daddy are kicking the shit out of other, and screaming in the middle of the night ... the children are more freaked out than their drunken/angry/aggressive/clueless parents.)

It's a small thing, admittedly; but when a toddler has someone else to care for, even a stuffed Teddy Bear, it helps them to cope with a situation in which they had previously had NO control.  Actually, I suspect this program also finances other resources for 'victims' in the county.

All About The Children it's called, or the "ABC HOUSE" match.  Some years it's a Speed Steel match, some years it's an IPSC style match.  And they mix & match the stage designs to attract as many shooters as possible.

I'm quite impressed with the way the Linn/Benton County Police agencies (sheriffs, municipal police, etc.) have individually created an "Outreach" program to support their communities.  I wish all LEO agencies would find the leadership to perform the same vital function.

If an LEO agencies would like to set up a similar program, please contact me.  jerrydgeekblog@comcast.net

I would be proud to forward your contact information to local LEO individuals who might provide useful advisory information.


We  all depend on that Thin Blue Line to keep the peace.  So we don't have to.

Really bad training experience

I don't know if I've ever seen a more egregious example of under-training a shooter.

I found this via the gunbloggers round-table, and for those of you who follow  gunbloggers I apologise for repeating the "DON'T SHOOT A GUN LIKE THAT" post from SayUncle.  (The video has been removed from YouTube, so you must go to the original link  to view the incident.)

DESCRIPTION OF THE INCIDENT:
A female (police?  She has sergeant stripes on her blue uniform) shooting a pistol on a range demonstrates clumsy incompetence as she tries to acquire a prone shooting position, tries several grips, holds the pistol inches forward of her face, and gets a "Magnum Eyebrow" cut when the slide recoils into her face.

(Note that the FIRST thing she does in the video seems to be to flick the thumb safety to OFF .. before she even begins to acquire the prone position!)

Immediately after her injury, the instructor grabs her by the head and ... without first clearing the pistol ... turns her face to the camera to show the bloody injury.

Appendix Carry

Last Friday I posted an article about a holster the positions your handgun in front of your body.  The point of my opinion was that is seemed a very dangerous way to carry a firearm.  As in "shoot your nuts off" not to put too fine a point on it.

Apparently there are a few other people who generally feel that while there advantages to this carry style, it is inherently risky.  For exactly the same reasons I gave.

The position of the instructor cited in the above linked article isn't that it's a 'bad' way to carry concealed; quite the contrary.  His point is that he is teaching people who may not have sufficient experience to use it safely:

If an individual wants to carry concealed that way that is fine by me but an open enrollment class with 15-20 different skill level shooters and upwards of 100 draws and reholsters is an accident waiting to happen when you add in a pistol like a Glock or M&P

In light of this more precise cautionary note, I'll modify my earlier position.

There are people who have the training and experience to use this holster safely.

Most of the people I meet on the range do NOT have what it takes to do so.

I train strangers how to shoot safely and (more or less) 'competitively' at IPSC matches.   Most of them have no idea how to handle a gun safely under the pressure of a timer; how would they react when found themselves in a defensive situation which this holster is designed to provide an advantage?

It's not just this specific holster.   I've seen adds for a lot of others ... such as one which is essentially an elastic 'belly band with a pocket sewn in'.  Very concealable.  But safe? At most levels of expertise, not hardly.

Of course there are dissenting views, such as this one which insists on "Big Boy Rules" for everyone.

Speed Kills! (OH, sorry; it's the Other Way Around)

Speed the 150-year-old tortoise dies at San Diego Zoo | Fox News: SAN DIEGO – One of San Diego's oldest residents has died. The Los Angeles Times reports that the Galapagos tortoise known as Speed has been euthanized at an estimated age of more than 150 years. ...  The massive tortoise had been in geriatric decline for some time. 

There has to be a great punchline to this story.  Damned if I know what it is.
Your suggestions (in Comments) are solicited.

Workplace Violence

Police: Ice cream truck driver fatally shot in Maryland while selling treats to children | Fox News:
(June 14, 2015)

FREDERICK, Md. – Police say an ice cream truck driver in Maryland was gunned down as he was selling treats to children and a suspect has been arrested.

Apparently, I'm not the only one who cannot abide "Turkey In The Straw"

Fast Draw From TRex Arms Sidecar - The Firearm Blog

Fast Draw From TRex Arms Sidecar - The Firearm Blog: Jarret Fawbush aka @truexodus demonstrates a quick draw from his Trex Arms Sidecar AIWB holster.

Jarret Fawbush demonstrates a good way to shoot your own nuts off.

No, I'm not impressed that the trigger is covered by the holster.

We have seen one or two reasons why you should never allow the muzzle to point at any body parts you might be loathe to lose.

I hate my (expletive deleted) Smart Phone!

Every time I get a trash text message I curse my Smart Phone and the day I bought it, I never liked phones much any way, but Smart Phones are so INTRUSIVE!

I think I hurt its feelings, because last week it ran away from home.

At first I searched in the usual places: coat and jacket and robe pockets, trousers in the laundry bag, behind and under the sofa cushions.  Nope, not there.

Nightstand, computer desk, coffee table, kitchen counter.  Nope, not there.

In the bed linen, between the waterbed mattress and the sideboards.  Not there.

I decided, I never find anything lost until I stop looking for it.  So I quit searching, for three days.

It didn't magically "show up", so I sat back and enjoyed the peace and quiet.

Then I read an article about a subject that was not familiar to me, so I reached for my phone to use the Dictionary app .... oops, I forgot.

Legislation is not the answer.

The recent tragedy in S.C. proves several things:

• Making something illegal is not a preventative measure.
• Mental Health tests and Gun Control Laws will not prevent Evil.
• Some people don't care about physical survival, but only want to prove that they actually EXIST;  they will go to any extremes to accomplish that.
• There are NO gun-control laws which will eliminate "mass murders"; those countries which have the most stringent anti-gun laws still suffer from the slaughter of the innocents (I am Charley Who?)
• Although it seems trite to say "When Seconds Count, The Police Are Minutes Away" ... maybe more people should think about that.

And you never know who's going to freak out next, or when, or where, or how, or with what.  Guns, knives, hammers, or a gallon of gas on a ballroom floor, only these things are sure:

It's going to happen.  We won't see it coming.  And there is no way in the WORLD to defend ourselves against it.

Weapons Tests For Destroyer That Will Never Destroy Anything

Weapons Tests For Destroyer That Will Never Destroy Anything: WASHINGTON — Engineers at Naval Sea Systems Command are set to begin the next phase of their ongoing plan to test the effectiveness of emerging surface warfare technologies the Navy will never get to employ in actual combat this week, the Command announced.

“For heaven’s sake, we don’t actually want to ever use these weapons systems in battle,” said head of NAVSEA, Vice Adm. William Hilarides. “If we abuse this technology we might accidentally win a war, and that’s just an irresponsible use of smart power.”

Engineers hope to install an electromagnetic railgun on the fourth planned Zumwalt-class destroyer, USS Wesley R. Crusher, currently under construction at Bath Iron Works in Maine. 

Railguns send high-powered electromagnetic pulses along a set of rails to shoot a projectile at supersonic speeds. Conventional naval guns use a chemical propellent and lack the “swag factor.”

(Please Note: Duffle Blog is a Military Satire website)

California Dreaming ... about the Second Amendment

New court battles in California about whether 2nd Amendment "permits" (as opposed to "acknowledges") the right to firearms carry for personal defense outside the home.

Gun rights in California: court to hear another showdown - San Jose Mercury News:  (August 15, 2015)

The 9th Circuit case has attracted national attention, in part because the court is reconsidering an earlier ruling that broke new ground by invalidating San Diego's strict but common guidelines for issuing concealed-carry gun permits. In that ruling last year, a divided three-judge panel found San Diego's restrictions trampled on the Second Amendment rights of private citizens to carry a gun for self-defense. After a tortured procedural battle, prompted by San Diego abandoning defense of the law, the 9th Circuit voted on its own to rehear the case. Most legal experts predict the court is likely to uphold the regulations, particularly given that much of the 11-judge panel is comprised of liberal to moderate Democratic appointees.

[emphasis added]

COMMENTS AND OPINIONS:
At issue is the "May Issue" vs "Shall Issue" priorities of California Concealed Carry laws.  This has been a bitterly fought battle in other states, and higher courts have typically determined that "May Issue" policies constitute a 2nd Amendment infringement.

The judges in recent months have been inundated with legal arguments pitting the gun lobby against gun control advocates and Attorney General Kamala Harris, who urged the 9th Circuit to uphold such regulations.

(Which is to say, California's Attorney General .. who is running for  Barbara Boxer's Senate seat in 2016 ... believes that 'may issue' protocols are just fine with California.)

Well, it's California, and and  one must expect such opposition to Constitutional Imperatives from one of the most liberal states in the union.

Blomberg finances another arrow in his quiver, titled 'Gun Violence Epidemic'

The Trace, Bloomberg-Backed Journalism Startup, Tackles Gun Violence 'Epidemic':
(June 16, 2015)

 NEW YORK -- Gun enthusiasts have plenty of options for industry news and firearms reviews. And the National Rifle Association boasts its own media arm to amplify any perceived threats against Second Amendment. 

What’s missing in the gun-media landscape, say founders of The Trace, is a news outlet devoted to the prevention of violence. 

Oh!  So, Bloomberg hasn't financed enough "Gun Violence" websites, clubs, pseudo-representatives and shills yet?

Guess Not.  There are never too many paid employees when you're trying to establish a false front for political goals.

Enter ... "The Trace":

“We believe that the rate of gun violence is too high and we believe that there is not enough information about the issue as a whole,” editorial director James Burnett told The Huffington Post in an interview. “As journalists, we have it as our mission to address that shortage of information.” 

"Journalists?"  I thought that encompassed those who could hold down a job in the .. you know .. "Journalism" milieu.  Apparently, this guy can't hold down a job:

Burnett, who left The New Republic a few months ago following a staff exodus, said The Trace will not publish editorials supporting specific legislation or candidates. But the site will operate from the standpoint that there are "too many people being killed and injured by guns," he said.

(Burnett was so valued by TNR that his web record enumerates all of his many accolades.   There were none.)

We're grateful to the man who can't hold a job at The New Republic for providing valuable and ... "unbiased" ... reporting.

...

Getting back to the point that "the rate of gun violence is too high" ...That's a big DUH ... yes, we agree.  And the reason why too many people are being killed and injured by guns is that they have been intimidated by leftists to NOT establish their own personal defense practices.

Bloomberg has enlisted the help of "independent" news sources to promulgate his views:

The Washington Examiner:
The Huffington Post:

Obviously, these 'independent news sources' have no agenda which might be interpreted as a "slant" on their reporting.

Bloomberg has his own agenda: it is that if you can't afford to hire guns, you shouldn't have a gun.

Those Who Choose Safety over Liberty => Dire Straits!

Gun killings fell by 40 percent after Connecticut passed this law - The Washington Post:

An overwhelming number of Americans say that they favor universal background checks — that is, they want anyone who obtains a gun to pass a background check first. Gun-rights activists retort that these restrictions only impede the lawful ownership of guns. But that’s clearly an exaggeration. When laws make it harder for people to sell guns to criminals, well, criminals will have a harder time finding guns.

(H/T HOT AIR via a comment by IRONS IN THE FIRE)

We thank the kind people at the Washington Post for providing such a rich textual missive for fisking.   But we're not going to fisk this, because it's just ... too .. easy.

 I'll only say that universal backgrounds do not make it harder for people to sell guns to criminals; that only assumes that criminals and otherwise-lawful citizens do NOT share contempt for these wussy, hopeful, ineffective Liberal Laws.    The sad fact is, both crooks and honest people consider these 'laws' as pure, unenforceable, useless freaking bullshit.  And rightfully so.
 
The rest is left as an exercise for the reader.

It's A Rare Gun That Fires Without A Finger On The Trigger!

The Captain's Journal  Police Officer Negligent Discharges:

Accidental gunshots by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies have more than doubled in two years... The jump coincides with the department’s move to a new handgun that lacks a safety lever and requires less pressure to pull the trigger.They are blaming it on a SA/DA pistol because of the heavy trigger pull for the first round (although I have to say that 6-8 pounds isn’t exactly a light trigger pull for the M&P). Thus they have trained officers to keep their fingers on the trigger of their handguns when they deploy their firearm.  They say so.

[Emphasis added]

Buncha California Liberal Snits blame the gun when it's their mandated policies that are the problem.
Snarf!
Who could expect any more responsibility from the adolescent twerps who run  control  screw the state today?

Keep Your Booger Hook Off The Bang Switch!
keep your finger off the trigger until you're ready to shoot at the target.

Everything else is secondary, although some shooting rules sets seem to make this secondary to "keep your gun pointed in a safe direction'.

It's difficult to prioritize gun safety rules, we know that.  But when some "administrators" define the Rules of Engagement and deliberately ignore known safety rules,  it reveals them for the total idiots they are when the mandate unsafe practices.

And when the shit hits the fan, they blame the guns rather than to accept their own responsibility?

Well .. .it's California.

Nobody expects them to be sane, but I'm pretty sure that the officers who are required to live within their rules know their masters administrators are idiots.

Given that there don't seem to be a lot of 'accidental shootings', one wonders if the cops on the beat aren't letting a few bullets fly just to demonstrate how inane their bespoke procedures are.

What is it about Military Service that makes women kill themselves?

Suicide rate of female military veterans is called 'staggering' - LA Times:

New government research shows that female military veterans commit suicide at nearly six times the rate of other women, a startling finding that experts say poses disturbing questions about the backgrounds and experiences of women who serve in the armed forces.

Female suicides are a quarter of male suicides among non-vets.

But female vets kill themselves 4 time more often than non-vets ... compared to male vets and male non-vets.

Is it the pressure of serving?  Or are there more pressures (such as the high degree of sexual predation among serving women) which causes this high mortality rate?

I've always been a staunch supporter of women in the military.I grok the "Upper Body Strength" limitations which make it problematic for them to tote their heavier wounded male comrade from the battle field, and I know it's bullshit.

I also know that males may be so overprotective of females that they may put female well-being ahead of the mission.  That's the Male Soldier problem.

But has the American Military made the environment so stressful for female military that suicide has become an acceptable norm?

Again ... that's a Male Soldier problem.

But the female soldiers have been paying the price.

READ THE COMMENTS!

Quote of the day—Cody Fenwick. | The View From North Central Idaho: It’s time we start thinking a little more boldly and demanding much more. We should consider abolishing private gun ownership. …

For those who appreciate Joe's efforts to high-light the Idiocy of the Left (which needs no introduction), I do encourage you to go to the original post AND READ THE COMMENTS!

You have to work your way through a couple pages of The Usual Idiots, but when you notice that there ARE comments of more than 5 lines, you may want to pay attention.

There are a couple of threads which are not typical of the Usual Suspects (Gun Control Comments).

Commentators of opposing opinions demonstrate there show to have a civil, reasoned dialogue.  Who knew THIS could happen?   What's more, they find a few points on which they might agree ... albeit with certain reservations.    Nobody was asking for a quid pro quo negotiation (eg: "I'll give up a flash-hider and a bayonet lug for pistol grips").

None of the petty, irritating, divisive rot.

Its all about the real meaning of the Second Amendment, how it came to be in its present form, and what a Constitutional Convention might consider to clarify the meaning as assumed from either side of the issue.

Some people express themselves better when they have time to think it through.  And in that comfort zone, they're not on the defensive,

I love it when educated citizens of sensibility and good will actually find and accept the opportunity to communicate.

Which goes to prove that the wise man can still learn from the Village Idiot.

(Are you listening, Cody?   No?  I didn't expect you were.)

Shakespeare's mandate about lawyers

Of Arms and the Law: Jackson v. San Fran: cert denied, with dissent:

Jackson v. San Fran: cert denied, with dissent POSTED BY DAVID HARDY  8 JUNE 2015 09:53 AM Order here. The Court denies cert., not a big surprise, but Thomas and Scalia dissent and say the Court should have accepted the case, even though there is no split in the circuits.

The referenced information in the ARMS&LAW page provide plenty of background, and I would have posted a comment to the effect of  "What the HELL were these people thinking?"

But when I got into reading the dominant opinions ... and some of the rationale ... I realized that rationality was not necessarily a determining factor.

For example: the law requires that all firearms kept in the home be rendered unusable by virtue of being kept in a safe or having a trigger lock.  This was presumably to prevent children or other persons from unauthorized access.  Failure to observe this rule is punishable ....

Where Guns Are Outlawed, Only Criminals Will Have Guns

NRA version of 2nd Amendment lacks common sense - Daily Southtown:
June 05, 2015:  by David McGrath (a Chicago Tribune subsection)

So the wording and structure of the Second Amendment protects the people's right to bear arms only if they belong to a state militia.

So David McGrath has decided that 70% of Americans, along with the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS)  and enough Federal District Courts, State Supreme Courts, and enough individual case studies to sink the Bismarck are wrong.

And he is right.

Because of ... Grammar.

You've seen the Money Quote, now here's his embarrassing explanation:

ALERTS TO THREATS IN EUROPE:

by John Cleese - British writer, actor and quite tall person

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent events in Syria and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out.
Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's Get the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France 's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the country's military capability.

Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain:
"Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."

The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbour" and "Lose."

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels .

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Australia, meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be alright, Mate." Two more escalation levels remain: "Crikey! I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend!" and "The barbie is cancelled." So far no situation has ever warranted use of the last final escalation level.

(from The Hobo Brasser, via Email)

Oregon Universal Registration Rules Contain Hidden Boobytraps

Gun Owner Registration Bill Gets Worse | Oregon Firearms Federation:
(June 02, 2015)

Still need a background check to loan a gun.  But if some way the loaned gun is involved in a felony, you are liable to face the same penalties as if you had not complied with the law.

This is Deja Vu all over again.

They've got you coming and going, so there is little or no incentive to comply.

As if Oregonians had any intention to do so.

 ...  

We've Got An APP For That

NY gun owners seek to halt police confiscations:

Two civil cases are currently challenging the constitutionality of a pistol permitting scheme which allows a county police department in New York state to revoke a person’s license and confiscate their firearms at will. 

[EMPHASIS added]

Wasn't that the whole Concord/Lexington thingie?
[sigh]   Must we do that all over AGAIN?   When will the home-style Tory's ever learn?

(And 'people' say that the Tea Party is irrelevant!)

One-Handed Slide Racking

TacRack for One-Handed Slide Racking - The Firearm Blog:

The TacRack replaces the rear slide end cap of either a Glock or M&P pistol. It is CNC machined out of 6061 aluminum. The TacRack has ears that allow the user to rack the pistol on a hard surface such as a kydex holster or pistol belt.

I was introduced to a 'one-hand slide rack' technique in 1969, during U.S. Army Advanced Infantry Training (AIT).

But we were using the un-augmented 1911/1911-1A (we were SO "Old school" back then) and we all knew that we were going to a Combat Zone in a few months.  So we paid attention to this training phase as we thought we might be wounded, and discover a need for this skill in combat,

The drill was, if you had to rack the slide of your 1911 using only one hand, it took some strength and skill-training to learn the technique.

Libs playing Twenty Questions with the Constitution (Fool Thou Wert!)

What do you say when some tranzi lib-simp propagandist solicits your opinions on Gun Control *?

Joel knows best, it appears.   I am in awe of his restraint:  it's limited.
And appropriately so, since if you can't convince your opposition withe Sweet Reason you can always beat them over the head with a Clue Bat until they back away.

The Ultimate Answer to Kings: What the hell? Let's join the meme!:'

 What the hell? Let's join the meme! ...Though I confess I'm still not exactly sure what a "meme" is. Guess I should have gone to college, huh? Anyway - I see, courtesy of Sebastian at Snowflakes in Hell, that there's this hoplophobic broad who wants to play 20 Questions with gun owners. I'm just absolutely convinced she'll treat the responses she receives with a completely serious and respectful attitude. Also, she asks that responses be backed up with "peer-reviewed articles" or something similar. I can't do that, since I have no peers.

No, I'm not sure which bloggers have been challenged by this 'meme'; I'm just sure that (RTWT) this one from Joel ... which is VERY recent, and is receiving some current attention on the gun-blogosphere ....seems to speak truth to cower.


(*Note: this goes back to a 2010 blog article, and is presented only because of the excellence of the latest response.  The issue is both 'dated', and still 'current'.   no, there is no spam war between pro- and anti-gun bloggers.   Other than the obvious contention, of course.)

April Fool's Day

Are you a Liberal?

Are you .. oh, sorry.  I am at risk of repeating myself.

I Am Legend! (There are no more new stories to be written any more?)

I reread "I Am Legend" (1954) this morning, by Richard Matheson.  (My, that man can WRITE!)"   It was just a good as the first two or three times I read it; there are some stories that cannot be improved.

The cover noted that there was a 2007 MOVIE version available, starring Will Smith.

I remember another movie version: "The Omega Man" starring Charlton Heston.

This afternoon I was performing my usual Spring Cleaning by fumigating my house to kill the Spring Spiders. I went to the movies so I wouldn't be poisoned by the Bug Bomb..

I was torn between the new Mad Max movie, or the Earthquake/Disaster film "San Andreas" starring The Rock.  It was loud, but very entertaining.

The reason I didn't go to the Mad Max movie is because it didn't have Mel Gibson in it.  Apparently, he is no longer popular, due to his drunken rants against views several years ago.

Well, I still prefer Mel as Mad Max.  Hey, I don't like Jane Fonda because of her appearances in Viet Cong propaganda films in the 1970's, but I liked here in her movies ("Fun with Dick and Jane", "Barbarella", and "Cat Ballou") so while I deplore her politics, I watch her movies.  And I listen to Barbra Streisand's music and enjoy it, even if she is a political yentl!

So, I watched the remake of "2012", and it the only complaint I had was that (1) I had seen the movie of which it was a clone, and (2) I ran out of popcorn before the movie was over, and (3) the air conditioning was WAY too cold!

When I came back home, I considered that I had just seen the same movie, read the same book, more than once:

I Am Legend (the book)

I Am Legend (the movie, with Will Smith)

The Omega Man (the movie, with Charlton Heston)

Also, the "Mad Max" franchise was pretty much all the same, except that I won't contend that the latest (sans Mel) is the same movie write large.

I'm pretty sure that those of you who read a lot are aware that successful books lead to successful movies, and we go see them because we like the characters, or the actors.  (Who hasn't seen almost all of the John Wayne Movies, the Clint Eastwood movies, and .. well, name your own favorite actors.)

We're watching and reading variations on a theme.

I kind of wish we would find new themes.  These forms of literature grab out attention because they are fresh, and we are excited by new ideas.

There's a reason why I haven't been to a movie theater (before today) for five years.  I wasn't disappointed by the movie, but I found that I wanted to press REWIND so I could see some detail that I THINK I missed before.  ( I guess I've been spoiled by DVDs,)

I have got to get out of the house more!

CHECK FIRE! (Where's The Target ... WTF?)

U.S. bombers hold fire on Islamic State targets amid ground intelligence blackout - Washington Times:

 Nearly 75 percent of U.S. bombing runs targeting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria returned to base without firing any weapons in the first four months of 2015, holding their fire mainly because of a lack of ground intelligence and raising questions about President Obama’s key tactic in pushing back an enemy that continues to expand its territory in the war zone.

President Obama will not put troops on the ground to ensure that bombing attacks can apply effective fire against ISIS and other extreme terrorist groups.   And yet he continues to order high-altitude bombing attacks against .. ghost targets.  It "looks good in video", but in Real Life it's a waste of time and resources because .. ineffective!

Montrose Toast:

He either fears his fate too much,Or his deserts are small,That dares not put it to the touchTo gain or lose it all.

Since America (in the person of President Obama) has consistently demonstrated lack-of-resolve to directly attack ISIS, what the fracas are we doing in Iraq and Syria to stop their pernicious attacks on innocents?  Either execute war against our enemies, or yield the battleground to them entirely!

And thus, prove that America is a Paper Tiger,

Universities of not-so-much America

Clayton Cramer.: Concealed Carry on Campus Coming To Texas:
 Saturday, May 30, 2015

Concealed Carry on Campus Coming To Texas From May 30, 2015 Reuters: The Republican-controlled Texas Senate voted on Saturday to allow the licensed carrying of concealed handguns in most state university buildings. The measure includes a caveat that lets college presidents designate "gun-free zones" on their campuses.

What do you want to bet that most  college presidents designate their entire campus a "Gun Free Zone"?

Oregon State law also allows the same rights.

University administrators immediately declared that University employees found "packing" faced termination of employment.  Students faced termination of enrollment.

College folks do not take it kindly, when someone tells them how to run their campus.  And yes, they are within their legal rights to undermine YOUR Constitutional rights!

Since I am neither an employee nor a student, I can carry on campus ... but the campus police can still eject me at their pleasure.

Universities still enforce "Free Speech Zones" too, which means that those who wish to exercise their First amendment rights can be ejected if they prefer to orate where the students hang out instead of in an obscure corner of the campus.

Welcome to the conclave of Constitutional Hell .. the universities which are supposed to be teaching our young people to think for themselves.

Is this a Great Country, or what?

The myth of the hero cop

The myth of the hero cop: Police unions have spread a dangerous message about America’s law enforcement officers.:

It’s hard to prosecute cops. There are two main reasons for this: The first is the special deference that jurors, judges, and prosecutors show officers thanks to the widespread perception that they are heroic public figures valiantly trying to protect us. The second is the bevy of special laws around the country that are designed to shield police officers from the very tactics the police regularly use on ordinary suspects.

Thank you, David Feige of Slate, for your in-depth review of all the reasons why (in your mind) police are not subject to the same scrutiny as 'common citizens' are ... because of "special laws .. to shield police ... "

One thing:  yes, there are "Bad Cops", and as we are all human I'm pretty sure that most cops are flawed.

So .. three questions:

One:  Do you have a gun to protect yourself?  Or do you rely on 911 in case you are assaulted?
Two: Have you ever been mugged?
Three: have you ever been arrested?

The thing is, you appear to reside in New York City.
And .. the bromide is:

A Liberal is someone who has been arrested.
A Conservative is someone who has been mugged.

So, although you have not offered any "full disclosure", we're assuming that you were arrested for drug charges?  Marijuana?  Or a more mind-altering substance?  (I'm guessing something more powerful than Weed .. cops generally trend to ignore Grass arrests, because there are too many of them among the Liberal Community to do anything more constructive than issue a 'ticket', which can incur nothing more onerous than a fine.  Which would explain the grudge you obviously have against police officers.)

Getting back to Question 1:  I'm guessing that you rely on the police to protect you.  Which they cannot do, of course, because those "highly paid" public servants have too many clueless citizens to
"Protect and Serve".

So, you don't have a gun.  Well, of course you don't.  You live in New York City, the town that FORCES you to rely on local police to protect you.  But you don't appreciate that, because you know that there are 10,000  (plus)  police who are paid FAR too much money for giving you very limited protection.

Please note that the reason why you cannot have a gun to protect yourself is because your liberal friends made it illegal.  Not the cops; your Liberal Friends.

Clue-bat notice:  The police aren't there to protect you.  They are there to solve crimes, and arrest miscreants.  Perhaps you are uncomfortable with that situation.  I don't blame you.  If I relied on the cops to protect me, I would be similarly disappointed that they are NOT liable for failure to protect you from assault.  Or robbery, or anything else.  Is that the reason you're so down on cops, Binky?

Given the restraints on cops, it's no wonder that you are disillusioned.  That's okay .. it's not their fault.  Your Liberal Representatives have made sure that you can't sue cops when they can't protect you.   Someone seems to think that personal protection is YOUR job, not the cops.

Let's get to the part where you claim that the police are corrupt and .. what was your term?

Unfairly protected

Oh, yeah; we just covered that.  You think they are "unfairly protected"; but the fact is that if you are mugged, the cops don't much care.  The same if someone steals the radio out of your car (which you don't OWN, because you know it's too dangerous and too expensive to own a car in NYC because .. theft) the cops have no way to deal with minor thievery.  Beat Cops take reports, and pass them on.  Beat Cops are also the first responders, and when it's the murder of an infant in her crib (for example), they have to go home and tell their wife that it was 'just another  day on The Job", and hope they don't keep her awake when they can't sleep that night because of the images that they can't wipe out of their memory .. which lasts for decades.

Yep.  It's an easy job, and they are certainly overpaid.

You complain that:  " ...  the average beat cop costs the taxpayers more than $150,000 per year."
Sounds like pretty good bread.  So, why didn't you apply to the police department, go through the training regimen, and become a cop?  By your perception, it's an easy job with little or no risk, and the pay is great!

Could it be because you just don't have the guts to put your life on the line for your fellow New Yorkers? Or you don't care to deal with the 'seamy underside of New York" on a daily basis?

Strange .. you don't seem to consider that it's a risky business, underpaid and under-financed, and the only way cops can make a decent living it to volunteer for overtime hours.  Often this is just standing in the rain for hours on end, directing traffic.  But sometimes that's actually facing people who are violent, insane, vengeful and .. oh, did we discuss that POLICE ARE TARGETS FOR BAD MEN?

But you're pretty well focused on that $150,000 per year paycheck ....
... even though you don't seem to have considered the horrible working conditions they regularly endure to feed their family.  And BTW .. $150,000 year is pretty much what sanitation workers in major cities draw.  They all get The Big Bucks because nobody would take that nasty-ass job if they didn't get compensated in proportion to the unsavory nature of the job they accept.

The reason for the one hundred fifty dollar paycheck (which requires a TON of overtime in the cesspool which is a major city) is that it's a crappy world, and these folks are on the front line .. they see the disincorporated body of the 29-year-old executive who just jumped from the 80th floor of his executive condominium, and they go scour the block to pick up the pieces.  

Then the detectives wander by, take reports, and go back to talk to the Captain.

And then some asshole like you writes an article complaining about cops who are not heroic at all.

You are SUCH a jerk.  If you spent one day doing what these stolid men and women do EVERY DAY, you would puke your guts out and spend the next week in bed.  With the covers over your head.

And you would hate yourself.   Rightfully.

Baltimore’s streets are quiet again. Baltimore’s state’s attorney Marilyn J. Mosby moved quickly in securing indictments against six police officers in the death of Freddie Gray, and her decisive action has calmed the city for now. But getting a grand jury to indict police officers is a lot easier than getting convictions at trial. That’s because like any prosecutor trying to hold cops accountable, Mosby will be working on an uneven playing field. To prove her case, she won’t just need sufficient evidence. She will also have to overcome a number of deep-seated structural impediments to convicting police officers of crimes—no matter how guilty they are. 

No matter how guilty they are.  Do you hear yourself?  No trial, and you have already proclaimed them GUILTY, because .. because you can.

Asshole.

Cops and Black Protests

 After reading a 34-page summary of the case, the judge made it clear he disagreed, saying that "Brelo's entire use of deadly force was a constitutionally reasonable response to an objectively reasonably perceived threat of great bodily harm from the occupants of the Malibu, Russell and Wiliams."

I wrote about this some time ago.  At the time, I wondered if this would not initiate another "Death By Cop Protest".

Apparently, the local 'community' (which was unable to disuade the two felons in the car that Brelo stopped in a barrage of bullets from the hood of their car) has chosen to rise in righteous indignation.

We're not pleased here at Geek Central to learn that the prognostication was confirmed.  One would prefer not to be so 100% able to forecast ghetto indignation.

On the other hand, when one identifies with a community which has historically been plagued by oppression, it's difficult to resist the urge to riot.

Would the Jews in 1938 Berlin embraced the same approach, they might have lost a few million of their families.  I know, that sounds cold.  But those peoples were faced with a truly oppressive armed police force, one which had the publicly espoused goal of 'resolving the Jewish Question".

I don't think we're at that point yet, now, here.  But when Black citizens protest the death of their brothers and sisters at the hand of the police, they do have a point.  Even if the black deceased was a criminal, engaged in violent crime, it's not a situation which they can ignore; the death of one diminishes all.

(Wish they could get past the criminal behavior which draws the attention of the police, but only the community can deal with that.  Maybe they will, maybe they will not.  Their choice.)

The thing is, the Jews faced racial extinction; the blacks face what they perceive to be an institutional drive on the part of the folks with the power (you know, the guys who have the guns?) to keep them down and out.  Not quite on a par with racial extinction, but from the point of our black bretheren ... the distinction is vague.  Who can blame them for over-reacting when the lesson of the Jews is to stomp on this oppression before it becomes "institutional"?

I don't believe that the police in major cities are consciously (or 'deliberately') trying to put down the black community.  I do think that the attempt by the black community to be as high-profile as possible is their "Come To Jesus" Moment.   Or at least, a way to make sure that America is not comfortable with accepting their plight.

What I DO believe is that Black People in America are determined to keep their issues right in the bitch-slapped face of What America, if only so that people of conscience will not be 'comfortable' with ignoring their issues.  Do I think their situation is, today, as dire as they portray it?  

No.

But their best game plan is to over-state every situation, to keep those of us (including me) on the edge of our Strat-o-Lounger Easy Chairs wondering if maybe we might be part of the problem; because it's quite clear that our comfort is no part of The Solution.

SO:

Was Michael Brelo justified in jumping on the hood of Tim Russell's Mailbu and emptying his Glock into the bodies of  Russell and his friend Malissa Williams?

I don't know.  I wan't there.  All I know is what I read in the newspapers.\

I'm pretty sure there was some crime involved, and that Russell and Williams did not meekly surrender to police.

And the "African-American Community" (I HATE the hyphenated American terminology) is not happy.  Don't much blame them; if it was me I'd be pissed, too.


(If you're looking for some wisdom, and solution to a vaguely stated problem, or something more than questions ... hey!  Don't look at me; I'm as confused as everyone else is.)

I LIKE Gamers!

 A semi pro competitor by name of Rick Birdsall recently shot this 3 Gun stage where he slid underneath the stage wall and completed the course of fire. Pretty neat and a great use of time. Before people start ringing bells about safety, he cleared his actions with the RO before the match and if you look carefully, he completes his action with a magazine inserted, but no round in the chamber, and loads it on the other side of the wall. There was some criticism voiced on his page but overall it was conducted in a safe manner.

This has been written up on a couple of other gun blogs.    For those of you who have already seen the video I won't bother including it (go to the FIREARM blog link for the video ... they need the traffic).
  But as an IPSC competitor for thirty years, I have something to say.

This is about competition.  USPSA competition.

And I like that this guy chose to shoot the stage his own way; that's what IPSC is all about.
Whether he gained any actual competitive advantage from his approach is immaterial.  He shot the stage the way his way, and this bullshit about whether the score should be protested ... it's just bullshit.  Screw 'em if they can't take a joke; it's legal!

Gun Nuts Are Safer

When you look at mass shootings, one thing is clear: the people who are shooting people are folks that buy guns to shoot people.

Statistics show that people who might be described as "Gun Nuts" are less likely to be involved in Mass Shootings than people who only want to be executioners.

In fact, almost ALL "Mass Shootings" are caused by people who have (relatively) NEVER used a firearm for hunting, or for competition, or for any other "Legitimate Gun Use",

Most frequently, they (a) just bought the gun, or (b) they just stole the gun, or (c) they just murdered a family member so they could steal the gun out of their gun safe.  Which doesn't say much for the "Safe Gun Retention" laws we're seeing a lot of, recently.

Indiana Wants me

Allow concealed carry across state lines:

The House and Senate may soon take up outstanding legislation that would help return the existing, constitutionally recognized and protected right of Americans across the country to keep and bear arms. The proposal, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act (S.498), also referred to as mandatory concealed carry, was introduced in the Senate by John Cornyn, R-Texas. Under this legislation, it would eliminate a state's ability to infringe upon constitutionally protected gun rights of individuals from another state who can carry guns within its own borders. 

.... Making good people helpless will not make bad people harmless, and I encourage you to contact Sens. Joe Donnelly and Dan Coats and urge them to honor their constitutional oath to protect our individual rights.
(Indiana State Rep. Jim Lucas - R-Seymour on May 23, 2015)

What he said.