What a father can teach

Today was the day.  My father retired from a job that he has been doing for many years.  His fellow co-workers and I got together and decided to give him a little gift to commemorate the event.  I thought that this post would be entirely about the gift.  The more I thought about it, the less it was about the gift and the more it was about what it represents.

I have a great relationship with my father.  Everything I am and know came from my parents.  My confidence in my abilities originates in the strength my parents instilled in me.  I learned my work ethic from my father.  Saturday mornings; up early to clear brush.  I loved those crisp, cool mornings and the sound and smell of the gas chainsaw.  Mowing the lawn, taking care of animals, chores around the house.  All things that teach children important things, whether the kid knows it or not.

In celebration of a career that spanned 41 years, we commemorated the event with a beautiful rifle.  You just don't see that kind of dedication and loyalty anymore.  I thought a unique rifle would be perfect.

It is a Henry Golden Boy in .22 WMR (.22 Mag) and it really is absolutely gorgeous.  I took the receiver cover and butt-plate to the engraver.  We put some relevant dates on the receiver cover.  I loved the way it turned out.

The butt-plate was an interesting project.  It took some doing, but we were able to get a copy of his initials to engrave there.

I was really happy with how the whole project turned out.  My dad is still trying to figure out if he wants to even handle the gun that much.  My advice was "use it."  If I inherited a rifle that was my great-grandfather's and had been engraved with family history, I would love to see some loving wear from the owner.  He ended up with a few boxes of ammo which should last a while.  I can't wait to spend some time at the range with him.

Now for some more pictures just because.

Store owner shoots armed robbers (video)

The video is a little cut-and-paste and somewhat confusing.  From what I have gathered, the first scene you see is the two robbers holding a cashier at gunpoint.   The owner of the establishment sees this happening on surveillance and steps out from a door across the drive-through area (this is where the video cuts to another angle) and he calls out the perps, drawing their attention toward him.  One runs at and shoots toward him as he engages and hits the guy multiple times.  This was a bit crazy.  Training is hugely important for things like this.  Things are fluid and crazy and you have to be able to make good hits.  Notice he is making good hits and the guy still has the ability to run up to and past him and fire shots.  Moving isn't a bad idea, but getting hits is a better idea.  Both is optimum, but you do what you can and this guy did a pretty good job.  When the trainer tells you "shoot until the threat stops," this is what is meant.  This threat never really stopped until the guy was running off.

Here is a clip of just the store video.  It is confusing without a little explanation of the situation from the above story, but it's easier than watching all of the blah, blah, blah in that one.

Don't Panic!

Good advice.

I was digging through some stuff that my mother had pulled out for a garage sale and came across something that got me all giddy.  What could it have been?  A long-lost firearm?  Cash?  A forgotten case of ammo?

No, this:

The picture looks weird because the dust-jacket is a silver, holographic job.  The picture at the top is the actual cover of the book.  It is a coffee table-sized, illustrated version of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."

And I couldn't have been more thrilled.  I don't remember when I got this, but I do remember getting it, sometime back in high school.  It has been locked in a plastic container for a long time and is in pretty good condition.

Whatever you do,

Speaking of pepper, here's another dose

I'd like to try and imagine how this story went.

"Oh, hey.  Yeah, you dropped this gun when you tried to rob us and we pepper-sprayed you and pounded you the first time.  You want to buy it back?  Ok, yeah, BAM, here's some more face-burn."

Have some pepper with your robbery

I LOVE this video.

A pharmacist in Spokane, Washington got a little sick and tired of being robbed.  Twice.  By the same person. So, they got themselves a little can, well a BIG can of bear spray.  The guy came back.  The third time was not a charm.  His buddies ended up calling 911 after he ran out of the store with Wonder Woman on his heels ready to inflict more pain on him.

Kudos for being prepared to fight back.  However, the report said they "got serious" and put in eight cameras.  Great.  Now they will have video of whatever the bad guy decides to do to you before you can respond.  Also, less lethal is a good tool, but it doesn't work every time and if you're real serious about your safety you will have a lethal option available.

All in all a great story with a good ending.  It's one I can sit and laugh about watching some piece of junk get some return on investment.

More winning!! "Modern Family" at the gun range

So, not long ago on "Big Bang Theory" there was a scene at a gun range.  There was not really any of that "guns are bad" talk, although Leonard did graze his pinky toe being an idiot.

Tonight, I was watching "Modern Family" and a couple of the characters (Claire and Gloria) decided to go to the shooting range.  The lead-up was very interesting.  One of the characters was trying to avoid another in what seemed like a little embarrassment.  It ends up, the avoidance was because she didn't want her little gun-range secret getting out.  They both ended up going in and appearing to have a great time.

After firing a handgun a few times,
Claire: "Just such a great release, please don't judge me."

Gloria:  "Why would I, it just makes me like you more."

This makes me smile.

International Anniversary

This week, Mrs. 45er and I are celebrating 8 years of wedded bliss.  About 2 weeks ago, I floated the idea of a "doubles massage" to which she more than immediately agreed.  If I hadn't made up my mind, I did at the end of that conversation.

We did a French breakfast, then went for our massage.  When we got to the room, thankfully I had thought ahead.  I'll just say here's another great situation for pocket carry.

It was a Swedish massage and I will say it was rather fantastic.  I have this freaky ability to relax just about anywhere.  I've actually fallen asleep in a dentist's chair.  No surprise, I took a snooze during the massage.  In total disclosure, my relaxation technique was visualizing a draw and front sight focus during rapid fire.  I'm a freak.

We got the "hot rock" therapy thrown in for free.  Yes, it was nice, but when they use the adjective "hot", it's not just a sales gimmick.  Those suckers were pulled from the fires of Mordor and stuck directly on my back.  It was something like:  mmmm, warm and wait, holy-heck-son-of-a-that's-hot.  It took some getting used to.

After that, an Italian lunch.  Then shopping followed by Thai for dinner.  I've been wanting to sleep since the massage this morning.  Now I will get my wish.

Happy Anniversary, Mrs. 45er!

Hunting Stories: How do you stop a charging boar?

Take away his credit card?

Funny, but it doesn't work when 250 pounds of angry, hairy, razor-sharp anger is bearing down on you.

Many years ago in my previous life, I was a professional hunting guide on a very large ranch with a large number of exotic animals.  On this particular hunt, the client and I were stalking a trophy wild boar.

Stalking is not the best way to hunt for the best or biggest boar when you're a guide.  Hunting from a blind is really the way to go.  It allows the guide to inspect the pigs and make sure you were getting A. a boar and B. one with nice tusks.  Tusks, after all are a big part of the package.  Judging pigs is one of the more difficult things you have to do as a guide.  What is visible is only a few inches and the rest of the tusk is hidden in the jaw.  You have to hope that you get a look at both tusks from a fair distance in failing light and pray that one isn't chipped or broken.

In the below picture; note the upper (smaller) and lower boar tusks.  You can see where they match up perfectly.  This is where they constantly rub together, keeping the lower tusk nice and sharp.  These are about 7 inches long, a little less than 3 of those pointed inches will be protruding from the gums.

Pointy. 

Back to the hunt.  I was always flexible as a hunting guide.  The customer isn't always right, but the customer should be happy.  Keeping a customer happy means the salesperson (me) must explain the downsides and risks of certain decisions.  After getting that out of the way, the hunt is on.  I will say that some of my most memorable hunts were ones where we broke from the norm and did something different. This hunt was definitely memorable, but not in a great way.

We were stalking through an area that was cut through the "white brush."  The ranch maintained the hunting areas by cutting down the thick brush to help with visibility and the new growth from the cut areas provided great forage for the animals.  The "white-brush" in that part of Texas was unbelievably thick and thorny.  These cuts were usually done in long, straight sections.  In Texas, we call a long, straight clear section a "sendero."  Senderos can be man-made or natural, but you know them when you see them and they offer great places to see game.

Something like this

In this particular hunting area we only had pigs and Aoudad.  Neither of these animals are all that tall and the trails and paths they leave through thick brush are more like tunnels.  During the day, the pigs like to lay in the thick brush and keep cool.  It usually takes something to push them out and when you do they are running, of course.  We walked along one of the cuts at the edge of the brush and could hear pigs ahead and to the right of us snorting and moving away.  We had a good view for a fair distance down the sendero, so we decided to move slowly down toward the pigs and hope they started crossing in front of us.  In a few minutes, they started doing just that.  At first, it was a few small ones.  I told the hunter to wait a bit, the larger boars usually followed at the very back of the pack - called a sounder (if they were even with the sounder).  Sure enough, a big one came trotting out.  I had about 30 yards while the pig trotted to determine it was a boar, decide if it was a good one and tell the hunter it was a "go."  Then he had to make the shot.  It all went quick and I could tell by the sound that the shot was a hit.

The downside is that the hit was too far back and low which meant a serious track.  The trail led right into the brush and I got down on my hands and knees to crawl (yes, crawl) after this wounded pig.  I sent the hunter around the side of the brush to the next clear cut.  I told him to be prepared if I pushed this one out and if it was the wounded one, he should take it.   I had my rifle (Remington 700 in 7mm STW with a very LOUD muzzle brake)  laid across my arms in the crooks of my elbows.  As I crawled along I heard something to my right.  I rolled and saw a large boar approaching quickly, apparently spooked by the hunter.  Luckily, he saw me and stopped, then turned and trotted off.  So much fun already.

The STW

When I saw the wounded pig, it was in a strange position.  It was quartered toward me with the right shoulder facing my direction, but laying behind a cluster of thick brush.  I could see the head and snout (BIG sharp-looking tusks) and the front of the right shoulder.  I brought the rifle up, resting on my elbows and looked through the scope.  Flipping the safety off, I pressed the trigger and the rifle roared in the close brush.  I usually wore hearing protection, but had not brought any on the stalk.  It was in the days before the great electronic plugs that I wear now and we usually kept them in the jeep or blind, not with us on stalks.  The first shot started the bells ringing.  It also got the boar up on its feet.  Yay for me.  I had nowhere to run and nothing to climb.  Honestly, in this thick stuff I couldn't even stand.  It was best to lay here and keep shooting.  The pig began charging me.  As it turned it faced me directly.  I had cycled the bolt and put another round directly in the center of its chest.  It didn't slow down.  I cycled the bolt again and the crosshairs rested on the left shoulder as the boar turned a slight corner.  The rifle barked a third time and the boar fell and rolled toward me coming to rest about 15 yards away.  Dust was everywhere and I had pieces of dirt and bits of brush all over me that had been blown up by the muzzle brake.  My ears were not ringing - they were playing a stunning rendition of "Ride of the Valkyries."

This rifle holds two rounds in the magazine and one in the chamber without forcing things.  That means I was  empty.  For this very reason, I keep an elastic ammunition holder on the stock.  With the bolt open, I pulled one out, tossed it in the breech and closed the bolt just to be safe.  I watched the pig for many tense minutes before making a move.  When I was sure that I wasn't going to have a repeat of any of the previous excitement, I backed out.  We retrieved the big guy from the other side after I had a chance to meet up with the client and relax a bit.

I have had many an exciting pig hunt, but this one by far takes the cake.  At the time, Mrs. 45er and I were recently dating and I spoke with her on the phone almost every night.  Needless to say, she was not pleased when I told her this story.  I was excited and still running on adrenalin, I'm sure.  I specifically remember her being less than thrilled.  I think I was still invincible at that age.

Hunting Stories

So, here is a little heads-up.  I've been doing a little family research and looking at old pictures.  I absolutely love looking back and seeing snapshots in time.  Things that may have seemed inconsequential at the time can mean everything to your kids and grandkids while they are trying to piece together the story of your life.  Maybe this blog can serve as something of a history for later.  I will do all of the sitting and story-telling I can with the kids, but either through loss of memory (me) or lack of interest at a certain age (the kids), I'm sure a lot of it will be lost.  So, on occasion, I'm going to write a story about what I thought was an interesting time.  I have quite a few pictures and will do my best to dig them out and pair them with some of the stories  I hope these yarns are as interesting as I remember them to have been.

I'm finding that as I construct my first story, it is quite a long one.  I am trying to make it as interesting as possible.  I'm sure my followers will be doing some skimming on some of these.  :)

North Coast Brewing: Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

This was a fantastic stout.  North Coast Brewing (California) does some really good stuff and this one was incredibly good.  The aroma is caramel and the pour is very dark and opaque.

Terrible picture, I know

The head is not too thick and is light brown.  The flavor is caramel with a touch of coffee and a little bitter.  It's not too strong and goes well with food.  Wow, is it good.  I got this one in a 4 pack of singles (12 oz bottles).  At 9% ABV, I do recommend eating a little something with it.  0.o

If you are a stout drinker this is a good, smooth one for you.  If not, this is a very nice one to start. :)

F___ you, now it's my turn...

via Robb Allen via Gun Free Zone.

A 90 year old man is shot in the head by a residential burglar.

His response: "F__ you, now it's my turn," followed quickly by 5 rounds of .38, 3 of which hit the bad guy.

I had to re-link this because that old man is awesome.  I hope he gets better quick and I couldn't care less about the piece of trash that shot him.

Thanks and Welcome

I feel like I'm going crazy lately.

I've been so remiss in thanking new followers that I forgot which was the last I mentioned.  I feel terrible about that.  After some confusion on my part with Blogger not helping me at all, I would like to thank and welcome hh for deciding to try and follow my random ranting.  hh has a blog called theantisoma and it is pretty cool.  Also, thanks very much to Jatico for following.  It took me a bit, but I found Jatico's blog, pioneeringaz and it is pretty cool and eye-opening.  That will be an interesting read to follow.

Canada's Long Gun Registry, finally circling the drain

I cannot tell you how ridiculous this whole thing was and has been.  If you want to see a perfect example of a government turning law-abiding citizens into criminals, it was (and still is) North of the border.  I had personal interactions with people that didn't want to pay to register something that was really just a family heirloom.  Now you're a potential criminal.  It was sad and ridiculous.  Now, some of that idea seems to be flushing along with the millions they sank into the project.  If you ever wonder what it would be like if Brady and NGVAC get their way, look at what gun-owners have to go through in Canada.

Mass shootings at Starbucks across the country

Yeah, I didn't see that either.  I Googled "Starbucks shooting on Valentine's Day" and do you know what I saw? 

A whole lot of nothing.  Crickets.

There were probably more firearms carried into Starbucks yesterday on a single day than there have been in a long time, if ever.  I'm drawing that conclusion from seeing how many people not only said they were going to legally carry but wrote posts and took pictures afterwards.  Huh, imagine that.  We were right again.  No blood in the streets.  The fearmongers were wrong.  Being right on this topic is getting boring.

Also, just an aside; what has happened to journalism?  I thought a journalist was supposed to obtain views from both sides of a position.  I saw a lot of news stories with quotes from only one side which couldn't even get a viable Facebook following for their little event.  I'd be embarrassed if I was a journalist.

Two Ingredient Chocolate Mousse

I discovered this recipe today and was very surprised.  If you want a quick and easy, VERY chocolatey dessert.  Here is your answer.

Making this is a matter of technique instead of a ton of ingredients and time.  So, here it goes:

3/4 cup of water
8 oz Bittersweet chocolate
whipped cream for topping
ice and water for ice bath

You will also need:
Large bowl and smaller bowl that will fit inside with a little space (for making an ice bath)
whisk or electric beater with whisk attachment
spatula and/or spoon

Yeah, I know.  That's it.

Put ice and water into large bowl and fill about 1/2 to 3/4 with water.

Pour the 3/4 cup of water into a saucepan and heat over medium heat until hot but not boiling.  Break up chocolate into water and whisk until you have a smooth sauce.

Pour sauce into smaller bowl and set it into the ice bath.  Immediately start to beat the chocolate with the electric beater (recommended) or whisk.  As the chocolate cools it will incorporate air into the chocolate and begin to thicken and stiffen.  Immediately remove from bowl so it does not begin to harden.

Spoon into ramekins and top with whipped cream and enjoy!

P.S. if the process isn't working, you can always put it back in the saucepan and start over, thicken it or thin it or just to smooth it out if it starts to get lumpy.  The leftovers can be put in the refrigerator and heated up later to do it again.  I'm sure it will make a great sauce as well.

Have Coffee, Will Travel

So, I went to Starbucks for the first time in a loooong time today.  I didn't go to Starbucks because they are pro- anything because they aren't.  I just respect a business that says, "we're going to do what is legal, period" and not succumb to loud minority pressure.  There are other groups attacking them from other sides today for their stance on other issues.  I'm not so concerned about that.  I lean pretty Libertarian when it comes to letting people cut their own path in life and live with the consequences or lack thereof.  So, just on my one little pet issue I'm going to support them.  I don't have to support everything else they do or say.  If you think that is possible, I have a group of Republican Presidential candidates that would like to have a word with you.

Salu

I have fallen behind on keeping up with blogs this weekend.  We had a little get-together to celebrate a "life event" for an individual in our group of friends.  It was a great time with friends and I will have to post on it soon.

We were protected by the hounds of hell.

Waiting for a table scrap of your soul

Actually, a few of the sweetest dogs helped to keep us warm on a night only a crazy group of guys would spend outside.

Drink'in The Sunbelt - Mikkeller and Jester King Collaboration

Sorry, I started without you

Yes, it's spelled "Drink'in", not Drinkin'.  I'm not sure why.  This is one of those collaborative beers and I think they knocked it out of the park. Mikkeller is one of my favorite brewers out there right now.  I've had a whole host of their beers and they've all been really good.  This one is a "hoppy, wheat beer" per the label and that is exactly how it tastes.  The aroma is hoppy and citrusy.  The flavor is hoppy up front with a bit of bitter and a touch of citrus.  It has a nice amber/orange color that is only slightly cloudy.

A word of warning on the pour.  This is a bottle conditioned beer and that is where it gains its carbonation.  It has a tall head and a huge amount of lacing, which you can see in the above picture.  Here's the warning: this beer has a good amount of sediment settled in the bottle.  Don't stir it up too much handling it and don't pour it all out at the end or you will end up with sediment in your glass.  It's probably best stored standing up, not on the side.

They bill it as a beer that will do well in the Summer heat in Texas.  I couldn't wait.  Ok, I'll be honest.  Not only could I not wait for the Summer, I bought this for a get together tomorrow night and couldn't wait until then either.  I now have to go get another bottle.  Jester King is a brewer from around Austin and Mikkeller is a "nomadic" brewer from Belgium.

and a really cool bottle

There is quite the story written on the label of the bottle and it will make an interesting read while you're sipping at a nice glass.  :)

Mother scares away burglars with a .22

There is so much going on in this story to talk about.  Where you live doesn't make you immune to crime.  It may decrease the likelihood, but it can still happen.  What you can be is prepared with some kind of plan.  If you don't have a plan, you run the risk of scrambling around trying to decide if you should use a BB gun to run off intruders or go search for that .22 rifle.  Luckily, this woman had the time to do just that.  It's pretty obvious the guys didn't know there were still people in the home.  Otherwise, it could have turned out differently.

The mother locks her 10-year-old son in a closet and goes to confront the burglars.

"I started calling 911.  I called five times.  They kept hanging up on me," the 10-year-old said.

This.  This is why you need a plan.  The police took 25 minutes to arrive.

Meanwhile, mom has found a .22 rifle and moves to confront the people that have broken into her home.

"So I put the gun up and I'm going to shoot him.  His back is to me and I realize I can't shoot a man in the back," she said.

She was obviously much more considerate of him than he was of her.  A second burglar appeared out of the game room yelling she had a gun.  The gun went off.

Sigh.  If you feel you are threatened, putting on your white cowboy hat and acting like this is a black-and-white Roy Rogers movie could get you in serious trouble.  Also, that part about her being "more considerate"  -  I didn't write that.  That's all the reporter, which I thought was pretty awesome.  Also, guns don't go "off".

Then the report trails off into a bunch of garble about how nice the neighborhood is and they have horses and stuff.  Like that is a talisman against crime in some way.  Well, maybe the "horses" are actually gun-free zone unicorns and they keep away crime.  Somehow I doubt that.

To be positive, she did the right thing with the situation she was in.  You go to war with what you have.  However, a simple game plan could have left a lot less to chance and stacked the deck in the homeowner's favor.  Having a firearm ready in the same place all of the time is a great idea.  I have a couple of firearms that live in one place.  I don't have to remember if I carried it that day and forgot to put it back if bad guys come calling.  Yes, I do take them to the range for a workout, but they get cleaned (most times), loaded and put right back.  The last thing I want my wife or me doing is scrambling around to try and find the right tool.  Maybe it's just me, but I usually carry all of the time in the house too.

I try not to be overly critical of people that go through an event like this.  I don't want to come across as negative or saying the homeowner was at fault.  She did well for not having mentally prepared for such a bad situation.  If this were my mother, I'd be proud that she did what she needed to do and showed great courage.  My mind always works at angles such as: "how can I learn from this"/"what can this teach people?"  I just would like people to realize that there is nothing wrong with preparedness.  If you aren't lucky enough to have a few minutes to get ready, you could end up in a bad place. 

Blogward!

So, this thing is going around to award and highlight some good blogs.  I received a few points of recognition from That Guy at Rock in a Sea of Chaos, Keads at Another Day....Another....., and Stephen at Standing Outside Looking In.  Here's the thing about that.  These are ALL great blogs and great people.  Therefore, I'm truly humbled that they would pick me out of all of the blogs out there.  These are three blogs that I do my best to follow on every single post.  They would also have been some of my first choices to pass on the blog award.  I think instead of passing awards back and forth, I should try to pay forward in the spirit of the meme and recognize some other blogs.  Again, these three are in my top reads and if I had been in on this early, they would be on my list, so please if you haven't checked them out, do so.  It's well worth your time and there is no question you will learn something.                                                    

                                              

So, I guess I should get on with it.  So, I'm not much of a rules guy (besides the big 4), but here are the rules for the deal.

1.  Copy and paste award on your blog
2.  Link back to the blogger who gave you the award
3.  Pick your five favorite blogs with less than 200 followers and leave a comment on their blog to let them know they have received an award
4.  Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs.

This was so hard for me.  If I follow a blog, it's because I like it or it provides me great information.  To narrow down this list to five is like picking your favorite child.  I will say that the three listed above would be in my list, except they awarded me, so I guess I can't pass back.  I will just go with some of the blogs that recognized me when I was just starting and made me feel like it was worth it.  FYI, Brigid would be in this list, but then I'd be "breaking the rules".

In no particular order:

North - Guns and general stuff about life.  Everything from food to self defense options to life's philosophies.  North was one of my first followers and gave me some strange feeling of accomplishment for that.  :)  Maybe I'm needy.

Old NFO - Wanderings, guns and keeping people grounded.  He has offered good advice and I've tried to take it.

kymber - Sweetness, caring and prepping. Oh, and some food at her other blog. She's just too sweet and genuine and always has input even when I think I'm posting rambling nonsense.

These next two may break the rules, but I can't really tell so I'm going to act like I don't know.

Jennifer - Guns, life and self esteem.  I know, that sounds weird, but I've seen Jennifer give emotional support to many people in her comments.  She's strong and was also one of the first places I found.

Weer'd Beard - Guns, snark and goofiness.  Another one of the first places I found and from what I've seen a great person that supports new bloggers, including A girl and her gun who I really really wanted to add as well.  And so I just did.

Also, just for the heck of it, Duke.  I need to stop.  I'll just end up listing everyone.

I know, look at me the rule-breaker.  Such a bad boy.  :)

Now, most of you have already received awards and I think your existing response should already count, otherwise we'll be in a self-perpetuating cycle forever in blogdom.  Everyone, know I love your stuff and I just didn't know what else to do besides copy my blogroll into the post.  I really considered it, trust me.

Father saves 6 year-old son from mountain lion attack...

...with a knife.  Good on dad.  I know a gun may have been better, but he reacted with what he had.  Then again, maybe a gun wouldn't have been better in that situation.

"It had a hold of his face.  The cat was clamped on his face," Jason Hobbs, Rivers' father, told KOSA-TV.  "[I] reached down and got my knife out and stabbed the cat in the chest and let it go at that point."

That's pretty close quarters under extreme conditions.  Then after the fact you're concerned about your young son, not the lion that is running off.  I shudder to think about that type of situation, but kudos to dad for being all over it and having a means of defense.  We carry protection for more than two-legged predators.  Go daddy bears. 

The kid looks swollen and sore, poor thing.  I'm praying he'll be just fine.

Touching it in public

I'm not a fan.  This poor fellow shoots himself in the leg in the parking lot of a gun show.

                        "Police say he was reloading the pistol in the parking lot because loaded

                         guns weren't allowed inside the gun show."

I hate (hate) having to mess with my gun in public.  It's one of the reasons I avoid "gun free zones".  If I have to remove my firearm to enter a forbidden area that just cannot be avoided, I remove the entire holster without removing the firearm.  The last thing I would ever want to do in public is mess with my gun.  I'm not saying that I question my ability to handle one, quite the contrary.  What I'm saying is that messing with it increases the likelihood of something screwy happening.  "In public" is the last place I want that to happen.  Now, for this particular incident I'm guessing that the majority of the basic rules were violated.  I'm surely hoping that he is ok.

Lethal Headlock

This from New Jersey, where you pretty much have to defend yourself with your bare hands:

...a former high school wrestler, pulled Davis off his friend and put the would-be robber in a headlock.

It was strong enough that Davis apparently choked to death, sources familiar with the investigation say.

Yikes.  All this over a cell phone.  I have seen in the news that smart phones are the newest target for thieves.  While a cell phone isn't worth dying or killing for, the victim attempted to stop the theft (which I believe is a victim's right to do) and was put in a headlock by the robber.  I think we can see from the end result that this can be deadly.  Therefore the victim's friend's use of deadly force is justified, although I'm sure that wasn't his intent.  That said, they live in New Jersey.  I think the laws of time, space and physics change when you cross the border into that state and New York.  I hope the DA doesn't do anything stupid here.

Gracias

Welcome to a new follower, TinCan Assassin.  He has a blog, Nine Pound Sledgehammer, that is quite good.  The most recent post is something I really don't want to think about for a few years, but my time is coming.  Kick back and relax, TinCan and I hope you enjoy it.  Feel free to comment and I'll always respond.  Thanks again.

Cool gun songs

If you haven't heard of FXHummel1, he covers songs and re-writes lyrics that are pretty incredible.  Sometimes they are funny, sometimes they are ranty (new word, trademarked) and sometimes they give you goosebumps. This one over at Everyday No Days Off is pretty awesome.  Check that one out then watch some other ones if you haven't heard his stuff.  If you're a gun nut (or even if you're not), you'll find yourself nodding your head to some of it and giggling out loud.

Post Falls Glock and Taco

For all of your needs in one convenient place.

"Officials say the officer was changing his license plates and took his gun off.  He then put it on top of his truck and it eventually fell off."

I will tell you the attitude that generate this:  It is just another tool they work with every day.  I worked with firearms day in and day out for years and you had to constantly remind yourself you were dealing with a tool that was a firearm or you ended up in a bad situation.  It's not a cup of coffee that you set on the hood of your car.

More "sorry, wrong address" violence

This one from Fitchburg, Mass.  The FBI uses a CHAINSAW to enter the home of a young woman at home alone with her 3 year-old.  Oops, wrong place.  You figure they would review the tapes from previous errors (errors upheld by the courts) where the same thing happened and people died and figure maybe they want to make sure they are getting the right place.

Since it was a citywide sweep of some kind, there are apparently more people speaking out that they had similar incidences.  I want you to think about what your reaction would be, home alone with your 3 year-old when a chainsaw blade pierces your front door.  This really needs to stop.

It took them a two year investigation to get it that wrong.  Double thumbs up, guys.

http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/local/12006574418493/fbi-targets-wrong-apartment-in-fitchburg-raid/

Performance Art

That is what I'm calling this.

It's a literal interpretation of what O is attempting to do to small business and those that actually pay taxes in this country.