The USPS parking lot and your CHL

There has been much discussion regarding the legality of driving or parking in the post office parking lit while in possession of your legal firearm.  Most believed it was not enforceable but didn't want to be the first test case taken to court (and I totally understand this).

Now, a federal judge has ruled that USPS' broad interpretation violates the 2nd Amendment.  This is really good news.  No more gray area of legaluty just to mail a letter.

http://us.foxnews.mobi/quickPage.html?page=26048&external=2228578.proteus.fma

Shoddy police work (and bad decision making)

Follow that up with an arrest caused soley by law enforcement's poor
judgement and you have quite the trifecta of incompetence.

When the decisions you make daily are backed with a gun on your hip,
you should weigh them very heavily. I support law enforcement a lot
and know it can be a tough job. However, situations like this are
just ways to get lots of people
hurt. First, it was Detroit with the faux purse snatcher getting
drawn on by the very real FBI agent.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/detroit-shot-fbi-agent-staged-purse-snatching-report-article-1.1366087

and now...

Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control can't tell the difference between
sparkling water and beer. Because, you know, alcoholic beverages are
their raison d'etre.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/uva-girl-water-beer-jail-181104442.html

That sounds like a potentially very dangerous situation. Also, VA is
a very lax carry state so this could have gone very badly. It also
makes me wonder how they're profiling people they don't think should
be buying alcohol. "Hey, they look young let's bum rush them wearing
no easily identifiable clothing." What could possibly go wrong?

Bloomberg's big MAIG oops

This is much more telling than people realize. Mayors Against Illegal
Guns (MAIG), or more accurately Criminals Against Guns (since a high
percentage of the mayors involved are criminals) did a little reading
of what they purported to be victims of gun violence. What they
actuall did was just read a list of people killed by firearms,
regardless of the situation.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/19/bloomberg-group-sorry-for-reading-boston-bombers-name/

Why is this so telling, do you ask? Or even a surprise? Well, it
isn't a surprise really. However, what it exposes is how groups such
as MAIG balloon numbers. This is the thing about fooling the public
that is generally uneducated in such matters. I can give you all the
numbers for people killed in a firearm homicide. What I can also do
is not exclude numbers of those where the homicide was ruled
justified, since it is still in the same broad category of the
definition. Or, I can say "all these people were killed by guns"
neglecting to say:

oh yeah, this was probably a terriorist killed by the guns of law enforcement.

Proof their numbers are fake or they just don't care enough to vet them.

Stack o' mags

Finally arrived.  It's been months since I ordered them and I almost forgot, but they just showed up for a middle of the year Christmas.

9 year old shoots at home invaders

But there is a catch.  In Brooklyn?  Yes, but that isn't the catch.  He picked up a gun that one of the thugs dropped and started firing.  This is where NY is.  The bad guys have to bring the guns for the good guys to even have the possibility of defending themselves.  The good guys just have to figure out how not to get killed in the process.

http://abcnews.go.com/m/video?id=19320078

How a hippie takes a shower

You can't convince me that wasn't an intentional face shot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayHKDgWfgfA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Bourbon trifecta

Apparently, it takes a lot to smoke brisket.

We'll be here all night.

About to smoke meat, soooo

Need to crack some cooking lube open.

Torture device has arrived

No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!

Bus catches thief

Ouch.  Karma says SMACK!

Phone thief doesn't look both ways before escape attempt.

http://m.guardiannews.com/world/video/2013/may/18/phone-thief-runs-in-front-bus-video

Bear Attacks

There have been a few of them in the news lately.  There was this one in Canada and I'm not sure exactly what was going on with this guy.  Instead of getting a good defense ready, we're on the phone.  I dunno.  Oh, Canada - guns are taboo.

Not an attack, but That Guy sent me this story and the part that baffles me is that the lady decides to jump in her car and go looking for the bear.  I dunno.  To me, that's how attacks generally happen.  People pushing animals by trying to get too close.

This one from Wisconsin takes the cake, though.  A guy is attacked by a bear.  The wife goes and gets a shotgun.  Yay!  Good bear defense.  Then clubs the bear with it.  Huh?

Turns out she didn't know how to load it.  I guess Joe Biden is proved wrong again.  Probably because he doesn't know jack squat about shotguns in general.  Poor Joe. 

At one time I was guilty of taking my wife (or new people in general) to the range and just wanting to get them excited about shooting.  So, after the safety rules we started shooting.  I went to the range like I always do, mags all loaded to save time for shooting.  Then, I realized my mistake.  I wasn't teaching them to fish.

I started teaching mag loading and manipulation consistenly after that.  It's not the glamorous, fun part of shooting but it's just as important as trigger press.  I also realized that talking about and teaching firearm manipulation may have more exciting to the new people than I realized. 

If you have guns in the house, teaching momma how to load the shotgun may just save you.

Lots of bear activity lately.  I wonder if they make an ankle holster for a .500 S&W?

ALWAYS Fight

If necessary, to the death.

 

A man and wife fought an intruder to protect their home and young child.  They fought like they should fight.  Violently, without pause and with all means at their disposal.  The husband fought with the intruder while the wife retrieved a knife and stabbed the intruder to help her husband.  That takes a lot of mental strength.

 

A firearms instructor once told me to: "Fight, fight, continue to fight.  If you die, you make sure the attacker dies first so they will be your servant in Valhalla."  That is a smart plan.

 

Would they have been better off with a firearm?  Of course.  But that didn't stop them from fighting for all they were worth.

 

Lessons:  keep the door locked, even when you're home.  Be paranoid when opening your door to unknown people.

 

Oh yeah, and always fight.

P90X Day 1

(*&^ that sadistic &$(*@ son of *^%$#.

I swear, if I get my hands on that *^#$*...

I can't lift my arms.  I think that's a good thing.  One of my first thoughts was how many regrets I have for letting my fitness slide so much.  I remember doing push-ups until I was bored counting.  Now an 18 month old could count my push-ups for me.

I don't feel like I'm going to die anymore, so that's a positive thing.

It's about time I've buckled down.  I just think of how much this will improve my shooting and I can push through it.  That and a little Van Halen in the headphones doesn't hurt.

More thanks and happy mommy's day

This thanks goes out to Miss K.  Take a trip over to Miss Ks World.  I will warn you, it's what I call a time vampire.  You'll go to check it out a little and next thing you know you've been there for a long time.  She makes me laugh.

Also, happy mommy's day to Miss K and all those moms out there.  I hope it's incredible.

A thanks to new followers

A lot of thanks to Ronnie Jay and John Shirley for following my ramblings.  I appreciate it, though I've taken my sweet time to tell you so.  Links going in the sidebar.  Thanks again.

Just one warning:

Your "yikes" of the day

I've read that the guy was ok, which is good, especially since he pretty much folded in half.  Just a long walk back to the planned drop zone.

Skip to :25 or so and watch real close.  It's gonna be quick.

The best comment I read:

"Talk about premature evacuation"

Department of Defense yanks 3D printed gun specs

I'm not sure how this works or the legal ramifications of what they think they're doing, but I find this a highly interesting legal case.

Defense Distributed files are being removed from public access at the request of the U.S. Department of Defense Trade Controls.  Until further notice, the United States government claims control of the information.

I'm not sure how they think it will work.

That and it's already been downloaded 100,000 times.  As we all know, it's real easy to put the genie back in the bottle once something hits the internet.

That cheeky Samsung S4

Mrs 45er and I were having fun playing with the S voice on her new phone.  Check out what it had for answers when asked questions about its competitor.

Samsung Galaxy S4 vs HTC One

Ok, this post is going to be long and I know a lot of you will just glaze over, but it may benefit a few.  Some have shown interest in knowing about these phones from a disinterested third party that knows more about 1911s than smart-phones, so here it goes:

Let's get ready to rummmbllllle!

Well, as much as you can rumble when geeking on smart-phone tech.  I mentioned a little while back that I had received my HTC One and was diligently playing working on it to flesh out all of the pros and cons.  Mrs. 45er received her S4 a week later and has had it for the weekend.  I've been comparing the functions and workability of both phones as well as seeing how well they work together. That in addition to reading and watching different in-depth reviews that shed a lot of light on the pros and cons of each phone. 

First, a disclaimer (well, first I guess the FTC garbage about how I had to buy both of these phones and they are in no way a gimme, by any means). 

So, now my actual disclaimer:  I am biased against Samsung.  It's important to know this so that you'll understand that if I say anything positive, it is hard-earned (and somewhat begrudgingly done).  Mrs 45er and I have had 100% failure on all of our previous Samsung devices.  That would be a TV, Blu-Ray player and two smartphones.  I swore that my Samsung phone would be the last product I would get from them.  That is why I went with the HTC One.  Mrs 45er stuck it out and we read reviews and she decided to give them one last try.

First part, the hardware and case.

HTC One wins the looks and durability part.  The HTC has an aluminum body case and is a good looking phone.

HTC One, picture taken with Samsung S4

Samsung stuck with plastic.  The phone is light, but doesn't have a solid feel.  Detaching the back off of the phone is a scary endeavor that makes you wonder if you're going to break something.

Samsung S4, picture taken with HTC One

That said, the Samsung phone does have the ability to remove the battery and has a spot for an upgrade on the SD card.  Fine and dandy, except the base model S4 is shipping with a 16 GB card and (from recent reports), half of that memory is eaten up by "bloatware" or pre-installed carrier software, so it sure better be upgradeable.  The HTC One base model ships with 32 GB of space.  Everything I have see so far says it is not upgradeable.

Software:

I'm not going to get into specs, but the Samsung does have the newest version of the android OS.  The HTC, for some reason released their new phone with software that was a step behind.  I've not seen any demonstrable differences yet.

Speed:

Both phones are smoking fast.  I'm not going to get into Gigahertzes and thingses, my precious.  Just know that for a regular to heavy phone user, the speed is very good on both models and screen movement is smooth, even with games and videos.  Data speed is not fair to talk about too much, since it is all based on carrier and location.  Mostly it's not that great around here, but the phone still seems to do pretty well.  Both of them are VERY fast when connected to WiFi.  For the phones themselves, I'd say it is more fair to judge that way.  I had no problems at all playing videos or even watching TV on the phones and download time and buffering is minimal to non-existent.

Power usage:

Both phones seem to do pretty well.  Compared to our old phones, these are practically battery camels so it's hard to be objective when you're euphoric that you don't have to charge halfway through the day.  With regular usage (including internet and video), my HTC phone lasted the entire day.  It needed to be charged by the end of the day for sure, but lasted until the day was through.  There is a power saver function that I tend to leave on all of the time with no real disruption and that seems to make the phone last twice as long.

The S4 also does very well.  The battery is a bit bigger than the HTC, and while the display is a touch larger (making me think more battery drain) it also seems dimmer.  Mrs 45er has no issues making the phone last at least an entire day.

Display:

Speaking of the display, on both phones it is very impressive.  The Samsung has a bit larger area, but less pixel density than the HTC One.  The screen size makes the Samsung seem larger than in actually is.  The phones are comparable in size, though the S4 is a bit thinner.  The S4 probably wins by a smidge on screen, but it being a little dimmer might negate the win.

Samsung S4 on bottom, HTC One on top

For size comparison and thickness, here are the two together (Samsung on top of the HTC):

As you can see, though the Samsung seems larger when viewing the screen, they are actually really close tot he same size.

Features:

S4 does win in the feature category.  It has more flash-bang, gimmicky features than does the HTC (touchless gesture operation, face detection, eye movement detection).  Though not all work perfectly.  The phone also has more "fun" features to play with.  Both cameras work well and both have a main and front-facing camera.  The HTC does pretty well in low light and has a much wider angle on the front-facing lens.  The Samsung actually has voice activation for taking the picture, which is pretty darn neat.  It recognizes the words "cheese," "smile," and "shoot" the latter word might have interesting consequences if you aren't careful.  Most importantly, both cameras take very fast pictures and have great recovery time.  You can snap one picture after another instead of missing all those shots or telling your young kids to "hold still."  That's like telling the wind to stop blowing.

One interesting feature that Samsung has introduced is their "S Voice" which seems to be a direct competitor with Siri on the iPhone.  I was a little jealous of that feature until I found a great app called "Sherpa".  It's in beta version right now, but you can get it for android and the voice recognition is pretty accurate.  It hasn't really messed up on anything I've asked it so far.  Even if you don't have a new phone, this might be something to look at for an android OS.

NFC and Bluetooth:

So, basically NFC (Near Field Communication) is the cool new thing for file transfer.  You turn it on (or leave it on), pick a file and touch the backs of the phones and when they buzz, touch the file and it transfers.  Whiz-bangy, I know.  It's also pretty cool, especially when you have a sealed phone like the HTC One.  No pulling cards, connecting cords and transferring files.  It is reliant on a chip, so you do have to get the chips reeeaaal close for it to work.  How close?  The HTC One NFC chip is in the top of the phone, the S4 chip is in the bottom.  Straight up back-to-back doesn't work.  With the phones back-to-back, flipping one over or holding them top to bottom does.  That's how close.  You can also transfer files device to device using bluetooth for family phones where you feel more secure and that's much easier.  It can be done from across the room once they pair.

Sound:

Not normally a plus category with a phone, right?  How much is there to say about a screechy, tiny sounding little speaker that sounds like a cat fighting a peacock when you turn it all the way up?  Well, this is where the HTC shines.  While the Samsung S4 has "ok" sound, the HTC One has something they are calling "Boomsound."  There are two rows of speaker holes (with, I'm assuming, speakers behind them) across the top and bottom of the FRONT of the phone.  No muffled cat-screech when you sent the phone down.  The Boomsound in combination with the Beats Audio make this phone something on which you actually want to listen to music.

At the end of the day, I think either phone will make a new phone buyer very happy.  The HTC One was a bit less in cost than the S4 with carrier discounts and came with more on-board memory.  The memory upgrade on the S4 will cost another $50 or so to go to a class 10, 64 GB card if you're so inclined.  For the smartphone world, this is the Glock vs 1911, 9mm vs 45ACP conversation.  Both do their own job in their own way.  I don't see a clear, "OMG this is so much better" phone.  I'd be happy with either as long as it works.  That's me saying a lot about the Samsung.  The HTC One is your sleeker, steady-wins-the-race option and the S4 is your tactical tupperware whiz-bang option. 

I'm going to go back to playing working on my phone, now.

Oskar Blues Brewery; Gubna Imperial IPA

Boy, what can I say about this one?  If you like hops and IPAs, this beer is for you.  This one had everything good about IPA distilled down into a can.  Yes, you heard me.   A can.

For all of those that are starting off with "Ewww, beer in a can,"  you need to re-think what you know about beer.  Just like most people know now that corked wine is really about show and screw caps have a much smaller failure rate, we now know that with can liners beer flavor is not affected by being put into a can.  To the contrary, since cans do not let in light like even the darkest bottles, one of beer's primary enemies is thwarted.   Now, on to one of the better IPAs I've ever had:

Hop Nectar

I have to fall in love with a beer that has "DISESTABLISHMENTARIAN" printed right on the top of the can.

You can see that it poured a clear, darker amber color.  The head was light and very white with a fine foam. The aroma was pure hops, but not overly powerful and lightly sweet.

The first thing to hit you is hops when you take a sip.  Very powerful, but not at all bitter.  I'm not sure how they amped up the hops flavor and toned down the bitter that usually comes with that, but they did it and they did a good job of it.

As the beer warmed, the hops hit actually toned down and you could detect a bit of maltiness along with the great hops flavor.  The only bitter was just a bit on the back and sides of the tongue.  Not that bitter is a bad thing at all, but too much can just shut you down.  This was overall a fantastic beer.  However, I warn you that if you aren't an IPA drinker or familiar with strong hops, you may want to start a bit lighter than this one.

For those of you that are IPA nuts, run, don't walk to get this one.

Now, the price point is rather high.  It comes in a 4 pack of cans and it will run you around $14.00.  This isn't something you're going to be drinking a case of at the 4th of July party.  It's something you want to sit down with and really enjoy (and at 10.0% ABV, I recommend going light on them).  Speaking of that, I'm going to keep doing that.

The Pulleedgience

It took me a while to understand what Itty Bitty was emphatically trying to tell me.  There was a U.S. flag on TV and she was telling me she saw the Pulleedgience that we do.  Since I wasn't watching, it took me a while to orient.  So, after explaining it was the US flag and we SAY the pledge of allegience to it, I smiled inside knowing my youngest is learning the important things.

The curious case of the Wal Mart parking lot deer hunt

I didn't post on this back when I first heard about it because I forgot.  It also didn't have much on facts back then.  Well, it still doesn't but then there is this:

"Defense attorney Jason Huska argued the reckless endangerment charge was unwarranted because he contends Bianco couldn't have known any workers were in the trailers when he fired."

And you've made their point.  He couldn't have known which means he DIDN'T know which means he never should have pulled the trigger.  Case closed.  Bring in the rope and the stool.

Nevermind the fact that none of this scenario should have ever played out in the first place.  There are very few scenarios where piling out of your truck firing your handgun in a parking lot is acceptable.  Every one I can think of pretty much involve someone already shooting at you.

This is what makes the news.  All of you responsible gun owners didn't make the news again today.  Sorry.

CHL holder assists police, stops person from entering school

Over at That Guy's place.  Highly recommended read for an example of what stops bad people from entering a school.

AR-15 used for good - UNPOSSIBLE

Interesting story:

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/05/01/iraq-war-vet-armed-with-rifle-thwarts-gas-station-break-in-police-say/?intcmp=HPBucket

Summary:  Someone working late night at a gas station who also happens to be an Iraq War Vet decides not to take it lying down from a couple of young thugs.  He kicks one, gets his AR and all-of-a-sudden they aren't so tough anymore.  No one is injured, but both are arrested after they scamper away.

Two amazing things about this story:

A. an AR-15 overcame it's inherent evil and was forced to be used to do something good.  I'm also surprised that the Iraq war veteran was able to figure out how to use it, even with extensive training.  After all, Joe Biden says it's so hard to figure out we should all have double-barrel shotguns and shoot through doors and off our balconies with them.

B. according to DHS veterans are potentially the enemy, but here one is doing a positive thing working hard and defending himself from criminals.

I know, go figure.

Victim takes attacker's shotgun (video)

This is pretty amazing video:

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/man-turns-tables-shotgun-wielding-attacker-141851442.html

and from the original report:

http://www.wwl.com/pages/16209701.php

While this is not the recommended course of action to take unless you know what you are doing, it's fascinating to see and sometimes fighting back makes you king of your fate.

This is a good example of why you never get in too close to someone, especially with a long firearm.  It works both ways.  If you're the good guy, stay away from the bad guy if you've got the advantage.

Still, very interesting video to watch.  We always say fight back.  Sometimes it takes some big stones to put your money where the shotgun barrel is, so to speak.  I'm glad this guy came out on top.  After watching the video, I love reading the part when the bad guys come back and try to negotiate, saying they had the victim's cell phone.  Like a typical thug, this guy beats feet like Flash when the tables turn.  I see he had all the time in the world to pick up a dropped cell phone.  :)

Don't bring paintball gun to a gunfight

http://q13fox.com/2013/04/29/dont-bring-a-paint-ball-gun-to-a-shootout/

I have to say this is interesting video.  Other than that, I can't say it any better than Chief Troumbley did in the interview.

Brand New Techy stuff

I received the HTC One on Friday.  Newest of the new smart phones.  Mrs. 45er has a Galaxy S4 on the way in a few days.  They are basically the two big competing phones right now.  So far, I absolutely love my HTC One.  Some of the stuff it does is mind-blowing.  When we get the S4, I'll try to do a side-by-side comparison with them.  By then I'll have a good bit of time to write knowledgeably on the HTC.  Stay tuned.

Filling the tank

So, the first stop was a local barbecue place for pork ribs and brisket.  I couldn't resist the jalapeno potato salad, either.

Empty

After two days of clear liquids, this is all I can think about:

The BIG Cleanse

Guys (and gals), don't be a big, tough guy/gal.  Go to the doc and get screened.  I'm notorious for going years on end without seeing a doctor in any capacity other than a "hello" on the street.  It's dumb and it isn't doing your loved ones any favors.  Mrs. 45ers doc is a former military doctor. I was listening to him talk to her about a lot of situations where, due to change of station, guys didn't follow up and it turned into something horrible later.  Therefore, tomorrow is the big screening, which means today is the big cleanse day.

 

It's been a long time since I've been this hungry.  Clear liquids and water just don't keep you filled up.  Trying to find something different to keep my stomach occupied, I decided to have a couple of small cups of coffee.  I don't normally imbibe, but what could be the harm, right?

 

Well, turns out that due to lack of nutrition and low blood sugar I'm a poor decision maker today.  At least I realize that my lack of nourishment means I'll be making very few important decisions today.  On the plus side I've had two cups of coffee, so I'm energetic.  I'm making stupid decisions even faster!

Bulletproof Whiteboards?

I'm up in the air on this one.  By itself, we all know these are pretty much useless for sheltering in place.  It's like just having a shield in a battle with swords.  Eventually, the guy will get to you.  I can see some benefits for using it to get the heck out of dodge, but that is not the procedure for most schools.  Now, where this will be amazingly effective are the schools where teachers can be armed.  Now you're getting to a serious combination of defense and offense.  That's portable cover and you can't beat that.  I can't see how you hold them, but if there are elastic straps on the back you could use it something like a shield on your forearm.  It might break a bone, but big deal.  You can use it like a small riot shield and shoot around it with your strong hand.

What's the most ridiculous thing you did this weekend?

My weekend involved things like this:

Capuchin on a blue-tick.  I think that's a country song.

Mrs. 45er stated this is officially the most ridiculous thing she's ever seen.

Me?  I must live a weird life.  This falls in the middle-ground category.

Your two terrifying stories of the day

Gonna need a bigger boat.

I like to think I'm cool under pressure, but I'd have probably sank my own boat with .40 cal holes.

And then there is this.

The answer to why anyone would ever need a flamethrower.

New Breed of Poodle - The Perret?

Or maybe the Foodle?

I'm sorry, but if you're going buy a "poodle" at a market for that kind of dough and you can't tell the difference between a weaselly, slinky ferret and a poodle puppy, then you deserve what you get.



On the other hand, props to the seller for putting in the time to primp up a ferret like that.  I don't know what that would be like, but it had to be a rodeo.  It also seems like a whole lot of work pumping steroids and primping a ferret for a little payoff.  The article also mentioned a lady that bought a "chihuahua" ferret.  I'm kind of upset there wasn't a picture of that one.

The new "shoulder thing that goes up" quote

Ok, so here it is:

Rep Diana DeGette of Colorado was one of the main forces behind the recent push for gun control laws in Colorado.  She must know a bunch about firearms, since she is so passionate to ban them, right?

Absolutely wrong.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/04/03/house-democrat-confuses-her-own-gun-control-proposal/

What's the efficacy of banning these magazine clips?  I will tell you, these are ammunition, they're bullets.  So the people who have those now, they're going to shoot them," DeGette said.  "And so if you ban them in the future, the number of these high-capacity magazines is going to decrease dramatically over time, because the bullets will have been shot and there won't be any more available."

Ok, so that's just ridiculous on the face of it.  She was deservedly laughed at for that piece of brilliance.  Apparently, I need to order a heck of a lot more AR magazines because I was using them all wrong.  I had no idea they were a one-shot deal.

So, her office decided to clarify her obviously ignorant statement.

"She simply misspoke in referring to 'magazines,' when she should have referred to 'clips,' which cannot be reused because they don't have a feeding mechanism," spokeswoman Juliet Johnson said.

 Ohhhhh.

Wait, I still don't get it.  So, now these people are trying to act like they know the difference between a clip and a magazine?  It's laughable.  It would be funny if they weren't actually accomplishing their goal.

I have clips.  Lots of clips.  They have a specific purpose.  You know what else?  They sure can be reloaded if you so desire.  I've re-used my SKS clips many times.  I've also not seen very many "high-capacity clips."  Most hold, what? Eight to ten rounds for a quicker reload of a magazine?

It's a farce.  Is it over?  Not quite.  She also had this little jewel in response to an older individual that had a question regarding his ability to defend himself against a larger and aggressive attacker:

DPD (Denver PD) would be there in minutes.

You'd probably be dead anyway. 

Seriously.  Now, whether she realizes it or not.  This was the only correct thing she actually said.  Yes, the police will be there in minutes while you're being attacked.  And yes, you probably will be dead anyway.  She made his point for him as she mocked him.  I think the thing is they really don't care about public safety, they care about the control.  She accidentally exposed herself a little more than she intended.  Sadly, I don't see this being carried very far by "journalists."

Things that make me laugh

Bad guys getting a beat down by karma.

http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nbcnews.com/51393157/

This just made me chuckle.

Elk Ribs

Not a recipe, just thought I'd share.  I kept as much of the ribs as I could from the elk that we shot a while back.  The size of them is rather hilarious, but we've become accustomed to eating "Flintstone ribs" around here.  I just pulled them out of the smoker.  They've been out there all day.

The beer is there for perspective only.  :)

Boy, you gotta panty on yo' head

Just made me laugh.

Thought I'd share

Bacon prophylaxis

Ok, so I LOVE some bacon.  I mean, really am IN love with it.  Usually, if it contains the "B" word, I'm all for it.

However, today I think I found my limit.

You betcha. Cured, smoked pork flavored prophylactics.  Really?

Because nothing says seksee like meat condoms

So that story led me to this story, which combines two of my favorite things.  Meet the BA K 47.

I think it's love.  If not, it's bacon and that's close enough

Reloading Treasure Trove

That Guy has been bugging me to get into reloading by sending me little reminders in the form of SALE! emails for reloading equipment.  I was seriously poring over one, when I thought maybe I should root around in old stuff at my parents' for some long lost reloading stuff.  I forgot most of this stuff was out there.

Mess

The press was in bad shape.  It has been bolted to the same bench since I was a kid.  It moved along with the bench.  The last time it was used was by me playing around 15 or so years ago.  It was stiff, but a little Liquid Wrench and it started working pretty well.  I'll let it all soak for a while then start scrubbing.

Miscellany and a baseball

Some of the stuff is newer from when I dabbled years ago, some is older.  The baseball is the box's non-sequitur, I guess.  I have no idea how it ended up in there.  The bottle of powder is a decade and a half old and I doubt will be reliable.

This box had some even older stuff that was mostly before me.  I'm intrigued by the Steven's ammo.  I'll have to check on that.  However, there was a surprise in the white box in here that is half full and is mine.  I'll let the crowd guess the caliber of ammo from the exposed round.

The first thing I did was break out the kinetic bullet puller and get to work on this:

Here is an especially sad story.  A few years ago I found a guy that re-loads and I was really wanting to get a work up done for my 7 mm STW.  Ammunition is difficult to find and the selection is extremely limited.  This is the main reason I dug all this stuff out to begin with.  Anyway, I paid for this box of ammo only to find that two of the rounds weren't even primed.  Did I want to find out what other attention to detail was missed by loading up a belted mag in my rifle and pulling the trigger?  Not especially.  So...

In they went.  I did discover that it's best to put a little piece of tape over the un-primed end if you're going to be swinging it around whacking a bullet out.  Nothing like flying pieces of gunpowder.  A few whacks and...

Success!

Lizzie Borden had it easy with just 40 whacks.  I was in the garage forever thinking I was going to break something at any time.

sadness

Such a waste of components, especially with today's demand.  I will probably try to recycle the bullets if they still manufacture the types I have.  I can see which work well before buying a big box.  I'm sure the powder will just have to be chalked up to something entertaining.  Time to start the work, I guess.

Rumors of my death

have been greatly exaggerated.

Definitely been out of it lately.  Nothing crazy, just not up to it.  I've been reading blogs, though.  More to come, soon.

Letting them prove your point

It's not really an easy thing to do, but when you do it you should seize the moment.

This right here may seem like just proving a point and maybe that's how it started.  However, what it turned into was shining the light on a blatant hypocrite in addition to having an opponent take your exact position without realizing it.

So, basically Rep. Mike Leara of Missouri sponsored a bill that would make it a felony punishable by four years in prison to introduce legislation restricting gun rights.

Now, here is the beautiful part:

Democratic Rep Stacey Newman called Rep Leara's proposed legislation "unconstitutional" and she would go directly to prison if the bill passes.  Do you fully recognize the beautiful, burning irony of what she just said?  Could it be possible that she said this on purpose?  I don't know that a politician would make such a quote-worthy statement on purpose.  So, our crowd are the extremist freaks when we say we may choose to ignore an unconstitutional law.  I think I know why.

Their principles are more well-intentioned than ours.  They care more, so their vague idea of what is unconstitutional trumps our actual amendment IN the Constitution.  If I were Rep. Leara, I'd be waylaying my opponent with the irony of her hypocrisy.

Ode to the Badness of Jester King: Der Wunderkind - Sour Saison

So, today I received a really neat bottle opener and re-sealer that I ordered.  I didn't really have the need to open any of my big bottles of beer and re-seal them.  For any of the bottles that I have, if I were to open it Mrs. 45er and I would really not need a re-sealer if you know what I mean.  On the other hand, there was a bottle in my beer fridge that has been taking up valuable space.  It has not been opened because I took a bottle to a guys' weekend and we taste-tested it there.  Quite frankly, one of the worst beers I've ever had.  Perfect for testing!

Sorry for the crappy cell phone pic, but I didn't feel this one warranted even walking through the house to get the nice camera.

bottle o' awful

The Jester King Der Wunderkind.  Some descriptions among the group at the taste testing a while back were: "carbonated tang" and "sour applejuice".  By far my favorite comment was: "I need a can of Coors to cleanse my palate."

So, knowing I needed to get this bottle out of the fridge and also needed to test the bottle re-sealer without wasting good beer, I cracked this one.  I had purchased two of these bottles back when we did the taste test.  One for the group to try and one for me thinking it would at least be palatable.  I've been avoiding it like the plague ever since.  So, today I thought that maybe it couldn't have been as bad as I remembered it nigh a year ago.  Surely there isn't a beer that just can't be drank.

Well, the first hit on the tongue reminded me that there exists such a brew.  It pours a chilled urine color with a flat head.  The aroma is not bad, but is like the sirens' song.  You'll regret believing your nose on this one.  You have to work to get the carbonation to show up.

I am a fan of sours.  I admit, saisons are not my favorite, but I drink some pretty serious sour beers and this being a sour saison isn't what turns my stomach.  It's just bad.  This was a very unanimous decision among a group of 7 guys, most of which drink serious beers and love their sours.  I don't think I could get a decision that unanimous on anything else.

So, the remaining glass was poured out to my dead homies and now I'm going to test the re-sealer on the new opener by shaking the bottle a little and seeing what it can handle.  I'm going to enjoy this beer one way or another.  More on the re-sealer to come...

It's not the dog in the fight...

...it's the fight in the dog that counts.  I don't know if I've ever seen anything quite like this.

Apparently, the story is that two thugs get caught after robbing an electronics store and go to jail.  For some reason, they decide to re-visit their last unlucky score.  Their approach is none too bright, but the worker at the store doesn't just fight back a little.  He fights back a whole lot and with some serious gusto.  I don't know if I've ever seen a couple of thugs owned quite like this.  I'm just guessing by the shoes that one might be female, but the faces are covered so it's hard to tell.

Judging from the lettering on the back of the police jackets, I believe this is Poland.  Enjoy the video, I don't know if what this guy did could be improved on.  The other people standing around watching, on the other hand...

School shooting, where's the ZOMG reporting?

I'll tell you where the nationwide reporting isn't; anywhere near this story.

Police say the coach was walking the two girls to their car when the two men allegedly approached and one pulled out a gun and grabbed him by his chain necklace.  The coach then pulled out his gun and shot both of them, according to sources.

How in the world is that story going to fit into a gun control narrative?  As of right now, I haven't seen this story on any main news webpage, much less as a headline story.

Tanks a lot

Lots of tanks

I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone that has chosen to follow my ramblings.  I know I've thanked most of you in the past, but a few have followed while I've been slacking off on the blog.  I'd like to thank Badger Medic.  I think that's the most recent follower.  If you have a blog, let me know and I'll link it.  I didn't see one in your profile.  Please don't hesitate to comment and I'll always respond.  Thanks for stopping by and staying.

"Standard" ammo chamberings

That Guy at Rock in a Sea of Chaos has made a very good point.  Remember all of the intarweb gun forum talk of "standard" chamberings for survival rifles and how in the occurrence of said emergency situation you would just be able to find it anywhere?  I think our current state of affairs has proven that theory very wrong.  Unless you're willing to fight someone for it who obviously has more ammo than you (since that's what you're after), then the supply will be non-existent when high demand occurs.  I guess I'm glad I have some of the funky calibers in the safe that I can still get ammo for if I really needed to.

Milwaukee Sheriff chastised for common sense

You can use hyperbole and point to an occasional extreme example all you want, but the fact is that he is absolutely right.  All the sheriff did here was state the facts.  He didn't tell everyone to arm up and roam the streets, he simply stated that you are your first line of defense.  People wanting to make political hay have (unsurprisingly) jumped into the mix here.  There are your typical politicians and gun control groups saying what they typically say.  In actuality, what they are saying is quite dangerous.  Law enforcement is rarely ever there in time.  Stating that he should "do his job better" makes no sense statistically.  A fantastic law enforcement response time is around 2 minutes.  The averave, or "acceptable", is probably more in the range of 4 to 5 minutes.  Add at least another 5 minutes if you live in a rural area.  A sheriff generally has a much wider area that they have to police.  It just takes time to drive somewhere.

So, let's take a very good response time of 2 minutes.  Look at your watch.  Someone has just kicked in your door.  Sit there and watch 2 minutes go by and tell me if that isn't an eternity.  Now, response time on scene, not actually involved in your crisis yet.  So, the police pull up and need to assess the situation before charging in.  Add on another minute at least.  Now you're in your bedroom with the house surrounded by the police and the bad guy trapped inside.  Now what?  What is actually irresponsible is telling citizens that they should rely on law enforcement response as their primary means of defense.  Calling 911 should be the same as an officer callingfor back-up.  That is how everyone should view that system.  Find a good defensive place, get the family there and hold your position, ready to use your firearm, while waiting for back-up to arrive.  No "Dirty Harry" about it, just a family defending their lives and home.

Feinstein's Wish List

So, here is the fun ban list.  First off, I'm thinking it has a snowball's chance in hell of passing.  However, I have perused and discussed this with my group of shooter friends.  There are many, many issues with the way this list is constructed.  I'll make it a bit of a game.  What is wrong with how they have classed many of these firearms?  I have done a little dissection in private of the weaknesses of this piece of paper.  Now, if this is indeed a page from the actual law then it is horribly sloppy.  If that's the case, I'm not going to line out the legal issues for our opponents.  I'm not closing loopholes for them.  If it's just a press release, well we shall see...

I know a lot of gun people that will have an aneurysm because of how they've "typed" some of these firearms.

My note to Brownell's

I have always been curious why retailers and those in the industry of firearms buckle and cater to the push of a public that has not and will never darken their door.  Recently, true colors seem to have been shown in light of an emotional topic.  When it came time to stand on a side, a few merchants decided they would cave and/or do head-scratching things.

A couple of these were Dick's Sporting Goods and Cheaper Than Dirt.  Now, Dick's pulled a bonehead by pulling all semi-auto sporting rifles from their stock and submarining their relationship with Troy Industries in the process.  However, Dick's isn't specifically targeted toward the shooting community.  They just like our money a lot, but their real bread-and-butter is sporting goods in general.  I'm not saying that gives them a pass, it just makes them hypocritical.  They have other interests as well, but that call will keep me from getting ammo from them in the future.

However, Cheaper Than Dirt?  What purpose would be served to suspend sales of ARs to your customers?  If it was a matter of being overwhelmed, then let's just say so.  I know that Brownell's did exactly that.  They were honest and stuck with their customer base.  No price-gouging, just a serious attempt  to meet the expectations of their customers.  I have no clue what prompted Cheaper Than Dirt to post a comment something to the effect that they were 'suspending sales' while they re-evaluated their process for selling firearms, but that's squirrelly at best.  Meanwhile, I see Brownell's saying they are doing their best to provide their products and they were just overwhelmed.  They even continued to take back-orders at their normal prices for quite a period of time.  Honesty, plain and simple.  In full disclosure, I cannot remember having ordered any products from Brownell's in the past.  I may have, but they weren't the first place I looked.  I know I have ordered from Cheaper Than Dirt.  I can say that may be a thing of the past.  I was on their email distribution list and received an email saying "Magazines, back in stock!"  I didn't have time to look at it on my phone, but quickly forwarded it to a group of friends, one of which had mentioned they were wanting a couple of AK mags.  The responses back were quick and filled with colorful language.  I won't use it here, but the discussion was all around the high price of the magazines.  $80. for a blue steel AK mag and $130 for a metal Colt AR mag?  Well, I guess that shows me why they're in stock.

So, I thought I would send a note to Brownell's and tell them I appreciated:

Mr. Weeks,

My friends and I are pretty passionate about firearms and the outdoors.  We love to collect, shoot and enjoy the firearms that we are lucky enough to have.  Recently, we have been watching some of the companies that I thought would be our allies in the current battle for our rights.  We have been sorely disappointed.  Yes, these companies are usually competitors, but lately there is plenty of business to go around  We watched as Cheaper Than Dirt initially suspended sales and now have turned around and begun some serious price gouging on magazines.  $130. for a used Colt AR mag is a bit insane.  We have also watched other companies and how they have handled themselves during this time.  Brownell's, for some reason, was never my first stop when looking for accessories and I don't know why, really.  The first thing to get my attention was the post on AR15.com by Mr. Brownell which I stumbled upon through other gun blogs.  His up front and honest description of what was going on was refreshing.  In general, people are not stupid and an honest explanation was all it took.  From there, I went to Brownell's and went ahead and back-ordered some Pmags.  It was obvious that Brownell's had more business than it could deal with and could charge whatever you wanted, but you did not.  These short-term money making decisions may work right now, but customers do not forget this in the long run.  Because of the way Brownell's has handled themselves during this time of high stress, it will be my first stop for accessories from now on.
Thank you for standing by the community.

Though I'm sure he has been insanely busy, Mr Weeks responded in short order:

Thanks for noticing!  We've hired temp help, been working overtime and generally trying to dig out this hole. Our crew had two meetings with magpul at SHOT show.  They are trying to bring more machines online to increase their production.  It all may take a while but we will all get caught up.  In the meantime, please call your senators and congressman.  Thanks for your faith.
Larry Weeks

It is times like now when those that will stand up are recognized.  I know we can't be doing any infighting at this point, but actions will be remembered.  I know that Cabela's has also shown some real spine lately.  I will have to save my pennies and travel a little further up the road to support them next time.

Georgia defense shooting 911 call released

And, oh my goodness.  I just posted on this self-defense shooting.  Well, more was released today.  That Guy and I were discussing this via text over lunch and it sent chills through us both.  This is a worst nightmare scenario.  Of course, the mother defending her 9 year-old twins is facing a horrific decision.  Meanwhile, the father is on the phone with her and I'm sure he is feeling like he wishes he could teleport to her.  I have to give him credit for his calm resolve and instruction to the wife.  He is on with 911 relaying what is going on while he is one with his wife.  I'd very much rather be giving my wife instructions over a 911 operator in that situation.  Kudos to them both and I wish her the best in her recovery.  She will need some time to heal from having to do this.

This is worth a listen.

You'll have to turn up the audio on that one, but it is the full call and the neighbor as well.

This one has better audio, but it is a lot of reporting and only a little of the call.  In this report, an officer explains how the guy broke down multiple doors to get to where the wife was.  Very little else was disturbed.  That makes me very happy she had a gun ready for him.

Here are some of the highlights:

"Just remember everything I showed you, everything I taught you, alright?"

That's something you should be able to say.  If you can't, get to the range ASAP.

"If he opens that door, you shoot him, you understand?"

No question, good instructions.

It goes on and I'll just let you listen, since no one can do it justice in print.  I can't emphasize enough how important it is to get to the range and practice.  Just as important are things you can do at home.  Show and explain manipulation of the firearm and practice getting it into play (especially important if a gunvault is involved).

But guns can't do good things

Especially when law-abiding citizens possess them.  I mean, it's just not possible.  I'm sure anti's would rather that we played "what if" and hoped that the repeat felon would just say, "oh, sorry" and leave.  Because that's what happens.

A Georgia mother protects her and her children using a .38 revolver.  Note that she hit him at close range 5 out of 6 shots and he was able to leave, get in his vehicle and end up in the hospital.  Thank goodness it gave her the time she needed to get away.  Wait, why would you ever need more than 10 rounds?  Oh yes, because bad people exist and they don't stop when you want them to stop unless you make them.