Sixteen years ago today

Also from the Cajun

1993 - Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents raid the Branch Davidian church in Waco, Texas with a warrant to arrest the group’s leader David Koresh. Four BATF agents and five Davidians die in the initial raid, starting a 51-day standoff. Is your church approved by the BATFE?

Sixteen years ago today the BATFE targeted what they thought was a soft target and created one of the biggest Federal law enforcement cluster fucks in this nation's history.

This day in history

From the Cajun

1933 - Gleichschaltung: The Reichstag Fire Decree is passed in Germany a day after the Reichstag fire. Generate a crisis, then use it to pass laws that shut down your opponents. Worked then. Is it working now?

Looks like we know who Raum Emanuel got this playbook from.

Too many typos

Lately I can't post anything without finding mistakes after posting. I guess need a new proofreader...ah well that would be me. I guess I'm fired.

Thought Police

So a student does a presentation on school violence and comments on concealed carry on campus. The professor files a complaint with the campus police that results int he student getting rousted.

That night at work, Wahlberg received a message stating that the campus police “requested his presence”. Upon entering the police station, the officers began to list off firearms that were registered under his name, and questioned him about where he kept them.

They told Wahlberg that they had received a complaint from his professor that his presentation was making students feel “scared and uncomfortable”.

The name of the professor at Central Connecticut State University was Paula Anderson. John Walhberg should file a complaint. Maybe others can assist by writing to the powers that be at the university and expressing their ire.

H/T to Radley Balko

NYTimes and the AWB

So when's Obama gonna bail your worthless ass out so you're the official shill for a renewed AWB.

There should be enormous shame on this side of the border that America’s addiction to drugs is bolstered by its feckless gun controls. Firm federal law is urgently needed if the homicidal cartels are to be seriously challenged as a threat to national security.

I'm ashamed that the NYTimes spouts this shit. I'm damn proud more and more aren't listening. Die by capitalism scum.

H/T to David

Ka Chik

Bun Bun takes his bed back.

Pelosi on the ABW

So here's the hard copy on the Pelosi response to Holder. If they think we believe this horse pucky they are that stupid.

H/T to David

Philip José Farmer R.I.P

Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 - February 25, 2009) passed away. I read a lot of his stuff in the 80's. I really liked the first four Riverworld books. It was mostly his take on historical persons like Richard Burton, the explorer not the actor, and Samuel Clemmens that attracted me to the series. Can't say I liked his other works much. Rest in Peace.

Another candidate for...

...a Darwin Award. And Dick, save a seat for me.

Disinformation Campaign on AWB

The media and government disinformation campaign continues its attempt to convince the dull among us that the renewed assault weapons ban is needed to make Mexico and us safe.

H/T to Uncle

18 USC 242

Hey, 18 USC 242 is kinda neat. Any idea when it will be enforced against those worthless gits that lie to the American people to push a political agenda geared to deprive us of our Second Amendment rights? Do the words "hell" and "freeze" give you an idea?

Are they really that stupid?

Obama's AG, Eric Holder said today that

As President Obama indicated during the campaign, there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons

Apparently this would not only be "positive" for the United States but good for our neighbor to the south. Well fuck Mexico. My rights don't hinge on their needs. Close the freaking border and that should settle the issue of a few guns, purchased through strawmen, going south.

All a renewed ban will guarantee for me and many others is that I will find the money to buy that AR before the ban goes into effect and come the midterms "his arrogance" and his boys will learn the same lessons the Clinton administration did if they're lucky.

I heard this on the radio on the way home this evening. They noted that Pelosi was asked about the ban. Her response was no to the ban and that enforcement of current laws was enough. Maybe the Democrat leadership has learned from the past, but I doubt it.

Concealled Carry in Restuarants

The News and Observer reports that

Sen. Andrew Brock filed
a bill last week that would allow North Carolinians with concealed weapons permits to take their guns into restaurants.

...and already the bedwetters are expressing their concern.

Roxane Kolar, executive director of North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, said the advocacy group opposes the bills.

"Right now, most people visit state parks because it's a safe environment," she said. "While others may feel safer having their weapons in a state park, there's a lot of others who won't."

She said the group opposes allowing guns in restaurants because "guns and alcohol don't mix." Even though most people with concealed weapons permits are responsible, she said, they may not stay that way after a few drinks.

Ms. Guns and alcohol don't mix. On that Ms. Koalr we can agreed. The difference between you and I is that you pay lip service to concealed weapons permit holder by calling them responsible. I actually believe they are. I don't think most would even think once about having a drink while they're carrying and for those who consider it the thought of all the shit they had to go through to get the permit int he first place and that by having that drink they might lose it would be enough to stop them. Ms. Koler there is always an occasional bad apple but just like the "blood in the streets" we were warned about if we passed concealed carry never happened. The "blood in the restaurants" won't happen either. This is a good change. Call your representative and ask them to support it.

Jindal's rebuttal

It appears Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal's rebuttal to Obamas' speech last night has struck a nerve. That's one reasons I came up with for this hit piece from the New York Times. The other is Jindal is a potential candidate in the 2012 Presidential election and there's no time like the present to start tearing him down. As for the NY Times, the pisteloro does a pretty damn good rebuttal himself. Please go read it.

Tiahrt Amendment

It looks like the shows about to start. Word is that Obama is going to in to the new budget that would repeal the Tiahrt Amendment. So says John M. Snyder, a expert on gun laws The Tiahrt Amendment prevents lowlifes like the Brady Bunch or Bloomberg from getting their sticky hands on the ATF's gun trace data. Why you might ask do these assholes want the data: lawsuits of course. The bitch and moan that it keeps this "necessary" tool out of the hands of law enforcement. the fact is law enforcement has access to it already. Bloomberg, Brady, and their bitched don't need it. Call your representatives and give 'em an earful. By getting the word out we might be able to nip this in the bud.

Taken

Taken was a great. Liam Nesson can play one relentless, cold-hearted son-of-a-bitch. His daughter gets kidnapped by "human traffickers" out of Paris and he gets her back. He doesn't take a gun with him. He doesn't need to. He takes them off the bodies (Albanians, Frenchmen, Arabs) left along the way, and he gets her back. Sorry that's not a spoiler with this type of movie. The end is a forgone conclusion five seconds into the film. With this film as with so many others it not were you end up but how you get there. This is a damn good action flick. There's plenty of gun play, car chases, and hand to hand. The bad guys are bad guys. There is no attempt to humanize or understand them. They're scum. Political correctness? Nowhere to be seen. It was a hell of a ride and so much better than listening to "Hope and Change."

A little justice

...and finally a bit of justice. Unfortunately it won't bring Kathrine Johnson back.

What to do...

President Obama is giving the State of the Union tonight. Lets see...watch him or a movie. I think I'll go see Taken and read about him tomorrow morning.

Roswell, Texas

I just finished the graphic novel Roswell, Texas by L. Neil Smith, Rex F. May and Scott Bieser. Here's a synopsis. This is what amounts to an alternate of Smith's alternate history novel the Probability Broach in graphic novel format. The gist of the plot is that in 1947 an unidentified flying object crash lands in Roswell, Texas and all hell breaks loose as four Texas Rangers and every body else and their brother tries to get to it first. The art is top quality and the story well written and funny as hell. It's a libertarian novel but don't let that stop you. I wish I lived in a place like the Federated States of Texas but ain't gonna happen. This was originally publish online by Big Head Press. The online version [free] is in color and looks much nicer than the hard copy [checked out from the library] which is in gray scale. I'm buying a copy anyway. I like this stuff and want more.

Vanderboegh takes a break

Some dipshit using the moniker Monsignor decided to comment on one of David Codrea's Gun Rights Examiner columns. The gist of his comment was that guns as a tool against tyranny being a reason for civilian ownership of firearms is false because there is no way an armed citizenry could possibly stand up to a professional military armed with modern weapons. Maybe so. Maybe not. Mike Vanderboegh took a break from writing to take Monsignor to task line by line and tis a grand smack down. Go read it.

Correia on Holder

Larry Correia speaks his mind on Eric Holder's claim that we're "a nation of cowards." Nice rant and true.

Two more rebuttals via Jules Crittenden: Larrey Anderson and
LTC (retired) Allen West

If it saves a life...

If it saves a life, isn't that worth it?

..and if it cost a life because someone who needed a gun didn't have one, IS that worth it you self-aggrandisng political opportunist? James Sanders Jr., Oueens Councilman, from that statement alone, and the fact that you had to have the media there when you made it, I think that you don't give a damn about anything but getting your picture in the paper and getting reelected. Go read David Codrea's latest Gun Rights Examiner column.

Gun Rights Examiners:

Updated links to the left. Three new [to me] Gun Rights Examiners: Dan Bidstrup in Denver, Candace Dainty in Milwaukee and Mike Stollenwerk in DC.

On this morning in 1836...

...the Battle of the Alamo began in San Antonio Texas.

No time

Went to Books Do Furnish A Room, a local used bookstore, and posted the weekly batch of comics to eBay then took my son to my mom's church. He wanted to go. Me...a church service is a guaranteed nap and it was. Then lunch and the realization that the keys to the house were locked inside. We waited at the library until my wife and daughters got home. I found a copy of L. Neil smith's Roswell so it wasn't a total waste. Then a quick run by mom's and on to work for five hours. So this is the only post you get for Sunday. I hope for something more substantial tomorrow. I'm going to bed.

Quote of the Day

Boyd: Do you know how to use this?

Echo takes the pistol and chambers a round.

Echo: Four brothers. None of them Democrats.

Dollhouse. Ep2. The Target.

I'm sold.

Interesting Times...

I saw a bit on Fox and Friends with Glen Beck yesterday where he talked about his evening show where the subject was "worst case scenarios". One of those scenarios was civil war here in the United States. A clip from the show is here and its well worth looking at. Obviously these are viewed here as "what if?" scenarios and the time frame they're looking at is 2014. Are we headed toward civil unrest or a civil war and is it that far off? We live in interesting times.

Max Payne

I watched Max Payne last night. The plot is an old standard. Payne's wife and child are murdered and he hunting the killers. The evil corporation, the homicidal Iraq war vet, and old buddy turning out to be the killer round it out. Sorry that ain't a spoiler. It's that freaking obvious. It does have lots of guns, shoot outs, and neat special effects. If you're looking for something original this ain't it, but it's not a total waste of time.

I did like Payne's back-up: its either a Taurus Model 4510 revolver chambered for .45/.410 with the 3" chamber or its brother with a 2.5" chamber. I thinks its the 3" but its hard to tell from the views in the movie. Anyway, I WANT one.

Rick Santelli

If you're pissing off the Obama White House because of something you said then you must be doing something right. Way to go Rick Santelli, excellent rant and out of Chicago no less.

So ya say you want...

socialized medicine? If it's so great why don't Canadians like it?



H/T Dafydd

Going Southern

The version of the old joke I always heard was a Yankee that moved to the South to live was a damn Yankee. If they moved here and voted they were a g**damned Yankee. My ex-wife considered herself a "naturalized" southerner after attending school down here and staying. Three years of residency in the South, a gun safe, some ammo, some wine and a trip to Wal-Mart are as good a set of requirements as any other. I'd add developing a liking for sweet iced tea to the list. And in that case I'd say Uncle is mistaken. You're now a "naturalized" southerner and a Yankee no more. Unless of course you want to turn the South into a mirror image of those enlightened liberal strongholds of New Jersey, Massachusetts, and New York City. In that case you're still a g**damned Yankee.

Xrlq congrats and welcome home.

Yes We Can

Go take a look at this jpeg.

H/T to Bob Parks

Og's gone.

Og is gone. There are a few bloggers that have helped keep me sane lately and now there's one less. Damnit!

I just nod my head in awe...

...that he managed not to kill everyone standing around and that the almost victims take it so calmly. The proper response should have been to take the AK and sheath it up his rear. Hey and maybe this is the middle eastern equivalent to "I'm the only one professional enough to..."



H/T to Say Uncle

Jim Crow for Gun Owners

Something I hadn't even remotely thought about in regard to HR45 was what this guy puts to paper. HR45 is Jim Crow for gun owners. The ironic part is the Congressman who introduced it is a former member of the Black Panthers.

the pistolero pointed the way.

Looong Day yesterday

No posts yesterday. Work was hell, being management, even low level, sucks but at least I've got a job.

Better and Better

The Dow is doing wonderfully now that the Obama/Reid/Pelosi/Spector stimulus package has passed. Seriously. Go look.

H/T to Tam

Watching Movies

Saw Bolt. It's an excellent family movie. The hamster rocks.

Coraline is not a family movie. This is not for young children. My eight year old wanted to leave 2/3's into it. She said it was scary. I think the imagery was a bit too disturbing for her. It was made by the same crew as The Nightmare before Christmas. That should give you an idea of what to expect. What I saw I liked but I like Neil Gaiman and I'm already a bit warped. I'd suggest preteens and up.

Defiance: This is one you all need to see. Go read Vanderboegh's review of the movie and book upon which it was based. He's says it better than I ever could. I'll be looking for a copy of the book.

Retirement

Xavier posted this...

Has your portfolio been trampled in an unbearable bull market?

Go here to determine how long it will take you to recover......

What fucking portfolio. I'll retire when I'm dead, and the Obamanauts will probably try to tax the afterlife.

From the edges...

If you can't get gun control outright what do you do? You work it from the edges. Oh, you also tell a lie. Congressman Eliot Engel is the main culprit, but he's got lots of fellow travelers.. This is an example.

The alarming prevalence of imported assault weapons in the US has put our nation’s police officers at risk. Returning to the Bush 41/Clinton enforcement of the ban on imported assault weapons will protect our brave police forces and all people throughout New York and the United States

Worthless fracking ....

Dead Presidents' Day

I noticed Black is Right has a story about some guy who got pissed when Obama's picture was removed from a display announcing Presidents' Day. I'll let his bit speak for itself. I have a suggestion...

The holiday now know as Presidents' Day was originally Washington's Birthday. Sometime in the 80's Lincoln's birthday got pushed into the mix and some started calling it Presidents' Day. So it's really not Presidents' Day but Washington's/Lincoln's Birthday. I think we should change the name to Dead President's Day and use it to celebrate the accomplishments of those former Presidents that have since gone to their reward. And by reward I don't mean the "how to become a multi-millionaire" shtick the Clinton's have been engaged in since they left office. In other words, living breathing Presidents need not apply. If they are in such a hurry to get their recognition its, well...,correctable and entirely in their own hands. I'll leave you with this quote of the moment...

Statesmen are dead politicians. Lord knows we need more statesmen. - Opus the Penquin, Bloom County

"utter frickin’ cluelessness"

Obama to Shift Focus to Budget Deficit

Saturday , February 14, 2009

With a $787 billion stimulus package in hand, President Barack Obama will pivot quickly to address a budget deficit that could now approach $2 trillion this year.

As usual Tam provides the perfect comment.

Never before in the course of human history has such concrete evidence of such utter frickin’ cluelessness sailed right over the heads of so many millions of people

'Nuff said.

School House Rock: Fireworks

I remember watching Saturday morning cartoons and seeing the School House Rock shorts. I especially liked the America Rocks bits. Here's one I thought appropriate with the current state of politics. And yes, if things continue as they are there are.

Ronald Reagan - A Time for Choosing (October 27, 1964)

This is worth listening to again and again. A time of choosing. We've reached it again.

Stimulate this...

Go here to get your bit of the stimulus.

H/T Radley Balko

Friday the 13th, part 2

From Breda, a message to those who voted against freedom on February 13th. My message to the bastards is a pox on you and yours. Frankly, the same goes to anyone that voted for the authors of this mess.

Just allow concealed carry already

No campus police department is going to have enough available manpower to place them "undercover" into the community in numbers sufficient to be a real deterrent. The fear they are present isn't an issue for the "active shooter" or nutjob since their endgame includes their biting the big one at the end of the rampage either by their own hand or that of the police. Maybe the police chief thinks that by publicizing this action it might scare said nutjobs off. Ain't gonna happen. What he has done in telling everyone there are "undercover" police officers around to stop said nutjobs when they go active is create a false sense of safety that he can in no way guarantee. I wonder if this chief can spell liability. Probably not. Illinois would be better off to pass concealed carry and allow adults to carry on campus. That would provide a real deterrent, but that's probably beyond him as well.

H/T to Gudis

Quote of the Day

Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But then I repeat myself. -- Mark Twain

And here's an example for you.

Friday the 13th

Not that I'm supersitious or anything but sometimes it seems prudent to not push my luck. So much for being prudent. I've got the duty with the youngest ones today. At 12 and 8 it shouldn't be a problem. We're going to the bookstore of all bookstores. The Book Exchange is going out of business and selling books at ten dollars a grocery bag. This place has been around longer than I've been breathing. Even with one day to go they have tons of books left. A friend who runs a local used book store has made several trips to purchase fodder for his store. I think we'll find something to buy. I'll try to avoid disaster. Knock on wood.

Over in La La Land

Armed police raid wild west party

A Leicestershire couple who held a Wild West-themed party to renew their wedding vows were shocked when armed police burst in.

Armed police, supported by a police helicopter overhead, raided the pub, The Moira Arms in Castle Donington, where they held the party.

An officer approached me and said they had had a report of of someone walking around with a gun. But ours looked nothing like real guns. Most of them were blue and white and made from plastic, and some even had water pistols.

Here another group raids another party. At first I thought it was the same family, same gang, same story. Easy mistake to make.

A British family settling down for a dinner party were held up by an armed gang who burst into their house and threatened their 5-year-old daughter.

The gang of up to five men, all wearing hats or hoods with scarves covering their faces, demanded that the terrified owners and their two guests tell them where they "kept the drugs."

Fundraising for McCain

John McCain has begun fundraising for his reelection to the Senate. I'd gotten two emails before I even saw this story. this is what i get for sending emails to my Senator. As for McCain, I'll have to think on it. Seriously.

More Open Carry States coming?

Four states are considering relaxing their laws on open carry. This can only be a good thing. And of course, all [Texas, South Carolina, Oklahoma and Arkansas] are in the South or West.

S. 22

Gun Owners of America put out an alert on this bill. It's passed the Senate and is in the House. I'm in the gerrymanded district of David Price [D-NC] and he's as anti-gun as they come. Even though there's not a hope in hell he'll vote against it I sent an email. Your representative may be more open to reason. Call them now. Either the anti-gun provisions need to be stripped or it needs to be voted down.

Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151
Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408
http://www.gunowners.org

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Lost in all the news of the massive bailout bill that just passed the Senate is another enormous bill, one that increases federal control of public and private land.

Of particular concern to gun owners is that the bill, S. 22, will greatly expand the amount of land controlled by the National Park Service. NPS land is currently subject to a gun ban.

While President Bush took steps in the waning days of his presidency to reverse the ban, the new regulations apply to persons who carry a concealed firearm with a permit. Non-permit holders and open carry are not explicitly addressed.

Another eyebrow-raising aspect of this bill is that it is actually a compilation of over 150 separate pieces of legislation that never passed out of Congress on their own merits.

Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) successfully held up over 100 of these bills, until anti-gun Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid rolled all of the bills into one so-called Coburn Omnibus and forced it through the Senate in January on a vote of 73-21.

As the House prepares to take up the bill, the Democrat leadership has taken procedural steps to ensure that the measure cannot be amended or altered in any way. That means that if it passes the House, it goes right to President Obama's desk, where it will be signed into law. Here are a few of the more troubling aspects of the bill:

* It authorizes the federal government to buy private land adjacent to national parks and trails. Such land would be controlled by the NPS, and thus be subject to the gun ban.

* The bill federalizes the Washington-Rochambeau Route, a 650 mile trail that stretches from Rhode Island to Virginia and includes sections of major thoroughfares such as Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1, and passes through cities like Boston and Philadelphia. The entire trail would fall under the NPS and the gun ban.

* The National Landscape Conservation System groups together millions of acres of federal land and places it under one new umbrella agency. The NLCS was created during the Clinton administration and run administratively since then. S. 22 will codify the system, which raises concerns for hunters and sportsmen. Much of this land is consolidated from the BLM and the Forest Service, which have always allowed hunting and recreational shooting. It is unclear what rules will be promulgated by the new agency and if gun owners' rights will be protected.

* S. 22 strips out small concessions won by pro-gunners in the House last year that would allow state and local law to govern firearms possession and hunting on certain land.

* S.22 allows for NO amendments. Pro-gun members who want to offer an amendment to fully repeal the NPS gun ban are prevented from doing so by the anti-gun leadership.

The full House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the bill this Wednesday or Thursday.

Unless the NPS gun ban is repealed and the rights of gun owners are
protected, Gun Owners of America opposes the bill in its entirety.

The Window War by Mike Vanderboegh.

Whatdoyamean WE!

Speak for yourself.

Looks like someone wanted to make sure ...

...the election turned out the way it did.

From Atlas Shrugs



So we're where we are right now because someone planned their own little October surprise. I don't suppose the Fed is trying to identify that person or persons are so they can ask some direct questions? I wonder why?

The Liberty Sphere has a few ideas.

I worked the range yesterday for ten hours and came home to a major family crisis involving my seventeen year old daughter. The result beyond the obvious was no posts. I also don't expect any today beyond this. To those of you inclinded to prayer we could use some.

Milton Friedman - Greed

I saw this over at GeekwithA.45 and had to post it here. Milton Friedman offers a simple effective defense of Capitalism and as an added attraction slaps Phil Donahue down...hard. YES!

John Kerry is an arrogant...

...statist bastard.

At least according to Firehand, and ya know I can't disagree. Go read his rant.

If you put a tax cut into the hands of a business or family, there's no guarantee that they're going to invest that or invest it in America - John Kerry

What a prick. John Kerry, that is, not Firehand.

Update: Rant, part two

Student faces expulsion for fake drill team guns

9News.com reports that

A local school district has suspended a member of the Young Marines youth leadership group after students saw drill props in her vehicle.

I'm beginning to sense a trend. David Codrea calls it the New Blacklist. That's as good a term as any, and I'm inclined to agree. The drill props were just that: made of wood, plastic and duct tape. Horse Pucky.

What shall come...

Look at the video above. Ignore the word balloons and listen. Listen again then read and mull on the quote below.

"You don't ever want a crisis to go to waste; it's an opportunity to do important things that you would otherwise avoid." Rahm Emanuel

It occurs to me that maybe President Barak Obama isn't the one gun owners or those who value their liberty need to worry about. It the true believer that neither learns nor cares about the lessons of history. This fuck is scary and he's in power.

I haven't voted for a Presidential candidate I could respect since Ronald Reagan. Every election since I voted for the lesser of evils. Every one. I did it because I couldn't take a chance that an anti-gun Democrat would be President. Sometimes my vote was wasted. I can't stand McCain but I voted for him anyway. The alternative was too scary. A lot of gun owners sat out this one because McCain wasn't ideologically pure enough, or they bought the fear mongering and voted on the economy. This is the result. Emanuel in front of the Brady Bunch telling them his goals and equating gun owners with criminals and terrorists. He an expert on the big lie and he's waiting for the perfect crisis that will allow the Obama Administration to push through their anti-gun agenda. What will it be another school shooting or natural disaster. Maybe a another terrorist attack on the United States. I think it might be the cartel war down Mexico way. Whatever it turns out to be. It will come.

Quote of the Day

We should've ignored Claire Wolf and started shooting a long time ago when it would have done some good. It's too damned late, now.

Kevin Baker, The Smallest Minority

Fannie Mae to Loosen Rules for Home-Loan Refinancing

Isn't this what got us in this fracking mess to begin with?

Fannie Mae will drop some credit-score requirements, reduce income-documentation standards and waive the need for appraisals in some cases

Will these people ever learn?

H/T Intapundit

A new blacklist

David Codrea writes about the case of Betsy Ramsdale,a Wisconsin middle school teacher, who has suspended for posting a picture of herself, aiming a rifle, on her Facebook page. I can't say I'm surprised. Pissed? Yes. Surprised? No.

I know for a fact a local employer is now screening applicants' Facebook and MySpace pages. The pages offer a bit of insight into the attitudes of the applicant and questionable content is considered and factored into whether the application is accepted or denied.

Ramsdale's pointing the camera violates the one of the four rules: never point a firearm at anything you are not willing to destroy. I'm not sure that concept even occurs to most people looking at the picture. It's the idea that she has a gun and it's an eviiil assault rifle and she's teaching our children. Oh. My. God! It is my hope that the ACLU of Wisconsin succeeds in tearing the local school superintendent and school board a new one.

Military Tribunals for Domestic Terrorists?

Over at Sipsey Street Irregulars is an article on the origins of the current use of military tribunals. They were originally proposed for use against domestic terrorists/militias. The Bush administration then picked up the idea and ran with it for use against Al Qaida. And here we are. I wonder if Obama will close the circle?

So much for a united front...

On the way home from work I was listening to eviiil unbalanced Talk Radio. They were broadcasting the Senate Debate[??] on the Stimulus bill. I was actually paying more attention to the road than the radio when I heard Arlen Spector announced. He was speaking in favor of their bill and bragging that a "bipartisan" group had cut 100 billion dollars from the total. It was only 795 billion now. You mean to tell me that your "bipartisan" gang could only pare 100 billion from that gigantic pile of Pork excrement? Arlen I guess it was too much to ask for the Republicans in the Senate to show a united front and hold the line against this legislative horror. I probably shouldn't have expected anything less after your vote on the Holder nomination. I understand there was money for STD prevention in the House Bill. I'm assuming that some of that money will go to pay for condoms. If the Senate passes this bill we're going to need them.

UPDATE:

3 turncoat Republicans have agreed to join with taxpayer-screwing Democrats in a compromise 'economic stimulus package.' The 3 liberal Republicans are Arlen Specter, Susan Collins, and Olympia Snowe.

The initial question is what was the payoff Arlen? How many pieces of silver were you offered this time? Was it the traditional 30?

The Meaning of Sarah Palin

The Meaning of Sarah Palin by Yuval Levin provides what seems to be an evenhanded look at Sarah Palin and her effect on the November election. It's worth reading and I'd still vote fot her.

H/T to GeekWithA.45

The Road to Serfdom

I saw The Illustrated Road to Serfdom online a while back and then again a few weeks ago over at the Sipsey Street Irregulars. I decided it deserves a permanent link over to the left. The parallels to our current political situation are obvious and scary as all get out.

Worf goes bad

Channel 7 out of Denver reports an armed robbery where the weapon of choice was a Klingon bat'leth. Too bad the clerk didn't instruct him in the wisdom of carrying a bat'leth to a gunfight.

H/T to Uncle who got it from Mad Man.

and down South...waaay South

Apparently all the weapons seized in Mexico from the drug cartels come form those eviil American Gun Shows and the Mexican Police and military are allegedly getting the crap kicked out of them because of it. Which to my mind is more of a commentary on the quality of the Mexican Police and military than on the ability of the cartels to buy handguns and rifles through straw purchases in the United States. And please tell me at which gun shop or gun show I can buy rpgs, grenades, or a nice Five-Seven which I believe are restricted to police or military sales.

"The 5.7 x 28, armor piercing (AP) rounds are not available for sale to the general public and are probably coming from the Mexican military," said Stewart who has analyzed U.S.-Mexican border security issues for half a decade.

I would suspect a lot of those items are coming from the Mexican military. That would be a loophole of another sort and maybe they should take care of that and shut their yaps before looking North for the source of their problems. But hey, I'm no expert. I'm just damn tired of the news media jumping on every damn bandwagon engineered to twist the facts and generate public support for gun control. Enough and fuck ya and the one you rode in on.

UPDATE: Thanks Tam for the information. My mistake. The Five-Seven is available for sale to non law enforcement and military. It's the armor piercing (AP) rounds that aren't.

The height of irresponsibility

President Barack Obama lashed out yesterday at "shameful" Wall Street executives for claiming billions of dollars in bonuses while their stricken institutions asked taxpayers for support.

So what about those Congressional pay raises? "Amid a dire financial crisis" aren't they the "height of irresponsibility". So, what say you tell Congress to take a pass on that pay raise until the crisis is past?

Laugh of the Day

King Urkel the First Heh! And how the hell am I going to get that image out of my head. Curse you Confederate Yankee. No really, thank you. That made my day.

What's your Brady score?

The Brady Bunch have released their state of the States report on gun laws.

Most states have weak or non-existent gun laws that help feed the illegal gun market, allow the sale of guns without Brady background checks and put families and children at risk, according to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. But more and more states are pushing legislation to strengthen their gun laws. The organization's 2008 state scorecards, which rate each state on the strength of its gun laws, are being released today for all 50 states.

California tops the list at 79 followed by New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York. I don't know what the red highlights denote but North Carolina is way too high on the list at 20. Come on guys, we can do better. Lets try to get it down to single digits. Go to GRNC or, if you must, the NRA and see what you can do to help in that endeavor.

Gun Sales

The National Shooting Sports Foundation has this interesting PDF on NICS checks from November 30, 1998 through December 30, 2008. Call me Mister Obvious but I'd say around September of this year people figured that Obama might win the election and started buying as many guns as they could afford. At least some segment of the population didn't believe his bullshit but then who were these gun owners who didn't see "guns" as an issue and voted for the fu...him?

H/T to David Hardy

Go sign this petition.

Sebastian posted this online petition against the current stimulus package. Go sign it.

Holder Confirmed

Holder was confirmed. The North Carolina Senator Hagen voted yea while Senator Burr said no. Several Republicans voted to confirm. I expect the assaults agaionst our Second Amendment rights to intensify under Holder. The unity Republicans showed on the stimulus bill was sadly lacking. So to was any opposition by the NRA, beyond lip service, to the nomination.

Chuck bites Mike

Newsday reports that while Mayor Bloomberg was pandering to his constituents at a Groundhog Day celebration, the ground hog bit him on the hand. Too bad the furry little creature didn't go for his throat.

H/T Sipsey Street Irregulars

How Government Prolonged the Depression

Harold L. Cole and Lee E. Ohanian, two Economists, argue in an WSJ op ed that FDR's New Deal extended the Great Depression rather than providing the "cure".

The main lesson we have learned from the New Deal is that wholesale government intervention can -- and does -- deliver the most unintended of consequences. This was true in the 1930s, when artificially high wages and prices kept us depressed for more than a decade, it was true in the 1970s when price controls were used to combat inflation but just produced shortages. It is true today, when poorly designed regulation produced a banking system that took on too much risk.

FDR's statetist bullshit wasn't the solution in the 30's and isn't the best template for an economic recovery today. Unfortunately Obama is a statetist, and I doubt he is listening.

Mortar go boom!

Sometimes I run across things on the Internet that just freaking amaze me. This video of a Palestinian[?] using a mortar is one. What I'm not sure of is whether the round detonated in the tube or counter battery fire got him? If I had to bet I'd say #1 but then I'm not former military. Either way the sum bitch is dead.

Leave me alone

I had been working on a post to explain my politics and it wasn't going anywhere. If I'd read it on someone else's blog I'd have said i was full of shit. Then today I was over at Sipsey Street Irregulars once again Mike hit it on the head for me. My politics can be expressed in very few words, "Leave me the hell alone." That's all I want. leave me alone...or else.

This is an entrepreneurial insurgency

The day before the crucial vote in the House, Minority Leader John Boehner told his troops that the Republican Party is no longer a bureaucracy. "He took us by the throat and told us, ‘You're no longer the majority, stop acting like it,’" a senior Republican told me about the run up to the vote. “‘If you've got an idea, get it on MSNBC. This is an entrepreneurial insurgency.’ He was kicking the ball around. He wants everyone involved. If there's an amendment, he told us to offer it. If you have 48 seconds for YouTube, get it up there. Get busy and resist in every instance.”

The House Republicans did grow a set, at least in this instance. The best chance they have to recover any ground on the Democrats is to fight the gits every inch of the way on every issue. Partisanship to Rahm Emanuel is bending over, and he doesn't respect them the morning after. It remains to be seen whether the Senate Republicans have gotten the same message as their counterparts in the House.

Cussing in public...quietly

Over at damnum absque injuria, xrlq discusses North Carolina's law against using profanity in public.

If any person shall, on any public road or highway and in the hearing of two or more persons, in a loud and boisterous manner, use indecent or profane language, he shall be guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor,

So as long as I walk up to a person, look them in the eye and in a quiet and even voice tell them they're a stupid fuck I'm all good with the "authorities". Right?