The Brady Bunch are...

...whining that proposed cuts in the ATF’s budget will interfere with their ability to carry out their enforcement of Federal gun laws, specifically Project Gunrunner. That would be the same Project Gunrunner that the DOJ’s own Office of the Inspector General said was unsuccessful and recent reports have claimed probably had more to do with seeing that guns made it over the Mexican border that stopping them. The same project Gunrunner that Senator Grassley of Iowa has begun making inquiries on. Hey guys, if you want to make an argument against cutting the ATF’s budget you might not want to hitch your horse to that wagon.

As for the ATF's budget? Cut often and cut deep.

Public Health my...

Let’s study gun violence as a public health issue

It's not like we haven’t seen this before. The results of such studies tend to be decided before pen touches paper. Do these guys think we don't know what's going on here. I don’t want my tax money used on agenda driven propaganda. Wait, no trust here? Damn right! No trust is what the medical researchers have earned on this subject. My rights aren’t determined by your studies. Do what you damn well please, but do it on your own dime.

H/T to Sebastian.

Western Gunfighters #22

Just don't really have the bloggy spirit going today. New work schedule is kicking my butt. Here's another nice Joe Maneely cover instead.

Heh, heh, heh...

In Russia...

The would-be suicide bomber was planning to detonate a suicide belt bomb near Red Square, a plan that was foiled when her wireless carrier sent her an SMS while she was still at a safe house, setting off the bomb and killing her. The message reportedly wished her a Happy New Years,...

Oops is right.

H/T to Uncle.

On this date in 1958 the Lego company...

...patented the design of its Lego bricks. There are many neat things you can do with Legos.




















UPDATE: Via Borepatch, even more neat things to do with Legos.

Things to Come...

Williams said he was told by a senior administration official that Obama will take on gun control at a different venue and later date.

Yeah, about the time it's clear whether he's got a chance of re-election. Until that's clear, he'll keep his attacks on gun rights the bureaucratic backstabbing we've gotten used to during the last two years.

H/T to ASM826 .

A knife is a tool...

...up and until you try to or do stick it in somebody. It has multiple uses you morons, and at least one New York Judge tends to agree.

H/T to Uncle.

And then there's...

...this.

H/T to Radley.

The stupid is strong…

A Canadian couple in Great Britain bought a toy soldier. On their way home the screeners at the airport classified the toy soldier’s rifle, less than 3 inches long, as a firearm. They were not allowed to take it on board the plane and had to mail it home but not before having it x-rayed by the Royal Mail Service. There is a point at which security becomes stupidity. The sad thing is I can see this happening here in the good old USA as well.

H/T to John R.

I saw this quote...

...posted over at Popehat.

When people are doing things that are detrimental to their own well being, then government should step in -- New York State Senator Karl Kruger

Kruger is apparently involved in legislation to restrict the insanity called distracted walking. I really don’t intend this as violent threatening rhetoric, but I think elected fuckwits that engage in legislative activity that is detrimental to the personal freedoms of those they were elected to serve should be stripped naked, smeared with honey, hogtied, then dropped into Jellystone so Yogi and Boo Boo can have their way with them.

Just saying…

That's screwed up.

A Border Patrol Agent, in a private conversation with a colleague, voiced his opinion that legalizing and regulating drugs would help stop cartel violence along our southern border, and was fired as a result. His comments were...

contrary to the core characteristics of Border Patrol Agents, which are patriotism, dedication, and espirit [sic] de corps.

I don't get to speak out publicly against the stated policies of my employer and expect to keep my job, but this was said in a private conversation. That, and trusting the people he worked with, shouldn't have cost him his job.

H/T to Radley.

Evolution in Action

Apparently Legislators in various States have decided distracted walking or biking like driving while texting is a problem that needs their attention. Bicyclists listen to their iPods instead of paying attention to traffic. Pedestrians talk or text on their phones and step in front of a car as they cross the street. What is it with these nanny state politicians that they fell obligated to save us from ourselves? What the frack ever happened to individual responsibility. When people choose to do stupid things there is a result. And there is a term that has come to characterize that result.

Darwinism

I would hope that Legislators who feel the need to protect me from myself and build the nanny state might find themselves looking for new opportunities come election time, and that’s Darwinism as well.

Wow!

In Which I Am A Joiner by Stingray of Atomic Nerds

Go read and be amazed.

Battlefront #17

find all sorts of neat stuff while trolling the web. Here is another cover by Joe Maneely. Some info on this issue can be found here. It had interior art by Russ Heath and Dick Ayers.

The State of the Union Address...

...is ongoing as I type and I can't think of a thing President Obama could say that I care to hear other than, "I resign." Since that ain't likely...

Star-Studded War Comics

If you like old war comics you might want to take a look at this blog. They post entire issues of Golden and Silver age war comics like Navy Action #5 with a cover by Russ Heath and interior art by Joe Maneely and John Romita Sr. Nice stuff.

Update: The website's owner has suddenly decided to shut down his site and pull all content. Boy does my timing suck.

Color me embarassed...

Russ Heath is one of my favorite artists. If I ever get to the point where I have disposable income again, a piece of original art by Mr. Heath is definitely on my wish list. Today, I was cruising the net and found these ads. Both were regulars on the back covers of comic books during the 60s and 70s when I was growing up, but I never realized the art was by Mr. Heath.

Who the f#*k is...

...Snooki?

H/T to Marko.

I don't have a clue...

...how many rounds I might need to defend myself so I'd rather have more than less. What I do know is I don't want the left and their ass kissers in the media having a say on the matter, but the gits are in full swing in their drive to tell me what I need and to ban high capacity magazines through misinformation and outright lies. I am damn sick and tired of these nanny state leftist gun control supporting piss ants telling me what I need or don't need. My right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental right and need has not one damn thing to do with it. Any of you Congress Critters want to vote for this? Go ahead and see what it gets you come 2012.

No Self-Defense in Canada?

In Ontario, Canada a man defends himself and his property from Molotov cocktail throwing thugs and is arrested and has his weapons seized for careless use of a firearm. In defending himself he fired two or three rounds from his revolver. He fired to frighten his attackers and intentionally missed. They ran off. The events were recorded by security cameras. Someone firebombs your house and that's not justification for the use of deadly force? I thought things were fucked up in some portions of the United States. In regard to self-defense, it looks like Canada is approaching levels of fuckwitery in line with those of formerly Great Britain.

H/T to Glenn.

156 years ago today...

...John Moses Browning was born.

No questioning their...

...priorities.

H/T to Jennifer.

Please, Mr. President do...

...bring up gun control during your State of the Union Address. Let the rest of the United States know what gun owners have been saying since day one. You are a gun prohibitionist and always have been. That'll make for an interesting election come 2012.

H/T to Uncle.

Ain't they special...

In the State of North Carolina, and I’m sure every other State, it’s already against the law to communicate a direct threat so I don’t see the need for a Federal law making it unlawful to threaten a Member of Congress. I also think that any Member of Congress who would set themselves above their constituents by voting for such a law needs to be voted out of office at the first opportunity. That would also apply to any Congressperson who felt the need to put armed guards between himself and his constituents. If a Congressperson can’t trust his constituents how can he expect them to trust said Congressperson. Congressman Bob Brady (D-PA) of Philadelphia, by submitting H.R. 318, is admitting that his constituents can’t trust him.

H/T to John R.

Ummm...

Sig Sauer P290

Jackass

Nothing more need be said.

Heh

"The past does not repeat itself, but it rhymes." - Mark Twain

I'd not seen this Twain quote before. Here's the post by Tam that brought it to my attention.

MYODB

There is a bill in the Florida Legislature that would make it a felony for a Doctor to ask you about your ownership of firearms. It has the support of the NRA. I'm sure there heart is in the right place but there are more important issues right now. Legislatures and the NRA need to mind their own business. I'm perfectly capable of telling a nosy medical professional in full little tin god mode to pound sand. They can ask. I don't have to tell.

H/T to Sebastian.

So much for the First Amendment...

After the Giffords shooting in Tucson, TJIC, a Massachusetts blogger, posted a comment to the effect of 1 down 538 to go. Under the circumstances that's a bit insentsitive, but it's not illegal, and I can't say the thought didn't momentarily cross my mind before the off switch kicked in. That pesky old First Amendment thing would seem to apply in this case, but his home town cops have suspended his firearm's license and have him under investigation. Let's see violate no law in the exercise of your First Amendment rights and have your Second Amendment rights stripped from you. Sound like horseshit to me. Borepatch has more here.

How to make friends and influence people...

Senator Richard Lugar has called for a reinstatement of the Assault Weapons Ban following the shootings in Arizona. He voted for it in 1994. Goes to show that gun control places nitwits on both sides of the aisle. I hope this bit of bushwa gets him booted in 2012, but he voted for it in 1994 and he's still in office. That was then and this is now, but I'd be surprised if he loses his 2012 run. As to his support of a new ABW, that's going nowhere. Lugar can go pound sand.

H/T to Tam.

Huh?

I was listening to the radio this afternoon and heard the announcer say the venue of Loughner's trial was being shifted from Arizona to San Diego because pretrial publicity had tainted the jury pool and he couldn't get a fair trial. The Feds have since denied this rumor that was presented as fact, but at the time I thought as much coverage as the media has given this tragedy where the hell hasn't the jury pool been tainted by pretrial publicity...China?

Blogging may be slow...

... for a few days. I was in the process of running my PC's antivirus and it appears when it deleted the viruses it deleted more than the viruses. At least that's when the computer stopped working. I'!l post when I can. Posting from the phone is a pain in the ass.

Quote of the day

From Tam:

So by saying you're in favor of magazines that hold no more than X rounds, you're publicly stating that it's only X+1 bodies that bother you. If that's not what you mean to say, then come out and state your real intentions.

It's really not about magazine capacity. It's gun control via increments or ye old slippery slope. They know if they go for broke they'll end up on their collective asses. It's the same old damn approach they had for years. Didn't work then. Ain't gonna work now. Insanity has been defined as doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result each time. Call your Congress critters and let 'em know what happens if they indulge in this insanity.

A WTF Zero Tolerance Moment

Five sixth graders in Kentucky have been arrested for criminal conspiracy to commit terrorist threatening and suspended from school because they made out a map designating where they would place bombs in the school. They did this apparently in relation to a fantasy video game they were playing. There is no indication they had the means or intent to carry out the threats but the safety of children is our first priority. Really? It looks like covering your asses and making stupid decisions that make it look like you're doing something productive was your first priority. I can see suspension while the matter was investigated. I can see checking the school and the homes out to verify no explosive devices. Once you determined there actions were a game it should have been handled in house, but felony charges! This shit is what you do when you're afraid to make actual decisions, unfortunately it five kids that are going to pay the price and this is why my wife and I home school our kids.

H/T to Radley.

Criticize a Congresscritter...

...and get a visit from the FBI. He didn't threaten him. He had a blog during the election where he criticized the man. That's all. Is this what we have to look forward to in the wake of Tucson?

H/T to Radley.

More on McCarthy's proposed magazine ban.

Sebastian has the dope on McCarthy's magazine ban. It's more than a high capacity magazine ban. Don't assume it's dead on arrival. Call your Congresscritter now and let them know you're against it and they damn well better be too.

Thumb to nose, wiggle fingers.

Yesterday, Spike Lee bashed the NRA and called the U. S. the most violent country in the history of civilization. Mr. Lee you are entitled to your opinion, and your status as a Hollywood celebrity pretty much guarantees you are entitled to your ignorance, but here are a few facts. Based on current violent crime statistics we aren't even in the top twenty as the most violent, and the countries that beat us out aren't all shit holes in the third world. Mr. Lee, you are a ignorant ass. Go piss up a rope.

Heh!

British cops raid what they think is a pot indoor grow operations and find two guinea pigs and their electric heater. A police helicopter picked up the heat signature. Neither Simon and Kenny, the guinea pigs, nor their owners were taken into custody.

H/T to Radley.

A Journalist's Guide to a Clue.

A bit of sanity...

...among the insanity from the father of the nine year old murdered in Tucson.

This shouldn't happen in this country, or anywhere else, but in a free society, we're going to be subject to people like this. I prefer this to the alternative.

H/T to Uncle.

Ignorance is bipartisan

Peter King [R - NY] is one of those so called Republicans that never seen a piece of gun control legislation he hasn't liked. He threatening to introduce a bill that will make it illegal to knowingly carry a firearm within one thousand feet of a high profile government official. Normally I wouldn't give this kind of grandstanding a snowball's chance but if Congress critters see this as a matter of their personal safety I'm afraid they choose their ass over their oath every time. The point King misses is that his office should offer him no more protection that anyone else. If he's worried he can get a CCW permit and carry like the rest of us. It's also my hope that local gun owners target his ass in the next election and vote him out of office. How's that for violent rhetoric.

A Wish...

...for a simple act of God. Say an object falling from earth orbit hitting Fred Phelps while he and the members of his "congregation" are picketing the funeral of the 9-year old murdered in Arizona. I think more people would find God after such an event than have ever found him from the words and actions of Phelps.

H/T to Bubba.

Never let a crisis...

...or a tragedy go to waste.

Senator Frank Lautenburg and Representative Carolyn McCarthy are planning to introduce a bill to ban high capacity magazines. Doesn't matter whether it has a snowballs chance in hell. The fact they both will attempt to use the attempted murder of Congresswoman Giffords to push their agenda speaks volumes of what worthless trash they are.

H/T to John R.

The Coming Gun Battle...

...an article by Paul Gallant, Joanne Eisen and Alan Chwick. Read it here.

H/T to David C

235 years ago today...

...Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense.

Because right now we all need a laugh.

H/T to Theo Spark.

Enough Already

Today, in Arizona, a 22 year old killed six people and wounded 18. One of the wounded was a member of the U. S. House, and one of the dead was a Federal Judge. What looks to be the case is that the shooter was mentally ill in which case his politics, whether right or left, have jack to do with his actions. Instead of blaming one side or the other, the current focus should be on helping the wounded and the families of both the wounded and the slain. There are those who revel in dancing in the blood of the victims during events of this kind. Me, I think for once we should all just sit out this dance.

Heh!

196 years ago today...

1815 – War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans – Andrew Jackson leads American forces in victory over the British.

A WTF Moment

In Las Vegas a 13 year old girl jaywalked and was hit by a car. As she is being taken to surgery for a serious head injury, a police officer arrives to give her a citation for jaywalking. When he can’t serve the girl he serves the mother. Ya know, the mother who’s distraught over the injured daughter. What a self-absorbed insensitive ass, but he’s probably just the exception to the rule, right?

Here’s the LVPD’s response to the resulting uproar…A

spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Department issued a statement about how the citation was issued, saying, “Our officers conduct themselves in a professional and compassionate way. We wouldn’t do anything deliberately insensitive.”

…and based on that statement I think it’s clear he's the rule rather than the exception, and I have to ask just what the fuck is wrong with the Las Vegas Police Department?

H/T to Popehat.

'Nuff Said

ATF running guns into Mexico?

Story here. Some Congresscritters are already asking questions. Read it, then contact your Congresscritter. The more the merrier.

H/T to Stranger.

The Armed Citizen

Back online.

FL: Burglar dies after being frightened by dogs.

In Florida, a man broke into a neighbor’s house to find the family dog waiting. The burglar was frightened by the dog and escaped by crashing out a window. He was cut by broken shards of glass during his escape and collapsed in the in another neighbor’s yard. He later died.

99 years ago today

1912 – Charles Addams, American cartoonist (d. 1988)

The local news is reporting...

...that Ashley Smithwick will get to graduate with her class.

The story was on WTVD. Sorry no links.

Only 4 out of 25?

The first problem is the diagnosis of the problem. A person that fires his weapon unintentionally is negligent. Ain't no accident when you put your finger on the trigger and pull whether you intended to or not. The second is the four negligent discharges. Twenty percent of shots fired were negligent discharges. Sounds like you guys have a training problem.

H/T from The Duck and title borrowed from same.

This should be interesting...

Obama Re-Nominates Andrew Traver for ATF Head

Definitely, worth a listen.

Glenn Reynolds interviews Stephen Hunter, the author of Point of Impact. It's worth a listen.

It's amazing what you find on the Internet.

Popehat linked to a Golden-age anti-communist comic called Is This Tomorrow. I was interested in trying to locate the name of the artist and went on a search. The comic was published by Catechetical Guild Comics, a company that published Catholic comic books, including Treasure Chest. The search took me to Golden Age Comics, a website that has, what they claim, are public domain comics available for download. There are comics like Crime Does Not Pay and Jack Cole's Plastic Man. They don't have complete runs but, hey, free comics.

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

I like the way the word former kinda rolls off the tongue. Fooormer.

In two years we'll see if it rolls off the tongue was easily in regard to current Speaker of the House John Boehner. That will depend on whether he actually gets the message of the last election or is just paying it lip service.

Fooormer.

Argggggg!

The oil pressure light on my van is coming on. I have a great mechanic who is happy to tell me how to fix the easy stuff myself. He suggested the problem was either the oil sending unit or the oil pump. So i went home, got my trusty Haynes manual , and looked up the sending unit. It wasn't listed in the index. I did find a reference in the troubleshooting guide. It sent me to chapter 2 where there is not one fricking mention of the damn thing. Arggggg!

Update: Corrected. The nice thing about gun bloggers is they are so damn helpful. Thanks Stranger.

PA: Home Invader killed by Resident

In Pennsylvania, a legless man in a wheelchair shot and killed a 19 year old intruder as the intruder attempted to enter his apartment through a window. The intruder was armed with a rifle and fired into the apartment prior to entering. The resident fired on the intruder who then returned fire. The intruder died from his wounds. The resident suffered a wound to his hand.

Self-defense is a human right.

163 years ago today...

...Samuel Colt sold his first revolver pistol. the Walker Colt, to the United States government.

For those of you who are Ruger fans...

...Ruger offers the LC9, a compact 9mm. The $443 MSRP seems reasonable, but my Kahr9 serves the same purpose even if it weighs a bit more.

This is a neat photo.

8.5-inch mortar in operation.

Never do today what you can put off until...

Over at Whiteboard.

Yeah that'll help the economy...

...especially if Homeland Security does it with the talent and panache they have at our airports.

US to step up security at hotels and malls

Bob Owens of Confederate Yankee...

...fame has a dedicated gun blog. Bob's Gun Counter is on the side bar.

Ignore me.

Usually I'm a glass half empty kind of guy. Sometimes I'm a glass three-quarters down or fricking empty kind of guy. Two days into the new year and I'm definitly below the half mark. I know it's early, but between work, politics, and my personal life my muse or yalp ain't hitting on all sixes.

Ashley Smithwick

The Lee County school board met and decided to stand behind the superintendent. Smithwick is kicked out of school and will have to finish her classes online or at a community college. With a weapons charge on her record, even one as lame as this one, the likelihood of her getting accepted into a college isn't going to be good. All because of a simple mistake. This is more zero tolerance bullshit. It's a one size fits all policy intended to protect the cowards in the school system from the consequence of their decisions. The citizens of Lee County need to put the school board out of office and the new board can then find a new superintendent who can find a new principal. Everybody involved in this farce need to be out on their asses.

An NC Gun Blog has more on it.

Happy New Year