I love this song
It's my favorite by them.
I saw this the other day over at Walls of the City and absolutely loved the way Linoge put this together
As I write this post, I am sitting within about 25 feet of four separate loaded firearms, each with between six and 30 rounds of ammunition already inserted into them, and magazines full of about another 250 rounds within that same radius. In that same radius, there are also about five gallons of various forms of alcohol, ranging from Two Buck Chuck to sake to a few other things in between. Finally, I live in an apartment complex (at least for the time being), with the resulting thin walls, really-next-door-neighbors, and high population density. In short, I could get up from where I am sitting, get so wasted I could hardly stand, and ruin a lot of peoples’ lives – far more than I could if I did the same at a bar. The same is true for every single other firearm-owner in Tennessee who possesses both loaded firearms and alcohol at their habitations.
As I write this post, I am sitting within about 25 feet of four separate loaded firearms, each with between six and 30 rounds of ammunition already inserted into them, and magazines full of about another 250 rounds within that same radius.
In that same radius, there are also about five gallons of various forms of alcohol, ranging from Two Buck Chuck to sake to a few other things in between.
Finally, I live in an apartment complex (at least for the time being), with the resulting thin walls, really-next-door-neighbors, and high population density.
In short, I could get up from where I am sitting, get so wasted I could hardly stand, and ruin a lot of peoples’ lives – far more than I could if I did the same at a bar. The same is true for every single other firearm-owner in Tennessee who possesses both loaded firearms and alcohol at their habitations.
Here's a quick visual of what he's talking about
There is enough alcohol there to kill a man (and there's more elsewhere, and we're not even people who drink that often). I've got enough firepower to cause Petey Hamm, Paul Helmke, Josh Sugarmann, and Sarah Brady to collectively crap their britches several times over. There is nothing illegal in this picture. There is nothing odd either. I could get all likker'd up, strap on the Glock, shove the KelTec in a pocket, and go waltzing down the road taking pot shots at anything that moved.
But I don't.
And neither does the vast majority of the populace. Here in Florida, it isn't illegal to have a drink while carrying. It's not advised, just like drinking and driving. But just like drinking and driving, having a beer or two doesn't automatically mean you are incapable of operating a vehicle. If it's not a problem here, or in any of the other states where it's allowed, what leg do the anti-gunners have to stand on?
Hit the gun show today. Found Federal Large Pistol Primers, some TiteGroup, and some .380 (reloads, but from a reputable source).
The main gun dealer, Shoot Straight, was trying to sell 1000 primers for $50. Didn't feel like waiting around to tell one of their workers to shove 'em up his boss' ass at that price. Found the Federals for $35 per 1000 which is still a shock to my "I used to get them for $20" system. I bought 2k. Should last a bit over a year or so. Unless somehow I get to the point where I get to start shooting more again.
Didn't look at anything at all 'sides the stuff I bought. Too broke to afford them as it was, looking at all the pretty things that go boom and not being able to take them home is just painful.
I almost didn't recognize him since in this picture he's not crying.
Instead of buying shotguns for the Department of Education, why not just buy Air Soft rifles at a fraction of the cost and then convert them?
All-black penguin discovered
King Penguins are notorious for their prim, tuxedoed appearance -- but a recently discovered all-black penguin seems unafraid to defy convention. In what has been described as a "one in a zillion kind of mutation," biologists say that the animal has lost control of its pigmentation, an occurrence that is extremely rare. Other than the penguin's monochromatic outfit, the animal appears to be perfectly healthy.
I admit I was surprised it wasn't blamed on Global Warming. At least you can get a steep discount on 'em (reference to the joke here)
Hat tip to the notorious racist white guy himself, Say Uncle.
I met Greg for dinner on Monday since he's heading out to Iraq for a year. Something we talked about suddenly popped into my head.
We were discussing the whole accident vs. negligence thing and of course the 4 Rules were brought up. We as gunnies push them hard because you have to break two of them at a time to have bad juju happen. Then Greg brought up another thing that made me go hmmm..
Sometimes, you have to break the rules. And while I'd love to yell at every photograph with some dimbo in a bikini with her finger on the trigger, it's not necessarily wrong. Hell, when I was at Blackwater training with Todd Jarrett, he had to break pretty much all of 'em to illustrate certain shooting techniques.
But what Todd did was substitute a temporary rule to ensure safety. He had to illustrate from all angles how to grip the pistol as well as how things should look when the trigger is pulled, and that meant pointing a pistol in a direction more toward 'us' and less toward 'object he didn't wish to see destroyed'. Before he did this, he had MANY people inspect the firearm. He also continued to press-check to ensure a 'BB' (as he called them) didn't somehow sneak into the room, load itself into the magazine, then find its way into the chamber.
If you photograph guns, eventually there's going to be one pointed at the camera. It's not always possible to have a tripod and a timer, so you go out of your way to ensure that breaking some rules is mitigated in other ways.
The 4 rules are immutable. They should be taught to be nothing less. And I prefer to see photographs of people with guns following those rules. But on the occasions where you may need to bend them, make sure you stay as safe as you possibly can.
JayG has a post up (along with a stunning graphic, if I do say so myself) regarding this lovely little story
Concerns about an Oregon Department of Transportation employee who purchased several guns after being placed on leave prompted law enforcement across Southern Oregon to step in. Negotiators and a SWAT team from Medford police safely took a man — whose name wasn't released — into protective custody Monday morning in the 500 block of Effie Street, Medford police said in a news release.
Concerns about an Oregon Department of Transportation employee who purchased several guns after being placed on leave prompted law enforcement across Southern Oregon to step in.
Negotiators and a SWAT team from Medford police safely took a man — whose name wasn't released — into protective custody Monday morning in the 500 block of Effie Street, Medford police said in a news release.
It pisses me off to no end to see shit like this for a multitude of reasons. A SWAT team is not an appropriate response and the continued militarization of our police forces needs to stop. How the hell did the police know he purchased handguns so suddenly? Why focus on handguns when more mayhem can be produced with plain gasoline? And why does being put on leave (not being fired) warrant fully armed SWAT teams to descend on your house?
But what really just made the hair stand up on the back of my neck was the sudden realization that that could have easily been me.
At my last job (well, the one I had for 11+ years, not the one I held for a month before switching to my current gig), I left on my own accord. I was pissed off at the way things were going, and as I am wont to do, was pretty vocal about my displeasure.
When I put in my notice, a coworker who was in a position to know pulled me to the side. They told me that upper management had considered me 'dangerous' and a 'loose cannon' because they read my blog at some point and were 'afraid for their safety'. As if I'd piss away my entire life and the lives of my family by taking potshots at them. Those people meant nothing to me, I was simply unhappy with my career and didn't want to continue it.
But they didn't see it that way, now did they? To them, I was the 'unstable' guy and apparently their illogical discomfort would be enough to have me arrested for doing something I do anyway? Well, not that I have a lot of cash to be buying guns, but you get the drift.
This is why I got a chill after thinking about this for a bit. That could have been me. And then my life would have been destroyed over someone else's PSH.
Say Uncle says
On one had, could have diffused a violent situation. Maybe. On the other, that seems constitutionally suspect.
Which I disagree with vehemently. They could have diffused the situation easier and in no way in violation of anyone rights by simply observing. This is "Pre-Crime".
Could the guy go nuts and shoot up the place? Of course he could (made easier by the fact his former coworkers were most assuredly disarmed), but alas that's a fairly broad assumption that could be made about anyone.
Was Corey Haim's death by OD accidental or negligent?
Which is what getting my "Hey! We're sending you a census form in the mail next week" letter today was like.
That, and this lovely portion
Here's a thought for you, how about you don't take my money to begin with so that there's no need for communities to have to somehow beg for my money from the federal f'in government?