I've said this before, but I'm going to say it again because it bears repeating.

Thanks to Greg, my blood pressure has permanently gone up by quite a few points. Greg lent me his copy of Florida Firearms Law, Use & Ownership by Jon H. Gutmacher and I've almost finished it, but I've learned that if you want good law made, never leave it to the legislature.

I am a programmer. I understand how to push buttons on a keyboard that will tell the computer to do what I want it to do. It is a major fault of programmers to think that just because they know how to write code that they can write any application they want.

This is not true.

An analogy to the analogy is "just because you know how to drive a car doesn't mean you can back up a semi or win the Indy 500".

I can't balance my checkbook. Even though I could tell the computer to add and subtract all the numbers, without a good understanding of what's involved in money management, there's no way I could effectively write a Quicken or Money clone.

Law makers make the same mistake. They think that because they know how to make laws that they can make laws for every situation. They too are dreadfully wrong. The big difference is that when I write a poor program, only those who use it suffer. When the lawmakers goof up, everybody gets f*cked.

To compound matters, judges have a mandate to follow the law as it is written. If it's written poorly, well the judge is going to make a poor decision. I saw this recently with a pal of mine who got a ticket for flashing his lights to let other cars know there was a speed trap. The law states "no flashing lights 'cept blinkers and hazards" but the term "flashing lights" means self modulating (the same between automatic and semi automatic when it comes to firearms). However, the judge read "flashing" and equated it to "manual flashing" and he got the ticket. Plus court fees. Unlucky bastard.

To me, the lawmakers' mistaken belief that since they know how to write laws, they can write any law to cover any situation is no more evident than gun laws. The problem is that most of these idiots couldn't tell the difference between a .22 and 20mm, yet their insistence that they can write any laws to cover any situation coupled with the unyielding desire to simply appear that they are doing something (to protect their jobs). Hell, Carolyn McCarthy couldn't even identify a barrel shroud but wanted to ban it.

This is why I don't get liberals. I can show you reams upon reams of failed projects, bureaucratic mismanagement, and government incompetence and you still want to give them more power as if somehow, with just the right combination of people, they'll eventually get it right.