No Nanny State - Molon Labe!

It will be of little avail to the people that the laws are made by men of their own choice if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood.
--James Madison

I live in a Northern Californian county called Contra Costa. We are the third largest county in the SF Bay Area. With nearly 1 million residents (of the 6.7 million in the Bay Area) we're one of the Big Dogs on the block.

Our current Sheriff is retiring. This guy is a piece of work - at least regarding 2A rights. Basically, the only way you can get a Concealed Carry Permit is to be a part of the Sheriff's Posse. Even then, it's not guaranteed, even if you meet all of the other state standards.

There is at least one person who has officially thrown his hat into the ring for the job. David Livingston is the current Chief of Police of our county's largest city. There looks like there will be at least one other candidate - a current Lieutenant of the Sheriff's department.

I just sent Livingston this letter seeking his views on basic 2A rights:

Mr. Livingston,

I am a long-time resident of Contra Costa County, having lived here for 35 years, including the past 21 in Eastern Contra Costa. I am an NRA Certified Pistol Instructor, and Second Amendment rights are very important to me.

I would appreciate a response to the following questions:

1. Concealed Carry Permits allow law-abiding citizens to legally carry a handgun to defend themselves, their family and others in the community in the event a criminal chooses to harm or kill others. As you are no doubt aware, the state of California gives the Sheriff the ability to grant these Permits. Many counties in the state are considered, "Shall Issue" counties - as long as the applicant meets the requirements (demonstrate firearms proficiency, not a felon, etc.), they are granted a Permit.

Three parts: (A) If you are elected Sheriff, under what conditions will you issue Concealed Carry Permits? (B) Assuming an applicant meets all other applicable standards, will you consider, "Self Defense" as "Good cause" for granting a Permit? (C) Do you support laws similar to the AB 357 which would have made California a "Shall Issue" state?

2. The California Legislature recently passed AB 962 which will require, among other things, that law abiding citizens submit to registration and finger printing whenever they wish to purchase ammunition in this state. As with any law, the criminals affected by it will disregard it. They're criminals. California already has myriad laws addressing penalties for criminals buying or possessing ammunition. AB 962 will ONLY be followed by law abiding citizens. Since they are allowed to purchase and possess ammunition, it is a pointless intrusion into our lives and an invasion of our privacy.

Two parts: (A) What are your views on AB 962? (B) Will you support the NRA's and other Second Amendment Rights organizations in working to overturn this law before it goes into effect?

The same questions will be posed to anyone else that decides to run for the position of Sheriff. I will share your responses with my 1,400 fellow members of the Diablo Rod and Gun Club.

Thank you for your time.

The Other Mike S.

I'll pass along any responses. I'm not hopeful. His current city is as liberal as they come in Contra Costa.

Plus, I probably just put myself on an Enemies List. Oh well, now is not the time to go quietly into the night...

Labels: American Spirit, Brady Bunch, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance

Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.
--Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Many of you may have heard about the murders of the toll-taker and her friend that happened here in Northern California.

This sequence of events is sickening -

Recently dumped boyfriend (Burris) slashed the tires of a truck whose owner (Everette) had lent to the ex-girlfriend (Ross).

Burris watches the truck, waiting for Everette to call for a tow truck. Burris walks over to the truck with shotgun in hand, and kills Everette.

Two armed, Marin County sheriff's deputies (on-duty, in street clothes, in their cars at the toll plaza) see the muzzle flash - from 50 feet away. And do nothing.

Burris walks up to (ex-girlfriend) Ross' toll-booth, and shotguns her. Still nothing from the deputies.

Burris jumps in his car and escapes.

One [deputy] saw the muzzle flash in the south parking lot, where police say Burris shot Everette. Moments later, Burris jogged out into traffic toward the toll booth [where he subsequently slaughtered Ross].

The attack lasted less than half a minute. One of the deputies alerted her dispatch center in Marin County during the shooting, and the other used her car to block traffic so other drivers would not blunder into the gunman's sights, Richmond police said. They then checked on workers in the toll booths and the adjoining Caltrans building.

The deputy blocked traffic while citizens are being slaughtered. They finally caught him, a few hours later.

The cops were 50 feet away when they saw the muzzle flash. Seventeen yards. Even an average shooter, much less one that is expected to be proficient - such as a police officer - could place 10 rounds into an 8 inch circle at that distance (Oh wait... cops get to have the large capacity magazines us common California citizens are prohibited from owning, so they'd have more chances to stop the slaughter).

But because it's California, no one was armed and able to save the life of the toll-taker. Except the sheriff's deputies, who chose to do nothing.

DO YOU FEEL SAFE, CALIFORNIA?
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Of course, this will get spun by the press and the Brady Bunch as people can't be trusted with ANY guns. Hell, they're slaughtering government employees now!
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So, how do we protect and serve OURSELVES? With practice.

I went to the range yesterday with a buddy I haven't seen in 10 years or so. My old college roommate.

Most ranges in our area don't allow any type of rapid fire. Most require at least 1 second between shots.

While this somewhat limits the type of training you can do, there are still a number of self-defense exercises you can follow to keep your skills up.

Prep: Set up your large target with 4 smaller targets - in a diamond pattern. One top center, one bottom center, one middle left, and one middle right. All as widely spaced as the base target will allow.

1. Load 4 rounds into your magazine/cylinder. Start with your preferred two-handed grip, with your gun held chest-high with muzzle pointing down at a 45 degree angle (I believe some folks call this the 'high compact' position).

Extend the gun out-and-up to acquire the left-middle target as quickly as possible. As soon a you have your sight picture, fire. Count 'one thousand one'. With arms still extended, acquire the right-middle target, and fire.

Retract the pistol to the high-compact position.

Immediately re-acquire the RIGHT-middle target (the one you just shot), fire, one-thousand-one, acquire the left-middle target, fire, retract.

Clear the gun and reload.

I do this at 5, 7, 10 and 15 yards.

2. Repeat this exercise using the top-center and bottom center targets.

3. Repeat this side-to-side exercise one-handed strong-hand.

4. Repeat this exercise top-to-bottom one-handed strong-hand.

5. Repeat this exercise, side-to-side, two-handed, weak hand.

6. Repeat this exercise, top-to-bottom, two-handed, weak hand.

7. Repeat this exercise, side-to-side, one handed, weak hand.

8. Repeat this exercise top-to-bottom, one handed, weak hand.

Remember to count the 'one thousand one' before you move the gun to the next target (don't fire, move to the next target, THEN count one thousand one). The intention is to develop quick target acquisition skills while STILL putting lead on the target (I use 6 inch stick-on targets). Expect the acquisition and fire times to be longer as you move the target further away from you.

A shot that misses the target is a waste of ammo, and could result in an innocent being hit in real life. You want speed AND accuracy.

This will use up 128 rounds if you do all 8 steps at all 4 distances. It took me about 45 minutes yesterday. If you're worried about using up too much ammo, cut it in half and do the 8 steps at 7 and 13 yards. You'll get a good mix of up-close and semi-distant practice.

DO NOT cut out the off-hand and single-hand stuff. It would sure suck if you were shot in your strong hand and had no practice shooting with your off-hand.

Especially as the bad guy was walking up to a loved one with bad intentions in his eyes...

Labels: American Spirit, Brady Bunch, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Media Bias, Self-Defense

I'm certified (shut up... I didn't say certifiable)!


I'm now a card-carryin' (and T-shirt wearin') member of the Diablo Action Pistol Association.

Yesterday was the classroom stuff and a bit of live fire. Today was a full-on IDPA match. There were 15 of us from the class that were in the match with 26 other certified shooters. We had to complete the match without getting disqualified for any of twelve zillion reasons you can get booted.

They broke the 41 of use into 3 groups. We had 9 scenarios to complete. Some were very simple, some were very VERY complex.

IDPA (International Defensive Pistol Association) is different from IPSC (International Practical Shooting Confederation), in that IDPA is the "anal retentive" sport. The rules are much more stringent. IPSC is much more free-form, in that you can shoot targets in any order you see fit.

My certification allows me to shoot in both groups. I'm guessing they start you with IDPA to make sure everyone is grounded in the safety aspect of the sports.
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It was so much fun, but my day almost ended early. There is a very stringently followed rule called "the 180 rule." Basically, if you draw a line parallel with the targets - a line being 180 degrees - you cannot have your muzzel cross that line (basically pointing behind you). It's a very good rule.

At the very first scenario, we had to run for cover and do a reload behind a barrier. I got too close to the barrier, and when I was putting in the new magazine, I brought the muzzle dangerously close to crossing the 180 line. Figure I was at 175!

After I finished the stage, the Range Officer told me what I had done - he said it was a typical newbee mistake, but I was very close to being booted. He reiterated what we had learned in the class to NOT hug the barrier - stay a good 3 feet behind it until you need to shoot around the backside.

Every stage after that where we had barriers, I consciously did a mental walk-thru that took me in a direction back away from the barrier. It worked well.
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A cool stage: The series of events for a stage is to load your weapon and reholster it (well, most of the time). You then have your hands at your side, or up on a barrier. The Range Officer the asks, "Are you ready?" Then, "Standby", then the buzzer goes off, and you do the stage.

On this one stage, we had three targets set up in a "V" formation - one in the center at 6 yards, and one on either side, both at 8 yards. When he said, "Standby", you started walking towards the center target. When you got to within 3 yards, the buzzer went off. You drew your weapon, and had to do a "tactical sequence". One in the body of the target directly in front of you, then one in each target to the sides, THEN one to the head of each target.

Oh, did I mention that you had to do all of this while walking backwards! After you drew your weapon, you had to shoot all 6 shots while going backwards, THEN move to cover and take out 3 more targets with two shots each (so you had to work a reload in there).
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I felt very good about my shooting. I was fortunate that my "regular" firing range training, I use 6 inch targets. The sweet spot for the IDPA target is 8 inches. I'm typically not a "tack driver", but I'm pretty good keeping it on the target.

We won't have our final scores until sometime next week (I believe), but I think I did pretty well. I was regularly coming out with times better than the certified folks. They tended to go for very low times, but their aim was horrible, so they'd get buckets-o-penalties.

For the entire match, I only had one 3 point penalty, and perhaps a dozen 1 point penalties. Oh, and I didn't kill any hostage targets!

I and beat and burnt. Standing almost continuously for 6 hours in close to 100 degree sun was very draining. I drank a lot of water! Off to the shower and get some food in my belly.

Labels: American Spirit, Concealed Carry, Life and Times, Self-Defense

I just got back from the orientation for what I've been calling Action Pistol or Practical Shooting. It is actually Defensive Pistol. My club is part of the IDPA -the International Defensive Pistol Association. I could not be happier.

The entire philosophy behind this is to assess a bad situation, and take out the bad guys - in the correct tactical order - as accurately and as quickly as possible.

The International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) is the governing body of a shooting sport that simulates self-defense scenarios and real life encounters.

You shoot at paper targets and metal plates set at various distances. You are always either shooting from behind cover, or while moving. When you reload, you must be behind cover. The course also has "innocent" targets in the field. You must be cognizant of the angles at which you're shooting. If a bullet goes through a "bad guy" target, and hits an "innocent", you get penalized.

Today was a classroom orientation to refresh us with some basic handgun safety stuff, but more particularly, safety issues that will get you penalized, disqualified or banned. We were "all ears" with this stuff.

Once the classroom work was finished, we went to a target line with the paper targets set at 10 yards. We did a bunch of dry fire exercises for drawing from a holster and reloading.

We then did a bunch of live fire exercises. We'd do draw-6 shots-make safe-reholster. Then draw-two shots-reload-two shots-reload-two shots-make safe-reholster.

Strong and weak side, with both two-hand and one-hand shots. It was really very thorough.

Here's my practice target:


You need to click it to blow it up to see the target area. The IDPA targets have a high-center center circle - 8 inches wide. Hit that OR the crease defining the circle, and you get no time added. The next area gives you a 1 point penalty, the outer area gives you a 3 point penalty, and missing the target gets you a 5 point penalty. Each point results in a half-second being added to your time - faster and more accurate is better.

So with my practice target, I had 10 outside of the Zero ring, nine of which were 1 point penalty and 1 that was a 3. I'm guessing my weak hand, single-hand shot was the wild one!

We all then moved down to one of the bays that was set up with one of the actual scenarios we'll be shooting tomorrow.

We had two barriers we had to shoot around - at a total of 4 targets, and two run-and-gun targets.

This is a rough drawing of the scenario (click to enlarge):


I was using my Glock 19. You can load 1 in the chamber, and 10 in the magazine. Plus two more mags. Same with .40 cal. With .45's the rules were different - for some reason, you could only have 1 in the chamber and 8 in the mag.

You must shoot 2 rounds at each target. I'm guessing the stage was 20 yards long. In this scenario, you started behind the barrier on the left, with your gun in the low-ready position. Shooting left handed around the left side of the barrier, you first shoot target 1. Even though target 2 is closer, you shoot #1 first because it is the first that would see you if it were a bad guy and you were peering around the corner. It is about 7 yards away from the barrier. Target 2 was probably 2 yards away.

You then switch hands, and shoot the next two targets, strong-handed, two hand. You MUST be moving. You can't just plant yourself in front of the target and fire. Also, with number 4, you must be shooting at the correct angle, or you'll put a round into one of the "innocents" behind your target.

So, you've now fired 8 of your 11 original rounds. Most of us now reloaded behind the second barrier. If the magazine has rounds in it, you must put it into your pocket or mag holder (you can only drop empty mags on the ground). Two handed, around the right side of the second barrier, you take out targets 5 and 6.
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Since I'm so damned anal retentive, I was the first one to show up this morning. So I was obviously first on the list.

That meant I was first on the stage. Great.

The instructor did run through it once. He shot the stage in 17:50 (17 and a half seconds - the partial seconds are in hundredths), which included penalties. I went, and shot it in 20.83.

Not a single penalty point - Twelve kill shots!

So I was about 3 and a half seconds slower than the instructor. I have no idea if that's good or not. I was in the top quartile of the class, with one guy shooting a 16 second stage (he had taken the course before, but had to re-take it again for some reason). The slowest was in the low 30 second range.

There was one kid taking the course. I'm guessing he was 14 or so - kind of small in stature, and was shooting a .45, which was way too much gun for him. He shot a 25-something.
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For tomorrow's real match, we need to wear a shirt which hangs below the bottom of our holster. The idea is to replicate conditions you would have if you were carrying concealed.

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So. We're in the first outside range, doing some dry fire exercises. The instructor is talking, so we have our ear protection off.

All of the sudden, we ear a bullet go screaming over our heads! Talk about a paniced feeling.

They explained that the Action Pistol range was at the end of the rifle range. We had a 20 foot berm to our rear, which is the back side of the berm the rifle range shoots into. So, for all practical purposes, it would be impossible for us to get hit. Still, I've gotta say, that was a very eerie feeling.
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Another update tomorrow after the live match!

Labels: American Spirit, Concealed Carry, Life and Times

It cooled off today. It was down to a chilly 104 from yesterdays blistering 105. Nice respite.

I went to the range today with one of my brothers. Lots of fun.

I worked on a number of quick target acquisition drills to kind of "prime the pump" for next weekend's Action Pistol/Practical Shooting certification.

I worked on drills from 5 yards to 15 yards (which I think is the maximum distance for this sport). Gawd, I'm looking forward to this!
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Interesting range note: The place was damned near empty. It has 20 lanes, and only 3 or 4 were in use on each side. The last few times we went there, it was packed, with the last time resulting in us being placed on a waiting list.

Is the rush off, or are people worried about shooting up all of their limited ammo?

The range had some ammo. They had 9mm Wolf for $14 a box. Pass, especially after my last problem with that crap. .38 spl American Eagle brand for $20.50 a box. Pass again.

After we finished up shooting, we went over to the gun store on the other side of the building. I asked for some .22 LR. He had a box of the Cyclone stuff. Box of 500 for $40. Kiss my ass!

We had gone to my brother's local Walmart the day before. They had tons of birdshot, a couple boxes of .270 rifle. No handgun ammo , no .22LR. She said to come in at 8am if I wanted a chance to get some. Nice.
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My wife is in Las Vegas for some teacher's conference. Don't worry - she's works at a private school, so no tax dollars will be going into the codpiece of some hunky male stripper. Better not be any of her bucks, either ;-)

Get this: They're staying at the Wynn. This place is VERY chic. And expensive. A regular room mid-week room is something like $300 a night, and they have some for $3500 a night.

This group of teachers is staying 2 nights, and the cost (paid for by the school) is $120 each, total! I don't know if the place has got a soft spot for old mature Catholic School Teachers, or what, but they got a hell of a deal!

Funny how you shop for the best deal when you're spending your own (company's) money, huh? I guess the SSA didn't get the how-to booklet when they did their recent little gig in Arizona.

Yeah, funny.
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If we only had stronger gun laws, this woman's life could have been saved -

Mitchell is suspected of beating to death his former girlfriend, 29-year-old Danielle Keller, with a baseball bat Sunday and then kidnapping their 1-year-old daughter, Samantha. The attack occurred at the home Keller and the baby shared with Keller's mother, Claudia Stevens.

Oops, sorry - my bad. I guess if some crazy bastard wants to kill you, he'll figure out a way, huh? The laws don't mean much to that kind of lawless animal.

I wonder how things would have turned out if SHE had had a handgun.

Sorry - I forgot where it happened. Not only was it in California, but in Marin County, where the liberals look at Marx as being a bit wishy-washy.
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Disaster plan in action? Gotta go, there is a HUGE fire. Huge. I need to keep an eye on this thing.

I'll post some video later. Big and black and boiling. I'm guessing 2 miles a way.

The temperature is about 95 right now, and a breeze is starting to blow.

I'll be back.

Labels: Brady Bunch, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Gun Grabbers, Life and Times, Self-Reliance

A lion's work hours are only when he's hungry; once he's satisfied, the predator and prey live peacefully together.
--Chuck Jones

I received a call from a woman about my Pepper Spray and Stun Gun class. She told me about some trouble she is having with one of her neighbors.

It seems that, for whatever reason, she and a neighbor family don't get along. At one point, she had been attacked by the husband next door, and was roughed up a bit. She called the police, and had gotten a restraining order and figured that was the end of it.

Not.

Some time passed, and out of the blue, she gets confronted by the wife of the guy with the restraining order. Things escalated to where the wife reached into the woman's car, grabbed her by the arm and twisted it in such a way that her arm was broken.

In front of her own house, and with her kids in the car.

The police were once again called, arrests were made and more restraining orders were issued. But this lady didn't feel safe, and wanted to learn how to protect herself.
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Through this whole story, I kept thinking, "Where is your husband?" Why is he allowing his wife to be beaten up by the neighbors?

It then came out that she was married to a guy in the Air Force. He is stationed at a local military facility - Travis Air Force Base. Both times she was attacked, he had been out on deployments. They live off base, so they don't have the protection that base housing affords.

She told me there is a Base Wives club, and they share tips on things to watch for when their husbands have been deployed. She said one of the most common is for an announcement to be made about local units, and when they're being deployed. As soon as the deployment occurs, the neighborhoods that are within a couple of miles of the base are suddenly inundated with door-to-door salesmen. "Get your carpets cleaned." "Get a new home security system." "Do you need a handy-man?"

Some may be legit business people. They see a business opportunity and are taking advantage of it.

But some are predators looking for an easy mark. It seems as though her neighbors are this type of people, since the attacks all happen when hubby is away.
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One of the things we talk about in our workshop is that predators have a plan. Part of that is identifying opportunities - finding instances where the risk of being caught or harmed is low, and the reward is high.

Some people have difficulty with the concept of possibly harming or killing an intruder. They might have been socially passivized. They may have religious concerns. They might just be the type of person who hates confrontation - they've been led to believe that submission is preferable to conflict.

We give them two things to think about in trying to change their minds -

The intentions of an intruder or aggressor are to violate you, your family or your home

More importantly, I think is -

There is no forgiveness on the part of a predator

Think about how brazen and cowardly this lady's next door predators have been. They attack her when it is less likely they will be harmed in return. They wrenched her arm so violently, it was broken while she sat in her car.

They couldn't care less. They had no forgiveness, and in fact worked around the law so the predator husband wouldn't be punished for violating the original restraining order. They tag-teamed her.
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If (when?) TSHTF, and more people don't have jobs, housing, food, money, clothes - whatever - do you think the number of predators will decrease? Will Barry's Minions be able to keep the hoards happy? Do you think the police will be able to investigate every instance of a beating, robbery, home invasion or car theft?

Nope. They'll be swamped. They'll only be able to focus on the truly heinous crimes - the sexual assaults and murders. Investigating your home stereo being ripped off and you getting slapped around a bit will be at the bottom of the police "To Do" list.

If you don't have some sort of lethal or non-lethal defensive tool - and know how to use it - you're almost asking to become a victim. Make a plan on what to do in threatening situations. Increase your awareness of what is going on around you.

Choose a weapon, buy a book, get a video, take a class, stay alive.

Don't wind up having the police at your house because they're identifying your body with mourning family members.

Labels: American Spirit, Concealed Carry, criminal, Gun Grabbers, Life and Times, Political Correctness, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance, Terrorism

Taxation WITH representation ain't so hot either.
-- Gerald Barzan

It's not bad enough that my once-great state of California has turned into a festering cesspool of socialism. It seems that my local Assemblyman (the state version of the House of Representatives) is getting out front, helping to lead the charge towards a Stalinist Nirvana.

I've mentioned my pinhead representative before when talking about the upcoming, "Want ammo? Spread your cheeks!" law. Yep, he's for it.

This guy is my former city councilman (in another city I used to live in). He's a former school teacher. As a State Assemblyman, he has proposed literally hundreds of pro-teacher's union and "It's for the children, so let's give a little bit more," bills.

His latest ploy - along with the majority of Democrat politicians in the state - is to stomp their feet over Aahhhhnold's proposed tax cuts. They're steep and deep.

In an email message I received, he asked that I take a survey about how I feel about the cuts. I was happy to do so.

Let's just say that I didn't support any more taxes.

The Dems don't like that kind of thing. Take a look at a video on the page of my Assemblyman. It has a heartstring-pulling video of all the people that will be hurt if the Big Bad Governator gets his way.
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I'm getting all teary just thinking about it.

Not.

As is my wont, here is the letter I sent to my Politburo member -

Assemblyman Torlakson,

Thank you for providing me the opportunity to complete your survey. If I may suggest: In the future, perhaps you could provide a section allowing comments.

Since none was provided, here are my thoughts:

From the tone of your survey and the video on your site, I take it that you are against the cuts proposed by the Governor.

If this is correct, you are out of touch with your constituents.

As a state, we are broke. We're in this mess precisely because of programs such as those shown on the video. It is not the job of the State to put people through college. It is not the job of the State provide medical services for its citizens. It is not the job of the State to train people on how to get a job.

It is the individual's responsibility. The safety net mentioned in the video has become a comfortable hammock, swinging in the breeze.

Give-aways such as these have "programmed" people into believing that the State will take care of all ills and shepherd them through life. It was so ironic at the end of the video, there was a person that held a sign that said, "We have families to support."

So go out and support them! Holding a sign asking for a hand-out is not the way to succeed and prosper.

The answer always seems to be to tax the rich, tax business and "close those loopholes." When does the answer become, "Deal with it yourself."?

I'm curious: Have you ever read, "Atlas Shrugged?" If not, I highly recommend it. It's main theme is about the impact on society and on the individual when the producers have their incentive to produce taken away. It's not pretty.

Haven't we had enough of that in our State? You realize, of course, that when you tax a business, you're actually taxing the end user of the product or service. Taxes are just a cost of doing business, and get passed on the the buyer of the product. In our State's case, it is making our businesses less competitive, as other businesses in other states don't have the same onerous taxes, so their products are less expensive.

How many businesses have thrown up their hands in disgust and left California? Nevada, for one, LOVES our laws. The out-flow of businesses, jobs and tax revenues has been a boon to that state.

How about we change our path? How about we give businesses an incentive to stay here and hire more workers? How about we teach our fellow citizens about personal choice, personal responsibility and the benefits that come from both?

It appears as though your stance is, "More of the same." Well, that hasn't worked. What are your ideas?

He has yet to respond to a single message I've sent him, so I doubt he'll respond to this one. His type tends to hide from confrontations with constituents that use logic to disagree with their New World Order view of things.

Not satisfied with just opposing tax cuts, he now wants to tax smokers to pay for our current budget short-fall. Again. Big time.

Did I mention that I smoke?

So this guy is an anti-smoker, big government, pro-union, tax-it-if-it-moves, gun-grabbing politician.

I feel so well represented.

Labels: communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, democrats, Ethics, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, nanny state, Political Correctness, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance, Taxes, welfare state

A government is the most dangerous threat to man's rights: it holds a legal monopoly on the use of physical force against legally disarmed victims.
--Ayn Rand

I read stuff that comes out from our various courts of law, and I just have to scratch my head. It just amazes me how judges will come up with some off-the-wall interpretation. That interpretation then becomes legal precedence, and other laws or rulings are made, further crapping on the citizens.

I saw this article by David Codrea. He's the "examiner" for Gun Rights at Examiner.com. This guy is a great gun rights proponent.

As he points out in his article, a recent decision in Chicago now says that a state has the ability to limit a person's right to self-defense -

States can not only ban guns, they can ban self-defense. That's what a court just ruled.

I read the entire court ruling. It is revolting. The "money shot" in the ruling is this -

The [Supreme] Court did not say that Cruikshank, Presser, and Miller rejected a particular argument for applying the second amendment to the states. It said that they hold “that the Second Amendment applies only to the Federal Government.”

What these dog-dick sucking pukes are saying is that states aren't bound by the Second Amendment - only the federal government is so constrained. So the 2A would only apply to federal property - not you and me (unless we're in DC or paid by Uncle Sugar).

They continue with their bastardization of our Constitution -

One function of the second amendment is to prevent the national government from interfering with state militias. It does this by creating individual rights, Heller holds, but those rights may take a different shape when asserted against a state than against the national government.

What? An individual right is an individual right, regardless of where that right is being asserted.

They then build up a strawman argument to support their contention that states can do as they please with regards to the 2A. They make up some fantasy about Wisconsin passing a law saying that the militia can only have long guns - no hand guns.

...it is not clear that such a decision would be antithetical to a decision made in 1868. (The fourteenth amendment was ratified in 1868, making that rather than 1793 the important year for determining what rules must be applied to the states.)

The argument that they are building is that a state can limit how the militia is armed. Since they have the power to limit some aspects, why not all aspects?

Suppose a state were to decide that people cornered in their homes must surrender rather than fight back—in other words, that burglars should be deterred by the criminal law rather than self help. That decision would imply that no one is entitled to keep a handgun at home for self-defense, because self-defense would itself be a crime, and Heller concluded that the second amendment protects only the interests of law-abiding citizens.

Sounds insane, right? How can a rational person go from a state being Constitutionally able to control the types of weapons its militia can possess to stripping people of their right to self-defense?

An obligation to avoid lethal force in self-defense might imply an obligation to use pepper spray rather than handguns. A modification of the self-defense defense may or may not be in the best interest of public safety—whether guns deter or facilitate crime is an empirical question, ... but it is difficult to argue that legislative evaluation of which weapons are appropriate for use in self-defense has been out of the people’s hands since 1868.

What The Fuck!? The 14th Amendment (1868) strengthened the rights of the individual, not weakened them.

No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States;

The Second Amendment guaranteed (provided immunity) that the right of the people - NOT the states - to keep and bear arms, would not be infringed upon.

Irrelevant. At least to these bastards. They finish up their insane ramblings with this -

After all, Illinois has not abolished self-defense and has not expressed a preference for long guns over handguns [Nice how they use their own strawman as part of their justification].

But the municipalities can, and do, stress another of the themes in the debate over incorporation of the Bill of Rights: That the Constitution establishes a federal republic where local differences are to be cherished as elements of liberty rather than extirpated in order to produce a single, nationally applicable rule.

Don't you like how they ended that by telling us how stripping us of our freedoms, we're actually much more free?

How do you like your, "common sense" gun laws now?
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The case was one brought by the NRA. They sure as shit had better fight this, and bring it to the SCOTUS. If not, this ruling will give states and judges the ability to do as they wish with regards to our guaranteed freedoms.

Every gun grabbing, Brady-blowing, totalitarian politician and judge will do everything in their power to only put guns in the hands of agents of the state.

Believe it.
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Section 1 of the 14th Amendment ends with this -

... nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

How could a police agency or police officers then be granted the ability to have weapons that are any different from those allowed to other citizens?

Just askin'...
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Cache while you can.
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UPDATE: The NRA has petitioned the SCOTUS to hear the case.

Labels: communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, criminal, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, nanny state, Self-Defense

Abandon the search for Truth; settle for a good fantasy
--Unknown

Yesterday, I talked about how the stock market has just not made any sense. Crappy news comes out - but since it's not TEOTWAWKI news, the market jumps. It makes no common sense to me.

On Morning Joe this morning, some guy made a comment that perfectly captured the phenomenon: The Dead Cat Bounce - if you take a dead cat and throw it on the floor, it will bounce a bit right after you throw it. But the cat's still dead.

I need to remember this phrase...
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Two good pieces of CA gun law news.

First, the bill I wrote about (No Shoot For You!) has been shelved. It was going to limit personal transfers of ammo to 50 rounds a month, require fingerprints when you bought ammo and not allow online ammo purchases.

It's not dead, so we need to keep alert, but perhaps our letters to the assemblymen on the committee worked...

The other good piece of news is the Second Amendment Foundation and CalGuns Foundation have brought suit in state court to require CA to become a Shall Issue state.

A bill that would have done that didn't make it out of committee, so these guys are bringing it to the court. They are hanging their hat on two recent cases: The Heller case in which the SCOTUS affirmed the individual right to bear arms, and a surprising ruling by the Ninth Circuit court (who is notoriously liberal):

Last month, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment -- which required states to offer freedoms found in the Bill of Rights such as a jury trial -- protects an individual right to keep and bear arms.

I need to not get too excited, as the communists running this state will find a way to delay or circumvent a ruling in favor of the right to keep and bear arms.

But I will be hopeful....
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NEW jobless claims for last week hit 601,000. The spin is that it is lower than expected and is the lowest in the past 14 weeks.

We're currently at 8.5% unemployment, expected to move to 8.9%. That's damned close to the 10% SHTF scenario the Big Banks used in their Stress Tests. Many economists are calling for 10% before the end of the year.

Expect a jump in the Dow. Watch for falling cats....

Labels: communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, Media Bias, nanny state, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance

There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly.
--Henry David Thoreau

The "Nanny-est" of the Nanny States, California, is hard at work making sure that those of us who support freedom and the Second Amendment are kept at bay. I received this very disappointing email from the NRA yesterday:

Yesterday, the Assembly Committee on Public Safety considered two bills of great concern to California’s law-abiding gun owners.

Assembly Bill 962 was passed and now heads to the Assembly Committee on Appropriations where it awaits a hearing.Sponsored by Assembly Member Kevin De Leon (D-45), AB962 would make it a crime to privately transfer more than 50 rounds of ammunition per month, even between family and friends, unless you are registered as a “handgun ammunition vendor” in the Department of Justice’s database. Ammunition retailers would have to be licensed and store ammunition in such a manner that it would be inaccessible to purchasers. The bill would also require purchasers submit to fingerprinting, which would be submitted to the Department of Justice. Lastly, mail order ammunition sales would be prohibited.

Assembly Bill 357, sponsored by Assembly Member Steve Knight (R-36), was defeated.This bill would have created a “shall issue” concealed handgun permit system in California. Under current law, an applicant must show cause as to why they should be issued a permit to carry a concealed handgun for self-defense. AB357 would have removed that stipulation and required sheriffs to issue the license if all other mandated criteria were satisfied.

I guess they figure that with that first bill, if we can't get any ammo, we can't use our guns and all gun violence will magically melt away. What these pinheads continually forget is that the criminals don't follow the law. They'll continue stealing ammo, or going out-of-state to get it.

Once again, they have recommended a piece of legislation that has a negative impact on law-abiding citizens, and does nothing to prevent gun violence. Nothing.

The second bill hurts even worse, although it fared precisely as I expected. It didn't even make it out of committee to get voted upon by the full legislature.
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Today, I received a bit of good news. The idiotic 'smart gun' legislation was withdrawn by its sponsor:

Senate Bill 697 was scheduled to be heard on Tuesday, April 28 in the Senate Public Safety Committee.Yesterday, SB697 was pulled from the committee schedule at the request of the sponsor, State Senator Mark DeSaulnier (D-7).

SB697 would prohibit the sale of handguns other than "owner-authorized (or ‘smart’) handguns" -- that is, handguns with a permanent, programmable biometric feature that renders the firearm useless unless activated by the authorized user. No proven, viable handgun of this type has ever been developed. The bill would require the California Attorney General to report to the Governor and Legislature on the availability of owner-authorized handguns; once the Attorney General finds that these guns are available, only “owner-authorized” handguns could be approved for sale in California.

This bastard DeSaulnier is my state senator. He's not a socialist or communist, he's a dyed-in-the-wool totalitarian. He was my county supervisor before being promoted to state office. I actually had my disgust of a past proposal of his, entered into the official supervisor minutes a couple of years ago.

I guarantee you, this bill is not dead...
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A bit of a follow-up on my Caching post (pure coincidence that it follows a post about the government restricting our gun rights... I promise!):

Stephen suggested trying to locate a site that you believe won't be disturbed for 20+ years.

Western mass man reminded us to consider where you live. If during the winter, your ground is frozen solid, you ain't gonna get your stuff out quick and easy like.

Jim recommended something called B 1/2 Sealant. It's a sealant used on aircraft fuel tanks. I can't vouch for it, but something able to keep fuel tanks sealed can't be all bad!

Dave made note that hiding a cache on government lands (national parks, state parks, etc.) might work. You could be pretty sure that it would never end up with a Walmart on top of it, but as he noted, it might be like hiding your chickens in a fox den. I like it, though...

TOR suggested using precise compass degrees in the instructions. I should have said that.

Finally, jimmycrackcorn, gave a link to a great Backwoods Home Magazine article about a guy who buried a rifle for 15 years. He was worried he was going to lose it during the Billy Jeff Clinton administration.

It's a great read of an actual start-to-finish caching.
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I say this every time it shows up in my mailbox, but you're nuts if you don't subscribe to Backwoods Home Magazine. I literally read it from cover-to-cover each time it arrives. It is always full of practical things you can do to make yourself more self-sufficient and/or save money.

I wonder how long it will take before the self-sufficiency publications are publicly heckled like talk-radio, or simply shut down as, "subversive".

Labels: American Spirit, Brady Bunch, communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, criminal, democrats, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, nanny state, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance, Thought Crimes

Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.
-- William Pitt, The Younger

Lot's of gun and Constitution stuff going through my head.

This weekend in Reno while decompressing after Day One of the gun show, my brother and I were talking about limits placed on private citizens owning guns. We were both in awe with the guns that people from free states can own.

During the conversation, I made a comment to the effect that I believe whatever weapons the police can have, the common citizen should be able to have. The police are citizens who are being paid to do a job.

But as citizens, they must be held to the same standards of Constitutionality as the rest of us. No one said it would be an easy job. Since there is no Constitutional provision to do so, they should not be granted super-constitutional powers.

Yet, they are. Or more precisely, OUR rights have been eroded.

He winced a bit, but I think he generally agreed with that.
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After I got home, I happened to turn on MSNBC (I think), and they had a show about kids and guns. In it, they showed a bunch of families that were "gun nuts" - kids as young as 5 or 6 shooting guns.

The reporter, with his very civilized British accent, voiced the displeasure of the producers with his negative comments and innuendo. I guess instead of teaching kids how to properly use guns, they felt it better that the kids figure guns out on their own, or better yet, never be exposed to them.

One of the segments showed a father with his AK47. The reporter asked why he needed such a powerful weapon in his home, especially considering he had so many kids around. His answer was basically that he hoped that a bad guy, seeing the AK, would choose to flee rather than fight.

[I answered the question in my head as I watched: "I have this gun because I don't want it to be a fair fight. If this bastard has the balls to break into my house, I have to assume he is armed and dangerous. I want him dead and I want to be sure of it."]
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Fast forward to Monday night. The TV show Jericho was on. The show is about what happens in some small American town after a big city has been nuked.

This episode ("New Bern") was about how another town was trying to take - by force - a bunch of farms that were part of Jericho. They built and fired a number of mortars into Jericho to make their point.

Since the nuke, food and other resources had become scarce. The federal government was no where to be seen. Jericho was on its own.

The folks of Jericho were able to fend off the attack because they all had Evil Black Rifles of the sort that are banned in many places in our country. They exercised their inalienable right to self-defense.
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Now, it would be easy to pass this off as some sort of survivalist wet dream or far-fetch ratings-grabber.

But is it?

The papers and Internet have been covered lately with stories about how the feds are concerned about some foreign country lighting off a nuke, producing an ElectroMagnetic Pulse (EMP), and frying up to 90% of our country's electrical infrastructure.

"As a scientist and engineer now serving my 17th year on the House Armed Services Committee, I have studied the threat of EMP with the world's experts," said U.S. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett. "It is real."

If one of these goes off 200 miles above the center of the country, the result would be "effectively sending the continental U.S. back to the 19th century with a recovery time of months or years."

As if that were not bad enough, we have the increased likelihood of a massive solar burst sometime in 2012 - perhaps as early as 2010. They are predicting it will be a big one.

Who is "they"? NASA.

This week (March 2006) researchers announced that a storm is coming--the most intense solar maximum in fifty years. The prediction comes from a team led by Mausumi Dikpati of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). "The next sunspot cycle will be 30% to 50% stronger than the previous one," she says. If correct, the years ahead could produce a burst of solar activity second only to the historic Solar Max of 1958.

Nature's very own EMP...
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So, back to the Constitution. Its primary purpose is to define the scope of the federal and state governments. They are only Constitutionally allowed to act within the framework specifically granted in the various articles and amendments. The Tenth amendment is intended to keep the feds in check by making it crystal clear that if a right has not been granted to them, that right falls to either the state or to the individual citizen.

The amendments can also either grant or guarantee rights to the individual. An example of a granted right would be in the Fifth Amendment, where you cannot be punished if you refuse to testify against yourself.

It's a bit different for the guarantee of rights. These are presumed to be, "God given," or inalienable rights which the government is compelled to guarantee and protect.

An example would be the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Through the written structure of the amendment - the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed - the founders recognize it as a pre-existing right, not one granted by the Constitution.

Yet this right is stomped on every day, in every state. I'll probably get some grief over this, but I have long asked how we can restrict any Constitutional rights of unsavory folks. A politically touchy example would be felons, for instance.

How can we rescind their right to bear arms once they are out of custody? The Constitution says nothing about felons, people with restraining orders (valid or not) or a history of violent acts, etc., losing rights simply because they were once a felon.

I'm not saying I would feel warm and fuzzy having some former murderer/rapist running around with a gun, but I believe in the Constitution as it is written. I believe in the rights and responsibilities as they are vested. No more, no less.

With the Constitution, I figure you're either all-in or all-out. If you don't like a part of the Constitution, change it with an amendment just like we've done 17 times since the original 10 were ratified.

Quite honestly, the EMP examples from earlier are irrelevant. We don't need justification to exercise our rights.

Why am I so adamant about this? Because once government begins limiting rights beyond that which is Constitutionally allowed, that right starts to become a privilege. And privileges can be revoked.

In California, Wisconsin, Illinois, New York and 9 other states, the right to keep and bear arms anywhere you wish is gone. Even in states with "shall issue" laws, you must first get the permission of the government before you can carry a gun.

It is now a government-granted privilege in all 50 states for any American to exercise any portion of their Second Amendment rights.
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So where am I going with this? I'm not 100% certain.

I know I will continue to exercise my right of free speech, my right to peaceably assemble, and my right to petition my government for redress of grievances.

I will also continue to exercise my inalienable rights, regardless of what the law may prescribe.

How far this is pushed is something I won't openly discuss, at least not now. There may come a time where I'll feel the need for my inalienable right of self-defense to become the public topic of my granted right of free speech.

We'll see.

Labels: American Ingenuity, American Spirit, Brady Bunch, communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, criminal, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, nanny state, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance

Desperation is the raw material of drastic change. Only those who can leave behind everything they have ever believed in can hope to escape.
--William S. Burroughs

Reno is truly an armpit. A desperate armpit, I believe.


Even though it's only a couple of hours drive away, the last time I was there was 27 years ago when I was 23. I remember at the time that the place seemed old and gray. Everyone there seemed to be old.

Twenty-seven years later, I still got the same feeling. I'm obviously much older, but I felt like a youngster in Reno. The place is loaded with old-farts. It must have the per-capita corner on those little personal sitting scooters.

It's pretty dreary on the other end of the age scale as well. Very high unemployment. So many "lost children" walking the street. Teens and "twenty-somethings" that have that meth-head look - anxious, scabbed up, paranoid. This is right downtown near the major casinos and touristy stuff.

Lots of cops driving by, not seemingly doing much about it. Not really a Chamber of Commerce-worthy environment.

My brother had made the comment that he wanted me to carry concealed when we went out on Saturday night. I was already carrying (my set-up had virtually no "printing" and I was wearing a polo-style shirt). I was not going outside of the hotel unarmed. Period.
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The gun show was clearly a big financial boost to the area. Virtually everyone we spoke with (that worked there) had said Reno had been a ghost town of late, and it was nice to see the cash flowing for a while.

It was an interesting thing to see inside the guns show: the areas that were doing a brisk business - primarily the ammo, holster and magazine vendors, and the utility gun booths with modern, practical workhorse weapons - were all charging sales tax. Most of the others were only charging face value for the goods.

I was kind of surprised to see the large numbers antique gun dealers. I did not see a single sale at one of these booths. Same goes for the vendors selling animal pelts, WWII or Civil War memorabilia.

If it wasn't something with a practical use, the sales were light.
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I stayed at Harrah's, but that may be the last time I stay at any of their facilities in Nevada.

We got a room upgrade. What did that consist of? We got a coffee maker (no microwave) and this lovely lamp:


Click the picture. We named it "the Hair Lamp". It was this hideous thing covered in some kind of fabric that looked like hair. It looked like a big tinder bundle. And this was in a room that allowed smoking! Every time I'd stand up, my head went right in the middle of the lamp. I was not pleased.

The primary source of my anger was their policy on concealed carry. I honestly did not see the signs when we first arrived, but they had at least one of the entrances posted with signs saying that concealed carry was not allowed, even with a permit.

From what I've read, to be enforceable, the signs must be posted at all entrances and be very visible. As I said, I honestly did not see it until we were actually leaving.

Now, it's their property, and they can choose the type of clientele they want in their hotels and casinos. And it's my prerogative to spend my money elsewhere - and that is a prerogative I will exercise.

I'm going to write their CEO to voice my displeasure, most likely to no avail.

A company can pick its market niche - the rich, the common folk, the young, the ultra-cool. Apparently, they want to cater to sheeple, and that's their prerogative.

I ain't sheeple, and they'll get no more of my money. In all of the markets they're in, I have alternatives, and I'll spend my money in those businesses.

They're the newest member of the No Buy Zone, joining Miller Beer (pro-illegal aliens), Pizza Hut (for firing a CCW-carrying employee for defending himself by using a gun) and McDonald's (for not supporting an employee that came to the aid of one of THEIR customers who was being assaulted).

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OT: Why are we cutting Cuba a break? Is not it the job of the president to do things that are in the best interest of our country? If so, what did we get in return for the recent loosening of travel restrictions to Cuba?

This is going to be a huge boost to the Cuban economy. What did we get in return? Political prisoner releases? Free elections? How about cheap cigars?

This is nothing more than one Marxist giving a gift to another Marxist.

Labels: Brady Bunch, communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, criminal, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, illegal aliens, Life and Times, nanny state, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance

Charlie Foxtrot.

For those of you that don't know what that means, look at the first two letters of that phrase. The "C" stands for Cluster. You can guess what the "F" stands for.

We arrived around 8:30, and the line was already several THOUSAND people long. There were a number of lines, none with any signs saying what line was for what. When they finally opened the doors at 9am, we just swerved over one of the Enter doors.

We (and everyone else) went straight for the ammo vendors. There were two of them. In the whole 5 acre space. We stood in line for 2 1/2 hours and moved perhaps 60-70 feet in that time. One of the guys standing near us walked up to see what was going on. He said that people were coming from the side of the ammo counter, and just jumping in line.

We said, fuck Foxtrot it, and walked up there. We had our ammo in 10 minutes.

To say we were pissed off would be an understatement.

We got 4,000 rounds for $1,200 - mostly 9mm, some .38spl and .357 Magnum.

That much ammo weighs a damned ton. We carried it out of the show into the hallway, and I went to the car and got the cart which we brought.

Did I mention 4,000 rounds of ammo way a damned ton?

A couple of friends showed up after noon, walked in and got their ammo in 10 minutes as well. There's no damned justice...... ;-)
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I mentioned that this place is 5 acres. It's huge. We have seen 4 black guys. In total. A handful of Asians. WTF? They own guns, don't they?
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With all of the time I spent in line, I'm now close personal friends with some guy from a county in the Sacramento area. He's a cop and competes in some kind of cop shooting contest. He said it's sponsored by NRA, but is only open to cops.

As we were talking he mentioned that he shoots so much, it has given him carpal tunnel disease (he had that brace thing on his wrist). He left for a while, and his buddy said he's got a firing range set up in his back yard and the guy shoots like 400 rounds a day! He said the cop is something like #3 or #4 in the country in this cop shooting sport.

Very nice guy. VERY pro concealed carry for citizens. He said he actually has his cop permit (used nationally) PLUS he has a personal CA one (he lives in one of the few Shall Issue counties in the state), in case he ever has his badge taken.

I didn't quite know how to process that statement!
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We spent a bit more time browsing, but were pretty worn out from all of the standing around. We're going back tomorrow to do some serious shopping. Lots of prepping stuff, and decent prices on magazines, maybe some more ammo.

Time for some cocktails, a bit of gambling and grub. More tales tomorrow....

Labels: Concealed Carry, Life and Times

Perhaps a lunatic was simply a minority of one.
--George Orwell

Remember back in late 2008 when a bunch of Bay Area schools actually encouraged their students to cut school to join in protests over ICE raids? The supposed justification was something like, "living the Constitution" by exercising their First Amendment rights to free speech and petitioning the government.

Where was all of the pantie-wetting to teach kids with the Tea Party protests? No schools here in the People's Republic of California busing their kids to the big events, at least not here in Northern Ca....
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Oh, never mind. Will someone please just pull the chain and flush this crap down the tube?
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I had a couple of choices for a local Tea Party. In Sacramento, they were holding a huge one, but that drive was a bit much. There was another one a bit more local (Pleasanton) where one of the larger conservative radio stations was going to have a couple of their hosts at the rally. That drive was a bit far as well.

My day got away from me, so I decided to go to another one about 15 minutes away. When I got there (around 3pm) apparently the party had already ended (if it ever started). I was pissed.

I'm guessing that both the Sacramento and Pleasanton parties will get a decent amount of press, so I'll be able to see what happened. The Pleasanton one probably pulled off the attendance from my local one, but I'm still bummed.
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Weird ammo happenings: I just got my order of 9mm ammo for which I paid $21.79 a box. In the same order, I bought 4 boxes of 5.56 NATO. It was a great price at $11.97 a box. This is Lake City ammo, and is supposedly the exact ammo used over in the Sand Pit. It's got a 62 grain "Penetrator" bullet. It was available and on sale because of a printing error on the box.

I went to CheaperThanDirt.com to see if there had been any price movement. The 9mm had actually dropped in price by $2 a box. The 5.56 had almost doubled in price to $21.59 a box - in less than a week!

Go figure.
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A couple of questions:

1. Can you carry concealed at a gun show? This will be my first gun show in a state where I can carry. The show website doesn't say anything either way.

There will be guns and ammo available literally right next to each other, so if someone wants to go off, they can easily do it. Or are these typically "gun free zones" - at least for the attendees?

2. Business help: I'm putting together a newsletter for my biz, and I need ideas for some more target markets - for the personal safety classes in particular. I want people that might have a higher than normal chance of getting into trouble.

So far, I'm compiling lists of real estate agents (out on their own a lot) and health clubs/gyms (personal responsibility types). I'll also be targeting men's/women's clubs, trade groups (local chambers of commerce, etc.), unions, churches and groups like that.

Who else? What broad demographic groups/professions might be interested in this type of thing?

No. You don't get a commission on each sale... ;-)
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My favorite rendition of the National Anthem. No, the best rendition. Ever.



It actually made me kind of melancholy to listen to it. I normally listen, and it pumps me up and gets me feeling all patriotic.

As I was listening to it, I just kept thinking, "How did we get to this place in our history?" It was partly due to reading the DHS report on right-wing terrorists. It's like Jeff Foxworthy's, "You might be a redneck if...", only it was put out by our own government.

The "Thought Police" are out in full force.

How can it be possible that to believe in smaller government, tough immigration laws, or are a "disgruntled" veteran, you are now under suspicion, or at least need to be watched? And these idiots wonder out loud why there are runs on guns and ammo?

Holy shit, we're doing a belly-flop into a pool that's been drained of all reason.
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I wonder if loving the National Anthem buys you any more "domestic terrorist" points?

Labels: American Spirit, communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, Fascism, Media Bias, nanny state, presidential, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance, Terrorism, Thought Crimes

All deception in the course of life is indeed nothing else but a lie reduced to practice, and falsehood passing from words into things.
--Robert Southey

I missed the 20/20 hatchet job on Guns In America when it was shown last Friday. I went to their site, and watched the short segment they had that was titled, "If I only Had A Gun." For now, it is on the front page of the 20/20 website.

Here's the premise: They wanted to test the theory that, if regular folks had guns, would they be able to protect themselves if a bad guy came in and started shooting up the place?

They took 6 students, and gave them a basic handgun safety course. They then put them individually into a lecture hall that was holding a seminar on some safety gear. The show producers gave each one of them (one at a time) a real handgun that was loaded with mini-paintball rounds. They were told they were the only one in the class with a gun.

The instructor is doing his thing when a "bad guy" bursts into the classroom. He peppers the instructor with shots. The cameras show each of the students struggling to get their weapons out and/or firing effective shots. In every instance, the student is "killed" by the bad guy.

Here's the set up: All of the students are carrying their handguns in a belt holster. Every one of them is wearing a big floppy white tee-shirt which which extends several inches below the muzzle of the gun.

When the bad guy comes in, he fires a few shots at the instructor. All of the students in the lecture hall scatter. In every example they showed, the bad guy then goes straight for the student with the hidden gun. Without exception.

Oh, and the other "students" in the class, are all real-life cops that are in on what is going to happen, and the "bad guy" is the firearms instructor that taught the gun safety class.
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The scam: In every single course I've taken, or video I've watched, CCW students are trained to make the weapon easily accessible. You would NEVER wear a big, floppy tee shirt that extended several inches below the muzzle of the gun for the exact reason you saw on the show - your gun will get caught up in the material.

And wasn't it just amazing how the bad guy knew exactly who had the firearm in every example and zeroed right in on them? Wow, those bad guys must be clairvoyant as well. In the first segment of the "mayhem", they have a "bad-guy's view" camera angle. It shows the bad guy specifically targeting the student in question, and specifically passing up people that run right across his field of fire. The same thing happened in some of the other tests.

They also just happened to place the student with the gun right in the front row. Why didn't they ever have the student in an upper level, or off to the side? We all know the answer to those questions.

Total set-up bullshit.
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Another blurb that just tweaks my ass on this was Diane Sawyer then goes on to give us the physiological reasons why you react slowly and inaccurately. Heart is pumping, etc. She then goes on to show us her own test with a guy in the back of a truck with a shotgun, and how he still blew her away even when she knew exactly what was going to happen.

I'd like to know what her solution would be to this problem. Is she and ABC suggesting that the proper course of action would be to curl up in the fetal position and wait for the bullet to the head? Wouldn't you at least want a chance to live?

And one thing they failed to roll play was what actually happens in most of these mass killings. You hear the bad guy shooting in the distance. You have the ability to take a defensive position, steady your shot, and make the kill.

Remember the Virginia Tech teacher who bravely barricaded the door to his classroom? He heard the bad guy coming and did something. If just one student in that classroom had a gun, that monster could have been stopped right there.
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Diane finished her hatchet job with a statement along the lines of, "We could not find one reliable study showing guns help save lives." I guess she has never seen GunFacts.info and the 481 citations it includes.

Apparently, in her eyes the US Department of Justice, the British Home Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and "rags" such as US News & World Report, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Times just can't be trusted.

I wonder if her friends at the Brady Bunch were able to supply her with any "reliable" information...

Labels: American Spirit, Brady Bunch, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Gun Grabbers, Media Bias

Insanity is the only sane reaction to an insane society.
--Thomas Szasz

Despite my close relationship with "the police" - my father was a life-long cop, I have a brother that is currently a senior officer, I've been in two cop weddings, and have current friends that are cops - I have been critical of many, many police actions.

I've shared some insights into some of the garbage going on with the Oakland Police Department, most recently in late January. They are far from a model agency.

Yesterday, a poster named Abraham replied to my post, basically with an attitude of, "They had it coming because of past sins." This morning, Pickdog said basically the same thing.

Their views are not isolated.

This morning, while listening to the radio, they had an audio clip of an on-the-street interview with a woman that lives in the neighborhood. The reporter was asking about the whole deal, and asked if she felt any pity or sadness about the cops that were slaughtered.

Her exact response was, "I feel sorry for Lovelle, he's the one that needed help." Lovelle, of course, being the name of the executioner.

You have an entire community coming to the defense of a convicted felon, who is also a suspect in an other murder. This morning it has come to light that a DNA test of the maggot shows that he is also the rapist of a 12 year old girl.

The day before Lovelle Mixon unleashed a barrage of gunfire that killed four Oakland police officers, the department's investigators learned that DNA evidence had linked the fugitive parolee to an unsolved rape this year, authorities said Monday.

Yet they still come to this bastard's defense. Poor, poor Lovelle.

He slaughtered these cops, not because of past police atrocities or economic conditions, but because he knew he was a felon in possession of a handgun, and THAT would land his ass back in prison.

They can't differentiate between legal and illegal acts. Why aren't they doing something about these supposed police abuses? Why aren't they going after the highly diverse city leadership - the bosses of the police? Where are the NAACP, Jesse and Al?

As we saw with the BART killing aftermath, they seem unable to hold a protest march without it turning into a "Trash the City" orgy. If they have evidence that these abuses are happening, bring in the feds, like was done in New Orleans.

Instead, they celebrate the murder of the police and the destruction of the rule of law.

Fucking worthless animals.
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If you're in California, you had better toe the PC line.

SACRAMENTO—New applications for California's Adopt-A-Highway program have been placed on hold while the state sorts out a legal fight with an anti-illegal immigrant group.

Lawyers for the San Diego Minutemen said the Department of Transportation is drafting new rules for the litter cleanup program to prevent the group from getting a sign with its name on it along the freeway.

CalTrans initially granted a stretch of highway near a border checkpoint to the group. When the state took down the sign, a judge ordered it to be put back up. When the state offered the group a new location, the Minutemen refused.

CalTrans is now drafting new rules that would allow the state greater flexibility in refusing applicants. Department officials said more than 3,000 cleanup permits are still being used.

You have a legal group, one that says the government should simply follow and enforce the laws on the books. When they see that Nanny isn't doing a damned thing, they form a group to do it themselves.

When they want to do as thousands of other organizations have done before them - get their name on a highway clean-up sign to promote their cause - they are shut-down by the state.

Land Of The Free, my ass.
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I should have known better to try and imply what would happen to the stock market after Geithner announced his latest version of the stimulus plan. I figured it would tank, and it soared.

Great. If this can bring the economy out of the shits, I'm all for it. I would love to take my retirement funds out of a crappy CD/IRA and get it back into the stock market, but I think this will be short-lived.

I read the White Paper put out by the Treasury Department. Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see how it will draw investment dollars. Well, it will draw dollars, but I don't think the banks will be selling.

They give an example: A bank holds an asset with a face value of $100. The investors make an offer of $84. The FDIC will guarantee financing for $72, leaving $12 of "equity" to be split between the investor and the Treasury. The investor would then act as the loan servicing agent and accept and process payments from the homeowners.

As I said, maybe I'm missing something, but here are my thoughts:

All "toxic assets" have already been written down by the banks. They were compelled to do so by the SEC and federal banking regulators. They've taken their "hair cut" off the assets, and they are at current market values.

If the banks wanted to sell those assets, they could do it right now at the current market values. Why would they take a further hair-cut on these assets? I don't see anything in this package that would incent the banks to sell these assets.

If the $100 value is the original face value of the loan, again, the bank will not accept an offer lower than that amount to which they've written down the loan. Perhaps that is the $84 mentioned in the example. If this is the case, then we're giving free money to the investor group.

Perhaps more information will come out in the next few days to clarify this.

To me, it looks like a desperate government putting up pretty pictures to placate a weary public. Or even worse, it's a way to spend more of our tax dollars to benefit someone else.

Labels: Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, criminal, Ethics, illegal aliens, Life and Times, Self-Defense, Thought Crimes

Karma moves in two directions. If we act virtuously, the seed we plant
will result in happiness. If we act non-virtuously, suffering results.
--Sakyong Mipham

I'm sure most people have heard about the 4 Oakland PD officers that were shot and killed (3 are currently deceased, and the other is supposedly brain-dead) this past weekend. Obviously, it is a horrific event. It is one of the worst police shooting incidents in the city's history.

It is going to be red-meat to the gun grabbers.

The press has had a major focus: He had an assault weapon.

According to authorities, Lovelle Mixon used a semiautomatic pistol to shoot and kill Hege and Sgt. Mark Dunakin, 40, two motorcycle officers who pulled him over during a routine traffic stop. Two hours later, Mixon, who was holed up in his sister's nearby apartment, opened fire with an AK-47 assault rifle, killing SWAT team sergeants Ervin Romans, 43, and Daniel Sakai, 35.

The Brady Bunch will be all over this. They will focus on the fact that he had an evil assault rifle, not on the fact that it was illegal for this piece of shit to have as much as a .22 Derringer in his possession. The was a criminal who had a long history of breaking the law, and doing so in a violent manner.

Somehow, in their twisted little minds, removing guns from the hands of law abiding citizens will fix the problem.

I hope the CRPA and NRA will be ready to counter-attack the gun grabbers. But they won't.
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I think the most disgusting thing about this whole thing has been the attitude of the community.

The parolee who shot five Oakland police officers Saturday, killing three and gravely wounding another, was hiding inside his sister's apartment just around the corner, where he ultimately was shot dead himself.

And neighbors knew it. But they didn't call the cops for nearly an hour.

If neighbors had spoken up sooner, said one woman who lives two doors down, some of those lives might have been saved. But in East Oakland, lamented the woman, Elaine, who refused to give her last name, that just doesn't happen.

"I've been crying all day. It makes you feel bad," she said, wiping her eyes just steps from the blood spatters that clung stubbornly to a broken sidewalk on 74th Avenue. "Because all the time, you knew he was in that apartment. But you just don't want to be a snitch. The word, 'snitch,' it's almost worse than murderer."

Well, isn't that special? I feel so bad for that woman who has been crying all day. Boo-fucking-hoo. Two cops are dead because these cowards didn't want to besmirch their social status.

I'm sure the LEO families are very understanding of the neighbor's reluctance to get involved. They'll think sympathetically of them as their sons and fathers are being buried.

These leaches expect the police to protect them, but will do nothing in return. Sounds like the attitude of a community that has been too used to always taking, and never having to do anything in exchange.

As if that isn't bad enough, these living, breathing, life-sucking maggots actually taunted the police.

By late afternoon Saturday, a group of about 50 people lined 73rd Avenue, a block from where Dunakin and Hege were shot. Some shouted obscenities aimed at police. Others said the officers' deaths were retribution for the fatal shooting of Oscar Grant, the unarmed Hayward man killed by a BART police officer on an Oakland train platform New Year's Day. Shouts of, "They had it comin!' " were heard in the crowd.

They had it comin'.

All I can hope for is that the OPD stops patrolling that neighborhood. Let the drug dealers, pimps, whores, murderers, thieves and crack-heads offer protection to the good, civic-minded citizens.

Fucking animals.

Labels: Brady Bunch, Concealed Carry, Ethics, Gun Grabbers, Race-baiters, Self-Defense

You must have long-range goals to keep you from being frustrated by short-range failures.
--Charles C. Noble

On Saturday, I wrote about the California "Shall Issue" bill, AB 357. I have looked at the CRPA and NRA/NRA ILA sites. Both organizations have virtually no information on their sites. The CRPA site has a link to a story on the subject - the same link I provided on Saturday.

I have received absolutely no email alerts or Calls To Action from either organization. The only thing I've received in this vein was an email from FrontSight.com. Somehow THEY were able to get something out the same day the bill made the news.

On Friday, they sent me an email with the names, addresses, phone numbers and fax numbers of the members of the Public Safety Committee who have this bill in their laps right now.

Why can't these organizations, whose primary purpose is to support pro-gun laws, do the same?

Here's the letter I wrote to the NRA (a similar one went to the CRPA):

RE: California AB357

Sirs,

I have scoured the NRA and NRAILA sites and see absolutely nothing on AB357 - the "Shall Issue" bill in California.

As a California gun owner and NRA Certified Pistol Instructor, this is obviously of great interest and importance.

Considering California is the nation's most populous state, bringing us into the "Shall Issue Club" would be a huge event.

What are you doing to promote this legislation? What can you suggest individuals in CA do to help this become law?

Most of us have no idea how the legislative process works. We don't know if this bill is simply window-dressing, or if it has a real chance of success. We look to YOU for that guidance.

I look forward to hearing from you on this very important legislation.

I'm a member of both organizations, but I'm not a happy member...
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In other news.....

On Sunday, I pissed away half a day helping out my buddy that had the bad car accident. He had a water softener that had been badly leaking, and he wanted it removed. I had told him I was pretty proficient in soldering, and would be happy to help him out (I have made the majority of my own brewing equipment, and most involves soldering copper pipe).

We removed the softener with little problem. We ran down to the hardware store and picked up a couple of elbows to help us re-connect the water to flow into the house. I already had the torch, and all of the flux, solder (yes, lead-free) emery cloth, etc., to do the job.

I gave my brother (a home inspector) a quick call to make sure I didn't need to put any kind of P-trap on the fresh water pipes (just being careful...), and we were ready to go.

I dry fitted the parts, marked the joint angles, and was good to go.

I then couldn't run a bead of solder to save my life!

Over the next 2 hours, I tried to build a leak-less joint. No deal.

It finally dawned on me what I was doing wrong (basically, I was over-heating the joints). I took the whole mess apart, re-cleaned and fluxed the joints, and the whole thing went together - perfectly - in about a half hour!

All told, a job that should have taken about an hour and a half - disassembly, running to the hardware store, re-assembly - took 4 1/2 hours. Oy!

He's lucky I wasn't charging by the hour. He got off with a tank of propane, a Coke and a cupcake...
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I'm guessing it was a year ago when I bought, In Search Of The Second Amendment. It's a DVD by David Hardy, the owner of the site, Of Arms and The Law. Even though I bought it a while back, I had never watched it - until this weekend.

The documentary (about 2 hours) goes into great detail about the genesis of the 2A - which actually pre-dates the Constitution. It also discusses how even liberals in the legal profession believe gun ownership is an individual right, not a state or collective right. It is a position based upon fact, not hype.

I finally got around to watching it because I wanted more "ammunition" for the expected debates on the aforementioned AB357. By providing the historical and legal context of the right to gun ownership, we can take away the arguments of the Brady Bastards, and leave them with nothing more than emotional appeals.

While emotional appeals will certainly play a large part in both the pro- and con-arguments, removing one source of "talking points" from the gun grabbers will certainly help our cause.

One nice thing is, you can show it on your local Public Access cable channel for free. You just need to own the DVD, which costs about $25.

Get educated. Buy the video. Read GunFacts.info.

Labels: American Spirit, Brady Bunch, communism, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Corruption, Fascism, Gun Grabbers, nanny state, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance

Americans have the right and advantage of being armed - unlike the citizens of other countries whose governments are afraid to trust the people with arms.
--James Madison, The Federalist Papers #46 at 243-244

I just got a piece of kick-ass news from one of my brothers. This being California, it will be an up-hill battle at the very least, but still, it's very heartening.

There is a bill, AB 357 (notice the bill number? I love it!), which would make CA a "Shall Issue" state.

AB 357 takes the ambiguity and wide latitude out of the hands of individual Sheriffs who may personally oppose concealed carry and compels the granting of the permit. In the language of the amended version contemplated, the words may issue are struck and replaced with shall issue.

Most folks are probably not aware, but the new Sheriff of Orange County (down in the LA area) has taken it upon herself to stop issuing new permits, or re-issuing existing permits. These are people that already had them, have done nothing illegal since the last issuance, but she has decided that a group of armed, law-abiding citizens is a bad thing. Only having the criminals armed is a much better idea.

She has been getting all kinds of grief over this. It appears that one of the results is this bill.

I've sent an email to the CRPA and the NRA to get more information about what they intend on doing, and what regular citizens can do. I intend on sending emails out to literally every Californian I know telling them to contact their CA government officials in support of this bill.

If anyone is interested, here is the text of the actual bill.
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I'm feelin' a bit Moosey.

I am now a member of the Loyal Order Of the Moose (LOOM). I went down to the lodge last night with a buddy (a member), signed on the dotted line and forked over my bucks.

This place is huge. When you first walk in, there is a huge bar area (they have some sort of politically correct name I need to remember - something like 'member refreshment area'), a pool table room, a huge kitchen and hall.

The hall is what interests me the most. They rent it out for member dinners, wedding receptions and the like. I intend on holding some of my various classes there.

I met some great people last night. I need to get the skinny on who is who, and go over and talk with whomever is in charge of renting out the place and talking dollars and cents.

I'm getting pumped up....
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The Moose have an organization for women called Women of The Moose. One of the guys last night was telling me that they had a new woman member convinced that, as part of the initiation process, she would have to kiss the balls of a moose.

To her credit, she was ready to do it! Now that's commitment...

Unsubstantiated reports were that a number of the LOOM members were volunteering for Moose Duty....

Labels: American Spirit, Brady Bunch, Concealed Carry, Constitution, Gun Grabbers, Self-Defense, Self-Reliance