Taking a few days off.
Things are a bit crazier than usual and now the wife is real sick.
UPDATE:
I called home this morning and she was already out of the house. She called me a little later from the grocery store and still sounded a little hoarse but feeling much better after being down all weekend. I came home this afternoon and she was still out shopping. Thanks and God bless you all for your concern and prayers because we were afraid she was coming down with pneumonia again.
I don't understand this shopping thing. It's a hard wired subset of her nature. God bless her.
Tomorrow is our 25th anniversary. I got her a little something that I know will bring a smile to her face.
LATER:
She came home and zonked out on the coach.
*snore*
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Friday, April 27, 2007
Sorrow Upon Sorrow
UPDATE ON THE DEATH OF TROOPER BRINKERHOFF
We just learned today, 27 APR 07, that Trooper Brinkerhoff was killed by friendly fire. He was shot by another trooper during a gun fight inside the farmhouse.
The suspect, Travis Trim, did fire upon him, but the bullet was stopped by Brinkerhoff's vest.
I cannot fathom how awful this is for our brothers and sisters in the NYSP. Our prayers go out to all families.
It is a dangerous job, there just isn't any other way to describe it.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Global Warming Is Al Gore's Retirement Scam
I never did like the "feel good" approach to reducing environmental pollutants, but that's the path Al Gore and his liberal band of merry marketeers have chosen. Others have the same opinion and have dug a bit deeper. This is what the FinancialTimes has found.
The Financial Times investigation found:
Say what you will. There's a sucker born every minute.
This does not surprise me. Not one bit. It sounded like a scam from the get go.Industry Caught in Carbon ‘Smokescreen’
Companies and individuals rushing to go green have been spending millions on “carbon credit” projects that yield few if any environmental benefits.A Financial Times investigation has uncovered widespread failings in the new markets for greenhouse gases, suggesting some organisations are paying for emissions reductions that do not take place.
Others are meanwhile making big profits from carbon trading for very small expenditure and in some cases for clean-ups that they would have made anyway.
Uncle Al learned at the hands of a master. This is the Clinton Method For Looking Like You're Doing Something (CMFLLYDS).The growing political salience of environmental politics has sparked a “green gold rush”, which has seen a dramatic expansion in the number of businesses offering both companies and individuals the chance to go “carbon neutral”, offsetting their own energy use by buying carbon credits that cancel out their contribution to global warming.
The burgeoning regulated market for carbon credits is expected to more than double in size to about $68.2bn by 2010, with the unregulated voluntary sector rising to $4bn in the same period.
The Financial Times investigation found:
■ Widespread instances of people and organisations buying worthless credits that do not yield any reductions in carbon emissions.
■ Industrial companies profiting from doing very little – or from gaining carbon credits on the basis of efficiency gains from which they have already benefited substantially.
■ Brokers providing services of questionable or no value.
■ A shortage of verification, making it difficult for buyers to assess the true value of carbon credits.
■ Companies and individuals being charged over the odds for the private purchase of European Union carbon permits that have plummeted in value because they do not result in emissions cuts.
Say what you will. There's a sucker born every minute.
Let the indictments begin!Francis Sullivan, environment adviser at HSBC, the UK’s biggest bank that went carbon-neutral in 2005, said he found “serious credibility concerns” in the offsetting market after evaluating it for several months.
“The police, the fraud squad and trading standards need to be looking into this. Otherwise people will lose faith in it,” he said.
These concerns led the bank to ignore the market and fund its own carbon reduction projects directly.
Our Police Family Grieves
Trooper David Brinkerhoff died yesterday after he and Trooper Richard Mattson were shot by 23 year old David Trim. Four troopers made a tactical entry of the house at about 0830 hrs yesterday.
Trooper David Brinkerhoff and Trooper Richard Mattson were shot as they stormed the farmhouse Wednesday morning. Trooper Brinkerhoff died from a head wound.
Trooper Mattson was hit in the arm and is in serious but stable condition at Albany Medical Center.Around 6 p.m., the house caught fire after police tossed in tear gas. Authorities said a gun was found on Trim's body inside the home.
The search for Trim began on Tuesday, after he allegedly shot a trooper during a traffic stop in the village of Margaretville. The trooper was wearing a bulletproof vest and was not seriously injured.
The following poem made the rounds through our office this morning. The only change is this, the suspect has already stood before God.
A Part of America Died
Somebody killed a policeman today,
and part of America died.
A piece of our country he swore to protect
will be buried with him at his side.
The suspect who shot him will stand up in court,
with counsel demanding his rights.
While a young widowed mother must work for her kids,
and spend many long, lonely nights.
The beat that he walked was a battlefield too,
just as if he’d gone off to war.
And the flag of our nation will fly at half mast;
to his name they will add a gold star.
Yes, somebody killed a policeman today;
in happened in your town or mine.
While we slept in comfort behind our locked doors,
a cop put his life on the line.
Now his ghost walks that beat he once walked,
and stands at each rookie’s side.
He answered the call, he gave us his all;
a part of America died.
Somebody killed a policeman today,
and part of America died.
A piece of our country he swore to protect
will be buried with him at his side.
The suspect who shot him will stand up in court,
with counsel demanding his rights.
While a young widowed mother must work for her kids,
and spend many long, lonely nights.
The beat that he walked was a battlefield too,
just as if he’d gone off to war.
And the flag of our nation will fly at half mast;
to his name they will add a gold star.
Yes, somebody killed a policeman today;
in happened in your town or mine.
While we slept in comfort behind our locked doors,
a cop put his life on the line.
Now his ghost walks that beat he once walked,
and stands at each rookie’s side.
He answered the call, he gave us his all;
a part of America died.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Another Sad Day
Today, a New York State Trooper was shot and killed and another wounded while trying to apprehend a suspect, Travis Trim, who shot another Trooper yesterday during a traffic stop in Margertville in Delaware County..
The other two Troopers will recover. Both Troopers shot today were members of the Troopers MRT team. One Trooper was killed and the other shot in the arm; he is in an Albany hospital in stable but serious condition. From what I understand, the officer shot yesterday was hit in his protective vest and suffered relatively minor injuries.
The house where Trim was holed up caught fire, perhaps from tear gas or intentionally set by the suspect.
More as the story progresses.
The other two Troopers will recover. Both Troopers shot today were members of the Troopers MRT team. One Trooper was killed and the other shot in the arm; he is in an Albany hospital in stable but serious condition. From what I understand, the officer shot yesterday was hit in his protective vest and suffered relatively minor injuries.
The house where Trim was holed up caught fire, perhaps from tear gas or intentionally set by the suspect.
More as the story progresses.
Terrorism?
I have not been able to get independent colaboration on this yet, but an article in Christian World View Network relates that the gunman who murdered 32 Virginia Tech students may have been targeting Christian and Jewish students.
As Virginia is in the Bible Belt, many believers could have been in the classrooms as representative of the entire student population.
Does anyone have any further information on this?
CBS News reports that a bunch of lunatics led by a virulent anti-gay pastor is not going to let these poor families grieve in peace.
How he could have done this is a mystery to me; it appears that certain classrooms were hit as targets of opportunity. I doubt that VT classrooms are sorted by religious affiliation but he might have attended some and picked up on various conversations/attitudes.I also spoke this morning, right after this meeting with a peace officer here in Virginia who had access too and has read some of the transcripts of the other ten videos that are not being shown on the news. The shooter (Cho) was quoting verses from the Koran and had Ishmael written on his arm and as his return address on the package sent to NBC. It appears that he did not randomly pick his targets but rather chose classes that had high concentrations of Christians and Jews in them-he was targeting Christians and Jews!!!!!
As Virginia is in the Bible Belt, many believers could have been in the classrooms as representative of the entire student population.
Does anyone have any further information on this?
CBS News reports that a bunch of lunatics led by a virulent anti-gay pastor is not going to let these poor families grieve in peace.
An anti-gay religious group known for protesting at the funerals of American soldiers killed in Iraq is planning on appearing at services for those killed on Monday as well.
The Topeka, Kan.-based Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), which s not affiliated with any national Baptist organization, announced plans to protest at victims’ funerals only hours after 32 people were killed in the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. They also may protest at other events on the Virginia Tech campus.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Religion Is Good For Children And Other Living Things
This Fox News story somes as no surprise.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be upon thy heart; 7 and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go, and even when he is old he will not depart from it.
I'm glad to see that someone is looking at what helped keep this country together for the past 230 years.Kids with religious parents are better behaved and adjusted than other children, according to a new study that is the first to look at the effects of religion on young child development.
What a novel idea. It appears that the kids learn what their parents live.John Bartkowski, a Mississippi State University sociologist and his colleagues asked the parents and teachers of more than 16,000 kids, most of them first-graders, to rate how much self control they believed the kids had, how often they exhibited poor or unhappy behavior and how well they respected and worked with their peers.The researchers compared these scores to how frequently the children’s parents said they attended worship services, talked about religion with their child and argued abut religion in the home.
So far nothing is surprising here. Any long term conflict within the home, whether or not it has a religious context, has a bad effect on children.The kids whose parents regularly attended religious services — especially when both parents did so frequently — and talked with their kids about religion were rated by both parents and teachers as having better self-control, social skills and approaches to learning than kids with non-religious parents.
But when parents argued frequently about religion, the children were more likely to have problems. “Religion can hurt if faith is a source of conflict or tension in the family,” Bartkowski noted.
I think it's also called positive reinforcement by loving adults. This is what used to take place between the schools and families.Bartkowski thinks religion can be good for kids for three reasons. First, religious networks provide social support to parents, he said, and this can improve their parenting skills. Children who are brought into such networks and hear parental messages reinforced by other adults may also “take more to heart the messages that they get in the home,” he said.
Could be important? I am starting to think that Mr. Bartkowski does not have a clue as far as child rearing.Secondly, the types of values and norms that circulate in religious congregations tend to be self-sacrificing and pro-family, Bartkowski told LiveScience. These “could be very, very important in shaping how parents relate to their kids, and then how children develop in response,” he said.
That's what they are supposed to do. That's what they are charged to do.Finally, religious organizations imbue parenting with sacred meaning and significance, he said.
Yup, it's called the power and the promise of God.But as for why religious organizations might provide more of a boost to family life than secular organizations designed to do the same thing, that’s still somewhat of a mystery, said Annette Mahoney, a psychologist at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, also not involved in the research. Mahoney wondered: “Is there anything about religion and spirituality that sets it apart?”
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be upon thy heart; 7 and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go, and even when he is old he will not depart from it.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Look Before You Wipe
The BBC has a fresh new story on the latest member of the Loon of the Month Club:
"This Is A One Wipe Town."
"Scott's -- Just A Single Sheet Will Do Ya"
"Please Don't Double Up The Charmin"
"I'd Like The World To Wipe It's Ass in Perfect Harmony"
We can have the Claymation raisins come back to sing "I Wiped It On A Grapevine"
Your ideas may be in the earliest stages of development, but they are in the terminal stages of lunacy. Your mind is the place where bad ideas go to wipe themselves before they die. It is a scary, lonely place that smells bad. And the tank probably leaks as well...
No wonder Lance took off. She had strange notions on how to use his bicycle seat.
Pesky occasions - - like when I eat? She must crap like a rabbit, scampering sideways while little poo pellets fly out of her butt.Singer Sheryl Crow has said a ban on using too much toilet paper should be introduced to help the environment.
Crow has suggested using "only one square per restroom visit, except, of course, on those pesky occasions where two to three could be required".
I have spent the better part of a half hour trying to figure out what she is smoking. I can see the Chamber of Commerce signs and bill boards springing up all over America:"I have spent the better part of this tour trying to come up with easy ways for us all to become a part of the solution to global warming," Crow wrote.
"This Is A One Wipe Town."
"Scott's -- Just A Single Sheet Will Do Ya"
"Please Don't Double Up The Charmin"
"I'd Like The World To Wipe It's Ass in Perfect Harmony"
We can have the Claymation raisins come back to sing "I Wiped It On A Grapevine"
"Although my ideas are in the earliest stages of development, they are, in my mind, worth investigating.
Your ideas may be in the earliest stages of development, but they are in the terminal stages of lunacy. Your mind is the place where bad ideas go to wipe themselves before they die. It is a scary, lonely place that smells bad. And the tank probably leaks as well...
Oh good. Now she can introduce her next clothing line with an "ass sleeve." Really, don't take this broad out to dinner. She'll be wiping herself on the busboys.Crow has also commented on her website about how she thinks paper napkins "represent the height of wastefulness".
She has designed a clothing line with what she calls a "dining sleeve".
No wonder Lance took off. She had strange notions on how to use his bicycle seat.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Brits Seek Arrest Of Former KGB Agents
From the Evening Standard:
There is former and then again there is "former." I wonder how much former these men were and I wonder where they all got the notion to murder Alexander Litvinenko. Undoubtably some strange coincidence linked to the phase of the moon.Scotland Yard detectives are to issue arrest warrants against three former KGB officers suspected of poisoning ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko.
Police have told sources close to Mr Litvinenko's widow Marina that they intend to lay charges of murder and poisoning against the men, who met the victim three weeks before his death in London.
It is disappointing that the paper infers that the Brits are straining relations; after all, it is the Russians that murdered a man on British soil.Police have told sources close to Mr Litvinenko's widow Marina that they intend to where they got the notion to murder lay charges of murder and poisoning against the men, who met the victim three weeks before his death in London.
The move will damage the already strained relationship between Downing Street and the Kremlin, which is almost certain to block any request for the men's arrest and extradition.
Interestingly enough, these men are all wealthy budinessman based in Moscow who met with Litvinenko in the Millenium Hotel last year. Litvinenko died last November.Warrants are expected to be issued against Andrei Lugovoy, Dmitri Kovtun and Vyacheslav Sokolenko within the next few weeks.
All three former agents have vehemently protested their innocence of any involvement in the murder plot. They all claim that they, too, were contaminated with the deadly radioactive material polonium-210 which poisoned Mr Litvinenko, a strong critic of President Vladimir Putin's regime.
Sounds like innocence personified to me.In December, nine Scotland Yard detectives flew to Moscow as part of their investigation. They were not allowed to interview Mr Lugovoy or Mr Kovtun directly, although they were present when Russian police officers interviewed them. They were not granted any access to Mr Sokolenko.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Gun Control, Part II
Let's take a look at some numbers, the ones supplied by the FBI in the annual Uniform Crime Report.
This chart shows the nation's homicides from 1991 through 2005. The number of murders peaked in 2003 at 23,180; there were 16,136 murders committed by some kind of firearm.
The very next year the US experienced a downward trend in the incidence of murder.
By 1999 murders had decreased by 45% to 12,658. The number of firearm-related murders also decreased by 45% to 8,259. By 2005 the number of murders reported through the country had increased to 14,860 - a 17% increase from 1999, but still 36% lower than 1993 levels. Firearm-related murder also increased to 10,100 - a 22% increase over 1999 levels but still 37% lower than 1993.
Compare this to the Australian experience.
This is what the Aussies reported after banning virtually all firearms after the 1995 Port Arthur incident. The US did even better by significantly increasing the availability of firearms after thirty states loosened former restrictions on firearms, particularly handguns. Eventually the Aussies got a handle on this and the number of robberies decreased, but violent crime on the whole has been troublesome for them. From the same source:"There was a decrease of almost 30% in the number of homicides by firearms from 1997 to 1998."-- Australian Crime - Facts and Figures 1999.
Australian Institute of Criminology. Canberra, Oct 1999
If this isn't hiding your head in the sand (or ramming it up some other orifice) I don't know what is. Since the Australian government has effectively disarmed the entire potential victim population, Aussie criminals no longer have to fear being shot, they can now rob their chosen victims at their leisure. Aussie criminals can use knives, bats, bricks, fists, anything they please."Although armed robberies increased by nearly 20%, the number of armed robberies involving a firearm decreased to a six-year low."-- Recorded Crime,Australia, 1998. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Jun 1999
In the US, violent index crime totals have decreased by 27% in the past fifteen years, 1991 to 2005 (from 1,911,767 to 1,390,695). Homicide is down by 32% (from 24,703 to 16,692), Forcible Rape is down by 12% (from 106,593 to 93,394), Robbery is down by 39% (from 687,732 to 417,122) and Aggravated Assualt is down by 21% (from 1,092,739 to 862,947). My source is the FBI UCR home page here.
With the exception of murder, the violent crime rate (rape, robbery and felony assault) in Australia has risen dramatically since they disarmed their civilians. The accompanying graph illustrates this point. For a better view pleaase go here. The solid dark blue line is England and Wales. The upper dotted line is Canada and the faded lower dotted line is the US. The very short light blue line is Australia.
These are the violent crime rates per 100,000 English speaking populations for the past thirty-eight years.It shows that the US has considerably lower crime rates than England, Wales, Canada and Australia. What is really interesting is that Australia only gives violent crime rates since 1995. That's the Port Arthur incident.
I suspect the reason why they neglect to give this information prior to 1995 is it would show that the violent crime rate has skyrocketed since they banned handguns.
England only gives their crime rate since 1980. They may have serious reporting issues that make it difficult for them to carry over crime stats from earlier years and older systems. However, the Brits were accused of changing their reporting system in part to make it harder to track the increase in violent crime throughout the remnants of the Empire. In this most recent edition of the British Crime Survey, the government reports a total of 2,420,000 violent offenses in 2005/06. That is 74% higher than the 2005 violent index crime totals reported in the UCR (2,420,000 versus 1,390,695). However the reporting systems are not similar (surveys v. reported crimes to the police) so it is not wise to draw too many inferences from the disparities.
Moreover, according to a UN report, England, Wales and Scotland now enjoy the reputation as the most violent nations on the planet.
And my point? Simply this.Both Australia and New Zealand had the next highest proportion of assaults among their population at 2.4%, exactly double the level reported for the United States.
In light of what has transpired in other coutries that have prohibited their civilian populations from possessing handguns and other firearms, we better examine more closely what the anti-gun lobby wants to do here in the US.
For my two cents I say "Hell no!"
If there is anyone who wants to see the raw data, just leave me your email address in the comments section. I'll send the Excel spreadsheets in the manner you determine best for your system resources.
Gun Control, Part I
Our friend across the pond, Gert, has some points he would like to examine regarding my last post. I truly welcome this for two reasons:
1) It forces me to re-examine my positions in light of another's viewpoint and again evaluate the data sets upon which I draw my conclusions. I do this because I hate to sound like an idiot.
2) Because I undergo the process as defined above, it strengthens or corrects my world view. I like being right (or at least be able to present a valid argument that I am correct).
But what is happening is this, gun violence in this country are going down, not up
1) Other than self-defense, are there any other legitimate reasons for owning a firearm?
2) How many firearms does someone need to own? What is "enough?"
As a retired police officer I believe that everyone should be acquainted with the proper use of firearms. Cops can't be everywhere and when it comes down to your personal safety, cops can't guarantee it. We can guarantee that we will be sympathetic to your next of kin and bust our asses to find your killer.
Firearms are simply an effective centuries old method of protection from someone bigger, stronger, faster, younger, more determined, nastier, better looking, or nuttier than yourself.
As for reasons other than self-defense; I have a very small collection of Civil War era black powder firearms. They are working replicas, not the actual pieces. I am somewhat of a history buff and I love the weaponry of this era. As I hold them I imagine what the infantryman of that day must have experienced during a battle. He could only load and fire three times a minute if he was good at it. Loading the powder charge, positioning the ball, ramming it home, putting the percussion cap on the nipple -- and doing this while all hell was breaking lose around you. It staggers the imagination. I shoot these weapons to remember that untold thousands of lives depended on the relatively simple mechanisms of weapons technology over 150 years old. And it is a hoot to produce all that smoke at the range.
Quite frankly, I get a little teary eyed as I consider the sacrifices of our armed services throughout the history of our nation. If I were a Brit, I would feel exactly the same way about your country's armed services and the long, rich history behind the English ground pounder.
I have other firearms also. I consider the technological prowess of these weapons for their time and the men who used them -- the convergence of function and beauty. Some firearms are just butt ugly and I wouldn't buy one for love nor money. I did purchase one just because I thought it is cool looking and I love to shoot it. So do my kids. We have a ball at the range.
In the interest of public safety, the VT campus was restricted to anyone other than a police officer bearing a firearm. It proved to be not safe. The madman on the VT campus killed 32 innocent lives. The madmen in Russia, China, Cambodia and Vietnam took 100 million lives.
Gun control is not a force of nature. It is not like gravity or the speed of light or electro-magnetism. It is an entirely artificial legal construct that is utterly dependent upon the compliance of those upon whom it is imposed. And even when complete compliance is achieved, it is still relatively useless.
Moreover, once a single person chooses to ignore this limitation, he automatically assumes a position of absolute power over everyone who is in compliance. And that is what happened on the Virginia Tech campus.
Look at human history before the invention of gun powder and firearms. People have been killing each other for a long, long time. Gun control is relatively useless because there are plenty of weapons other than firearms that are readily capable of inflicting a death dealing wound. It is just that these weapons are not as concealable and many require a good deal of training and/or strength for the user to become proficient.
Firearms are far superior to these other weapons because they are deadly at far greater distances and the strength/training cycle needed to become proficient is greatly shortened. You can become proficient with a rifle or a handgun in five days. And this is why handguns are an excellent source of protection for women and the elderly.
Violent crime statistics in Great Britain and Australia indicate that while murder may decrease somewhat, other violent crimes actually increase. Aggravated assault and robbery are two of them. Since Australia instituted comprehensive gun control laws in the late 1990's, violent crimes have increased by 35%.
Even the Center for Disease Control (CDC) gets into this action by artifically inflating homicides and suicides in the US.
These are the suicide rankings:
1) Estonia (39.9)
2) Finland (27.3)
3) Russia (26.6)
4) Latvia (26.0)
5) Lithuania (26)
6) Austria (22.2)
7) Denmark (22.0)
8) Switzerland (20.8)
9) Ukraine (20.6)
10) France (20.2)
11) Belgium (19.3)
12) Sweden (17.2)
13) Germany (15.8)
14) Luxembourg (15.1)
15) New Zealand (13.9)
16) Canada (12.9)
17) USA (11.5)
18) Israel (7.3)
(ARMED, pg 61)
What this shows is that the health advocates have it all wrong when equating gun availability to suicide. The nations with the highest suicide rates have the tightest gun control laws while the nations with the lowest suicide rates have greater access to civilian firearms.
So American suicide rates cannot be blamed on the availability of firearms as the anti-gun advocates try to do.
I also look upon this as an index, especially since the unfolding of events at VT. There are a number of murder/suicides taking place across the country. I suspect that anyone disposed to taking their own life may also be more disposed to taking someone with them. I certainly would propose that anyone who has threatened suicide or attempted suicide not be considered eligible to purchase/possess a firearm. Even then, someone determined to kill another person and take his own life in the process is going to be able to procure a firearm. All we can do is make it more difficult for them to do so.
1) It forces me to re-examine my positions in light of another's viewpoint and again evaluate the data sets upon which I draw my conclusions. I do this because I hate to sound like an idiot.
2) Because I undergo the process as defined above, it strengthens or corrects my world view. I like being right (or at least be able to present a valid argument that I am correct).
Amen and amen. And I can take responsibility for some of that. We need to identify what the stakes are for the opposing sides, because both feel threatened. My take is this: the anti-gun lobby feels threatened because gun violence is at unacceptable levels and they want all guns confiscated or restricted to a point where they feel safe; the pro-gun side feels threatened because an activity they enjoy in a responsible manner may be taken away. They feel that they are safer defending themselves rather than depending on sketchy police response and, more importantly, they are of the opinion that the Constitution has given them the right to bear arms of their choosing.Sig:Although US gun culture is somewhat alien to the old fogies (like me) over in the Old Continent, I fully accept that the debate isn't simple at all and that there's a lot to be said for and against the right to bear arms.
But what is happening is this, gun violence in this country are going down, not up
It seems though that the debate, as debates tend to do, has spiralled into very partisan mutual entrenchment with virtually no one listening to the other side. There is therefore a lot of extremism on both sides of the divide.This is quite a formula; it is virtually guaranteed to produce embittered positions on both sides of the coin. Everyone has their experts that they trust because they offer proof that their position is unassailable. It is very similar to a courtroom where the prosecution and the defense bring out their "hired guns" (please forgive the analogy) to sway the jury. I guess one has to make a better argument than the other, but the only minds capable of being swayed are the undecided...
As they say, "Beauty is in the Mind of the Beholder." Some firearms are purchased legitimately for self defense. Other firearms are purchased for other reasons. I will assume that you accept self-defense as a valid justification for possessing a firearm. Thus your question is in two parts:What good does it do for anyone to own a collection of (modern, active) fire arms, including several hand guns as well as assault rifles, as some very clearly do? How can that be justified in the name of the legitimate right to self-defence? Are these people expecting half an army of criminals to raid their homes? It seems somewhat "overkill" in my view.
1) Other than self-defense, are there any other legitimate reasons for owning a firearm?
2) How many firearms does someone need to own? What is "enough?"
As a retired police officer I believe that everyone should be acquainted with the proper use of firearms. Cops can't be everywhere and when it comes down to your personal safety, cops can't guarantee it. We can guarantee that we will be sympathetic to your next of kin and bust our asses to find your killer.
Firearms are simply an effective centuries old method of protection from someone bigger, stronger, faster, younger, more determined, nastier, better looking, or nuttier than yourself.
As for reasons other than self-defense; I have a very small collection of Civil War era black powder firearms. They are working replicas, not the actual pieces. I am somewhat of a history buff and I love the weaponry of this era. As I hold them I imagine what the infantryman of that day must have experienced during a battle. He could only load and fire three times a minute if he was good at it. Loading the powder charge, positioning the ball, ramming it home, putting the percussion cap on the nipple -- and doing this while all hell was breaking lose around you. It staggers the imagination. I shoot these weapons to remember that untold thousands of lives depended on the relatively simple mechanisms of weapons technology over 150 years old. And it is a hoot to produce all that smoke at the range.
Quite frankly, I get a little teary eyed as I consider the sacrifices of our armed services throughout the history of our nation. If I were a Brit, I would feel exactly the same way about your country's armed services and the long, rich history behind the English ground pounder.
I have other firearms also. I consider the technological prowess of these weapons for their time and the men who used them -- the convergence of function and beauty. Some firearms are just butt ugly and I wouldn't buy one for love nor money. I did purchase one just because I thought it is cool looking and I love to shoot it. So do my kids. We have a ball at the range.
You may not agree, for but me the question is this: do I trust the government to defend me when I need protection? And who is going to protect me from the government? Our Founding Fathers were very concerned about the last question and for good reason. They feared the permanent tyranny of the government more than the temporary madness of an individual.Question is, does the US not need much more restrictions on who can and who can't and what can and what cannot be legally owned in terms of fire arms, and not, as some are now arguing in the wake of the massacre at VA Tech, more freedom with regards to an individual's right to bear arms?
In the interest of public safety, the VT campus was restricted to anyone other than a police officer bearing a firearm. It proved to be not safe. The madman on the VT campus killed 32 innocent lives. The madmen in Russia, China, Cambodia and Vietnam took 100 million lives.
Gun control is not a force of nature. It is not like gravity or the speed of light or electro-magnetism. It is an entirely artificial legal construct that is utterly dependent upon the compliance of those upon whom it is imposed. And even when complete compliance is achieved, it is still relatively useless.
Moreover, once a single person chooses to ignore this limitation, he automatically assumes a position of absolute power over everyone who is in compliance. And that is what happened on the Virginia Tech campus.
Look at human history before the invention of gun powder and firearms. People have been killing each other for a long, long time. Gun control is relatively useless because there are plenty of weapons other than firearms that are readily capable of inflicting a death dealing wound. It is just that these weapons are not as concealable and many require a good deal of training and/or strength for the user to become proficient.
Firearms are far superior to these other weapons because they are deadly at far greater distances and the strength/training cycle needed to become proficient is greatly shortened. You can become proficient with a rifle or a handgun in five days. And this is why handguns are an excellent source of protection for women and the elderly.
Violent crime statistics in Great Britain and Australia indicate that while murder may decrease somewhat, other violent crimes actually increase. Aggravated assault and robbery are two of them. Since Australia instituted comprehensive gun control laws in the late 1990's, violent crimes have increased by 35%.
The author of this section, Don Kates, is using this chart to address the anti-gun rhetoric emanating from the public health sector. In particular, the author addresses elements of the shibboleth that "more gun availability results in more homicide, suicide and gun accidents whilst strict gun control will result in fewer such tragedies." Gun availability in the US has increased dramatically in the thirty years betwen 1967 and 1997 - the number of civilian handguns increased by 273% and the total number of firearms increased by 162%, yet there was no corresponding increase in the number of homicides or suicides.And out of interest, what does this UN ranking actually mean? Does it have a measuring unit, or is it an index?
Even the Center for Disease Control (CDC) gets into this action by artifically inflating homicides and suicides in the US.
The US suicide rate is actually much, much lower than the European suicide rate. But the CDC includes the homicide rate to "bump up" the numbers."This, for instance, when the CDC discusses homicide alone, international comparisons are made, but whenever the CDC combines honicides and suicides, data is given only for the US."
These are the suicide rankings:
1) Estonia (39.9)
2) Finland (27.3)
3) Russia (26.6)
4) Latvia (26.0)
5) Lithuania (26)
6) Austria (22.2)
7) Denmark (22.0)
8) Switzerland (20.8)
9) Ukraine (20.6)
10) France (20.2)
11) Belgium (19.3)
12) Sweden (17.2)
13) Germany (15.8)
14) Luxembourg (15.1)
15) New Zealand (13.9)
16) Canada (12.9)
17) USA (11.5)
18) Israel (7.3)
(ARMED, pg 61)
What this shows is that the health advocates have it all wrong when equating gun availability to suicide. The nations with the highest suicide rates have the tightest gun control laws while the nations with the lowest suicide rates have greater access to civilian firearms.
So American suicide rates cannot be blamed on the availability of firearms as the anti-gun advocates try to do.
(Teenage Deaths Increasing Across Europe," CJ-Europe, November-December 1994)"By the same token, readers of health advocacy articles blaming American suicide increases on guns would never learn that while suicide amoug American males aged fifteen to twenty-four increased 7.4 percent in the period 1980 to 1990, the increase amoung English males of this age was over ten times greater (78 percent), car exhaust poisoning [being] the method of suicide used most often."
I also look upon this as an index, especially since the unfolding of events at VT. There are a number of murder/suicides taking place across the country. I suspect that anyone disposed to taking their own life may also be more disposed to taking someone with them. I certainly would propose that anyone who has threatened suicide or attempted suicide not be considered eligible to purchase/possess a firearm. Even then, someone determined to kill another person and take his own life in the process is going to be able to procure a firearm. All we can do is make it more difficult for them to do so.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Take A Breath Gun Wusses
The recent tragic events at Virginia Tech have re-energized the radical anti-gun factions in this country. Those who want to eliminate the availability of firearms to the general public will act upon the mistaken notion that more restrictive gun control measures would have prevented these murders.
They are wrong. And many of these anti-gun fanatics are lying to the public, particularly the press and their allies in the medical professions, by withholding information provided by a new independent generation of researchers. I have compiled some of these statistics from a book, “Armed: New Perspectives On Gun Control ,” coauthored by Gary Kleck and Don B. Kates, 2001 by Prometheus Books.
First, let’s examine a thirty year period of gun ownership in the United States and compare that to accidental deaths caused by firearms.
In 1968 there were 25,431,479 handguns and a total of 97,087,751 firearms in this ocuntry. This translates into 128.8 handguns and 491.7 firearms per 1,000 population.
By 1997 there were 94,890,222 handguns and a total of 254,512,056 firearms. This translates into 372.8 handguns and 942.6 firearms per 1,000 population.
In 1967 there were 2,896 accidental deaths inflicted by firearms. In 1997 there were 900.
In this thirty year period, handgun ownership increased by 273% and total firearms ownership increased by 162%. The number of handguns per 1,000 population increased by 191% and yet accidental deaths caused by firearms decreased by 69%. The availability of firearms, particularly handguns, had nothing to do with accidental deaths.
(Armed, pg 56)
National Safety Council Gun Accident Statistics.
In 1979 there were 2,004 firearm related accidents, by 1991 this had dwindled to 1,441. Gun accident statistics compiled by the NSC are not available prior to 1979 and after 1991. Probably because these numbers had decreased by almost 30%. And in order to access their library you have to become a member at $250 a year.
International Homicide and Suicide Rates by Firearms
Gun control advocates stress that stricter gun control will mean lower homicide and suicide rates. Using UN demographic data, we find that anti-gun researchers combine homicide and suicide rates for the US, but only report homicide rates in other countries. They do this to inflate the US numbers. The truth is, when combining international homicide and suicide rates as provided by the UN Demographic Yearbook, the US is below the median.
The Yearbook is not online, but is available from the UN at a cost of $100.
Here are the rankings:
1) Estonia (62.1)
2) Russia (41.9)
3) Latvia (35.2)
4) Lithuania (33.5)
5) Finland (30.6)
6) Ukraine (28.6)
7) Denmark (27)
8) Austria (23.8)
9) Switzerland (21.9)
10) France (21.3)
11) Belgium (20.7)
12) USA (18.8)
13) Sweden (18.5)
14) Germany (17.6)
15) Luxembourg (17.2)
16) New Zealand (15.8)
17) Canada (14.9)
18) Israel (8.5)
(ARMED, pg 61)
With the exception of Israel, the US had the lowest suicide rate of any of these countries. Israel, despite the fact that nearly everyone in the country is armed, has the lowest suicide rate (7.3) and almost the lowest homicide rate (1.2 - France and Switzerland were lower with 1.1).
Must be they don’t include terrorists in those stats.
The following information has been suppressed by the media:
If we are to examine the data behind the availability and use of firearms in crime, let's at least take an honest look at the data. Stop foaming at the mouth and make rational public policy decisions based on facts rather than fervor.
They are wrong. And many of these anti-gun fanatics are lying to the public, particularly the press and their allies in the medical professions, by withholding information provided by a new independent generation of researchers. I have compiled some of these statistics from a book, “Armed: New Perspectives On Gun Control ,” coauthored by Gary Kleck and Don B. Kates, 2001 by Prometheus Books.
First, let’s examine a thirty year period of gun ownership in the United States and compare that to accidental deaths caused by firearms.
In 1968 there were 25,431,479 handguns and a total of 97,087,751 firearms in this ocuntry. This translates into 128.8 handguns and 491.7 firearms per 1,000 population.
By 1997 there were 94,890,222 handguns and a total of 254,512,056 firearms. This translates into 372.8 handguns and 942.6 firearms per 1,000 population.
In 1967 there were 2,896 accidental deaths inflicted by firearms. In 1997 there were 900.
In this thirty year period, handgun ownership increased by 273% and total firearms ownership increased by 162%. The number of handguns per 1,000 population increased by 191% and yet accidental deaths caused by firearms decreased by 69%. The availability of firearms, particularly handguns, had nothing to do with accidental deaths.
(Armed, pg 56)
National Safety Council Gun Accident Statistics.
In 1979 there were 2,004 firearm related accidents, by 1991 this had dwindled to 1,441. Gun accident statistics compiled by the NSC are not available prior to 1979 and after 1991. Probably because these numbers had decreased by almost 30%. And in order to access their library you have to become a member at $250 a year.
International Homicide and Suicide Rates by Firearms
Gun control advocates stress that stricter gun control will mean lower homicide and suicide rates. Using UN demographic data, we find that anti-gun researchers combine homicide and suicide rates for the US, but only report homicide rates in other countries. They do this to inflate the US numbers. The truth is, when combining international homicide and suicide rates as provided by the UN Demographic Yearbook, the US is below the median.
The Yearbook is not online, but is available from the UN at a cost of $100.
Here are the rankings:
1) Estonia (62.1)
2) Russia (41.9)
3) Latvia (35.2)
4) Lithuania (33.5)
5) Finland (30.6)
6) Ukraine (28.6)
7) Denmark (27)
8) Austria (23.8)
9) Switzerland (21.9)
10) France (21.3)
11) Belgium (20.7)
12) USA (18.8)
13) Sweden (18.5)
14) Germany (17.6)
15) Luxembourg (17.2)
16) New Zealand (15.8)
17) Canada (14.9)
18) Israel (8.5)
(ARMED, pg 61)
With the exception of Israel, the US had the lowest suicide rate of any of these countries. Israel, despite the fact that nearly everyone in the country is armed, has the lowest suicide rate (7.3) and almost the lowest homicide rate (1.2 - France and Switzerland were lower with 1.1).
Must be they don’t include terrorists in those stats.
The following information has been suppressed by the media:
Post-World War II American homicide rates peaked in 1979 and actually decreased over the fifteen years from 1980 to 1994. In this period the number of handguns in civilian hands increased from 51.7 million to 84.7 million, or by about 64 percent, while gun ownership overall increased by about 40.5 percent, from 167.7 million to 235.6 million weapons. In this time period there was no increase at all (much less a corresponding increase) in homicide rates. In fact, the rate declined from 10.2 per 100,000 population to 9.0 per 100,000 in 1994. (Armed, pg 67)
If we are to examine the data behind the availability and use of firearms in crime, let's at least take an honest look at the data. Stop foaming at the mouth and make rational public policy decisions based on facts rather than fervor.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Terror On Campus
My heart goes out to the families of the Virgina Tech murder victims. They should be in our prayers as we examine the events of the day and thank God that it did not happen in our community. But it could.
Here in NYS it is against the law to carry a weapon onto a campus. I remember back in the late 60's when I lived on campus that all of a sudden students had to leave their shotguns at the security office for deer season. Before then, 18 and 19 year old kids kept their shotguns right in the dorms. And no one got shot. No one was even threatened with a firearm.
I believe this happened in 1968 when the old Penal Code was revised into the new NYS Penal Law. Under Penal Law Article 256.01 it became a misdemeanor:
When will these idiot liberals learn that the firearm is not the problem??
Here in NYS it is against the law to carry a weapon onto a campus. I remember back in the late 60's when I lived on campus that all of a sudden students had to leave their shotguns at the security office for deer season. Before then, 18 and 19 year old kids kept their shotguns right in the dorms. And no one got shot. No one was even threatened with a firearm.
I believe this happened in 1968 when the old Penal Code was revised into the new NYS Penal Law. Under Penal Law Article 256.01 it became a misdemeanor:
This means that even if you are a licensed gun owner with a legal handgun, you can be arrested and prosecuted for carrying your weapon into any educational facility in the State. And you'll probably lose your license also. This just sets the stage for another Virgina Tech here in New York.Criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree. A person is guilty of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree when: [...] (3) He knowingly has in his possession a rifle, shotgun or firearm in or upon a building or grounds, used for educational purposes, of any school, college or university, except the forestry lands, wherever located, owned and maintained by the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, without the written authorization of such educational institution;
When will these idiot liberals learn that the firearm is not the problem??
Not All Muslims Seethe
It behooves us to remember that not all Muslims are fanatical murdering minions of Mohammed. Many actually get it, as seen here in this story.
Turkey is the same way.
Under their national hero, Mustafa Kemal Pasha , the Ottoman Empire was abolished and 600 years of Islamic oppression ended. Under the Republic of Turkey, woman have equal standing with men before the law and can vote. Turkey has had a troubled past as a democracy; the army has stepped in several times during the past fifty years to control various political parties.
There is a great deal of turmoil in Turkish politics. Kurds and Islamists have roiled the political scene for decades. But, outside of Israel, Turkey is the only other democracy in the Middle East.
The US is a secular state. We are influenced by religious beliefs, but no one doctrine (other than secular humanism anyway) has been adopted as an official organ of the State.Some 300,000 people have demonstrated in Turkey's capital, Ankara, to demand that religion and politics should be kept separate in their country. Protesters carried banners of Kemal Ataturk, the revered founder of the Turkish republic as a secular state.
Turkey is the same way.
And it is important for us also!"Turkey is secular and will remain secular forever," they shouted.
"I feel a little scared about the developments. I would not like to have an Islamic regime in Turkey," one demonstrator, who gave her name as Nursel, told the BBC.
"I would like to protect the secular system. That's why I am here. Especially as a female, this is very important for me."
Under their national hero, Mustafa Kemal Pasha , the Ottoman Empire was abolished and 600 years of Islamic oppression ended. Under the Republic of Turkey, woman have equal standing with men before the law and can vote. Turkey has had a troubled past as a democracy; the army has stepped in several times during the past fifty years to control various political parties.
There is a great deal of turmoil in Turkish politics. Kurds and Islamists have roiled the political scene for decades. But, outside of Israel, Turkey is the only other democracy in the Middle East.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
HALP US AL GORE!
WE HAV GLOWBULL WORMING!
WE R TWO STOOPUD TO NO WHIN ITZ TOO WORM OUTSEYED AND HAF TWO WEER HEEVY KOATS AND MITTUNS!
This is what my street looks like like on this sweltering Sunday morning. Notice how my tulips are blossoming? My wife just loves tulips! They were planted by my daughter two years ago. See them in my front yard? They're the red and yellow flowers under the snow.
We're expecting up to 24" of additional snow tonight so of course I'm worried about my tulips dying in the heat. I'd better water them today so they'll be covered in a nice thick coating of ice to protect them from the awful heat that Al Gore says is destroying the planet.
These are people attending a Central New York track meet yesterday (April 14, 2007) at about 1:30 pm. Notice how they are bundling up to protect themselves from the incredible heat generated by Global Warming. Minutes before I took this picture, some kind people wrapped that poor woman in a pink blanket just before she collapsed from heat exhaustion. She was starting to feel better when I snapped this shot.
The concession stand had almost run out of hot chocolate and coffee when I stopped there. The heat drives us New Yorkers to swill down enormous quantities of these beverages to protect ourselves from the ravages of Global Warming.
If it gets any hotter I'll have to buy extra wood for the fireplace just to cool us down.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
The Real Cost Of Al Gore's Retirement Plan
The Sunday Times ran a story regarding the unintended consequences of poorly designed environmental policies.
All the profits realized by those power companies were drawn from other businesses who just ate the cost, right? Wrong! They raised their prices so that you, the consumer, would pay for it. Could this be one of the reasons why energy costs are going up so fast? And yet, with all this fiscal activity, no improvements have been made in the amount of emissions released into the atmosphere.
Just to name a few.FOOD-PRICE inflation so severe that central banks are forced to raise interest rates to growth-stifling levels; corn prices so high that poor Mexicans can’t afford their tortillas; massive deforestation to make way for more corn and palm oil; poor farmers pushed off their land to make room for carbon-offsetting plantings paid for by rich jet-setters;
All these measures are jerk knee responses to a non-problem. There's a saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Out climate ain't broke, I really doubt if man can break it. But our economies can tank if wrong models propagate wrong business decisions.These are some of the unintended consequences of hastily conceived environmental policies. In America, President George Bush has decided that we can plant our way out of dependence on foreign oil. He envisages a future in which America’s fuel will come from planting above ground rather than drilling below it. In Europe, Angela Merkel and Tony Blair have hit upon carbon trading as the solution to global warming, and the man whose mirror assures him that he is the greenest of them all, David Cameron, has a wind turbine on his roof to generate enough electricity to power his hairdryer.
The notion of carbon offsets are horrendous. They don't solve anything (there's nothing to fix anyway) and allow a privileged elite to make demands on the rest of mankind that they themselves are unwilling to follow.Speaking of the Academy Awards, the stars, starlets and wannabes participating in this exercise in self-adulation poured into the hall from their limousines and private jets, but assured us that the entire flood-lit affair was carbon neutral. They had purchased what are known as “carbon offsets”, a system by which they pay others to curtail carbon emissions, or fund renew-able-energy sources. These deals, which are running at an annual rate of about $100m and rising, according to Business Week, “have become one of the most widely promoted products marketed to cheque-book environmentalists”.
Hypocrites. Liars and hypocrites are driving these environmental debates.Small problem. The offsets were purchased from TerraPass, holder of a portfolio of offset projects, which include a garbage dump in Arkansas managed by Waste Management. TerraPass has purchased thousands of tons of gas reductions resulting from Waste Management’s decision to burn off the methane produced by decomposing trash. But the company’s managers and state regulators told Business Week that the decision to burn off the methane had “nothing to do with TerraPass’s efforts”. Or with the offsets purchased by the Hollywood greens.
It's like being on a diet and still bingeing on baked goods and chocolate. You just buy "fat offsets" from starving Sudanese. Then you can state how many calories you've dropped by the number of bony corpses your offsets are producing.There are more such stories, but you get the idea: the reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions claimed by those intent on being green without changing their lifestyles are often bogus — they would have happened without the purchase of offsets.
Government subsidies are not free. You pay for them - someone has to pay for all the freebies the government dishes out. It's just that the rich agribusinesses are suddenly paying a lot less. So you, the American taxpayer, have to make up the difference.Rich American agribusinesses are also cashing in on the huge subsidies made available by the government’s decision to subsidise ethanol and biodiesel production from corn, sugar and other crops. Ethanol from corn is a particular favourite of all the presidential candidates vying for votes in corn-growing Iowa, with the honourable exception of John McCain, who knows a boondoggle when he sees one. Crop prices are up, and so are land values.
I keep track of our household finances through a computer program. Our food costs have risen 10% in one year - and we're not suddenly eating steak and lobster. Some of this is due to increased petroleum costs, but we have a daughter living out of the house now We should be spending less, not more.The result is a problem for central banks. In the past, spikes in food prices have been seen as temporary, usually weather-related, and requiring no reaction from the inflation-controllers. But this rise might be a plateau rather than a spike: chickens and cattle are more expensive to feed, so farmers are keeping fewer of them, driving up the price of eggs, beef and dairy products. This food inflation is felt most keenly in poorer countries, where food accounts for a larger part of the average budget than in the developed world. But even in the richest countries, central bankers are wondering whether to raise interest rates to cool growth sufficiently to offset the effects of rising food prices.
What a freaking mess! It's a scam! Nothing was done to reduce emissions. This is a boondoggle invented by corporations and their hand picked politicians to scam more profits for doing nothing. And Al Gore is the leader of the pack.But think before you legislate. The EU introduced an emissions trading scheme that California intends to copy — and watched greenhouse-gas emissions rise by 30m tons, or about 1.5%, because too many permits were issued. Europe’s four biggest power producers pocketed €8 billion (£5.4 billion) from the sale of their excess permits, and UK generators an estimated £1 billion. That doesn’t mean all such trading schemes are flawed, but it does suggest that haste makes more than a little waste.
All the profits realized by those power companies were drawn from other businesses who just ate the cost, right? Wrong! They raised their prices so that you, the consumer, would pay for it. Could this be one of the reasons why energy costs are going up so fast? And yet, with all this fiscal activity, no improvements have been made in the amount of emissions released into the atmosphere.
PA Gun Owners - Listen Up
NOW HEAR THIS:
The lower house of the newly blue State of Pennsylvania is considering imposing a sweeping rewrite of PA gun laws. The PA House Judiciary Committee is coming out with this gem:
House Bill 760 calls for every gun in the state (with the exception of antiques) to be registered with the state police, and that registration must be renewed annually. The cost would be $10 per gun, per year. The bill also requires fingerprinting and a background check of each gun owner. A new photograph must be submitted each year and the registration card for each gun would have to be carried with the firearm at all times.This is nothing but a revenue grabbing scheme, another way to tax activities that the liberals find offensive before finally outlawing them completely.
Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad. -- Euripides
Whom the Democrats would destroy, they first tax. -- Sig94
There are PA legislators who are fighting this. They are Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, Rep. John Evans and Sen. John Pippy who are introducing legislation to fight this oppressive bill. In addition, there is a petition here for you to sign if you are against any more restrictive gun laws.
On Tuesday, April 24, 2007, from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM in Harrisburg, PA (on the Capitol Bldg. Steps) there will be a pro-gun press conference.
If you are a PA gun owner, you really, really need to be there.
Let these men know that you support their efforts.
Sen. Pippy can be reached at:
Main Capitol Building
Room 168
Harrisburg, PA 17120
Ph: 717-787-5839
FAX: 717-772-4437
Rep. Metcalfe can be reached at:
Room 150B
Capitol East Wing
PO Box 202012
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2012
Ph: (717) 783-1707
Fax: (717) 787-4771
Rep. Evans can be reached at:
Room B-12 Main Capitol
PO Box 202005
Harrisburg PA 17120-2005
Ph: (717) 772-9940
Jason Whitlock
Jason Whitlock, a sports writer for the Kansas City Star, recently appeared on the Tucker Carlson shown on CNN. His comments on the Don Imus brouhaha are refreshing.
Don Imus is not the enemy of blacks. He is not shooting them nor impregnating their youg women and then abandoning them and their children. Don Imus is not selling them drugs. Imus is an idiot to be sure, but he is not a threat.
Shake It Up Baby
In 1963 the Isley Brothers had a hit song called"Twist and Shout." I was in the nineth grade at the time and the lyrics were somewhat risque for the time. But the girls certainly shook it at the dances when this song played.
I'm hoping that the US Air Force has a similar smash hit with it's "earthquake" bomb currently under development. And I hope the shaking it causes puts Mary Jo's booty movement to shame. Noah Shachtman has an article about this from last November. It is a fascinating look at what our defense gremlins are cooking up in secret labs.
Now this is a slide show of the Deep Digger bomb as presented on the DefenseTech site. It shows how the bomb works.
And then there is the WORM. The only comparison I can make is that this is a fiendish industrial-strength colonoscope manufactured by spelunking internists on crack.
Really. Look at the two of them. One gets inserted in your ass and the other one in your backyard between the kid's swing set and the pool.
I report -- you decide.
The WORM is a lot smaller than a bomb. But you could make a bigger one. The little cutie on the left can burrow 500' under ground. That's a whole lotta Mama Gaia's colon.
And it has a section capable of delivering a payload. The people developing this device use language that is kinda disturbing to me. It sounds so ... organic.
ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...
I'm hoping that the US Air Force has a similar smash hit with it's "earthquake" bomb currently under development. And I hope the shaking it causes puts Mary Jo's booty movement to shame. Noah Shachtman has an article about this from last November. It is a fascinating look at what our defense gremlins are cooking up in secret labs.
I've discussed the MOP before. But there is something else, something better under development; an active "digger" that burrows it's way underground.Earthquake Array Hits Deeper Than Nukes
Attacking hardened and deeply buried target is one of the Air Force’s biggest challenges. They are meeting this challenge with a devastating new approach: a focused underground shockwave that amounts to an artificial earthquake.At present the kinetic approach – a.k.a. ‘brute force’ – is favored; the most powerful weapon in the inventory is the a 4,600 lb weapon with a thick steel casing capable of piercing 22 feet of concrete -- or 100 feet of dirt -- before exploding. There are plans to go even bigger, with a monster 30,000 lb Massive Ordnance Penetrator’ which would take the maximum depth to 60 feet. That’s about as big as you can carry on a plane.
There are some scary ass people - engineers - building bombs out there. Maybe a movie will be made about this research, A Field Of Screams, with the motto "If you build it, they will die."Unlike earlier weapons this is an active penetrator, a bomb that actually burrows into the ground by drilling a shaft with volleys from seven cannon. In a demonstration last year a Deep Digger prototype penetrated more than 30 feet of limestone. The makers were tight-lipped about how much further it could go.
Now this is a slide show of the Deep Digger bomb as presented on the DefenseTech site. It shows how the bomb works.
Maybe this sucker could chase Achmed and his goat herd through underground tunnels? Holy Self-Correcting Terrorist-Seeking Splodeydope Emulsifier, Batman!- Deep Digger parachutes down to a soft landing before digging in. Other bunker busters hit the ground very hard and experience a deceleration tens of thousands of g's. This affects their reliability, and the loss of a few warheads may make the whole array ineffective.
- Deep Digger may be able to maneuver underground, correcting the configuration of the array after it is in place.
And then there is the WORM. The only comparison I can make is that this is a fiendish industrial-strength colonoscope manufactured by spelunking internists on crack.
Really. Look at the two of them. One gets inserted in your ass and the other one in your backyard between the kid's swing set and the pool.
I report -- you decide.
The WORM is a lot smaller than a bomb. But you could make a bigger one. The little cutie on the left can burrow 500' under ground. That's a whole lotta Mama Gaia's colon.And it has a section capable of delivering a payload. The people developing this device use language that is kinda disturbing to me. It sounds so ... organic.
All that peristaltic packing going on.The WORM™ is approximately 30 inches in length and 2.5 inches in diameter. It onsists of a combination of hydraulic packers and cylinders to perform the peristaltic motion through the soil.
ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...
Friday, April 13, 2007
Another Sad Day
Another Central New York police officer has been murdered.
Authorities in Utica were searching Friday morning for one or more individuals in connection with the fatal shooting of a police officer during a traffic stop Thursday night. Officer Thomas Lindsey, 32, was shot around 9:20 p.m. and was pronounced dead at St. Elizabeth Medical Center.
Details are still sketchy, but from what I heard, another police cruiser checked on him shortly before the shooting and Officer Lindsey stated that he was all set. Although he was clad in body armor, he was shot in the head. A massive manhunt is underway for two suspects.
Officials said Lindsey, a former Marine, joined the Utica Police Department on Oct. 8, 2001. His death was the second fatal shooting of a Utica-area police officer in a little more than a year. In late February 2006, Officer Joseph Corr of the police department in the nearby town of New Hartford was shot to death while chasing suspects in a jewelry store robbery.
Officer Lindsey was unmarried and had no children.
Ours has always been a dangerous profession. New York State has a death penalty but the liberal State Supreme Court refuses to allow anyone to be executed. They just know better don'cha know. Meanwhile, hoodlums feel free to bang away at anyone wearing a badge because the worst thing that can happen is a long stretch in jail.
Hopefully the suspect will be brought to justice in a body bag.
UPDATE: Details are still somewhat sketchy, but there may have have been other people in the vehicle that Officer Lindsey stopped. It appears that police are still seeking multiple suspects.
Ours has always been a dangerous profession. New York State has a death penalty but the liberal State Supreme Court refuses to allow anyone to be executed. They just know better don'cha know. Meanwhile, hoodlums feel free to bang away at anyone wearing a badge because the worst thing that can happen is a long stretch in jail.
Hopefully the suspect will be brought to justice in a body bag.
UPDATE: Details are still somewhat sketchy, but there may have have been other people in the vehicle that Officer Lindsey stopped. It appears that police are still seeking multiple suspects.
I don't think that the idiot reporter who wrote this story meant to infer that the kid is being dusted for prints by forensic examiners. The brushes tickle too much.Lindsey is the first city police officer killed while on duty since John Creedon was fatally wounded with a .35-caliber Colt pistol in 1916. Pylman said he had no idea what prompted Thursday night's shooting and said no weapon had been found.
Pylman said the FBI has offered a $25,000 reward for the arrest of suspects responsible for Lindsey's death. Police impounded the vehicle Lindsey stopped, a Dodge Neon, which was found a few blocks from the scene of the shooting. Two women were taken into custody and later released, Pylman said.
The chief said a child also was found in the vehicle, which was taken to a state police lab in Albany for forensic testing.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Waiting For The Outrage
Last Sunday a white girl, a Duke University student, was raped at an off-campus party by a black male. The national media now are being oh so sensative to racial matters by neglecting to mention the rapist's race at all or burying it waaaay back next to the laser eye surgery ads.
Still waiting are we?
Phi Beta Sigma is a black fraternity.The Durham Police Department is continuing to investigate allegations that a female Duke student was sexually assaulted at an off-campus party early Sunday. According to police reports released Monday, the 18-year-old woman reported forcible rape that took place at 3 a.m. at 405 Gattis St., where a party was hosted by some members of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
The alleged victim told police she was raped in the bathroom by a black man in his late teens or early 20s, 6-foot-1 and wearing a black do-rag, gray sweatshirt and jeans, according to a DPD statement released Sunday.
Talk about hypocracy. This rape was buried by the MSM - Imhotep himself can't bring this story to life in the national media.
But a not-rape of a black woman by white boys will bring the reporters out like tics on a burning hound.
Let's all join hands and wait together to hear the howls of outrage from the news media and Al "Race Baiting" Sharpton - this poor defenseless white girl brutalized by a vicious black man.
*chirp*Still waiting are we?
Are You A Cop?
You know you are a cop if ....
1) You have the bladder capacity of five people (and you can piss the chrome off the front grill of a '56 Buick Special).
2) You have ever restrained someone and it was not a sexual experience (both are good).
3) You believe that 50% of people are a waste of good air (97% on a bad day).
4) Your idea of a good time is a "man with a gun" call (or a massive bar fight- especially if it is a college hangout - let the beatings begin!).
5) You conduct a criminal record check on anyone who seems friendly towards you (of course there are "exceptions").
6) You believe in the aerial spraying of Prozac and birth control pills.
7) You disbelieve 90% of what you hear and 75% of what you see.
8) You have your weekends off planned for a year (you only got a true weekend off seven times a year).
9) You believe the government should require a permit to reproduce.
10) You refer to your favorite restaurant by the intersection at which it's located (and you've got nicknames for every joint and hidey hole in town).
11) You have ever wanted to hold a seminar entitled: "Suicide...getting it right the first time."
12) You ever had to put the phone on hold before you begin laughing uncontrollably (There's Herzogs in the wall! - yes ma'am, put the phone against the wall and I'll tell them to go away).
13) You think caffeine should be available in IV form.
14) You believe anyone who says, "I only had two beers" is going to blow more than a .15
15) You find out a lot about paranoia just by following people around.
16) Anyone has ever said to you, "There are people killing other people out there and you are here messing with me" (and I'd be chasing them too if it weren't for idiots like you behind the wheel).
17) People flag you down on the street and ask you directions to strange places...and you know where it's located (and then you run their plate number and follow them 'cause only an asshole would want to go there at this ungodly hour).
18) You can discuss where you are going to eat with your partner while standing over a dead body (or eat pizza while scraping up someone's brains).
19) You are the only person introduced at social gatherings by profession.
20) You walk into places and people think it's high comedy to grab their buddy and shout, "They've come to get you, Bill."
21) You do not see daylight from November until May (time to scrape the mushrooms off your ass again).
22) People shout, "I didn't do it!" when you walk into a room and think they're being hugely funny and original (yes you did - we got pictures and that little doggie will be out of the vet's in a day or two you stinking perv).
23) A week's worth of laundry consists of 5 T-shirts, 5 pairs of socks, and 5 pairs of underwear (only if you have a quartermaster system).
24) You've ever referred to Tuesday as "my weekend", or "this is my Friday" (or you have no idea what day it is at all).
25) You've ever written off guns and ammunition as a business deduction (still do - life is good!).
26) You believe that unspeakable evils will befall you if anyone says, "Boy, it sure is quiet tonight" (shut yer piehole - wanna jinx us? - then twenty minutes later you get a call that some woman just got shot in the head - happened to me).
27) Discussing dismemberment over a meal seems perfectly normal to you (nurses do this also).
28) You find humor in other people's stupidity (especially when the ER team is digging a flashlight out of someone's ass and it's turned on when finally extracted - the doc waves it around like he's landing a 747).
29) You have left more meals on the restaurant table than you've eaten (and you "dust off" a few slow moving patrons while scrambling like a madman to get back to the cruiser).
30) You feel good when you hear "these handcuffs are too tight" (*sniff* ahhh memories).
H/T to Al Hammel.
1) You have the bladder capacity of five people (and you can piss the chrome off the front grill of a '56 Buick Special).
2) You have ever restrained someone and it was not a sexual experience (both are good).
3) You believe that 50% of people are a waste of good air (97% on a bad day).
4) Your idea of a good time is a "man with a gun" call (or a massive bar fight- especially if it is a college hangout - let the beatings begin!).
5) You conduct a criminal record check on anyone who seems friendly towards you (of course there are "exceptions").
6) You believe in the aerial spraying of Prozac and birth control pills.
7) You disbelieve 90% of what you hear and 75% of what you see.
8) You have your weekends off planned for a year (you only got a true weekend off seven times a year).
9) You believe the government should require a permit to reproduce.
10) You refer to your favorite restaurant by the intersection at which it's located (and you've got nicknames for every joint and hidey hole in town).
11) You have ever wanted to hold a seminar entitled: "Suicide...getting it right the first time."
12) You ever had to put the phone on hold before you begin laughing uncontrollably (There's Herzogs in the wall! - yes ma'am, put the phone against the wall and I'll tell them to go away).
13) You think caffeine should be available in IV form.
14) You believe anyone who says, "I only had two beers" is going to blow more than a .15
15) You find out a lot about paranoia just by following people around.
16) Anyone has ever said to you, "There are people killing other people out there and you are here messing with me" (and I'd be chasing them too if it weren't for idiots like you behind the wheel).
17) People flag you down on the street and ask you directions to strange places...and you know where it's located (and then you run their plate number and follow them 'cause only an asshole would want to go there at this ungodly hour).
18) You can discuss where you are going to eat with your partner while standing over a dead body (or eat pizza while scraping up someone's brains).
19) You are the only person introduced at social gatherings by profession.
20) You walk into places and people think it's high comedy to grab their buddy and shout, "They've come to get you, Bill."
21) You do not see daylight from November until May (time to scrape the mushrooms off your ass again).
22) People shout, "I didn't do it!" when you walk into a room and think they're being hugely funny and original (yes you did - we got pictures and that little doggie will be out of the vet's in a day or two you stinking perv).
23) A week's worth of laundry consists of 5 T-shirts, 5 pairs of socks, and 5 pairs of underwear (only if you have a quartermaster system).
24) You've ever referred to Tuesday as "my weekend", or "this is my Friday" (or you have no idea what day it is at all).
25) You've ever written off guns and ammunition as a business deduction (still do - life is good!).
26) You believe that unspeakable evils will befall you if anyone says, "Boy, it sure is quiet tonight" (shut yer piehole - wanna jinx us? - then twenty minutes later you get a call that some woman just got shot in the head - happened to me).
27) Discussing dismemberment over a meal seems perfectly normal to you (nurses do this also).
28) You find humor in other people's stupidity (especially when the ER team is digging a flashlight out of someone's ass and it's turned on when finally extracted - the doc waves it around like he's landing a 747).
29) You have left more meals on the restaurant table than you've eaten (and you "dust off" a few slow moving patrons while scrambling like a madman to get back to the cruiser).
30) You feel good when you hear "these handcuffs are too tight" (*sniff* ahhh memories).
H/T to Al Hammel.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Cookies And Candy Bars
Just when you thought that the concerts were all over, now it's Biker Aid. The Amsterdam charter of the Hell's Angels need some denari to pay for Dutch lawyers and jurors. So they've put up an appeal on their website.
Maybe they could start up a different type of small business, like a security company. They used to do that for the Grateful Dead and the Rolling Stones until their business model went awry at Altamont in 1969.
Seems like the meth and extortion rackets aren't as profitable as they used to be. And selling marijuana and hookers in a country where it's legal may not have been the brightest idea the HA has had. After all, there is competition from countless sources to drive the price down. Oh, and those pesky union benefits will drive you crazy.Strapped for cash and under pressure from Dutch prosecutors, the Amsterdam chapter of the biker group Hells Angels is organising a benefit party on Saturday, looking to raise money to pay for legal costs.
Maybe they could start up a different type of small business, like a security company. They used to do that for the Grateful Dead and the Rolling Stones until their business model went awry at Altamont in 1969.
I wonder if the Mob ever went whining for dollars under pressure from RICO prosecutions. Used to be omerta was the rule, if you had to take a fall, you just kept your pie hole shut and did the time. But times change and the Euroweenie Angels are organizing a bake sale or something.“Hells Angels Amsterdam need your support”, the motorcycle club said on its website today in the party invitation as the group fights several court cases across the Netherlands in which prosecutors seek to ban Hells Angels chapters.
They are absolutely right. If you engage in criminal enterprises then I certainly hope that someone will be coming after you. After all, narcotics trafficking, murder, extortion, prostitution, unrestrained violence and money laundering is bound to catch someone's attention sooner or later. And the Dutch are trying to outlaw the outlaws by closing all Hell's Angels chapters in Holland. Unfortunately they are not very successful thus far.Dutch prosecutors are also conducting criminal investigations that could lead to a major trial in October, Dutch news agency ANP reported.
“We are facing at the moment a battle we never had to fight before”, the Hells Angels website read, asking for support: “Today they do it to us, tomorrow they do it to you."
It's what they do. They are bad news where ever they show up. Sorta like a Wal Mart for thugs and knaves.The Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM), today launched a wide-ranging attack on the Hells Angels, urging the courts to ban the organisation in the Netherlands and dissolve their associations.
The OM said the persistent involvement in crime by the seven Dutch Hells Angels’ chapters made them ‘undesirable’ in Dutch society. ‘Criminal behaviour is… part of the Hells Angels’ culture,’ the public prosecutor said in a statement. ‘It is not a question of taking action against a few members, but against widespread organised criminal activities.
About par for the course for the Angels. But it seems no matter what the attrition, they have no problems recruiting new blood.Last year, police raided 45 locations as part of a long-running investigation into the Hells Angels. Twenty-two members are due to appear in court next summer on charges of murder, theft, threatening behaviour, blackmail and possession of drugs and weapons.
So good luck with the bake sale and the candy bars guys.Worldwide, the Hells Angels describe themselves as a motorbike club for free spirits who live on the edge of society,’ the public prosecutor said. ‘Many others would describe it as a well-oiled criminal organisation with branches all over the world.’
Someone's Gotta Pay
The North Carolina Attorney General, Ray Cooper, announced today that all charges have been dropped against the three Duke University students accused of raping a black woman, Crystal Gail Mangum. Of course this "victim" will not be arrested for falsely reporting an incident.
This is what torques my ass. Whether or not she is mentally deficient is besides the point. She wasn't nuts when she went to the authorities and lied her ass off not once, not twice, but just about everytime the cops or DA/AG interviewed her. That ain't nuts, nuts is when you cannot distinguish delusion from reality. The voices in her head weren't forcing her to give lap dances to strangers. She's just another liar who can't keep her story straight. And now she's a victim all over again. Something bad should happen to this woman if for no other reason than to show other idiots that you can't pull this BS and not expect consequences.
And as for the prosecuting District Attorney, MikeNifong, he should be horsewhipped and ridden out of town. Each one of those Duke lacrosse players should take turns ramming his stick up that man's ass.
I fully expect that these young men should become independently wealthy from the lawsuits that are sure to follow. And I'd sue the daylights out of Duke University for defaming them. I'd also like to see what the racial breakout analysis of victims/suspects is for the university. The last time I did a study like that it was three to one: three blacks committing a crime against whites to one white committing a crime against blacks.
What's happening here is this; the NCAG and everyone else in NC wants it all to go away. They will not open another can of worms by prosecuting this woman.Asked if she had lied about the attack, Cooper said that investigators think that she "may actually believe" the many different stories she has told. As for charging Mangum in connection with her claims, Cooper said it was "not in the best interest of justice" to file charges against her. He then made reference to "sealed" records--which apparently regard her mental health--about the woman that convinced prosecutors not to pursue charges against her.
This is what torques my ass. Whether or not she is mentally deficient is besides the point. She wasn't nuts when she went to the authorities and lied her ass off not once, not twice, but just about everytime the cops or DA/AG interviewed her. That ain't nuts, nuts is when you cannot distinguish delusion from reality. The voices in her head weren't forcing her to give lap dances to strangers. She's just another liar who can't keep her story straight. And now she's a victim all over again. Something bad should happen to this woman if for no other reason than to show other idiots that you can't pull this BS and not expect consequences.
And as for the prosecuting District Attorney, MikeNifong, he should be horsewhipped and ridden out of town. Each one of those Duke lacrosse players should take turns ramming his stick up that man's ass.
I fully expect that these young men should become independently wealthy from the lawsuits that are sure to follow. And I'd sue the daylights out of Duke University for defaming them. I'd also like to see what the racial breakout analysis of victims/suspects is for the university. The last time I did a study like that it was three to one: three blacks committing a crime against whites to one white committing a crime against blacks.
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Global Warming At It's WORST!
Resurrection Day.
Easter.
One of my favorite holidays, not only because of the mind boggling spiritual significance, but also because my youngest daughter was born on Easter morning, 1992.
It was an absolutely beautiful spring day with temps in the high seventies. We were in the hospital all night. We were told early in the morning that there were problems - our newest little on was a footling (Not ass first as in a breech birth, but feet first as if she was diving into a pond holding her nose), at the same time she was playing jump rope with the umbilical cord.
This was a Jack Bauer C-section (There's NO Time!) and they rushed my wife to the OR. I stayed with her through the procedure (no, i didn't look at what the surgeons were doing - I did not want that kind of memory of my wife). It was an exhausting ordeal and she was in a great deal of pain afterwards.
Hours later I left the hospital about noon time to go home and put dinner in the oven (ham) and prepare the house for when the in-laws came over. It got hot in the kitchen and I opened the kitchen windows to cool the room down a little.
Today, Easter Sunday 2007, was a little different because after 15 years of global worming, this is the view out of my kitchen door this afternoon…
Those big blurry white things are snow flakes.
Easter.
One of my favorite holidays, not only because of the mind boggling spiritual significance, but also because my youngest daughter was born on Easter morning, 1992.
It was an absolutely beautiful spring day with temps in the high seventies. We were in the hospital all night. We were told early in the morning that there were problems - our newest little on was a footling (Not ass first as in a breech birth, but feet first as if she was diving into a pond holding her nose), at the same time she was playing jump rope with the umbilical cord.
This was a Jack Bauer C-section (There's NO Time!) and they rushed my wife to the OR. I stayed with her through the procedure (no, i didn't look at what the surgeons were doing - I did not want that kind of memory of my wife). It was an exhausting ordeal and she was in a great deal of pain afterwards.
Hours later I left the hospital about noon time to go home and put dinner in the oven (ham) and prepare the house for when the in-laws came over. It got hot in the kitchen and I opened the kitchen windows to cool the room down a little.
Today, Easter Sunday 2007, was a little different because after 15 years of global worming, this is the view out of my kitchen door this afternoon…
Those big blurry white things are snow flakes.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Equal Opportunity Offender
God went to the Arabs and said, "I have Commandments for you that will make your lives better."
The Arabs asked, "What are Commandments?"
And the Lord said, "They are rules for living."
"Can you give us an example?"
"Thou shall not kill."
"Not kill? We're not interested."
God went to the Blacks and said, "I have Commandments."
The Blacks wanted an example, and the Lord said, "Honor thy Father and Mother."
"Father? We don't know who our fathers are. We're not interested."
God then went to the Mexicans and said, "I have commandments."
The Mexicans also wanted an example, and the Lord said "Thou shall not steal."
"Not steal? We're not interested."
God then went to the French and said, "I have Commandments."
The French too wanted an example and the Lord said, "Thou shall not commit adultery."
"Not commit adultery? We're not interested."
Finally, God went to the Jews and said, "I have Commandments."
"Commandments?" They said, "How much are they?"
"They're free."
"We'll take 10."
There, that ought to offend just about EVERYBODY!
Anudder hat tip to Charley B.
The Arabs asked, "What are Commandments?"
And the Lord said, "They are rules for living."
"Can you give us an example?"
"Thou shall not kill."
"Not kill? We're not interested."
God went to the Blacks and said, "I have Commandments."
The Blacks wanted an example, and the Lord said, "Honor thy Father and Mother."
"Father? We don't know who our fathers are. We're not interested."
God then went to the Mexicans and said, "I have commandments."
The Mexicans also wanted an example, and the Lord said "Thou shall not steal."
"Not steal? We're not interested."
God then went to the French and said, "I have Commandments."
The French too wanted an example and the Lord said, "Thou shall not commit adultery."
"Not commit adultery? We're not interested."
Finally, God went to the Jews and said, "I have Commandments."
"Commandments?" They said, "How much are they?"
"They're free."
"We'll take 10."
There, that ought to offend just about EVERYBODY!
Anudder hat tip to Charley B.
10 Reasons Why Guns Are Better Than Women
#10. You can trade an old 44 for a new 22.
#9. You can keep one gun at home and have another for when you're on the road.
#8. If you admire a friend's gun and tell him so, he will probably let you try it out a few times.
#7. Your primary gun doesn't mind if you keep another gun for abackup.
#6. Your gun will stay with you even if you run out of ammo.
#5. A gun doesn't take up a lot of closet space.
#4. Guns function normally every day of the month.
#3. A gun doesn't ask , "Do these new grips make me look fat?"
#2. A gun doesn't mind if you go to sleep after you use it.
And the number one reason a gun is favored over a woman....
Wait for it...
#1. YOU CAN BUY A SILENCER FOR A GUN
Another H/T to Al Hammel!
#9. You can keep one gun at home and have another for when you're on the road.
#8. If you admire a friend's gun and tell him so, he will probably let you try it out a few times.
#7. Your primary gun doesn't mind if you keep another gun for abackup.
#6. Your gun will stay with you even if you run out of ammo.
#5. A gun doesn't take up a lot of closet space.
#4. Guns function normally every day of the month.
#3. A gun doesn't ask , "Do these new grips make me look fat?"
#2. A gun doesn't mind if you go to sleep after you use it.
And the number one reason a gun is favored over a woman....
Wait for it...
#1. YOU CAN BUY A SILENCER FOR A GUN
Another H/T to Al Hammel!
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Travel Advisory
This is a travel advisory for all men who are planning a trip to New York City any time in the future.
NYC Eyes Circumcision Push To Fight AIDS
NEW YORK - City health officials are considering a program to urge circumcision for men at high risk of HIV' - noting studies that the procedure can reduce the chances of getting the virus.
But Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Thursday that he was still not sure what role the city should have, "whether it's something that the government should be involved in, or just giving advice and making sure that people get educated."
All you fellows out there who are fighting without a helmet in the Big Apple, you'd better keep Captain Winky under house arrest for a while.
About 65 percent of all male babies in the United States are circumcised, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.
Those of you in the 35% minority, you guys know who you are... and the rest of us extend our sympathies.
Local AIDS activists had mixed feelings about the circumcision idea. Some doubted that encouraging circumcisions would significantly decrease infection rates, while others suggested the issue needs a study specific to New York.
"Should we proceed when we don't have hard data yet on the population here?" asked Peter Staley, a longtime AIDS activist and co-founder of ACT-UP New York.
Poor Peter has problems proceding without the data being hard. And the area hospitals are unsure if they can keep it up with the demand for the procedure. And I'm cutting it short before I get into more trouble.
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Muslims Demand
A H/T to Al Hammel.
TWISTED LOGIC - POOR OLD MUSLIMS - THEY GET INSULTED - WE GET BEHEADED
Muslims murder 202 tourists in Bali and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 333 schoolchildren and their teachers in Beslan and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 292 innocents, mainly Kenyans and Tanzanians at two US Embassies and expect no criticism.
TWISTED LOGIC - POOR OLD MUSLIMS - THEY GET INSULTED - WE GET BEHEADED
The Pope says that jihad violence is against God's nature, and officials fear that in response, Muslims enraged by this insult will commit ... jihad violence.
Muslims murder 3,000 innocents in New York and the Pentagon and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 3,000 innocents in New York and the Pentagon and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 202 tourists in Bali and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 333 schoolchildren and their teachers in Beslan and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 292 innocents, mainly Kenyans and Tanzanians at two US Embassies and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 241 US and 58 French peacekeepers in Beirut and expect no criticism.
Muslims fire 4,000 Katyusha rockets into Northern Israel killing over 50 innocent civilians and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 52 in London and 191 in Madrid and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 200 in Mumbai and expect no criticism.
Muslims behead Western hostages in Iraq, Buddhist monks in Thailand and Christian schoolgirls in Indonesia and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 500,000 in Darfur and expect no criticism.
Muslims regard Jews as 'sons of pigs and monkeys', and vow to nuke Israel and expect no criticism.
Muslims force women to wear hideous sacks, stone to death women for getting raped and for leaving the home unescorted, engage in honor killings of sisters and daughters for unapproved dating, and expect no criticism.
Muslims danced in the streets and handed out sweets to their kids to celebrate the 9/11 atrocity, and still expected no criticism.
Since 9/11 Muslims have killed over 26 ,000 and wounded over 50,000 in terrorist attacks worldwide and expect no criticism.
Since 9/11 Muslims have committed terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Chad, Chechnya, Dagestan, Denmark, East Timor, Egypt, England, Eritrea, Ethiopia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ingushetia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Jordan-Iraq, Kabardino-Balkans, Kenya, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Gaza-Palestinian Authority, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Somalia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Arab Republic, United States, Uzbekistan and Yemen, and still expect no criticism.
Muslims have carried out over 5,800 fatal terrorist atrocities since 9/11, and countless thousands since Islamic conquest began in 623 AD and expect no criticism.
But if a Pope dares to tell the truth about Islam or Danes publish cartoons about Mohammed, then let the outpourings of Islamic hate and outrage begin.
And, by some twisted reach of logic, the arrogant bastards demand the Pope issue an apology.
Muslims fire 4,000 Katyusha rockets into Northern Israel killing over 50 innocent civilians and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 52 in London and 191 in Madrid and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 200 in Mumbai and expect no criticism.
Muslims behead Western hostages in Iraq, Buddhist monks in Thailand and Christian schoolgirls in Indonesia and expect no criticism.
Muslims murder 500,000 in Darfur and expect no criticism.
Muslims regard Jews as 'sons of pigs and monkeys', and vow to nuke Israel and expect no criticism.
Muslims force women to wear hideous sacks, stone to death women for getting raped and for leaving the home unescorted, engage in honor killings of sisters and daughters for unapproved dating, and expect no criticism.
Muslims danced in the streets and handed out sweets to their kids to celebrate the 9/11 atrocity, and still expected no criticism.
Since 9/11 Muslims have killed over 26 ,000 and wounded over 50,000 in terrorist attacks worldwide and expect no criticism.
Since 9/11 Muslims have committed terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Chad, Chechnya, Dagestan, Denmark, East Timor, Egypt, England, Eritrea, Ethiopia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ingushetia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Jordan-Iraq, Kabardino-Balkans, Kenya, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Gaza-Palestinian Authority, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Somalia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Arab Republic, United States, Uzbekistan and Yemen, and still expect no criticism.
Muslims have carried out over 5,800 fatal terrorist atrocities since 9/11, and countless thousands since Islamic conquest began in 623 AD and expect no criticism.
But if a Pope dares to tell the truth about Islam or Danes publish cartoons about Mohammed, then let the outpourings of Islamic hate and outrage begin.
And, by some twisted reach of logic, the arrogant bastards demand the Pope issue an apology.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Weapons Grade Stupidity
Jonah Goldberg bags himself a trophy on this shot.
RENOWNED metallurgist Rosie O'Donnell proclaimed on TV on Thursday that Sept. 11, 2001, was a more significant date than most of us realized. It was, in her words, "the first time in history that fire has ever melted steel."
This, of course, came as news to steelworkers, blacksmiths, firefighters, manufacturers of samurai swords and other fools who hadn't realized that steel is forged in magic furnaces using dragon breath and pixie dust.
Rosie is also the very first woman to melt latex in an orgasmic furnace. She's working on a portable exhaust hood for those nasty fumes.
"Against stupidity the very gods themselves contend in vain." ~~ Friedrich von Schiller.
Rosie O'Donnell has penetrated the outer Stratosphere of Stupid and is now in High Self Esteem/No Smarts Orbit .
Rogues are preferable to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest." ~~ Alexandre Dumas
Rosie has generated a veritable Singularity of Stupid, she has traveled over the rim of the Dumb Horizon and into the Realm of Quantum Idiocy.
"I’m talking about weapons-grade stupidity." ~~ Dennis Miller
It may be that Rosie is a Breeder Reactor for Stupid. Lord knows she is thankfully incapable of any other kind of breeding. In the uncharted and unused regions of her mind, blind Dumbtrons grope futilely for a coherent thought, collide and emit heat but no light.
O'Donnell made this and other profoundly stupid comments on the daytime talk show "The View," ABC's update of the ancient practice of women chattering around the village well.
It also redefines the need for the ancient practice of throwing women down a well just to shut them up.
[...] All she knows is that it's "impossible for a building to fall the way it fell without explosives being involved" and that, for the "first time in history, steel was melted by fire." Wink, wink. For the record, fire can melt steel, and buildings also collapse when heat weakens steel. But that misses the point. The point is we shouldn't have to argue with crazy people.
This is not crazy. Crazy people can be medicated and lobotomized. But there is no cure or therapy for stupid. You can't work on or with stupid. It's like whistling up a dead mule's ass. Over time you run out of breath and the mule just smells worse and worse.
"Genius may have its limitations, but stupidity is not thus handicapped." ~~ Elbert Hubbard.
Rosie has attained a level of stupidity that approaches biblical proportions. Rosie's Letter to the Idiotarians, Chapter 6, verse 13 - 18:
13 "Therefore put on the full Armor of Ignorance, so that when the day of Knowledge comes, you may be able to stick your fingers in your ears and go "La, La La, La, La, I can't hear you! Bush Lied!"
14 Stand firm then, with the Belt of Ridicule buckled around your enormous waist, with the Breastplate of Political Correctness in place,
15 and with your feet reeking with open sores that comes from cramming them in your mouth, over and over and over again.
16 In addition to all this, take up the Shield of Foolishness, with which you can extinguish all the bright lights of the Learned One.
17 Take the Helmet of Agitation and the Sword of Incompetency, which is the word of fecklesssness.
18 And stay on the View for every occasion with all other kinds of idiots and malcontents. With this in mind, be a lard ass buffoon and always keep shouting your lunacy, for all the moonbats doth love it.
"The ugly and the stupid have the best of it in this world. They can sit at their ease and gape at the play. If they know nothing of victory, they are at least spared the knowledge of defeat." ~~ Oscar Wilde
Ugly and Stupid. Rosie is truly twice blessed.
Monday, April 02, 2007
I Didn't Think This Was Possible
I watched this and I still can't believe it.
A boa swallows an entire gazelle, horns and all.
It's like Ted Kennedy chugging an entire semi-tractor trailer load of Maker's.
A boa swallows an entire gazelle, horns and all.
It's like Ted Kennedy chugging an entire semi-tractor trailer load of Maker's.
Sunday, April 01, 2007
The Big Stupid Easy
This is sad; very, very sad. The administrators and teachers in this Louisiana school district should be horsewhipped.
What will their expectations be going into the next grade? Where are the study habits and self discipline that they should be developing?
It is so pathetic and wrong on so many levels how these teachers and administrators are failing to serve these kids.
This does not serve the kids or anyone else other than the school officials. All this so they can say that x number of students passed from one grade to the next.Under a new and exceptionally lenient grading policy, high school students in New Orleans' Recovery School District can pass their classes even if their quarterly grades average an "F" for the year.
For example, a student can earn F's in three quarters and a C in one quarter and still pass for the full year. Another way to pass: two D's and two F's, under a policy that educators locally and nationally said falls far below typical standards.
Can you image hiring one of these kids?Mathematically, it would be nearly impossible to design an easier standard: The only way to fail a course is by getting F's for all four quarters. That's because the policy calls for rounding up grade-point averages of .5 or higher. If, for example, a student makes two D's and two F's, the .5 grade-point average is automatically raised to a 1.0, or D "average."
And that will prepare them for what? Not the next grade! Failure.And even students who fail to meet that reduced standard can still earn credit for one semester: Three F's and one D -- mathematically a .25 average -- earn students a "half credit," meaning they only have to repeat half the course. The state-run Recovery School District, which operates 21 New Orleans public schools, revised the grading policy several weeks ago and said it will apply only to this school year.
What will their expectations be going into the next grade? Where are the study habits and self discipline that they should be developing?
And this is where a liberal education system always fails. Standards are something to be changed as the winds blow. There are always new politically correct issues that supercede the minimum requirements of actually teaching these kids something useful."These standards are just horribly low -- there is no way to fail. You have to work to fail," said Martin Davis, a senior writer and editor at the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based education reform group.
It is so pathetic and wrong on so many levels how these teachers and administrators are failing to serve these kids.
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