I find this incredibly funny:

I saw it coming in November

At about 7:30 central when my fundie meighbors were celebrating the coming apocolypse. I knew then and I know now we're going to get some nasty foul shit shoved down our throats.
If we aren't headed to full pitched civil war by this time next year, then it'll surprise the hell out of me.

The Promise of America

has become an oily, black, bottomless cesspool.

THERE IS NO POLITICAL SOLUTION NOW. We've passed that point.

Bouncy Ball, the only time people will be marching in the streets is on their way to the local GITMO.

Did they forget something?  Like maybe it was their political party that has been restricting weapons for the last 20 years?  So who do you think owns all the personal weapons, knows how to use them, and who the instructors are?  I just wish they could see this as a “teaching moment.”

Kim du Toit and friends have their favorite quotes from this same thread too.

Some police are advising people to just comply with a mugger/rapists demands in hopes of not getting hurt.  The next time someone does that I'm going up to him and start taking down his pants.  When he asks what I doing I'm going to tell him I'm raping him and he should follow his own advice and submit so he doesn't get hurt.

Greg Hamilton
Self Defense Instructor
February 6, 1999

I dropped off the three girls (Xenia and her two friends) in Sunnyside, about 35 miles west of Richland, where they were spending the night with a friend. As I start back to Richland I call and leave a message on her voicemail. She should have been in Richland by then and I hope she has just left her phone in the car while she is visiting a friend in Richland. About 10 minutes later she calls back and is quite agitated. She left Interstate 84 and has been driving on Oregon highway 207, as per her mother's directions, for about 30 minutes without seeing signs for Pasco, Kennewick or Richland or even Washington State. It turns out she has been driving south on 207 instead of north as her mother believed. Kim is not happy with mother. I tell her not to call her mother and detail her faults. Barb has had enough "fun" for her birthday without dealing with an angry daughter that knows how to push all the "right" buttons. I tell her to drive north, back the way she has come, and I can probably meet her at about the same place she got confused before. I headed south and pulled into a rest stop on I-84 at 19:46, four minutes after she arrived. We utilize the facilities, she ate a cereal bar I had in the van, and then we look at the map together. I give her a walkie-talkie and I lead her back to Richland.

At 21:02 she parks in my driveway--finally. She's been driving almost constantly for 14 hours. She only stopped for gas and to wait for me at the rest stop. Xenia and friends had put the sheets in the washer before we left but I hadn't made it back to put them in the dryer yet. Kim doesn't care, "The bed has blankets, doesn't it?" "Yes." "That's all I need." I persuaded her to take out her contact lenses, she can use my spare case and solution so she doesn't need to go back out to the car. She didn't want any food, just sleep. She kicked off her shoes and got into bed with all her clothes on.  I try to ask her about going to breakfast with me in the morning but she had the blankets pulled almost all the way over her head, like her mother does, is very groggy. I kiss her forehead, turn out the light, and close the door. My baby is safe for the night.

And I'm not there to comfort her.  I can only listen to the reports on the telephone.

• High wind warning in effect for her area of operations (home health).
• Truck accident completely blocks a road to one of her patients.  Her Jeep is able to cross the ditch and bypass the truck by going through a field.
• Bloody nose starts after a sneeze.  Massive amount of blood all over the inside of her Jeep and her clothes.  Quick Care tells her to go to emergency room.

Just wait until she finds out what her siblings have planned for her at the party on Saturday in Potlatch (call Nancy Amos if you want to attend).

No.  I'm not writing about Dan Rather.  Actually it's Kim du Toit this time.  Publicola has an interest in the document as well.  It's a document that purports to be:

(NOTES AND MINUTES OF MEETING OF FRIDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1993) ROUGH DRAFT PROPOSAL FOR INTERNAL MEMO AND FIVE YEAR PLAN (OF HANDGUN CONTROL INC.)

I remember reading it years ago and the general consensus was that it was fake.  It doesn't matter.  If it is real that was over 11 years ago and not many of the same people still work there and the ones that are have a completely different plan from then anyway.  And what's the point in getting upset about it even if it was completely true and up-to-date?  There isn't anything in there that should surprise anyone.  There are lots of people “out there“ that want to remove all firearms from private ownership.  That they would form an organization and talk about a means to that end surely isn't a surprise.  If you want to counter their plans then reading questionable intelligence data (I really need to finish my intelligence essay) isn't the way to go about it.  Read their current plans and propaganda from their own websites as a first defensive step:

Brady Campaign

• Assault Weapons Ban
• Carrying Concealed Weapons
• Gun Shows & Private Sales
• Licensing and Registration
• Press Releases

Join Together Online

• The Problem
• The Response
• Strategies

Violence Policy Center

• An Agenda For Genuine Gun Control
• A Core Comprehensive Strategy
• The Next Steps
• About The Violence Policy Center
• Press Releases

There are lots more, particularly at the state and local level, and most have websites.  But as Publicola points out our side needs a plan and to act on it. 

It turns out we do have plans.  Most people just aren't that in touch with the leaders in the gun rights movement.  How many people attended the Gun Rights Policy Conference last September?  I haven't been to it for several years (I was a speaker in 1999 and 2000) but I am giving it serious consideration for this fall.  IIRC the 2000 event had about 700 people attend.  Want to do something more than just preach to the choir?  Want to have some influence in the direction we take our fight?  Attend GRPC 2005.  You will be amazed and impressed with the quality of the people involved in our fight.  Make contacts with other activists and team up to make a difference.

Although Greg Hamilton had a different context in mind I think it applies here just as well.

Kim has called me several times this morning to check on minor details.  She is making good progress and is making her way through Oregon now.  I'll feel better when she parks her pile of junk car in the driveway in front of the house and gives me a hug.

From the State Journal Register:

From a police officer's perspective, the lines between criminals and law-abiding citizens are blurred immensely when you allow everyone to carry a weapon.

“Allow”?  He must think of the average citizen as a child.  Their mindset is so incredibly alien to me.  IF I were in a position of power and had come to the conclusion that some sort of restriction were necessary I would think of it in terms of all things are permitted except for the things we need to deny. Instead it appears these people think in terms of all things are prohibited except that which they specifically allow.  I am pleased to no end the article points out the hypocrisy these same people have:

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley urged state lawmakers Tuesday not to pass a "concealed-carry" law for average Illinoisans, even though his city's aldermen can carry guns under a little-known statute.

...

Chicagoans may not be able to carry guns, but their elected leaders technically can under the Illinois Municipal Code. Aldermen can become "conservators of the peace" with police powers if they get special training, and peace officers are exempted from state restrictions on concealed weapons.

When we are done liberating the Mideast we should give serious consideration to liberating the Midwest.

Update: Neanderpundit has a different view on Mayor Daley and hopes he lives to be 300 years old.

Why ask retorical questions?

Arun Sagar
March 10, 2000

I talked to her a couple of times on the trip but there were no problems that she didn't already have under control.  As far as I know she drove straight to her aunt's place with the biggest problem being stop and go traffic on I-80 for a while.

Tomorrow she will do the long drive from the Sacramento area to Richland.  I hope it goes as well.

The correct way to punctuate a sentence that starts:  "Of course it is none of my business but--" is to place a period after the word "but." Don't use excessive force in supplying such moron with a period.  Cutting his throat is only a momentary pleasure and is bound to get you talked about.

Robert Heinlein

From a link on Schneier's blog.  I never understood it but some people hate it when I start talking about stuff like this:

There are avenues of attack available to relatively poor, armyless terrorist groups that are both more lethal -- far more lethal -- and harder to defend against than the horrifying crashing of passenger-laden airliners into buildings. One such path became real on South Uist Island in the Outer Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland in the summer of 1998. On that blustery day, a group of men huddled around a van, jacketed against the 25-knot wind. The persistent whistling of the gale would cover any sound the aircraft’s engine might make; they would see it–if they saw it at all–before they would hear it. And it was already overdue on a potentially historic flight.

The small, single-engined aircraft was attempting the first solo flight across the Atlantic. Brown and Alcock were the first to fly across the Atlantic, they shared in piloting their Vickers Vimy. Lindbergh earned fame by doing it with one pilot. This plane was flying itself from one side of the ocean to a particular spot on the other side with no pilot at all: "We" had become "It". Instead of a compass and stars to steer by, it had a microprocessor and a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. The men who had built the craft were interested in meteorological research, but if they succeeded, they would also unwittingly demonstrate the futility of president Bush's National Missile Defense program (NMD), as well as any anti-terrorism measures except direct spying within the terrorist organizations. Just as the Germans easily drove around France’s Maginot line, an impenetrable thicket of defensive bunkers, this small plane would barely be noticed, much less brought down, by anything the Defense Department has in its armamentarium.

I think it is critically important to know what you can defend against and what you can't.  We spending billions on airport security that would be far better spent on intelligence operations (including “snatch” and assassination efforts).  And so it is with many of our efforts to protect ourselves from our biggest current threat--Islamic extremists.  We would be far, far better off spending the money on search and destroy missions and destroying their extremist culture than harrassing the fireworks industry, the mining industry, and feeling up grandmothers at airports.

This is going to have me giggling for days:

A California judge ruled today that the state's ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional, despite social traditions and historical definitions that "marriage" is a union between man and woman.

Judge Richard A. Kramer of San Francisco Superior Court held, in an opinion that will surely be appealed, that "no rational purpose exists for limiting marriage in this state to opposite-sex partners."

Although the above generally makes me smile, I think marriage is a great institution and should be available to all free and sane people, it's the following that really tickles me:

Several trial judges around the country have ruled that bans on same-sex marriages violate state constitutions. But despite the intense interest in the issue nationwide, there is no obvious path - yet - for it to reach the United States Supreme Court, since state courts have the power to interpret their own respective state constitutions. But those bans could be put to a federal constitutional test if one state refused to grant legal recognition to same-sex couples who were legally married in another state.

As I have written before this will have many benefits with one of the most important being the “full faith and credit“ issues of concealed carry licenses.

One of the email lists I subscribe to is about biometrics.  One of the most active posters on the list is Henry.  Henry was the main reason I wrote this on ID cards and he was a significant impetus on my airplane security essay.  It was my email discussions with Henry on gun control that finally pushed me to the point of finally writing my Just One Question essay.  If you follow some of the links you can see some of his writings on the subject of ID cards.  He thinks the Federal government should mandate Universal Biometric Identification (UBID) and the use of the UBID should be so pervasive that it would be impractical or impossible to function in society without it.  And, of course, he is proponent of gun control.  And it is no surprise he is from New York City and a lawyer.  In his mind gun owners are insecure and fall back to “primal fears” and use “deadly weapons“ as their “security crutch”. 

Recently Henry posted a pointer to this GAO report on gun control and terrorism to the biometrics email list.  I responded with this:

Assuming they want to keep the contents of the list secret this is a sticky problem.  In the case of the using the list for restrictions on who can fly they can approve the person to fly then put undercover Air Marshals on the flight.  But in the case of the firearms purchase what are they going to do?  Forbid them from buying and hence let the suspected terrorist know they are "the list"?  And if the person is in the country lawfully what is the government justification for denying a guaranteed civil liberty?  They can't very well deny the liberty without due process.  And if given due process the intelligence data used to put the person on "the list" would come to light and perhaps terminate that source of intelligence.

 

Interesting problem--and as near as I can tell, unrelated to biometrics.

From: Henry J. Boitel
Sent: Sunday, March 13, 2005 7:15 AM
To: Huffman, Joseph K
Subject: Chicago Tribune | Gunman kills 7 in rampage


Joe,

Feel free to put this comment on your web site, so long as it is quoted in full. Please advise me if you use it.

Have you noticed that whenever this sort of thing happens ( see today's article concerning killings at a church service and see also recent stories concerning killings in courtroom and murder of  Judge's family) the weapon of choice is almost always a gun.  You recently said that there should be no greater controls on guns than on the simultaneous possession of a match and gasoline.  I hear about that combination being used within the United States for intentional homicide very rarely.  In fact, even in societies where gun ownership; is very restricted, in the absence of war or rebellion, there does not appear to be anywhere near as much homicidal and destructive violence as there is in the United States.

So many of our citizens have their constitutional rights permanently terminated or substantially abridged by the wrongful or negligent use of firearms, that a fair and reasonable view must conclude that substantial restrictions ought be placed on the ownership,  registration and tractability of firearms.

In view of the indisputable, very substantial amount of death and destruction that we have experienced on an ongoing basis, it takes a peculiar kind of reasoning defect not to take that harm into consideration when discussing whether there ought be more controls imposed.  Even amongst those who claim that it is a constitutional right to "bear arms" and that such a claimed right allows no restriction on the type or extent of arms any person may have,  it is beyond understanding that those who hold such views will not consider whether there ought be a revision of that claimed constitutional right.   You see, the debate does not simply end on the question of ones view of what the Constitution means, the regular slaughter of innocents compels confrontation with the question of whether such a Constitutional provision ought exist.

Henry
Henry J. Boitel
New York

[Henry included a link to a Chicago Tribune article about several people who were killed in church shooting in Brookfield WI.  That particular article requires registration.  Similar news stories appear here.]

From: Huffman, Joseph K
Sent: Monday, March 14, 2005 11:09 AM
To: 'Henry J. Boitel'
Subject: RE: Chicago Tribune | Gunman kills 7 in rampage


There is just one question to be answered. 

http://blog.joehuffman.org/archive/2004/12/14/583.aspx

It takes a peculiar sort of reasoning defect to not take into account all the good that comes from having access to effective personal defensive tools.


-joe-
----
http://www.joehuffman.org
http://www.boomershoot.org

From: Henry J. Boitel
Sent: Monday, March 14, 2005 11:50 AM
To: Huffman, Joseph K
Subject: Re: Chicago Tribune | Gunman kills 7 in rampage


Joe,

Your effort to control the discussion would be laughable were it not for the many thousands of people who are killed and injured and terrorized each year by the misuse of weapons.  I am happy to see that you agree that the real issue is not what the Second Amendment means, but rather, whether guns have a gross negative impact upon society.  There is a real problem with people who are born into fear or who develop a sense of insecurity such that their primary security crutch is a deadly weapon.  No matter how much one talks about the needless bloodshed, they return to their primal fears.

The gun control issue is not going to go away on either side.  My hope is that those in favor of greater control will eventually organize into an effective movement.

Have a blast,
Henry
Henry J. Boitel

From: Huffman, Joseph K
Sent: Monday, March 14, 2005 12:26 PM
To: 'Henry J. Boitel'
Subject: RE: Chicago Tribune | Gunman kills 7 in rampage

There are many anti-gun organizations in the U.S.  I could provide a list for you if you wished and suggestions at to which ones are most effective if you wish to contribute to them.  The problem they have is they have lots of tragic stories to motivate their activists, millions and millions of dollars in donations, but they are intellectually bankrupt.  They cannot demonstrate any benefits from their successes or the successes of firearms restrictions in other countries.  Ultimately they stumble when the facts are presented to the legislatures and the people.  The Internet has made the problem much worse for them and they are rapidly loosing ground.

You refusal to address my question would be laughable if it weren't for the fact that MILLIONS of people each year in the U.S. use firearms to defend themselves from serious injury or death.  The benefits of easily accessible defensive tools far out ways any disadvantages of those same tools being used for criminal ends.  And as one attempts to restrict the access of those tools it appears that one always ends up restricting the availability to the people that use them for good more than from the people that use them for evil.

If the permission to use your email extends to the email below I will use that on my blog.

Thank you.

"The blast" will be on May 1 this year (http://www.boomershoot.org/2005/blast.htm).  You, as always, are welcome to attend.  We are expecting extensive press coverage this year so if you don't make it out there yourself there should be some main stream media coverage that you can find out what you missed.  And if you wish to get in on the manufacture of homemade explosives without turning over personal details to the government this will be your last opportunity.  See our press release for more details: http://www.boomershoot.org/2005/SafeExplosivesAct.htm


-joe-
----
http://www.joehuffman.org
http://www.boomershoot.org


From: Henry J. Boitel
Sent: Monday, March 14, 2005 12:48 PM
To: Huffman, Joseph K
Subject: Re: Chicago Tribune | Gunman kills 7 in rampage

Joe,

I am on the way out the door and will be out of town for a few days.  My permission to use what I have written only extends to the emails we have exchanged today, taken as a whole, and not segmented.  If you want me to write a gun control piece as one essay, I would be happy to do so.

I am tempted to come out and observe the roll your own explosives crowd,  Although I doubt I can make it, are you able to ensure my safety from hostile factions? The type that get red in the face and wild in the eye when you refer to their fascination, insecurity and inability to see the danger they promote?  

Best wishes,
Henry
Henry J. Boitel
New York

 

From: Huffman, Joseph K
Sent: Monday, March 14, 2005 1:02 PM
To: 'Henry J. Boitel'
Subject: RE: Chicago Tribune | Gunman kills 7 in rampage

You would be quite welcome to write an essay on gun control for me to publish on my web page.

 

The greatest physical dangers you would face at Boomershoot would be sunburn, hypothermia (one never knows), and tripping over a clump of grass.  Everyone is there to have fun.  Causing you or anyone else physical harm would at best only be a momentary pleasure and would be bound to get them talked about (adapted from a Robert Heinlein quote).  Your psychological model of gun owners is common but disproved.  I can probably find the research papers if you are interested.

 

Have a nice trip.

-joe-
----
http://www.joehuffman.org
http://www.boomershoot.org

Late last year I reported to Underwriters Laboratory a problem we had with three heaters.  I've have received several phone calls from them and exchanged email a few times since then.  Today I received the final report:

Hello Mr. Huffman,

I have completed my investigation on the subject product and have the following items to report to you.

• The product was found to operate within in is rated load (1500 W).  Based on this it does not appear that the product was drawing excessive current or overloading the plug.

• We conducted a temperature test while the unit operated at the maximum setting.  The highest measured temperate on the plug was under 52 degrees C, the unit was operated until thermal stabilization (approximately 1.5 hours).  

• I measured the plug blades for compliance with applicable requirement, the blades were found to be within permitted tolerance.

 

• I dissected the plug and found that the charring does not appear to originate at point where the conductor is crimped to the blade.  The plastic near crimp on the conductor side is lightly discolored but not charred, the plastic on the blade sided of the conductor showed slight signs of charring.  Base on this observation it is not likely that the crimp or electrical connection between the blade or and the crimp is the heat source.  A majority of the charring was near the plug face and reduced as it approaches the crimp.

Base on the information collected through the course of my investigation it appears the heat source is external to the plug.  With this being the case I ask that you examine the receptacle this product was plugged into, do plugs appear to be secure when inserted, or is there some degree of slack or loose connection.  If the receptacle in question is UL Listed let me know and I will opened an investigation on this product.

Please be informed that the investigation has been pursued to completion. However, due to the needs of UL to protect the proprietary nature of the companies it represents, the information released to you may be limited in nature.

I want to thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. I would encourage you to bring to our attention any other situations you may come across in the future, which involve products bearing references to Underwriters Laboratories Inc. Reports from sources outside of Underwriters Laboratories Inc. is a valuable resource utilized to promote public safety and maintain the integrity of our Marks.

Regards,

John Boyles
Engineering Project Handler
Field Report Department
Phone 360-817-XXXX
Fax 360-817-XXXX
www.ul.com

UL now has customer service professionals on hand to handle all your nontechnical matters and deliver fast and efficient service to meet your needs.  They can be reached in the U.S. @ 1-877-ULHELPS (1-877-854-3577) or World-Wide at CustomerService.CAM@us.ul.com.


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I will check the outlets to see if there is any problem with them and if they have been UL approved I will send the information to Mr. Boyles.

It is a natural impossibility that a government should have a right to punish men for their vices; because it is impossible that a government should have any rights, except such as the individuals composing it previously had, as individuals.  They could not delegate to a government any rights which they did not themselves possess.  They could not contribute to the government any rights, except such as they themselves possessed as individuals.  Now, nobody but a fool or an impostor pretends that he, as an individual, has a right to punish other men for their vices.  But anybody and everybody have a natural right, as individuals, to punish other men for their crimes; for everybody has a natural right, not only to defend his own person and property against aggressors, but also to go to the assistance and defense of everybody else, whose person or property is invaded.  The natural right of each individual to defend his own person and property against an aggressor, and to go to the assistance and defense of every one else whose person or property is invaded, is a right without which men could not exist on the earth.  And government has no rightful existence, except in so far as it embodies, and is limited by, this natural right of individuals.

Lysander Spooner
From: Vices Are Not Crimes

The primary goal of the National Rifle Association's Eddie Eagle program is not to safeguard children, but to protect the interests of the NRA and the firearms industry by making guns more acceptable to children and youth. The Eddie Eagle program employs strategies similar to those utilized by America's tobacco industry-from youth "educational" programs that are in fact marketing tools to the use of appealing cartoon characters that aim to put a friendly face on a hazardous product. The hoped-for result is new customers for the industry and new members for the NRA.

Violence Policy Center
From http://www.vpc.org/fact_sht/eddiekey.htm as of April 15, 1999

[Either the VPC has never viewed the Eddie Eagle materials and presentation, they are so blinded by hate they didn't see and understand what was being said, or they are just flat out lying because they think no one will check out their story.  Also, of interest is that Marion Hammer created the Eddie Eagle program.]

Barb and I approached the butte from three different sides without luck.  Barb commented that this was a Ry type adventure.  Those that know Ry will understand.  We had driven by a driveway with a name I recognized as a Boomershooter so we turned around and went to ask his advice.  Jim told us we couldn't get to the top without crossing some private property that did not belong to him.  He suggested we walk most of the way to the top on his property so we accepted his offer.  Elevation wise we were within about 600 feet before we turned around and came back.

Pictures are here.  The weather was just a bit unsettled but pleasant enough for a hike.  It made for some nice cloud pictures.  If you know what to look for in the first four pictures you can see the Boomershoot site. 

We went on to the Taj Mahal to test the new mix.  The material did not turn into a solid mass like some of the previous mixes had.  It was just slightly caked however.  Overall it looked good:

Another really good sign was that the small sample I had left out had not spontaneously combusted when it was exposed to sunlight for a week:

Next I fired a shot from the .22 that should have hit with a velocity of about 1170 fps.  It did not detonate the target but it did tip it over.  I loaded the high velocity ammo and shot it three times on the edge.  It did not detonate.  I put the target upright and it then detonated on the first shot.  Estimated target velocity--1540 fps.  The edge hits were going through three layers of cardboard so I suppose it's possible that the extra cardboard slowed down the little 38 grain pellets enough to cause the failures.  At this time I am pleased with the new mix and packaging.  It's rare that we will ever store things more than a week and if it still detonates with a 38 grain bullet at 1540 fps that is probably good enough.  In another couple of weeks I'll do the final tests.

We stopped by the new shooting positions we created last fall and looked at the grass Ry had planted.  It seems to be doing well.  In another six weeks (Boomershoot 2005) I expect it will be usable.

Barb and I are going on a drive and a hike up Teakean Butte near the Boomershoot site.  It's the highest hill for many miles around in that area.  And it's going to be the site for a wireless Internet broadcast tower late this summer.  I want to see if we will have good coverage of the site as well as just enjoying the hike with Barb.

If we have time we will check on the reactive targets I put away for storage tests last week.  Pictures and stories when we get back.

The most labor intensive portions of Boomershoot is the building of the reactive targets.  Each year we learn more and improve things for the next year.  One of the things that has been a pain has been the pouring of “Fuel 0“ into a small measuring cup.  A couple weeks ago I spotted this the store (click for a bigger picture):

I picked one up at the store today along with the little stand which it is setting on.  This will allow us to dispense the fuel easier, cleaner, and faster than before.

A few days ago I purchased 50 pounds of “Fuel 2”.  I only expect to use about 35 pounds but it was cheaper to buy 50 pounds than to buy 40 pounds (so I make sure I don't run out) in the next size smaller package.  It came in a paper sack which I was certain would draw moisture and fall apart during storage.  I bought the plastic containers pictured below, transferred it into the containers, and managed to clean up the kitchen (it's rather messy stuff) before Barb got home (click on the picture for a larger view).

I've got my eye on some more kitchen appliances to speed some other aspects of the process up from last year.  Boomershoot 2005, over 600 targets, over 1000 pounds of high explosives.  It should be a snap this year.

The anti-freedom crowd is “outraged“ by this:

TALLAHASSEE — The pistol-packing grandma about to be inducted into the Florida Women's Hall of Fame is the most controversial appointment since its inception 22 years ago.

Why?

Because Marion Hammer, a squat senior citizen with a soft Southern twang, was the first — and only — female president of the National Rifle Association.

Gun control advocates and women's rights groups are outraged at the selection of Hammer, one of three women Gov. Jeb Bush tapped this year to join writer Zora Neale Hurston, tennis star Chris Evert, former state Education Commissioner Betty Castor and Lt. Gov. Toni Jennings among others "who have made significant improvement of life for women and for all citizens of Florida," according to the Hall of Fame's Web site.

During the campaign against initiative 676 in Washington State a few years ago I got to meet Ms. Hammer.  She and her NRA staff helped defeat the proposed gun registration law.  I was impressed with her determination and her strength of will.  She seemed smart too.  I have no reservations about her being inducted into the hall of fame.  I'm sure she deserves it.

The article goes on to say:

Hammer, who said she never tells anyone how many guns she owns because "it's nobody's business," remains nonplussed.

"Isn't that a hoot?" she chuckled when told that the National Organization for Women and others plan to protest her nomination on Monday, the day before the induction ceremony takes place in the Capitol.

Yup.  That's a hoot alright.

Our fighting system is as non diagnostic as can be, very little conditional branching, and works against either side attack without mirroring. It is reactive from the stand point that the bad guy has to attack but after that it stresses that you be the actor forever after that.

My simple combat philosophy: My turn, my space, your pain.

Greg Hamilton
Thu 7/19/01 6:47 PM
Email to Insights discussion group

I can remember the exact moment I fully appreciated the enjoyment that can come from using explosives... The old car body disintegrated into a shower of metal shards from the impact of the HE (high explosives) round.

The concussion from the shot threw up sand and bits of rock in a gritty, dusty shower.  Trapped between the explosion and the little basalt canyon as I was, the blast about washed me off the tank.  It was as if the steel monster had run into a wall of Jell-O.

All the sagebrush and wire grass in front of the tank was uprooted and destroyed.  Any living thing up to sixty feet under and in front of the main gun would have been killed by the muzzle blast.  It was at that moment, sitting in the basket as I rode through the tank commander school on the desert south of Boise, Idaho, that I realized I was addicted to high explosives.  The smell was exhilarating, the effect of the tank a charm, and the return rumble of the round as it detonated downrange a pure delight.

Ragnar Benson
From: Ragnar's Guide to Home and Recreational Use of High Explosives
Page 109,110, Copyright 1988

The power and potential abuse of the licensing of gun owners lies with who owns and controls the database.  They (your government) have already demonstrated that their intentions cannot be trusted.

Brian Bourgoin
June 23, 1994 10:56AM

I ordered the boxes to be used for the medium and large sized targets for Boomershoot 2005.  Just 50 each to test and make sure everything is going to work.  Assuming they work as planned I'll buy enough for the entire event.  Since these are standard off the shelf items there are no significant lead times and zero setup charges--contrary to last years target bodies.

The medium size targets are 6 x 6 x 1 inches.  The large targets are 7 3/8 x 7 3/8 x 1 3/8 inches.  All dimensions are interior.

PICATINNY, N.J. -- Mar. 04, 2005 -- The Army has approved its new long-range .50 caliber sniper rifle, the M107, for full materiel release to Soldiers in the field.

 

...

The M107 was funded as a Soldier Enhancement Program to type classify a semi-automatic .50 caliber rifle for the Army and other military services. It underwent standard type classification in August 2003. A production contract was awarded to Barrett Firearms Manufacturing, Inc., Murfreesboro, Tenn., the following month.

It's a bit hard to see from the picture shown here but I expect the M-107 is very similar to the gun shown here at Boomershoot 2001:

More from the Army website:

The weapon is designed to effectively engage and defeat materiel targets at extended ranges including parked aircraft, command, control and communications, computers, intelligence sites, radar sites, ammunition, petroleum, oil and lubricant sites and various lightly armored targets.

In a counter-sniper role, the system offers longer standoff ranges and increased terminal effects against snipers using smaller caliber weapons.

The complete system includes: the rifle itself, a detachable ten-round magazine,a variable-power day optic sight, a transport case, a tactical soft case, cleaning and maintenance equipment, a detachable sling, an adjustable bipod and manuals.

The Army plans to modify the M107 in the future by adding a suppressor to greatly reduce flash, noise and blast signatures.