The View From North Central Idaho

Bruce at mAss Backwards left a comment for my post Just One Question:

I've been contemplating the "just one question" approach for a while now. There's a series of town meeting-style forums coming up in Boston with our Mayor Tom "Never Met a Gun Control Scheme I Didn't Like" Menino.

I'm going to put my name in for one of the limited slots available. Shoudl I get the chance to address the Mayor, I'd ask:

"Mr. Mayor, as you know, the City of Boston over the last year has seen a marked increase in the rate of homicides and armed robberies. My question for you is a simple YES or NO question. Do the hard-working, law-abiding citizens of Boston have the right to defend themselves from violent criminals?"

A "yes" answer woudl be an outright lie.

A "no" answer, though truthful, would be cause for his immediate removal from office (not that that's very likely, though).

That seems to be a very good question to ask as well.  The only disadvantage I can see is that they can say, "Yes.", "Yes, but not with a gun.", or "Yes, but guns only make the situation worse."  And you are left with having to justify the use of a firearm for task of self-defense.  My question forces them defend their desire to impose restrictions on firearms.  In nearly all situations it's better to make your opponent defend rather than for you to defend against them.

As I write this I see Bruce has posted on this "Just One Question" topic with the request "So...what would your "one question" be?" in the context of being able to ask some politician a question in a public forum.

The news of Jill Carroll about to be killed by her abductors if all Iraqi women in military custody are not freed is incredibly disturbing to me.  But that does not mean I relieve her of the responsibility for her situation.  She and many others like her who persist in maintaining their ignorance of the threat posed by the Islamic extremists will continue to pay a heavy price for their willful ignorance.  These extremists literally say they have a religious duty to kill non-believers.  Unless she has converted to Islam and advocates the world-wide replacement of democracy by the rule of sexist religious extremists her situation should not come as a surprise to anyone.

While I hope and wish for a successful rescue of Ms. Carroll I think the odds of this are very low.  And certainly we should not release any prisoners, pay any ransom, or comply with any demands made by these criminals.  To do so would only put others at risk of similar abduction and death.  Her family and friends have my sympathy.

The best we can hope for concerning the people at large is that they be properly armed.

Alexander Hamilton

From the U.K. Times Online:

How Ziggy the indiscreet parrot gave a cheating girlfriend the bird
By Alan Hamilton

When the African grey said: 'I love you Gary' in his partner's voice, Chris Taylor became suspicious.

WHEN Chris Taylor’s best friend repeatedly mentioned the name Gary, his suspicions were aroused. He didn’t know a Gary.

And, when the best friend made slurpy kissing noises every time he heard the name Gary on television, Chris wondered if Ziggy was trying to tell him something about some other pretty boy. The penny dropped when, one romantic evening as Mr Taylor cuddled his girlfriend Suzy Collins on the sofa, Ziggy blurted out: “I love you, Gary.”

What gave the game away was that Ziggy spoke the fatal phrase in Ms Collins’s voice. Even by the standards of African grey parrots, Ziggy is a mimic and a half, and from his cage in the corner he had heard every bill and coo of a secret love affair.

A chill ran down Mr Taylor’s spine. He turned to Suzy, whose cheeks had flushed to beetroot. As she dissolved in tears she was forced to admit to a month-long fling with Gary, some of their intimacies conducted in Mr Taylor’s home while he was out at work, but Ziggy wasn’t. She could not deny it; every time her mobile phone had rung, Ziggy had piped up in perfect imitation of her: “Hiya Gary.”

This morning I received an email from an editor of a magazine in the U.K. who proposed sending a writer and photographer to Boomershoot 2006.  This magazine, at least the U.S. version, has actually been the target of some of our discussions as an "ideal target" for getting media coverage.  I immediately agreed and sent them more information.  I'll post more details if they become available.

One has to wonder after recent news on the peeping toms behind the surveillance cameras if the U.K. government will be installing cameras for the additional protection of the prostitutes they claim they are trying to protect:

Government gives green light to brothels

The law is to be changed to allow up to three prostitutes to work legally in brothels, the Government has confirmed.

Currently only one prostitute can offer paid sex without breaking the law.

Launching the Home Office's new prostitution strategy, minister Fiona Mactaggart said the current position meant that women were forced to work in unsafe conditions.

...

Today's strategy document, which applies to England and Wales, said: "At present only one person may work as a prostitute - more than that ... and the premises are classed in case law as a brothel.

"This runs counter to advice that women should not work alone in the interest of safety.

"The Government will make proposals for an amendment to the definition of a brothel so that two or three individuals may work together."

Perhaps they are having trouble hiring people to monitor the cameras and they plan to use this in recruiting.

Every once in a while people laugh at my method of getting a deer this year (something along the lines of "The Geek Goes Hunting").  Well, here is someone else for you to laugh about:

THE WHITETAIL DEER HUNT WITH A MOUNTAIN HOWITZER

For those of you unfamiliar with cannon artillery talk, a 12 pound Mountain Howitzer cannon was a small cannon used during the Civil War. The early mt howitzer cannons were originally designed to be disassembled and packed into the mountains on horseback, hence the name, Mountain Howitzer. The later model Mountain Howitzers, like this one, were built on a carriage designed to be "pulled" by horses. The "pound" designation ( 12 pdr ) in the name " 12 pound Mountain Howitzer " refers to the weight of the projectile that the mt howitzer cannon shoots. Therefore, a 12 pound Mountain Howitzer ( 12 pdr ) shoots a 12 pound cannonball. All artillery cannons with smooth bore barrels were described in the "pound" weight of their projectiles and were called "Cannons." ( like the 12 pound Mountain Howitzer Cannon ) Artillery cannons with rifled barrels were described in the "inch" of their bore diameters and called "Guns." ( like a 3 inch Gun ) First, let me start by saying that I'm pretty sure that it may not be entirely legal to use a Mountain Howitzer Cannon for deer hunting, at least not here in Wisconsin. ( I didn't actually ask the DNR about using a Mountain Howitzer, but I'm pretty sure they wouldn't like it ) Be sure to check with your own State Hunting regulations, ...... ( see the "Hunting with Artillery section )

He goes on in great detail on how to build the Mountain Howitzer cannon, the ammo to use, how to use it safely in a hunting environment, and finally a picture of a whitetail buck harvested with a Mountain Howitzer cannon.

It's monumentally stupid to use a weapon to commit any crime.  It takes a special class of stupidity to do so with a BB gun.

Larry Keane
Legal counsel to the National Shooting Sports Foundation in Newtown, Conn.
USA Today January 15, 2006
[For the clueless I'll spell this out.  After all, with a weapon you would think you would get better victim compliance.  The disadvantages are:

1. In many jurisdictions using a weapons will mean you serve more time in jail when you get caught.
2. Committing a crime using something that looks like gun is the universal sign for "shoot me" (masked men with guns are always targets).
3. Using a BB gun means you have all the disadvantages of using a gun without the advantage of real force multiplier.

--Joe]

As writer Jenny Price noted in a Dec. 25 op-ed in The Post, only 160 of the 12,000 guns used to kill people every year are employed in legitimate self-defense; guns in the home are used seven times more often for homicide than for self-defense.

Political long shot that it may be, a national ban on the general manufacture, sale and ownership of handguns ought be enacted. It would not pacify kids or adults with violent tendencies, and it might not curb general criminal activity markedly. But it might well save thousands of lives. Handgun exceptions could be made for federal, state and local law enforcement and military agencies; collectors of antique firearms; federally licensed handgun sporting clubs with certain safety procedures; security guard services; and licensed dealers, importers or manufacturers that are determined to be meeting those needs. Such a bill was proposed more than a decade ago by Sen. John Chafee (R-R.I.), who has since died. "I hear people say it's a radical proposal," he said then. "Well, I think to have the current situation is radical. No other country has anything like it." He described slaughter by handguns as killing in record numbers, threatening education and pushing the high costs of education even higher. So what's new today?

Peeping tom CCTV workers jailed

Two council CCTV camera operators have been jailed for spying on a naked woman in her own home.

Mark Summerton and Kevin Judge, from Sefton Council, Merseyside, trained a street camera into the woman's flat.

...

The images from the camera, including the woman without her clothes on, were shown on a large plasma screen in the council's CCTV control room in November 2004, Liverpool Crown Court heard.

Over several hours, she was filmed cuddling her boyfriend before undressing, using the toilet, having a bath and watching television dressed only in a towel.

The difficulty here has been to persuade the citizens to keep arms, not to prevent them from being employed for violent purposes.

Timothy Dwight
1752-1817
Travels in New England

Father-Daughter style.  Father is carrying an STI Eagle 5.1 in .40 S&W with an 18 round magazine using a Milt Sparks inside the waistband (IWB) holster and a spare 18 round magazine in an offside dual magazine Sure-Fire flashlight holster.  Daughter is carrying a Star M43 FireStar in 9mm with a seven round magazine using a Kramer IWB holster with a Kramer spare magazine holster on the offside.  This was the first gun daughter Xenia ever fired when she was five years old.

Crime "prevention" is a very hot button for me.  There is no limit to the evil that can be justified and/or enabled once you accept the premise that it is acceptable to prevent crime by restricting liberty.

Joe Huffman
December 3, 1998 6:53 PM
Microsoft Gun Club Public Folder
[In response to yesterdays Quote of the Day by the "Gun Guys."--Joe]

MLubrecht has started a Yahoo email group for Boomershooters.  The description is:

 This discussion group is for enthusiasts of the annual Boomershoot long range shooting event in Northern Idaho.

To subscribe send an email to  boomershooters-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

Thank you Mike!

More Boomershoot 2006 blogging:

• Wonderful Things Are Afoot
• Rifle Bench Rest Shooting
• Boomershoot Rifles
• I think I need to have a fundraiser
• Boraxo (just a mention and a picture of the very first Boomershoot t-shirt)
• I forgot to show you this yesterday
• M1A
• Boomershoot (Neanderpundit posted my Boomershoot ad for free!)

Just the Blogads alone have generated over 1000 referrals in the past 10 days.  I'm going to try and get the statistics generated soon so I can get a feel for the traffic.

Boomershoot 2006 is now just one entry short of being half full.  The Precision Rifle Clinic is full with a waiting list.  It's going to be a big event this year.  A real blast!

The pictures Xenia took the other day of her friends in porn prom dresses was for her English class.  Here are the results.  It's Grimm's Fairy Tales interpreted by Xenia.  I'm amazed.  I could never write poetry or do artsy type stuff.  And I hated all my English classes--too many arbitrary rules to remember with too many exceptions.  It just didn't make sense to me.  Give me math and science any day.  I sometimes wonder if Xenia is my daughter... but many people tell me that she does resemble me.  And of course when she sits on my lap and talks to me about things there can be no doubt.

What we really need to pass are laws that act before the crime has taken place– stop dealers from selling weapons without consequence to criminals. Outlaw weapons that have no civilian needs, like assault weapons or the .50 caliber sniper rifle. Shut down the newspaper and gun show loopholes. Those laws are the ones that will prevent violence. You can lock up all the criminals you want, but that won’t stop crime, because everyone we know in jail committed their crime before they got there.

The Gun Guys
January 13, 2006
[Excellent thinking.  We can also prevent drunk driving by banning alcohol, reckless driving by banning cars, rape by castrating all men, prostitution by...--Joe]

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and then applying the wrong remedies.

Groucho Marx
[The Washington State Legislature is in session again.--Joe]

AP Exclusive: National ID, State Nightmare

By BRIAN BERGSTEIN AP Technology Writer
© 2006 The Associated Press

An anti-terrorism law creating a national standard for all driver's licenses by 2008 isn't just upsetting civil libertarians and immigration rights activists.

State motor vehicle officials nationwide who will have to carry out the Real ID Act say its authors grossly underestimated its logistical, technological and financial demands.

In a comprehensive survey obtained by The Associated Press and in follow-up interviews, officials cast doubt on the states' ability to comply with the law on time and fretted that it will be a budget buster.

"It is just flat out impossible and unrealistic to meet the prescriptive provisions of this law by 2008," Betty Serian, a deputy secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, said in an interview.

...

In a comprehensive survey obtained by The Associated Press and in follow-up interviews, officials cast doubt on the states' ability to comply with the law on time and fretted that it will be a budget buster.

"It is just flat out impossible and unrealistic to meet the prescriptive provisions of this law by 2008," Betty Serian, a deputy secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, said in an interview.

...

"If you take any one of these things individually, you see a significant problem," Steinhardt said. "There are literally hundreds of these problems embedded in Real ID, and the statute doesn't give you a way out. It's black and white. No exceptions, no reality check.

"In many respects it's a statute that ignores reality."

'Puffers' add to airport security
1/12/2006 1:29 PM
By: Lisa Reyes, News 14 Carolina

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Travelers at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport will soon see new security measures. High-tech machines to detect explosives will be located at three checkpoints.

The Transportation Security Administration says the imminent danger to aviation these days is explosives. TSA officials demonstrated devices called “explosive-detection trace portals” or “puffers” at the airport on Thursday.

The machines puff air on travelers to dislodge particles from their skin or clothing.

“It loosens particles that are attached to a person or his clothing, and those particles are analyzed by the machine for the presence of explosives,” said John Gartland of TSA.

The devices take about 20-25 seconds to check each passenger.

The TSA purchased the three machines through federal funding. They cost a little over $100,000, and about a 100 of them will be implemented in airports nationwide.

Experts say for self-defense, nothing beats a gun

By Eddie Glenn Press Staff Writer

This is one, hopefully, no one will have to observe. But January is (along with Quality of Life Month, Wealth Mentality Month, Be On-Purpose Month, and Get Organized Month) Self-Defense Awareness Month.

The event is sponsored by the National Self-Defense Institute to promote their SAFE (Self-Defense Awareness and Familiarization Exchange) program. The program has a two-fold purpose: To prevent crimes of sexual violence through programs of education and training, focusing primarily on awareness and prevention; and to educate women about realistic options that will help them avoid, escape, and survive assaults if they do occur.

...

Lawrence is also a black belt in Okinawan Karate, Kempo, Jeet Kune Do, Ju Ji Tsu, and Aiki Jitsu (that’s five black belts under his belt). Still, when it comes to self-defense – especially for women – he suggests a firearm, and the knowledge of how to use it, is the most effective weapon.

“A woman is at an obvious size and strength disadvantage, and for her to protect herself against a man – who may be carrying a weapon himself – would take years of practicing any martial art,” said Lawrence. “Someone who is strong and athletic can probably study any martial arts technique and make it effective, but if you don’t meet those criteria, you need to consider what the best equalizer is going to be.”

...

Still, his advise for the most practical and effective self-defense: “Get a concealed carry permit, and know how to shoot your gun.”

Democracy is a form of government in which it is permitted to wonder aloud what the country could do under first-class management.

Senator Soaper
[Except under McCain-Feingold.--Joe]

I like Reno for some reason.  Las Vegas has it's appeal but Reno isn't bad.  I shot in the USPSA Area 1 competition there once.  It's also fairly close to home as far as tourist cities go.  Mr. Completely has put up a trial balloon for a Gunblogger Rendezvous in Reno the first part of November.

Read his proposal and send him an email if you are interested.  That's a long way into the future for me to be making plans for anything other than Boomershoot (which is more like year around planning), but I think I could do that.

This should be interesting.  Abu Hamza is a radical imam that had more than 2700 audio tapes and about 570 video tapes of himself extolling the "virtues" of Hitlers actions against the Jews, that it is the duty of his followers to fight for Allah and that fighting involved a religious obligation to murder Jews, kuffars (non-believers), and apostates.  The British are putting him on trial:

The radical imam of the Finsbury Park Mosque, Abu Hamza al-Masri, went on trial at the Old Bailey yesterday accused of being a hate-filled bigot who encouraged his congregation to murder non-Muslims.

...

David Perry, for the prosecution, told the court that Abu Hamza’s exhortation of murder and celebration of hatred were an affront to and an offence against Britain’s traditions of freedom of expression. His crimes were committed out of his mouth in the form of utterances that were “destructive and corrosive” of a free society.

Mr Perry said: “The plain, unambiguous meaning of these words — such as ‘every last Jew is going to be buried in Palestine’ — is obvious. He says jihad is obligatory, jihad involves the death of the kuffar, Jews are detestable, to be reviled and to be killed. This is what the defendant intended to be heard.

...

The talks are not solely about violence, murder and holy war. The cleric’s speeches also contain diatribes about Britain’s licensing laws, the use of additives in food, adultery, the role of women and the evils of democracy.

Mr Perry said Abu Hamza sought to create “a blueprint for living” for his followers and impose his view of Islam on every aspect of their lives.

Central to that was his message that jihad, or holy war in the cause of Allah, was a religious obligation and that killing non-believers — especially Jews — was an essential component of jihad.

“The prosecution case is that Sheikh Abu Hamza was expressing hatred and contempt for kuffars, in particular Jews,” Mr Perry said.

“But what he had to say did not stop with hate-mongering. He was exhorting his listeners to kill and making it clear, as a religious leader, that that was a religious duty and not a matter of choice.”

...

“He accused the Jews of being blasphemers, traitors and dirty. This, because of their blasphemy, and because of their filth, was why Hitler was sent into the world. He also tells his audience that the Jews control the West, by which he means western liberal democracies such as this country.

“He says the Jews control the West and must be removed from the earth.”

Here is an overview of a two of the tapes to be played at his trial:

Tape Two
A video entitled “Adherence to Islam in the western world”. believed to have been recorded in September 1999. Abu Hamza tells his listeners that Britain is “a kuffar country which is at war with Islam”. He says that killing kuffars is allowed in Islam and singles out people who sell alcohol as legitimate targets.

Tape Seven
“How to Survive in the land of Kuffar”, recorded in September 1999; a lecture in Arabic aimed at youth and families. Abu Hamza criticises “corrupt scholars” and disbelievers who do not deserve anything except the sword, reiterates that jihad is compulsory. Attacks the UN and atheist nations that preserve the “Zionist existence”. He described Britain as “a land of war” that will only be peaceful when it surrenders to Allah.

Ahh... yes.  This is the peace of Islam.  The same peace that Hitler sought for the Jews of Europe.

I wonder if this trial will make any difference to those in Britain opposed to the war in Iraq.  Will they realize this is why their soldiers are fighting in the Mid-East.  It is to keep this sort of hate filled bigot and his murderous followers from realizing their ambitions.