Author Archives: Joe

Don’t cheat in front of your boyfriends parrot

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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.”

Posted in Sex

International magazine to attend Boomershoot 2006

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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.

U.K. legalizes small brothels

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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.

Hunting whitetail alternatives

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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.

Quote of the day–Larry Keane

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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]

If you repeat a lie often enough

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Via Alphecca and Say Uncle this Washington Post editorial
repeats a lie from a previous editorial.  I sometimes wonder if
they repeat these lies on purpose or if they are just
ignorant/careless/stupid:

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.

I corrected Ms. Price in my previous post.  No need to do it again.  This editorial goes on to the expected conclusion.

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?

I’ll answer that question.  The data is even more
overwhelming than it was a decade ago–weapon restrictions do not save lives.  They
divert resources that would be better spent elsewhere.

Now, editors at the Washington Post, answer Just One Question.

Police state benefits

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These guys got caught.  The real question is, “How many don’t get caught?”  Via Bruce Schneier we have this from the BBC News:

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 problem is that watching the cameras is very boring work. 
99+% of the time there is nothing worthy of their attention.  It
has long been known that the camera operators start focusing on more
interesting subjects–in particular it is attractive people of the
appropriate gender.  If there is a pretty woman within view with
few or no clothes on is going to get the majority of their
attention.  There have even been cases of people being mugged
within the view of a camera while the operator was watching some
scantly clad women on a different camera.

The state can’t protect you all the time without watching and/or
listening to you all the time.  The alternative is to provide for
your own protection and self-defense.  The U.K. subjects have
chosen to, in essence, outlaw self-defense.  That means they must,
if people are to have any security, rely on government.  The
inevitable result is a panopticon society.  Either get used to it or reject government as your primary security source.

Quote of the day–Timothy Dwight

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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

Celebrate diversity

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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.

Quote of the day–Joe Huffman

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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]

New Yahoo group for Boomershooters

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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!

Boomershoot 2006 blogging part II

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More Boomershoot 2006 blogging:

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!

Xenia puts her porn pictures to work

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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.

Quote of the day–The Gun Guys

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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]

Quote of the day–Groucho Marx

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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]

National ID–I told you so

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Real ID Act (National ID cards with a different name) are a
waste of time and money as well as being a source of high risk to
liberty.  A year ago I wrote about the flaws that would show up.  Now the AP has an ‘exclusive’ on the story of the problems the states are having:

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.”

Like I said in my post from last year.  It’s as
if the congress critters had tried to legislate that PI equals
3.0.  They are out of touch with reality.

Puffers in airplane security

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The latest technology to be employed in the unconstitutional search of people attempting to board an aircraft while exercising their right to travel is puffers:

‘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.

I agree that explosives is the biggest threat to safe airplane travel.  Other weapons such as guns and knives are of little use if someone wanted to bring the airplane down.  And if the user of such a weapon were intent on attacking people in the cabin they wouldn’t make all that much progress before they were stopped by someone else in the cabin.  But a pound of explosives, about the size and weight of a pint of milk, in a tightly closed area like the cabin of an aircraft can do a lot of damage.  There is a Myth Busters episode on this very topic if you have any doubts.

In any case keeping explosives off of passenger airplanes is a good idea.  They aren’t useful for self-defense in an air cabin environment, as the knives and handguns are, and they represent a significant hazard to the entire aircraft and people on the ground.  The problem is–How do you do it?  As I have explained before with the explosive sniffing wasps the problem is one of false positives if you try to detect improvised and/or “homemade” explosives.  And if you don’t address those type of explosives you have a loophole any terrorist can waltz right through.  And the current explosives detection technology fails even on people that inadvertently contaminate their luggage.  If a skilled adversary were to be intent on bringing explosives on board a plane nothing short of a full search of everyone will be effective. So what’s the solution?  Use our limited resources on other things such as better intelligence as to who is a threat and interviews of passengers.  That will guard against both the known threats using existing weapons and the type of threats we haven’t thought of yet.

January is Self-Defense Awareness Month

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From Tahlequah Daily Press but not the New York Times or any other mainstream media outlook I could find.  I wonder why?  Maybe it’s because:

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.”

Quote of the day–Senator Soaper

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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]

Reno could be interesting

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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.