Each politician should have to wear a suit with his major donors like NASCAR racers
How'd That Get There, Daddy?
Governor Deval Patrick signed a budget yesterday that imposes more than $1 billion in additional taxes on Massachusetts residents and visitors, most of it through the first increase in the state sales tax in 33 years, even as he declined to rule out a future boost in the state gas tax.Got that? $1 billion in new taxes isn't enough to feed the Leviathan. We need more, more, more. The state's appetite for your tax dollars is a ravenous glutton, one that can never be sated by a mere sales tax alone. We were sold a false bill of goods: Support the sales tax increase and the tolls/gas tax won't go up. Only the ink wasn't even dry on the sales tax increase (New Hampshire, you're welcome BTW) when the talk of increasing the tax on gasoline (you know, what we use to drive to New Hampshire to avoid the sales tax) started.
Patrick, whose earlier proposal for a 19-cent-per-gallon increase in the gasoline tax was largely ignored by the Legislature, continued to make the case yesterday that the tax could be necessary to put the state’s transportation network on sounder financial footing.
Is it just me, or does that man have a lot of tax-signin' pens on his desk? That is all.
Old School
Yes, that is an actual, honest-to-goodness "BELL SYSTEMS PROPERTY" rotary phone from 1968 (in the comments to Tam's post, I had erroneously stated that I thought the phone was older). I retrieved this from my grandmother's house when she passed in 2002; it had been sitting in the garage for about 20 years. It replaced a much older rotary phone in the late '60s or early 70s, a concession to my grandfather's advancing age and hearing loss - there's an adjustable volume control in the handset.
1960s state of the art, baby!
One of these days I'm going to drive my nerd butt down to Radio Shack and get the adapters needed to convert this to a standard house jack. I don't know if it would be easier to find a converter and put one of the four-pronged plugs on the end (remember those? Weren't those the damnedest things ever?) and then get the adaptor to a standard plug.
And then I'm gonna call every single automated voice-mail hell-customer service number I can think of, because I've got a rotary phone, beeyotch!
Heh. That is all.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Some of those seated in the pews of New Bethel Church here Saturday night, their firearms tucked to their sides, saw themselves as modern-day pioneers.
“This country started by people gathering together in churches and complaining about taxation and about their current government, King George III, taking armaments that they had,” said Chesley Kemp, 61, a family doctor with his Kimber .45 Auto at his side.
(CNN) -- Infomercial pitchman Billy Mays died at his Tampa, Florida, home Sunday morning, authorities told CNN.News reports claim that he may have suffered a bump on his head from a rough landing that may or may not have have contributed to his demise. Since there is trauma, police cannot rule out foul play. Given the nature of Mays' TV pitchwork, a police spokeperson called a conference to ask for assistance in ruling out foul play.
The 50-year-old known for his shouting OxiClean ads was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m. The Hillsborough County medical examiner will perform an autopsy, Tampa police Lt. Brian Dugan said.
Carry Ammo
That's a 158 grain .357 Magnum, a 95 grain .380 ACP +P, and a 230 grain .45 ACP, all jacketed hollowpoints. These fill, respectively, the Snubbie from Hell, the P3AT, and the G30. All are (or were, given the past six months or so) readily available and affordable for practice; all feed reliably in their intended arms. I'm more comfortable relying on the .357 Magnum or .45 ACP for self-defense, but the .380 ACP will do in a pinch in a package that's small enough to take anywhere.
So what's your favorite/preferred caliber for self-defense?
That is all.
PICO RIVERA, Calif. — Authorities in the Los Angeles area say three people have been killed and seven others injured in a drive-by shooting outside a pizza restaurant where a motorcycle group was hosting an event.How could this happen? According to the Brady Campaign, California has the highest ranking of all 50 states for gun laws. There should be essentially no gun violence in the state of California, what with their state license required, "universal" background check (I assume this is separate from the NICS check, as other states get a 0 for not having it), one-handgun-a-month law, etc. yielding a score of 79 out of 100 for 2008 (MA got a 54, NJ got a 63, and NY a 51).
Los Angeles County sheriff's Deputy Keith Ho says 10 people gathered in the parking lot of the restaurant in Pico Rivera were shot at from a moving vehicle Saturday evening.
This day wasn't just seized, it was wrestled to the ground and choked into submission...
That is all.
Winchester Model 1400
The 1400 had a relatively short run from 1964 to 1994. This particular gun is a semi-automatic 16 gauge shotgun chambered for 2¾" shells. The general consensus on the 1400 is that they're not quite as nice as the Remington 1100, but generally a solid semi-auto shotgun that can be had for cheap money.
I just wish 16 gauge ammo wasn't rarer than hen's teeth so I could put this fine shotgun through its paces...
That is all.
My Blogfather JayG, who not only was the prime mover getting me to start this little corner of Al Gore's Intarwebz, but who has been insanely generous with his time, advice, and range time. Jay, you already know how much I appreciate all you've done, but I wanted to say it anyway.Awww, shucks. I'm only too happy to help. Besides, we need to get together to fling lead soon. Besides the 2nd Annual NE Blogshoot, that is...
Lawmakers shocked by the brutal beating of little Nathaniel Turner allegedly at the hands of his father are pushing anew for the death penalty as the only punishment that fits the sickening crime.
“The way that boy was beaten and tortured, it’s unconscionable. It’s deplorable,” said House Rule Chairman John J. Binienda (D-Worcester). “I would definitely vote for that.”
[Speaker of the House Robert] DeLeo, who has supported the death penalty in votes taken on the House floor, declined to comment last night. Other members of his leadership team, including Majority Leader James Vallee (D-Franklin) and assistant majority leader Ronald Mariano (D-Quincy) have also backed the death penalty in previous votes.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - One person was killed and a second injured during a home invasion early Wednesday morning in south Nashville.
According to police, the invasion happened around 2 a.m. on Moss Landing Drive in Antioch. Police said two suspects were waiting outside when two residents arrived home. The suspects forced the residents inside and held them at gunpoint.
At one point there was a struggle for the gun and that is when police said the suspect was shot and killed and one of the residents was wounded.
ROME, Italy (CNN) — Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi denies allegations that he paid prostitutes to attend parties he hosted at his various homes.Right off the bat he's lying. He's been married - he's paid for sex before. Most likely dearly...
In an interview with Italian magazine Chi, the 72-year old denied he had ever paid for sex.
Now that's Italian!“I’ve never paid a woman. I never understood where the satisfaction is when you’re missing the pleasure of conquest”
Sweet Sixteen's in Less than 10 Years, Daddy
(CNN) -- Ed McMahon, the longtime pitchman and Johnny Carson sidekick whose "Heeeeeeerre's Johnny!" became a part of the vernacular, has died.Rest in Peace, Ed. Obviously your liver - the butt of much of Johnny's ribbing - wasn't in as bad of a shape as we thought. Either that, or you were already pickled and that's what kept you alive so long...
McMahon passed away peacefully shortly after midnight at the Ronald Reagan/UCLA Medical Center, his publicist, Howard Bragman, said Tuesday
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A mystery surrounding the whereabouts of South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford was apparently solved late Monday when a Sanford spokesman said he was hiking along the Appalachian Trail.
"I apologize for taking so long to send this update, and was waiting to see if (we had) a more definitive idea of what part of the trail he was on before we did so," Joel Sawyer said in an e-mail to reporters.
Sanford's whereabouts were unaccounted for Monday when he stepped out of the public eye following a bruising session with the state Legislature. Even his wife, Jenny, said she did not know where he was, The Associated Press reported, according to The State newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina.
Hi Jay,
So I'm surfing around and bump into your site by accident. A brief look and I think to myself - another motherfucking Obama hating well armed fanatic. But hey, MArooned is a good name, and the MA part is kinda clever...I should read more carefully. And I must say you seem like a smart guy, with some intelligent people commenting on your posts. I especially liked the Justice for All discussion - much more thoughtful than the usual talk radio crap, IMHO.
Anyway I am a history graduate student. I think American historians have missed the importance of the gun culture in the first hundred years, as well as the gradual disarmament of the general populace in the next hundred. So I some questions for you, and anyone else who might care to answer:
When the constitution was ratified the adult male population, (not including slaves and some other categories), constituted a militia. People owned muskets and rifles. Towns and cities typically owned some artillery. I suppose an individual could own an artillery piece if he really wanted to. The point is that an effective military unit could be formed at short notice without any assistance from the state or federal government. Hence the 2A was a tremendous barrier to government tyranny.
Over time this has changed. The right to bear arms is curtailed - we may only purchase certain weapons, certain kinds of ammo and so forth. The most effective weapons are restricted to the military. The functional equivalent to the old musket is the modern assault rifle - supplemented I would say by other automatic weapons, anti-tank and anti-air missiles, grenades and grenade launchers, and so forth. The equivalent to the cannon is of course tanks, apc's, jet aircraft, and various kinds of artillery.
So the questions:
1. Is the populace, in comparison to the government, essentially disarmed?
2. Is the 2A effectively gutted by the government monopoly on the most powerful weapons?
3. Should the NRA be lobbying not just for gun rights but for the restoration of local militias armed with the most modern military weapons?
Tim
1. Essentially disarmed? No. We still have a wide variety of options readily available, and even more if one has the time, money, and/or connections.
2. Yes and no. To the best of my knowledge, private individuals can't own functioning tanks or fighter jets; however there's a pretty big discussion on the original intent of the founding fathers as to whether the 2A means all arms or just small arms. Personally, I fall into the "whatever you can afford and not screw up with" category, but that's me.
3. Should they? Hell yes. Will they? Hell no. The NRA is nothing if not practical, and lobbying for "ZOMG TEH MACHINE GUNZ!!!!" will bring them naught but pain. Better to work to repeal the dumbest of the dumb gun laws and halt further encroachments than to go out on a limb for FA (full auto) or explosives.
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.There are some who argue that as long as the American people are allowed to own single-shot .22 rifles, the Second Amendment is intact (I disagree, most vociferously one can imagine). Others (and I fall squarely into this camp) firmly believe that "shall not be infringed" means what it means; that the average American should be allowed the same tools available to the government. If the private citizen can afford their own armored personnel carrier, power to them. If they want to stockpile machine guns, rocket launchers, or .50 caliber sniper rifles, go to town. Only punish the misuse of these items, not the potential.
You watch that clip and you can see that several studio sets are going to be needing new seat cushions - these people were behaving like Traci Lords at a big dick convention.
The state’s highest court plans to review the constitutionality of a recently challenged state law that requires gun owners to lock their weapons, making it the first test in Massachusetts of a landmark US Supreme Court ruling that Americans have the constitutional right to own guns and stow them as they see fit.
The SJC decided to review the law less than a year after a Lowell District Court judge dismissed firearms charges against a Billerica man whose handicapped son was accused of shooting a BB gun at a neighbor and who then showed police officers where his father kept other unlocked weapons.
Harvey Silverglate, a civil liberties lawyer in Boston, who argues that the Second Amendment should apply to the states.
WASHINGTON (CNN) – A day after former President George W. Bush seemed to criticize the Obama administration for departing from a number of his anti-terrorism policies, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs fired back.
Asked about Bush's remarks during Thursday's press briefing Gibbs had a simple response. "We won," Gibbs told reporters.
I *Think* That's Enough...
MESA - An attempted home invasion early Thursday ended with one person dead and a police investigation.
According to the Mesa Police Department two Hispanic males broke in to a home near Baseline Road and Stapley Drive around 1:30 a.m. Thursday morning.
The home owner opened fire on the men and the home invasion ended in the death of one of the suspects and the other seriously injured.
So the robbers rounded the home owner and the rest of the folks in the house (according to the TV coverage) into a room... that contained a shotgun. LOL! Bad luck, robbers. Good job, homeowner!
WASHINGTON — The group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wants the flyswatter in chief to try taking a more humane attitude the next time he's bedeviled by a fly in the White House.
PETA is sending President Barack Obama a Katcha Bug Humane Bug Catcher, a device that allows users to trap a house fly and then release it outside.
So—what’s the right thing to do for a parent who believes in the value of responsible gun ownership, the futility of prohibition measures, and the right to self-defense (even if it’s against imaginary giant spiders?) How do I reconcile my personal beliefs, the rules of gun safety, and my kid’s inability to fully understand the concepts of death and killing?
Directed interest is DEFINITELY the way to go. That’s what I’ve done with TheBoy, and it’s turned out great.
You get a chance to drill the Four Rules into their heads until they know them in their sleep. They learn safe and proper gun handling. Most importantly, IMHO, they learn that guns are not objects to be feared, but tools with which one must exercise care and caution.
No fear.
No sweeping under the rug.
Just “Here it is. Here’s how you handle it responsibly. Any infractions and it gets taken away”.
Trust me on this one. Once you’ve relieved Quinn of his favorite Nerf gun, Star Wars blaster, or cap gun for the nth time, he will rapidly equate “pointing gun at Lyra” with “gun goes bye-bye”…
And I’ll close with this shot: http://i696.photobucket.com/albums/vv330/stuckma09/MagicKingdom021.jpg
Notice the placement of TheBoy’s trigger finger…
Yeah. We needed to drop a hundred large on signs exhorting MA drivers to "drive carefully"... Okay, that's enough depressing/infuriating news for now...
That is all.
OKLAHOMA CITY — A plea deal that sent an ex-convict accused of raping a 4-year-old girl to jail for only a year has prompted outrage across Oklahoma, where lawmakers are calling for the removal of the judge who approved the deal and the attorney general is investigating a new set of abuse allegations.
Under the deal, David Harold Earls, 64, of the southeastern Oklahoma town of McAlester, pleaded no contest last month to first-degree rape and forcible sodomy. Normally, the rape charge carries a sentence of between five years to life in prison, but the deal he struck with prosecutors called for 19 years of his 20-year sentence to be suspended.
District Attorney Jim Bob Miller said Tuesday the plea deal was both necessary and accepted with the approval of the girl's family. A medical examination of the girl found evidence of a sexual assault, but no DNA evidence tying Earls to the crime.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
The first paragraph of section 7 of chapter 90 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- No person operating a motorcycle shall permit any person to ride as a passenger unless such person is 16 years of age or older.
Sorry about the "mass email" thing here. Seemed the easiest way of handling this. Basically, I've got a request.
A couple of blogs have come to my attention, that deal pretty exclusively with child abuse. Since this is something I think needs more attention drawn to it, I had the bright idea to send out a beg to y'all: you represent the most popular blogs I read. Which means y'all have a fairly diverse readership.
The beg is, take a look at the following links. If you think they're worthwhile, please post something about 'em. The more light we shed on this problem, the better things will get. Without that light, the badguys win.
http://the-ultimate-evil.blogspot.com/
http://www.warriorsforinnocence.org/
-- Love and Respect
"Strings"
President and Founder
Maritime WI BACA
The first “anti-stab” knife is to go on sale in Britain, designed to work as normal in the kitchen but to be ineffective as a weapon.YOU. HAVE. GOT. TO. BE. KIDDING. ME.
The knife has a rounded edge instead of a point and will snag on clothing and skin to make it more difficult to stab someone.
He said: “It can never be a totally safe knife, but the idea is you can’t inflict a fatal wound. Nobody could just grab one out of the kitchen drawer and kill someone.”WHAT THE BLOODY HELL? The goddamned thing still has an edge, right? It's not like blunting the tip prevents you from slashing someone's throat with it, or opening up their femoral artery. It most certainly CAN kill someone. Easily, if it's kept sharp (and no kitchen knife worth a damn - or $80 - won't hold an edge...)
"Killing with the tip lacks artistry". Gurney Halleck, Dune.Gah. I have to get to the range this weekend. Exposure to abject stupidity can only be cured by recoil therapy...
STOUGHTON (WBZ) ― A 4-year-old Stoughton girl struck by a car driven by an elderly woman died overnight, the Norfolk District Attorney's office said Sunday morning.
Diya Patel died at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, where she'd been flown after the accident Saturday morning.
Police say charges may be filed against the driver, whose name is not being released at this time.
Obligatory Kid & Character Shot
Quite frankly, I'm shocked at how well this picture turned out. Of course, with my kids, a picture is defined as a success using a very loose set of criteria:
1. Is the picture blurry? If yes, then the picture is not a success.
2. If by some miracle the answer to #1 is "no", then are both kids looking at the camera? Or is one perhaps looking 180º away?
If the criteria in #1 and 2 are met, then the picture is a success. It's only a rousing success if both kids look like they're not ready to kill each other at that very instant...
GUNZ!!!
Quite frankly, I was shocked to see these souvenirs still offered. I would have bet good money that, in this day and age of virulent anti-gun sentiment, the cap gun display would either be missing altogether or relegated to a small handful of dusty old guns somewhere in the very back. Imagine my surprise stumbling across this one!
Notice the trigger finger discipline on TheBoy - I'm so proud of him I could burst...
G. Family "Portrait"
Yeah, I was foolin' around with the camera and took this shot, which I figured was a passable version of a family portrait, such as it was. We're going back today with the intention of getting a Disney photog to take our picture and do it right; but for now this is what we have...
Da Castle
And. of course, BabyGirl G.'s favorite sight in the Magic Kingdom, Cinderella's castle. When she saw this as we approached the park, her squeal of delight could be heard four states over... Even TheBoy seemed to be impressed with the way it loomed in the distance as we got closer to the actual park. He refrained from torturing his sister for five whole seconds because of it...
So tomorrow's Part II of our Magic Kingdom experience. Expect to hear more about the electric strollers for lardasses; and the latest teen trend in expressing your individuality by dressing exactly like everyone else...
That is all.
You're going to Florida...Seems fitting to do the "Top 10 Convertibles"
Sears Model 25
This is a Sears Model 25 semi-automatic, tubular magazine-fed .22LR rifle (it'll accept .22 short and .22 long as well, actually; this is somewhat rare with semi-automatic .22LR rifles). It was manufactured by Hi-Standard to be sold under the Sears brand, as was common before society went all batshit insane about attaching value judgements to inanimate objects and guns became evil...
This one's in pretty good shape; other than some dings in the stock it's in excellent shape. Functionally it works very well, especially since it hasn't been cleaned since Clinton was in office. It's got a 15 round magazine, and will put all of those rounds in a 3" circle at 25 feet firing as fast as it will go. While I don't recommend .22LR as a self-defense round, 15 rounds of .22LR put center mass in a few seconds' time will put a dent in any goblin's murderous plans...
She's not pretty, but she'll get the job done. Like pretty much all of the guns in the G. armory...
That is all.
THE Picture
Here's TheBoy and BabyGirl G. after the character breakfast with Mickey and Lilo & Stitch. Oh yeah, this was a good 'un...
New GOP member
Obligatory animal shot. Had to go with the obvious nod to the GOP's mascot, the elephant. In this case, I'll let the reader assume that the shot of the baby elephant is an allegory for Jay's fervent hope that the GOP sheds the old dinosaur ways and gives birth to a new GOP dedicated to personal freedom, individual liberty, and economic conservatism.
And while I'm dreaming, I'd like a pony...
End of a long, hot day
Yep. Florida's hot in June. It's even hotter when you spend the majority of the day outside in the direct sun, walking over five miles around an amusement park filled with people. Good shoes, a sturdy pack, and lots and lots of water saw us through the day...
That is all.
How about a post on why you carry?
TheBoy & Mike
Grrrrl Power!
Yes, that's Mike Yazowski of Monsters, Inc. with TheBoy and the Pink Power ranger with BabyGirl G.
Then it was time to gawk, especially at this vintage 1941 Cadillac Limosine:
TheBoy Hams It Up
We came across this limo and while I was trying to come up with a way to smuggle it out of the country, I joked with TheBoy that he ought to try the handle to see if they left the keys in it.
They didn't.
We had dinner at the 50s Prime Time Cafe, which was simply excellent. The atmosphere is down-home, literally; especially if your house hasn't been renovated since the 1950s... Our waitor was very good, getting into the swing of things (he asked TheBoy, returning from the bathroom, if he washed his hands. TheBoy answered in the affirmative, so our waitor asked what color the soap was... (and yes. TheBoy got it right...)
And they made BabyGirl G. a special birthday cupcake!
BabyGirl G's birthday is coming!
Not pictured are the Star Wars exhibit (very cool if you're a sci-fi geek and know the background characters well; the Indiana Jones stunt spectacular; or the Tower of Terror. All were excellent; I don't think Disney does *anything* halfway... Tomorrow we're off to the Animal Kingdom to see how Disney does zoos.
If you don't hear from me after tomorrow, I either got et or decided to make another condor egg omelette and got caught...
That is all.
"...I've always watched where I put my feet, and never fought when I could duck out... and when I did have to fight, I always fought dirty. If I had to fight, I wanted him to be dead instead of me. So I tried to arrange it that way."
Headin' into Epcot
Epcot is... well, Epcot. Opened in 1983, it was intended to be a more educational Disney, one that taught as much as entertained. They've added bits and pieces here and there, but much of it is just as I remembered from my childhood trip (interestingly enough, in 1983 when it opened). Some of the exhibits are dated, like the "Spaceship Earth" inside the giant golf ball - it's supposed to be a celebration of technological advances and human achievements, yet the very ending in allegedly modern times barely mentions the internet!
Had an interesting experience when I walked in the first day. I get through the bag check, start walking to join the rest of the family, when I get approached by two Disney employees. They're concerned about what's in my pocket, and ask to see my pocketknife. I had my Gerber paraframe clipped onto my pocket like I do every single day of my life (except Saturday when flying, of course). I pulled it out, said, "It's my pocketknife!", and was asked to keep it hidden and leave it home next time (yeah, right). They had badges, you see... Pffft.
The rides were a lot of fun, and there was not a single ride that we didn't all go on as a family - Epcot's fine for even a five year old girl. The environmental-themed rides and shows are preachy - annoyingly so - and made even worse by the smug hypocrisy of a corporation that makes billions upon billions marketing shiny plastic crap made in China lecturing me on recycling... Take advantage of the Fast Pass system - it allows you to get on the most popular ride within 10-15 minutes, rather than 60+.
And if you can manage it? Be there the same day as the Brazilian Dance Team's Annual outing...
Now, onto some pics. Here's the kids being silly:
Chomp!
Kill Da Wabbit! Kill Da WABBIT!
BabyGirl G. got to have dinner with the princesses:
Awwwwww...
And we got to see the closing fireworks display:
Pyrotechnical!
She Can Sing!
Heh. Sorry Brigid. As soon as I saw that on the giant jukebox at the hotel I knew I had to share it with the world...
That is all.
In the spirit of bikes and guns, what is the best way to carry firearms on a bike? Also, could you describe how to properly mount a pistol gripped shotgun on your hog?And that prolific commenter Anonymous asks:
Here's a few off the top of my head:- carrying on vacation: pros/cons, preparation, etc. - summer carry: clothing, holsters, things that work for you.- carrying while on the motorcycle (or bicycle for that matter): a how to and how its different.
Water Display in Orlando Airport
Pretty nice, huh?
Here's where teh stoopid comes in, though. These signs were posted all around the fountain:
A Closer Look
Yeah. "Wet Floor" signs surrounding a WATER DISPLAY. Ah, Florida. G-d's Waiting Room...
The UNusual Suspects
I had a phenomenal time despite the insane prices of Fulton's Crab House and the mediocre service (apparently when they know they've got a guaranteed 18% tip coming on an insanely overpriced meal they have little motivation to get the order right or deliver what you orders. Kinda like teacher's unions). This is a rather, ahem, spirited group, a motley collection of individualists, cranks, and curmudgeons the likes of which Central FLA hopes and prays will never again convene mid-state...
My kind of people, in other words.
It all started as I walked up to Fulton's after missing it the first time. Now, don't ask how I missed a giant, three-story steamboat-shaped restaurant, but I did... I recognized Greg first, because, well, I've seen his picture before and he was there with his wife Beth, and generally the females of the species have a greater aversion to going to meet random armed strangers in out-of-the-way venues. Go figure.
Mr. NoPants Himself
Robb freakin' Allen. Dude's shot with Caleb, Tam, and Todd effin' Jarrett. Designed the kickass banner for The Bredalucion. Right there, in living color. To meet... me?
Honored would be the understatement of the year.
He's as funny in person as he is in his blog, and that's saying a helluva lot. I naturally felt compelled to ratchet my own personal jackass joker up to 11, as usual... Jabs, barbs, and good natured ribbing were the order of the evening, along with a heaping helping of snark, sarcasm, and general bile piled on liberals, fools, and slow kitchen help... Let's leave it at this: at one point in the evening, Robb commented that he had to wait to make sure I wasn't talking before he felt safe taking a drink of anything, lest it exit his nostrils...
And the rest of the group were no slouches, either. Greg and Beth are charming, incredibly nice folks; Jay is larger-than-life and was pretty much exactly what I'd pictured. I'd never read McThag before, but he had us in stitches as he regaled us with stories of his misspent youth - like being detained for "impersonating an officer" because he drove a Ford Crown Vic and carried a Glock. And had a 6" spiked blue mohawk at the time. Plus he's just a handsome devil sporting that shaved head/goatee look that's so popular with all the bloggers these days...
Heh. That reminds me of one of the recurring jokes of the evening. Apparently this weekend was "Gay Days" at Disney - there were rainbow Mickey pins and red shirts everywhere in the greater Orlando area. Now, I've got nothing against homosexuals, but the whole "Hey, we want to be treated like everyone else, so here's a symbolic movement with the sole purpose of drawing as much attention to us as possible" scene escapes me). Throughout the night, someone would chime in at the end of an anecdote with "but only for this week" (or "just not this week") as the kicker...
Positive reviews of the meet (but not the venue; sounds like the March Blogmeet for AD) abound, so it appears a good time was had by all, or at least most. I know I had a great time, and my only regret is that I didn't have an entire day to spend where we could have hit the range for a bit, too... Maybe the next time I come to Disney?
Thanks again to everyone who was there, and a special thanks go to Robb for actually wearing pants...
That is all.
“Daddy?”
“Yeah buddy?”
“So far, this is the best day of my life”
'Cuz I'm 'a' leavin', on a jet plane...I figure one book on the flight down, one on the flight back and two over the week I'm down ought to tide me over. I got the two Heinlein books about a week ago, and have been chompin' at the bit to tear into the stories of Lazarus Long and Maureen Johnson. And I've wanted to read MHI forever (thanks Heath!)...
So, what other books do y'all recommend for light vacation reading?
That is all.
How about the top-ten worst cars that Baby G's first boyfriend might drive? Might be a cross between muscle cars and liberal pansymobiles :)
FIE Derringer
That's an FIE Derringer in .38 Special. It's one of of the pot metal wonders that Tam mentions in her comment to T-bolt's post, a true "Saturday night special" I picked up basically because I think derringers are neat and this functioning handgun was actually cheaper than a replica. And there's no truth to the rumor that I picked it up because Elvis was known to have carried an FIE derringer...
It's woefully inaccurate (like you're lucky if both shots stay on a silhouette target at 25'); surprisingly heavy for its size; only takes standard .38 Special (no +P in this gun unless you want to imitate a grenade...); basically, there are dozens if not hundreds of other guns that do what this gun is intended to do much better...
But y'know what? I think it's kinda cool.(CNN) -- President Obama delivered his long-awaited and wide-ranging speech Thursday on American and Muslim relations, offering a hand of friendship to Islam and addressing an array of quandaries and conflicts dividing the two cultures.
Jay;
It came- My C&R licence arrived in the mail today- wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo hooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
What to buy first??!!!
Richard
Congrats Richard!
As to what to buy first, I'd recommend starting with any and all C&R eligible semi-autos:
SKS rifles
CZ-82
CZ-52
CZ-70 (some places don't consider them C&R. others do)
Browning Hi-Powers (although most places want more than is prudent owing to historical significance. This goes for Colt 1911s too).
For other firearms, I'd go with classic rifles first:
Mauser K98
Schmidt Rubin K31
Springfield 1903
Any of the Enfields
Hey, with your permission I'd like to turn this into a blog post. I have a feeling my cruffler readers might have some suggestions too!
Best regards,
Jay G.
MArooned
PLYMOUTH - It was supposed to be a solemn day. Scores of veterans and friends had gathered yesterday afternoon at a scenic overlook at Plymouth Harbor for a ceremony welcoming a traveling war memorial, when an elderly woman lost control of her minivan, jumped a curb, and plowed into the crowd.
At least seven people were brought to Jordan Hospital for treatment for bruises and chest pains, among other conditions. Police said none of the injuries were life-threatening, and the car was not traveling fast. But the incident was the second in as many days involving an elderly driver losing control of a car, terrifying a crowd of people.
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (CNN) -- A Brazilian supreme court judge on Tuesday suspended a lower court's order that would have given custody of a 9-year-old boy to the U.S. Consulate in Rio de Janeiro, where he was to be reunited with his American father.As opposed to the perfectly normal manner in which his mother took him from his father and fled to Brazil, right Judge? This is insanity, plain and simple. The boy was kidnapped by his mother; taken out of the country away from his father; and held in a foreign land against his father's wishes. The mother died last year, leaving the boy with the man who his mother left his father for in the first place; the man who will now be his guardian.
David Goldman has been fighting for custody of his son, Sean, since the boy's mother took him to Brazil in 2004.
Judge Marco Aurelio argued against taking Sean Richard Goldman from what has been his home for almost five years to the United States "in an abrupt manner."
The odds that a local police officer in Massachusetts has access to a military-grade assault rifle, whether in the trunk of a cruiser or at a police station, are far stronger than authorities have previously revealed.
Some 82 cities and towns across the Commonwealth have introduced a total of 1,057 such rifles to their arsenals over the last decade, state public safety officials confirmed yesterday, many of them acquired in recent years in response to the fear of terrorist attacks.
"The very fact community police are being equipped with semi-automatic weapons without a public discussion of the possible political and social implications is unfortunately a major step backwards in terms of Massachusetts' national reputation for promoting progressive law enforcement strategy," said the Rev. Eugene Rivers, pastor of the Azusa Christian Community and co-founder of the Boston Ten-Point Coalition.
An elderly driver slammed his car into a Wal-Mart in Danvers Tuesday morning, hitting a mother and her child.
The 93-year-old driver, Louis Vesprini of Danvers, and his 90-year-old wife were in their Toyota Camry when it plowed through the front of the store and hit the woman and her 1-year-old girl.
One function of the second amendment is to prevent the national government from interfering with state militias.
PARIS, France (CNN) -- The jet carrying 228 people from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that disappeared overnight as it entered an area of strong turbulence probably crashed into the Atlantic Ocean, the CEO of Air France said Monday.
The first three hours of what was to have been an 11-hour flight appear to have been uneventful, CEO Pierre-Henri Gourgeon said.
But about 4:15 a.m. Paris time, Flight 447's automatic system began a four-minute exchange of messages to the company's maintenance computers, indicating that "several pieces of aircraft equipment were at fault or had broken down," he said.
Charges brought against three members of the New Black Panther Party for Self-Defense under the Bush administration have been dropped by the Obama Justice Department, FOX News has learned.
The charges stemmed from an incident at a Philadelphia polling place on Election Day 2008 when three members of the party were accused of trying to threaten voters and block poll and campaign workers by the threat of force -- one even brandishing what prosecutors call a deadly weapon.
Around midnight on June 20, 1944, a military transport en route from England to Washington, D.C., took on fuel in Newfoundland, and then roared off into the darkness and vanished before first light.
The Douglas C-54A Skymaster went missing with a crew of six and one star-crossed hitchhiker, an Army Air Forces sergeant trying to get home on leave.
Were it not for some astute detective work, Flight 277 might not have been found for years. It had crashed 70 miles off course, in Maine, on one of the most inaccessible wilderness mountains in the East.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors, the nation's largest automaker and for decades an icon of American manufacturing, stood on the brink of a bankruptcy filing and a de facto government takeover on Monday.Somebody remind me again how many billions of taxpayer dollars we shoveled into the steamroom of this Titanic because it was "too big to fail"?
A bankruptcy petition will be filed at 8 a.m., according to a source with direct knowledge of the bankruptcy proceedings.
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