A Special Place in HELL

Is reserved for the two subhumans who committed this heinous act.

To gun down a Salvation Army volunteer in front of his children on Christmas Eve is about as low as you can get.

I thought I would get through Christmas without a rant but made the mistake of glancing at the news just to see if anything earth shattering had happened in the rest of the world.

Guten Tag

Have to make a shout out to whoever is visiting from 1&1 Internet AG in Karlsruhe Germany.

Been there and have the T-Shirt. I used to work for a German company headquartered just North East of Karlsruhe. Made a few trips over and had a good time each. Made some good friends in a few places over there as well. I've driven the Rhine on both sides and gone all the way down through the Black Forest and up into the mountains. There really is much to see in this area of Europe. One of these years I may even come up with the funds to convince misbeHaven to make a trip over for holiday.

It doesn't hurt that I like wine more than I like beer. This is definitely the right place to visit. The beer is great and the wine is even better. For those of you in Texas, one of the family wineries in the small town where I worked is owned by the Pfluger family and happens to be the area where the Pfluger family that founded Pflugerville TX came from. I still have a couple bottles of Sternefels Koenig wine from the Pfluger Family Winery that I brought back from one of my trips.

I hope you are having a Merry Christmas and that you'll check back occasionally.

Mit besten Grüßen,

TXGunGeek

Merry Christmas

So, this morning started with more winds and 29 degrees. Once it got above freezing misbeHaven and I took a walk around the fence line and property checking out all the things we haven't gotten done and have on our plate for the new year. It's an impressive list to say the least. Also found more trash left over from previous owners deep in the woods at our property line creek bed. We also surveyed the damage (downed trees) from yesterdays winds. Gonna have to get the chain saw out to cut the one over the cemetery fence.

While misbeHaven was cooking dinner, I went out to fix fence lines that we had identified this morning. First I had to chase the older calf back onto our place before fixing the fence on the west pasture. Then came the inevitable phone call, "Uh, hon, can you stop cooking and get in your truck and come pull me out? Where? South pasture, east end by the tank, I pulled too far forward into a swampy area from the rains yesterday and now I can't get loose, even in 4WD." Rather than spinning and digging I just made the call and waited. Popped right out and we were off. Dinner would be ready in 15 minutes anyway and that was the last fence repair for today. Eventually we have to rip the entire west fence line out and replace it but it is not this day.

I won't comment about dinner dress other than to say we didn't dress up. I had to take my boots off because of the mud and the other brown mushy substance, not mud, picked up out in the pasture.

Now we are waiting for the pumpkin pie to finish baking and we'll have desert. What a great day!

A Mighty Winds A Blowin

Merry Christmas Eve everyone.
It started early this morning as the weather station alarm started going off intermittently at 03:30 indicating that there were wind gusts above 35MPH. The alarm went solid at about 03:45 indicating that the 10 minute average wind speed was over 25MPH. The wind has been blowing on and off all day but we just had a 48MPH gust!!!! More important is that the weather station head is mounted 10 feet off the ground in between the trees behind the house. So this wind speed equals what the House/Barn/Shop/Trucks/Cows sees, not what is up above the tops of the trees. I would be curious/scared to know what the wind is doing up above the tree tops in unobstructed air.

This follows the Tornado Watch that we were under most of yesterday.

Gotta Love It.

Have a Safe and Merry Christmas Folks.

More to follow in between chores next week.

Jupiter and its moons

This evening, after a trip to the range, our friend Chimera brought his camera and telescope out to the ranch and set up in our west pasture. Of all that we could see and that he got pictures of, Jupiter and moons was an awesome shot. Unfortunately the adapter from Camera to Telescope was not ironed out so this picture is with his long lens (720mm).

Truth in TV News

ABOUT GUNS!

Backstory: There has been a serial rapist targeting elderly women living alone in small communites in east central Texas. Three attacks ago he ran into an armed would be victim. Since then he has changed tack and gone after women in assisted living homes and the news actually reported that the speculation among law enforcement is that he made the change to go where victims would be less likely to be armed.

Victim disarmament zones strike again. But at least the news is giving honest coverage to this story and the thought process behind it.

On a slightly related note, local PD's and community centers are offering self defense classes / seminars for the elderly in the area. They are covering awareness and such similar to NRA"s Refuse to be a Victim and they are teaching brief sessions on pressure point defensive moves. Sorry but I don't see that last part as helpful. As misbeHaven can point out, when she was practicing pressure point holds with a friend who is big into Akido, she had his wrist cranked pretty severely and he was standing there smiling saying, "that's very good." When she gave up in disgust at it having no effect on him he replied that it was a good hold and it did hurt but it was just pain. That right there underlines the issue with pain induced compliance, the receiving party has to actually be motivated by pain in the first part for this to work. Second problem with this is it only works when you are in intimate contact and you have the skills and strength to apply the techniques properly. Not something that is developed in a couple hours in a mass setting.

Just my NSHO.

How Stupid are UC Berkley Students?

They took over a number of classrooms to protest fee increases and funding cuts. The cops got tired of waiting and decided to raid the place and arrest trespassers f0r trespassing. Their drug clouded Californite reaction?

"Student protesters said they were caught off-guard by the raid and complained the police had not warned them."

That right there is the money quote!

Overheard at Breakfast

"...... Inbread Six Toed Mouthbreathers on crack. They're everywhere."

This was actually Tuesday morning at IHOP. Table of mature LEO's havong breakfast and discussing all kinds of stuff. Not really sure what preceded this comment but it really caught my attention. I was looking for the zombies almost immidiately.

We are Certifiable

Whew, that's finally over. Shot this morning, at least it was warmer than the weather channel predicted. Still it was cold windy and drizzly.
Still shot well, finished the shooting and got back to the hotel for class. Went through the changes to the CHL law and review some of the usual stuff.
Sat next to a guy with an Aggie ring on, he asked where I worked, turns out he's a '71 Aero grad who did some testing in the wind tunnel back when he was a student.

Anyway, we passed all and got our certificates. And now the Mrs is sick. Seems like she shoots better when she is sick.

In the Darkest Depths of Mordor

The Wife and I checked into a hotel.
OK, so it doesn't quite have the right ring to it.

We made our semi-annual pilgrimage to Austin to the Texas DPS (State Police) Academy for our CHL Instructor renewal class. We start at 07:30 on the range and the weather channel predicts 34F with a wind chill of 32F with light rain and drizzle. Yea!

Should make for an interesting range session. At least on the way we stopped by the A-Zone for a tune up and to make sure the factory ammo we got functions reliably in our guns. DPS does not allow use of reloads or even non mainstream factory ammo on their range. Interestingly, a friend went through class last week and his XD would not function with the Winchester WhiteBox ammo he got his hands on. It's 100% with UMC and with Defensive ammo. Must be a batch of hard primers in this ammo. I have Win WhiteBox as well but my XD functions with it and the Mrs' Kimber is 100% with her WWB ammo. The Remington .38Spc ammo we have left over from last time we did this and it functions in both our revos so we're covered for that portion of the shooting tests as well.

I will say I am not happy with my shooting. I've spent so much time teaching lately, I haven't practiced as much as I should. I'm shooting well enough to pass and probably will shoot a 250/250 but I still don't like how I am shooting. The Mrs and I have made a pact to practice more and drive each other to get back to where we should be.

As for Austin, After spending my formative years in and around Austin, I really don't like it here any more. It is not the town I grew up in. It feels more like Dallas or Houston than Austin. Add the resident fruit cakes trying to make it a Communist Paradise and you have someplace I'm glad I don't live anymore.

There are some things you just don't do... UPDATE

... if you have any conscience. Or any shame.

One of them is tell a Medal of Honor recipient that he has to take down his flag.

The members of that HOA board are not worthy of the honor of wiping mud from this man's shoes. They should grovel at his feet and beg his forgiveness.

(H/T Marco )

EDITED TO ADD: Apparently the HOA board members do have consciences after all.

Oh the weather outside is....

Overheard at the casa this morning...

Me: Hmmm... light jacket with hood, or heavier jacket without hood?

TGG: I'm wearing both.

Me: But I'm already wearing 4 layers.

Now for most folks in the Lone Star State, a 38-degree low temp and the threat of impending snow may make the above conversation seem completely reasonable. But I grew up in cold country, where the above mentioned low temp might have a minus sign behind it occasionally. So the realization that those words were actually coming out of my mouth was kinda like experiencing an alternate universe.

Apparently resistance is futile and I am being assimilated.

More TV Stupidity

One last item for today. About the show Weapon Masters. Basically an older gent brings up an idea about some weaponry, new age guy tinkerer has to design a better way to demonstrate it. Thodays show started talking about dueling and black powder guns. Old guy on lower porch and new age guy on upstairs porch. Old guy shoos off flint lock pistol, puts it in basket that new age guy lifts up to his porch by rope. Cycle continues with old guy shooting percussion pistol then pulls out 45 Colt single action. All this happens with no hearing protection or eye protection! After new age moron fires 45 Colt he turns to the camera and remarks at how much louder it is than the black powder guns!

DUH!

Episode moves forward as a duel challenge. Old guy shooting basic flintlock pistol and new age guy builds electrically ignited black powder pistol. When building the new pistol, guy takes the gun out for test firing and wears a welders hood when he first fires it. Then as they test fire it a few more times, the guy has safety glasses on and hearing protection AROUND HIS NECK. I may only have gotten basic Anatomy and Physiology required when I got my first EMT-Basic certification 27 years ago but last time I checked, your ears are not on your neck. They show repeated firing of the gun with the guy wearing the welding hood or not but the hearing proteciton is never actually you know on his ears when the gun goes bang. Whether he is shooting or watching.

How do morons like this get TV shows?

Oh well, if I get a decent nights sleep and don't feel any worse for the wear tomorrow morning, I'm going back to work and will be spared another day of this. Unfortunately, my concentration level just hasn't been there. I still have half of Spartan Gold and all of The Wrecker (both Clive Cusslers latest) or The Complete Infidels Guide to the Koran and Muslim Mafia on the "To be read" shelf. Besides, I could reread MHI again. It really is that good. I just can't keep my head in the game long enough. Mindless TV can run and if I doze off it's no big loss when I wake up to a different program. At least the cat keeps up with it and let's me know if I ned to change the channel.

More Gun Snobbery

So, in a lucid moment today I'm watching the History Channel. Special on the development of the M-16.
The first 10 minutes is replay of their special on the North Hollywood Shootout. Interviews with SWAT members involved and video of live news interspersed with re--en-actors and commentary. So, one of the three SWAT guys who took the final guy down is babbling about their armament and comments, they had AK's with Armor Piercing Ammo, "This stuff was designed to penetrate a tank, it will go right through a car." What a load of not even bovine excrement! There is NOTHING that can come out of the barrel of an AK that will penetrate even the lightest armored Tank on the battlefield since the AK was invented. Maybe an APC, in a visor, on a bad day, during a full moon, NOT A TANK!

Then the actors must have had some really good training because they showed footage of the actual robbery then cut away to an actor dressed as LAPD, (God I hope it was an actor) holding his M9 in his right hand with his left thumb over the top of his right wrist. I know LAPD does not teach this.

Anyway, I need some serious decongestants, cough syrup and a nap.

Gun Snobbery

Well, I'm home fighting a variety of germs at the moment.

In my more alert moments I've watched some TV and came across a prime example of why everything you see and hear on TV is wrong.

On the Military Channel there is a hsow called Secret Warriors where a former SAS goober goes to spend time with various Law Enforcement Agency elite forces across the world. The show I caught the start of was with forces in Kazakhstan. The goober was presented a handgun by the head of this force and he turns to the camera and explains;

"this is the CZ-75, it's the revolver they use in the XXX force because it takes a 13 round clip"

That is when I changed the channel and soon went back to bed. I just couldn't watch any more.

Remember, everytime you call a magazine a clip, a Gun Angel DIES! I'm not sure what happens when you call a Semi Auto a Revolver because that's just stupid.

Rule #2

Double Tap


That is all.
Oh Yeah, Zombieland RAWKS!!!!!!

The Great Primer Shortage of '09 - The Return

Talked to the FIL about primers. A few months ago I wrote that he had gone to a gun show in MT and there was a vendor from CA selling primers by the flat (5000). We pretty much decided at that point that the run on ammo and components really was coming to a conclusion and supply lines were starting to flow again.

Last weekend he went to the show again and the same vendor was there. This time selling only by the brick (1000) and even though he was part of the initial crowd in the door, they only had 3000 Large Pistol primers.

It would seem that the Governator signing the absolutely insane ammo and accessories restrictions / regulation in CA has started another run on ammo and components. CA shooters stocking up before the ban takes effect and makes getting ammo a huge pain in the rear in CA. I am sure the black market ammo pipeline will blossom soon. Unfortunately, this run by CA shooters is making it hard on teh rest of the country again. I just hope people all over don't think this is another EOTWaWKi and start another run on ammo and components nation wide.

I suspect as many others do, that the next step will be to crack down on "Illicit Ammo Manufacturers" as reloaders will be referred to soon.

If you can't ban the guns, ban the ammo.

Continued Red LIght Camera Stupidity

I covered the vote and lawsuit filed to keep the red light cameras going here in my previous post. Last night the city council voted unanimously to terminate the contract with ATS and have the City Manager give the required 60 day notice. So, regardless of the outcome of the lawsuit, the cameras are going away.

But Geek. you say, how can that be a bad thing?

The lawyer for the two "Concerned Citizens" who filed the suit made a statement after the city council meeting that the lawsuit is continuing because there are bigger issues at stake. His reasoning was that if someone got a ticket for speeding or turning left on a red light, they could just file a petition to have that part of city code invalidated.

WHAT. AN. IDIOT!

1) Running a red light is a violation of the Texas Motor Vehicle Code. Not a city ordinance.
2) The issuance of a civil violation from camera footage is in city code but the majority of voters said NO MORE!
3) Speeding and turning left on a red light (running a red light) is also a violation of Texas Motor Vehicle Code. No citizen petition putting a vote in a city election will invalidate these.

Red Light Camera Rant

So, many months ago, the city of College Station decided to install red light cameras. Much controversy followed. Administered by American Traffic Solutions the city got a portion of the extortion collected in return for letting ATS thugs terrorize citizens and visitors alike. The intersections chosen for the cameras where not the ones with the highest rates of red light related collisions but were high traffic areas.

During the last legislative session, the Texas Leg sought to ban them from the state. Part of the proposed legislation was that existing systems were grandfathered in for the length of their existing contracts. City of CS signed a new contract with ATS for not only an extended period but for more cameras as well.

Citizens rise up and a petition is organized. They guy behind it got a lawyer to write up the petition based on the city charter to make sure it would be legal and cross all the T's and dot all the I's. In only a few days there were more than enough signatures to force the issue on the ballot.

City lawyers rewrite the wording of the petition for the ballot to rename it a referendum. According to city charter, a referendum on a new law MUST be filed withing 60 days of the new law taking effect. The petition was specifically worded to be a ballot initiative not a referendum to prevent this argument. The city was called on this and the wording was changed back to what it was supposed to be according to the petition.

Election is held and as has been held in every other location where red light cameras have come up for a public vote, the initiative passed banning red light cameras.

Did I mention the the
Keep our streets safe PAC" was totally funded by ATS? Or that the coalition to ban the cameras was completely funded by local concerned citizens?

So, when the cameras where supposed to be turned off yesterday, they weren't! Two concerned citizens filed suit in district court to nullify the election based on it being a referendum and beyond 60 days and got a temporary restraining order preventing the city from turning the cameras off. The city attorney only half halfheartedly presented any kind of defense to the suit and the attorney for the petition organizer had to pick up the slack.

If I didn't know any better, I would say the city doesn't want to give up the cameras and is doing everything they can to force them on the people despite the majority who voted to take them down.

We won't even get into the lack of right to appeal the citations or the efficacy of red light camera's in general.

The sheer gall of the city council to thwart the will of the people at every turn and do all they can to subvert the effort to remove these cameras and keep the revenue stream open to ATS and the City.

Figured I'd add a link to one of the local reports about this.
As well as the local bird cage liner.

My very own Ft Hood Rant

I'll keep this simple. There were warning signs all over the shooter and the Army ignored them. Maybe for political correctness maybe out of incompetence. How do you get promoted after poor reviews and being ordered to counseling for anti war/Army/US rantings?

The money quote though is from an Spc who worked at the center.

"Overseas you are ready for it. But here you can't even defend yourself."

That right there covers it all. We trust these fine men and women to defend our country and to help bring freedom and democracy to the rest of the world, but we don't trust them with the same tools to protect themselves here at home?

Maybe I'm just a stupid redneck bitterly clinging to my God and Guns but there is much about this whole situation that I just can't seem to understand.

More Road Rants

Maybe I'm a bit of a fuddy duddy but,

When it is lightly raining out and the speed limit on the road is 65, I shouldn't have pretty much everyone passing me as I do 70 in the slow lane.

That might explain why in a 20 mile commute from hotel to class, I saw no less than 6 wrecks. 2 bad enough to block more than 1 lane and require ambulances. I just don't get it.

Observations from the road

Traveling today afforded me the opportunity to people watch and generally get out in public. At DFW airport I stopped for a bite to eat between flights and boy are some people assholes! The guy in front of me at the sandwich shop went off on the counter help because he didn't feel they put enough fixin's on the sandwich. I mean went off to the point of the poor woman behind the counter excused herself from the line and went in the back to compose herself. This guy was just being an ASS. No politeness or common courtesy at all.

Do people not realize they are traveling? I'm sorry women but even though you may look good in high heels, like in serious spikes, if you are traveling and have to catch a connecting flight in a massive airport complex while lugging a massive purse, backpack and rolling bag, maybe you should consider shoes that are made for walking. And when you slip while trying to wear heels and run to catch a flight, do not blame the airport floor for causing you to fall.

TSA exists and has for a while. The procedures are pretty standard and suggestions are available form all over. Don't wear clothes and accessories loaded with metal the make you have to practically disrobe to get through and complain that the line is taking too long and moving too slow.

Enough ranting for tonight. Must find restaurant and kill food.

On the Road Again.......

Got word late yesterday that I am headed to Raleigh NC for training. Like Now!

Gonna miss this weekends classes, fortunately there are enough instructors that I can slide and the class will still go on. Should be perfect weather like it was last weekend so everyone should have a good time. Just hate to miss out. I really do enjoy seeing shooters progress and learn new skills. Especially the smiles on their face when it finally hits them the difference between arrival performance and that during later parts of class.

So, any dining suggestions for the Raleigh area?

Range Weekend AAR

Saturday was a long day, started with Basic Pistol 2 at 9AM, Defensive Pistol Skills 1 in the middle and ended with Introduction to Low Light / Night Shooting at 9:30PM. For me that meant leaving the house at 6:30A and getting home around midnight. The cats were not terribly happy.

Long but good day. Lots of new people and a few actually learned something. Really everyone said they had a good time and learned so it was a great day. Saw a few people who made it to the end of the day much improved. That is the goal after all, get better. A few learned that the gun they had was not really the right gun for them. Now they know how their gear works under lots of stress and how they work under stress. Even the scenario force on force drills at night went well. Everyone already got the message that if there is nothing in there worth dieing for, Don't go there! They still got to learn why trying to clear a house at night just flat sucks. Especially if you are trying to do it alone.

Ah what a day

The Anointed one has decided to grace us back woods inbred rednecks with a visit so things around here are a bit weird. USSS has been in town for a few days checking things out and informing us of the modified schedules that we are going to have to work around. WOOOOHOOOO, leave work early today!

I do not envy the USSS officers their duties. With the current climate of resentment towards the Socialist agenda that BHO is pushing and this being one of the last bastions of conservative secondary education, their job is tough. I will say they very much appear to have their act together. I have the greatest respect for the men and women who serve on the presidential detail as well as all the local agents that have been brought in to compliment their ranks. They are definitely professionals doing a tough job.

On the aircraft front, while having a C-17 come in is an awesome sight, there is nothing like the feeling of a flight of heavy Helo's coming in together. During preparations for this visit, a group of Marine Helo's came through to check the area out and deliver people/stuff. When the ground shakes and the building rattles and you can feel the pounding in your chest, there is definitely some work being done by the Helo's to try and beat the air around them into submission. I would have posted pictures but the USSS folks asked us not to be taking pictures when we came out to watch them approaching. Sorry. Besides, pictures are no where near as impressive as the feeling!

Just Flew In

And boy are my arms tired!

Spent a couple days at a customers facility going over equipment for an upcoming test. Fun to get away for a couple days. Much better than living on the road like I used to.

Hectic at work now and going to get busier for the rest of the year. What a problem to have in this economy.

D Movie Review

Friday the mailbox had a package of video love from Amazon in it. Actually it was from a reseller through Amazon but still Video Love.

It had all the essential elements of a bad scifi movie;

Busload of blind Orphans? Check
Bus breaks down in middle of nowhere? Check
Small mining town in middle of nowhere? Check
Abandoned uranium mine just outside town? Check
Evil Mortician who is actually failed government scientist? Check
Midget morticians assistant? Check
Mortician makes dead townspeople into Zombies? Check
Renegade biker gang led by a lesbian on the road into town? Check
Newest member of gang happens to have been Homecoming Queen in this small town? Check
Cue the hilarity,
Zombies break out of mine where mortician is keeping them and terrorize town.
Small town hicks are already up in arms against the biker gang. Zombies arrive and townspeople can't "kill" them because they're family. Bikers have to save town and blind orphans. Homecoming Queen hooks up with husband she ran out on. (Billy Bob Thornton in his first movie). "Cycle Sluts" save the town, mortician gets attacked by zombie, midget takes care of the kids. Oh Yeah, Martha Quin gets killed by the zombies in the middle of all that!

That's Right; "Chopper Chicks in Zombie Town"!

Takes me back to Dobie Screens on UT Campus more years ago than I care to admit.

Brought to you by Troma, the folks who brought you Toxic Avenger and Teenage Catgirls in Heat as well as other horror classics.

Definitely a must see for folks who like really bad movies.

Random Aircraft Sightings

Never know what's going to pop in for lunch around here. Two of these guys dropped in for some FreeBirds. Kinda cool when the customer comes in to tell you and leads the way to go have a look!

Welcome Treasury Department, AGAIN

Welcome back! Times have been a bit nuts around here. We are running up to 16 hour days and on weekends through next year at work. So, I haven't been as attentive to the blog as I should have. Evidently the Treas.gov has been though. They stopped by to visit this old post on P-Mg Mag Clips. Being Treasury, I have to wonder, how does the BATF&E show up now a days? Do they still show up as Treas or DOJ?

What a Day for a Funeral

It's September 11, 2009, On this most hallowed of days,

Army 2nd Lt. Darryn D. Andrews body was flown in today on his way home to Cameron. Lt Andrews was killed Friday in Paktia province, Afghanistan when his vehicle was hit by an IED and then attacked by RPG's. His 2YO son celebrated his birthday Monday and his wife is due to deliver their second soon.

It was a somber thing to see the Army Honor Guard, the Patriot Guard Riders and a host of local ad state law enforcement officers receive his body along with his family and friends. The Airport Fire Station emptied as the Firemen stood at attention while the procession passed.

Sorry, I just couldn't bring myself to take pictures.

Political and Personal Causes

Joe Huffman hits one out of the park concerning the Civil Rights arguments and violent reaction to infringement of those rights and successfully ties that in to armed self defense. It is more than worth the read.
Draw you line in the sand and stick to it.
The money quote from John Clifford is;
"When you draw your gun is far more important than how fast you draw it."

I couldn't agree more with this quote or with the rest of the article. GO READ IT NOW!

Unfortunate headline but Wise Words

Sebastion has the skinny on the headline. But the article is well worth reading. Towards the end of it Sheriff Brad Steube steps in with this;

Steube also pleaded for parents to help in the fight against guns and drugs, saying law enforcement can react to crime but cannot instill morals in those willing to take a life. “I am upset. I am mad. I want the community to step up,” Steube said.

County Commissioner Gwen Brown also jumped into the fray with these words;

Commissioner Brown also pushed for parents to get involved in their children’s lives, a step that may save a life as the homicide rate in Manatee County has reached an all-time high.

Here is a tragic death of a teenager and very unusually the adults involved are stepping up and talking sense about what needs to be happening to address the issue rather than calling for more laws that are already being broken.

Quote of the Day

"Jews are not like Christians," Moscowitz said. "If I turn my cheek, I'm coming around to make a kick."

Stolen from Top of the Chain's post

Mazel-tough

quoting Rabbi Gary Moscowitz about reactions to violence in houses of worship. I am so with him there!

Mom's Out

So, my sisters sprung my Mom from the hospital today. She is at a point where she can maintain adequate O2 Saturation without oxygen and the Pneumonia is on it's way out. She is also now on additional medications for her heart.

Bottom Line: She's out and not in immediate danger. Good thins do happen.

Thanks to those who offered prayers for her and the family!

Moms and Giant Rabbits

So, Mom's condition has gotten worse. We shall see what the next few days bring. Here's a little reason why I write this. Back when I was in 6th grade and was sick, mom took me to the doctor.
On the way home there was this guy with an old plate camera and darkbox to develop film in in front of the DQ along with a giant rabbit. So, we stopped for ice cream and pictures. We found this picture when we were cleaning out the family house when we had to move her to assisted living. I've been carrying this picture with me every day since. It's a reminder of who she is and why I am who I am.

Blogroll Additions

So, I have a couple blogroll additions.

Top of the Chain, A man with opposeable thumbs

and

Keep Texas Zombie Free

TotCh left a nice comment and led me on through the rabbit hole to KTZF. Gotta say I like the way these guys think.

The inmates are running the asylum

So, I'm in Austin visiting and on the news this morning was a report that the Austin Fire Chief had ordered that Fire Engines responding to emergencies could not exceed the speed limit and must come to a complete stop at all intersections. The firefighters union was fighting this and had won some concessions. Is this person INSANE? Their reasoning is that, it is for the safety of the public to prevent accidents while responding to emergencies. I will admit that this does happen but it is a rare thing. Most emergency vehicle operators follow state law which requires that they exercise due regard when running code. Most are even better than that and are actively looking for the idiots out there who are too self absorbed to be bothered to move out of the way safely. While there are some exceptions and collisions do occur due to the EVO not paying adequate attention or more likely some dumbass not yeilding when they should because they are more important that anything the emergency vehicle may be up to, the answer is not to make the emergency vehicles slow down and stop.

This would be like banning lawful gun ownership because someone may have an accident with them or some dumbass does something stupid and shoots someone else.

Oh, wait, never mind.

It would be like modifying cops guns to have stupid heavy trigger pulls like the old double action revolvers they used to carry instead of training the officers to keep their finger off the trigger till they are ready to shoot.

Oh, wait, never mind.

Todays mini rant brought to you by the words "dumbass" and "oh, wait, never mind."

Having operated emergency vehicles, namely Fire Engines and Ambulances, since 1980, I can say with all authority that this has got to be one of the stupidest over reactions I have ever run across. Austin Fire is staffed with some of the most professional and safest operators out there and they have a very good program of training new operators so the idea that they have to limit them in their response to "protect the public" is just insane.

Of People Past and History

12 years ago this week, my Mom called me in the middle of the night to tell me that they just admitted my Dad to ICU. Colon Cancer caught too late and Chemo had torn him up. He passed that morning. My sister just called to say they were admitting my Mom to ICU. Stupid high fever and low O2 Sat of unknown cause. This is not good Deja vu. Gotta go home and pack.

FRIDAY AM UPDATE:
Drove over this morning. She's still in PCU/Isolation. Double Pneumonia with another currently unknown infection. They're doing all kinds of bloodwork to try and identify. Meanwhile, she's resting and we are sitting around in gowns and gloves waiting.

SATURDAY AM UPDATE:
So, Isolation is over. They are no longer worried that she is infectious. It is amazing what two days of O2, IV Antibiotics and Steroids can do for someone. She's still not anywhere near getting out but not anywhere near critical either. More tests and x-rays and we'll see how today goes.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON:
One step forward two steps back. She regressed last night and they are trying to get a line started again. SubClavian or a PIC since normal sticks are just blowing out. Main reason they really want to get this line established is that they are now working on Congestive Heart Failure! Cardiologist should be in in the morning when they do an echo cardiogram. I probably should not have left and come back home.

Range Goodness

Yesterday was Beyond the Basics. As an added treat, we had Dave Re of DR Performance (IPSC Grand Master) out to help. He brought along with him some of his poker card practice decks. This is a set of playing cards that have practice drills on them so you can randomly select drills to work on. That way you do not focus too much on stuff you are good at and avoid stuff you should really be practicing. It also adds some randomness to your practice to make it more interesting and help you learn and ingrain skills better. I picked up a set and have looked through them but have not had a chance to go out and practice with them yet. Give m a break I just got them yesterday after teaching all day. I have to say I am looking forward to going out and trying them. The drills look interesting and simple enough to setup and may even help get me back into competing instead of just teaching.

We shall see ..............

Random Aircraft Sightings

So, at lunchtime this beautiful YAK 18 showed up at the airport. At quitting time they were moving it and tying it down for the night. My cell phone picture does not do it justice. Especially the paint. This thing glows!

Hold the Pig Steady - Part DUEX

So, it has been asked about what is inappropriate and to whom. Well, the short answer is me! No overt hate racism, rape, anti-cop, etc., is the road I will not let this go down.

There are some good entries and another on the way. Can't wait to see what else pops up.

So, go there and put in your entry. Even if it is not a complete song but just a few lines. Play off something someone else has already started and carry on with an idea or thread.

Monster Hunter International

Just to let y'all know, I am a huge fan of not only MHI but Larry's past writings on THR. MHI is definitely in the top tier of my book collection. To qualify that last statement, here is a picture of one of the five bookshelves in the library at casa de gungeek. Yes that is a Monster book of Monsters on the shelf above the MHI books. It's misbeHaven's!

So, if you haven't already, GO BUY THE BOOK! This is one story that will suck you in and not let go till you are through it. Then it will beckon you back when you least expect it. If you want an autographed copy, go to Larry's site and order one from him directly.

Hold the Pig Steady

In honor of Larry Correia and the published release of Monster Hunter International, with Larry's blessing, I am having a contest to write the words to "Hold the Pig Steady". Prizes to include, Eternal Glory and MHI Lore Fame. A group effort may work as people can feed off each others creative juices. So, run free in comments and let's have a good time with this. I have a band lined up to perform the song as well as composers for the music, just need words. Larry has final rights to approve the finished product so it needs to kick in the end.

ROCK ON!

EDIT TO UPDATE:
If you think the voices in your head are telling you to write something that might be inappropriate, send them to me directly. john at krtraining dot com and I will have a look. Anything in comments that IS inappropriate will get deleted.

UPDATED UPDATE:
see part DUEX for more on the inappropriate.

Evacuation Orders

Well, there is a chemical fire north of town and the evacuation orders keep expanding south. While they haven't reached us yet, the border is the north limit of the airport grounds and the designated shelter is on the primary route home. So, I'm bugging out early and taking alternate route that goes south first. Wheeeeeeee. misbeHaven is supposed to be driving to Austin this evening which means driving west on Hwy21. Which is where the fire is and the road is CLOSED. Not going tonight even by an alternate route.

UPDATE: The entire city of Bryan TX is under an evacuation order and the cloud is drifting south into College Station. 10 people in hospital so far and we shall see where things go. Fortunately we are far enough out of town that it should not be an issue for us here at Casa de Geek.

Called a friend earlier that works out by the chemical plant that is burning and lives in the evacuation zone. He's in Vegas at a conference!

The entire county is mobilized and the decision is to let it burn. They can't get people in to fight it because of the chemicals involved and the location so they are waiting it out and letting the plant burn. Have to wait and see how long this drags on. University may be closed tomorrow from the way they are talking on the TV at the moment.

Serious Dweeb Geek Humor

So, in searching for a Laser Surface Deflection Measurement Device at work, I came across this publication titled Rotation of Microscopic Propellers in Laser Tweezers. You gotta be a serious photonics or nano-machinery geek like I am to really enjoy it, but just the title was enough to set off my gigglebox.

Media Bias Rant

Last week, a liquor store owner was shot and killed during a supposed armed robbery. Big news this morning was that the local PD had found the van used in the getaway and were still searching for the gun taken from the store during the robbery(sic). No mention of the search for the sub human piece of trash who murdered a good man over a few bucks. The concern was to get that gun off the streets not get the crap sack who has no respect for others lives. What is wrong with peoples priorities? (Don't answer that)

Defensive PIstol Skills

Saturday was all range goodness. We did a Defensive Pistol Skills 2 class and tried not to cook any students. IT was a long hot morning but everyone made it through with just a couple taking time out to catch back up on hydration and rest. Shooting on the move and effective use of cover were big topics of the day among other things. Running stages at the end of class where students can put it all to use showed people need to practice more to get these skills ingrained. We dump a lot of different skills and drills on them and it is up to the student to carry on with practice so they can get the skills down.
A good day on the range!

Random Aircraft Sighting

Last night, a Coast Guard HU-25 Guardian was at the airport late and was still sitting here this morning. Then at lunch today, this EADS HC-144 Ocean Sentry showed up and disgorged work crews and equipment. The Guardian is inside one of the hangers behind where the Sentry is parked so it seems pretty obvious the Guardian had issues and they flew in a maintenance crew to deal with it. I really think these mini-hurcs are cute. I wonder if they grow when watered?

Defensive Long Gun

So, Saturday was Defensive Long Gun class. While many schools specialize classes to shotgun or carbine, we approach it from the attitude that the task at hand is the same regardless of what you are armed with so you need to deal with the situation as appropriate with your weapon platform. The drills are run with the various guns on the line so everyone has to solve the same problem and learn the same skills. It also allows everyone to see the various ways of dealing with the problem and the advantages and disadvantages of the various guns in various situations.

Hot it was. Students showed up mainly with AR's but there were a couple shotguns as well as pistol caliber carbine. Despite the heat everyone stuck it out. Good class. Scenarios went well too. One student made themselves so small behind the bed that the bad guy had to step way into the bedroom to get any kind of sight picture and by then he was shot to pieces. Bonus points to the student for getting that small and out of sight.

One lesson learned, even when it is dead calm out, when you put out a portable shade stand, anchor it down as if a hurricane is coming. A freak gust of wind / down burst strong enough to blow over steel targets and barricades yanked the stand up and carried it over the berm to the next shooting bay! All of this in clear sky with blinding sunshine.

Otherwise, it was off to home to recover and paint. More on that as it happens, just think Peach. Even with only a small portion of the kitchen painted it is already much lighter in there. Can't wait to finish and get the lights changed out.

Life Gets in the Way

Sorry for the lack of posting lately. Remember that generator bearing failure? Well, things spiraled out of control from there. After getting the generator back and new main bearings installed we had to run double shifts to try and catch up. That meant taxing other systems harder than normal. Let's just say we found a few things that had weak spots in them. Finally we had two days this past week where nothing major went wrong. That was nice.
On the home front, there is always stuff to do here. Like closing in that cased opening between the kitchen and formal reloading room. Getting the house in some sort of presentable shape for a series of out of town visitors. Still trying to get stuff moved in from storage as we get various rooms finished remodeling. It just goes on and on. Need to get the new bed in the guest bedroom situated for the visitors.

Did I mention the promotion at work? Longer hours and more responsibilities, YEAH! And of course, I am now back to being exempt from having a life. I was exempt at one time and went back to hourly when we moved here. Now I'm back in an exempt position. Should be an interesting time.

Best Slasher Film EVER

One of my students sent this to me. When seconds count and the police are only minutes away... who needs 'em?

Random Aircraft Sightings

So, it has been a couple weeks. There are bad days and worse days then days like today. Anybody have a 10KW/250VDC/900RPM Excitation Generator for an 1000HP/900RPM Allis-Chalmers AC Synchro Motor?

Anyway, while tearing the tunnel roof off to lift the generator out, two F-18A+'s flew in along with two Apaches. The Apaches were here for lunch. We'll see how long the F-18s stay. Oh, and htere is a Robinson R44 in there between the Apaches. Kinda makes em feel small and insignificant.

Slow Blogging

Not that I've been very prolific lately, but, next week is the Subsonic Aerodynamic Testing Association annual Meeting / Conference. We're hosting this year.

Saturday we have a Basic Pistol class, then Sunday through Friday is the SATA conference and then Saturday I am teaching Reloading Basic and Beyond the Basics. The last two weeks has been nonstop, cleaning, painting, fixing, cleaning, organizing and otherwise preparing for the conference. As well as prepping for class and working around Casa De Geek. If something really strikes my fancy or pisses me off I will post. Otherwise, I think I'll be a bit busy.

I've seen FUNNY and this is FUNNY

So, the Mrs turned me to a blog post with a video at I aim to misbehave. Before you go over there I'll confess I do have the Bonnie Tyler CD that contains this song. However, I haven't laughed this hard in a long long time.

After reading back on his blog a bit, I had to add to the blogroll. Cop who already served in the armed forces and is a fan of Fire Fly, what's not to like?

Call a spade a spade already

So, the murderer outside the recruiting office in Arkansas had "political and religious motives"? What a crock of shit. The guy was under investigation already for travel to Yemen and studying Jihad while over there and traveling on a Somali passport. He was a recent convert to Islam. Why can't the press accurately title this "Muslim convert attacks recruiting office ". Why is it that the "religion of peace" can't be named as the cause of this guys "political and religious motives"?
This politically correct BS has got to stop.

A Muslim killed American Soldiers on American soil!

UPDATE:
So the later stories have identified the Muslim Terrorist as such. It took a while for them to get to that point though. Still, that fact that the FBI has been investigating this guy and his past travels and arrest shows he was a threat and should have been dealt with already.

IT IS ALIVE!

After much digging and fussing the reloading bench is back up at least temporarily. It is in the "Formal Dining Room" which is soon to be the Library. All that will happen once the garage is closed in and remodeled to include the new "Gun Room". Once the Gun Room and Utility Room and Pantry are complete, the bench and shelves move out there and I can bring the rest of my reloading stuff home. Then we start the fun task of finishing off the Library and building in all the shelves to hold our collection. I've got the Dillon set up for 9mm to start off with as that is in short supply at the moment. Now that the bench is up I can break out the 300Whisper again and get back to playing with it as well. I've got a whole bunch of half completed brass that needs finishing and loading.
And for the curious, that is a Dillon 650 with all but the aftermarket auto bullet feeder with a Dillon RF100 Primer Filler. That was my first anniversary present from misbeHaven along with a bunch of caliber conversions. She got a Kimber Compact CDP and Remington 1100LT Youth 20Ga. Oh to be young foolish and making too much money again. Those days are long gone but we'll manage. Man was she a catch!

Cookbook for a good cause!

Chris and Melody over at AnarchAngel have a cookbook for sale to help pay for their legal bills. GO BUY ONE NOW! Help fellow shooters out. If they shouldn't have to sell off guns to pay bills. That is a sin in some peoples books. But, you gotta do what you gotta do and I think the cookbook is a much better idea. Tell everyone you know to go buy one. This isn't that much to spend to help friends out.

Anti Gun Media Bias?

So, 8 AR uppers with barrels along with a stash of ammo were found in a dumpster in Austin yesterday. Of course the coverage is hysterical that these things were loose on the streets.

Howard Nemerov has an article about it with local links in today's Gun Right Examiner.

Who in the heck dumps 8 barreled uppers and a couple thousand rounds of ammo? Do they have no idea of the value? I think next time they should call me and I'll come pick them up and save the neighborhood from the stigma of having it televised that there are "Assault Weapons" running loose around on their streets. The article has been corrected to say parts but the talking head on the news report made it pretty clear that assault weapons and ammo had been found in the dumpster and the folks were nervous that this just didn't happen in their neighborhood. What a bunch of weeenies!
Possibility is good that these are left over from a recent gun store heist in North Austin.

Campus Carry Part Whatever

So, SB1164 passed the Texas Senate after the House managed to stuff their version into a deep dark hole and let it die. Well, now that SB1164 has made it over to the House, it is going through the process as well. I already called my Rep and asked that pressure be put on the House Calenders Committee to get this bill on the Major Calender so it can be considered in the House and voted on before time expires. It came out of the Public Safety Committee reported favorably without amendment and now moves on to Calenders. We need to get this moved so please call your Rep. There is no time to waste with letter or e-mail as they get so much traffic right now it may not get read in time.
CALL your Rep NOW!!!!!!!! Let them know that you support this legislation and want them to request Calenders put it on the Major Calender so the full House can hear and vote on this legislation.

Sick REALLY Sux

So that sick that I thought I was over, since I felt better at the end of the week I went out for class Saturday and taught in the rain. Turned out to be a bad idea. Spent Sunday in the after hours clinic to find out I had an ear infection and sinus infection. "I'm feeling much better" now and should resume ranting. Stay Tuned for more as it happens.

Star Trek and Monty Python?

This is just too funny not to link to. GO SEE NOW!

Shrouded Muzzle Brake V2.0

So, a while back I wrote about an experiment of mine putting a shroud around a muzzle brake to redirect the gasses and noise forward down range instead of at the shooters on the line around me. Well I have since built version 2.0 and range tested it. I took the Holland quick Discharge brake and made a shroud for it. Since pressure is not a huge issue out here at the end of the barrel I made the shroud out of aluminum so there is not much added weight. While it is no Flaming Pig or a Krink, it does an excellent job for me. It works well as a muzzle brake and the shock wave is sent pretty much down range just as if the brake is not on it. Definitely cuts the recoil well as the work is done when the high speed gasses exit behind the bullet and hit the cuts in the brake. Very happy with the results and NO I will not be offering them for sale. I am not set up for manufacturing or sales so that idea is out.

P-Mag Mag Clips

Couple weeks ago in the fun shoot, we had the chance to play with FireBird MagPull P-Mag Mag Clips from Springer Precision. That's a mouth full.

OPINION:
I don't like clipping, taping or otherwise attaching two mags together in any way for a variety of reasons. If they are back to back, you are putting the feed lips and top (bottom) round as the low point on the gun so anytime you drop to the ground or over a hood or other hard object, the first thing that hits is the mag feed lips and top round. This also will force the mag up into the mag well and nothing good can come of that. If you clip them together side by side, at some point you are going to have one mag or the other up alongside the ejection port. I know it will be slightly below the port but that still puts something in the way alongside the port side of the gun. Just not something I am comfortable with. There is also the issue with the movement, firing and jolting of the gun possibly dislodging the top round in the spare mag. I am not comfortable with this happening or the possibility of this happening. For that reason, I am a huge fan of the Ready Mag and having the first spare mag on the gun attached in a mag well like device. Keeps the top round in place and firmly holds the mag in place till ready to use. Ejecting the spent mag also releases the fresh mag. I use it and practice with it and like that method. Just my NSHO.

RESULTS:
That said, with P-Mags, this device seems to work well. You remove the base late from each mag and slide the mag into the mag clip instead. Handy, not too heavy additionally. Holds firmly. Didn't get to torture test it with lots of banging around but the aluminum construction tells me this thing is made to last. It comes in two flavors, 20/30 and 30/30. So you can have two 20 round mags or one 20 and one 30. I can see the utility of the 20/30 as an interesting concept. With a 20 round mag in the gun and the 30 round mag as a spare, The mags don't stick out too far and the spare is up higher along the left side of the gun. The when the 20 is dry, you switch to the 30 and that gives you 30 more rounds and puts the 20 rounder out of the way of the ejection port. In the limited space of a patrol car I could see the space savings as a plus. So, for its intended purpose I think this one fills the bill.

Definitely an interesting concept but it will only work with P-Mags as the base plate design is very specific. Doesn't work with standard metal AR mags so those of us with a collection are out of the loop. No big for me at all. For those of you heavily invested in P-Mags, this may be something for you to consider.

Campus Carry Update

Go read JR. I have already called both my Senator and Representative. I wrote about the last call to my Rep here.

Take 5 minutes out of your life and contact your Senator and Representative.

REMEMBER: The life you save, could be mine. Or even more importantly it could be my wife's!

Stupid Drivers

So, worked late today and after picking misbeHaven up we pulled out into traffic on one of the main N-S roadways through campus. We quickly got into a pack of traffic and I noticed flashy blinky things in the rear view. (I notice these things) Well, the UPD officer was in the left lane behind an econobox that then pulled into the suicide lane in between traffic. The officer followed and the econobox then pulled back into the left lane in traffic. They eventually pulled up next to us in the left lane after the officer was able to get through traffic and up behind them. When the light way up in front of us (At least two more cycles away) turned green and traffic started moving, I stayed put and let the officer and the offending car move over into the right lane. All the while traffic kept merrily driving by. Next cycle of the light, I moved over into the left lane and ended up next to the officer. I stopped short of the officer and left the left lane open in front of us and next to and in front of him. Light cycles again and as traffic moves the offending econobox moves with it up to the intersection with the officer behind them and turns right on the major E-W road that we crossed. As we approach the intersection, the e-box is cruising on down the road not racing away but certainly not stopping. Once we got up to and through the intersection, the e-box was continuing on down the road and rapidly approaching the next traffic signal. By this time, traffic was hauling on down our road after being rudely held up by some slow b@$+@rd in a truck that wouldn't pass the officer. (That would have been me).

What the hell ever happened to drivers? The "all about me" crap has got to go. As Chris Rock said, "If the police have to chase you down, they're bringin an ass whoopin with em!". Add to that all the self absorbed drivers who are obviously too important to be bothered giving the officer the right of way or even the courtesy of room to operate in while doing his job.
Some people! BTW, the offending driver was not of color and was not male and was not of post college age. I just have to add the video to let the humor wash over me.

The Movies

So, misbeHaven and I went to see Star Trek Sunday.
Disclosure: I grew up on this and do have both 1st and 2nd editions of the Star Fleet Technical Manual. Yes I am a geek and proud of it.

Overall it was a great action adventure flick. Stands on its own well and should be enjoyed by the current generation of ADHD kids and adolescents. As a pre-sequel though I have issues.

Simon Peg as Scotty ROCKED!!! The rest of the cast seems to be pretty well chosen as well IMNSHO.

However, ______ and ______ being romantically involved?? WTF Or as misbeHaven put it, That's like Elves at Helms Deep! (don't want to spoil it for you)

Like I said, overall it was a good movie and I recommend seeing it. The plot line is OK with me and there are a few contrived scenes but overall good.

Sick SUX

Well, I was sick most of last week so obviously there was light posting. After feeling human Friday, the Mrs and I decided that teaching out in the heat and humidity Saturday would not be a good idea so I skipped out on class this weekend. Fortunately, there were enough instructors to cover the basic class. Instead I stayed around the house and helped get more stuff unpacked at Casa de Geek as well as stuff hauled into the local charity. Slowly but surely we are getting the house filled and storage emptied.

So, stay tuned for more content. There are four or five posts bouncing around in my head. Think, Star Trek, AR Mags, Muzzle Brakes and reloading. Maybe more as time permits. We are short handed at work for the next two weeks so likely long days.

Campus Concealed Carry II

So, as of 5/11 (interesting as it is only 5/08 today) HB1893 Campus Concealed Carry, is on the general state calendar for consideration by the entire Texas House. Get those calls and letters going. We need to get this bill passed this session.

Monday Morning Misquote

And now for something completely different. For the 11 of you who read my blog, here is the challenge, mix a movie quote with another movie to get one good one.

"You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders! The most famous is never get involved in a land war on IO, but only slightly less well-known is this: never go in against a Computer when death is on the line! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do.............."

Kinda like:

"No Mr. Jones, I expect you to die."



Let your mind run free with this one.

Random Aircraft Sightings

So, is it a gaggle, flock or tribe or maybe raiding party? Just wondering. These guys showed up for lunch. Funny how timing works out, we get loads of .mil aircraft in just before lunch time. That and Freebirds is usually full of flight suits for lunch. Very interesting timing indeed. They are always welcome here. Proud to see my tax dollars at work. Now if only they'd fly south and do a little something along the border. Hellfire a couple drug shipments and maybe things would slow down.
Well it must be rotor head day here. This afternoon we had more whirlybirds drop in for a visit. It's fun to guess what the aircraft is by the sound. We had a Coast Guard Dauphin drop in the other day and it was rather obvious who that was when I heard it. The Huey's are that way as well even though these are equipped with the twin pack engine upgrades.

Apaches and Black Hawks and Hueys, Oh My!

Cookbook Sale

So, Chris and Melody over at Anarchangel are selling cookbooks. Head on over and have a look. The recipes they have been posting look interesting enough for us to order.

Blogroll stuff.

So, I have deleted a blog from the roll for conduct unbecoming by its owner. I won't mention the name or link and I doubt he even cares.

I also have the honor of being blogrolled by Robert over at Blackfork Blog. If haven't been, GO NOW. Quite an interesting and informative blog. Don't be surprised if you actually learn something while browsing.

Deputies Killed in Florida at Gun Range

No real details yet but Fox News just had an alert that two Deputies were killed when they responded to a call at Shoal River Sporting Clays and Shooting Center. Need to follow this one as I am sure it will be no time and the VPC/Brady crowd will be dancing in the blood and calling for closure or restrictions or something. "Never let a crisis go to waste"

My heart goes out to the families of those involved and I pray that saner heads will prevail over this country eventually.

There is an article up with little more info. The Miami Herald also has one up.

MORNING UPDATE:
Word out now is it was a domestic violence call that the deputies responded to and their investigation took them to the shooting range looking for the shooter.
FOXNEWS has a good article, the wife was at the hospital being treated for wounds received in a beating by the shooter and he had domestic battery charges already outstanding against him.

MORE UPDATES:
So, turns out the Deputies hit the guy with a Taser and as soon as the juice stopped they murderer pulled a gun and shot both Deputies. This says a lot for mindset. This guy had no intention of going in and was not going to cooperate with anything the Deputies said or did, he was just waiting to impliment his plan. The Deputies applied only the level of force they felt necessary and appropriate to end the situation. This illustrates a drawback/benefit of Tasers, once turned off, the recovery is almost instantanious. The Deputies tried to use the least amount of force needed and it cost them their lives. Before Tasers, this guy would have been at gunpoint or shot when he didn't comply with the Deputies commands. May have turned out better for the Deputies, may not have. My prayers are with the families and the community that has had to deal with this and if anything, I hope this shifts officers to have leathal force in hand and ready should the taser or any other less lethal force not end the fight. If Only.

Range Day DoubleGoodFun

MAJOR UPDATE:
Dock wrote up his review of the day including a diagram of the "Stage" I setup. You just have to go see this. TROGDOR RULES!!!!!!

It was a dark and stormy morning, when suddenly a shot rang out.
A group of friends went out to the range for a play day today. After teaching every weekend for some time I figured out that the only time I had been at the range lately had been for teaching. I might get a few shots in before or after class but the majority of time was for teaching. Please don't get me wrong, I have a huge amount of fun teaching. I try to make it fun for the students as well so they are having a good time and learn a little something in the mean time. But, I hadn't just gone out to shoot for fun in a while so I organized a range play day.

Hsoi and Doc came out to play along with a few of my friends. When they have their write ups they will be here and here. We shot a bunch of steel just as something to shoot at and setup a station for zeroing sights on rifles. After a bit of plinking I set up a stageish since none of the folks had shot competition before and since we had rifles out there I made a quick short range two gun stage that started with rifles and ended with pistols. From then on it was run what ya brung. AR with .22 conversions, straight up AR, 10/22 or Henry lever gun followed by XD, Sig, HS2000, Buckmark, HK, whatever.

Notice a theme here? Lots of .22 rimfire since ammo prices are going through the roof and availability is all but about nill. I won't even get into the two who showed up after making a haul of 9mm at the local Wally World. Damn Them!

The stage started with teh rifle with a couple paper targets then on to clays hung on chiken wire at 15yds. Better know your hold over to hit those. After a couple more paper targets with the rifle, it was on to the pistol portion of our program.

That concluded with a hostage head shot after running and gunning through the stage. Everybody jumped on cleaning up afterwords and we were out in time for lunch. Now I just have to muster up the energy to clean guns. Wheeeeeeeeeee! All in all it was a great day that reminded me about the joy of just going out to shoot for fun. Got to hang out with firends and shoot and BS and shoot some more and chide and shoot some more. Does it get any better?

UPDATE:
ShoothouseBarbie had a health issue and couldn't make it. General consensus is we need to do this again so maybe next time she'll be able to make it.

Texas Campus Carry Part DUEX

JR over at A Keyboard and a 45 has this article on the language of the substitute bill for HB 1893 and the change in co-authors. I sent a note to my Rep, Fred Brown, concerning this bill and the situation and after exchanging e-mails with his Chief of Staff was given his cell phone number to call and speak directly with him.

After work yesterday I called. He was likely still on the House floor so I left a brief message for him with my name and specific concern. Later in the evening, he called back to chat. We had a very good conversation about not only this bill but what is happening in the legislature right now and his support overall. He is solidly behind this bill restoring the civil right to self protection to college campuses just as he has been behind the civil right to self protection here in Texas all along. He is a supporter of armed self defense and a friend to gun owners. READ THAT AGAIN, I'll wait. He pulled is co-authorship from this bill as it got substituted because the Texas Leg is currently in their scramble mode to get bills moving before they run out of time and he is concentrating his efforts on bills he authored. He has been so wrapped up with his bills that he hasn't had the time to put effort into pushing this particular bill so he spoke to Joe Driver (author) and told him that until the final version hits the House floor, he wanted to take his name off the bill.

Now, on to this bill and Rep Browns Support.
Fred Brown represents one of the districts that contains a major state university. His job is to equally represent all the constituents in his district. That being said, I guarantee that the anti-gun faculty and administration at the university that are opposed to this bill are letting him know how they feel. To balance this out, all those who work/live/go to school in Bryan/College Station, Brazos County, District 14 need to contact his office and not only tell them that you support this bill but that you appreciate the support Rep Brown has given CHL's and the citizens of Texas and District 14 in the past. For that matter, no matter where you live in Texas, you need to take 5 minutes out of your day and contact your Rep and let them know your thoughts on getting this bill passed.

One of the canards being pushed against this bill is the standard "blood in the streets" argument that was used against CHL in the first place and has been disproven over and over again. The corollary to this is the "heated discussion" between professor and student turning into a shooting and that the professors are afraid of armed students snapping under the stress and shooting them of going on a rampage. TOTAL HYPERBOLE! As well as not based in reality or fact. So, lets take this level of fauctualness and feelings and turn it around shall we? The more likely scenario is that the anti gun professor finds out student X is carrying, due to said professors bigoted bias against guns, they grade student X harsher than the others and give them a lower grade based on their own bias. This argument has the same merit as the anti's side because it is based on the same lack of understanding and feelings instead of facts and it is just as possible.

So, take 5 minutes out of you life and contact your Rep. It's not that hard.

Must now get ready for work, I've got taxes to pay.

Texas Campus Carry

So, after reading JR's article on the status of HB1893, I wrote my Rep as he is one of the two that changed their mind and withdrew their support. Here is the letter I sent him;

Rep. Brown,
I am disconcerted by your lack of support for the campus carry bill HB1893. As my representative, I would ask that you consider the law abiding CHL holders that work for TexasA&MUniversity and whom you also represent. You are saying by your actions, that you do not trust those people who have been through the extremely rigorous background check and training process required for obtaining a Texas CHL. There is ample evidence to show that Texas CHL holders are more trust worthy than the general population based on rates of conviction for misdemeanor and felony offenses. Do you really wish to say to those you represent that you do not trust them? Is there some imaginary line surrounding college campuses that make normally lawful people freak out and turn them into killers? You are forcing those who would otherwise be responsible for their own safety to give up that CIVIL RIGHT and creating an open killing field for deranged killers who would otherwise risk facing an armed potential victim.

I therefore ask that you truly represent those who elected you and support this bill.

Best Regards,
XXXX X. XXXXXX

Here is the canned reply I got back from one of his staffers.

Thank you for contacting my office to voice your support for House Bill 1893, regarding the concealed carrying of handguns on college campuses. In my role as an elected official for the state of Texas, I always try to do what I deem necessary and most beneficial for my constituents and my state. As a supporter of the Second Amendment and a member of the NRA, I feel strongly that responsible Texans should be permitted to bear arms for personal safety and recreation. However, I also understand the concerns of those who oppose House Bill 1893.

As you know, I am one of only a handful of house members whose district includes a major public university. As a result, I am keenly aware of both the benefits and the potential consequences associated with this kind of legislation. I also plan on working directly with Representative Joe Driver and Senator Jeff Wentworth to address the concerns of all parties before moving this bill forward. I firmly believe that this important issue warrants only the most serious and deliberative consideration and I plan to make the most informed decision possible before this measure is presented to the full legislative body.

I consider it an honor and a privilege to serve the constituents of District 14, and I must make decisions as a legislator with all of their interests and voices in mind. Again, thank you for sharing your concerns. Please be assured that your comments have been recorded and will be seriously considered when this issue comes before me on the House Floor.

I invite you to participate in the legislative process via http://www.capitol.state.tx.us. Links to proposed legislation, broadcasted meetings, calendars, voting records and other pertinent information are provided.

If we can assist you further, please do not hesitate to contact us again.

Sincerely,

Fred Brown

State Representative

So, he is basing this on opposition from A&M as an institution? Unless it is coming from the presidents office as a political thing, A&M is actually a pretty conservative place and I know there is plenty of support on campus for this bill.


UPDATE:
I sent a reply back to Rep Browns office and have received a response from his chief of staff. We are trading e-mails at the moment and when I have an answer worth publishing I will add to this post.

UPDATED UPDATE:
His chief of staff replied with his cell phone number and suggested I call him to discuss in person. That he is likely to vote for the bill but removed his name as cosponsor since it was such a controversial bill. He is on the house floor at the moment so I will be calling him later to chat.

MORNING UPDATE:
Talked to Rep Brown late last night. This is worthy of a followup post o fit's own. Look UP.

The Enforcer?

Heard on the news this morning:

BO said there isn't enough support in Congress to reinstate the AWB, so he'll just have to settle for enforcing the laws against weapons trafficking that are already on the books.

D'Oh!



Too bad I don't believe it.

Electrical Geekery

While there are others who work with larger electrical systems than I. Mine is not the smallest in our area. With 5 transformer systems feeding 208Volt and 480Volt 3 phase lines into our complex at 500KVA to 750KVA, we also have our main motor that by itself pulls 2400Volts 3 phase at 300+Amps!

You know you're doing it right when the electrical utility calls you to ask if you are running something out of the ordinary because they are seeing intermittent spikes in demand on your areas circuit. Of course the answer was, yes we are running something that puts us on the upper edge of our electrical draw all at once.

On a related note: it is interesting to see a 3-1/2" diameter, schedule 160, steel pipe bend more than an inch over a four foot length of it. Impressive amount of force applied to do that. Maybe that's why the motor was running so hard, duh.

You think YOU'VE got money problems....

I was in one of the local pet stores last night, picking up a few things for my lords-and-masters (the cats). When I got to the register, there was a man there (about my age) with his daughter (about 6 or 7 years old). Clerk checked their items and then Girl dug into her purse. I thought, how nice, that man is teaching his daughter about money... good for him.

Girl pulled out several handfuls of quarters, and a crumpled wad of bills. Clerk started counting the money as Girl was unloading it, making neat $1 stacks of the coins and then carefully straightening and smoothing each bill before adding it to the pile on the counter. I was waiting for Dad to prompt Girl about how much she owed, or how much change she would get... things that I had been taught at that age. Instead, Dad asked Clerk, "How much is that?", gesturing to the pile of money.

O. M. G.

X stacks of coins at $1 each + Y $1 bills = Z $. How do you not know that?? You didn't even have to count by 5's or 10's or 25's... just 1's. How can you be 6-7 years old and not know how to count by 1's, much less at 30-40 years old?? Are you really that uneducated? Or are you just that lazy, that you can't even be bothered to count your own daughter's money? And what is she going to learn from this experience?

They finished their transaction. I stepped up to the register, and counted out exact change for my purchases... just to restore some sanity to the world.

Sometimes they write themselve

I'm too tired to rant about much today, 16+ hours days and 4 hours of sleep are not to conducive to reasoned thought. Besides I'm getting too old for this.

But, I couldn't pass up, Mexican Ass Hat Calderon saying in relation to the Mexican drug and violence problem:

"You have a lot of corruption as well"

As he was going on about the demand for drugs and the supply of guns fueling the drug gang violence in Mexico. Who in the hell does he think he is to lecture the US on corruption or to blame his own governments breakdown in allowing the corruption and gangs to pretty much control the Mexican governmental system from the locals to the federales?