Oh, This is GOOD

From the comments of Curmudgeonly and Skeptical comes this jewel:

Back in December of 1999, one of my Left Wing co-workers was telling me about her Y2K preparations, which came to several thousand dollars. “Oh, we’ve just about got everything, now. Our seed corn arrived last week and we have it sealed in air-tight containers…” (presumeably we were doomed to return to pre-industrial revolution agraria)

When she asked me what I stocked for Y2K, I just smiled and said, “5,000 rounds of .223 NATO”. I smiled and asked, “Now, where did you say you live?”

I don’t think that she knew I was joking.

Why Don’t I Ever Find Something Like This?

Via Say Uncle, it seems another Florida cop managed to leave his assault rifle laying on the side of the road.

Check out the links at the bottom of the story, too. So much for “no guns in schools.”

I feel so much safer now.

(Note, though, that in the first incident the first graders who had been through the Eddie Eagle NRA safety training did what they were supposed to do. Bet you won’t see that reported over at JoinTogether.)

Movie Review: Monster

My wife and I went out last night to see Monster, the movie about Aileen Wuornos, the prostitute turned serial killer who was put to death on Florida’s death row in 2002, 12 years after she received six death penalties. Charlize Theron plays the part of Wuornos, and she’s received a lot of Oscar buzz for it. To play the part, Theron, like DeNiro in Raging Bull put on a lot of weight for the role. She wore contact lenses and a dental appliance, and received a considerable amount of “make-down” in order to turn her from this:

into this:

This is Wuornos:

The Oscar buzz is well deserved. Theron is astounding as she takes us on a guided tour through the final steps of Wuronos’s self-destruction.

It’s a tremendously powerful performance.

The supporting cast is excellent as well.

It’s a very well made film.

It’s also about as enjoyable as a two-hour plane crash.

Elect the Great in 2008?

How about 2012? Via Instapundit comes this piece by the great James Lileks. Money quote:

It’s not the e-mail. It’s not the blog. It’s not the Web sites. It’s the computers, and the people behind them, connected like never before. They won’t control the buzz this year. But in 2008? Count on it.

We might be a wee bit early, but things change so fast in internet time.

Here’s the original table of candidates one more time:

The 2008 (Party Name TBD) Ticket!
Position Nominee(s)
President Glenn Reynolds
Vice President Rachel Lucas, Donald Sensing
Sec. of Agriculture Adam H., Julie Neidlinger, Bobby A-G
Sec. of Interior Say Uncle, Kevin Aylward
Sec. of Commerce Jane Galt, Brink Lindsey
Attorney General Eugene Volokh
Sec. of Defense WAR! Donald Sensing, Kim du Toit, Emperor Misha I
Sec. of Labor Mitch Berg
Sec. of Education Connie du Toit, Joanne Jacobs, Thomas Sowell
Sec. of State Steven Den Beste, Bill Whittle, Venomous Kate
Homeland Security Kim du Toit, Emperor Misha I, Charles Johnson
Sec. Energy Laurence Simon
Sec. of Transportation James Lileks, Gary Leff, Patrick Crozier
Sec. of the Treasury Mindles H. Dreck, Daniel W. Drezner
Sec. of Health & Human Svcs. James Lileks, Sydney Smith
Sec. of HUD Aaron the Liberal Slayer
Sec. of Veteran’s Affairs C. Dodd Harris IV
Sec. of EPA (Probably not needed)
Director of OMB Andrew Sullivan
Chief of Staff Bill Whittle,
Press Secretary Bill Quick, Scott Ott, Bill Hobbs, Ken Layne, Virginia Postrel
Director of the Office of Drug Policy (Probably not needed)
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Prather

Ambassadorial and Other Positions
Position Nominee(s)
Amb. to (screw with) the UN Sic Semper Tyrannosaurus
Amb. to France Frank J., Sean Hackbarth
Amb. to Iran (after the revolution) Pejman Yousefzadeh
Amb. to England Andrew Ian Dodge
Amb. to Saudi Arabia Charles Johnson
Amb. to Israel Laurence Simon
Amb. to Germany (or Belgium – he’s not picky) Sean Hackbarth
Amb. to Cuba (after Castro kicks) Steve H.
Amb. to Thailand Kathy Kinsley
Head of CIA/NSA Fred Pruit, Steven Den Beste
National Technology Advisor Eric Raymond
Head of NASA (disassembly of) Jay Manifold, Rand Simberg
Solicitor General Pejman Yousefzadeh
Sec. of Defeated Former Enemies’ Security Jay Manifold
Campaign Chairman/Chief Fundraiser Andrew Sullivan
Undersecretary of WAR! Austin Bay, LT Smash
Chairman, Joint Chiefs LT Smash
Whore Eager for Any Appointment Matt Margolis, Michele Catalano, Tim the Michigander
Director of the BATF Kim du Toit

Nominations are still open, people.

The Blogger Party primaries should be fascinating.

I Knew Most Brits were Gun-Fearing Wussies, but THIS is RIDICULOUS

According to the British paper The Daily Mirror:

MOST TERRIFYING GUN IN THE WORLD SEIZED

Let the Fisking begin! MOST terrifying weapon? It’s a damned 9mm!

THE first fully automatic handgun to surface in the UK – capable of firing 1,100 rounds a minute – has been seized in a police raid.

It is a Glock 18, banned from sale in the US and described as a “monster of a weapon” that fires bullets with the intensity of a high- pressure water hose.

Ooookay. It’s a 9mm handgun (last seen in the 2nd installment of The Matrix trilogy, I believe). And it’s somehow more dangerous than Eastern-bloc AK-47’s that have hit the streets in England?

The ultra-light, Austrian-made gun was discovered in a swoop on the home of a suspected Yardie gangster. Scotland Yard has issued a nationwide alert as they try to find the owner and establish how the weapon got into Britain.

Um, it was smuggled? It’s a handgun. You know; small, concealable. It probably came across on a ferry or through the Chunnel in a box.

It’s not like it’s hard to do.

A Met firearms expert said: “It’s extremely worrying that such a weapon is here. I can’t stress enough just how dangerous this gun is.

Why? You’ve got thousands of other guns, up to and including real assault rifles running around. I’d be far more worried about them.

“If it was fired on the streets of London by someone unused to its immense firing capability, there could be a massacre.

With a 33-round magazine you’re looking at throwing three more rounds downrange than an AK could, and they’d be 9mm rounds, far less dangerous than 7.62×39. You know, the gun that was used to kill Charlene Ellis, 18, and Letisha Shakespeare, 17, on New Year’s day 2003 in London. I think you overestimate its capability.

“Why even a criminal would want to own such a gun is beyond me. It would probably bethe ultimate in gun status-symbols.” The Yard has warned front-line officers about the discovery, which followed a a raid on a residential address in Norwood, South East London.

WE HAVE A WINNER! Ever since they outlawed handguns, they’ve become criminal status-symbols – worn as “fashion accessories” by all the best-dressed thugs.

A force internal report said: “This is the first weapon of its kind to be seized in the UK. It is not issued to any agencies in the UK and is believed to have been imported from the US.”

Right. Got to be our fault, we’re gun-worshipping monsters.

The report said the Glock can fire “armour-piercing ammunition”. It has a compensation device to keep it straight during firing.

*SIGH* Sweet jebus. Armor-piercing ammo? What can’t fire “armor-piercing” ammo? But I suppose whoever smuggled the Glock 18 in also snuck a containerload of Black Rhino ammo, too? How much hysteria can one column generate?

SAS officers use the gun in combat with a 19-round magazine. Israeli security forces and Germany’s GSG-9 anti-terror unit also carry it.

What?!?!? You mean there’s a legitimate use for this engine of destruction?!?!?

British armed police use the semi-automatic Glock 17, also a favourite with criminals.

Pretty damned popular with police, citizens, and criminals here too. Very reliable, if you’re into tactical tupperware.

America banned its import in 1986. US arms expert Walt Rauch said: “Shooting the G18 full-auto is just like turning on a high-pressure hose,”

A high pressure hose that puts out for 1.0 second with a 19-round magazine. Now, reading this, do you assume that the U.S. banned this specific weapon? Or are you aware that in 1986 a law was passed making it illegal to import or manufacture domestically any full-auto weapon for civilian sales? (Employees of the .gov are exempted from this prohibition. They get all the neat toys.)

Det Insp Martin Ward said: “This is something of a monster of a weapon. We are appealing for anyone to come forward in the strictest confidence with information.”

The gun should have a serial number. If it does, you will know when it was manufactured, and where it was sold. If it was originally manufactured as a full-auto Glock 18, and it was sold in the U.S., there will be a paper-trail. If it was sold into Europe, there ought to be one.

What’s the problem? And why are your panties in such a bunch?

Edited to add: You want to see what I think is scary?

“Only Democrats and Dictators are Afraid of Elections”

So said James Hudnall a while back. To that you can now add Danish Liberals, apparently. According to this uncharacteristically short Steven Den Beste piece:

In her new book, Danish Liberal EU spokesperson Charlotte Antonsen questions the use of referenda as a useful way to build up European democracy.

The book – “Towards the European Constitution” warns that the EU could fall apart if the Danish practise of consulting the people in referenda over important EU treaties is copied by other member states.

“Referenda have a very conservative effect on development. If the other countries copy us, the EU will fall apart”, she writes.

Mrs Antonsen, a member of the Danish Parliament for the ruling Liberal party, argues that representative democracy is just as democratic as referenda.

“Referenda are in fact pure gambling. There is no guarantee of a positive outcome, unfortunately”.

Yeah, that’s about it. If they can’t guarantee the outcome then the proles shouldn’t be allowed to vote.

I’ve said a couple of times that the majority of the populace is too stupid to vote. I don’t think too many people disagree with that. BUT that’s the way the system has developed – and quite honestly, it works in spite of itself, because when given the chance the people say “NO!” more often than they say “Yes.” And this is what Ms. Antonsen objects to:

“Referenda have a very conservative effect on development.”

And this is a bad thing…. why?

Because it isn’t progressive, that liberal watchword that means “whatever we want to try this week.” In Liberal v. Conservative: Both are Necessary, my opponent “John Doe” wrote:

“Liberals have a fundamental faith in the ability of humans to better themselves and act appropriately when the situation calls for it.”

But as Ms. Antonsen illustrates, no, they don’t. If they did, they wouldn’t fear referenda and elections where they can’t guarantee the outcome.

It sounds like Ms. Antonsen and “John Doe” are two peas in a pod.

Something I’ve Thought About as Well

Work in Progress has a post up that expounds on thoughts I’ve had as well (Link here.) Snippets:

If I do not want to accept the government in place, I do not have any meaningful options for remaining where I am and avoiding it. If I fail to pay my property taxes, or violate federal, state, or local laws, I shall be imprisoned as surely as if I were a serf on any manor. We do not make a meaningful choice to accept our government in America or anywhere else.

It used to be that if you no longer could accept the situation you were living in, you could pack up your stuff, take a risk, and go where you would be less fettered. That time, I think, is over – and it raises interesting questions insofar as what happens now that there is no longer a safety valve for the disaffected? There are no more mountain men. There is no new frontier. We can’t hop a freighter to the Antares Maelstrom. Mos Eisley exists only on film. Everything and everywhere is regulated.

It is true that we are generally more free now in America than anyone else in the world ever was, though we are at the same time probably the most regulated people that ever was. It stems at least partially, I think, from having a far more complex society due to technology. Both aspects, I mean.

But one question I’ve never been able to shake. Is our modern freedom of speech really around because we believe in it, or because it generally doesn’t matter what anyone says any more. I cannot shake the notion that people used to be persecuted for what they said because it used to be thought that what they said mattered. Now no one cares what idiocy anyone espouses, but it seems like that’s largely because no one takes it seriously.

An excellent point – especially for us doing our (admittedly tiny) part here on the electronic soapbox.

Does what we say matter? Are we ignored because nobody takes it seriously?

Comments?

Quote of the Day

An anonymous quickie:

Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.

Amen.

Busy as Hell, No Posting ‘Till Later

In the mean time, Alphecca has his weekly Gun Bias check up. The pro-gun side is way behind.

Sunday was Publicola’s blogoversary. Drop in and congratulate him.

If you have some spare time on your hands (I wish) the Feces Flinging Monkey links to this penguin-whacking game. My best (on Sunday) 325.1 meters. (Damn! The link’s down.)

The Geek with a .45 comments on my post,“Five Month Investigation, 10 Tracer Rounds, Two Felony Convictions.” He expands eloquently on the pont of my rant.

AlphaPatriot has good stuff. Start at the top and work down.

And, of course, there’s the list of “Best Posts” over there on the left to keep you busy. Remember, this is BlogSnot, so if clicking the link doesn’t take you right to the correct post, scroll up until you see the “Best Posts” list and click the link again. Second time ought to do it.

Thanks for visiting. I’ll try to have some new content up tonight.