Category: Uncategorized

“Are we all quite mad here in the developed world?”

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Not all of us, but far too many.

Next question?

Mark Champion of Bloomberg View asks the question upon considering the reaction to the government of Spain deciding to euthanize a mixed-breed dog, pet of a Spanish nursing assistant who contracted the Ebola virus.  He reports:

A petition to save Excalibur, the pet dog of a Spanish nursing assistant who has contracted Ebola, received more than 370,000 signatures before the animal was sedated and killed as a precautionary measure this evening. As his corpse was taken away in a van for incineration, a crowd of activists who had clashed with police during the day were reportedly shouting: “murderers!”

I don’t remember people clashing with police to persuade their governments to do more to help stop the spread of Ebola in Africa, where more than 3,400 human beings have died from the disease. Indeed, an online petition to persuade the U.S. government to fast-track research for an Ebola drug has so far received 152,534 signatures. By that measure, we care half as much about finding a cure for Ebola as saving a dog.

Go read the piece and look at the pictures of the protesters in this Daily Mail piece.

In related news, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, not People Eating Tasty Animals) wants to put up a granite memorial at a location where “hundreds of terrified chickens suffered and died” as the result of a truck accident.

I think a memorial Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet should be built there.

A Popeye’s just wouldn’t have the proper gravitas.

Edited to add:  James Lileks weighs in on the subject.

Dealing with Loss

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I posted about a week ago that Boo, my 19 year-old cat died.  Nineteen years is a long time to share with another creature, and loss is painful.  If you’ve ever had pets, you’ve almost certainly gone through it.

Another blogger lost her best buddy not too long ago.  Brigid lost her black Lab, Barkley back in February after almost eleven years.

Each of us deals with loss in different ways.  I’ve been blogging for a bit more than eleven years now, but I’m a good technical writer.  Anything other than posting an announcement of his passing is pretty much beyond me.

I’ve been reading Brigid since she started blogging.  To deal with her loss, she wrote The Book of Barkley, and it is everything she is online and more.  It is the story of  her life and the portion she shared with Barkley.  Brigid is an artist.  Words are her medium.  She paints with them – still lifes, landscapes, and sweeping frescoes of words.  Some are dark, some are cheerful, some are funny and some are startlingly beautiful and poignant.

She has used the proceeds from the sales of her book to help other bloggers, donate to Lab Rescue, and help out her dad who is 94 and in poor health.  Want a good book?  Pick it up on Amazon or wherever good books are sold online.

The Unkillable Zombie that is Communism

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Recently at Quora.com, someone asked the question:

Why does communism get such a bad reputation?

Why is America so opposed to what I merely see as a different system of running things? I used to read Karl Marx as a senior in high school and his ideas don’t seem all that “evil” to me. Am I missing something here. Why all the hate?

I responded:

I understand that the rules of Quora state that I’m not allowed to answer a question only with a graphic, but this one pretty much says it all:


Karl Marx’s failed attempt at economics and social engineering has been – directly or indirectly – responsible for the deaths of over 100,000,000 human beings – at the hands of their own governments. At the same time, capitalism has been responsible for lifting more people out of poverty than any other system ever attempted – to the point that Communist China (about half of that hundred million dead) has taken to it, albeit with strong restrictions.

If you don’t “understand the hate” I suggest you read up on the history.

Today Bill Whittle has a better answer (naturally) in his latest Firewall:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvfHLr5aEqU?rel=0]
Pullquote:

The Progressive utopia is the Loch Ness Monster of politics: a giant, air-breathing creature that never surfaces for air.

UPDATE: Eric S. Raymond expands on the subject.

GBR IX – After Action Report

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Yeah, I know, I’m really late on this one but I have a (mostly) valid excuse.  Immediately upon return to Arizona, I went back to work and busted a** for the next nine days in a row.  THEN I got four days off.  Sorry, but I didn’t touch the blog the last four days.

So!  Gun Blogger Rendezvous #9 is in the record books, and as they go, this was a pretty good one.  Attendance was down this year.  A lot of regulars couldn’t make it for economic or work- or school-related reasons, but we did have appearances by former attendees who hadn’t made one in a year or six.  The former DirtCrashr who now resides at Not Clauswitz made an appearance, though his wife declined to come at the last minute.  The not-blogging-much Conservative UAW Guy (and now partner in a gun shop) came and brought his lovely better-half.  Namer of the Blogosphere Bill Quick of Daily Pundit put in a repeat appearance, as did Billll of Billll’s Idle Mind.  Engineering Johnson, who contributed a refurbished Model 74 Winchester rifle and a custom holster for the Ruger Mk III Hunter also repeated.  Unfortunately, his dad True Blue Sam couldn’t join him this year.  Mr. Completely and KeeWee, our hosts rounded out the bloggers who came, at least those whose names I got. 

This year we had a lot of local attendance, with a repeat by the Wilson family and friends, who somehow managed to take home most of the top prizes (including three of the four guns given away.)  And we had a repeat appearance by local manufacturer and Special Occupational Taxpayer Richard Brengman of Special Interest Arms, and his distributor Brian Borg of SilentCarbine.com who brought an assortment of suppressed firearms and a squirt-gun to play with to the Friday range trip followed by the Friday night Show-n-Tell.

I kinda lust after one of their De Lisle carbines.  As Billll said about one of his other suppressed weapons, I’ve handled office staplers that were louder.  I just need to win the lottery….

Breakfast on Friday was supplied by the National Rifle Association, and their representative spoke to us about current strategy and concerns.  They’re quite concerned about Bloomberg and his personal fortune.  The NRA isn’t throwing a lot of money at Washington state’s I-594 initiative – at least not what Bloomberg’s throwing.  Her argument, condensed, is that the NRA has a more limited war chest and must fight on a broad front.  Bloomie can pick and choose, and throw as much money as he wants at something, not that doing so will guarantee him a “win” (see Wisconsin Sheriff David Clarke’s victory in the face of $150,000 of Bloomberg’s money – more than both candidates spent in total.)  Still, gun-rights supporters in Washington are not pleased by the NRA’s apparent lack of involvement, and the organization was so informed.

As is traditional, we held the raffle on Saturday evening, and we raised, even with light attendance, right at $4,000 for Honored American Veterans Afield.  I’d like to thank the manufacturers and their reps, distributors and retailers who contributed to the Rendezvous so that we could raise that money:

  • Ken Jorgensen of Ruger – for the Mk III Hunter
  • MKS Supply for their nine years of support and the .45 Carbine they donated this year, plus shirts and hats.
  • Osage County Guns and Kevin Creighton for the Sig 1911-22 they donated.  This was their first year.
  • Lori Yunker of Burris Optics for the AR-F³ sight they donated.
  • Allen Forkner of Swanson Russell and Redfield for the Battlezone 6-18x44mm scope they donated.
  • Eric Harvey of Dillon Precision for providing one of their “Ammo-shift” bags.
  • Larry Weeks of Brownell’s for providing once again one of their top-of-the-line range bags and five tactical flashlights.  Brownell’s, too, has been a sponsor from year one.
  • Crimson Trace for a pair of laser sights for Glock pistols.
  • Cabela’s for the donation of a rod-n-reel, shirts and hats.
  • Tom Tayor of Mossberg for the donation of T-shirts, tactical pens and a very nice Schrade lockback knife.
  • Bear Bullets for the donation of a tub-o’-.22 ammo. (A Remington Bucket O’ Bullets – 1400 rounds worth!)
  • WGM Tactical Precision for the donation of a stripped AR lower (which I guess qualifies as the FIFTH firearm given away), and a lifetime membership to Front Sight
  • Front Sight itself for a certificate good for a four-day training course, or two two-day classes.
  • Special Interest Arms for the donation of scope mounts for a No. 1 Mk III and a No. 4 Enfield
  • Engineering Johnson for the Winchester Model 74 and the beautiful hand-tooled holster for the Ruger.

I also want to thank the folks at U.S. Firearms Academy for graciously acting as our shipping receiver, the fine folks at the Washoe County Regional Shooting Facility for the reserved range space on Friday and the Western Nevada Pistol League for use of their shooting bays and steel on Saturday, and finally the folks at MiScenarios for the interactive digital range time on Sunday. That was worth hanging around for, and the better part of a dozen of us showed up to try it.

Once again, thanks to the National Shooting Sports Foundation for their sponsorship (they bought our pizza Saturday night).

If I missed anyone, please let me know and I’ll be sure to include you.

And yes, I ended my eight-year drought by winning… the Hi-Point.

I think I’ll steam-punk it.

Tye-Dyed Tyranny

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Bill Whittle’s latest:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPJSAnm3NTQ?rel=0]
Best pullquote:

What kind of patchouli Senate is there in Washington and coming for the rest of us?  Well, this kind:  Let’s say the you and your children are hiking in beautiful Olympic National Park.  Oh, look!  Moose antlers!  If you or your child – who didn’t shoot the moose, I hasten to add, you simply found the molted antlers lying on the trail – well, if you pick up the antlers – again, not leave the park with them, but simply Pick. Them.  Up. Well, that’s a five thousand dollar fine and up to six months in jail according to Federal law, 36 CFR 2.1 subchapter (a)(1)(i).

To wit:

§ 2.1 Preservation of natural, cultural and archeological resources.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the following is prohibited:
(1) Possessing, destroying, injuring, defacing, removing, digging, or disturbing from its natural state:
(i) Living or dead wildlife or fish, or the parts or products thereof, such as antlers or nests.

You can bet someone has been prosecuted under this law.  But at least it’s not a felony!

Watch the whole thing.