Faith in the People

Reading stuff like this always helps to renew my faith that We the People still are in control when it comes to deciding the fate of this nation.

Here's why:

"What this showed more than anything else was that not even members of Congress can ignore a switchboard system of Capitol Hill that is so totally jammed," said Peter Sepp, a conservative opponent of the bill with the National Taxpayers Alliance.

I watched President Bush's speech this morning and shook my head. He fell into the same belief trap that too many politicians in this country do. The belief that their position is one of leadership.

"Our economy is depending on decisive action from the government," Bush said. "The sooner we address the problem, the sooner we can get back on the path of growth and job creation. This is what elected leaders owe the American people, and I am confident that we'll deliver."

Most of the time, Main Street America will let the politicians enjoy the fantasy of power on their elite pedestal above us. Most of the time, we'll even let them live that fantasy so long as they aren't screwing with our fundamental values. It's only when the politicians begin to believe that they are truly above us does the rest of the country knock them off for a quick lesson in reality.

The bailout bill didn't fail yesterday because of "lack of leadership" or "partisanship". It failed for the same reason the Comprehensive Immigration Reform failed: We the People decided we didn't want it and put our elected representatives in their proper place.

President Bush didn't get it apparently. We don't want nor are owed "leadership". We want results and we want you to listen to what we're saying and the American people resoundingly are saying "No!" to this idea of a bailout.

Such things renew my faith that this country is not broken. Despite this, they're going to try again. Depressing but not out-of-the-ordinary. Politicians don't like being reminded who butters their bread. That would be us. Get to pulling those levers of power too greedily and we'll smack your hands right off them. Continue and we'll kick your sorry butt right out of the seat you're sitting in and give it to someone else who might be able to listen when the People speak.

Sometimes, folks, you have to listen to what the People want. Have any of these politicians given thought to the idea that maybe we'd rather have short-term hardship than continue to compromise our values in what we think is right and wrong? Despite the variety in beliefs and values, I think most people on both sides of the aisle generally agree in the notion of individual responsibility and we the taxpaying public don't want to be responsible for the bad decisions of others. We'll live with the consequences.

All the negotiating and working with the various House leadership won't change that fact. Continue to push the matter in opposition to what those that vote you into those "leadership" positions want and you'll be finding yourselves back home jobless wondering what the hell happened. Elections can be funny things.

I want to say "Thanks Main Street America!" and keep it up! I agree with what you are doing and I'm grateful that ultimately, we are still control of our destiny.

"Sorry to Have Disturbed You..."

Is it me or do the rest of you find this hilarious?

Somali pirates seized a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying 32 T-72 tanks plus a full load of ammunition for same as well as infantry small arms. That's a handy little combined arms battalion right there.

Sometimes, you just can't make this stuff up. The best stories often occur right here in real life.

The Russians are sending the Neustrashimy (Fearless), a missile frigate in response. What's interesting about that is the Neutrashimy is the lead ship of her class, the latest in the Russian Navy.

Folks, when the Russians send their latest toys out to pay you a visit, get away from wherever they're headed because they mean business. Subtlety is not a Russian trait. They prefer to send pieces of those who oppose them back to their supporters as a hint to find other people to annoy. Anyone want to wager that as that frigate gets closer, the ransom amounts the pirates are demanding will continue to fall until the pirates decide that a suitable price might be their skins still in one piece?

If not, I get the distinct impression that the term "live fire exercise" will take on new meaning. No one is going to let those pirates get one ounce of hardware off that ship. I'm sure when they went aboard it was like a little kid staring at the Leprechaun's legendary pot of gold. Can you imagine what a band of ragtag militia could do with a ready-to-go tank battalion in that African rathole? I'm sure they fell to their knees in praise to Allah for delivering to them such good fortune.

Right up until they heard the Russians were coming. Alas, their proper instincts didn't get the best of them since my first reaction upon hearing that news would be to grab a life preserver, climb over the side opposite the American destroyer and swim my skinny militia wannabe ass off back to shore. Take up goat herding or something as a profession. Something safe and likely to not involve Spetsnaz.

Intelligence, an uncommon survival trait in the modern pirate today apparently.

These pirates have two options: leave mewling and happily alive in the hands of American Marines aboard the USS Howard or in many small pieces courtesy of the Russian Navy, mechanics of which yet to be determined. There is no way anyone is going to let them go anywhere with that ship. I suspect the Russians would rather pay out for the losses of the ship and crew than let that equipment wind up as the muscle for the next Somali dictator and friends.

Tam says the natural enemy of pirates are ninjas. Runner-up has to be a Russian surface-to-surface anti-shipping missile. If it comes to that, I'm sure the USS Howard will have rescue boats on-hand to help any unfortunate crew or pirate that manages to survive at the same time enjoying the show.

I'd pay to have a camera on that ship over the next few days as a pay-per-view exclusive. Just to watch these guys start losing their minds. Hell, this would be a great Hollywood movie adaption as a military comedy. Still need to work out the ending though.

Countdown

Today is a special day. It means nothing to most people but to me it is a milestone.

It is one year from today that I will be filing my N-400 "Application for Naturalization". This is the big one, the one I've been waiting five years for.

The USCIS rules allow you to file your application for US citizenship 90 days out from your 5 year anniversary of being issued your permanent resident status. That date for me is September 29, 2009. With a little luck, I should be sworn in as a US citizen sometime in the summer of 2010. Just in time for the 2010 mid-terms. When I mentioned this date to my future mother-in-law, she asked if anything could delay it. Member of a subversive organization, convicted of crimes, known association to Canadian beaver terrorists?

Last time I checked I was not on any special lists. I'd figure something would pop-up on the semi-annual self-administered background checks I do (aka gun purchases). Unless writing a blog talking about how much you value Constitutional rights and individual freedom counts as "subversive". Perhaps, given that includes a healthy dose of saying the Government should keep out of affairs rather than inject itself into them.

I can't tell you when I will be a US citizen but I know the first two things I will doing the moment it happens. The first is to leave the swearing in ceremony and head for the gun shop. I want to be able to check the "US citizen" box for the first time on the 4473 and pass the check without delay. Plus, I need to reward myself. Something suitable. Leaning towards a Barrett. It has to be appropriate, after all.

The second thing is to head to the DMV and register to vote. Shake in your boots Maryland state and Federal elected officials! Because as it stands right now, the lot of you are on my shitlist. That means you Barbara Mikulski and Chris Van Hollen. I will take great pleasure in voting against both of you in future elections. You have done nothing to respect the rights of your constituents except to work on bribing them with their own money and strip them of their rights. Neither of you is a friend of the 2nd Amendment having both voted in favor of gun bans. Especially Chris Van Hollen, a co-sponsor of HR.1022. I won't even get started on their positions on illegal immigration.

Lots to look forward to. That means, fellow subversives, you are running out of time to get your letters and evidence in to the authorities in order to have them deny me US citizenship. If you think I'm unworthy, you'd better act soon!

Here's to September 29th! Mark your calendars, the fateful day is coming!

It Was a Dark and Stormy Night...

So go the words that we are probably all familiar with thanks to Charles Schultz and Snoopy. There is a writing contest called the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest where one is supposed to write the opening sentence of a really bad novel in the spirit of Edward Bulwer-Lytton, author of "Paul Clifford" that began with those immortal words.

Since I am weighed down this afternoon, I thought I'd share my personal favorite from this contest. In this case, the 2005 winner:

"The sun oozed over the horizon, shoved aside darkness, crept along the greensward, and, with sickly fingers, pushed through the castle window, revealing the pillaged princess, hand at throat, crown asunder, gaping in frenzied horror at the sated, sodden amphibian lying beside her, disbelieving the magnitude of the frog's deception, screaming madly, 'You lied!"

I have my entry ready for the science fiction category for 2009.

Good weekend everyone!

Librarian Wanted

Breda should be pleased. It looks like being a bookworm and helping folks navigate the stacks pays pretty well. And has some growth potential in the future. From the article:

Librarians
Annual median income: $50,970*
Projected employment in 2016: 164,000
Increase between 2006 and 2016: 4 percent

Not too shabby. Perhaps a part-time for me in my semi-retirement putting the Dewey Decimal System to work.

A New AWB is Now Official

Barack Obama's campaign site was just updated and they've added the following verbiage to their Urban Policy section:

Address Gun Violence in Cities: As president, Barack Obama would repeal the Tiahrt Amendment, which restricts the ability of local law enforcement to access important gun trace information, and give police officers across the nation the tools they need to solve gun crimes and fight the illegal arms trade. Obama and Biden also favor commonsense measures that respect the Second Amendment rights of gun owners, while keeping guns away from children and from criminals who shouldn't have them. They support closing the gun show loophole and making guns in this country childproof. They also support making the expired federal Assault Weapons Ban permanent, as such weapons belong on foreign battlefields and not on our streets.

Emphasis mine.

It's official. Obama is no longer hiding his "support" of the 2nd Amendment. He's embraced it fully and plans to hinder your gun ownership rights. This doesn't respect my 2nd Amendment rights; it destroys them.

Thanks Obama, you just made the voting choice of 50-80 million gun owners a lot easier.

The Democrats don't want to take your guns but they sure want to limit what you'll ever be able to get.

Hot Referral Log Action

In the spirit of Marko's regular postings, some stuff from my referrer logs...

will mosin nagant ever increase in value

Answer: Yes. They already have. M44 carbines that were $50-$60 two years ago are commanding $120 and up now. 200-300 percent increase in value over three years I'd say is a pretty good investment.

why you shouldnt use a gun or a knife

Because you might piss off the criminal even more. Haven't you heard you're supposed to give the criminal what they want? Even if it includes unapproved access to your vagina? After all, you might get hurt fighting back.

The only time you shouldn't use a gun or a knife is if you have a flamethrower nearby. Otherwise, use whatever object you have handy as a weapon since your greatest weapon is your mind and no scum of the earth is on a higher moral plane than your well-being.

build a .22LR rifle

You sure can. It will cost you more than one already built though. The Ruger 10/22 is a highly modular rifle. It's the kit gun of the .22LR world. Otherwise, you'll probably need a decent machine shop for a quality gun or a piece of steel pipe, an elastic band and a nail for a crude zip gun. So yes, reader, it can be done. You're only limited by time, money and risk.

joe biden mental midget

Couldn't agree more. In fact, that would look really good in a campaign ad or on a sign somewhere. "Support the little people! Joe Biden, Mental Midget for VP". Hmm, maybe I just found my bumper sticker for this election.

Two Birds For One Bailout Stone

Ok, it looks like the Government is going to hand over $700+ billion dollars to the financial industry to buy their bad mortgage and related debt. I don't like it but perfection is not something we can achieve in this world. Sometimes we have to live with unpleasant compromises.

That being said, at the end of the day here is the Government in possession of a large number of loans and assets. Some will be defaulted on leaving the Government with properties to be disposed of. But for the vast majority of cases, here will be bad loans that will still be paid upon. At the end of the day, this money will wind its way back into Government coffers as repayment for these loans.

Over the next 5-10 years, this will amount to large sum of money. Certainly greater than what was loaned out. My principle concern, beyond oversight of those taking this money until it is repaid to the American taxpayer, is what the Government will do with it. Understand, it isn't like the Government has $700 billion sitting in a bank somewhere just waiting to loan it out. They're going to raise it by getting it from other sources. Bonds, loan guarantees, that sort of thing. So when this money starts flowing back in, I am very concerned the Government will look at this money flow in the same way a city looks at red light cameras: a "free" source of revenue.

Most taxpayers are pissed at the thought of the Government doing this. It goes against the nature of the average, decent citizen that asks why they should be held responsible for the mistakes of others. Even if indirectly through their taxes. It is a fair question to ask.

Since we seem hell-bent on this course, for good or bad anyway, why don't we solve two problems at once?

Somewhere in the mountains of legalese that this package will contain should be a straightforward clause. And the clause will read simply: "All funds received in repayment of these loans shall not be considered a source of revenue for the Federal Government. The proceeds from this program, prinicpal and interest, shall be placed into the Social Security Trust and shall remains off-limits for any Government purpose under any and all circumstances except for the purpose of paying out owed Social Security benefits.".

I figure if we're loaning out money on one hand we might as well get something back on the other. The Government constantly cries about the looming Social Security crisis. So why not kill two birds with one stone? The money is going out anyway so we the taxpayer might as well get some long-term good out of the deal. I'd say $700 billion plus interest flowing into the Social Security Trust, which only contains a pile of IOUs anyway, should go a long, long way towards getting that program solvent. And with the "hands off" language, it will keep Congress' grubby little paws off it in spite of their desire to use just under one trillion dollars for pork barrel spending.

I'd say that's a good return and suitable punishment for Congress over the years doing things they should never have done.

It will also restore a small amount of faith in the Government among the American taxpaying citizen. It will also lessen some of the fury a lot of folks are feeling towards that Government for doing this. Yes, we'll still be mad about it but we can't be as mad as we'd like to since we are fixing a problem the Government has long claimed desperately needs fixing.

I think I have a good idea. I'm not an economist but I think it is the best way to make lemonade out of the lemons we've been handed.

What say you?

A Bailout Observation

I have an observation regarding this whole government financial bailout:

How is it the government suddenly has the solution in less than two weeks to a problem that the so-called "best and brightest" in the financial industry couldn't foretell or forestall for years?

And given that: Why didn't these uber-intelligent government economists see it coming and avert it?

Short answer: Because if these government economists and advisers knew anything about the financial industry, they'd be working in it instead of against it.

I get really, really nervous when the Government has the solution for all that ails us and manages to solve all the nation's problems during a weekend corporate retreat. They must have had some really good motivational speakers. Either way, the outcome is not going to be good for anyone.

One of our other suggestions here was to sell Bailout Bonds. Like War Bonds. Instead of putting all the taxpayers on the line for a bill that it appears we aren't too keen on getting in on, let those who want to help the financial industry do so. Offer a Bailout Bonds with a 5 or 10 year return just like they did in World War 2 to fund the war effort.

That way those in favor of bailing out Wall Street corporations can do so by putting their tax money where their mouth is and leave my tax money alone. Government stills gets their controlling interest and can take credit and taxpayers who want nothing to do with it benefit too. See, everyone wins!

I came to a more depressing conclusion over lunch. Say the world economy heads for the seventh level of Hell and it's post-futurist TEOTWAKI time. The rich, few and powerful and everyone else. I'd be one of the "everyone else" but with an advantage: I'll be a rich black market anyone else.

I suspect I could command a premium price for firearms and ammo by those who fought against them every step of the way in a civilized world but have had a sudden change of heart in the new savage world order they helped create. I'm sure I could spare a Mauser, Enfield, Mosin-Nagant or a couple Kalishnikov variants with 500 rounds of ammo each for really, really good prices. Gold and silver in my pocket. Plus food, survivial and medical supplies. Opportunities abound!

See, gun collecting does have an upside!

They Aren't Going to Take Our Guns...

Sebastian has an article up about a group of union mine fascists getting pissed off at their members badmouthing Barack My Shit Don't Stink Obama on his verifiable, atrocious record on gun rights.

In the article, we see the following phrase:

Roberts called Obama a "great defender" of the right to keep and bear arms and said running mate Joe Biden is a gun owner.

"None of us believe that Barack Obama is going to take anyone's guns," Roberts said.

I am getting really, really tired of people trotting out that phrase. In a sense, they are correct. The Government is highly unlikely to actually pass legislation that would require us to physically turn over our guns to them. To do so would be political and national suicide. Any attempt to actually enforce such a requirement would like result in regional civil war and national strife. Even the most ardent gun haters like Barack He's So Cryptofascist Obama recognize that.

So they use that phrase in order to soothe your ruffled feathers. They're right; they are not going to take our guns. But what pisses me off is the unspoken part that no one latches onto in the wake of such trifling statements is all the things they can, will and want to do that don't involve physically coming for the guns. So spare me the platitude.

There is a whole manner of things that can be done that don't involve "taking anyone's guns".

Some examples...

• Banning the manufacture or sale of guns based on arbitrary criteria such as a appearance. Existing owners could keep them but their future value falls to zero in the absence of spare parts, ability to sell them to anyone or outright loss of property since their families wouldn't be allowed to inherit them.
• Require stringent, capricious licensing and fees for the exercise of a right, dissuading all but the most determined from gun ownership. And then labeling those that run the bureaucratic gauntlet as "dangerous" since they were willful enough to defy the regulations and succeed.
• Consider anyone with a keen technical interest in marksmanship, especially at ranges beyond 100 yards, as a potential terrorist. This would apply to most hunters and cometitive shooters.
• Require microstamping of guns to raise their cost and establish defacto illegal gun registries to keep track of them all in the name of crime reduction.
• Require the encoded of ammunition which would require all unencoded stocks to be destroyed or turned in by their owners without compensation. Yup, they aren't going to take your guns but the expensive ammo you've acquired is fair game.
• Pile on more and more petty regulations on the zoning and operation of gun shops so they decide to turn to other means of making a living. Get the BATF involved and they won't take your guns, just those of the gun shop who was selling them to you.

Shall I continue or do you get the point? It isn't about taking my guns; it's about taking my rights. To a lot of people, these things are below their radar and they don't realize the manner in which an anti-gun administration, backed by a potential President who sat on the board of a foundation that funded anti-gun groups across the country, can render our rights meaningless by the swipe of a pen and what they believe.

Stop trying to pander to me. Don't tell me everything will be fine and that these "common-sense" restrictions will let me keep my guns. Keeping them isn't the point. It is exercising my rights. Letting me keep my AR-15 because I happened to be fortunate to have one before the Government banned their manufacture is still a denial of the rights of my neighbor since he now can't own or get one! What if he wanted one? Oh well, tough luck. Tell me that isn't an arbitrary denial of rights. And eventually I would lose mine as well if I was unable to get parts to repair it and mine was rendered a pile of unsaleable steel.

Same goes for my ammunition, my accessories and all of the things that go along with owning guns that don't involve you having to take them.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden don't want your guns; they just don't want you to get any more and regulate the ownership of what you do have to the point you'll be begging the Government to take them off your hands out of fear for yourself and your family.

And these union leaders can kiss my ass too. Who gave them the right to dictate what free citizens can and cannot say to whomever they want? I don't care if they endorsed Barack Obama. What the so-called "union leaders" (bullies is more accurate) do is their problem. If they told me I had to support their candidate in violation of my rights to vote for whom I choose, "Kiss my ass." would be a polite response.

The lot of them can get stuffed.

How Do I Get to Be a Cryptofascist?

This shouldn't come as much of a surprise. Courtesy of Rustmeister. Right on the edge of libertarian but I'll chalk that up to test differences. As I've repeatedly said, I score moderate to conservative libertarian.

I just don't like being called a "Social Liberal". Sounds too much like I believe in Social Justice.

Update: Did anyone else notice on the grid below there are no black areas in the bottom left and right for "Dictator" and "Communist" respectively? Fascinating. Perhaps the test was written by an ardent leftist who sees nothing wrong with either one?

You are a Social Liberal (61% permissive) and an... Economic Conservative (83% permissive) You are best described as a: Capitalist Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also : The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

Militaria

One of the downsides of being a student of military history is it is easy to begin branching out. As you do, you begin to acquire items of interest in an ever-widening pattern.

Guns are not my first love. Oh, I enjoy collecting firearms and connecting with the history they represent but my first love was aviation. General military history came later in my life but from the time I was a kid, I loved aircraft. Specifically, military aircraft.

Like many American teenagers, my dream was to be a fighter pilot. Now, that might be a possibility for an American boy, for a Canadian one it's a tough goal. Canada has a very small air force and to be a fighter pilot, you had to be one of the chosen few. So my chances were remote but I never stopped dreaming despite being asthmatic.

The closest I ever came was the near-opportunity I took to begin joining the Royal Air Force. Since my grandfather was from England, I had the option to pursue dual-citizenship with the United Kingdom. By doing so, I would then have been able to join Britain's military. To put it mildly, they have a few more aircraft than Canada. The idea of flying a Tornado was very appealing. I got as far as filling out the initial application but never went any further as college and life intervened.

But throughout, I loved military aviation. The first time I ever flew in my life was in the back of a Schweizer 2-33 sailplane as an Air Cadet and soaring remaining my only flying experience for years until I flew commercially for the first time at 17 years old.

I look back on the period as a Royal Canadian Air Cadet as some of the best of my life despite the ups and downs in entailed. It was my first introduction to a military-type life and the unfulfilled promise still remains a tantalizing "What If?" to me 20 years later. A story for another time.

The dream of being a fighter pilot likewise faded to "What If?". But I lived it virtually through years of flight simulators. Like many computer geeks, my progressive computer upgrades were largely dictated by the power needed to run ever improving flight sims in a decent way. Even if I couldn't do it for real, I still do it in the computer. Worse ways to spend money.

From the time I was a teenager, I figured if I couldn't be one, I could like vicariously through exposure to it and perhaps someday get the chance to fly in a fighter jet if only for a few minutes. Just to experience it once would satisfy me.

One of the ways to dream is to be reminded of them. For 20 years, I have dreamed about acquiring a specific item relating to that dream and finally I have done so.

One of the things I have wanted was a flight helmet and mask to hang on my wall. If for no other reason to look at and dream. This weekend, I finally got one and got it at a price that wasn't outrageous and wouldn't have my fiancee looking for sharp instruments or the .45.

It's a weird thing, collecting militaria. In one sense, it is little more than an adult version of playing with dolls and dressup. In a more mature sense, it is connecting with history and experiences you can never have. But holding the items and learning the stories relating to them can make history come alive. In the child sense, even adults still can dream and pretend.

Plus, when you don't have a styrofoam head yet, you simply have to make do.

Very space age, eh? I think I managed to finally take the opportunity to get a helmet because the cost was reasonable. There is a whole subculture dealing with aviation militaria and flight helmets specifically. Like guns, cost varies widely. I've purchased the equivalent of a cheap surplus rifle.

This is a Soviet/Russian Zsh-3M shell with a KM-32 oxygen mask. What you aren't seeing is the SHL-78 leather helmet and PO-1 goggles underneath. This is the typical appearance of a Soviet fighter pilot from the 1960s into the 1990s. This equipment is among the most widely produced aircrew survival equipment in the world. It is the fighter pilot equivalent of a Mosin-Nagant rifle.

I've come to appreciate differences in how various countries approach solving problems relating to military matters. We often chide Russia for being technically inferior and as a result, they have to make crappy equipment right? Not so.

Unlike the Americans who quickly went from World War II era leather flying helmets to one piece hard shells, the Soviet Union took an incremental approach. They found their leather helmets worked fine but as speeds increased in the jet age, it was simply easier to improvise. The Zsh-3 family of helmets became their first hard helmet and it simply fits over the leather helmet. Hence why the Zsh-3 is referred to as a shell because it truly is. In post-war American hard helmets, the shell is the outer shell and it can accept the inner liner. In Soviet equipment, the liner is the leather helmet. Later models were one-piece but this design has persisted in service for decades.

It provides for some amazing versatility. Even to this day, some helicopter pilots can be found wearing just the leather helmet. They were produced in summer and winter versions with the winter versions being fur-lined. Finally, the leather helmet is actually pretty comfortable. My particular leather helmet was made in 1982 and is supple and soft.

This is the sight that might have greeted someone in formation with a MiG-21 or MiG-23...

Now that's an alien lifeform!

Dressup aside and not something for someone who gets claustrophobic, this still represents a dream unfulfilled but possible. Just because I didn't become a fighter pilot doesn't mean I've given up on wanting to experience it just once. There are several places around the world that offer fast jet flights in a variety of aircraft. Including MiG-25s to 80,000 feet. The cost is expensive but I figure within the next several years, I should be able to pull off something. I'd willingly pay several thousand dollars for 45 minutes over the Gulf of Mexico supersonic in a Starfighter or a dash to altitude in a BAC Lightning. I'll probably be scared silly and excited beyond description at the same time but it would be worth it.

Just once I'd like to feel the oxygen pulsing in the mask and for a few minutes, fly the aircraft myself just to see what I've missed.

So the helmet will sit on my desk. A very cool conversation piece and a reminder that I still have things to do and try. I think we all need that. I've waited twenty years for the first part. Just need to get to the second part and I can cross another thing off the list.

Sometimes life is just good.

Rants and Field Trips

End of week blog post. Here's the random stuff floating around...

I'm pissed off at watching the Government toss potentially half-a-trillion (yes, with a T) dollars to bail out bad debt created by these banks and investment houses. So I just got to help pay off Mr. and Mrs. Stupid American's subprime mortgage and pat the back of the loan officer who gave it to them despite the "580" credit score, the unverified income and the bonus the loan officer got paid for every loan he processed.

Thanks America! You're doin' great.

Since you're so willing to toss money out, why don't we just resurrect the Bolsheviks and get the revolution completed properly? You've gone halfway, why not just send checks out to the rest of us and bail everyone else out too. I'm sure I could whip the old Hammer and Sickle flag from the collection and get it flying proudly.

I doubt you'll do it but just a hint: The CEOs of these institutions just became Government employees. I think a review of pay packages and bonuses are in order. These people should not profit for their bad decisions at the largesse of the taxpaying public.

Next, a message to Eleanor Holmes Norton, the esteemed gentlewoman representing the District of Columbia in a bitch-only capacity.

Ms. Holmes Norton, communities do not have rights. Only people have rights. Arguing that community rights trump personal rights in the ephemeral chase of "safety" is offensive at best. I am tired of people like you arguing that your sense of collective community rights trump those of individual under the Constitution of the United States of America. You and others like you swore an oath to uphold the Constitution. You and Mayor Fenty are not upholding your oaths and are instead acting like petty, petulant tyrants of the worst sort. Maybe you should look at you behavior and that should answer the question of why Congress, and by extension the rest of the country who votes for them, don't think you deserve Home Rule.

The District Council serves at the pleasure of Congress. You're getting too big for your britches and are getting your bottom smacked like you deserve. If you don't believe me, look it up in the aforementioned Constitution.

If you were really serious about this idea of "the people of the District support our gun bans", put your money where your mouth is. Call for a binding referendum asking the question honestly (no push polling) along the lines of "Do you feel that private, law-abiding citizens should be allowed to own and possess firearms in their home and carry them legally outside their home the same way 40 other states allow their citizens to do so?". Use Virginia as the example since you seem to like using them as a comparison model so much.

I suspect the answer will be well in favor of "Yes" and against what you and your fellow tyrants running the District want. I seriously doubt you'll encourage such a thing. But it would be a good thing and would keep with what you should be doing.

Ok, with the rantfest over, updates and weekend fun...

I am going to New Jersey of all places this weekend. Going to tromp around with some of the biggest guns out there on the USS New Jersey. Then off to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard to look at the ships in storage. There is something fascinating about old warhorses tied up forlorn and silent next to their piers. Then if I have time, visit USS Olympia and complete the tour of three generations of naval history in a single day.

My order of fine steel wool showed up which means I can now begin the process of restoring my Martini-Henry. My project this weekend is to get a post up with the before and after pictures of whatever progress I make. I've become very interested in the British Victorian period of military history. More to follow on that.

And lastly, next weekend I will be in Yorktown, VA garrisoning the battlefield with other loyal members of His Majesty's Marines. So come on down and swear your loyalty to King George. Otherwise, you'll be considered a rebellious dog and we will be demonstrating what happens on the field of battle to traitors. God Save the King!

Good weekend everyone!

One Trick Pony

You know, Nancy Pelosi really is just a one trick pony. And that's an insult to the pony.

From CNN on the AIG bailout:

Meanwhile, congressional Democrats placed the blame for the crisis squarely on the Bush administration, arguing it failed to aggressively regulate the financial industry.

That's all we hear from the media and Pelosi: "It's Bush, Bush, Bush!". Blaming the President for failing to regulate the financial industry.

Last time I checked it was Congress that made law in this country, not the President. If Pelosi wants to look for responsibility or failure to regulate, check a mirror. And given the Congress under her leadership has such stellar approval ratings, I'd be a little wary about casting about too many stones given the quantities of glass present.

Is this all the Democrats have? "It's Bush, Bush, Bush?". I hope they understand the meaning of the words "Pissed, Pissed, Pissed!" come 2010 if Obama gets into office because I suspect by the time the Democratic majorities are done with "fixing" all the wrong caused by the Big Bad Bush administration, the People will be looking for the metaphorical equivalent of pitchforks and torches. Perhaps not even metaphorical if they fix it well enough.

As to this AIG bailout, well, wasn't that a brilliant idea?!? Like anything the Government touches, they take a good thing and screw it up. I don't like the message this sends and apparently neither does Wall Street. Why should there be a safety net for big companies? Are we going to extend socialism now to these quasi-entities too to protect them from their own mistakes? I was thrilled the day before when it was announced the Government was going to leave them alone. Not so thrilled the following day.

In the bigger picture, here's a wonderful bad lesson to send to kids of America. "Look! If you screw up bad enough, we'll rescue you from your mistakes.". Great message there, Mr. Government.

Should have let them go down in flames. Someone would have picked up the pieces and turned things around. There are winners and there are losers and in the end, the only losers would be the investors and people at AIG. No different than any other corporate failure and honestly, just another day on Wall Street. A year or two down the road, the AIG collapse would have been just a bad memory and then only to those involved.

I guess Pelosi never got the memo the Government's job is to keep its hands off. Leave stuff like this to the grownups! Things don't get broken worse then.

Clarification

I'm quite certain a number of you are thinking I am some twisted, depraved soul with the post below. It is an except from the prologue of a novel I have been tinkering with. It is a first-person autobiography of your stereotypical Evil Overlord who has managed to take the rules to heart.

So I've thrown it out there. If you like fiction, I hope you might find it funny, interesting, etc. Or maybe not. I think it would be a great novel of our Overlord describing his rise through a WDO (World Domination Organization) with adherence to the rules woven throughout. It certainly isn't for everyone.

I am sure there or will be some liberals out there who stumble across this and think "They let this guy have guns?!?".

Just want to clarify what that is about in case anyone thinks I've gone off the deep end.

Diary of an Evil Overlord: A Teaser

They say Evil Overlords do more before 9am than most despotic but misguided rulers do in a week.

It's a crock.

I'm already in a foul mood. Barely out of the shower, enjoying the morning stock market manipulation reports as well as last evening's torture and seizure figures over tea and crumpets. They're off, way off. Either my approval ratings among the subjugated have gone way up overnight or my rebel hunting teams were sleeping on the job. Care to guess which one it is? While I am growing darkly angry yet strangely excited at the prospect of a group execution, one of my minor henchmen comes in with a problem that simply cannot wait.

Normally, I deal with such intrusions into my precious morning time the way any decent, unaccountable ruler would: I shoot the bastard immediately and continue my tea without looking up to see where the body lands. Clearly, my minor underlings need to learn what is an appropriate time and place to disturb me during my private time. And anyone who has been in my organization more than a week quickly learns the meaning of prioritization.

Despite being rumored to not know the meaning of the word “mercy”, I actually allow him to sputter out his last words on why he dares to enter my dining room before I call for the cleaning crew in to clean up the mess. .45s can be overkill sometimes. Besides, he committed his first capital offense by not knocking first before entering. Opening his mouth merely sealed the deal. My quickness in dispatching him was simply my generosity shining through. No appreciation, just none at all.

While the janitorial henchcrew drag off the body, I am left pacing and becoming seriously pissed. The now-departed henchman in his haste to keep himself from screaming failed to tell me what was so important beyond the fact I have a problem that demands my attention downstairs. Great, a diversion from an already jam-packed schedule that can scarcely afford it.

I strip off my robe and with a snap of my fingers, my uniform is slipping onto my shoulders faster than a politician sells his votes for the promise of ruling a small tropical island. Not that any self-respecting Overlord would ever grant such unreliable people actual power in the New World Order. Not to mention entrust them with valuable, income earning, holiday real estate. Still, it's nice to let them dream.

I wave away my escort. It's too early for the bowing and scraping. Besides, it's not like I don't know the way to the dungeon. Eight-six paces down the south hallway, down the second set of stairs on the right, through the secret door, into the two man traps and past two guarded security posts with a full pat down (no cavity search, I am accorded some privileges), I am pleased to see at least one part of my organization is doing their job this morning. The security guards even check my ID badge for forgery, validity, compare my retinal and fingerprints and they do it while never lowering their weapons or a twitch from their square, chiseled features. Firm jaws and stiff resolve. Very good. Following procedure by the book. Even I am not immune to following the rules. Process, it is the lifeblood of any decent organization.

I enter the Red Block, the largest of my cell blocks. Like the surgical theaters of sailing ships of old, this section of the dungeon is painted in shades of dark brown. It hides the blood and is so much easier to keep clean. Plus, visitors aren't immediately revolted at the sight of congealing puddles on the floor. Never discount the value of a local Home Depot and a talented color-matching paint technician.

The source of this morning's problem that could not wait is shackled naked and gagged to a stainless steel chair in the middle of the glowing red cell. Fiber optic lighting is so wonderful. The soundproof door closes behind me as a Sergeant Henchman steps aside, arms folded neatly behind her back.

“What demands my attention, Sergeant?” I growl under my breath taking in the smell of the prisoner's fear. Distasteful. At least he hasn't wet himself yet.

The Sergeant, to her credit, remains stoic and unflinching under my gaze as she replies, “He left his post during a unannounced readiness exercise last night.”.

I stare at the ceiling to contain my rage. I got hauled down here for this? This better be really, really good. Such minor and fatal fuckups should never even appear as a blip on the personnel records let alone demand my personal attention. There is going to be some serious remedial corrective training when this is all over with.

“Mode of failure?” I demand formally.

“Pebble toss.”

The stream of epithets that emerges from my mouth is sufficient to make even the most hardened henchman blush. The Sergeant doesn't. Impressive. She might make a good consort. I banish the pleasant thought for the moment despite those oh-so-cute dimples and focus on the problem at hand. I need to get all the formalities taken care of for the paperwork that is definitely going to be an unwelcome follow-up to this.

I sigh aloud. Appearances are crucial and I have to appear compassionate at times. “What was he guarding?”.

The Sergeant shuffles uncomfortable and the prisoner begins to whimper behind the gag, shaking his head frantically. I glare at the Sergeant. She shrinks under my gaze, a bead of sweat trickling down her temple. Damn, she had potential. I cock my head expectantly to prod her along. She coughs and steps back, eyes brushing the crimson floor, withering under my glare.

“WHAT WAS HE GUARDING!?!” I roar.

The answer comes after another moment of awkward silence: “Your Ho-Hos, My Lord.”the Sergeant whispers ashamedly.

The cracking of my knuckles and neck bones as I feel my temples pound and my pupils dilate are the only sound in the room. It was proper for me to shoot the messenger. Word of a such a monumental foul-up will not leave this room except secured away in the depths of my own mind. And since sodium pentathol makes a wonderful after dinner tosser mixed with wine, no one will be extracting that tidbit from my brain anytime soon. Tolerance buildup to drug effects is a wonderful thing.

The snap of the buckle on my sidearm holster bounces with finality off the walls as I bellow out my first order of the day, “STRING HIM UP!”. The kevlar-lined walls absorb the impact energy of my second round expended for the day as the Sergeant's body crumples into a heap. Pity. She was cute. But secrecy has a high price.

The torture team surges through the door, poles and chains in hand. It is a well-practiced drill. Within seconds, the chair is stowed in its well in the floor and the prisoner is hanging by his wrists several feet off the floor. The team is expertly laying the instruments of pain and anguish on a side table as the Torture Master slides into position. Such beautiful choreography. I check my watch. 9:21am. Barely more than an hour. Damn, that's not even enough time to get to the torturee enough time to work up a few good screams in between the begging. The gag comes off and the simpering starts. Trust me, that's going to be short-lived. Oh well, what I lack in time, I will have to make up for zealousness.

I do.

Normally, I leave my minions to handle such pleasant tasks. Just too much for one man to do in a given day. After all, if I can't torture all equally, I should leave such matters in the hands of those who can. But not this time. Not for my Ho-Hos. No one, and I do mean no one, leaves that door unguarded. Ever. That whole section is going to be sorry, albeit briefly, that the readiness exercise was run on their shift. By the time this has run its course, HR is going to have to run another job fair to recruit for the empty slots. Not too mention the expenses, the benefits payouts, the time. It's enough to drive a man insane.

But that is why I have HR Henchman. For the next hour, I relish the whistle of barbed leather straps cutting through the air, the snag as the hook grabs and the soft yet fabulous sound of a hook tearing into living flesh. Lash after lash. Scream after scream. Sob after sob. I am in my zen place. Only the redness of the room, my focus on my task and the pitiful and delightful sounds of agony make up my world.

Swish...snap...”MMMAAHHAHHAH!!!”. So rhythmic, so soothing. It's enough to make you weep.

I am so engrossed that a barely feel the gentle tap on my shoulder. I spin, annoyed at the interruption. It's head of my PR group. He shrinks back under my gaze. He taps his wrist, “Five minutes to prep, My Lord.” he whispers.

I nod and wave him away. Damn, I was enjoying that too. I hand the whip back to the Torture Master who puts it to good use. Like any good performance, this one needs a suitable, awe-inspiring climax. Screams, like the ticking of a metronome, jog my imagination to and fro. Then it hits me.

I motion for the team to stop and with a quick set of hand gestures, the barely conscious prisoner is lowered to the floor. But his eyes are wide and begging. I give him my trademark smile. You know, that dark and knowing smile that tell those who see it that their end is near and you're going to enjoy every minute of it. The sobs begin almost on cue.

Now, lesser Overlords at this point would give the condemned a private monologue. A few brief moments of respite to consider the error of their ways through a haze of crippling and well-earned pain. An opportunity for them to confess and beg for a clean, quick death. Then the Overlord will stand over them, call out some maniacal yet useless cliche to stroke their own ego and give the prisoner their wish.

Not me. I'm beyond such pointless displays of power. Words are forgotten but actions are remembered. Besides, it's not like I'm doing it for my benefit. I snap out a number and like a well-oiled machine, the torture team is in motion. Hands are shackled to fittings in the floor, legs pulled apart and spread eagled, genitalia positioned just so with strips of edible, meat-flavored tape.

And with a flair for the theatric, I sing out, “Send in the hounds!”.

Come on, is there is nothing more entertaining in the world than watching two rabid yet perfectly groomed poodles fighting over a man's splayed testicles? The deep, throaty screams that shake the soundproof door, the bouncing puffy hair, the ravenous yips of vicious, blood-stained beasts growling and snapping for morsels of tender meat. It makes my soul sing.

I let the remaining minutes count down as I bask in the glory of a job well-done. At least I'm in a good mood now. With a nod to a torture team, I turn and exit the cell. The dog handler follows me out a moment later to return Peaches and Rosy to their cages. They're happy. Making an entry on my PDA to have second shift reassigned to graveyard duty (as in filling it), my hearts swoons with approval as I hear a chainsaw being started before the soundproof door suddenly plunges me into silence. You have to admire such talented and dedicated help. So hard to find nowadays. It was a needed diversion despite the seriousness of the offense. Back to work.

First it was the prisoner's torture, now it's my turn. Never a dull moment in the headquarters of an Overlord, I think to myself as I arrive at my next appointment.

***

Want more?

The Constricting Circle of Freedom

Have you noticed that the passage of laws rarely, if ever, results in a net increase in our freedoms? Virtually all of the time, new laws are meant to curtail, contain or control the exercise of our rights into smaller, more manageable circles. That way our freedoms are neatly corralled for the next restriction that makes them even easier to control since they have less space to flee or they are led off and disappear altogether.

In the gun community and among discussion boards that deal with 2nd Amendment issues either wholly or in part, you hear what almost amounts to a universal truth. The truth goes along the lines of "Background checks are a really good idea and we're glad criminals are prevented from getting guns legally.". Not a single person disagrees with it. Everyone nods their heads at this imparted and accepted wisdom.

The chains rest lightly. They must because we all wear them. No one bothers to question "The Truth". For all of our fighting against the infringement of our gun rights, I rarely see anyone (with a couple of notable exceptions) rally against things like background checks and the effects they have on the average individual.

For the record, I don't have an issue with background checks as an idea per se. It is the only world of gun ownership I know. But as I've gotten educated on the issues and history of American gun control, it isn't hard to realize that we are not free and likely will never return to the freedoms that others in the past took for granted. I'm not even talking true freedom like before the Gun Control Act of 1968. I'm talking about the freedom that disappeared in 1994 when the Brady Bill became law.

A mere 14 years later, the conditioning is well and truly complete. In some cases, we have an entire generation of gun owners who have known nothing but background checks as normal and accepted. They cannot see what has been lost. I'm one of them. I've never known any other way.

It doesn't mean I have to like it though. A law-abiding person shouldn't have to nervously await the result of a background check to be pronounced "law-abiding". The NICS check makes you feel like a criminal. You're presumed guilty until declared innocent by the FBI. I hate doing the NICS paperwork because I know there's always going to be that period between "delay" and "approved". It's almost a form of virtual rape at a distance. Someone is pawing through your life as mere data and determining if you're good enough.

I guess it bothers me more now and why I try to get the most of out of a single call to NICS because I am one of those special people that has ever seen the words "Denied" on their NICS application. My greatest fear is having that happen again and with all the potential consequences that could come with it.

The worst part of it is, the whole system exists as a compromise by the NRA in an effort to preserve our gun rights. In looking back, I'd prefer the Brady Bill had been left as it had originally been.

The National Instant Check System came into being as a result of the Brady Bill that became law in February 1994. The interim provision of the Brady Bill required for the first time at the national level, a mandatory 5 day waiting period for all handgun purchases. This time would be used by the local police to perform a background check on the prospective handgun purchaser and return the results to the dealer. If the buyer passed, they got to take their gun home.

I wasn't here in 1994 so I don't know what the general feeling in the gun rights community was at the time. Given that this law passed at the time the gun control movement was at its zenith, I believe the Brady Bill was accepted as a good thing. After all, who wouldn't want to stop a criminal from buying a handgun? Bear in mind that handguns have always been considered the criminal weapon of choice and data supported this going back into the 1970s. So the idea of a background check for their sale was an easy sell to the public.

But this interim provision was only meant to last only five years. For those five years, it applied only to handguns. Afterwards, the permanent provision would take over. This provision was apparently crafted as a compromise to eliminate the mandatory 5 day wait by computerizing the background check process and make it instant at the point-of-sale. But it came with a cost...

The cost was the automated check applied to all firearms purchases, not just handguns.

1998 became the year that the status quo we accept so readily came into being. Ten years later, gun rights advocates decry every other gun control scheme out there but praise the background check system as a good thing. "It stopped criminals and mentally unstable from buying guns!". You know, we sit here and heap derision on the Brady Campaign for their unending mantras of "If it saves just one life..." or "For the Children!(tm)" but we sit here happy and pleased with the erosion of our freedoms and rights by bill that bears their name.

The more NICS checks I do, the more I hate them. I accept them as the law and life as a firearms owner but part of me wonders about the alternate reality. Say the compromise wasn't made and the mandatory 5 day period stood just for handguns? Long guns would remain free of the background check and remain at the status quo that had existed since 1968. The status quo of signing Form 4473 under penalty of perjury and felony that the information you provided is true and you are not prohibited from possessing the gun you are about to buy.

Wouldn't you like to go back in time and make that the world we live under? I think I would.

I think about this loss of freedom that has confined us into a circle and mourn its loss. Wouldn't it be better to accept the risks of true freedom to purchase guns and be punished after the fact for criminal acts with them rather than be treated as a criminal upfront for wanting them?

In a sense, we've acted like gun contollers because there is no way to measure criminal usage of guns with and without NICS. Does NICS really prevent crime? I'd argue no. Clearly criminals have found their ways around the system and our system of justice hasn't expressed great interest in prosecuting crimes in violation of NICS versus simply making life more difficult for the law-abiding. We've fallen into the trap of correlation equaling causation.

Ten years is all it took for us to accept a lesser definition of freedom in the exercise of what up until 1994 had been quite permissive by comparison.

I wonder what our rights will look like in another ten years from the confines of our gilded cage and how readily we'll accept it as normal?

Just a thought, especially with the potential of Obama, Biden and Pelosi possibly running the show.

Toys and Totalitarians

It was an ok weekend.

The Chantilly gun show was a bit of a disappointment. The vendor I wanted to get ammo from wasn't there. In fact, we were pretty thin on the ground with regards to mil-surp and non-mainstream commercial ammo. I have a Swede to feed! I wound up cleaning out the one vendor who had 6.5x55mm Swedish and grabbed some 7.5mm Swiss as a consolation prize.

On the goodies front, just accessories. A couple bayonets, two Mosin-Nagant slings, M1 Carbine handguard, pretty mundane stuff. One of the Mosin slings was nifty though. A blue Navy issue instead of the regular green. I put it on my Mosin-Nagant 91/59 carbine. The dark blue looks quite striking next to the light blonde wood. I figured a rare rifle deserved a rare sling.

I did get to see a man about a musket. I'm working on zeroing in on my N-SSA musket for next year, trying stuff on that fits and will work. So far, my front runner is a Harper's Ferry M1855 two-band musket. I held a James River Armory one and it shouldered beautifully. It came up and just came to my cheek naturally. Plus the sights and heft were wonderful. I didn't like the CS Richmond at all with the sights it came with.

My requirements in a musket are two-fold: leaf long range sights (so I can zero at both 50 and 100 yards and flip between them without having to hold off) and the gun must outshoot me. That's it. By N-SSA standards, I am actually wanting a medium trigger pull at 3.5 pounds. It's what I'm used to. The N-SSA allows down to 3 pounds and the Blue Rifles sets a team limit of 3.2 pounds. All the other accurizing is standard stuff: lock work for the trigger pull, aftermarket barrel and glass bedding.

As long as the musket comes up to my shoulder and the sight picture is steady and crisp, I'm pretty happy. I'm told as long as I get a good gun but find a better one later, I can sell the original for nearly what I paid for it. I subscribe to the school of thought of getting a known great gun, keeping it and work up to its level. At least that way I know everything going wrong is either me or my powder/bullet load. Assuming I sort out the latter and the gun is consistent, I'll know misses are all due to me. It's a game of eliminating variables.

I've eliminated the Enfield two-band. It's too light. I'm concurring with the evaluation of the gentleman who recruited me. I need to have a moderate to heavy gun. The Remington Zouave is still a possibility but aftermarket parts are iffy for it. Feels nice and has good weight. In general, I want to see what the top shooters are shooting and go down that path. My initial inquiries into the suitability of the Harper's Ferry have been unanimous in approval of the choice.

And to top it off, a gentleman on the team was at the show and we talked about the Harper's Ferry. He has one with the work I want done on it. We'll have to see if we can work something out. I'd rather pay a little extra to him to get a gun that is known to work than have to spend a couple months and the money building one up to the same level.

On the downside, my trip to Winchester for some shooting qualification and checking out guns was cancelled because the fellow I was meeting had his car break down. Hope everything is ok for him.

And lastly, I realized after turning around on Sunday that the next gun show in Chantilly is November 21st. A couple weeks after the election. If Obama wins the election, I need to go that show. I predict quite the buying frenzy, especially in black and scary rifles. With the promise of him not taking away sportsman's guns, he'll have plenty of opportunity to go after the other 80% of the gun owning populace. I suspect every firearms dealer will be doing a brisk business if that comes to pass.

Please vote. Don't let this happen. The Government should not have the authority to regulate away your lawfully acquired and owned property because an empty suit politician believes something to be true when it isn't. But for Obama, feelings are more important that facts and we're the ones who may well suffer for it. Remember, political promises are hot air, nothing more. They are made to acquire votes. But since promises have no substance (and no politician will ever put them in writing), they aren't binding. Once Obama has your vote, all bets are off for the aftermath. He got what he wanted. He got elected. After that, it isn't about you anymore but him. He's going to do what he believes, your rights and values notwithstanding.

Remember, the best way to deal with a bad law is to make sure it never becomes law in the first place. Easier to breathe a sigh of relief over what isn't than to work on repealing what is. Ask Dick Heller about that. Obama may not ask for an "assault weapon" ban but Pelosi and her Congress with the highest negative approval ratings in history might be happy to slip one onto his desk. Any takers on the odds of the pen not leaping out of its holder for a swipe and a flourish at the bottom of that bill? "Love and Kisses, Obama", anyone?

I thought so.

The week started lousy and I have a pounding headache. I'm really excited about the Martini-Henry. More to follow on that front.

All for now.

Antiques and Ammo

Once again, the gun show is in town. This is like the circus!

It's a short list this time. Strictly ammo and accessories. I think I've maxed out my gun purchases with the arrival of my Martini-Henry Mark II "Gurkha" model a couple days ago. Apparently the distinction between "real" firearm and "antique" firearm is lost on my fiancee :). I argue that antiques aren't really guns and she doesn't believe me. If it's shaped like a gun, looks like a gun, smells like a gun and shoots like a gun, it's a gun. I can accept that.

Still, I am really liking this "gun-but-not delivered to my doorstep" thing. I think back at how much gun rights have lost out since 1968 (before I was born) when that was normal and accepted. We don't question it now but what about those back then who had suddenly lost their ability to order a Remington or Marlin straight to their door? How did they feel? We accept FFLs as the status quo and think we have freedom since we can still buy guns. We don't. We've lost freedom. Just some of us have known no other world.

Bitching aside, here's my shopping list for Chantilly:

• At least 120 rounds of 6.5x55mm
• Any quantity of 8x56R I can lay my hands on.
• Some .303 British.
• A couple of M1 and Mosin-Nagant slings.
• Some cleaning supplies for black powder and in general to begin restoring my Martini-Henry.

That's really it. I am meeting up with a member of the Blue Rifles to discuss musket selection for next year. I think a lot of my learning for the next little while is going to be on black powder and black powder reloading skills since these are going to be what I'm needing between now and next March. Short-term, I need to choose my musket, get my uniform and equipment and begin learning the art of shooting black powder. That's going to be fun.

I'm going to post pictures of my new Martini-Henry this weekend. I'm actually impressed with what I got for what I paid. It's an untouched Mark II Martini-Henry short lever rifle with whatever grease, grime, rust and detoriation of over a century of storage will bring. It is officially the oldest gun in my collection at over 120 years old. Reviews have been 50/50 on guns with pitting and corrosion on the barrels to ones in good shape and restored to shooting condition. I opted to buy on with those odds and the fact it would give me practice in restoring an antique gun without a lot of value. At worst, she becomes a wall hanger.

But from my initial survey, I think I lucked out. The test cleaning I did on the breech block and barrel reveal smooth, shiny metal. The bore has strong, sharp rifling from what I can see between the blobs of storage grease. Crown is a little rough and the wood is chipped away in a couple places but the gun is intact. The action functions. So assuming I don't have a broken firing pin and I find no corrosion under the wood, I think I have a good first antique rifle.

I expect many night ahead with steel wool and WD-40 to work the grease and grime off.

Afterward, my goal is to acquire at least two more Martini-Henrys. A Martini-Henry Mark IV long lever, which I plan to shoot, and a Martini-Enfield in .303. It likewise would be a shooter. Throw my skirmishing weapons of a musket and a future carbine and at least a Snider-Enfield into the mix and you can see how I'll be able to fill a third small gun cabinet.

I will be trolling the gun show for these. Maybe I might get lucky.

Downside is I have never seen the show this packed. I've been in the gun shop recently and all I'm hearing is Obama is going to ban guns. Unlike last election where it wasn't really an issue with Kerry, I see the evidence of this being believed by a lot of people. I've been going to the Chantilly show religiously for the past 2 odd years and the numbers of people there are substantially higher. So I think the general populace is reacting and stocking up just in case. If this is reflective of typical middle America and these people vote, I am heartened that maybe Obama won't win. I hope so.

Here's to good hunting!

Not the Customer Service I'm Looking For

I've recently bought some antique firearm items from International Military Antiques. In visiting their site, they have a new disclaimer on their home page. Somehow, I don't think this is the customer service most people would be happy with....

Apparently, they put their products to work on their customers as part of the sales process! I laughed out loud at that little "Whoops!". An e-mail may be in order but this was too funny to me to not preserve.

More: It seems they folks have a sense of humor. Check out this ad from elsewhere on their site:

I wonder how much extra they would charge for the horse and manikin and would they be available separately? Hopefully handpick would be offered on the horse.

Alas, most of us males are of the 21st Century variety. The only time I would have qualified as 19th Century was when I was a teenager with a 28 inch waist with room to spare.

I'm going to have to dig around there more and see if they have other examples of comedy on their site.

The Citizens Acts at His Peril...

Sebastian, Uncle and others had a posting regarding this product by the Sportsman's Guide for a kit to convert a 10/22 into Ruger's Charger pistol configuration. On the surface, this product seems reasonable.

Except for the fact that a 10/22 rifle owner who purchased this kit is a potential felon. Apparently no one at the Guide vetted this product and posted it as-is. Today I see an NFA disclaimer as Sebastian notes on the ad. The rest of the ad is unchanged.

I'm glad I was able to do some good. I was the one that notified the Sportsman's Guide of the problem. I didn't have to do this but since I've been a customer of theirs for several years, it doesn't hurt to help them out. The potential liability issue of this product probably didn't even register with them.

Here is the e-mail I sent them yesterday:

Hello,

This is regarding item #WX2-146307, "Aftermarket 10/22 'Charger' Kit".

You advertise this kit as being able to use this kit and using your existing 10/22 receiver to build your very own Charger pistol.

However, if one of your customers was to order this kit and do so with a standard 10/22 rifle, they would be committing a felony. Specifically, the making of a short-barrel rifle without having filed a Form 4 and paid the required tax in accordance with the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA'34).

It is not legal to take a 10/22 rifle receiver and fit this kit to it without the aforementioned paperwork having been filed with the BATFE. It IS legal to use this kit on a 10/22 receiver that was purchased as a Charger pistol originally.

As a customer, I would recommend you speak to your legal counsel and place an appropriate disclaimer on this product that it must be used in accordance with NFA rules and cannot be fitted to a standard 10/22 rifle receiver without doing so. Otherwise, unsuspecting customers may purchase this product, use it and if caught, may wind up in prison as a result of not knowing the law.

It is unfortunate that we as private individuals must know every nuance of the law in this manner.

I am not a lawyer, merely a knowledgeable individual and a customer of Sportsman's Guide. I just wouldn't want to see you get into serious trouble over this product.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions via e-mail or phone at xxx-xxx-xxxx.

And their response to me today:

Thank you for your email.

Thank you for the notification on the laws. We have added a disclaimer to our ads about the charger pistol conversion. "All NFA rules apply and must be registered with the ATF"

If you have any questions, please contact us.

Thanks for shopping the Guide!

Chris Wilson
Customer Service Products

Sometimes we just need to look out for each other in the gun community whether it be owner, potential new owner or business.

The "Moron" Particle

People are stupid. So stupid to the point you just want to be free of them or throw them off a cliff.

It's our own fault. We've cultivated this culture of ignorance.

This "controversy" over the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a prime example. I'm glad that basic chemisty is the only requirement for active life because if it required intelligence, the world would be a much emptier place.

Don't believe me? Go visit and troll through the forums on this site. Here's the extent of what we are dealing with in the state of ignorance today:

Please Please Please PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

Stop The LHC I'm Crying Right Now Because I Probably Will Die Young

And A Lot Of People Want This To Stop..

So Please Dont Risk The Lives Of Others Just To Find 1 Atom

This thread goes on to say the LHC safety reports are a big, fat conspiracy of lies put together by evil scientists putting their own interests ahead of that of the planet. And because these people are ignorant sheep unwilling to learn, they suddenly know more about theoretical particle physics than thousands of scientists who have spent their careers working on these issues.

If you're going to fight against something, the first requirement is to get a clue on what you are fighting against. Otherwise, shut up.

Don't waste your energy reading this drivel. You'll feel stupid and embarassed for even trying.

This crap disgusts and enrages me. Today has been a day for that. Mainly for the reason that the media is actually taking time to promote this "controversy" as if it is a real issue. Are you kidding me? Not to mention that fact that they don't even bother to check the facts which reveals this is manufactured bullshit on the part of people who shouldn't even be heard, much less promoted, as being rational.

Why? Because all this fear about the LHC creating a doomsday scenario like a mini black hole or vacuum bubble that will destroy the Earth is bogus. Yes, tomorrow they are turning the big machine on to test. But what they are testing is to see if the particles can make it all the way around the big circle of the accelerator.

That's it. Just checking to see if these protons can be whipped around and travel, literally, full circle. They've already run beams through the machine and have done so since August. Just not all the way around yet.

None of the collisions that would be required that would create these doomsday events. End result is a bunch of people crying about something that can't even happen. You need two beamlines to dance and cause our existence to go askance. There's only going to be one tomorrow. Even if they start both beamlines, unless you intentionally cross the streams with our licensed nuclear accelerator, ain't nothing gonna happen. So unless Gozer makes an appearance tomorrow at the top of the ATLAS experiment and they need to banish him/her/it, we're safe.

So unless you have experience in building, running or designing particle accelerators and have the Ph.D in theoretical physics to explain why you think the Earth is going to go "Pop!", STFU. I'm tired of losing brain cells over your idiotic blathering.

This is what we are being reduced to. We are carefully and deliberately heading for the world populated by those in Idiocracy. Hell, we live among these people. Can't people just be satsified with the fruits of labor made on the shoulders of giants? I appreciate it. I'm not going to presume other's expertise in aircraft design, medicine and the like. So why do people feel a need to do it here? We're watching the emergence of a viewpoint where the idiots think they know more than others because they saw it on YouTube and believe that scientific inquiry is simply another form of religion to be accepted, rejected or used piecemeal as their beliefs see fit.

It scares me these people vote.

But I'm ok with it. I'm going to put on my arrogant, selfish hat and say "Better you than me.". I may not be a particle physicist but I can applaud their efforts and can enjoy sitting back in awe at our ability to ask the most basic questions about the Universe and actually be able to formulate the answer. Better that than being little more than a mass of protoplasm that can make noise and annoy others around them.

Come back and talk about the end of the world as we know it in October when they actually start colliding the beams. And even then, fools, they won't be up to the energies required to produce mini black holes and the like until towards the end of this year or even next year. All depends on how the tests work out.

Here's to a good test tomorrow. And when they start collisions, maybe they'll discover the "Moron" particle that explains why we have stupid people. At least the Higgs we can predict.

Is it happy hour yet?

Catching Up

Been a busy weekend. Let's get caught up...

Hanna was boring and all she did was keep me in the house. The dog got to enjoy the Potomac Mud Pit that became our backyard for the duration but once the rain disappeared, all was well in the world. I played EVE Online and did a small amount of tidying.

Sunday was much more fun. I went out to Winchester to watch the musket match with the Washington Blue Rifles. This is the unit I have been talking to and working with in order to get involved with N-SSA Civil War skirmishing. After the match (which they won), I was voted in as a probationary member of the unit. Yah for me! So at Nationals in a few weeks, I get my leather goods and start on my uniform and begin figuring out what musket I want to shoot. Exciting stuff.

I did raise a few eyebrows with them introducing myself and my background as a rifle shooter. In the sense I felt skirmishing was a less expensive activity than high-power or service rifle. Skirmishing, like many shooting sports, can be quite expensive. I later got to clarify that with one of the members.

You see, for me, I separate the costs of a sport into two areas: upfront and ongoing. Many people focus on the upfront costs and trivialize the ongoing costs. In shooting, to me the main costs are the ongoing ones. Allow me an example: service rifle.

If you want to shoot service rifle, you need, obviously, a service rifle. This has traditional been an M1 or M1A and nowadays is an AR-15. A good AR-15 for service rifle will run you between $800-$1300. You can use a basic Bushmaster A2 upper but you would likely never place. A good competition grade service rifle upper will put you back around a grand. That's a pretty steep upfront cost.

But it is a one-time expense. If you're already in the market for an AR type rifle, a couple hundred more for a good starter rifle for service rifle competition isn't that big a deal. What will kill you are the ongoing costs.

You'll need to be shooting 72gr or 75gr match-grade ammo from the magazine. Commercial or handloads. Well, commerical 72gr ammo of the cheap variety will run $10-$12 per 20. Good ammo, like Black Hills, will run you north of $20 per 20. That's $1 per shot. A given course of fire will run 60 or 80 shots total. Do the math.

Then factor in practice time and the cost of ammo for that. Even if you figure on practicing twice a month, you'll be spending around $200 for practice. Then add the cost of travel to matches plus the cost of shooting the match itself. It doesn't take much to see you'll be spending thousands per year just to compete.

Contrast this with the skirmishing. Likewise, it has a pretty high entry cost. Say $1000-$1500 to start with your uniform, musket, modifications to make the musket competitive (barrel and lock work), reloading supplies, powder and lead. Right around the same cost as a competition service rifle.

But once you get that out of the way, you're self-sufficient. My consumables are powder and lead. Bought in bulk, $200 of them will last you a year or two. And the lead you can recycle if you can pull it out of the berm. On practice days, you can usually pull a few rounds out. After a while, that adds up and then throw them back into the pot to be melted down. Hey, it's a form of green shooting! Skirmishers are recyclers in the truest sense of the word.

After all is said and done, your cost per shot runs between 7-10 cents. On a typical relay in a musket match from what I have observed, a team member will fire on average 3-4 rounds. A match will generally consist of 4-5 relays. Figure worst case, you'll fire a whopping 20 rounds in a day of competition. Perhaps $1.50-$2.00 in ongoing cost.

I can live with those costs. Once I explained this, they understood why I felt skirmishing was inexpensive. It is inexpensive compared to any other competitive shooting I'd want to do. Especially given my travel costs consist of driving to Winchester, VA. No hotel and I can camp out there if I want.

I am very happy to have been accepted. I hope I can do the Blues proud.

In other news...

Got my AIM Surplus M1891/30. What a sewer pipe! But for $70, I'm not complaining! Figure a week to clean that up nice. But I got my bayonet and sling so I'm not too broken up at having to clean my "free" rifle.

Did you know that the Steyr Mannlicher M95 carbine is really small and cute? The 91/30 parked next to it in the cabinet is an interesting contrast.

I've received the first part of a shipment towards my first antique firearm purchase. I don't know about you but I feel a sense of awe when I unsealed the packages and realized I was holding original items that were over 130 years old and had been carried by a British soldier or colonial in some distant land. A sling that was cracked and flaking but still supple and usable and a rifle multi-tool used to service the rifle caked in over a century of rust and grime. It was pretty seized but a couple days soaking in WD40 and oil should loosen things up.

It's strange how these small things affect you. The wonderful thing about them is they won't be decorative. They were bought to be used. Not hanging on my wall as a pretty display item, glanced at and passed on. It would be a great thrill to me at some point in the future to hand that antique rifle to a new shooter and let them fire it, experiencing things that hadn't been a common sight since the 1800s.

I really need to stop. I'm to the point I am looking to acquire another gun cabinet just to store the black powder arms, whether for skirmishing or antique collecting. The fun part is: I could easily see myself filling it.

It's been a good weekend. It's going to be a fun week.

Compare Their Stances on Gun Rights

With the nominations for both parties wrapped up, they've set their stakes in the ground to outline their platforms. Compare the two parties views on your right to own a gun in this country...

Democratic Party

Firearms

We recognize that the right to bear arms is an important part of the American tradition, and we will preserve Americans' Second Amendment right to own and use firearms. We believe that the right to own firearms is subject to reasonable regulation, but we know that what works in Chicago may not work in Cheyenne. We can work together to enact and enforce commonsense laws and improvements – like closing the gun show loophole, improving our background check system, and reinstating the assault weapons ban, so that guns do not fall into the hands of terrorists or criminals. Acting responsibly and with respect for differing views on this issue, we can both protect the constitutional right to bear arms and keep our communities and our children safe.

Republican Party

Upholding the Constitutional Right to Keep and Bear Arms

We uphold the right of individual Americans to own firearms, a right which antedated the Constitution and was solemnly confirmed by the Second Amendment. We applaud the Supreme Court's decision in Heller affirming that right, and we assert the individual responsibility to safely use and store firearms. We call on the next president to appoint judges who will similarly respect the Constitution. Gun ownership is responsible citizenship, enabling Americans to defend themselves, their property, and communities.

We call for education in constitutional rights in schools, and we support the option of firearms training in federal programs serving senior citizens and women. We urge immediate action to review the automatic denial of gun ownership to returning members of the Armed Forces who have suffered trauma during service to their country. We condemn frivolous lawsuits against firearms manufacturers, which are transparent attempts to deprive citizens of their rights. We oppose federal licensing of law-abiding gun owners and national gun registration as violations of the Second Amendment. We recognize that gun control only affects and penalizes law-abiding citizens, and that such proposals are ineffective at reducing violent crime.

Emphasis is mine.

Hmm, which would you vote for gun owners? There are well over 50 million gun owners in this country. Who would you trust on this issue?

Sarah Palin Quote of the Day

I don't normally do "Quotes of the Day" but this one was too good to pass up...

From The Corner:

She was put on this earth to do two things: kill caribou and kick butt. She's all out of caribou.

If I Were a Sorta Rich Man...

Greg posts a little wish list on toys he'd buy if he had the means.

Spending north of one million dollars on rare and collectible guns would be very nice but I have more modest desires. Let's play a game of "If you had $10,000 to spend on firearms, what would you buy?".

Me, I'd just make one phone call and have the following items shipped to my FFL and my house:

Enfield No.4 Mk.1 Sniper
M41B M1896 Swedish Sniper Rifle
Enfield Martini .303
French MAS36-51
Enfield Martini-Henry .577-450

There's my ten grand. Just a little over but I figure if I was buying all of them at once I'd be able to negotiate the $500 off.

Go take a look at that Lee Enfield sniper. The wood is absolutely gorgeous! I'd buy any Enfield that looked like that just because it is so striking. I don't care if it was restored. Pretty is pretty. I like it and that is all that matters.

I'm not going to discuss the Swede except to say, "Please, sweetheart? Please?!?".

The Enfield-Martini because I'm developing a strong interest in the Martini rifles and I'd like another .303 rifle in the family. The Martini-Henry is the black powder predecessor and it will not be long before I buy one or two of them.

And the MAS 36 because I have a thing for French weapons carried by the Foreign Legion.

This would be the best $10,000 I would ever spend.

Dare To Send This On...

I had the privilege to get together with the parents of my best friend from Canada recently during their vacation trip to Gettysburg, PA. As always, I enjoy visiting with them either here or back in the homeland. My best friend's father finds US politics interesting and forwarded the following along to me in an e-mail. I don't know the source and I've left out the images, but the text is unchanged.

The e-mail dares you to pass it on. I'll do one better and dare to post it here.

One of the reasons I'm doing so is because US race relations is one of those topics as a Canadian that I look at and just shake my head. It's one of those cultural differences I've discussed earlier. Like most Canadians, I was aware of this issue because of my exposure to American television. But as an adult, I think I speak for a lot of Canadians in saying when it comes to race relations, our general response is "The Civil War was 150 years ago. Let it go.".

We don't get it. Now, before you go hog-nuts-wild on me, let me explain. We don't understand the cultural issues because we don't have them in Canada. We never fought a civil war over slavery. We never created that divide in our history. Any black person I encountered was either a normal Canadian citizen like anyone else, spoke and acted the same as anyone else or they were from Africa. Lots of folks from Nigeria come to Canada. I went to college with a couple. Nice folks.

Canadians look at America on issues of race and we just can't figure it out. I've done better than most because I've had the chance to live here and be part of the culture. But if all you get on the issue is from history books and snippets on TV, it's very confusing.

A lot of Canadians hear about the freedom and opportunities everyone is supposed to have in America and really believe it. As a result, we don't get why people are going on about skin color when to us, it shouldn't be an issue. A visit to any Canadian university will reveal people of every stripe, color and creed from countries all over the world. The worst that seems to happen is they'll enclave. But there's no real animosity or simmering rage that I've ever observed.

Or more simply, Canadians don't really give a crap about skin color. We care about what's inside it, the person that you are.

That's not to say there aren't racists in Canada. We have our share of kook white supremacists and Holocaust deniers (Google Ernst Zundel). If there is one area we have race relations issues is with the Natives. There's stuff going on back near my hometown right now that would have had SWAT called out quickly here. We Canadians put up with a lot in order to achieve a so-called peaceful solution compared to Americans. I wish Canadians would adopt more American approaches to certain problems, especially in that area (read: Oka, Caledonia stand-off, etc).

This is one of those issues that I just don't get. I've never understood nor can I comprehend hatred of others based on color, gender or religion. It makes no sense to me. And the sins of the past, no matter which group committed or received it, should not serve as a club to beat others over the head with and drive a wedge between people.

But that's just me.

With that said, get out the flaming tar, nock your arrows and sling away!

There are African Americans,

Hispanic Americans,
Cuban Americans,
Mexican Americans,
Asian Americans,
Arab Americans,
Native Americans, etc.
..And then there are just -
Americans.

You pass me on the street
and sneer in my direction.
You Call me 'White boy,'
'Cracker,' 'Honkey,'
'Whitey,' 'Caveman,'
...And that's OK.

But when I call you Nigger,
Kike, Towel head,
Sand-nigger, Camel Jockey,
Beaner, Gook, or Chink,
..You call me a racist.

You say that whites commit a lot
of violence against you,
so why are the ghettos the most
dangerous places to live?

You have the United Negro College Fund.
You have Hispanic History Month.
You have Martin Luther King Day.
You have Asian History Month.
You h ave Black History Month.
You have Cesar Chavez Day.
You have Ma'uled Al-Nabi.
You have Yom Hashoah.
You have Kawanza.
You have the NAACP.
And you have BET.

If we had WET (White Entertainment Television)
...We'd be racists.

If we had a White Pride Day
...You would call us racists.

If we had White History Month
...We'd be racists.

If we had any organization for only whites
to 'advance OUR lives,
..We'd be racists.

We have a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce,
a Black Chamber of Commerce,
and then we just have the plain
Chamber of Commerce.
Wonder who pays for that?

If we had a college fund that only gave
white students scholarships
...You know we'd be racists.

There are over 60 openly-proclaimed
Black-only Colleges in the US ,
yet if there were 'White-only Colleges'
...THAT would be a racist college.

In the Million-Man March,
you believed that you were
marching for your race and rights.
If we marched for our race and rights,
...You would call us racists.

You are proud to be black,
brown, yellow and red,
and you're not afraid to announce it.
But when we announce our white pride
..You call us racists.

You rob us,
carjack us,
and shoot at us.
But, when a white police officer
shoots a black gang member
or beats up a black drug-dealer
who is running from the LAW and
posing a threat to ALL of society
...You call him a racist.

I am proud.
...But, you call me a racist.

Why is it that only whites can be racists?

(Note: This can be found in many places on the web.)

Quantico Days

Because of nice weather and scheduling, I decided to head out to Quantico and do some shooting for a change. Given that I haven't been to the range in a couple months, I really needed this. A reader decided to take me up on my offer to give it a try and met me down there.

Shooting at MCB Quantico is a little different than your average public range. You don't get met by a pair of professional Marines armed with shotguns at the entrance, for one. After presenting my ID, I drove on to the base and met up at the clubhouse a few miles onto the base itself. The one thing you don't do on Quantico is speed. It's a felony and it if caught, it would be the last time you'd be shooting there or anywhere else.

For this trip, we were shooting on Range 4. It's one of the 1000 yard ranges. Since we had a large group, we would be shooting in relays and working back from the berm. Range 4 has known distance shooting positions that extend out from the berm. If you like to try things at various distances, this is excellent. The only downside is if you can't shoot well at a given distance, your day will get cut short because all targets must be placed on the berm. The other 1000 yard range, Range 305, works the opposite way. On that range, the shooting positions are fixed and the targets get walked out.

Hey, it's Quantico! It's good no matter where you shoot.

After the safety and rules briefing, we placed targets on the top of the pits and set up on the 100 yard line. Here's what the view is like from the 100 yard mark:

I am shooting at the targets under the "15". A 12 inch Shoot N' See, a 12 inch sighting target and my guest is shooting at a pair of 6 inch VisiShot targets you can barely see below the main targets. And for folks who never done this, here's my office for the day:

Nice view, eh? Some details if I may...

My shooting mat is a surplus Korean War era paratrooper bag. This is a heavy canvas and felt contraption that was used to pack a rifle for jumps and can be arranged to be a backpack of sorts. Lots of straps and buckles. But very durable and comfortable to lie on. And for $20 from Cheaper than Dirt, one of the better deals I've found.

A basic Tasco 35x spotting scope and I'm shooting my pride and joy for this type of work, my M96 Swedish Mauser. Unfortunately, I had an equipment malfunction before this picture was taken about halfway through the relay. I had my Harris bipod fitted and was shooting off that when suddenly the gun starting wobbling. The front swivel stud had worked out of the stock and the bipod couldn't be tightened down. Since my shooting bag was 200 yards behind me in my truck, I decided to use my range bag as a field expedient rest. Hey, it works.

Five rounds of 6.5x55mm 139gr Wolf ammo completes my desk accoutrements.

Another view of the 100 yard office...


Ignore the 20 inch A2 pattern AR-15. I didn't shoot it at all during this session. Gatorade, multitool and a calculator complete the office.

After firing the first string at 100 yards at the Shoot N' See (and happy with the results), we moved back to the 200 yard mark. This is where the M96 gets fun. You see, the zero mark for this round is 200 yards and it is where my rifle is zeroed at. I was shooting high at 100 yards. So with that, I replaced the Shoot N' See with a new one and we walked back to the 200 yard line.

Shooting continues nicely from this position. Unfortunately, my guest wasn't used to shooting prone outdoors and decided he would call it a day after the 200 yard relay. I was grateful he came out and hope he had a good time. On the line it is pretty much an individual thing except for the single "Shit!" that I yelped while firing from this range. You hear me curse out loud and you know I just blew a shot. In this case, jerked the trigger and saw the round go high.

After we finished the 200 yard relay, I chatted with my guest and compared notes. He had a good time and I hope he'll come out again. With the weather getting cooler, I expect to be spending some time as schedules permit out at Quantico.

Finally for me this day, we worked out to the 300 yard mark. For the first time under nice conditions, I can see if all this magic ballistics stuff actually works. Here are more views of our working office from the 300 yard line:

This is from the shooter's eye view. Trying to give you a sense of what it is like to be looking downrange at a target from three football fields away. You can see the 200 yard line in front of us and the ready benches below the firing line behind it. You definitely don't want to be sitting down there right now!

And this is approaching the tool of our trade:

My targets are below the black "16". Yes, they really look that small from this distance. You get a good look at the user end of things and can clearly see finger adjustable turrets of the scope. Note the difference in our "office" on the 300 yard mark:

For non-shooters out there, you have to be wondering why I have a calculator with me on the range. Here's your math and shooting lesson for the day. Oh no, math in shooting! Bad! Bad! Plus an education in shooting with a scope.

Bullets do not follow a straight line path through the air. They follow an arc. When the round is fired, the bullet will rise through the air and as air drag and gravity act upon it, it slows down and begins to fall towards the ground.

When we talk about "zeroing a rifle", we are setting up the sights for a given range, typically 100 yards, where when we place the sights or crosshairs on the center of a target, the bullet will impact that point. The key here is that aiming point is only good for that specific range. If the target is closer in or further out, the bullet will impact high or low since the target is sitting on a different point of the arc. With me so far?

So to shoot at different distances other than the range we zeroed at, we need to aim high or low to compensate for the rise or drop of the bullet so it will still hit the center of the target. In order to do this, you need to know what the rise or drop of the bullet will be at distances other than the one you zeroed at.

That is where that white piece of paper next the calculator comes into play. It is a ballistics table. In this case, for the 6.5x55mm Swedish round I am firing. These tables list for given weights and types of bullets (there are many) the rise or drop of the bullet in inches at varies ranges. The chart I am using lists changes from 100 to 500 yards.

I'm not going to discuss iron sights here since we are doing scoped shooting. Scopes also allow for more precise shooting since they are much easier to adjust for making sure bullets hit where you are aiming. But you need to know how to adjust them.

All scopes are adjusted in terms of MOA. This stands for "Minute Of Angle". Without going into long-winded details, usually what this term means is the amount of adjustment needed to compensate for 1 inch change in the point of impact versus your point of aim at 100 yards. If you are sighting in on the bullseye at 100 yards and your holes are appearing an inch to the right of where you are aiming, that would represent a 1 MOA adjustment.

Think of MOA as a circle around where you are aiming. At 100 yards, this circle would be 1 inch in radius or 2 inches in diameter. Which means with a 1 MOA capable rifle, your rounds will land consistently in that 2 inch diameter circle centered on the bullseye. 1 MOA is considered good accuracy. Competition grade rifles can achieve much higher accuracy. 1/2 MOA is considered a good starting point and typical of most hunting rifles. That means at 100 yards, all the rounds will land in a circle 1 inch in diameter, twice as tight as the 1 MOA rifle. There are rifles that can do 1/4 or even 1/8 MOA.

This makes sense for 100 yard shooting since MOA basically equals 1 inch. But what about 200 or 300 yards (or beyond)?

Quite simple, the MOA figures increase. At range increases so does the possible deviation of the bullet. So at 200 yards, 1 MOA is 2 inches. At 300 yards, it is 3 inches. So a 1 MOA rifle shooting at 200 yards will land its rounds in a 4 inch diameter circle. At 300 yards, that circle is 6 inches across. And so on. It's a geometric progression. At 1000 yards, a 1 MOA rifle is deviating into a circle 20 inches across.

Those can be some pretty big circles. It still doesn't explain the purpose of the calculator.

As I said, all scopes are adjusted in terms of MOA. Each turn of those numbered turrets will represent a change in where the bullet hits. A click of the turret will move the impact point a given fraction of MOA in the desired direction. In my case, my scope is a 1/4" MOA at 100 yards. Since almost all rounds are zeroed at 100 yards, this makes sense. What it means is if I turn the turret 1 click, it will move the impact point 1/4 inch at 100 yards. Four clicks equals 1 MOA or 1 inch at 100 yards.

We won't discuss 100 or 200 yards here. As I said, my rifle is zeroed at 200 yards. Where I put the crosshairs is where the bullet will theoretically land at that distance. 300 yards is where it starts to get interesting.

Consulting the ballistics table for the 139gr boat tail round I am shooting (yes, they break it down by weight and bullet type, each fly differently), I read a drop of 8.4 inches at 300 yards. Great! Assuming no wind and a perfect shooting, my rounds will be clumping 8.4 inches below the bullseye if that is where I am aiming. If I want to put the crosshairs on the bullseye and hit it, I need to adjust the scope so it raises the point of impact to meet the point of aim. In other words, I need to raise it by 8.4 inches.

That's where the calculator comes into play.

8.4 inches is not a value in MOA. We need to translate it into MOA. We do this by a very simple formula:

deviation in inches / (range in yards / 100)

This works for the known ranges where you have drop figures for. For those that you don't, you need to guess. What this formula does is translate your drop in inches into drop in MOA. Once you have that, you can adjust your scope. So if we plug in 8.4 inches and 300 yards, we get a value of 2.8 MOA.

Since my scope is adjusted in 1/4 MOA increments, we multiply that number by 4 (or divide by 1/4 or .25). That gives a value of 11.2. This is the number of clicks in "Up" direction I need to dial into the elevation turret on the scope to bring the rounds onto the bullseye.

You do the same thing to account for wind. If the wind is blowing your rounds 2 1/4 inches to the right at 300 yards, you have a deviation of 0.75 MOA. For a 1/4" MOA scope, this means you dial in 3 clicks of "Left" adjustment to compensate.

Pretty cool stuff, eh? It's pretty straightforward math but when you do it, it is like magic. By the way, these paragraphs just taught you the secrets snipers use in doing known distance shooting.

This also gives you an important amount of information. It means you are adjusting your rifle in known ways. When you dial in these changes, you are also wrecking your nice 100 or 200 yard zero point. By knowing and keeping track of the changes you make in your scope from that point, it becomes very easy to restore the scope to its original zero point. Since all adjustments you make depend on that zero point, this is crucial. Otherwise, you're rezeroing your rifle every time you shoot it.

That's what the notebook is for. As I was adjusting my scope to compensate, I was noting the direction and number of clicks. When I was done, I just reverse them and my scope returns to its 200 yard zero point. You do this before you leave the line to move to another distance so all your adjustments are done in a consistent manner rather than you having to add or subtract. Too easy to confuse yourself.

Enough of the math. You'll see the results in a moment. Here's yours truly on the 300 yard line (thanks to a fellow shooter):

Typical prone shooting position. Offset at an angle to your natural point of aim, rifle is supported in front, I'm supporting the butt with my fist. You can actually see the barrel of the rifle is aimed slightly upwards, compensating for the 8.4 inch drop of the bullet to make it fall into the center of the target.

As an aside, also note the padlocks on the gun cases. A minor form of paranoia on my part since the law does not specify the cases have to be locked but a padlock on a soft case clearly shows intent to secure the arms. Cable locks inside also help. Most of you probably don't succumb to that level of paranoia in securing your arms for transport. For me, I don't ever want there to be doubt if I am ever pulled over that I haven't properly secured my guns during transport. Easier to avoid a gun charge than to fight one.

Shooting at 300 yards is fun. For this relay, I was shooting at a 12 inch 100 yard sighting target. It was so far away that I couldn't see the holes in my spotting scope. My rifle scope was better but just barely. I was getting the impression of where the rounds were impacting but still couldn't see the holes themselves. I need a better spotting scope.

One of the reasons shooting at 300 yards is interesting is the distance starts to introduce a noticeable delay in from the moment you pull the trigger until you see the puff of dirt as the round impacts behind the target. Movies lie. The holes don't appear instantly after you pull the trigger. Follow-through is a good habit to develop. My finger was not releasing from the trigger until after the dust had settled, literally.

Mirage and wind were factors here too. At this distance, they start to affect things and I simply wanted to see if I could actually hit and stay on the paper at 300 yards. I estimate wind was at around 5mph moving right to left. Nothing major. I fired a total of 14 rounds in three strings. First string of 5 was fired after I dialed in 12 clicks of "Up" elevation and 2 clicks of right windage. Second string of 4 was fired with the windage and elevation dialed out to see how much the 300 yard pattern deviated from the 200 yard zero and a third string with only 8 clicks of "Up" elevation and no windage.

After the relay, I went to retrieve my target stand. Here are the results from the 200 and 300 yard marks:


This is the 200 yard Shoot N' See. For reference, the orange bullseye is 1 inch in diameter and the X ring is 2 inches in diameter. The three holes on the low 6 o'clock were from the first three shots. I had to adjust my zero point upward to fine tune it. Once I did that, everything started landing in the X ring. The deviations outside it are due to me. My M96 is easily a 1 MOA rifle, probably less given my groups were tightening as I settled down as the triple overlapping holes at the bottom of the bull indicate.

I'm not a precision marksman by any means but this isn't bad. Not bad with crappy Wolf factory ammo. 200 yards is actually a pretty easy shot with my rifle. If you've never shot before, take me up on a future offer to go to Quantico. Even a new shooter with a little practice can place all of their rounds onto this 12 inch circle from two football fields away!

Tell me that isn't a nifty thing to do?

Here's the 300 yard target:

This is useful information. It shows all of my 14 rounds from my 3 strings made the paper. Ignore the holes below and the one on the bottom edge of the target; they weren't from my rifle. Next time I'll have to set multiple targets or get a better spotting scope so I can plot which holes belong to what group. But at minimum I know that I need to adjust the elevation for the Wolf ammo. It doesn't seem to be going as fast as the figures listed plus I had to choose a round that matched closely since my chart didn't have a FMJ boat tail option. Probably two or three more clicks up will put me in the center. Wind and my breathing were affecting this as well.

Still, not bad. That's pretty much a 1 MOA circle right there. I call that a good starting point. I think we'll try this again shooting off the remainder of my Wolf crappy ammo before I move onto the better Igman 139gr FMJ spitzer rounds. I expect them to perform better. My M96 is likely a 1/2 MOA rifle or better. Especially given at 200 yards I was achieving near 1/2 MOA performance without the use of a vise.

Remember, all rifle performance figures for MOA as provided from the factory are the absolute, top end perfect figures from a rifle bolted into a rest and fired with match grade ammunition. They only get worse from there whether it be from lesser ammo or a lesser shooter. I'd say I'm not doing too badly for a rusty shooter.

My guest did pretty well. He was shooting a Remington 700P in 5.56x45mm. This was his 100 yard target. This is good shooting in my book...


I decided not to try my luck at 600 yards. I was tired, hot and sweaty. Besides, the drop at 500 yards is 47.9 inches. Four feet. I need to guess on the drop at 600 yards or get a ballistics program. I'll save that for a future trip. Assuming the calculations work out and I can actually park the rounds onto this same target all around the center (which would be roughly 1 MOA at 600 yards), 1000 yards becomes a real possibility. I want big paper to even attempt that.

But that's the goal and why I go to Quantico. If I can get my rounds anywhere on a 24 inch target at 1000 yards, I'd be very pleased with myself. That's a good start towards the goal of decent long-range marksmanship. In the end, I want to be able to park them consistently into an 8 inch circle at that distance.

But I might need to rebuild the rifle for that. And I'll be hand loading by that point.

So I packed up for the day and took a few parting shots of the range. Here are the target pits showing the target frames that every Marine is familiar with:

And lastly, here is the view looking back towards the firing line down the full length of this 1000 yard range:

To give you a sense of distance, the outhouses on the right are just behind the 300 yard line. The hill closest to the camera is the 100 yard line. The trees at the end of the range in the distance at at the road next to the range complex. The 1000 yard line is below the dirt in the shadows of those trees.

It's a long way.

As they say, "A bad day at the range is better than any good one at the office.". Especially when your office is this nice!

I'd like to thank the QSC RSOs who ran the range for the day. As usual, they did a good job and kept things moving nicely. Always focused on safety and always willing to answer questions. Following the rules is important here and they did their usual outstanding job.

Thanks also to my guest who joined me on the base for the day. Not your usual outing and I hope he enjoyed his introduction to the Quantico Shooting Club and the range facilities at MCB Quantico. If he has any comments that he would like to pass along, I will post them here.

Hopefully there will be more Quantico Days ahead.