Tuesday, September 27, 2005

What do we really expect...

... of FEMA? I was watching tidbits of the televised thrashing of former FEMA director Michael Brown today, and it occurred to me: do we have realistic expectations of FEMA? Do we have realistic expectations of our state and local governments' abilities to respond to ANY kind of problem, for that matter?

One of the criticisms I've heard leveled at FEMA in response to hurricane Rita was the horrible traffic people faced trying to evacuate coastal Texas. With that in mind, here's my theory: I've driven rush-hour interstates throughout the Southeast. I'll use Columbia, SC as an example. I used to have to brave the I-20/I-26 interchange every day to and from work. Every day, without fail, traffic would slow to a crawl. A stalled car on the side of the road would often cause traffic to stop. Now, if traffic can't flow adequately on an average interstate on an average day, what on earth do we really expect FEMA to be able to do to speed things up for people fleeing a hurricane? Should they outlaw rubber-necking and bumper-to-bumper traffic to expedite things? Puh-leez.

For one thing, I'm tired of the FEMA-bashing. Yeah, it took 'em a couple of days to show up in New Orleans. As I've stated before, if ANYONE was paying attention after 9/11, they TOLD YOU it would be that way. Besides, considering the unbearable stupidity of the New Orleans mayor and the paralytic incompetence of the Louisiana governor, I wouldn't want to have to clean up after those two on an ordinary day ... much less after a hurricane. You want coordination? You want leadership? Paging Mr. Giuliani....

Despite what I just said, I don't feel all that sorry for FEMA, either. I think Brown was utterly incompetent ... and totally unqualified to head FEMA. But I think that's beside the point. FEMA can't walk on water (oh, I say such profound things...) Their job is to coordinate a disaster response ... not to work miracles. I think our expectations are too high, especially considering what FEMA had to work with (i.e. nothing) in New Orleans. After a Category 4 hurricane hits your city, and then 80% of it remains underwater, your local government can no longer be expected to help you. Neither can your state government. Neither can FEMA. Look, all the State Police in the world can't stop people from driving like idiots. Giuliani, despite his unparalleled leadership, couldn't stop the planes or keep the towers from falling. All he could do was stand up, take responsibility and clean up the mess. That's more than can be said for anyone at the local, state or federal levels after Katrina. But FEMA can't work miracles, either. Wake up.

Some thoughts on open carry...

Kentucky is an "open-carry" state, which means it's perfectly legal to carry a pistol openly. In other words, it's not necessary to have a concealed-carry license to carry a pistol, as long as it's not hidden. There are other open-carry states, but I honestly don't know how many.

I started thinking more about open-carry (OC) after reading a thread on a discussion board. Even amongst those of us who take our gun rights VERY seriously, most of the opinions expressed were decidedly not in favor of OC. What surprised me was that usually the reasoning was that the sight of a pistol on someone's belt tends to freak people out, and that works against us and our gun rights.

Now, for starters, I've never carried my pistol openly (as least not off the farm). I haven't been a gun owner for all that long, so in my case, it's a comfort-factor thing. I still can't relax when I carry concealed. I think that's the wrong way to look at it, though. I need to get over that hang-up, and so does the rest of society.

Look, we see cops carrying guns all the time. That does not mean, however, that the cops are the only ones with the guns. There are thousands of us who carry concealed every day. The only difference is you can't see our guns -- but they're still there. If you could see the gun, you'd have no more reason to worry than when it was hidden.

And that's what bugs me -- it's a problem of perception. We're to the point that the only time we're presented with guns in the hands of anyone but cops is in the context of crime - the "news" howls about it every night. Of course, it's a rarity when they report on someone using a gun to protect herself. So, people get indoctrinated to the idea that guns are BAD ... you see a gun in the hands of someone who's not a cop, and you're supposed to fear for your life. Hogwash.

That's why I think OC should be a GOOD thing. The non-gun-carrying public needs to see guns as they are most of the time ... in the hands of law-abiding citizens, who have the means to protect themselves. Nothing more. By hiding our guns, we allow the "news" media to control the context in which we view guns ... and that context is never positive. Kids need to see people at the grocery store with a gun ... or pumping gas ... or walking the dog. See the gun as a tool ... nothing more. The fact that the gun is visible doesn't mean you're at risk ... on the contrary, it means if some wacko starts shooting, somebody will, at least, be able to shoot back.

I want to change the dynamic. I want to put the discourse back into a proper context. I am a law-abiding citizen (frankly, my nose is so clean it's kind of sad...) I want to carry my gun openly. I wish there were more people like that. Maybe we could change people's perceptions of what it means to carry a gun. I know I can't change things myself, but I'd like to think we, as gun owners, could get it done together.

So, next time you see someone carrying a gun openly (as if that will happen to most of you), don't freak out. You're probably safer around the gun-toting guy (or gal) than you will be when you get in your car & hit the road. You're far more likely to be done in by the dude with the CAR than you are by the dude with the gun. Wake up. Change your perceptions.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Well, I'm three quarters of the way there...

... to my Red Cross disaster training completion, that is. I completed my third course tonight - Shelter Operations. Thursday night will be Family Services, and then I'll be good-to-go. To go where, exactly, remains to be seen. Katrina was such a disaster that the Red Cross will be needed for months (at least). And here comes Rita... I'd better re-apply some waterproofing to my boots...

Saturday, September 17, 2005

It's an early birthday...


... except I only got to try on & photograph my gift. I won't actually "get" this until my birthday, which is still over a month away. Not that it'll make a difference ... they won't see any action for a while one way or the other.

My prior double-plastic mountaineering boots were a pair of Koflach Viva Softs ... I bought them super cheap - $99, if I remember correctly. They weren't worth shooting when it came to ice climbing (they weren't stiff enough for me to front-point very well at all) but they worked well enough when it came to straight-up mountaineering. Those boots have seen the summit of Mt. Adams (twice), Mt. Washington in winter (twice, and one failed attempt), Mt. Hood, Mt. Shasta and finally Mt. Baker this summer, where they finally folded. Essentially, the inner booties (which were hardly high-end to begin with) just disintegrated. They had practically no padding left on the sole of my foot, and the lace loops totally pulled loose on the right foot. The funny thing is, the outer boot is in good shape -- but I got brand new boots for what I would have paid to replace the inner booties. In a weird way, I'll miss those old boots.

Out with the old & in with the new! My new boots are a strange mix of traditional single-boot and double-plastic. They're made by Vasque, and since I already own an old pair of Vasque Alpines, I can vouch for their quality. These are Vasque "Super Alpinista"s. They're mostly built like a traditional leather boot, but they're totally synthetic, and the sides are constructed like a double-plastic boot. Can't wait to put 'em to the test! Mt. Rainier, here I come...

Friday, September 16, 2005

New toy joy!!

Well, "new accessory joy" is probably more appropriate. I'm a typical guy, in that few things make me happy like new "gear". Specifically, new gun gear. Today I got a few new things for my eeeevil black rifle - my beloved Bushmaster AR-15.

The stock AR-15 grip works. It gives you something to ... well, ... grip. It's boring, frankly. I replaced the old stock grip with a molded-rubber grip, with a nice palm-swell and even a plug in the bottom (so I can store flashlight batteries & spare bulb). It's sticky, and feels sooooo much better in the hand than the stock grip. It's almost like having a new rifle!

I also picked up 2 new 30-round magazines (like bullets, you can't have too many). I also bought a 3-pack of "Mag Pul"s - kind of a rubber loop that goes around the bottom of a magazine. It's supposed to facilitate changing mags, and it keeps them from rattling around in a pouch. You can also orient the mag more quickly in the dark or in a panic. Whatever. I just think it looks tacti-cool!!

Yeah, I'm a closet mall ninja. So sue me.

Thursday, September 15, 2005

Most of my few friends...

... are like the guy who wrote this: college educated, articulate, accomplished ... and unarmed. This is for you.

http://www.keepandbeararms.com/information/XcIBViewItem.asp?ID=3499

Monday, September 12, 2005

Volunteering is...

... finally getting on-track. I'm registered for my first 2 Red Cross disaster response introductory classes this week, and I'll have 2 more training sessions next week before they can send me anywhere to help out. The only down side to this is that this week (and probably next week as well) I'll have a training session on Thursday evening, which means I'll have to miss my welding class. Oh, well -- given the choice between my little welding hobby or helping people who have lost everything, I'll volunteer, hands down.

Sunday, September 11, 2005

In case you've forgotten...


...the "news" is willing to sue to get access to body-recovery efforts along the gulf coast, because corpses make good ratings. However, they won't show the most shocking images from September 11, 2001 on TV anymore. They're too "disturbing". I think that's part of the reason our resolve fails, and we sink back into our pre-9/11 state of denial. Still critical of the idea of preemptive war? Still demand that we only go to war in response to an attack? Don't think we have any business meddling in the Middle East? In four short years we've forgotten how it feels to be hit first. These images are horrific, and they should be seared into our minds so that we never forget the savagery of our enemy. That's why we hit first now. They target civilians. They want to kill us, just because we're Americans. These people jumping to their deaths were compared to Eichman by Ward Churchill. I'd like to see Mr. Churchill say that to the face of just one member of the FDNY. Grow a spine, Ward.

Never forget.

Never.

Saturday, September 10, 2005

2 hours of my life bled away last night...

... watching "Solaris", starring George (C)looney and Jeremy Davies [though I could swear that character was played by one of the Corys from the 80s (Haim? Feldman? Who cares?)]

From what I could tell, there wasn't a single original idea in that sorry excuse for a movie. The pace and imagery was stolen from "2001 - A Space Odyssey". The Davies character's mannerisms were lifted straight from Dennis Hopper's photojournalist character in "Apocalypse Now". Not that I should have expected anything more from Mr. (C)looney. James Cameron's direction was evident, considering the space station design and props were surely recycled from "Aliens". My time would have been better spent staring at the wall and drooling in my lap (though the movie bored me to the point that I was drooling, anyway...)

I have books to read, for cryin' out loud. I have no excuse.

Friday, September 09, 2005

Firearms confiscation...

... for your own good, according to the morons who are running what's left of New Orleans. I'll link a New York Times article here, but you have to be a Communist ... um, I mean, a registered member, to view it:

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/08/national/nationalspecial/08cnd-storm.html?hp&ex=1126238400&en=efe0a58b7fc8e12c&ei=5094&partner=homepage

Hmmm ... let's see. Katrina hits. N.O. floods. Cops are nowhere to be found. Looting, robbing, raping and killing go nearly unchecked for a week ... except for the few armed citizens who take matters "into their own hands". Cops are either unaccounted for or, in a bizarre twist, join the looters (don't act like you haven't seen the video). Then, nearly a solid week later, the Nat'l Guard shows up, de-facto martial law is applied. City is nearly totally evacuated. Order is essentially restored ... and NOW they're confiscating guns? From people who haven't broken the law? Why?

Here's another interesting link (audio only, I think...)

http://media.putfile.com/NewOrleansGunConfiscationSmall

So much for the "mandatory evacuation" pseudo-excuse. What tripe. THEY TOOK THE GUNS, BUT DIDN'T MAKE THESE GUYS LEAVE?!?!?

Look, how would you react if armed Nat'l Guard troops beat on your door, pointed an "assault rifle" at you and demanded that you turn over your ... fire extinguisher? "Sir, you'll just get hurt if you try to take matters into your own hands and fight a fire in your home. Besides, that's what the fire department is for." What about your first-aid kit? "Sir, you'll just do more harm than good if you try to treat someone's injuries without proper training. Besides, that's what EMTs are for." Why are guns any different?

FIREMEN, EMTs AND COPS WERE AWOL FOR NEARLY A WEEK. Look, I've ranted about self-reliance before. It makes my blood boil that cops or troops would take away someone's most effective means of self-preservation - of protecting herself ... when a legally-owned gun was probably the only thing that prevented her home from being looted, her from being raped or her and/or her family from being killed.

That's government at it's best folks. To Serve and Protect. Yeah, right.

Now look, I'm NOT anti-government. Man will always create government - always has - and some structure is necessary in order for us to consider ourselves a "civilization". I'd rather have our American system of government rather than any other on the face of the earth. This is what happens when you put all your eggs in that basket, though. Government gets bigger and bigger, and inevitably less effective. And people (mostly Democrats) will inevitably want more government in response to this disaster. Government which failed us on 9/11/01. Government which failed to respond after hurricane Katrina. Government which will fail again and again. I read the 9/11 Commission report. The whole thing, cover-to-cover. I know what it says. It says government is huge, complex, and was unable to prevent 9/11. What Katrina is teaching us is that, regardless of the disaster, government will never be able to completely take care of you. You MUST be able to take care of yourself. Congressweasels will call for commissions in response to the Katrina disaster, which will tell you, in a report of about a thousand pages, what is already painfully obvious. Then they'll call for more government failure ... um, I mean, oversight.

Now we see government taking steps to prevent peoples' ability to take care of themselves. That is an unbearable stench in my nostrils. Why surrender your means of self protection totally to the government? Because it takes such good care of the poor? Because it provides such good healthcare? Because it does such a good job of educating our kids? Because it did such a good job of protecting you immediately after Katrina hit, and for nearly a week thereafter?

Wake up. Where's the Tylenol?

Thursday, September 08, 2005

End of the King?

Evidently, this season (the 10th) of King of the Hill will be the last, according to Mike Judge. Say it ain't so.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,168789,00.html

An endorsement of martial law....

... courtesy of Brian Williams.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/

Watch last night's (9/7/05) video segment of his "tour" of New Orleans. Applicable comments are toward the end of the clip.

Yeah, I'm taking his comments a bit too seriously, considering the context. Regardless of the disaster, though, I don't see myself ever "longing" for troops patrolling my streets. Why not advocate an armed, prepared citizenry for a change? Having armed troops on the streets isn't a relief - it's scary and sad.

All the news organizations have been showing snippets of the "You-Loot-I-Shoot" crowd, but are careful not to advocate that kind of responsibility ... um, I mean, "vigilante" behavior. Why not? Look, if half the shotgun-toting store owners had fully automatic Uzis or M-16s (even better!) with which to guard their stores and protect their neighborhoods, would we have seen such a degree of lawlessness? If every N.O. citizen who didn't/couldn't evacuate had bothered to tie up a 12-pack of candy bars, a gallon of water & a tarp in a plastic bag to keep with them, would we have seen such a humanitarian crisis? Why does the "news" push government involvement as desirable, rather than invasive, cumbersome and ineffective? Why is National Guard deployment resulting in de-facto martial law defined as "security"? Where's the Tylenol?

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

Volunteering is hard...

... but not for the reasons I expected. The company I work for has ponied up and offered TWO WEEKS paid vacation for the first 100 people in the company who will use one week of paid leave (that we already have earned) if we volunteer with the Red Cross to go to the gulf coast. Let me say that again ... my company is willing to let 100 of its employees go volunteer with the Red Cross for 3 weeks, all paid leave. Corporate America ain't all bad.

I can't seem to get anywhere with my local Red Cross, though. The nearest chapter (an hour away) has a huge staff of ONE, and won't be offering ANY training for the foreseeable future. The other chapter is at least 2 hours away (in Nashville, TN) and their web site is very clear that they won't be sending people to the region, since many have evacuated to TN.

I got in contact with a chapter 2.5 hours away, but they won't be offering ORIENTATION until Sept. 20. They'll e-mail me more info. Are you kidding me?!?!? It'll all be over by then...

For one thing, I can understand that no organization (not the Red Cross, not FEMA - nobody) can funnel people into the area within 24 hours. There's a level or coordination involved that I most likely can't fathom.

Even with that in mind, though ... it's still frustrating. Polluted water doesn't scare me. I'm willing to GO. RIGHT NOW. I'd like to be able to do so while I'm all fired up. Since that's evidently not going to happen, time will tell where, if anywhere, this goes. I'd hate to think such an offer from my company would be wasted, though.

YOU MUST READ THIS

http://www.ejectejecteject.com/archives/000129.html

As much as I'd like to think I'd only post my inner wisdom on this blog, I'll be the first to admit there are legions of people more articulate than I. And I'm more overly-emotional, stupid, and - on weekends - slightly sauced rather than wise. This is the first time I've seen this guy's site. It won't the the last.

May God grant me the strength to be a grey sheepdog.

One redeeming factor...

... about Fox "News" is that they do, on occasion, print stories about people using guns to protect themselves. You won't see firearms portrayed that way in the other "media" outlets.

There is, and will always be, a place for civilian firearms ownership. There will be times, like now in New Orleans, when the government, Democrat or Republican, can't/won't be there to protect you. It's your civic duty ... and your basic human right ... to protect yourself. The very idea that politicians would try to take that away makes me sick.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,168509,00.html

Monday, September 05, 2005

Maddox hates blogs...

... so I decided to put this link in my blog! Tee hee! I'm so novel.

http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=banish

His definition of blogging is right on the money.

Trigger time!...


... Finally! As I've said, I've been getting slack about shooting in a disciplined manner. Sure, I'll take a gun out & go "plinking" once in a while. That's not why I bought a gun, though. Granted, I like nothing more than taking the little .22 lever-action rifle out for an hour or so of shooting at a pop can. But I bought my first "real" gun because I realized I might actually have to kill a rapist. I'm getting off track, here, but...

I bought my first "real" gun (a Kimber Ultra Carry in .45 ACP, which I still carry pretty often) when my wife & I lived in an apartment in Columbia, SC. We thought we'd moved to a pretty good area. After living there for a couple of months, a woman was raped at an adjacent complex. Then another. Then an attack on another woman. In one attack, the guy just knocked on the door, and when the woman answered, he came in, pulled a gun, tied the "man" of the house up in the bathroom & raped the woman. The police couldn't seem to catch the guy.

Well, if you've read my profile, you've seen that I'm a 2-time cancer survivor. Nothing makes a person understand the true meaning of helplessness like cancer. I'll be the first to admit that being a cancer survivor makes me a bit of a control freak. OK, a nearly total control freak. So, as you can imagine, the very idea of being tied up in the bathroom and listening to my wife being raped literally made my blood boil.

Well, all that raping caused my inner control freak to ... well .. freak out. I went to a firearms dealer and bought the biggest caliber I could handle, in a package small enough to conceal. That's my Kimber. Anyway, I went on to get my South Carolina Concealed Weapons Permit (as did Miss Fluffy, but that's another post), and my firearms passion just grew from there.

Geez... slight tangent there. Sorry - it's a holiday weekend, and I've got a (formerly) full bottle of bourbon...

My most valuable firearm, in terms of money invested and utility, is, without question, my Bushmaster AR-15 (pictured). It's a clone of the modern M-16 M4 variant -- we shooters call it an "M-4-gery." It fires the ubiquitous .223 Rem/5.56 NATO cartrige. When my beloved wife, Miss Fluffy, gave it to me for Christmas, the Clinton Assault Weapons Ban (arguably the silliest legislation in American history) was still in effect. Since then, I've customized it to be a formidable Homeland Defense Rifle. Yeah, I phrase it that way deliberately.

So, it was my beloved M4-gery that I shot today. I'm fortunate enough to have land-lots-o-land on which to shoot. Not only that, but I have access to an old, dilapidated house which my family used to rent to farm hands. It's in quite a state of disrepair, and hasn't been used in probably over 50 years. I set up a scenario in which I had to use my rifle-mounted light & engage a target immediately to my left.

The only problem is that the house is so old that every time I'd shoot, it would literally rain dust. I'd fire 3 rounds (2 to center mass, 1 to the head, in proper "tactical" manner), and then go back outside until I could breathe.

Good times, nonetheless.

For those of you who are disturbed by the fact that I, as a "civilian", practice the act of shooting another human being twice in the chest and once in the head ... I'll have a post for you in the near future explaining it all. Until then, read some accounts of those rendered helpless by the recent New Orleans disaster. It won't change your way of thinking, but I'll spew about it, anyway... and my dreaded "assault rife" is all legal, so HAHA!! MOLON LABE!!

Sunday, September 04, 2005

So, you think I'm overboard...

... when I rant on about being prepared? Check out Kim du Toit's views on the matter (someone more articulate than I could ever hope to be):

http://www.kimdutoit.com/ee/

Yeah. What he said.

Saturday, September 03, 2005

In a sad break...

... from the New Orleans hurricane/flood/disaster headlines, evidently Chief Justice Rehnquist has passed away. He was reportedly the last sitting Justice who ruled on Roe v. Wade. May he rest in peace.

This will be the second SCOTUS appointment for President Bush. Every hardcore "liberal" (a term I try to avoid) is getting an ulcer right now.

For us gun-toters, this raises even more questions. I have yet to get a feel for what John Roberts' Second Amendment views might be. Roberto Gonzales' name is already coming up as a possible nomination, and I've heard/read that he's no friend of the Right to Keep & Bear Arms (RKBA from now on).

The pro-choice camp is predictably going to be against anyone Bush nominates. We shooters are in a wait-and-see mode. We have been unsure of what to expect since Roberts was nominated. Now we're really not sure where this might go.

Just got home from...

... the world's shortest dove hunt with my cousin H. We walked through one of our back cornfields and didn't see a single dove. Oh, well. I'll console myself with a beer.

Making me proud...


... Miss Fluffy has decided to use some of our time this holiday weekend to go through our "go-kit". This is what we'll rely on in the event of an emergency. With the chaos in New Orleans this week, we both feel suddenly more motivated to update the contents and replace things (food, batteries, etc.) that might be old. Of course, El Jefe is lending a hand ... er, paw.

Evidently, chemlights look like dog treats (at least they do to him). We'll have to keep an eye on those while the lid is open.

Our 7th wedding anniversary is Monday. It's times like this that it's crystal clear why I married her. Why she puts up with my crap ... well, I haven't quite figured that one out yet...

So, if you're Alpineman...



... why do I see all this spew about everything but alpine stuff? Well, because I only climb once a year or so now. My brother the Fox, my friend HODAR and I clawed our way to the summit of Mt. Baker in the northern Cascades this summer. Here's me on the summit, exhausted and looking dorky, as usual. Also a sexyman shot of me (my butt, anyway) approaching the crater.

See? The name fits. Besides, if my few friends called me "Gunman" or "Assaultrifleman", it would kinda freak people out.

It's finally here!...


My welding stuff, that is. I couldn't settle for a normal (and cheap) helmet .... Noooooo, not me. Had to spend the pesos, didn't I? Well, since I've got to be the worst welder in history (though I've got all of about 3 cumulative minutes of actual "welding" under my belt so far) I figure I may as well try to look cool in the process...

Few things make me happy like...

... that first "nip" of fall in the air. The temp last night here in KY dipped into the 50s - which means Miss Fluffy and I slept with the windows open. After sweating it out in Columbia, SC (the screen door to Hell) for 10 years before moving here, I've rediscovered my appreciation for cool (and downright cold) weather. I've been robbed for two winters in this state - i.e. no snow accumulation over an inch. That's just got to change this winter. I'm prepared for just about anything ... including a blizzard. Bring it.

I skipped this month's International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) match today. I've been so slack about shooting that I don't feel like it would have been worth my time ... not to mention it's an hour away, and the idea of paying for the gas makes me raw. Besides, I'll most likely be shooting here this weekend, so I'll get in enough blasting to keep me satisfied. I feel guilty about the match, though. This would have been one of the few this year in which I was actually going to be able to compete (it's amazing how often I'm out of town for the first weekend of the month, when they hold the matches). Dang.

Friday, September 02, 2005

Sometimes this guy's a jerk...

.... I know, because I hear him on the radio on occasion when I travel. Other times, he's right. Like now. Check out his post "Now --- Let's Talk A Bit About Gun Control". I was expressing these same sentiments to one of my few friends last night.

http://boortz.com/nuze/index.html

I saw one guy who had painted "You Loot, I Shoot" on his store front. Well said.

The type of rifle I own comes in a variant called a "varmint" rifle. I consider mine to be a varmint rifle. As New Orleans is learning, varmints come in several varieties. Some have four legs. Some have two. An AR-15 will make short work of either.

According to Miss Fluffy...

... gas in Knoxville, TN is$3.49 for Regular this afternoon. Insane. My big ol GMC non-armored personnel carrier will stay parked for a while.

As you can tell, it's a slow day at work...

That's the beauty of working from home, and part of the beauty of my job. I have days (like today) in which the phone isn't ringing, leaving me free to spew forth. Of course, there will be times when I'm absolutely slammed. It's feast or famine, usually.

I need to get out & finish mowing the jungle that is my yard. I live on quite a few acres, and my yard is pretty big. That's great when it comes to chasing the dogs around, but when it comes to yard work ... ugh. Doing the yard work all by myself literally consumes most of a day - 5 hours or so, start to sweaty, stinking finish.

I'd like to get some trigger time in this weekend. I've been better lately at focusing on doing drills shooting from the holster. This weekend I'd like to get the AR out and do some close-quarter drills. It'll take me forever to get accustomed to the scope I have on it (an ACOG). It's a low power (4X) but it has a "backup" iron sight on top. I really like it because the top sight is high enough that it keeps my head up (rather than keeping my cheek welded to the stock tube). I need to get on the stick and make some barriers and target stands, once I get some more welding experience.

Speaking of welding, I've only had 2 classes so far, but welding is ULTRAMANLY. I've got an arc welder here on the farm, but I have no idea how to use it. I've learned enough to see that arc welding doesn't work the way I imagined. Very interesting. I ordered my own hood/helmet and gloves. I'll post some pictures when they come in. For my friends/family reading this, expect heavy steel gifts this Christmas!

On a non-(or only partially) political note...

My wife and I had planned to take a trip to see a college friend of mine, and we had to (or felt compelled to) cancel when the whole gas-panic set in. I just hate that.

We had yesterday and today off, and were headed to Milwaukee, WI for an even-more-extended holiday weekend. We were going to hang out. We were going to tour breweries. I'm disappointed, to say the least.

Probably the worst part is, for me personally, my few friends keep me grounded. Scott, the guy I was going to see, is one of those people. He's quite possibly the most focused, down-to-earth person I know. He's the one who you know has a plan. I've always felt like he has, and has had since I've known him, a good handle on where his life is going. He keeps things in perspective. I could learn a thing or three from him. Just hanging out with him once in a while is one of the things that keeps me from completely going off the deep end. Not that I'm going to head that way now, but it was going to be a good trip, and now here I sit spewing. Dang.

So, my wife (Miss Fluffy from here on out, but more on that some other time) and I watched the USC GAMECOCKS (our Alma Mater) season opener on TV last night. Well, she watched. I spent the second half encouraging another of my few friends to buy a gun. Typical.

Not to mention that I'm out of bourbon. Zoiks! All I have in the house is Miss Fluffy's sorry excuse for liquor ... two brands of candied rum. There's so much sugar in that crap that they must have to stir it with a boat paddle before bottling. Mixing it with Coke didn't help. Ah, bourbon! Ah, Kentucky!

A word on preparation (and it won't be my last...)

Shortly after 9/11, I printed out FEMA's publication, "Are You Ready? A Guide to Citizen Preparedness" from www.ready.gov. This helpful guide tells people like me how to prepare for a disaster - anything from a terrorist attack to a natural disaster.

Right off the bat, the intro says, "We live in a different world than we did before September 11, 2001. We are more aware of our vulnerabilities, more appreciative of our freedoms and more understanding that we have a personal responsibility for the safety of our families, our neighbors and our nation."

Or not.

I printed the guide out YEARS ago. After watching the New Orleans debacle, and going back and reading the guide, I want to puke. The "news" is SCREAMING about how slow the government is about getting aid to the people who, for whatever reason, didn't get out of New Orleans. I see FEMA's guide wasn't widely read.

More quotes:
"Local responders may not be able to reach you immediately, or they may need to focus their efforts elsewhere."

"You should know how to respond to severe weather or any disaster that could occur in your area -- hurricanes, earthquakes, extreme cold or flooding. You should also be ready to be self sufficient for at least three days." (Emphasis added.)

Look, I know there were tons of people who, for whatever reason, couldn't get out of N.O. That being said, I'm sick of the media howling about the government's inability to spoon-feed everyone.

Fools, they told you it would be this way. If more people had made the minimum of preparations (in the face of a Category 4 hurricane, for God's sake) - just a few candy bars and a gallon of water - the government might not be so overburdened.

The gulf coast is a disaster in it's truest sense. People are indeed suffering. God help them. But it didn't have to be this bad.

Get the lead out and learn to take care of yourself. America is not the nanny state, and it never should be. Our nation wasn't built by whiners demanding a handout. Where has our self respect gone?

www.ready.gov

You knew this was coming...

I'm becoming ashamed of my lack of restraint when it comes to my increasingly bad habit of spewing my not-so-humble opinions via e-mail to my friends and family, so I'm starting this blog. I remember when I used to curse those snotty computer nerds with nothing better to do than to bestow their opinions upon the world via Algore's World Wide Web. As usual, I've now become that which I hate(d). Oops.

This way, if you feel like hearing it, more power to 'ya. If you're one of my (few) friends or my family, you're probably reading this thinking, "Thank God ... now I can ignore him..." Don't say I never did anything for 'ya.

Big thanks to my friend Scott, who has his own blog (which is most likely much better reading than all this crap will ever be), who clued me in to the idea that I could do this. Immitation is the most sincere form of flattery, bro. I'll get a link to 'ya if/when I figure out how to do it.

Mostly I'll write about guns, politics and mountains (not equally). Mostly it will start out as a political rant, which will end up as a South-Park-esque moral which will try to convince you to go out and buy a gun. It won't work, but it'll hopefully get it off my chest. I tend to be a tad high-strung, as you'll see.

I notice I've already said "crap". I'd like to think I wouldn't use any language on this blog that I wouldn't use in front of my mother. We'll see if I can hold the line or not. I get pretty angry pretty often.

Speaking of getting angry, I'll spew all kinds of venemous hatred about the things I see/hear/read. I get my "news" from tons of sources, and I read a few different periodicals. For example: CNN, Fox News, CNBC, NBC, NPR, Newsweek, National Geographic, Alpinist, Outdoor Life, Field & Stream and, yes, Soldier of Fortune. I get a kick out of seeing how many different ways a story can be spun. As you'll see, I truly can't stand the "news".

I work from home, so I'm willing to bet most of my posts will be really quick, "I-just-saw-this-on-CNN-and-boy-am-I-pissed" kind of things. Most of it won't be very well thought out, so go ahead and get rid of that expectation. I assume this blog will accept comments. Don't bother trying to start a discussion. I'm not ashamed of the fact that I won't think most of my posts out before spewing. That's just the kind of person I tend to be. This blog may as well reflect that.

Feel free to send me any suggestions for making the blog better. I'm a techno-moron, and I need all the help I can get.

I'd like to believe that, for those of you who read this, even if you get really mad at what I write, hopefully you'll think about what's spoon-fed to you. Even by me. And get your feelings off your shirtsleeves when you read the things I write. I never hesitate to level pretty harsh criticism at myself (usually well deserved), so don't get the impression I'm trying to get up on my high-horse. I'm going to write what I'm thinking/feeling at the moment. I am wrong ... quite a bit. This blog isn't about me being right. It's about me being opinionated, loud-mouthed and spewing.

Enjoy!