For The Girl

A most unfortunate name

HoustonChronicle.com - Gun power: NRA should use its expertise to curb accidental shootings, violence

The Houston Chronicle makes me want to vomit.

This POS "editorial" is nothing more than mental masturbation by some anonymous anti-gun wonk at the Chronicle. I'll summarize by quoting the last line of the last paragraph:

While the NRA and its supporters have the unquestioned upper hand in this debate, they should consider what measures they can take or redouble in order to stem the rash of gun violence that recently has taken the lives or health of several Houston-area children.

They actually invoked the "think of the children" cliche'.

Moby Dick!

'We think they saw a whale which was for some reason feeling very happy. It reared out of the water, fell on to its back and they saw this thing that they assumed was a tail.' But he added: 'You wouldn't expect to see a whale in this state on his own.'

Indeed. Hey, it was 1734 - how many of those have you seen?

The Book "meme"

I go through all winter without catching anything, and now I've caught something from JulieB: "I called you out for the "Book Meme" on my site. I'm hoping you will
step up to the plate since you are my only right wing victim! Check today's post: http://juliewithab.blogspot.com/ "

I'm going to think on who I'm passing this little gem on to while I sleep tonight...

But for now, here you go on your long awaited questions, Julie:

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?

This is an easy one. And I’m not going to pick a specific book, but an author. How’s about anything written by Danielle Steele? I was stuck once at someone’s house and the only book available to me was a Danielle Steele novel. After the third day, and only having managed to read the first chapter thanks to constant vomiting and nausea, I decided that I couldn’t take it any more and slit my wrists.

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?

Negative. Being male, I need images to have any type of reaction. That’s why my early crushes were on SI supermodels like Carol Alt.


What is the last book you bought?

It’s been a while since I’ve actually purchased a book – I’m fortunate in that my friends let me mooch off them when they finish a good one. The last one I’ve so borrowed (thanks, Dan!) was by Stephen Hunter – Havana. It’s a continuation of the Earl Swagger collection, all of which I’ve enjoyed for some pure escapism.

What are you currently reading?

Just finished Garden of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver. Pretty good read. A tale of an American hit man who gets conned into traveling to pre war Nazi Germany to make a hit by a shady character in the US government. If he survives, he get some cash and let off the hook for some nefarious deeds done back in the states. There’s the ever present Car and Driver, Front Sight, and various gun catalogs lying around as well.

Five books you would take to a desert island?

Well, in addition to a sharp knife and a .22 bolt action rifle, hmmmmm.

1. The SAS Survival Guide. It’s an extremely valuable resource if you’re ever stuck on a desert island, or anywhere in the world for that matter.
2. The Odyssey. It never gets old.
3. Myamoto Musashi’s Gorin no shô, aka the Book of Five Rings. I learn something new each time I read this fantastic work, and it has been an asset to me throughout my shooting career.
4. Any decent atlas of the night sky. Figure I’ll have plenty of opportunity to study the heavens on my island.
5. Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse. I like John Clark. He’s an interesting character, and like him, I hate druggies. Remorse is one of Clancy’s best in my opinion – he doesn’t get bogged down in all the technical babble that seemed to plague his later books, and he really allows you to get close to Clark.

KFC Manager Douses Animal Activists

Dear PETA,
I'm meat. Eat me.
jr

ProMagicPlus

I just got a new mainboard for my pc at home, which was suffering mortal problems. Along with the mobo, there was a disk that includes drivers and programs. One of the programs is ProMagicPlus. Before I installed this software, I thought I'd take a look at their website. What I found was pretty hilarious, as the site is pretty much a lesson in Engrish. As they say at wasay.com:

Make you every step steady easy!

An Humorous Anecdote

A young cowboy walks into a seedy cafe in a small town in West Texas.

He sits at the counter and notices an older cowboy with his arms folded, staring blankly at a bowl of chili. After about 15 minutes of just sitting there staring at it, the young cowboy bravely asks, "Hey, if you ain't gonna eat that, mind if I do?"

The older cowboy slowly turns his head toward the young wrangler and in his best cowboy manner states "Nah, go ahead."

Eagerly, the young cowboy reaches over and slides the bowl over to his place and starts spooning it in with delight.

He gets nearly down to the bottom and notices a rotten dead rat in the chili. The sight is shocking, and he immediately pukes up the chili into the bowl.

The old cowboy quietly says, "Yup. That's as far as I got, too."

Spears Reveals Pregnancy on Her Web Site

See, you vultures? Britney's not fat, she's knocked up. Now get back to work.

THE OFFICIAL BLOG OF FETUS SPEARS

Britney and Cletus have made it official. She is pregnant. If you want a daily update from her fetus, this is this place to get it.

A BELOW-THE-BELLY LOOK AT LIFE INSIDE MY MOTHER, BRITNEY SPEARS: THE WORLD'S MOST WHITE TRASH POP STAR MOMMY!!!@!

Quest to get a Republican to fight DeLay may have crossed a line

I've said it before on the pages of the Tattler and I'll say it again: If DeLay is guilty, he'd better get the hell out now.

However, this is looking more and more like a concerted effort to get rid of DeLay, plain and simple.

Take the constant onslaught of the media, particularly CNN and the NYT. Take the same media outlets, and observe how they have totally ignored the recent problems that have plauged Chucky Shumer, Hillary Clinton, and Nancy Pelosi. Each have recently been slapped on the wrist for massive ethical violations themselves, yet we hear no word of it. Why is that I wonder?

My Way News

Disclaimer - I'm not Catholic. Hell, I don't belong to *any* church! But I've had about enough of the Catholic bashing the mainstream media seems intent on forcing down our throats. It seems as if the worst thing in the world to be is either a Christian or a Jew.

I can't fail to point out the irony, however. I don't seem to recall anyone in the media jumping on the "bashing islam" bandwagon. No bashing of the manner islam treats its women. I don't seem to recall anyone asking the islamic imams when they'll let women become priests. I can't recall anyone asking the imams when they'll stop the practice of issuing fatwahs against just about everyone else in the world. I don't remember hearing anyone sticking a microphone in the face of an islamic holy man and asking him what he thought about hacking off the heads of innocent prisoners.

However, the poor Catholic church, which wouldn't moderate *it's* position on abortion, female priests, gay marriage, blah blah blah becomes the whipping boy de jour.

Yahoo! News - Jackson Begged to Sleep with Boy-Child's Mother

Crikey. Anyone else sick of this soap opera? I'd be willing to pass on the rest of the trial, we can just declare that MJ is a total freak, an oxygen thief, and lock him up in house arrest in his oxygen chamber for the rest of his life where he can't molest any more young boys or make any more music to molest the rest of us.

Something Awful

If you don't read Something Awful, I'd like to recommend it. I've been a fan for years now, and while it has some questionable content and a bunch of silliness, it provides a valuable public service: making fun of things on the Internets. However, it's not all fun and games, as this link shows. Last week, they made fun of (drumroll, please) THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR. Apparently, this was a bad idea, and the craziness that follows is documented in the link above.

Dean's formula: Jesus, balanced budgets, gun neutrality

Let me summarize Howard Dean's new Democratic Party: be everything to everyone. Howard needs a history lesson, and I'll quote Abraham Lincoln.

"You may fool all the people some of the time, you can even fool some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time."

Yeah, Lincoln was a Republican, but he was a uniter of parties. He even got Northern Democrats to rally to the Union cause.

Democrats wouldn't know about that sort of thing.

Summer is here in Texas!

I love Texas. For the last month we have had beautiful weather with only a couple of days of rain. Another thing you can always count on here is women showing off a little skin. I am a big fan of women showing off their belly buttons.


I am no fan of this, although I do like the snoopy socks!

Big D's New Blaster

I finally took delivery of my new baby. It is an STI framed Rock Ranch Custom. As it sits right now it shoots .45 acp, but I also had a .40 S&W top fitted. I'll shoot the .45 in IDPA and the .40 in USPSA.

Child Shot in the Face

This is beyond ludicrous now. This is NEWS in the UK. A 12-year-old boy had a BB gun, and *gasp* almost put another child's eye out. Actually, he missed her eye, BUT IT LEFT HER WITH REDNESS AND SWELLING ON HER FACE. Where will this insanity end?

I have a friend who still carries a BB in his side. That shooting did not make the news in Garland, TX. In fact, it was a crappy shot, and he only got hit because he was slow. Noboby called the police, there was no investigation. In fact, I'm not even sure there was a band-aid involved.

Britain is breeding a nation of pwussies. I think it's time to ban shadows in the UK - they're already scared of them. Grow up, you big nancies.

More guns not the answer (HamptonRoads.com/Pilot Online)

This editorial made me laugh. Out loud.

Idiot.

Oregon State Daily Barometer Online - Don't throw out the antivenom, just in case

"The NRA is often attacked for defending the private ownership of assault weapons. They are insulted as lunatic hate-mongers who just love violence and death and big mean guns that kill. I'm not going to examine whether or not that's true or accurate.
I don't care.
The issue here is that the NRA's main message, that it is defending the intent of the Second Amendment, is dead on."

This article is pretty darned good. It starts out reading like an anti-gun tirade, but keep on.

The right of the people to own weaponry is predicated upon the notion that a well-regulated militia is necessary to our very security.

Now, ask yourself when it was that our national security was last threatened by a mule deer or a covey of quail?

Obviously, never.

I sincerely hope this country never has to suffer a second Civil War, but I also hope I'm never bitten by a rattlesnake.

That doesn't mean, however, that I support destroying the world stock of antivenom.

A well-armed public, much like antivenom, is good to have, just in case.

ABC News: Colo. Cracks Down on Left-Lane Dawdling

You know, this is against the law in Texas, too. Problem is, there's too damned many foreigners here that don't know that.

I have a suggestion: drag them out of the car, and shoot them on the spot.

It's a start.

Mark Alexander: The 'Gun Problem'

"What was the problem? Leftists brace yourself: It was not a gun problem, but a culture problem. Amazingly, Barnes inadvertently touched on this problem, saying, 'Our leaders are preaching about the culture of life. They should spend the same amount of energy taking steps to stop our nation's culture of death.' Of course, Barnes and his ilk think the culture of death begins and ends with guns. Their silence on the real cultural problems is deafening. "

I guess the good news is that the Brady Bunch and their ilk are having to resort to more shrill and ludicrous claims in a feeble attempt to advance their agenda. The bad news is that they choose to take advantage of every single opportunity to get themselves in the media and spout their gibberish. Alexander does a good job of fisking the latest rhetoric surrounding the Red Lake shootings.

Of course, focusing on inanimate objects like guns is far easier than focusing on cultural problems, particularly since many of the problems in question are the result of Leftist doctrines -- like parents (particularly fathers) who have abdicated the responsibility for raising responsible and moral children to government schools. The cultural consequences of renouncing that responsibility are exacerbated by the phony "Wall of Separation" arguments, which Left judicial activists have used to eliminate religious (read: "moral") training from those schools, and remove the Ten Commandments in principle and substance.

Why do kids kill today? Because nobody's teaching them that it's WRONG.

Teenager tried to cut up missile with an axe

What a total dumbass.

A teenager who found a cloud-seeding missile was almost killed when he tried to cut it up for scrap metal with an axe.

Koran scholar: US will cease to exist in 2007

My ass.

Beauty queen brighter than nuclear physicist

Yeah, but can she cook and clean?

A Slovenian TV programme that tried to prove top models were brainless bimbos was scrapped after a beauty queen turned out to have a higher IQ than a nuclear physicist.

Fonda: 'Hanoi Jane' visit was a mistake

MSNBC - Fonda: 'Hanoi Jane' visit was a mistake

Jane, I think I speak for all us when I say (and please don't take this the wrong way), "Get bent, you treasonous whore!"

Man Drowns While Testing His Depth Finder

Dang. Talk about irony.

But nowhere does the article mention how deep the water is.

Bullet hits Delphos man in groin

The headline really doesn't do the story justice. I wonder if this would be ruled an accidental shooting, attempted suicide, or just a failed act of Darwinism?

Ask Karen, the USDA Automaton

CoolGov.com (the site that tries to convince you that your government is, in fact, cool) has this jewel. Get online answers to those burning questions. Even better, lookit what other have asked already.

WingTunes.com - The official Wing member's site

Ya see, this is what's wrong with the Internets today: anybody can sell anything. Wing sings, but that's a subjective opinion. There's a free sample of several classics available on her web site, but on the page linked above, I DARE you to download Wing's tender rendition of Abba's "Dancing Queen."

She makes William Hung sound talented.

The Original Dog Powered Scooter

This really chaps my keester. Here I am, firmly in the 21st century, and there's not ONE SINGLE FLYING CAR to be seen. But you can get another marvel of the 21st Century, the DOG-frickin'-powered SCOOTER. On the Internets, no less. This sucks. I want MY future back - the one with push-button meals in a pill and flying cars, dammit.

Petition is launched in bid for Scots air guns ban

THIS is what happens when "sensible gun control" is implemented. Look at the wording in this petition:

I recognise that Scotland needs power over firearms and agree that legislative powers over all type of firearms should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament immediately...

In other words, I agree to sign over my rights to my government, and hope they do the right thing. Absolutely unbelievable that a nation could produce so many idiots.

Fun with Names!

I'm seeing a trend with today's blog posts. I'll try to stop, but no promises.

GOOD NEWS!

New Straits Times - Malaysia News Online: "GOOD NEWS:
Snatch thefts down 26.9% last year "

Good news, indeed.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter, y'all.

Texican Tattler: Britney Spears Is Fat!

Seriously - what is wrong with you people? We get more referrals from people Googling "Britney Spears is Fat" than anything else.

Get
A
Life.

Americans becoming more realistic about gun control

"It's become clear over the years that most of these spectacular episodes are so freakish that they are not amenable to regulatory solutions. It's also become clear that any imaginable gun-control laws are not likely to have much effect on crime in America."

Wow. An op-ed piece about the recent school shooting in Red Lake that's NOT a foaming-at-the-mouth, ban-all-guns, hysterical, spit-blowing rant about how guns are the root of all evil in America.

Records of gun sales? The killer, 16-year-old Jeff Weise, wasn't old enough to buy a gun legally in Minnesota. At least two of his guns were stolen from his grandfather, a police officer whom he killed.

Assault weapons ban? His arsenal included no such weapons -- only a .22-caliber pistol, plus a police-issued .40-caliber handgun and 12-gauge shotgun. Limiting lawsuits against dealers? A bill that hasn't been enacted couldn't have caused a mass shooting yet.

The Violence Policy Center charged that the problem lies in "America's love affair with guns," and held up the example of countries that, it says, have prevented mass shootings through "severe restrictions on the availability of specific classes of firearms, such as handguns and assault weapons."

This statement only confirmed the National Rifle Association's suspicion that gun-control advocates are bent on banning entire categories of common firearms -- even though most owners use them in a responsible and law-abiding manner.

Looks like the message is starting to make it's way out - it's not the guns, stupid.

50 CENT DISAPPOINTED HIS BULLETPROOF CARS HAVENT BEEN SHOT AT

Dear Mr. 50 (or is it Mr. Cent?),
This is an open letter that you could consider as an offer for me and my friends to help you out. Personally, I've never shot up an armored vehicle, but I've shot plenty of regular ones. Between the 6 of us on this blog, I daresay we've put a few hundred rounds through various cars and trucks, both on purpose and accidentally (oops).

Please drop us a line at tattlers@gmail.com, and we'd be happy to get you fixed up.

Sincerely,
The Texican Tattlers

Underground Extra-terrestrial UFO bases all around the world - a mind boggling theory

This is what's wrong with America's mainstream media. How could they have missed this story?

spiked-risk | Red Lake: a tragedy, not a lesson

"There is a new industry of school violence 'experts', with a journal entitled Journal of School Violence appearing in 2002, which recommended restricting access to schools, increasing the number of school police officers, developing emergency plans and adding telephones and radios around schools. An unarmed security guard patrolled the corridors of the high school in Red Lake, and was the first person to be killed by Weise. Rather than spending money on books, security seems to be taking over."

So much for unarmed "guards" as protection, much less as even a deterrent. I'm sure the poor guy's uniform made him prime target #1.

What's really interesting about this article is that it actually talks about the root issues of what motivates a child mass murderer. Not the video games, the guns, the goth clothing, but what sent these kids over the edge. It's interesting to note that people don't just wake up one morning with an innate desire to massacre. It festers and grows, and manifests itself in a number of ways. Sometimes, albeit rarely, it explodes into mind-numbing violence.

However, as this article points out, these events are rare.

In spite of the rarity of these events, the feel-gooders are quick to make sure we put measures in place that will presumably keep this from happening again. In fact, what happens is that rights are eroded for everyone, and the real issues continue to be ignored. But the politicians can rest easy, because many mommies now feel better.

What's is also interesting is how our society seeks and desires the quick-fix, and in doing so, typically overreacts with futile, feel-good policies that do nothing to stop the problem. Point in case: zero-tolerance policies. There's a great list of "common sense" or "zero tolerance" stupidity. For example:

A six-year-old in Colorado was suspended for violating the school's anti-drug policy after a teacher saw him share a lemon drop sweet with a friend. The school also called an ambulance for the lemon-drop-eating friend.

Nope, you can't make this stuff up. People really are that stupid.

Shooting With Friends

This is us at the Double Tap Ranch Championship. Front row, l-r: Andrew, Steve, and Dan. Back row, l-r: Catfish, Pimp Daddy, Big D, The Girl, Bruce, and JR. We got trophies, and Andrew and Dan won GUNS! It was an awesome USPSA match, with 12 stages, and a round count of 309.

We had fun.

Update: I liked the pic above a little better. Maybe Big D will share the story...

Also, here's QuickTime movie of our very own Dan tearing up a stage on his way to winning Production Overall. What a stud.

Dan in Action! (6.11MB QuickTime - not dial-up friendly)

Sky Showbiz - Val Is Top Gun In Urinals

I always liked him in Real Genius. His stock just went WAY up with me.

Pork

The other white meat.

Baboon crisis keeps children out of school

Bands of marauding baboons in eastern Uganda are forcing parents to keep their children at home to guard crops, causing rampant absenteeism in the region's primary schools, officials said on Wednesday.

I wonder if the baboons ate their homework?

basil's blog

In the unlikely event you don't know about this blog, well, know about it. Basil rocks.

Peterson and Blake

Well, I guess nothing else of import is happening in the world today. After all, the MSM had absolutely nothing to report other than the Peterson and Blake trials were over.

Rest safe America. The news media is out there keeping track of all the important stuff.

FREEZE! I JUST HAD MY NAILS DONE!

I know I've said this before. And I'll likely say it again. I love Ann Coulter.

I've noticed in the extensive coverage of the Nichols case in Atlanta, I can't recall a single time I heard on CNN Fox ABC CBS NBC etc.... that the deputy this thug killed after taking HER gun was a female. Always, it was simply "the deputy". Horrors upon horrors that this happened. But it did. And the reason can clearly be laid at the feet of the ACLU and the feminazis.

Why the ACLU? Thanks to cases that they support, criminals on trial cannot be made to wear handcuffs or shackles because it makes them look guilty. Heaven forbid thugs are made to feel guilty in the courtroom.

Why the feminazis? Thanks to the femanizis, a tiny grandmother is dead before her time. Without the femanizis pushing down our throats that women can do everything a man can, you get to see lovely incidents like this one.

Please, I'm not bashing women. I love women. They are simply wonderful creatures. But, in general, they are not as strong as men, and that's just a simple fact of life. The feminazis pushing this down our throats is going to continue getting women killed, and the civilians they are required to protect are going to get killed as well.

A friend of mine was a Houston cop several years back. When he was going through the Academy, he told me countless stories of how physical requirements for women were overlooked when they couldn't be met. How the gals were passed on, regardless of how weak or slow they were. One of the tests they were required to pass was to pull the double action trigger of their Sig service pistols 100 times. My friend told me that none of the girls could pull the trigger more than about 45 times. And they still passed. Makes you feel safer, doesn't it?

A cousin of mine is a fireman in Florida. He tells many of the same stories about female recruits being unable to carry ladders or heavy tools, or work with all the gear piled on your back like firemen have to carry. But they still passed the class. Makes you feel warm and fuzzy, right?

If women want to serve in an environment where the use of physical force is required, they should be required to pass the exact same physical fitness standards as the boys. And without those standards being 'dumbed down' for the girls. If they make it, they make it -more power to 'em - and we'll all be safer for it.

MSNBC - Serial rapist and killer lashed, hanged in Iran

Well, nobody can say the Iranians aren't tough on crime.

A young man convicted of raping and murdering 16 boys was lashed 100 times, and then hanged Wednesday in front of a large, angry crowd who pelted him with stones and scuffled with police.

Dang.

Let's get assault weapons off our streets

This one's from Catfish. Of course, I will steal it and embellish with my own opinions.

Seems like everything from tsunamis to poverty can be blamed on those darned assault weapons, and it's the latest rallying cry of anti-gunners everywhere. The "assault" weapons ban expired last September, and ever since then, any shooting with a gun that roughly fits the description of a gun that looks like an assault weapon is paraded before the public as an example of why we should ban scary-looking guns.

But here's another view, from a newspaper writer in East Texas. She questions the very existence of semi-automatic weapons.

Are you going to go out and shoot a deer with a semi-automatic? [uh...yes. JR]

I admit that I don't know a lot about hunting, but seems like if you use a semi-automatic there won't be much left of the very animals you're trying to take home for dinner. Plus, animals will hear a multitude of gunfire, not just one shot.

Personally, I'm scared of guns. I will not go near them, whether they're pistols or rifles. I don't care. I have buried too many friends and family members who died from shooting incidents.

A better question to ask is, why are semi-automatic guns even manufactured?

Sounds like foolishness might be a family trait, particularly with respect to firearms. But don't worry, this mindset isn't limited to firearms. Nope, she's also ignorant of history. Here's the coup de grace:

Federal law states that automatic weapons can only be used by the military. [uh...what? JR]

I can understand the military needing automatic weapons. They conduct business in war zones, where the enemy is likely to be equipped with equally powerful and destructive automatic weapons. But on the streets of our cities right here at home? Assault weapons have no place in America or on our streets. [I guess our non-American streets are covered here. JR]

It's not exactly what our founding fathers had in mind when they said we have the right to bear arms and protect ourselves.

That's right, kids. Only your government should be armed. As all founding fathers and millions of oppressed subjects around the world know, you can always trust your government to do the right thing, and you'll NEVER need to protect yourself from your own government. Pay attention, because I'm not making this up: THAT is exactly what the Founding Fathers had in mind when they revolted against their government. It's also why they authored the Second Amendment to the Constitution: to help the people protect themselves from their government. Here's a quote from another really important document:

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

That's you and me, kids, and we ain't using sticks for our security! The document? The Declaration of Independence. Is this starting to come together for you now, Sherry?

Criminy. This woman is so desperately uninformed that it makes my brain hurt. Just goes to show you how educated your MSM journalists really are.

Marines driven out of UAW lot

"We do not think it is unreasonable to expect our guests to practice the simple principle of not insulting their host," the UAW statement said.

It seems the UAW President has shown that he puts his political bigotry above supporting our men and women in uniform. His message is that if you have a bumper sticker supporting the President or drive a car that has a foreign name plate on it, you are no longer welcome to park on his lot.
What a total jack ass this guy is. Here in America we exercise something we call a free market. If somebody wants to drive something other than a Chevy or Ford, they have a right to. If the American car companies had made a car that these people actually wanted, they would probably be driving one. Most large foreign car companies have assembly plants here in the US. They employ many Americans. The dealers that sell and service those cars employ many Americans. The trucks they are delivered on are American's trucks driven by Americans. Just because they were not built in Detroit, does not mean that hard working Americans have not benefited from them being built and sold here.

Once again the Left has demonstrated that they put their political bigotry above all else. This man is undeserving of the freedoms he enjoys, the freedoms that are being fought for by the same people he won't let park on his lot because they oppose him politically.

Lt. Col. Joe Rutledge,commanding officer of the battalion's active duty instructors says,

"You either support the Marines or you don't. I'm telling my Marines that they're no longer parking there."

He added

"We're appreciative of what they've done, but you don't come into my officeand say, 'OK, we're not going to support some of your Marines.' I don't know what a foreign car is today anyway. BMWs are made in South Carolina now."

Dartmouth researchers find where musical memories are stored in the brain

At the Copa,
Copa Cabana,
Hottest spot North of Havana

You're welcome.

NYT - Looting at Weapons Plants Was Systematic, Iraqi Says

Another attempted hit piece by the NYT.

However, I believe this one will backfire just like all the others have. It looks like the Times is admitting, after a coupla years of denial, that Iraq had WMDs??

Boy, I bet that's not what they wanted us to focus on, was it?

People's Daily Online -- "I don't think US should be the leader of the world"

Mr. Bennett - you're a jackass.

"Another source of the resentment is the perception that Bush administration wants to act unilaterally in the world, outside of alliance that traditionally governed the ways Bush made foreign policy decisions. In some ways the core of perception problems is centered on 911 terrorist attacks in 2001 in which the US government and Bush administration reacted by deciding that the country would make decisions in foreign affairs that respond only to US interests. They were not going to consult very widely, and not to compromise in making those decisions. That caused rift even among the US allies. So it is natural to see that the image of America is the lowest in public opinion."

I don't know about ya'll, dear reader, but I remember months and months and months of the United States working with the rest of the world on trying to bring an end to Saddamm's regime. As usual, no one else would cowboy up.

" Yong Tang: In such sense, do you think America should be the leader of the world?

Bennett: No, I don't think US should be the leader of the world. My job is helping my readers trying to understand what is happening now. What is happening now is very difficult to understand. The world is very complex. There are various complex forces occurring in it. I don't think you can imagine a world where one country or one group of people could lead everybody else."

What a total and complete asshole. And he can't figure out why the Post and other liberal standby's are losing popularity daily. I don't need you, Mr. Bennet, to help me *understand* what's happening. I need you and the other members of the media to tell me what's happening. I think I can figure out the complexity of the world on my own. I do have a brain and contrary to what you and the other liberal media pukes believe, I know how to use it.

"Bennett: We have a little bit different roles in newspapers compared with our counterparts in Europe and other countries. We don't have any political point of view that we are trying to advance. We don't represent any political parties. We are not tied to any political movement. On the news side of the paper we try not to give opinions. So I think the role the Washington Post should play is to hold the government accountable for decisions made by it."

Get the waders out!! Now, if you've ever wanted to see bullshit, here's some bullshit. This jackass says they have no political agenda, yet practically every major newspaper in this country leans leftward, and recommended to their readers to vote for John Kerry. And Al Gore. And Bill Clinton. And Mikey Dukakis. And Jimmy Carter. And JFK. And anyone else running as the Democrat standard bearer. But, they're not political and they don't represent any political parties. When's the last time you recommended voting for a Republican for President, jerk off?

There's more, but my blood pressure's high enough already and I've got to get some dry fire practice under my belt. For a good view on the inside working of a liberal media elite, give this a read.

Gunman kills 7 at church

My lovely wife and I attended a church retreat over the weekend. I packed a pistol the entire time. When we married 11 years ago, it was a little hard for her to get used to the idea of me going armed everywhere, especially to church and church functions. During some free time during the retreat, conversation turned to how our preacher's wheels can't be shot off during a sermon. There have been a few instances where people had health issues like passing out and one going into convulsions as well as some odd people being disruptive. He just keeps on preaching and never misses a beat. Then conversation turned to a couple of times when people feared for their safety because of the behavior of people in the church. Back in 1999, a nut walked into a church in Ft. Worth and opened fire on the youth group killing seven and injuring 7 more. The week after this, a man with a back pack came into our church and sat down. It was said that he was acting strange. It turned out to be nothing, but it had a lot of people worried.
My point to all this is that we should take our safety, as well as the safety of our friends and loved ones very serious. Get a good gun, learn how to use it, and go armed. It's like having a fire extinguisher around your house. Chances are you will never need it, but if you do you will be glad you had it.
Big D

MP's joy at gun ban in Labour manifesto

You know, I like Tony Blair. It's too bad he's such an idiot. Britain's Labour party MPs have their collective heads so far up their collective arses that I doubt they know if the sun is shining or not.

Mr Blair revealed Labour would launch a consultation on new laws to prohibit the sale and carrying of replica firearms, if it won a third term in office.

Politically, this is actually pretty clever, but it's short-lived. Here's the ploy: divert attention from the ever-increasing gun crime issue in the UK by passing legislation that will deprive children of toy guns. The subjects of the UK feel good about this, and everyone lavishes praise on the government for being "tough on crime."

Meanwhile, they've done absolutely nothing - not one single thing - to address the issue of gun crime in the UK. Why? Because they're depriving law-abiding people the ability to lawfully own guns, while the criminals simply reap the rich harvest that lies before them. What do the criminals know? That nobody can lawfully defend themselves, and they can now act with impunity.

But David Davis, the shadow Home Secretary, said: "Tony Blair promised to be tough on crime and the causes of crime but as a direct consequence of this Government's policies, violent, anti-social behaviour, drug and alcohol related crime have gone up."

In the UK, you have no rights, only privileges. This, my friends, is the primary difference between a citizen and a subject.

Under-18s face knife and replica gun ban

"The sales ban is in Labour's fivepoint 'mini-manifesto' on crime, published today. Mr Blair was set to say it would give Britain the ' toughest anti-gun laws in the world'."

And pundits say there's no "slippery slope?" This is beyond ludicrous.

Next stop: kitchen knives. You think I'm kidding...

ABC News: Autopsy Identifies Ga. Golf Course Remains

More golf news.

Wonder if she died from a stroke?

I'll be here all week.

Possibility of Growing New Teeth

Good news for Arkansans.

These techniques may one day help people whose teeth have decayed from very bad cavities, who have lost teeth in an accident, or whose teeth have worn down from acid or hard brushing, among other conditions, he predicted.

Did you know the tooth brush was invented in Arkansas? If it were invented any where else they would have named it the teeth brush.

2005: 4

He was paid to kill her. He raped and strangled her, then shot her in the head. AMF.

Report by House Democrats Alleges GOP Abuse of Power (washingtonpost.com)

JR - how's about posting the picture of the whining baby with this story??

That would fit the modern day democrat just perfect.

What a bunch of crybabies riding along on the waaaaambulance.

Italy didn't plan safe escape for hostage - The Washington Times: Nation/Politics - March 08, 2005

Finally, a bit of logic and reason. It's a tragic end to the Italian security officer, who appears to have screwed the pooch big time. As has been pointed out on other blogs, and we have bandied about internally amongst ourselves at the Tattler, mistakes kill.

It's usually survivable to make one mistake.
It's sometimes survivalbe to make 2.
It's rarely survivable to make 3 or more.

That kills cave divers, parachutists, race car drivers, and apparently secret agents.

1. "The left-leaning Italian newspaper La Repubblica reported yesterday that Mr. Calipari decided not to use available escort protection from the elite commandos who protect Italy's Baghdad embassy."

2. "The soldiers did not know that Miss Sgrena and Italian agents were headed in their direction on the way to the airport for a flight back to Italy."

3. "It seems to me that the Italian secret service considers this a James Bond movie in Baghdad," Mr. Maginnis said. "They're driving around at night picking up a journalist who has been kidnapped and pretending they can get through a phalanx of checkpoints along the deadliest road in all of Iraq without being detected, much less shot up."

4. The vehicle also did not stop for hand signals, flashlights, or warning shots.


About all I can think of that's positive from this sad event is that if Bill Clinton or John Kerry or AlGore were the man in charge, the folks manning the checkpoint would already have been thrown under the bus, into the brig, and out of the service with a dishonorable discharge. The ROE would be changed, and our soldier's and Marine's lives would be put in greater jeopardy to satisfy political correctness.

Golf is a physical sport...

I'm opening this one up for a caption contest...

The New York Times > New York Region > As Clinton Wins G.O.P. Friends, Her Rivals' Task Toughens

Good God man! Let's just have the NYT come out and campaign openly and proudly for the liberals they support, rather than have them hide behind some false mien of objectivity.

Wow - read this article and you'll find out that Mrs. Clinton is not the camera hungry hack that we have all come to know and love. Read this article and you'll find out that Mrs. Clinton is really very bipartisan. Read this article and you'll find out that there are some Republicans who actually support her. And, the funniest part of the article, read it and find out that the Republican party is in deep trouble - hurting even!! ""It's a party that is really hurting," Mr. Miringoff said, referring to Republicans. "And so self-interest and self-preservation are taking over."" How comical.

Hillary in '08! The campaign has started months ago, if not sooner - buckle your seatbelts boys and girls, it's going to be a long strange trip indeed.

The New York Times > Washington > Rule Change Lets C.I.A. Freely Send Suspects Abroad to Jails

Look - more *objective* reporting fromt the New York Times!!

I seem to recall that during the 9/11 commission hearings, the liberals in Congress (and I also seem to recall the NYT) were whining that the CIA was not given enough power to track down and find the bad guys.

Now we come to find out that the CIA is once again up to its eviel (in my best Obi wan Kenobi style) ways. The CIA is sending suspected terrorists to prisons where they might - *gads* - be beaten to give up the goods.

Let's see - we hear nothing from the media - NYT and CNN included - when Saddam's rape rooms were going full force. We hear nothing from the media when the Taliban is abusing women in Afghanistan. We hear nothing from the media when Islamic fundamentalists in Sudan are butchering everyone else.

BUT!!!! The CIA sends suspected terrorists to prison and we get an investigative report??

And people wonder why the blogosphere and talk radio continue to grow in visitors/listeners and the MSM is fading away into obscurity.

American Jails in Iraq Are Bursting With Detainees

Well golly gee! The New York Times, the Old Gray Lady itself has come out with this brilliant piece of news reporting.

Get this - jails in Iraq are filling up!! Wow!! We're putting bad guys in prison!

Yet this is somehow bad?

So I get this straight - if we kill them, then we're bad. Now, apparently, we're not killing them outright, but we're putting them in prison where I'd be willing to bet they are eating better than they were before they were caught. And that's bad too?

Why, maybe we should just pull out and come running home and then put our heads back in the sand only leaving our wallets exposed so that the third world can pluck our money out easily and all will be well.

Boogie Bass Hack

Those nutty kids at MIT...
Here's the output of an expensive and exclusive education. You too can now hack your Billy Bass to say whatever you want. I'm not too impressed with the fascination with the word "pork" in this article, but the potential for a swearing mounted fish holds a certain appeal to me.

VOA News - Global Flyer Completes Record Nonstop, Round-The-World Flight

How cool is that?

Maximum Pain is Aim of New US Weapon

Well, damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Fine. If you're an unruly mob, let's go back to tear gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets. Your choice.

Why do you suppose that left-wing radical groups just assume that less-than-lethal weapons are designed solely with them in mind? That seems pretty egocentric to me. After all, MY assumption would be that these are military weapons, designed to be used against bad guys.

What's that? You're a bad guy? Sucks to be you.

OpinionEditorials.com - The Gun Ban Du jour - Holmes

This guy is funny. He's taking the current vogue in gun-banning (.50 cal rifles) on, and poking holes in their pretzel logic:

But wait, liberals cry. Just because these guns have never been used to commit a crime or terrorist act doesn't mean we shouldn't ban them.

Taking the next logical step:

Next up for the Illinois General Assembly is a ban on turkey sandwiches for the same reason. Sure, nobody has actually been bludgeoned to death with a turkey sandwich, but that doesn't mean it couldn't happen. They might also want to consider banning the pen I'm using to write this column, because I'm seriously considering gouging my eyes out with it.

Here's what I like most, though: he calls the gun-grabbers out for the frauds they are.

Just like with any other anti-gun bill, safety is not the goal of these liberals. Like always, the only people affected by this bill would be those who attempt to purchase firearms legally.

Which continues to beg the same question: Why are liberals so afraid of law-abiding, heat-packing Americans?

Gun Enthusiasts Continue to 'Open Carry'

This story is from Virginia, and it illuminates the naivete' of most sheeple when it comes to firearms.

As the gaggle of gun enthusiasts with their assorted handguns sitting openly on their hips dined on hamburgers and chicken tenders at the Fuddruckers restaurant in Annandale, Victor Castellon's eyes grew wide with concern.
"I've got to be careful with these guys because they've got guns," he said, sitting at a nearby table with his girlfriend. "It's like the old West."
Castellon was observing members of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, an organization that believes gun owners have the right to carry their guns anywhere — including restaurants like Fuddruckers that serve alcohol.
Under Virginia law, carrying a concealed firearm in a bar or restaurant where alcohol is served is illegal, even if the gun owner has a permit to carry a concealed weapon. But anyone may "open carry" handguns in those establishments, just so long as the gun is visible.

Victor would likely poop and fall back in it if he knew how many others were carrying concealed handguns illegally, every day, everywhere he went.

I'm not sure what gets my interest most about this. It could be that there are enough people who carry open in Virginia to merit media attention. It could be that Virginia has legislators who say things like:

"My constituents don't want to walk into a restaurant that serves alcohol and see people carrying guns," said Sen. Janet Howell (D-32), the bill's sponsor. "I've had dozens of e-mails from people who are both angry and frightened about open carrying."

It could be that Virginia wastes time and effort trying to infringe the rights of law-abiding citizens, instead of worrying about actual criminals.

I know how Virginia can fix the problem: pass a CHL law, then let the sheep go back to grazing.

FOXNews.com - Views - Good Samaritan Gun Use

FOXNews.com - Views - Good Samaritan Gun Use

One of the good guys speak out and Fox News shows some real backbone by actually reporting the whole story, not sound bites, and the truth about a bad situation.

What John Lott forgot about guns and crime, the VPC will never know. He is the best source of real data concerning defensive gun use there is, and he has the hard data to back up what he says. And he points out that Mark Wilson saved lives by the actions he took in Tyler, by forcing the shooter to become defensive. All the other talking heads seem to miss that particular piece of information. But like I said sound bites.

Google Toolbar 3 beta

The latest Google toolbar offers speel chek. Hey, Catfish: hint, hint.

My Great Uncle

My Mother's uncle, my great uncle. Look him up next time you're at Arlington National Cemetary.

Rest well, sir.

Buying an AK

The recent shooting in Tyler prompted me to action. I have for some time now believed that a pistol is a good tool for you to use to get your way back to your carbine, which you never really should have left in the first place. As shown previously, I have a wonderful AR carbine, with an A3 flattop upper, EOTech sight, fore grip, and surefire light mounted on it. She rocks. From time to time I would carry the AR in the car (like when the color code system for terrorism would spike up). The one major thing keeping me from carrying the AR in the car all the time was that if by chance my car were broken in to, I would be out $1400 really quick. And I couldn't replace the weapon promptly.

This past weekend, I decided the answer would be to pick up an AK-47. I went trolling at the Market Hall gun show, and sold off a shotgun that had been sitting in the closet collecting dust, and the upper that JR and I swapped out. I neatly pocketed the $400 and commenced to shopping. There were several pre ban models out that had a muzzle break and bayonet lug, but the cheapest you could find them for was about $370 including TT&L. I found a post ban, which didn't have the bayonet lug or the muzzle break (big stinking deal!) but did have the standard stock set for $299. I think it was $317 with TT&L. I waited on the insta check - all of 5 minutes, and then picked up a couple more 30 round mags and 500 rounds of ammo, and still had money left over from my original $400.

This is the first time in a few years I've purchased a weapon new and had to wait on the insta check. For the record - this is the way the insta check SHOULD work. I give em my pertinent information, Drivers License # etc and they run me through the database and I'm cleared. No muss, no fuss. And more importantly, no wait. I've never been one to worry about leaving paperwork around for the government - if "they" really wanted to get me, then I'm sure "they" wouldn't let the facts get in the way and I'd be hosed no matter what I did or did not have.

Now, as to why I chose an AK:
1. reliabilty
2. durabilty
3. ammo is cheap and plentiful
4. I will practically never have to clean it or take care of it
5. if it gets stolen, I'm out $300 and not $1400

Happy Birthday Texas!!

Happy Birthday TEXAS!! 169 years ago today, on Sam Houston's birthday no less, a hardy group of Texians gathered in Washington on the Brazos and freezing their asses off, wrote the Texas Declaration of Independance. Just like the founding fathers of America, the Texians literally subjected themselves to the death penalty at the hands of the Mexican government if they were ever captured. Less than 2 months later, Texas was an independent Republic and within a decade would enter the Union.

So for all Texians everywhere, let us share a toast today in honor of our State's birthday.

SJ-R.COM - Anti-gun activist arrested after firearm found at home

Yet another kook that makes up today's mainstream Democrat Party. While the story does not allude to her political affiliation, does anyone have any doubt which side she falls on?

SJ-R.COM - Anti-gun activist arrested after firearm found at home

Just so we're on clear on this: guns are bad, unless you need one to protect yourself. That must be how it works, because it applies to Rosie O'Donnell, Diane Feinstein, and now "Flirty" Stevens.

Got it?

AP Wire | 03/01/2005 | Gun-law questions raised in Texas shooting

As usual, MORONS! What a bunch of mindless drivel.
Where to begin???

Wilson's actions have drawn hearty praise from gun advocates who say he probably saved more lives than just Arroyo's son. But gun control groups say Wilson's death proves that carrying a gun increases a person's chances of getting killed.

Ok, so, carrying a gun increased the chance of Arroyo's wife getting killed, right? Of his son getting shot, right? This is one of the biggest myths the gun control freaks tout. Let's do the math. If you don't own a gun, what's the chance that you're going to shoot yourself with a gun that you don't own? It ranks right up there with their bullshit claims that guns are the 3rd leading cause of death to teenagers. Ok, again, let's do the math. What are teens dieing from? Cancer? Heart attacks? Lung disease? Chances are very good that Mr. Wilson stopped other innnocents from being shot at. Chances are Mr. Arroyo decided to get the hell out of Dodge after people started shooting back at him.

This next one is classic. Especially if you've spent ANY time on the firing line with police officers.

We don't want citizens to go out there and get involved in situations if they don't have to because they don't have the training that the officers do," he (Martin) said.

Here's a dirty little secret boys and girls. MOST, not all, but MOST police officers receive little, if any training on how to shoot. MOST, not all, police officers NEVER practice. MOST, not all, police officers couldn't hit the side of a barn if they had to. So saying that a CHL holder doesn't have the training that a police officer does is totally and completely asinine. God bless em, but the facts are that most cops do not feel the urge to get out and train and improve their shooting because chances are they will never have to use their weapon during the course of their career.

And from the mouth of one of the anti-gun KOOKs:

"Eric Howard, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based Brady Campaign to End Gun Violence, said guns like Arroyo's are the weapons of choice for many criminals. "These are military-style weapons that pose a significant risk to civilians and the police officers trying to protect the public," he said."

Cars pose a signifigant risk. Gravity poses a signifigant risk. AK's do not pose a signifigant risk. Sorry. We've now had two shootings involving AK's in the last few weeks. Over 100 rounds expended. Two people killed. A handful wounded. Tell me how many people were killed by Chevys in the past week. Tell me how many people were killed falling down the stairs in the past week.

In a trained shooter's hands, you betcha. AKs, ARs and the like do pose a risk to the people being aimed at. But again, the simple fact is that the overwhelming majority of people who handle those weapons haven't a clue, and the biggest risk you face is losing your hearing.

In conclusion, this sums it up perfectly. Couldn't have said it better myself:

"But Texas General Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who also chairs the pro-gun rights group Civil Liberties Defense Foundation, said the military appearance of Arroyo's gun did not make it more lethal than others.
"If he'd have used a Remington semiautomatic deer rifle, the same outcome would have resulted," he said."

Oregon Legislators Go Crazy, Drool on Each Other, Hate Guns

Take a gander at the picture of the death-dealing bullet hoser in this article. Scary, isn't she?

Check out this beauty of an "assault weapon" ban:

Senate Bill 927: Sponsored by the Committee on Judiciary, it makes possession of an "assault weapon" a crime punishable by 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.

Included in the ban is the manufacture, importation, sale or transfer, or advertise the sale of such weapons or to be in possession of "large-capacity" magazines.

There is a laundry list of weapons that would fit the definition of assault weapons.

Large-capacity magazines are those holding more than 10 rounds, with exemptions for .22 caliber, weapons modified so they cannot hold more than 10 rounds, tube magazines in lever-action firearms.

A separate bill, SB 937, also sponsored by the Committee on Judiciary, would make it a Class C felony to possess "large-capacity" magazines.

Holy moly. 10 years? A quarter of a million bucks? Seems kinda steep, don't it?

Any bets on how far this lunacy might go? I'd venture a guess that such extreme penalties will cause this bill to die in committee. Guess I'll add Oregon to the list of places I won't go. Ever.

Marsha McCartney is a Moron

Marsha McCartney is the co-president of the Dallas Million Mom March. She is also a moron. In a single swath cut through the Dallas Morning News, she has danced in the blood of the innocent, called Texas CHL holders criminals, and made up fanciful tales about the capabilities of a semiautomatic rifle. It appears to be her estimation that all guns are bad, but AK-47-looking rifles are the worst. She's more concerned about where Mark Wilson's missed shots might have gone, rather than why he sacrificed his own life protecting someone he didn't even know. I assume that police officer bullets are smarter than Wilson's and knew where to land safely. She apparently had no issue with LEOs firing at the bad guy.

I looked this woman up. Here's how she got into the MMM:

Marsha, mother of two grown children who attends First UMC, Coppell, learned about Million Mom while watching the Rosie O’Donnell TV show one day. O’Donnell was a big supporter of the organization’s first march on Washington, D.C., in May of 2000, at which 750,000 supporters from across the nation gathered.

Puh-lease. A former soccer mommy who apparently doesn't have a hobby.

Marsha, it's a hard old world out there. Sometimes, bad people do bad things. I would much rather have the likes of Mark Wilson around than some shrill harpy like yourself when the bad stuff goes down.

Marsha, by any chance were you the same idiot that wrote complaining about that picture of the soldier smoking a cigarette?

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Officials: Bin Laden Urges Zarqawi to Hit U.S.

Again, an interesting view from our enemy. Is Bin Laden prodding Zarqawi to attack the US because OBL can not?

LJWorld.com : Dean roars into town

So. This is the savior of the DNC!? How utterly pathetic. Again, I find it somewhat interesting that the Chairman of the DNC does not allow media to attend his events. And, I do believe that this is a battle of good vs. evil. But Dean's got it backwards:

And concluding his backyard speech with a litany of Democratic values, he added: "This is a struggle of good and evil. And we're the good."

Actually, you're the moronic. But that's a different story.

Moscow mayor threatens fines over bad forecasts

"Meteorology is a science, but meteorologists never claim a 100 percent accurate forecast," said Alexei Lyakhov, head of the Moscow Weather Bureau, in an interview. "Punishing weather forecasters is not happening anywhere else in the world, but maybe we should think about it. It's worth considering this idea of fining us if we also get bonuses when we get it right. And we get it right 90 to 99 percent of the time."

90 to 99 percent of the time!?!?!? The weathermen in Dallas can't be right more than 40% of the time. They suck!!

The chilling toll of Allah's sniper

Very interesting insight into the mind of our enemy.

The New Toy

This is another one of those stories collected from the Internets, and passed on by a friend. Enjoy.

My wife Toni is fond of saying that my last words on this earth will be something akin to, "hey y'all, hold my beer and watch this!"

Well, I have outdone myself once again. No doubt you will see this true story chronicled in a Lifetime movie in the near future. Here goes.

Last weekend I spied something at Larry's Pistol and Pawn that tickled my fancy. (Note: Keep in mind that my "fancy" is easily tickled). I bought something really cool for Toni. The occasion was our 22nd anniversary and I was looking for a little something extra for my sweet girl.

What I came cross was a 100,000-volt, pocket/purse-sized Tazer gun with a clip. For those of you who are not familiar with this product, it is a less-than-lethal stun gun with two metal prongs designed to incapacitate an assailant with a shock of high-voltage, low amperage electricity while you flee to safety. The effects are supposed to be short lived, with no long-term adverse affect on your assailant, but allowing you adequate time to retreat to safety. You simply jab the prongs into your 250 lb. tattooed assailant, push the button, and it will render him a slobbering, goggle-eyed, muscle-twitching, whimpering, pencil-neck geek. If you've never seen one of these things in action, then you're truly missing out--way too cool!

Long story short, I bought the device and brought it home. I loaded two triple-a batteries in the darn thing and pushed the button. Nothing! I was so disappointed. Upon reading the directions (I don't need no stinkin' directions), I found much to my chagrin that this particular model would not create an arc between the prongs.

How disappointing! I do love fire for effect. I learned that if I pushed the button, however, and pressed it against a metal surface that I'd get the blue arc of electricity darting back and forth between the prongs that I was so looking forward to. I did so. Awesome!!! Sparks, a blue arc of electricity, and a loud pop!!! Yippee . . I'm easily amused, just for your information, but I have yet to explain to Toni what that burn spot is on the face of her microwave.

Okay, so I was home alone with this new toy, thinking to myself that it couldn't be all that bad with only two triple-a batteries, etc., etc.

There I sat in my recliner, my cat Gracie looking on intently (trusting little soul), reading the directions (that would be me, not Gracie) and thinking that I really needed to try this thing out on a flesh and blood target. I must admit I thought about zapping Gracie for a fraction of a second and thought better of it. She is such a sweet kitty, after all.

But, if I was going to give this thing to Toni to protect herself against a mugger, I did want some assurance that it would work as advertised.

Am I wrong? Was I wrong to think that? Seemed reasonable to me at the time.

So, there I sat in a pair of shorts and a tank top with my reading glasses perched delicately on the bridge of my nose, directions in one hand, Tazer in another. The directions said that a one-second burst would shock and disorient your assailant; a two-second burst was supposed to cause muscle spasms and a loss of bodily control; a three-second burst would purportedly make your assailant flop on the ground like a fish out of water.

All the while I'm looking at this little device (measuring about 5 " long, less than 3/4 inch in circumference, pretty cute really, and loaded with two itsy, bitsy triple-a batteries) thinking to myself, "no friggin' way!"

Friggin' way--trust me, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

What happened next is almost beyond description, but I'll do my best.

Those of you who know me well have got a pretty good idea of what followed. I'm sitting there alone, Gracie looking on with her head cocked to one side as to say, "don't do it buddy," reasoning that a one-second burst from such a tiny lil' ole thing couldn't hurt all that bad (sound, rational thinking under the circumstances, wouldn't you agree?). I decided to give myself one-second burst just for the hell of it.

(Note: You know, a bad decision is like hindsight--always twenty-twenty. It is so obvious that it was a bad decision after the fact, even though it seemed so right at the time. Don't ya hate that?)

I touched the prongs to my naked thigh, pushed the button, and HOLY **************!DAaaaauuuuuuMN!!! I'm pretty sure that Jessie Ventura ran in through the front door, picked me up out of that recliner, then body slammed me on the carpet over and over again. I vaguely recall waking up on my side in the fetal position, nipples on fire, testicles nowhere to be found, soaking wet, with my left arm tucked under my body in the oddest position. Gracie was standing over me making meowing sounds I had never heard before, licking my face, undoubtedly thinking to herself, "do it again, do it again!"

(Note: If you ever feel compelled to mug yourself with a Tazer, one note of caution. There is no such thing as a one-second burst when you zap yourself. You're not going to let go of that thing until it is dislodged from your hand by a violent thrashing about on the floor. Then, if you're lucky, you won't dislodge one of the prongs 1/4-inch deep in your thigh like yours truly.)

SON-OF-A-***** that hurt! A minute or so later (I can't be sure, as time was a relative thing at this point), I collected my wits (what little I had left), sat up and surveyed the landscape. My reading glasses were on the mantel of the fireplace. How did they get there??? My triceps, right thigh and both titties were still twitching. My face felt like it had been shot up with Novocain, as my bottom lip weighed 88 lbs. give or take an ounce or two, I'm pretty sure.

By the way, has anyone seen my testicles? I think they ran away. I'm offering a reward. They're round, rather large, kinda hairy, and handsome if I must say so myself. Miss 'em...sure would like to get em back.

You are the member of NASA

Here's a feel-good story of a local Indian boy who done good. Well, he made some money, anyway.

Trappers in South Carolina Practice Dying Art

"You get $5, $6, $7 for a beaver fur and you spend that trapping it,"

When I was single, I spent a lot of time trapping beaver and I always went in the hole. Never once did I turn a profit.

Super-HIV man had sex with 100

Sony Puts Pizza Ordering in Videogames

Uh-oh.

Anyone else see what's about to happen here?

Sony plans to integrate the pizza function more tightly into the game, so players can charge pizza to their monthly game subscription bill. "The goal for the future is to eventually let people do more things like this," Kramer said. "They could type /harry potter and get the new Harry Potter book delivered or /star wars and get the new Star Wars DVD."

My Pay-per-view bill is already giving me heartburn. Now the kids can order merchandise through their games. Super.

REPUBLICANS, BLOGGERS AND GAYS, OH MY!

"Liberals keep telling us the media isn't liberal, but in order to retaliate for the decimation of major news organizations like The New York Times, CBS News and CNN, all they can do is produce the scalp of an obscure writer for an unknown conservative Web page."

I love Ann!

Economy Grows Better Than Expected

Tax cuts work.

Texas Gunman Kills 2, Injures 4 in Rampage

This whole story is a real shame. This psycho got in trouble in 1973 on a weapons charge, but got probation.

The really sad part of this was that a CHL holder (Wilson) rushed to the scene, and engaged the shooter with his pistol. He apparently saved some lives in doing so, but he was in a gunfight with a rifle, and lost his own life.

The police managed to save taxpayer money in the end by putting this miserable dog down.

Tim Fountain, Sex Addict

Bloody F'n Genius.

Right to Own Or Use a Gun - Globe Link - Opinion

Ladies and gentlemen, I submit this literary jewel for your perusal and indigestion. From one of our fine Community Colleges, an op-ed piece on the right to bear arms.

"A well regimented military, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bare arms, shall not be infringed."

Seriously, how hard would it have been to go out on the Internets, find a properly spelled version of the Second Amendment, and then cut and paste it into the article? Mr. Parker continues to delight my burning eyes with this insight:

My position on this issue is a divided one. Guns in America are like Weird Al Yankovic at the Grammys: Sure they're invited, but should they really be there?

Well said, dude. Well said.

Logically, though, and without a second thought of historical significance or American policy, guns in the sense of humanity are not necessary. We don't need them for hunting and we wouldn't need them for defense if no one else had them. The law enforcement industry wouldn't need to rely so heavily on the weapons if criminals weren't similarly equipped.

Logically, indeed. Because deer hunting with a hammer is real sport. And everyone knows that if you wear a police uniform, it's more than enough to subdue an unarmed 220-pound ex-convict who's higher than a Paris Hilton's feet on prom night.

Of course the banning of handguns, high-powered rifles and assault weapons wouldn't put a complete end to violence, but it's a good start, and perhaps we should give it a little thought. Some day it may be you at the other end of a pistol, hoping that you could get to your wallet faster and wishing that we didn't allow those types of weapons in our country.

Parents, when you get home tonight, do me a favor: beat some damned sense into your children. Then visualize whirled peas.

CNN strikes again!

Today at the gym, working out over lunch I was perusing the wall of TV screens in the weight room. In between sets, I noticed that CNN was covering Bush's visit with Putin that took place today. The lovely Jill Dougherty reported, rather surprised! that the President was, in her words "rather astute" in dealing with Putin. That Bush didn't go in and throw down the democracy mantle and say how Russia was slipping back into despotism and that instead, much to *everyone's* surprise, the President was intelligent, diplomatic, firm, yet without being too overbearing. The look of surprise and sheer disappointment on her face were just priceless. Just who IS *everyone*?? Bush, as usual, did not surprise me. I think he's a pretty damn smart individual and despite the best attempts of the left and the MSM to define Bush as a stupid redneck, he continues to run circles around them.

I am constantly mystified by the behavior of those in the MSM and the left. They continue to fail to comprehend that Bush is the same fella that knocked the ever popular Ann Richards out of the governor's mansion in Texas. They continue to forget that Bush is the same guy that knocked media darling and heir to the Clinton throne, Algore, out of the White House. The continue to forget that Bush has managed to pass huge tax cuts, against the will of the MSM and the left. And today, they have apparently managed to forget that the President rarely lives up to their expectations of him.

May he continue to confound them. At the very least, it's entertaining to watch.

Rocket Fuel Found in Breast Milk of Women in 18 States

This explains a LOT about what's going on in the blue states. Coincidence? We report, you decide.

Yahoo! Sports - NHL - Herb Brooks honored with naming of 1980 hockey rink in his honor

Yahoo! Sports - NHL - Herb Brooks honored with naming of 1980 hockey rink in his honor

Wow! How I remember the 1980 Olympics. I can still remember sitting in the family room watching the game against the USSR. Screaming at the TV for Eruzione, or someone to shoot the puck.

The Summer Olympics boycott. Soviets in Afghanistan. The Iran hostages. The botched rescue. Mt. Saint Helens. Reagan getting elected. I was a junior in high school. Twenty fives years goes by quick.

I don't think people born after the 80's realize just how big this game and Herb Brooks were. I remember people talking about that game for weeks. We all knew who Eruzione was. Even people that had no interest in sports were cheering for the Team. The movie doesn't do them justice for what they did.

Godspeed Herb!

"Gun Control: It's An Assault Weapon!" by Howard Nemerov

A very thorough fisking of the Gun Control agenda with respect to the recent shooting in a New York mall. It points out that when guns are involved in crimes, the Brady Bunch never misses a chance to dance in the blood. Moreover, you see the same shills: VPC, Schumer, Feinstein, et al, all screaming about "automatic rifles" and other such rubbish.

Marine who died a hero heads home

Welcome home, Marine. Semper Fi.

For those that don't wish to subscribe:
Marine who died a hero heads home
After 38 years, remains of sergeant killed in Vietnam positively ID'd
08:36 AM CST on Thursday, February 24, 2005
By PAUL MEYER / The Dallas Morning News

PLANO – James Neil Tycz died a hero May 10, 1967, when a hand grenade exploded near his face in Khe Sanh, Vietnam.

Of his seven-member reconnaissance patrol team, only three Marines survived the early-morning firefight with the North Vietnamese army, according to military records. The others were buried under elephant grass on Hill 665, unrecovered but not forgotten.

On Wednesday, over a kitchen table in Plano, Sgt. Tycz's family heard the news they've waited 38 years for: The sergeant's remains – three teeth – had been located in Vietnam and positively identified. He was coming home.

"It was a mixed blessing for me," said Phillip Dale Tycz, Sgt. Tycz's brother who lives in Plano with his wife, Ruth.

"I was happy they could find the remains so he could finally be repatriated. But I also knew some of my family would have a very mixed reaction. They put it behind them and didn't want to know anything else."

Mr. Tycz, heading family efforts to keep abreast of the search for their relative in recent years, was first notified of the discovery Jan. 10 by telephone. Hattie Johnson, head of the U.S. Marine Corps' POW/MIA Affairs office, flew in from Quantico, Va., to brief the family on details of the discovery.

The search

The search for the four Marines buried on Hill 665 is a story of science, detective work and perseverance that began in 1991, when two Vietnamese entered a U.S. POW/MIA office in Hanoi saying they had access to the remains of 10 U.S. servicemen, including Sgt. Tycz, according to military records.

The two men never substantiated their claims, but a month later another Vietnamese made a similar assertion in Hanoi. He produced three teeth, one bone fragment and identification for Sgt. Tycz but left after being told of military policy not to pay for remains.

From 1993 to 1998, teams worked in Vietnam on six occasions in search of the men.

They found circumstantial evidence, evidence of a firefight, but no burial.

A break came in 2003 when a team returned to the hill and recovered several fragments of teeth and bone. Last year, an excavation of the site near the border of Vietnam and Laos was completed.

In all, 31 teeth and tooth fragments were found and used in a Hawaii laboratory to identify the four Marines.

Military officials met recently in Tennessee, Georgia and Washington state with the families of the three other Marines.

"So many people don't realize what the government does for these men and women," Mr. Tycz said Wednesday.

"They don't give up on them."

More than 1,800 Americans from the Vietnam era are still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, according to the most recent statistics. Of those, about 970 are still being actively pursued.

Navy Cross

Sgt. Tycz was 22 when he died. He was awarded the Navy Cross, the Navy's second-highest medal, for his actions on Hill 665.

A live grenade had landed near a wounded Marine. The sergeant moved toward it, picked it up and attempted to throw it back at the enemy.

The grenade exploded after a short distance and Sgt. Tycz fell, critically wounded.

In the coming weeks, his three teeth will be flown in from Hawaii and placed in a container inside a flag-draped silver metal casket. A full uniform will rest alongside it.

Sgt. Tycz's remains will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery, per his family's wishes.

"He will be under full military escort, just like it happened yesterday," said Timothy Nicholson, assistant program director for Navy Mortuary Affairs.

In addition to his brother in Plano, Sgt. Tycz is survived by another brother, Peter Carey Tycz of Milwaukee; and two sisters, Rita Blount of Escondido, Calif., and Patricia Kriesher of Downey, Calif.

Just a day after he died, Sgt. Tycz's mother received a letter from him. In it, he wrote:

"I had an interruption just now. Our lieutenant passed me the word that we go in at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow. None of us want to go, but that's our job and I pray I will never fail to do it. ..."

Los Angeles seeks to be declared disaster area after storms kill nine

Boo-frickin'-hoo.

It rained in Southern California, and it's the apocalypse. If you build a house on a hillside, guess what will inevitably happen? Moreover, if you build a city on a major faultline, guess what else will inevitably happen?

Monday, three multi-million-dollar homes in the posh district of Bel Air, which boasts famous residents including movie legend Elizabeth Taylor and former US first lady Nancy Reagan, toppled dramatically down a hillside after the sodden earth underneath them gave way.

We got tornadoes (or is it tornados? Where's Dan Quayle when you need him?) - don't cry to me about your self-inflicted "natural" disasters. We've had hailstorms that cause more damage in a single hour, and you don't see our mayor squealing about it, asking for federal money.

Babies.