Defense Review - Bushmaster Introduces Prototype 5.56mm Subcarbine/SBR and 9mm Subgun at IACP

Ooo. Bushmaster's making some new work guns. Select-fire, small-caliber, uber-light (carbon fiber) sub-guns. Neato.

Michael Yon : Online Magazine

Latest dispatch up from Yon. Read it all.

Interesting comparison to the hurricane relief efforts and the ongoing war in Iraq.

The Counterterrorism Blog

Well worth a read.

Bush Says 10 Plots by Al Qaeda Were Foiled

This post is for my pals in the smoke shop. We were asking the question just yesterday: "why don't we hear more about the plots that have been busted?" It seems to us that pointing out a few select incidents might help illustrate why we're fighting a war on terror, without inciting panic. I ventured to guess that if we knew of all the plans, it'd scare the bejeebers out of everyone. However, a measured dose of reality would be good for the public.

As if on queue, this article appears in the Washington Post today. Seems we all missed the content of the President's speech yesterday, where he outlined why we're in the fight.

And what of our brave enemies?

Bin Laden, Bush said, deludes his followers into becoming suicide bombers. "He assures them that . . . this is the road to paradise -- though he never offers to go along for the ride," Bush said.

And of Zarqawi:

The president likewise quoted Zarqawi calling Americans "the most cowardly of God's creatures" and offered a direct rebuttal. "Let's be clear," he said. "It is cowardice that seeks to kill children and the elderly with car bombs and cuts the throat of a bound captive and targets worshipers leaving a mosque."

Yesterday, we received news of planned attacks on the New York City subway system. This is who we're fighting: cowards who are afraid to show their faces, cowards who justify their acts through a perversion of their religion, cowards who target innocent non-combatants, women, and children.

Stop wondering why we're in this fight. Look around and open your eyes.

Shooting Games

After all the questions about the shooting games, I thought we should post links to the disciplines that we shoot. There are huge differences in the two.

International Defensive Pistol Association
IDPA is supposed to be geared toward concealed carry. You have to start with your pistol concealed by a vest, shirt, or coat. They have strict rules regarding equipment and gun modifications. You have to shoot targets as you see them while shooting around a barricade, or near to far if out in the open. Stages are usually 12 rounds or less, but can be as many as 18. You have to shoot a stage exactly as described in the course of fire (COF). You are scored on how long it takes you to shoot a stage and then you have time added to that raw time for each point down you are on a target. It's fun, but the tactical chipmunks bow up and start acting silly whenever they perceive something as being "gamey" or "USPSA like". A shooter was disqualified from this years IDPA Nationals for "Gaming".

United States Practical Shooting Association
USPSA is like a video game. It's not uncommon to shoot stages that are over 30 rounds. It's up to you to solve the shooting problem and usually can shoot a COF however you choose. You can use race equipment like the belts, holsters and magazine carriers Catfish and Pimp Daddy are wearing in the pictures. In recent years USPSA has introduced a production class, where you can shoot a stock service pistol and you shoot it out of a practical holster, not a race rig. They also have a Limited 10 division where you can only load 10 rounds in each magazine. You can shoot your single stack 1911 in this division and not have to worry about the low capacity disadvantage. You can also plunk down $3000 to $4000 on a race gun like the one Brad just got.
There is no pseudo tactical bull sh!t in USPSA. Just whip it out and shoot it as fast as you can. You are scored on the raw time it takes you to shoot the stage, and you get points for your hits on targets. An A is worth 5 points, B's and C's are worth 4 and a D is worth 2.

Both are fun and both are trigger time, but most of us here think that USPSA is more fun. Overall, the level of shooter in USPSA is much better. People that dominate their local IDPA match can show up at a USPSA match and find themselves finishing mid pack after shooting a very good match. This has driven all of us to step up our game and get better. We are all shooting better and faster than we ever have.

My advise is to shoot both. More shooting = more fun. You can find a local club using the web sites.

Gun Porn part Deux

Everyday is a good day for (gun) porn.

My new Infinity 9x19 Open Blaster. Sexy.

Gun Porn

Well, prompted by a curious guest, here you go.

(Please don't mind the shameless plug for my buddy at Rock Ranch Guns!!)

Here's my STI 2011 with an extended mag:















Here's the pistol with a "carry" mag:
















As you can see, not all that big of a difference (14mm) between the two mags. But the extra bullets are oh so nice. Also, by looking closely, you should be able to see that this ain't no BBQ gun. This is a work gun, and it gets LOTS of work.

Best pistol I've ever owned, bar none!!

Questions, class?

Food Crash Tests

Hat tip to American Drumslinger.

Shooting in Tyler

Action pics from the USPSA match in Tyler this Sunday. From top to bottom: Catfish, The Girl (shooting Limited), Pimp Daddy (shooting the famous Miles O'Toole in Open), and JR all show their stuff on a 24-round field course.

This just in!

I was conducting some historical research and came across this stunner headline:

Nazi propaganda minister gets Boeing to apologize for showing images of B-17s bombing occupied Europe.

Mr. Joeseph Goebbels annouced today that "we thank Boeing, for their swift and decisive response to our concerns. Mistakes can happen, but the true test of a company's integrity comes in acknowledging and dealing with those mistakes."

Mr. Goebbels went on to state that, in a spirit of reconciliation, "the images that Boeing displayed were insensitive to the plight of the German people, and did nothing to bring our two cultures closer together."



Wow. Who would have thought that we'd be apologizing to someone who is our sworn enemy?

Read it all.

No Looting in Texas

For our "fan" who once commented we were beer-swilling, gun-loving rednecks: so what's your point?

Holy Cow Statue Discovered in Mazandaran

From Iran:

These statues are evidence that the people of the region worshiped oxen and humped cows 3000 years ago.

Hey, let's keep sex and religion separate, okay?

Seriously, don't they have proofreaders?

[edited]Okay, what are you, dumb? You don't get the joke? HUMPED COWS, get it? They humped COWS 3000 years ago.

This is good stuff, people. Try to keep up.

baxterific insights

This may be one of the greatest blogs EVER in the history of ever, at least in the world of bloggerage (my word - patent pending). Revel in the genius of the baxter.

You're welcome.

10 dollar bill getting a facelift

I'll take Park Place, Boardwalk and all 4 railroads, please.

Two Americas?

I often ask myself why it is that there often appears to be two Americas. The America that I believe in; the land of the free and the home of the brave. And the America that we see on TV - the land of the oppressed and the home of the cowardly.
After perusing the major news outlets today, it became a bit clearer to me just why that is. As I’m sure you’ve heard, while the Gulf Coast was getting battered by Hurricane Rita there was an anti-war demonstration going on in Washington. CBSFOXCNN gave us almost exactly the same story: “Cindy Sheehan, mother of a US soldier who was killed in Iraq took part in the largest demonstration against the war since America invaded Iraq. A coalition of anti-war protestors also took part, including Joan Baez and the Reverend Jesse Jackson.” With only minor changes or additions, that’s what we were told. You can see what they said exactly here, here, and here.

For whatever reason, ABC and MSNBC had no story whatsoever about the protest on their front pages and I didn’t feel like digging to page 28B to find anything.

Now, if the MSM were my only source for news, I’d be fairly convinced that the protestors were a group of peaceful folks who gathered together to exercise their 1st amendment rights and express their opinion of the Iraq war. If I was a mind numbed lemming, I might even be inclined to agree with all or some of what they were saying because they seem like rational folks with a bunch of like minded individuals.

Funny though. Take a look at the photos put up by Michelle Malkin.

Of course, the dark side of the protest somehow didn't get any coverage by our pals in the "professional" media.

Or this one:

Why are these little boys and girls wearing masks I wonder?

Could it be becuase they're committing crimes as detailed in their own pictures here, here, or here? Or maybe they're just getting ready for the tear gas when they step out of line?

Now, any questions class, as to just why there seems to be two Americas? If there is any doubt in your mind that we're not just fighting a war against the islamists but a war against those who would destroy us from within, then you're an idiot. To the left, and their supporters in the media, that would more accurately be a useful idiot.

To my friends on the right - do not let this go unmentioned. Do not stand silently by and let these thugs control the pulse of our country like they did 3 decades ago in Vietnam.

Gun Control Campaign Warns Florida Visitors

A spokesman for the Brady Group said the new law may lead to the reckless use of guns on the streets. They are actually handing out fliers that say people face a greater risk of bodily harm in Florida.

Need any more reasons why the Brady Bunch is finally on the run? They're resorting to fear and ignorance to advance their agenda.

Oh, wait...they've always done that.

Rumors of Deaths Greatly Exaggerated

'I've got a report of 200 bodies in the Dome,' Beron recalls the doctor saying.

The real total was six, Beron said.

Good thing the media took the time to evaluate the claims before reporting to a horrified public, huh? Here's a good summary of what you read in the news:

"I think 99 percent of it is bullshit," said Sgt. 1st Class Jason Lachney, who played a key role in security and humanitarian work inside the Dome.

Let's check in with NOPD's chief of police, the Mayor of New Orleans, and the general populace for how they helped curb the spin:

Police, according to their chief, Eddie Compass, found themselves in multiple shootouts inside both shelters, and were forced to race toward muzzle flashes through the dark to disarm the criminals; snipers supposedly fired at doctors and soldiers from downtown high-rises.

In interviews with Oprah Winfrey, Compass reported rapes of "babies," and Mayor Ray Nagin spoke of "hundreds of armed gang members" killing and raping people inside the Dome. Unidentified evacuees told of children stepping over so many bodies, "we couldn't count."

Nagin told Winfrey the crowd has descended to an "almost animalistic state."

Any bets on whether or not the mayor gets re-elected? Sad thing is, I bet he will.

Houston, Suburbs Spared From Rita's Wrath

From where I'm sitting in North Central Texas, Rita was (mercifully) not as bad as everyone in the media predicted. I'm not saying it wasn't bad for some, because it was. I'm saying it could've been many times worse. In spite of all the traffic, the gas shortages, panic runs on gas stations, etc., things weren't quite so bad.

So let's talk about how people acted during the pre-storm evacuation. Runs on gasoline, water, and groceries. Not panic, but definitely trepidation.

What if it had been a real emergency? How comfortable are you with the way your neighbors acted in this situation? How prepared were you? Are you more or less likely to own a gun now?

Thoughts, please.

Battle robots could join dogs on S. Korea border

Maybe so, but I bet battle robots aren't nearly as good with a little lemon grass and Sriracha pepper sauce.

Sentry Gun

Take a young computer science student with too much spare time, an automatic airsoft gun, some mechanical and software skills, a stupid little brother, and what do you get? The perfect brother-shooting sentry gun.

Watch the video at the bottom of the page. Priceless.