Security Theater

DENVER – The rape of a woman at Denver International Airport has left family members raising questions about the late-night attack and officials defending security at the Rocky Mountain hub, which serves millions of travelers each year.

Rare or not, this is exactly the sort of thing that people who carry a gun for protection are often heckled about. Something along the lines of "why would you neeeeeed to carry an icky firearm in an airport; the security is so tight no one would dare hurt you." That shit didn't hold water in this case, now did it? And before the argument is presented, I'm not claiming that had the victim in this case been armed, the attack would not have happened. There's no way to back that up. Despite that, there is no way to say that an attack can't happen in an airport - it did; and "well it's so rare I doubt it will happen to you" sounds fine as long as you're not the one who's on your back being attacked while half a dozen capable individuals stand there and do nothing.

The whole damned country has been mocking TSA over their abominable security measures and day to day physical assault of millions of Americans, and there are still unicorn loving folk that will tell you in the same breath that you're secure in an airport and don't need to worry about your personal security. I have to raise the bullshit flag.

"We have many, many layers of security," spokeswoman Jenny Schiavone told the newspaper. "We believe the airport is absolutely safe."

I'm sorry Ms. Schiavone, but are airport employees included in the "many layers of security?" Aren't all airport employees trained to look for and report immediately anything that appears suspicious, or perhaps a crime being committed? It's irrelevant whether they knew or not that it was rape, or even rape-rape, because I'm fairly sure that sexual acts in general fall into the category of suspicious activity that should be reported. In this case, there must have been far more pressing matters at hand because the airport spokesweenie is defending their employees:

Airport officials believe airport workers, including employees of outside contractors, "responded appropriately," Schiavone said.

Walking past humping humans is appropriate in DIA? Good to know. Now Americans who are in that airport also know to follow the now established precedent of how to "respond appropriately," as well as what constitutes a "good witness:"

Jackson, of the Denver police, said two workers pulled a man off a woman shortly before police officers and airport security personnel arrived, and others saw the incident and telephoned for help but didn't intervene.

"Mind your own business, citizens! For we know not whether those writhing bodies so entwined are in a moment of consentual passion, or whether this is a viscious attack! Indeed, it matters not at all, as we are to ignore the act and be good witnesses." Pathetic.

Now that it's all said and done, the victim has a bona fide claim against the airport, as she was hurt while on their watch, and under their security measures. Airports in general have become such loathsome places that I no longer enjoy flying like I used to. I avoid them like the plague. The American people should look at this attack and remember it the next time they're taking of their shoes and getting fondled by the dredges of society in blue shirts. That security that you think is there is not.

AR Kaboom: don't mix powder edition

The worst AR Kaboom I've ever seen. The shooter came out of it with minor injuries, but his Cavalry Arms receiver, barrel extention, and bolt carrier group were lunch.

Scroll down to the bottom for pictures.

I've read most of the information that is there, and the cause was confirmed as a mixture of pistol and rifle powder. That will do it.

The mixing of gun powders is exactly why savy reloaders only have one powder out at a time. I keep mine locked up in a cabinet, and only bring out the one that I'm going to be reloading for that specific cartridge at that time. I learned that lesson the hard way once when I was loading .308 Winchester and had Hodgdon H335 and Accurate Arms 2460 on the bench. After a lunch break or something I came back and couldn't remember which one I was using, so I ended up pulling about a dozen bullets and started over. I like my face right where it is.

Pew? Like a whiffy Pew, or like. . . . .

I'm not really sure what they're talking about. See for yourself:


The story is titled "Packing Heat in the Pews," like citizens have a Star Wars lunchbox full of handwarmers with them when they go to church. How about a title that isn't despicable for once? Sure, "Citizens Request Clarification Of Equivocal State Code In Order To Not Be Fined/Ostracized While They Peacefully Assemble To Worship While Withholding The Means Of Self Defense" probably won't fit too well in the headline, but come on. You media types can at least show a little bit of neutrality every now and then. I swear, it's like you're walking around with you balls showing, and everyone can see them but you do nothing about it, wandering around with a huge smile on your face.

Anyways, Jim Snyder of the Virginia Citizens Defense League was interviewed, and I guess his clip got past editing because he didn't get his gun rights on. He chose instead to point out the obvious, that really nice Virginians want a silly statute clarified. That's why he gets paid the big bucks.

Also, the two people interviewed saw Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's (my buddy Ken!) legal opinion as a good one. Of course, interviewing a huge white guy with a shaved head and long goatee in front of a Wal-Mart in Deliverence county, Virginia was bound to yield an opinion favorable to gun rights, so maybe the reporter wasn't so biased. I swear though you could here him curse under his breath when the nice looking woman said that she understood why people wanted to be armed in church; you have to take the bitter with the sweet. The opposition came in the form of a pastor at some church where, presumably, there had been several armed madmen hell bent on mayhem that were stopped cold at the door because they feared incurring a fine for having a firearm during the murder they were about to commit. So I can see his point about churches being places of safety and refuge.

So now churches are "talking" about whether or not to allow their flock to have a few sheepdogs within their doors. Good. If they have a problem with it, then they can clearly post their doors and let everyone know what the deal is. I find gun owners in general to sometimes wield their purse at issues that affect their rights; and from what I'm hearing about ATMs and credit card services in church to keep those notes out of default, the pastors might want to consider not cutting out some of their most loyal base. They may also want to consider that having half a dozen sheepdogs in the congregation would prove worthwile if a random madman got past the lunatic forcefield that protects the church and storms in with a shotgun.

Mommas, don't let your babies grow up to be Delta

How about some 11 year old fire and maneuver complete with immediate action drills this morning? Very cool!


Gun safety iiiiiiiiiiiiissssss AWESOOOOOOOOOME!!!! Yeah, I watch a little too much Yo Gabba Gabba these days. Don't judge.

I found the video on this thread at MP.net, which if you take the time to read, a Frenchy goes all Oh Noz!! over the idea of a non copper handling a gun, and then he gets his ass handed to him by American commentors. Just so you know.

Protection is personal

This morning I wanted to give a shout out to Ken, (Can I call you Ken? I feel like we need to be friends or drinking buddies now) aka Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, over his recent legal opinion on what constitutes "a good and sufficient reason" to carry a weapon to church, to wit:

Cuccinelli wrote that the self-defense is at the heart of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees the right to keep and bear arms.

The statute Cole questioned is in the penal, or criminal code, section of state law, and because of it must be “strictly construed against the Commonwealth and in favor of a citizen’s liberty,” Cuccinelli wrote.

Because of that, he said, “I conclude that lawfully carrying a firearm for self-defense and personal protection constitutes ‘a good and sufficient reason’” under the law.

Telling it like it is! Way to go! Hell, I like you. You can come over to my house and. . . . .oh, wait. . . .well, I can't give you my sister; she's already taken by a Good ol' Boy with an affinity for having his own weapon pointed at him - but I promise you that if you stop by we will smash into the Stella Artois or Woodford Reserve, your choice.

Now, it should be known that this legal opinion is not codified law, but it might as well be. Virginia has made it known that they like to do things their own way - for better or for worse - and the weight of the state's Attorney General is on the side of gun owners on this one. Regardless, there are some (like you know who) who are very butt-hurt over the idea of someone discreetly carrying a modern self defense tool to church without accruing a $250 fine:

“Places of worship don’t need loaded guns brought into them,” Malte said. “The way Attorney General Cuccinelli states it, it looks like he’s giving an opening to guns in churches, and we oppose that.”

Well, Mr. Malte, to the best of my knowledge, churches don't have the funds these days to spend on spree-shooter forcefields to keep the lunatics out; so if you look at things in that regard, nothing has changed. Instead of having one or two churchgoers in the congregation carrying their heaters because they value their gift of life, there will now be like five. Why don't you jump up and down while holding your breath?

This opinion is common sense squared. There is simply no good cause in fining non-violent people for an act that hurts no one. Also, Ken Cuccinelli is my hero.

Unsafe shooters, meet your god

I don't know for sure that this kid isn't a troll, but he breaks every safety rule ever devised in this video. Witness as Blake (who owns you, apparently) shows you the power of an 18.5 caliber Glock firing real shell bullets made by "Wuff:"


From this video I learned to use forehead goggles to protect myself from ricochets in case I can't outrun them. That's valuable info.

It's stuff like this that makes me adamant about teaching my kids gun safety, instead of them learning it on their own with the help of their brave and stupid camera man.

Name your worst pain

I love the General Discussion thread at ARFCOM. Here I found the thread "Let's talk about PAIN." ARFCOMmer Agent Funky comes in for the win:

"Fell off a 40ft wall, broke elbow, ribs and landed on some steel reinforcing bar that went through the crotch om my trouses missed by junk, went past my stomach and chest and penetrated under my jaw, through my tongue, through my pallet and and into my nasal cavity by a half inch...... Everything hurt that day but the pallet and tongue injuries were worst."

Yikes! That had to suck. Others have been shot, stabbed, shot and stabbed, etc. I think the above nails it though.

Someone's touching the student body

"The Georgetown student body is being warned of intruders in the dorms touching female students while they are sleeping."

Judging by the descriptions, there appears to be at least two scumbags involved. And why on earth even bother releasing descriptions like that in the first place? "Six foot white guy with freckles," and a "six foot Asian guy?" Way to narrow it down. Now the five hundred white freckled guys who are between 5' 10" and 6' 2" are going to be looked at with suspicion. And to be honest, who doesn't look at tall Asian guys with suspicion? (I kid, I kid)

Now, bear in mind that Georgetown University has police officers on campus, but that it is not enough to stop weirdos from getting into dorms and fondling sleeping women. It goes without saying that on campus or off, pretty much any type of modern means of defense is strictly prohibited. The excuse for this is that there are cops who will do that for you, although the article doesn't mention where they were at the time of the touching/assault. Considering that this has been an ongoing problem for years, I assume that students would be better off hiring Scooby Doo to find the heathens instead of leaving the campus cops to do it, if there is to be any expectation of success.

If the pervs can infiltrate your little princess' room for several years without capture, consider that someone with deadlier intent may decide to give it a try since it seems so easy. What is your kid to do for their defense in such a situation? "Get off me for a sec while I call the campus cops?"

Utah and Arizona are looking mighty nice these days.

Metal folding chairs and spandex underwear

That's all that separates the federal government from another exciting form of entertainment: professional wrestling.

Both industries use sensationalism and theatrics to make for an exciting spectacle; both have clearly divided casts of characters that can go from antagonist to good guy in a moment; both have orchestrated maneuvers for the safety of all parties; and most importantly, both have predetermined outcomes. It's all fake but interesting entertainment carefully crafted to keep you dramatically chained to the edge of your seat.

The news this morning is awash with the story of how President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner were in heated "negotiations" this weekend over issues with buzzwords like "debt ceiling," "spending cuts," "deficit cutting," "divided government," "Ministry of Darkness." Well, maybe not that last one. I'll leave it up to y'all to determine which politicritter played Rick Flair and which one played Ricky Steamboat.

Thinking about it, is there really a deficit? Does it exist? Does any of this really matter? If Americans were not struggling against perpetual debt, trying to pay off a federal deficit, they would be in a perpetual struggle to pay off something else. We have become too comfortable running like hamsters in a wheel to achieve something we believe we have to achieve.

While the fruits of the federal government's labor (funny, right?) does affect millions of people, I consider it totally fake and will continue to love my family and serve my fellow man with complete indifference. Water off a ducks' back. If anyone needs me, I will be in my bunk dreaming of one day being able to shoot F-Class, and fish for Marlin on my own boat.

Missouri women want equality

Experts cite two main reasons for the increase. First, they say most women want to take their protection into their own hands. And now with concealed carry laws, it makes it easier for them to do that.

Who knew? It surprises me that this short article doesn't harpoon the idea of women using common self defense tools like so many other news articles. American media is usually opposed to the idea of woman using guns, because somehow woman are way more sophisticated or something, and don't need to stoop to that level. Equal pay, but not equal might. I think we're finally coming past the dark side of the moon when news stories show favor to armed women.

Don't axe the cops

When officers arrived at the day care, the father did not back down. He lunged at officers with the ax, according to police. Three officers shot at him.

This had to have been suicide by cop. It looks like there was good cause for the mother and the daycare to deny this guy from being able to pick up his kids. I'm guessing that he had reached the end of his rope and fell off, and had nothing to lose at that point.

Axes are definitely deadly weapons; however, I wish manufacturers of modern day axes would stop dulling the edge before sending them to Home Despot. I know the lawyers put them up to it -- if you go to the genesis of every problem in America you will find a lawyer -- but swinging a heavy butter knife is not the best way to get work done. Trust me.

Guns on campus

In Arizona, the House passes a law allowing guns to be carried on college campuses. It's now up to Governor Jan Brewer to sign. I'm counting down the days till we see all the blood on sidewalks state wide like in Utah.

The science is settled

I missed the premier episode of MythBusters last night, but from what I hear, they put the .45 ACP vs. 9mm debate soundly to bed. Who would have thought the ol' 1911 had more oomph than a .44 Magnum?

Dirty jobs

This frickin' guy is crazy!! I guess to some people it's not a big deal handling live cobras. To see dozens of them with their hoods wide open, all pissed at you, and you have nowhere to go, creeps me out. If you don't like snakes, then don't click play:

Cleaning The Cobra Pit - Watch more Funny Videos

Bounty hunting for bigtime felonious Good Ol' Boys

Aparently the US media aren't the only ones who like to make the news fantastic. I'm not a hater; I wish the best for Mr. Matlock, and hear from those I trust that he's getting the finest training that is offered in Virginia. Even Dog the Bounty Hunter likes the guy, so I hope he has a safe career catching bad guys. But please don't be so hard on that "bail jumper."

He's a really great guy, I promise. If you mess with him, he may be inclined to give you the shirt off his back, let you sleep on his couch, or even loan you his AR rifle and let you point it at him. Besides, if you lock him up, I won't be able to borrow his canoe to go fishing in a couple of weeks.

LET MY PEOPLE GO!!!

Generalizing

It's not usually the best idea, and when it goes south it really pisses people off:

If you are in a serious relationship with a female nurse. . .

There is a pretty good chance you are a scumbag.

Based on years of observation and analysis, I can state with some degree of certainty that nurses tend to gravitate toward the most low-life, disability check aspiring, wastes of carbon on the planet.

They will then cling to said low-life for years, patiently awaiting a marriage proposal, no matter how many times they are lied to, cheated on, or stolen from.

It is tragically fascinating.

Corroboration?

The Original Poster, or OP, didn't get the corroboration he was seeking. Instead he got some severe backlash. Don't piss people off by insulting their significant other.

Close encounter

This morning I left for work a little later than normal, and almost met my demise because of it. I like to leave while it's still dark in order to avoid all the traffic and lunatics on the highways, but I'm seeing now that it doesn't matter.

Waiting to turn left out of my subdivision onto a quiet, no-name country road that used to have significant importance during the Civil War, I have to nudge out into the half mile of standing traffic because drivers these days have no concept of the law in regards to not blocking an intersection. They can see you there with your blinker on, and it's not like they can go anywhere, but they still pull forward and block you in. Honk your horn and these people will slowly turn their head toward you and stare with an empty stare, for a moment, and then say HMM-hm-hm-mmmah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah! Fucking cattle.

If I turn right, I would be heading into the flow of cattle toward the main highway, which leads to Interstate 95 - the aorta of the East Coast. The hoofed creatures are all mostly heading North to DC. I almost always turn left to take the backroads because I would rather take the scenic route, which also serves to preserve life and limb, as I do not see myself dying on the highway to the hood of a former out of state, latte drinking metrosexual.

Being sober, alert, and trying to drive as safe as possible, I thought the way was clear so I crossed traffic and pulled into the opposite lane, only to almost get smashed by a little sportscar. The driver of that car skidded into the edge of the road to avoid hitting my dumb ass, sending gravel all over the roadway. His car being so low, it couldn't be seen above the line of stopped cars heading East. Being grey in color the car was perfectly camouflaged with the wet roadway, there was no way I could have seen him. I could have waited for an hour for traffic to go away, or leave an hour earlier like I used to to avoid this nonsense to begin with. Either way, I wish every driver on the road in Virginia was as skilled as this driver, because I was certain I was going to get hit. It would have been my fault. If you come across this blog, skilled driver, I do apologize.

As much as I bitch about all the non-skilled drivers that I encounter day by day, I'm admitting to myself that it's really due to there being way too many cars and people in an area that can't possibly support the excess traffic. It's simply too much. I get run off the road about once a month like the guy I mentioned above, and have several close calls a week. I work in an adjacent county, and when I was young the drive took me 20 minutes to make from driveway to parking lot. Now it takes me an hour, so I spend two hours of my life a day sitting in traffic. I know I should be ashamed, but it's not unusual to see me stopped at a stoplight in an ocean of Volvos, shaking my fist at all the bahleat-bahleat-bahleating idiots while screaming a nonstop chain of obscenities that would make R. Lee Ermey envious. Where the hell did all of you come from? Do you morons have any idea about how sad it makes me to be stuck in a gigantic intersection in front of a stripmall identical to the one a half a mile before it, reminiscing about how I used to hunt there with my friends in decades past? Then you people moved here in droves so that you could be two hours from DC, and it pisses me off.

I don't want to raise my children here amongst this mess, so I have been devoting my energy towards getting away from it. Not too far because my family and friends are all here, but I would like to get away from the traffic even though it will take me several years. I'm breaking character bringing a problem without voicing a solution, but I had to let it out. Thanks for reading my rant.

Why would you need a gun in a park?

You know, around all the kids and swingsets and stuff. You must be paranoid.

Stranger things can happen

So you buy a gun, shoot it, train with it, carry it, and keep it safely loaded in your home just in case some tweaker scumbag fresh out of prison and on parole tries to force his way into your home. Or perhaps things don't go quite according to the defense scenarios that you have been playing in your head since you bought the piece, and you have to use it to subdue a drunken Middle Eastern doctor who is shooting at a stripper and her bodyguard in a townhome parking lot with a shotgun because she wouldn't have sex with him. Man, have people lost their minds? The bizarre stuff that happens these days just defies description.

That answers my question

Commenter SPOC in comments explains a bit about history in Bermuda, and why they have Ruger Mini-14s. I do believe he wins the longest comment contest. Good stuff!