Month: July 2014

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“Remember, This Isn’t A Toy”

July 24, 2014 by

The NRA has a great new video out promoting their Trigger The Vote campaign. As you can see below, it involves a father sitting down with his son and explaining that what is contained in the locked pistol case isn’t a toy.

The father is absolutely right. Our right to vote isn’t a toy but too many voters treat it as such. Otherwise, why would we have politicians like Barack Obama, Harry Reid, and Nancy Pelosi still in office.

I registered to vote on my 18th birthday and I have voted in every primary and election since. When I registered to vote, I had to go down to the Board of Elections office in the Guilford County Courthouse. I didn’t have someone from ACORN register me at a shopping mall or get registered when I renewed my driver’s license. Frankly, I think we make it too damn easy to register to vote and we are paying the consequences with the number of low-information voters polluting the system.

That said, if anti-gun Democratic politicians want to make it easy to register to vote, I say we should use it to our advantage. If you have a friend, family member, or 18 year old (and up) child, you need to make sure that they are registered to vote if you want to keep your gun rights. Our enemies are not sitting still and we can’t afford to either.

If you believe in the right to self-defense, gun rights, and/or a gun owner and you aren’t registered to vote, what the hell is your problem? You are putting the burden for preserving your rights on those of us who are registered and who vote. While there are a lot of us, it often just isn’t enough. So get your act together and go register to vote. And when the time comes, vote.

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About Those .50 Caliber Rifles

July 24, 2014 by 1 Comment

“Gunfire at the U.S. border is the latest incident disproving the false claims the NRA makes to keep .50 caliber rifles legal.” So sayeth Timothy Johnson of Media Matters.


Except as Kurt Hofmann points out in his excellent fisking of Johnson’s hysteria-filled post, it was .50 BMG machine gun fire that was aimed at Border Patrol agents that came across the border from Mexico. In other words, it wasn’t a Barrett .50 BMG rifle or any other .50 caliber rifle. 


I would have to say that Timothy Johnson learned his lessons well in how to twist the truth. His internship at the Brady Campaign combined with the tutelage he received from CSGV’s Ladd Everitt have prepared him well to be Media Matters designed gun rights hitman.



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This Can’t Be Good For Gov. Martin O’Malley’s Presidential Aspirations

July 23, 2014 by 2 Comments

Gov. Martin O’Malley (D-Maryland) is exploring a run for President in 2016. He will be going to Iowa this weekend to appear at a series of Democratic fundraisers. While he may think his positions on gun control will play well with the hard-core Democrats who vote in primaries, I somehow doubt the announcement from Beretta USA below saying that they are moving their entire manufacturing capabilities will add to his reputation with everyone else.

Manufacturing jobs are the ones that states fight over when it comes to economic development. States rarely seek to push out high-paying skilled jobs but Maryland seems to be the exception. I guess its political leaders believe feeding at the Federal trough with all their government workers is more important than encouraging companies that actually make things.

From Beretta USA:

Beretta U.S.A. Corp., located in Accokeek, Maryland, announced today that it has decided to move its manufacturing capabilities from its existing location to a new production facility that it is building in Gallatin, Tennessee. The Gallatin facility is scheduled to be opened in mid-2015. Beretta U.S.A. had previously planned to use the new Gallatin, Tennessee facility for new machinery and production of new products only.

“During the legislative session in Maryland that resulted in passage of the Firearm Safety Act of 2013, the version of the statute that passed the Maryland Senate would have prohibited Beretta U.S.A. from being able to manufacture, store or even import into the State products that we sell to customers throughout the United States and around the world. While we were able in the Maryland House of Delegates to reverse some of those obstructive provisions, the possibility that such restrictions might be reinstated in the future leaves us very worried about the wisdom of maintaining a firearm manufacturing factory in the State,” stated Jeff Cooper, General Manager for Beretta U.S.A. Corp.

“While we had originally planned to use the Tennessee facility for new equipment and for production of new product lines only, we have decided that it is more prudent from the point of view of our future welfare to move the Maryland production lines in their entirety to the new Tennessee facility,” Cooper added.

The transition of production from Beretta U.S.A.’s Maryland facility to the Tennessee facility will not occur until 2015 and will be managed so as not to disrupt deliveries to Beretta customers. Beretta U.S.A.’s production of the U.S. Armed Forces M9 9mm pistol will continue at the Accokeek, Maryland facility until all current orders from the U.S. Armed Forces have been filled.

“We have not yet begun groundbreaking on the Tennessee facility and we do not anticipate that that building will be completed until the middle part of 2015,” continued Cooper. “That timing, combined with our need to plan an orderly transition of production from one facility to the other so that our delivery obligations to customers are not disrupted, means that no Beretta U.S.A. Maryland employee will be impacted by this news for many months. More importantly, we will use this time to meet with every Beretta U.S.A. employee whose Maryland job might be affected by the move to discuss with them their interest in taking a position at our new facility in Tennessee or, if they are not willing to do so, to lay out a long-term strategy for remaining with the Company while our production in Maryland continues.”

Beretta U.S.A. anticipates that the Gallatin, Tennessee facility will involve $45 million of investment in building and equipment and the employment of around 300 employees during the next five years.

Beretta U.S.A. has no plans to relocate its office, administrative and executive support functions from its Accokeek, Maryland facility.

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Days Are Slow But Weeks Are Fast At The Beach

July 18, 2014 by 2 Comments

I think as Einstein developed the General Theory of Relativity he must have spent a week at the beach on vacation. That is because though the days are relaxed and time slows, the week itself is over before you know it. We leave tomorrow and it feels like we just got here.

That said, we had a wedding, a visit to the PTR Industries factory, and will take in a car show today for Mustang Week.

Moreover, out in the “real” world, someone shot down a Malaysian Air Boeing 777 and the Obama Administration has essentially banned the import of new Russian firearms through economic sanctions against Concern Kalashnikov. Conspiracy theorists should be having a field day with the timing of the sanctions and the shoot down of the Malaysian Air plane over Ukraine given the sanctions were only a day before the shoot down.

I’ll have a full story about the visit to PTR Industries factory when I get home. I have a ton of pictures of the factory floor and the manufacturing process.

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An Alert For The Chicagoland Area

July 17, 2014 by 2 Comments

The Demanding Mommies are never satisfied and, unfortunately, never give up. Not happy that the Niles (IL) Planning Board turned them down regarding a gun store in Niles, they are taking their fight to the Niles Village Council.

They are pushing the Niles Village Council to turn down the application at their July 22nd meeting. The Illinois State Rifle Association has issued an alert for gun rights supporters in the Chicagoland area. They are asking people to attend the meeting and to make sure that the Village Council doesn’t forbid the lawful commerce in firearms.

The alert is below:

URGENT ALERT – YOUR ACTION REQUIRED


BLOOMBERG MOMS SET TO RESUME ATTACK ON NILES ILLINOIS GUN SHOP AND RANGE

The Niles Village Council will soon take a final vote on whether to allow a gun shop and pistol range to open in the village. The application for the permit to open the range was voted on earlier this summer and approved by the Planning Board by a 6:1 vote.

However, gun control extremists led by the BLOOMBERG MOMS convinced the village council to force the Planning Board to take a second vote on the proposal. The objective of the BLOOMBERG MOMS was to have the gun shop and range SHUT DOWN IN COMMITTEE.

The second vote of the Planning Board on July 7th found in favor of the shop and range by a 5:2 margin. The BLOOMBERG MOMS browbeat a female board member into voting against gun rights.

THE BLOOMBERG MOMS WILL BE OUT IN FORCE THE NIGHT OF JULY 22
ND

The supporters of the gun shop and pistol range desperately need your support to help push this proposal through the Village Board. Lawful gun owners cannot allow the BLOOMBERG MOMS to undermine lawful commerce in firearms or the operation of safe shooting facilities.


HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO STOP THE BLOOMBERG MOMS:

1. Attend the Niles Village Council meeting and enthusiastically defend your right to keep and bear arms.
2. Post this alert to any and all Internet bulletin boards or blogs to which you belong.
3. Pass this alert on to all your gun owning friends and relatives – tell them to go to Niles also.

WHAT: Niles Illinois Village Council Meeting

WHEN: Tuesday, 22 July 2014, 7 PM (be there at 6:15 to get a good seat)

WHERE: Niles Council Chambers, 1000 Civic Center Drive, Niles, IL

REMEMBER…ONLY YOU CAN SAVE GUN RIGHTS FROM DESTRUCTION BY THE MOMS.

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Off To The Beach!

July 12, 2014 by 4 Comments

There will be lighter than normal blogging the next week. We are leaving for Myrtle Beach in a few minutes.

I should have some great pictures and an interesting story when I get back. Thanks to the help of Bob Owens at BearingArms.com, I will have a tour of PTR Industries of Aynor, SC. They are one of the companies that fled the oppression in the state of Connecticut for a warmer clime and a very warm reception.

So, as SayUncle might say, talk amongst yourselves.

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Hey, Mike! About Those Roadless Areas In Colorado

July 11, 2014 by 7 Comments

The arrogance of former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg knows no bounds. Of course, we in the gun culture have known that for a long time. Now he has just reconfirmed it in an interview in Rolling Stone magazine with comments about Colorado which are making Democrats like Gov. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO) squirm.

In Colorado, we got a law passed. The NRA went after two or three state Senators in a part of Colorado where I don’t think there’s roads. It’s as far rural as you can get. And, yes, they lost recall elections. I’m sorry for that. We tried to help ’em. But the bottom line is, the law is on the books, and being enforced. You can get depressed about the progress, but on the other hand, you’re saving a lot of lives.

Those (former) state senators to whom Bloomberg refers would be (former) Senate President John Morse (D-Colorado Springs), (former) St. Sen Angela Giron (D-Pueblo), and (former) St. Sen. Evie Hudak (D-Arvada-Jefferson County). The first two were recalled and Hudak resigned just before she was recalled.

Morse represented Colorado Springs (pop.  439,886) which is the state’s second largest city. Bloomberg might be surprised to find out that Colorado Springs has a streets department to take care of their roadless areas.

We seek to render cost effective and competent services to the citizens of Colorado Springs, striving to ensure public safety for the citizens by providing quality maintenance and rehabilitation of public streets and drainage ways being responsive to the citizen’s requests and concerns and to handle them in a timely manner.

Colorado Springs is almost as large as New York City’s fifth borough Staten Island.  But, I guess I should note, that Staten Island – the hometown of my mother – is also known as the forgotten borough.

Pueblo (pop. 108,249), which was represented by Ms. Giron, is considerably smaller. Still even they have a street maintenance division. According to City of Pueblo’s website, this division of the Public Works Department has “32 full-time, dedicated employees” whose primary focus is “to ensure that pavement surfaces are maintained adequately.” Pavement? How can you have pavement if it is roadless?

Finally, Colorado Senate District 19 was represented by Mrs. Hudak until she abruptly resigned. That district is centered on Jefferson County (pop. 551,798) which calls itself “The Gateway to the Rockies”. Anyplace called “the Rockies” must be roadless. But wait, the county’s Road and Bridge Division maintains over 2,900 miles of paved roads. Hudak’s district was centered on Arvada (pop. 108,249) which, according to the city’s website, has over 1,400 lane miles of streets within the city limits.

Bloomberg is as misinformed about Colorado as he is about firearms. Moreover, he has no hesitation about tossing politicians under the bus after he gets what he wants. Both Udall and Hickenlooper should have thought of that before they took his money.

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Do You Use A Harrier Or A Staghound For Fox And Eland?

July 9, 2014 by 7 Comments

I saw two auctions recently that had me wondering how I could rig the PowerBall lottery so as to be the big winner.


The first auction was covered by Wired and features a 1976 Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR Mk3 jump jet. The jet, which saw service with the RAF in the Balkans and the Falkland War, comes with a Rolls Royce Pegasus Mk103 engine and its original ejection seat. It is missing some of its avionics but the auctioneer says that it could be made flyable rather easily (if you had the money).

From Silverstone Auction catalog

 The second auction features Jacques M. Littlefield Collection of armored vehicles including tanks, armored cars, personnel carriers, and a SCUD missile launcher (with missile). There are over 200 lots in this auction.

The include a South African Eland wheeled armored vehicle with a 90mm main gun.

If the Eland with a top speed of 53 mph is too slow for you, then how about a British FV721 Fox Armored Car with a 65 mph top speed. In exchange for speed, you do have to give up some firepower. You are trading the 90mm main gun for a 30mm Rarden cannon.

Now the question remains, would you chase after the Eland and Fox with the Harrier or would you use the Staghound shown below? I’m thinking the Harrier might be the better bet.