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Every GOP Senator Needs To Read These Two Articles

June 9, 2022 by 7 Comments

While there may be other reasons to vote for Republicans, I would wager the reason most gun owners vote for the GOP candidate is they are expected to be more pro-rights and less anti-gun. Now we are watching a dance in the US Senate between Democrats gun prohibitionists and some Republican senators. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) has been detailed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to “negotiate” with the Democrats on gun control measures.

It is not portrayed as gun control but gun reform. That is the new buzzword that has replaced gun safety in the lexicon of the mainstream media and the gun prohibitionists.

I try not to curse on the blog but why the fuck should we bother voting for Republicans when they are scheming with Democrats on how to stab us in the back. Is the death by a thousand cuts over time any better than one big thrust of the gun control knife? Our rights are still gone.

I suggest every Republican senator needs to be required to read these two articles by Kurt Schlicher and Lee Williams respectively.

Kurt’s article is published at Townhall.com. As he notes, compromise involves getting something in return for giving something up.

See, I’m missing the part where we get something in return instead of merely losing less. But the durwoods of the softcon wing of the GOP seem pretty eager to fail less spectacularly than they might otherwise and call it a victory. 

He goes on to conclude:

But you are supposed to be dazzled by the stars and submit. You can be sure there are GOP dummies just aching to, held back only by Mitch McConnell – the frustrating Murder Turtle who nevertheless is no dummy – whispering in their ears that screwing us over on guns is just about the only thing that can turn an electoral environment of $6 a gallon gas and public school groomers into a Republican rout.

No, this is not the time to go soft. This is not the time to indulge the perennial Republican disease of craven spinelessness in the face of Democrats and their regime media minions screaming lies about them. This is the time to say “No.”

No compromise on our rights. Not now. Not ever. 

Likewise, Lee Williams, The Gun Writer, has published an article on Substack entitled, “No. No talks. No compromises. Nothing. No means no.” As he notes, the gun prohibitionists know that getting us to give up a slice of bread now means that eventually they will get the whole loaf.

I’m with Lee when he writes:

I am sick of watching our gun rights being bartered away by RINOs, Quislings and traitors, none of whom speak for me. None of whom understand guns. None of whom have likely even fired a damn gun. And, quite frankly, I don’t care which liberal Hollywood actor they drag in next to buttress their case.

Lee notes and I concur that we have nothing to gain in any of these negotiations or discussions with Sen. Chris Murphy (RD-CT) and others of his ilk. The Democrats and their legacy media allies want to drag this out as long as possible in an effort to make us forget about gas prices, inflation, supply-chain issues, and our rapidly diminishing retirement savings.

If you are represented in the Senate by a Republican senator (or even a Democrat like Sinema, Tester, or Manchin), you need to be writing, calling, emailing, and faxing their offices daily. Let them know where you stand. Send them these articles. Make sure they know their chances of re-election are between slim and none if they cave to the gun prohibitionists. If you have donated to them in the past, make sure they know it and that the money stops if they cave. The only way we are going to win this is if they know to fear us more than what is being broadcast on the legacy media non-stop.

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Gun Control, Matthew McConaughey, and Wild Turkey

June 8, 2022 by 2 Comments

The news yesterday was that Matthew McConaughey, a native of Uvalde, was at the White House to make a plea for gun control. You couldn’t watch any TV news, either national or local, without seeing him at the podium in the White House with a pair of green sneakers.

From Today Show

From his remarks:

So, we know what’s on the table.  We need to invest in mental healthcare.  We need safer schools.  We need to restrain sensationalized media coverage.  We need to restore our family values.  We need to restore our American values.  And we need responsible gun ownership — responsible gun ownership. 

We need background checks.  We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15 rifle to 21.  We need a waiting period for those rifles.  We need red-flag laws and consequences for those who abuse them.

These are reasonable, practical, tactical regulations to our nation, states, communities, schools, and homes.

Responsible gun owners are fed up with the Second Amendment being abused and hijacked by some deranged individuals. 

These regulations are not a step back; they’re a step forward for a civil society and — and the Second Amendment. 

In Uvalde, the killer passed a FBI NICS background check to purchase his firearms. In Uvalde, the killer was known to have issues but no one acted upon them. In Uvalde, the killer entered through a door that was not properly locked. In Uvalde, the police waited until it was too late to storm the classroom even though best practices say never to wait.

Any new law or policy that is enacted in a hurry because “we have to do something” ends up as a fiasco. More importantly, they don’t prevent or solve the issue at hand.

For those that are not aware, McConaughey is now the Creative Director for Wild Turkey and has been since 2016. Wild Turkey Distilling is owned by the Italian company Campari Group. He even has helped launch Wild Turkey Longbranch in conjunction with master distiller Eddie Russell.

Anyone who has followed this blog for any amount time knows that I enjoy good whiskey and especially bourbon. Wild Turkey does make some good bourbons and ryes. I have even toured their facilities in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky where their beautiful Visitor Center overlooks the Kentucky River. Looking over my collection I see have a bottle of Russell Reserve and an older Austin Nichols-labeled bottle of Wild Turkey Rye. I respect the work of Jimmy and Eddie Russell in crafting good whiskey.

I have a personal philosophy of not patronizing companies whose spokespeople or officers wish to run roughshod over my enumerated civil rights. As such, I will not be buying any more bourbon or rye from Wild Turkey so long as Matthew McConaughey is affiliated with them. Now my personal boycott of Wild Turkey is not going to hurt their bottom line.

However, if enough people made their displeasure known, it just might. I sent them a note last night saying I wouldn’t be buying their product any longer. You can do the same by using this contact link.

If you are a bourbon or rye drinker, the choice is yours. Do you support a company whose Creative Director wants to curtail your rights or do you go to one of the many other fine distilleries instead? I have made my choice and you can make yours.

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Oral Arguments In NYSRPA V. Bruen

June 8, 2022 by 7 Comments

Todd Vandermyde and I have had multiple conversations regarding the Supreme Court this last few months. Todd, for those that don’t know him, was the NRA’s lobbyist in Illinois for many years. He also coordinated with NRA-ILA on bringing cases at the state and Federal level against restrictions in the Prairie State. Don Moran, former president of the Illinois State Rifle Association, once told me that the reason Todd was successful in Springfield is that he knew the gun laws better than anyone and could quote any section of the laws verbatim at will.

Todd has been reading the tea leaves in NYSRPA v. Bruen from the oral arguments. He found some interesting things in them especially with regard to comments by Chief Justice John Roberts.

Todd lays out his thoughts in the YouTube below. While we are waiting for the decision, this gives some things to think about and to look for in the final decision.

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Son Of Spies Advocates Dirty Tactics

June 7, 2022 by 1 Comment

Michael Bane calls it chumming for monsters. If you throw enough “blood” in the water eventually a monster will rise to the top. That is what Professor Michael Meeropol is doing in a commentary broadcast on NPR-affiliate WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

I propose that every member of the NRA board and every anti-gun safety member of the United States Senate no longer have the luxury of politeness. If I lived in Washington, I hope I would have the courage to stand up in the US Senate gallery and yell murderer every time a Republican got up to speak. I’d be happy to be arrested and try to get the jury to nullify my conviction.

I believe NRA board members should be subjected to personal attacks. I am not recommending violence but certainly active civil disobedience and nuisance activities that might land oneself in jail are definitely called for. I think it would be great if these folks had red paint thrown on their front stoop, door, driveway, lawn. One does not have to resort to violence to make people uncomfortable.

No more NICE from our side. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

While Meeropol says he doesn’t recommend violence (wink, wink), he is a well-educated person and knows eventually that someone will do just that.

If the name Meeropol doesn’t bring up any connections in your mind, his birth surname might. Rosenberg. Yes, that is correct, he is the elder son of convicted Soviet spies Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. They were convicted and executed for passing on top-secret information nuclear weapons and other military hardware to the NKVD. When the KGB archives were opened after the end of the Soviet Union, documents showed that Julius was guilty of espionage while Ethel had been an accessory as well as a recruiter of others.

The tactics that Meeropol advocates are more akin to what one would expect from Mao’s Red Guard than the KGB. As a self-described radical political economist, I don’t think that matters too much to Professor Meeropol.

I would call on WAMC, NPR, and all supporters of Northeast Public Radio to repudiate Meeropol’s editorial in the strongest possible terms. If they don’t, then they are complicit in chumming for monsters and the blood will be on their hands as much as on Meeropol’s.

H/T Roy H.

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Meeting of Members – Resolutions, Part IV

June 6, 2022 by

The final two resolutions were submitted by Jeff Knox.

The first of these resolutions was ruled out of order by Charles Cotton. He said after consultation with the parliamentarian that under Robert’s Rules of Order you could not have a resolution condemning someone after another resolution praising him had been adopted. Whether this is true or not, I don’t know since I’m not an expert of Robert’s Rules of Order. Even if I was, I’m sure Cotton would have found a way not to consider the resolution.

Jeff’s resolution is as follows:

After this motion was quashed, Jeff rose and requested that his next resolution be withdrawn. Cotton seemed to be a bit confused by that but it was done.

Then Jeff made a motion to adjourn because spending any more time of this travesty would have been wasted time.

The whole meeting was orchestrated from beginning to end. The only purpose seemed to check off a box, confirm that Wayne is the NRA, that the members really don’t count for squat, and quash any dissent. Board members are told to speak against resolution that challenges the status quo and for a resolution like the “we love Wayne” one. One board member confirmed to me that he slipped out early just to avoid being asked (or told) to do that.

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Meeting Of Members – Resolutions, Part III

June 6, 2022 by 1 Comment

The next two resolutions to be considered included one that I authored on the condition of the NRA Headquarters Building and another that called for email notification of members when a meeting was canceled.

I had conversations with numerous people who told me about the poor condition of the NRA Headquarters Building. Doug Wicklund, former senior curator of the NRA Firearms Museum, sent me the picture below.

Courtesy of Doug Wicklund

He noted that there were numerous patches for water damage in the driveway overhang as well as staining from rust on the window frames of the building. Another person who had been on the 6th Floor said there was lots of water damage from the leaking roof. In era in which real estate tax valuations rarely go down, Fairfax County lowered the tax valuation of the building by over $1 million from 2020 to 2021.

It is an embarrassment that the public face of the NRA is in such poor condition. After my resolution was introduced, I spoke in favor of it as did a gentleman from southwest Louisiana who said you don’t play around with leaking roofs. Speaking against my resolution was NRA Board Member Ron Schmeits of Raton, NM. He said the board was working on it, that there was no need to “waste money” on an independent inspection, and well, you know getting parts these days is hard. Frankly, I put in the part about an independent, third party inspection because I don’t trust the board to do more than pay lip service.

Of the few people remaining at the meeting, the majority agreed with Schmeits and voted it down.

I unfortunately do not have a copy of the next resolution nor the name of the person who introduced it. Basically, it noted that the last minute cancelation of the 2021 NRA Annual Meeting in Houston caused members to lose money on reservations and airfare. The resolution called a better notification of members when a meeting was going to be canceled. It asked that all members be notified by email in case of a cancelation and not just by a note on the webpage. After minimal discussion, it was voted down.

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Meeting Of Members – Resolutions, Part I

June 6, 2022 by 5 Comments

I already wrote about the “we love Wayne” resolution that was passed at the 2022 NRA Meeting of Members. That was the first resolution considered and was intended to run out the clock. As far as the powers that be are concerned, no discussion of matters concerning the NRA and its operations is good discussion.

By my count, there were a total of 12 resolutions. The first was the “we love Wayne” resolution, eight that were ruled out of order, two were allowed to come to a vote, and one that Jeff Knox withdrew.

Robert Rhyne and Mitchell Martin introduced seven resolutions. They were resolutions two through eight. Each and every one of their resolutions was ruled by Charles Cotton to be “out of order” and were not considered. Mr. Rhyne was kind enough to send me copies of his resolutions and I will post them.

Mr. Rhyne is from Arkansas and appeared to me to be the solid, salt of the earth type of NRA member who just got fed up with the “Beltway Bandits”.

The first resolution called for settlement of the lawsuit brought by NY Attorney General Letitia James. The second said that after settlement, the NRA should be reincorporated in Texas.

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An Unholy Alliance

June 5, 2022 by 2 Comments

I received a press release on May 31st from the American Federation of Teachers. They are the smaller of the two major teachers’ unions in the United States. The release announced that the teachers’ union was preparing to have a series of event “to demand action on gun violence (sic) prevention.” They planned vigils outside of the offices of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA).

It really isn’t news when a lefty union holds an event outside a politician’s office. Whether it is higher pay, gun control, or opposition to school innovation and/or charter schools, it is the same old same old.

However, what really caught my eye in this press release is that they are announcing a new partnership.

Educators, parents and students will send the message that “enough is enough” and that students, parents, educators and communities deserve commonsense gun safety laws now. The union also will be partnering with Parkland, Fla., school shooting survivor and activist David Hogg in the lead up to the March for Our Lives on June 11.

So David “Camera” Hogg and the AFT will be partners.

It really isn’t that surprising. Both are engaged in indoctrinating the youth of our country that “guns are bad”, “only the police should have guns”, and “Republicans are evil”. While it may be a good match for each of them, it is an unholy alliance for our schools and our children.

UPDATE: Going through my email, I found a second press release from the American Federation of Teachers issued on June 1st. It included additional comments by AFT President Randi Weingarten and “Camera” Hogg.

From Weingarten:

Our No. 1 priority is keeping our children, our members, our families and our communities safe, and that requires a commitment from every single one of us: educators, parents, students, faith leaders and legislators alike. We are teachers, nurses and public employees who have been on the front lines of the gun violence epidemic, and we’re standing side by side with the country’s students to demand action on gun safety before one more life is lost, whether it’s a mass shooting on school grounds or one of the countless instances of gun violence that take lives in our neighborhoods every day. Enough is enough. The vast majority of Americans have found common ground on preventing gun violence and want action on gun safety now.”

Gun control is not gun safety and never has been. I also take issue with “the vast majority of Americans” finding common ground on gun control. Perhaps if you use a push poll worded to get the answers you desire but that would be it.

From Hogg:

“Our teachers are everything to America’s children. They’re counselors, mentors, they’re there for our highs and for our lows. In this moment of crisis, as gun violence has soared to become the leading cause of death in our children, our teachers are there with us shielding us with their care and sometimes even their own bodies. The threat to our lives from gun violence is unacceptable, and once again our teachers are here to fight for us. We’re organizing across the country with teachers, teacher aides, and our entire school communities to say: Enough is enough. This will be the beginning of the end of gun violence, and the American Federation of Teachers is there with us to make it happen.” 

I think Hogg confuses the role of teachers with that of parents. We all have had teachers we admired and even loved. That said, they rarely were our everything.

If you really wanted to empower teachers to shield students, you would offer training such as the FASTER program along with “stop the bleed”.

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Truth In Labeling

June 4, 2022 by 9 Comments

This is a story about Texas. It doesn’t have anything to do with the recent NRA Annual Meeting, Uvalde, or gun control. Rather it is about a product coming from Texas for which they are building a good reputation. That product is whiskey.

In my past trips to the Houston area, I have come home with whiskey produced by Balcones (Waco) and Rio Brazos (College Station). The former is actually distilled in Texas while the latter is a blend of Texas and non-Texas bourbons. Both were purchased at Spec’s which is a Houston-area chain of liquor stores. If I remember correctly, Spec’s was recommended to me as the go-to place by Mark Gillespie of the WhiskyCast Podcast.

Thus, on this trip to Houston for the NRA Annual Meeting I was determined to come home with some more great Texas bourbon. I bought two bottles of bourbon from two different Spec’s locations

The first bottle was purchased at Spec’s near the Alameda Mall in South Houston. I was approached by a young clerk who offered to help as I was studying the selection. I explained that I was looking for Texas whiskey. He highly recommended the Lone Star 1835 Limited Release Single Barrel bourbon. I deferred to his advice and bought it. In retrospect, I should have examined the bottle just a little closer.

Looking at the front of the bottle it has the Lone Star, a cannon, and 1835 which is when the citizens of Gonzales told the Mexican Army who wanted their cannon to come and take it. Doesn’t that just scream Texas to you!

The back of the bottle continues the Texas imagery. It says, “each sip offers a boldness reminiscent of the independence Texas is known for. Come and take it.” Then the three little words which follow dash that image all to pieces: Distilled in Kentucky. WTF?! It seems Spec’s has a history of hawking this bourbon heavily.

I was pissed when I saw that. I was pissed at the cluelessness of the young clerk and I was pissed at myself for not reading the label. I know what sourced bourbon is and oft time it is good. That said, this is not Texas bourbon distilled from Texas corn and aged in the heat of Texas. I’m sipping a sample of it now and it is OK. The finish is not that great. I find it a bit metallic.

As well-known bourbon writer Chuck Cowdery wrote about their bourbon:

But that’s not what Texans care about, I reckon. They don’t much care what some government regulators in Washington think either. They care about Texas grains, Texas yeast, and Texas water. They care about Texas-distilled whiskey maturing in the Texas heat. They care about Texas jobs. And they don’t buy whiskey that says “Made in Texas’ when it’s not.

Just like they don’t buy salsa made in New York City.

Since I had decided attending the NRA Board meeting would have been a waste, I had some time before I had to return my rental car. I decided to give Spec’s another chance. This time I drove into downtown Houston to their flagship store on Smith Street.

From Market Watch – Julie Soefer.

This time I was very specific with the clerk that the whiskey had to be distilled in Texas. We discussed Balcones, Still Austin, and Shire Oak among others.

Shire Distilling is out of Brookshire, Texas which is west of Houston. As you can see on the back of the bottle, it is “certified Texas whiskey“. This certification comes from the Texas Whiskey Association and means that everything from “grain to glass” was done in Texas. In other words, the grain was grown in Texas, the fermentation of the mash was in Texas, the distilling was done in Texas, the aging was done in Texas, and the bottling was done in Texas.

The difference between the two bourbons is like night and day. The Shire Oak is barrel strength and has a lot of flavor. It might not be as old as the Lone Star 1835 but the aging in the heat of Texas really pulls something out of the charred oak. The real kicker is that they were priced within a few bucks of one another.

My point in this post is that you have to study the label and look for the clues. If the whiskey is distilled in a state other than that of the producer or bottler, it must be disclosed. The Treasury’s Tax and Trade Bureau approves all labels for alcoholic beverages and has specific requirements. I’m OK with sourced whiskey as many are excellent. My point is that is not cool to confuse the origin of a whiskey with a lot of verbiage and that is especially true of Texas whiskey.