Will New Orleans be white or black?

I shit you not! That is the title and lead of this article over at the Bayou Buzz.

When are we going to get away from race in this country? When will we start judging a person by the content of his character rather than the color of his skin? Who gives a desultory damn whether New Orleans is predominately black or white?

I have worked for and with peoples of all races. I have supervised all the races and been supervised by all the races. There is not a tinker's damn difference in the work performance of any person based on race. There is a hell of a lot of difference based on attitude, education, and parental influence. If a person comes to me with a good attitude, with a standard education and with a good work ethic, we can work together. If not, we can't. Plain and simple. Race has nothing to do with it.

New Orleans needs people who can work, who will work together. Whether the demographic is pale or dark (or anywhere in between) doesn't factor into the mix.

The article goes on to make this quote from a Baker University study:

meaning approximately 60 percent of African Americans will stay away and 70% of the whites will refuse to return, it still would mean a major change in demography with significant political significance.

Who gives a damn?

Already, a lawsuit has been filed to provide existing elected officials the names and locations of their constituencies.

Aaah, existing elected officials. Of course. The same nitwits who brought about this nightmare of personal fiefdoms, dependence on government, and inattention to poor levee construction is worried about their jobs.

New Orleans would be better served by worrying about those who chose to return, regardless of the color of their skin. Serve the constituency that exists. Worry about the city you have, rather than being concerned about whether it will be black or white.

The current elected officials in New Orleans disgust me.

How we drive them

I was reading this post over at Whizbang and recalled a conversation I had with Milady the other day.

When I started driving 35 years ago, a car with 100K on the odometer was probably a dog. Nowadays we drive them well past that mark with no problems. Honda is probably the most frequently used example, routinely going well past 200,000 miles without a problem.

Of course, 35 years ago, we didn't have computers and fuel-injection and we didn't drive like we do now. Back in those days you worked on your car yourself. Every 6000 miles you lifted the hood and changed the oil, then got out the tools and changed the plugs, points and condenser. Generally, a car was kept until it approached 100,000 miles and was about 10 years old.

Nowadays, we have better cars. My Ford F-150 is four years old and is approaching the magic 100K mark. It also has the original spark plugs. It is due for a tune-up at the 100K mark. Its first tune-up. My daughters Honda Civic is three years old and has over 100K on the dial. Hell, my 96 Honda Goldwing has well over 100K on it and is only using the 3rd set of sparkplugs. The only reason I might trade it in the next couple of years if I decide I want another motorcycle.

The premise over at Whizbang was that the major auto companies are in trouble because they build so much better cars. Bullshit. The major auto companies are in trouble because they don't do the market research. They don't spot trends and they don't keep up with quality. New car prices are too high for an entry-level buyer.

Our driving habits have changed over the years. We put a lot more miles on a car than we used to.

Casting bullets

I got an email from a guy who reads over at my other site, and I thought that it is important enough to include in full here.

Jerry Howell asks:

What causes wrinkles or lines on cast bullets?

Whoohee! Jerry asks a very simple question with a complicated answer. One that has plagued bullet casters for years.

Generally, the wrinkles or lines on cast bullets are caused by a cold mold. As liquid metal flows into the mold it starts to cool. If the mold isn't hot, or if the mold has a cool spot the metal cools at a different rate in that spot. We call these rejects and they go back in the pot. I generally experience ten to twelve rejects before the mold is hot enough to cast good bullets. You will know that the mold is hot enough when the puddle of melt on the sprue stays liquid for three seconds.

As the lead cools in the mold, the metal shrinks just a bit. You want the puddle of metal on the sprue to be big enough to continue to fill the bullet. If that puddle of metal isn't big enough, the bullet cools without enough lead to fill the mold and you get a void in the bullet. Sometimes the void is simply a hollow place in the bullet. Other times the void will be visible and will look like a wrinkle or an incomplete area near the base of the bullet.

Sometimes wrinkles are caused by using really pure lead. Truly pure lead tends to not want to flow and you will see wrinkles. Add a little (2% to 10%) tin to the alloy to increase the flowability of the melt. Insufficient tin sometimes shows up as wrinkles, sometimes shows up as places near the lube grooves that aren't fully filled. You can get tin at any hardware store in the form of "lead free" solder. It comes in rolls. You can also find tin at a salvage yard. Wheelweights have tin in the alloy. Putting a pound of wheelweights in the melt with twenty pounds of pure lead increases the flowability to the point that the bullets fill out completely.

Not prepping your mold can cause wrinkles. With new Lee molds, it is important to smoke the cavity with a butane lighter. I play the flame across the open cavities for just a few seconds before casting with a cold mold. This burns out any oil or grease that might be present and deposits a very thin layer of soot that tends to help me get casting more quickly.

If you are casting with a dipper and pouring the lead into the mold, the dipper must be hot. Stir it in the lead for a few seconds, until the lead doesn't stick to it. If lead doesn't flow smoothly through it, the bullet won't fill completely. This can cause voids and wrinkles. On a bottom flow pot, sometimes the flow hole becomes clogged with trash and the lead can't flow smoothly. This will cause problems, too.

Wrinkles on bullets are a simple question with a complicated answer. Generally, the mold isn't hot enough to cast and simply dumping those bullets and recasting will get the mold hot and good bullets will start falling after six or eight tries. Establish a good steady rhythm and soon the bullets will start to flow. But, be aware that wrinkles can be caused by those other factors I mentioned, too.

I hope this helps.

Feeding friends

We kicked off the festivities at noon, standing around enjoying company. Some of the fellows got into the whiskey, and the ladies made a pitcher of pina coladas.

The lovely lass in the middle is my son Joey's fiance. One reason for the party was to introduce her folks to the family. That is her mother, Jenny on the right. The boy on the left is a family friend named Mike.


Some of my friends. The guy on the right is a lawyer. He and I roomed together in college. The guy on the left is a construction executive for a large utility company.


More friends. The guy on the left is an entrepreneur and has gone from boom to bust more times than I can count. Guys like him make the world go round. The cop is my best friend from high school. He was on-shift, but stopped by long enough to eat. His lady is to his left, and the lady in green owns the construction executive.


Of course, it rained. Grandkids playing in the rain. The Pawpaws laughed a lot and the grandmas worried about pneumonia. We took them in and gave them a bath and dry clothing before sending them home. Pawpaws keep extra clothes around the house. One never knows when a mud puddle will beckon.

Hog Roasting

I started the hog last night and took some pictures, but Blogger was down. I couldn't access anything Blogspot. Then got up at 4:00 am to turn the meat and re-load the fire box, but my server was down for maintenance.

However, this morning, everything computer seems to be working, so I can post some pictures of pork. Last night at 10:00 p.m., the pig had been injected with marinade. I injected a full pint into the shoulders, hams and tenderloin. As we say in the area, he is "pumped up good." A dry rub (Tony Chachere's original) applied to the outside, and the fire lit in the box. My Microwave measures 48X20 inches, outside. There is 20 lbs of charcoal in the fire box.


By four a.m., the fire was getting cold, so I lifted the lid, poured out the ashes and turned the pig. This picture shows the turned pig. I had it cut into two pieces for ease of turning and so that it would fit more easily inside the microwave. This was a smallish hog, weighing 38 lbs dressed with the head off. The sides are 19 lbs each.


I went outside just minutes ago to check the fire. An old trick to check the heat of a fire is to place your hand, palm open and down within an inch of the ashes. Even if no flame is visible, you will feel heat. If you have to jerk your hand away in under two seconds, you have plenty of heat for cooking.

More pictures and updates as the day progresses. Weather is forecast as 100% rain. It is currently partly cloudy and breezy with temps in the 60's. The National Weather Service shows a line of thunderstorms coming in from the northwest. I have told Milady to lay on plenty of sunscreen, because with a weather prediction that ironclad, we are all in danger of sunstroke.

Interesting

I've noticed in the past days that Hamas won the majority of the seats in the Palestinian elections. I'm not an international political analyist, being barely able to analyze the political currents in my home town and state.

I do know that Hamas is considered a terrorist organization, yet now they must form a government for the Palestinians. Democracy being what it is, I don't think they were expecting to win, but that the voters handed them a surprise. The recent ruling party, Fatah, was voted out. Ed Morrisey covers it much better than I at Captain's Quarters.

I suspect that Hamas didn't really want to win, but wanted to consolidate political power as a purely opposition party. The problem for them is that a majority of Palestinians agreed with them. This is going to cause huge problems for Palestine as they have repeatedly called for the end of the peace process and refuse to admit the right of Israel to survive.

Another Hamas official, Mushir al-Masri, warned that Hamas would not hold peace talks with Israel. "Negotiations with Israel is not on our agenda," he said. "Recognising Israel is not on the agenda either now."

The Palestinians have handed us a rogue government, and I applaud their idiocy. The official stance of the new government is absolutely against peace. I doubt the Israelis will long tolerate that government.

The United States should immediately end all aid to Palestine. The people have voted and have made their wishes known in a Democratic process. We should honor that process but should not subsidize their hatred.

Warriors everywhere are looking at Palestine with intense interest. I'm sure that informal map studies are being conducted in the major military acadamies of the world. I'm also sure that formal map studies are being conducted in the major military headquarters of the world. The seeds of war have been sown and now they must reap the whirlwind.

I hope I'm wrong, but I suspect I'm not. As long as nukes aren't used, we should just sit this one out. When it is all over, we can order new maps.

The Least One

I'm watching the least one tonite. That is a Southern expression for the youngest grandchild. He is three years old. He is not the least, actually, in anything except size. His mother is doing something at the church for a couple of hours and asked if I could entertain him. Sure.

He wandered through, recently, and gave Pawpaw a nasty wet kiss. Slobber and snot are the primary ingredients in a three-year-old kiss. Time to wipe his nose.

Milady and I keep a toybox in the washroom beside the dryer. He is in there now, making growly noises with plastic dinosaurs. Truly fearsome pasttime.

I wasn't aware he was coming or I would have laid in something special for him. Like maybe a bag of oreos. There's nothing quite like sending a kid home on a chocolate rush. Watching grandkids is payback on the parents, in a way. This is a spur of the moment visit and I am without chocolate in the house. There is peppermint, however, and I'm sure we can get some sugar in his bloodstream before too much longer.

I like watching them hover on the way out to the car. Payback.

Couchon de Lait

I'm having a Cochon de Lait this weekend at my house. We have one every year about this time, traditionally the last weekend of January. We call it the Celebration of Life.

The tradition began many years ago when I lived in the country. Everyone needs a party this time of year, in the doldrums of winter. And, I have two childrens with birthdays really close together near the end of January.

It became the biggest annual party on the bayou. You never knew who might show up. One time, I had a cajun band set up in the barn. One of the band members had come to the party and decided we needed music, so he called the rest of the band. Another time, I had a major league pitching staff drop in on the party. The son of a friend was pitching for Detroit and was in New Orleans for a clinic that week. He remembered the party and brought the whole staff in a Greyhound charter bus.

The menu is going to be
Roast Pig.
Dirty Rice
Crawfish etoufee
Potato salad
Baked beans
Some sort of bread.

Plus of course, assorted and sundry beverages. Some of them might be adult beverages, but there will be plenty of Cokes for the kids, and iced tea for anyone who wants it.

The pig will be roasted in a Cajun Microwave. No pictures, but you can see a fine example here. No, I didn't buy mine. I knocked it together a decade ago and make corrections and adjustments as metal burns through and wood rots over time. My son and I made a new fire-tray for it this afternoon as the old one was starting to rust through. I didn't know anyone was making Cajun Microwaves for sale, but Google educated me. I damn sure wouldn't spend $400 for one when any backyard handyman can cobble one together in a couple of hours on a Saturday.

I'll take some pics when I cook the meat.

Gunny Polls

I learned minutes ago that I have been nominated in the Best Rant category over at the Gunny Polls.

I've never been nominated for any blog award, and awards ain't why I'm here, but I appreciate the effort and the recognition. Go over and vote for a good blog.

Reader Mail

Reader, jimWarmke asks...

I've been reading your blog for a while but never commented before.

This isn't so much a comment on your post, but it's a gun thing. Santa brought me a Winchester lever action carbine for Christmas (94AE) in 357 mag. I thinking about putting a peep sight on it and making it a truk gun. I have a pistol of the same caliber that I keep there now.

Any thoughts?

Oh, yeah. Lots of thoughts

First of all, a peep sight gives the Win 94 a longer sight radius and tends to make it easier to shoot accurately. I prefer the Williams, although others like the Lyman or the AO sights. Get what suits you.

Second, the 94 makes a great truck gun. Check your local laws to make sure you don't run afoul of the law, but I carry one in my truck with the blessings of the 2nd Amendment and local laws.

Third, you will find that the .357 magnum cartridge is a whole nuther animal when fired in a rifle. Knowledgable shooters find that the cartridge gets a new lease on life when used in a rifle, and becomes a 100 yard deer cartridge. While velocities of 1300 fps are all most people see out of a standard revolver, in a rifle the same ammo might give 1800 fps or better. With the standard 158 grain bullet, what you have is a substantial increase in range and muzzle energy. Most shooters who have rifles chambered for the .357 magnum really like it in a rifle and it makes a great companion piece to the revolver.

If local laws allow, do it.

Chores

About the time Milady came in this morning, I mentioned that I might go to the range while she was asleep. She said okay, but cautioned me that it was raining outside.

I checked Accuweather and rain was predicted all day. Dammit!

She promptly crashed, and I went looking for ways to fill the day. I needed to make a trip to the hardware store and the grocer, so I did that. I now have the materials to prepare the Cajun Microwave for next weekend. While at the grocer, I saw a nice sirloin tip roast, so I picked it up. It is in the oven as we speak, transforming into German Pot Roast. The recipe is simple.

In a large Dutch oven, heat a little oil and sear all sides of the roast. Remove beef and sautee a tablespoon of minced garlic. Add flour and make a small dark roux. Add water to make a basic gravy. Peel one medium onion and put it whole into the pot. Return beef to the gravy (mine gravy is about halfway up the side of the roast) and cover the Dutch oven. Bake in a 350 oven for four hours, or until the beef starts to fall apart.

While the roast was in the oven, I started some laundry then decided to piddle around my loading bench. I had promised my son some cartridges for his rifle. About two years ago we worked up a load for his rifle, and I'm the only one with the recipe that shoots best in his gun. A couple of weeks ago he brought me the brass and I had prepped it last week, so I sat down and measured powder and seated the bullets. He's got enough ammo now to last six months or so.

So, the laundry is done, the errands are run, the chores are done and supper is in the oven. Not a bad days work at all, considering the rain. I may have to pour a brandy and see if a football game is on TV.

The Blanco memo

Some folks are up in arms about a Blanco Memo that was circulated to all the classified workers of the State Civil Service last week. Xavier blogs about it here. You can see a regurgitation of the memo here.

In the memo, the Queen Bee reminds everyone that classified workers can't take part in the political process in Louisiana. That has been the law for a lot of years. In Louisiana, basically all a classified civil servant is allowed to do is to vote. I got one of those memos every election cycle for the twenty years I worked for the state. This just explains the law to the lesser mortals.

Back in the old days before the Civil Service Law, state employees were threatened with their jobs every election cycle under the old Louisiana spoils system. Lots of good people lost their jobs simply because they didn't back the current winners. Governor Sam Jones is credited with beginning the civil service system currently in use in Louisiana.

The current rules for classified employees is here(click on Civil Service rules, the click on Chapter 14):

(e) No employee in the classified service and no member of the Commission shall

1. Participate or engage in political activity.

2. Be a candidate for nomination or election to public office, except to seek election as the Classified State employee serving on the State Civil Service Commission.

3. Be a member of any national, state, or local committee of a political party or faction.

4. Take active part in the management of the affairs of a political party, faction, candidate, or any political campaign, except to exercise his right as a citizen to express his opinion privately, to serve as a commissioner or official watcher at the polls, and to cast his vote as he desires.

5. Take active part in an effort to recall from office an elected public official, or seek, solicit or attempt to coerce any person including any employee in the classified service and any member of the Commission into participating in any such effort or signing a recall petition except that nothing contained herein shall prevent an employee in the classified service or member of the Commission from signing a recall petition.

This law leads to some localized weirdness.

For example, in one instance a worker in the state civil service was blocked from supporting his wife, who was running for a local School Board office. In another instance, a deputy sheriff was blocked from putting a "Re-Elect Sheriff Jones" sign in his yard because his wife worked for the Highway Department and was a co-owner of the property.

Civil Servants can't take part in the political process. They effectively give up that right when they sign up to work for the State. It's old law. It's been around for a while.

This one isn't Blanco's fault. It's part of the weird system Louisiana adopted years ago.

Disjointed Sunday

Work has been rough the past couple of days. Lots of long hours, though nothing much of any substance to report. Just long hours.

Surfing the news and the blogs, I am struck by a couple of thoughts:

The Dems talk about Iraq like it was a mistake to go there. We hear the daily toll of death and destruction, yet the Iraqi people have been through three separate elections and are forming a government. Not necessarily a government we might like, but a government based on the will of the people. During this whole process, we have lost a combined total of what? 2300 people? That is a daunting number. However, seen in the context of history, we have to remember that Meade lost a couple of thousand at a place called The Angle one July afternoon at Gettysburg and Grant lost over 6,000 a few months later at Cold Harbor. In more recent history, Eisenhower lost a bunch one June day in 1944 on the shores of France. As horrific as the IED attacks have been, we have to judge our losses in the context of history.

Osama is still on the run. His world is getting smaller. If we don't actually capture him soon, his world may consist of the rapidly growing orb of a VT fuse. He'd do well to give up.

Hillary, bless her heart, is set on a run at the Presidency, so she compares Congress to a Southern plantation. The blowback on that little blurb is going to come back to bite her. Her padna, Ray Nagin, continues to bite himself in the ass. Taking points from Hillary, no doubt. It must be some sort of weird Democrat fitness regimen. Plant both feet firmly, then bend backwards at the waist and bit yourself in the butt.

Another example might be Senator Ted "Swimmer" Kennedy lecturing Alito on ethics. Teddy is in over his head.

I am struck by the plight of the New Orleans crowd. No housing. FEMA is behind on trailer orders. I thought about my own personal history and reflected that when I made the big moves during my life, I didn't have a clue where I would land, just that I needed to be in a particular place. I had to get there, get the job, then find a place to live.

Well, folks, there are lots of jobs opening up in South Louisiana. I'm actually seeing billboards in this area with job advertisement down south. Good jobs. They need people. The housing situation might be challenging for a while, but the FEMA hotel train is running out, so it is probably time to grab your ass and make a move.

Later today I am headed to the range for some well deserved trigger time.

Stiff ones

I worked today, basically, from 7:00 a.m. till 10:00 p.m., then came home and poured myself a stiff drink. Just finishing the second one now.

That will be sufficient, thank you. Having trouble with this fuckin keyboard. The backspace key is getting a workout.

I'm glad Milady is working tonite, because I don't have anything else stiff to offer. Time to turn off this computer and wobble off to bed.

On the run again.

Ole Osama sent out a tape, didnt' he? Wanted a truce? Osama is on the run, and those that credit any victory to him for making the tape are dumber than rocks. All it proves is that he can still get batteries for the videocam.

This quote makes me howl.

Some analysts saw the message as a triumph for the leader of Al Qaeda. "The fact that he was able to record the message, deliver it and broadcast is in itself a victory for him," said Muhammad Salah, Cairo bureau chief for the pan-Arab daily Al Hayat and an expert on Islamist groups.

Kinda dumbing down the term victory, isn't he? The kids at the local high school can compose, record, and broadcast a videotape. They do it all the time in the jourmalism classes. If Ole Osama is able to do what any US high school student can do, I don't quite know how he can claim that as a victory.

Naah, Osama is on the run, and he wants a truce so he can catch his breath. The recent operations in Pakistan have shown him that he can't hide. We are coming for him.

He threatens attacks on US soil, but since 9/11 we've seen.... what....? Exactly none. He even says that operational tempos are slow in terrorist operations, but no attacks four years? Damn! That is one slow operational tempo. If he doesnt' do something quick, we might forget about him. Of course, he may be waiting for later in the year in an attempt to influence the elections. If he launches another attack on US soil, the only thing he will influence is the white-hot rage of the American people. These days, I only think about the GWOT about a quarter of the time. I suspect that many Americans think about it less. Another attack will give us increased focus, and sustain our will to win this thing.

We're winning, and the Osama tape punctuates that thought as completely as a period on the end of a sentence.

Train wreck

Evidently, Ray Nagin, the Hizzoner of New Orleans, has decided that pissing off his constituents isn't sufficient for one week, now he has decided to piss off CNN. This article details it.

CNN: Mayor's emergency, Bourbon House restaurant

Mayor Nagin ducked out of his interview scheduled with Anderson Cooper on CNN last night to respond to his "chocolate" comments, reportedly for an emergency as he tells Cooper. CNN reporter Sean Callebs tracked him down having dinner in the French Quarter during the time the show was on the air.

No, it's not enough that during a Martin Luther King day speech, he goes after Christians, and people who live Uptown. His remarks seem to alienate everyone who lives in New Orleans. That's not enough at all. Now, he ducks out on the media.

This is part of the transcript.

Now, they didn't say what the emergency was. And we're not here to judge a person's emergencies. But, last we checked, the mayor was eating dinner at a restaurant called Bourbon House on the corner of Bourbon Street.

I swear, it is like watching a train wreck. You know it is going to be bloody, but you just can't turn your eyes away.

Brokebutt Mountain

No, that ain't right. Bareback Mountain. No, try again. Brokeback Mountain. That's it. Story about two guys exploring their ..... well....

Anyway, I was listening to some students today and one said "Gay cowboys need love too." Well, I guess that's right, but I don't know any gay cowboys. I'm sure there must be some, but I don't know any. I do have a nephew that lives in Houston with his boyfriend and they both wear big hats, but probably wouldn't know the difference between a hackamore and a snaffle bit.

I haven't seen the movie, but from what I have seen from the trailers and the teasers is that they were running sheep, which makes them shepherds. Which makes me wonder about them all the more. The sheep are probably metaphors for something, but I wouldn't go there for the world.

I'm sure you have all heard bad jokes about raising sheep. They are almost a stereotypical. The reason stereotypes exist is because there is a heck of a lot of truth to them.

I've been a cattleman. Not a cowboy. The difference is that I owned my land, and my stock and I hired cowboys when I needed them. One thing I would never tolerate is a cowboy abusing the stock. The stock is what makes the money in a cattle operation. Don't abuse the stock. Nada, comprehende?

Seems these two buckaroos was abusing each other, which probably kept the stock safe.

'Nuff said about that movie.

Winchester closing??

Yeah, Yeah, I know it hasn't really been Winchester for awhile, but the plant in New Haven looks like it might close up shop.

Dammit.

I hope they manage to keep it rolling. I like Winchester rifles. Got a couple of examples around here someplace.

His will be done.

Jeff Crouere slams one out of the park in this article that talks about the Mayor's irrational nuttiness.

After hearing his remarks, many New Orleans voters will question whether a leader who uses such inflammatory rhetoric and puts his foot in this mouth so often is qualified to lead this great, historic city for another four years. Yesterday’s speech also continues a recent Nagin administration trend of heightening racial tensions.

You know, after reading the rest of the local media this morning, I wonder...

If Nagin thinks that God is sending us "hurricane after hurricane after hurricane” to show his displeasure, then perhaps he should hire Pat Robertson to intercede. Everybody knows that Pat has a lock on the intentions of God. Of course, we all know that God Himself wants New Orleans to be a "chocolate" city. "It´s the way God wants it to be."

Yeah, right.

Doesn't anyone in New Orleans have a rail that Hizzoner could ride out of town on?

Huh? Did I hear that right

Evidently, Ray Nagin, the overachieving Mayor of Lake Ponchartrain was having a racist moment earlier today.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Mayor Ray Nagin told a crowd gathered at City Hall for a Martin Luther King Day march that New Orleans will be "chocolate" again. "We ask black people ... It's time for us to come together. It's time for us to rebuild New Orleans — the one that should be a chocolate New Orleans," Nagin said Monday. "This city will be a majority African American city. It's the way God wants it to be. You can't have New Orleans no other way. It wouldn't be New Orleans."

What the hell is he thinking? Does he presume to know the mind of God?

New Orleans may be majority black. A lot of towns and cities are. So what? People live where they choose to live.

I know that if any Republican said that a particular city should be majority white, and said that God intended it so, the recriminations would begin immediately, stridently calling for his (or her) ouster. Rightfully so.

When are Louisiana politicians going to quit playing the race card? I hope the citizens of New Orleans recognize a racist when they see one, and vote accordingly whenever the Secretary of State allows them to vote.

Hat tip to Claire.

Fake and inaccurate

This morning, the New York Times publishes a heartrending photo with a caption describing the missile used in the attack on Pakistan last week.



The caption reads "Pakistani men with the remains of a missile fired at a house in the Bajur Tribal Zone near the Afghan border."

Only problem is, it ain't a missile. It is an artillery shell. Michelle Malkin has links to experts, and a larger image of the photo, but this old expert eye might see something that the others have missed.

Artillery shells and old fashioned tank ammo are made of steel. The barrel of the gun is rifled to impart spin to the projectile, stabilizing the projectile in flight. Because the shell casing is steel, the manufacturer puts a driving band on the shell to engrave on the rifling. This band is made of a softer metal, like copper or brass or aluminum. You can see it on the shell in the picture. The driving band is about two thirds of the way down the casing, and is a white metallic color while the rest of the shell is painted grey.

Look closely at that band. It has been engraved with rifling. That shell was fired from an artillery tube. It is a dud. It didn't explode on impact for any number of reasons. However, the payload, whether it be explosive or chemical has been shocked and is still inside the casing. Any shock might set it off. That shell is very dangerous, and the tribesmen standing around would be better served by getting the kids out of the way and running like hell.

The big lesson here is that the thing in the picture ain't a missile. It is an artillery shell and has been fired through a rifled tube. It is impossible to tell if it is US made, Russian made, or Belgian, or French, or Chinese without looking at the markings and painting. All the above nations make shells that look like that. It is a common artillery round.

And, that the New York Times got it wrong, wrong, wrong. They really should get someone who knows what ordnance looks like to preview their pictures for them.

Update: While composing this post, my server went down. Pictures are correctly coded, but may not view until my server (who has a long record of reliability) returns to service. My apologies. Pictures can be seen at the links.

Update2: Server is back up and pictures are working. Looking at the photo more closely, I see what looks to be rifling marks near the top of the main portion of the shell, just above the yellow painted band. This portion of the shell rides on the rifling, centering the shell in the bore. It stabilizes the front of the shell on its trip up the tube, but doesn't normally engrave the rifling. However, the paint gets scuffed and that is probably what I am seeing. Yep! This shell was fired from a rifled tube and is a dud.

Tragedy

The shooting of the middle school student in Florida last week is a tragedy of the deepest sort, and my hopes and prayers go to everyone affected by this chain of events.

The deepest fear of any law enforcement officer is that lethal force will have to be used. Lethal force changes the lives of everyone it touches. My initial take on this incident is that the use of force seems to be justified. I don't know if I would have done anything differently.

This is so sad, on so many levels.

Is She Hot?

I was reading another blog on this dreary Sunday morning, blogging in my pajamas, when I read a thread about mens perception of women. Is She Hot?

That particular judgement is based on the perspective of the viewer. If you are 18, then the women that you judge as Hot, are generally under 25, fit, with obvious sexual appeal. I find those gals attractive too, although at my advanced age, there isn't much I am liable to do about it. I watch them bounce past me much as a radar watches a plane fly past. It registers on the scope, but matters not at all.

As a woman ages, the men around her tend to age also, and perceptions change. Life experiences tend to blur the distinctions we once made and color them based on hard experience. For example, I am on my second marriage, and found myself single during my late 40's at the turn of the century. I dated a lot of women, some for only a drink or dinner, some for longer times until I met my current wife. I dated women with life experience. I dated women who were strong, intelligent, and successful. Women who could look past my own defects and explore the facets of an intelligent conversation. Women who had raised families and shared lives and faced challenges. Those women were exceptionally hot, although you might not consider them so watching them walk down the street. Artists and entrepreneurs, scholars and laborers, mommies and grandmas. Those women colored my perceptions of Hot by simply being themselves.

There was one woman who comes to mind, mid-50's, the manager of a thriving bed and breakfast on an antebellum plantation. I didn't date her, but we ran in the same circles and I talked with men who had dated her. She kept in shape by mowing, with a push-mower, ten acres of lawn per week. She reserved that task to herself as part of her fitness regimen. Her face looked mid-30ish and her body looked late 20's. The general consensus of the men who had the pleasure was that you didn't enter her bedroom frivolously. She was absolutely serious about her carnal pleasures and would hurt you if you weren't up to the task. She was, and is, extremely Hot, although she probably isn't noticed by the college boys. She dresses conservatively, befitting her status and station. She speaks softly. She doesn't generate excitement walking down the street. Is she Hot? You betcha. Scalding, furnace hot.

The high school librarian? Scorching. The RN who runs the local Eemergency room? White-hot. The artist who hangs work in the local Guildhall? Don't touch her, you'll blister.

I am reminded of an occasion when I was in the local bookstore, helping my daughter buy college texts. We were standing in line behind a young lady, obviously a coed. She looked to be nineteen, strong legs, narrow waist, halter-top and shorts. Powerfully built with excellent breasts and brunette hair. As I stood in the line marveling at the vision before me, I wondered what her Momma looked like.

My own wife? The gal I call Milady? She captured me, didn't she?

Harlan Sanders

In case many of you don't remember Harlan Sanders, he was the Kentucky Colonel who founded Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Back in the late '70's I was stationed at Fort Knox, KY. Louisville was just down the road and we spent many a pleasant weekend eating and shopping in Louisville. Harlan Sanders was still alive and we often spotted him driving his red and white striped Cadillac. He wore a white suit and was an Ambassador of Good Will for Kentucky Fried Chicken, for Kentucky, and for the U.S of A. The Colonel was an icon of friendly, family fun.

Sanders was a blazing entrepenurial spirit. Up or down, good times or bad, he believed in the spirit of hard work and belief in a dream. He was broke more times than he was flush but worked his way back to success each time.

I didn't know that a statue of him was placed at the state capitol, in Frankfort, but it is fitting and proper that it be placed there. He loved the state and he loved the people and talked about them at every opportunity. He truly loved his home state.

Pamela Anderson is an idiot.

Hat tip to Jeff.

Just Deserts

Xavier Thoughts

This made the news earlier this week and I was too busy to comment on it. In 1981, Roger Coleman raped his sister-in-law and mudered her. The wife of his brother. A family member.

He said he was innocent. He claimed his innocence all the way to the execution.

DNA tests last week proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. Proved to an absolute, medical certainty, that Roger Coleman raped and murdered the sister of his brother, then, he lied about it.

For a long time, Roger Coleman was a favored son of the nutcases who want the death penalty abolished. Those nutcases favor repealing the death penalty because of the chance that an innocent person might be executed, and they thought they had an example with Roger Coleman. They were wrong, wrong, wrong.

We don't judge people in the United States. We judge evidence. Every person convicted by a jury is convicted on the evidence at the time. If the evidence is against you, you are found guilty.

Yes, there are innocent people in US prisons, and both prosecutors and defense attorney's make every effort to see that the innocent don't go to jail. The Innocence Project has done remarkable work in the past several years, freeing those wrongfully accused, through new scientific tests that might not have been available at the time of their original conviction. I applaud their work. However.

Roger Coleman didn't deserve clemency. He lied to everyone, including his family. He said he was innocent. The good people of Virginia convicted him based on the best evidence they had at the time. In what is a remarkable aspect of the case, they finalized his conviction just 11 years later. Turns out they were right.

Ole Tookie Williams from California last year. He said he was rehabilitated, although he never admitted killing the people he killed. Tookie lied by omission, and nutcases tried to have him reprieved.

Death Row inmates lie. They lie to the people that love them most. They lie to the people who try to save them. They adjust to the prison setting and try to wiggle out of their offenses, knowing that every day they are alive is a victory for them. They cast blame and deceit into every corner of the prison system. They lie to their families, they lie to each other, they lie to prison officials. They lie to you.

Roger Coleman did it. Beyond a shadow of a doubt.

New Orleans Rebuilds

Michael Glassman, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and host of TCSDaily.com pens an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal.

The rebirth of New Orleans does, however, require a leap into the unknown. It can't be meticulously planned. Preserve the old buildings. Rope off the lowlands. But then let imagination takes its course. Unfortunately, Mr. Nagin's Bring Back New Orleans group is loaded with central planners prescribing a dream city built around such highlights as light-rail transport, a "jazz district" and a neuroscience center. Typical is Michael Cowan, head of the city's Human Relations Commission, who warned that "the alternative to a 'good-enough' plan for the future of our city is free-market chaos, also known . . . as every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost."

Actually, it was precisely this chaos that made New Orleans a great city in the first place. It was planning--specifically, the horrifying housing projects, largely destroyed in Katrina; the stultifying school system; the Superdome and other wasteful public-works projects--that held the city back.

Great quote from someone who founded and edited the New Orleans weekly Figaro during the 1970s.

The money quote is here:

When I was 24, I came to New Orleans to start a business and a family. I stayed for eight happy years. If I were 24 again, I would be packing my bags for New Orleans to be on the ground floor of a modern renaissance. Katrina was a tragedy, but its aftermath presents the most exciting urban opportunity since San Francisco in 1906. Pioneers, please apply.

Good stuff to think about. Go read the whole thing.

Mardi Gras

I'm told that they will have a Mardi Gras in New Orleans, such as it might be, but they won't be serving any Hurricanes.

The cocktail for the Festival will be the FEMA. Equal parts of moonshine and swamp water and a special ingredient that keeps it from taking effect for five days. Then, you are devastated.

Louisiana Shorts

It appears that Governor Blanco is in Holland, looking at levees. You all know what I think about that, and she should get back here and look after her state.

It turns out that President Bush has scheduled a visit to the state this week, and the Queen Bee is out galavanting. Wonder who is going to greet him. Now, I know that the Presidential calendar is something that governors should be able to check, and being out of state when W gets here looks like she is snubbing him. Even if she doesn't like the guy, we are a flood-ravaged land, and it doesn't make any sense to annoy someone whose support could be crucial for this state.

Oh, and we learned this morning that a recall petition has been filed against Governor Blanco. I didn't know such a thing was possible. All the supporters need is to get one third of all the registered voters in this state to sign the petition. Hmmmm. That is a pretty steep slope to climb. I wish them luck, and I'll sign the petition if asked, but I don't hold out much hope.

Governor Blanco can still redeem herself in my eyes, but if I were writing a performance appraisal on her right now, she wouldn't score any better than Needs Improvement. For one thing, she needs some better floor leaders in the Statehouse. For another, she needs to get busy courting help to rebuild almost everything south of I-10. Galavanting ain't getting it done.

Against the Law, huh?

Thanks to Say Uncle, and Rivrdog, I learn of this little law that Arlen Specter snuck into the Justice Department Budget.

Your GOP friend and mine (irony intended), Arlen Specter, a tireless campaigner against the truth, the Constitution and political reality, snuck a rider into the Justice Department budget (that Bush signed, to his eternal discredit) that requires all persons utilizing any electronic means of communication to fully identify themselves while doing so. It's a felony penalty we talk about here, folks.

Well, Senator. I've got a few choice words for you.

That was a despicable thing to do. Most of the blogs in the known universe work on the principal of free unfettered exchange of information, ideas, and knowledge. Some of us are fairly anonymous, although I will be happy to reveal to you my identifying information in comments. Until then, I feel that the way you attached your rider to a budget bill is cowardly, underhanded, and unfit for the company of gentlemen. It is my considered opinion that anyone who would resort to such measures is a less than a low dog, stricken with mange, and unable to fend for himself. Such a person is worth less that a spavined mule, only fit to be sold for glue. Attacks on the free exchange of political speech are unconstitutional and anyone who would resort to such an attack is worthy of contempt and derision. You should be ridden out of town on a rail.

Oh, and while I'm at it.... Mr. President. You really ought to read the legislation you sign into law. See if it squares with your oath to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution". We expect you to uphold the Constitution, even if the Justice Department has to go back to Congress for a new budget.

The Grand Tour

Governor Blanco, charged with rebuilding a state that is still devastated from the twin shocks of Katrina and Rita, is doing what the elite have been doing for years when things were tough at home and everyone needed a break.

Going to Europe.

Today, Senator Mary Landrieu and Governor Kathleen Blanco will be leading a delegation of officials from Louisiana to the Netherlands on a fact finding mission. This trip is being described as a mission crucial to the future of Louisiana.

This trip demonstrates how out of touch she is with the people of the state.

If the trip is funded solely by private parties, she should have stayed her ass in Baton Rouge and gotten something done. It's not even the second week of January, and she is galivanting off on a junket?

If the trip is paid for by tax dollars, it is a waste of precious taxpayer resources. Either way, she should have stayed home.

The trip is billed as a way to learn about the flood control model that the Neterlands use. Great! Ever heard of the telephone? The fax machine? The teleconference? I bet the Dutch would be happy to put together a presentation for you. It seems that the decision-makers aren't going on the trip, so the Governor and senior Senator are taking a bunch of second-level administators to see a levee in Europe?

Hey, Governor. We got levees right here that work great. Ya gotta build them tall and maintain them. It ain't rocket science, and you don't have to go to Europe to see one.

Jeez.

Enraged

I drove out to the range this morning. Got there at 10:00 a.m. Gates were closed. Locked. Chained shut. Range is closed.

The range I use is the only public shooting range in Rapides Parish, Louisiana. It is near Woodworth, LA and is run by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries as part of their outdoor education program. Ostensibly, it is open every Saturday and Sunday, from 8:00 a.m. till 5:00 p.m. Yet, this morning it isn't. And often, inexplicably, it isn't.

Long ago I went through a hunter safety course. I see the value in it, but that is done. I don't need that any more. I got my children through it, and that is done. The LDWF doesn't mind taking my money for boating licenses, hunting licenses, fishing licenses, yet it can't provide something as simple as a range for weekend shooting.

Civil Servants are gnerally worthless, and the LDWF employees, around here anyway, are even more worthless than usual. Comparing them to something worthless is not fair to garbage, because even garbage, or scrap has a recycle value. I don't think you could recycle a LDWF employee into anything useful, so they have no salvage value. They can't even manage to do something as simple as open a range on the weekends. No, gracious! They are off on the weekends, and if it isn't convenient they aren't going to do it. If someone is scheduled, and he gets sick then the range can't be opened.

One man, one range, every weekend. Simple, yes? Businesses and government agencies like police, fire, and medical personnel have figured out how to do it. You think the LDWF could figure it out? No, hell no! Ain't gonna happen. They're worthless as tits on a boar hog.

The Army, in its wisdom, long years ago qualified me to run ranges from small arms up to tank qualification. I know how to run a range. From simple shooting to complex qualification tables. I can teach people to shoot. I have offered to give up one day a month, gratis, to open the range at Woodworth. Other folks have also made the offer. Have LDWF get a dozen volunteers and run us on a rotating schedule. Open the range to the public so they can shoot. Have it open every weekend. No cost to the state. Have I been called? Hell, no.

We are coming through the greatest test this state ever faced, the twin tragedies of Katrina and Rita. Armed citizens were instrumental in protection of life, liberty and property. Do ya think that the LDWF could keep a range open so the shooting public could hone their skills and get instruction in a place that is safe and convenient? Hell, no.

Has anything been done to keep the range open? Hell no. Does the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries care anything about the shooting public? Hell, no. If the LDWF isn't serving the public, what good are they? The simple answer is: None.

I'm not interested in how many enforcement hours are spent in the field. I'm not interested in the fisheries program. Not interested in any problems but one. I'm being a grouch and a curmudgeon on this one. That damned range needs to be open every weekend. No excuses, no problems, no failures. Make it happen, or get someone who can make it happen. Just do it.

I got up this morning and learned I didn't have to do the plumbing job. My buddy found someone during the week willing to do the job. Cool!

So, I slid under the Mustang to finish pulling the transmission. I got it out and was looking at the pressure plate, when I turned to inspect the throwout bearing. Something didn't look right, and I grabbed it and pulled. It came off in my hand, like it is supposed to, but the cast pilot shaft that it rides on came off with it.

Damn! Just Dammit. It's broke, and that means the bell housing is broke, and I knew that I wouldn't find one today. I might not find one at all at a reasonable price and that means the tranny is junk, and the car is junk, and if I can't find a bell housing, I am selling the car as scrap.

I'm tired of the car being on blocks in the driveway, and I'm sure the neighbors are tired of it too. The deeper I get, the more I find wrong. Time for the Mustang to find a new home.

So, I did what all red-blooded Americans do when the day goes tits-up. I went to the range. I shot the .243 Savage 10. Shot it a bunch. At least 10, 3 round groups. I got it dialed in with my handload of choice. I'm using Winchester brass, WLR primers, 41.0 grains of Reloder 19, and the incomparable Sierra 100 grain GameKing bullet. That rifle will plunk that load inside an inch all day long at 100 yards. The bullet is traveling 2800 fps (measured out of my rifle) and ought to be a primo whitetail round. The wind was vicious on the range today. Variable gusts out of the south, upwards of twenty mph. Doping the wind was the key today. I'm glad I was only shooting at 100 yards.

I came home and found Milady awake. She is working nights this weekend, so it behooves me to be out of the house during the day. I cooked hamburgers, big ole 1/3 pound monsters, served on fresh buns with onion and tomato. We fired up the FryDaddy and made some french fries, and she left for work with a full belly.

Tomorrow is the Sharps, and the Model 94. No scopes, just hunker down, work the sights and watch the wind.

Weekend update

Time for the weekend, and it is going to be a busy one. Milady is working, so I am without adult supervision. However, my big mouth has got me working projects on Saturday. Tomorrow morning I am going to help a friend sweat some copper joints at a house he is buying. Not much of a job, but one that needs doing. Then, tomorrow afternoon I am going to try and finish the transmission on my daughters '93 Mustang. A new clutch, pressure plate and throwout bearing ought to see me through.

Sunday morning, while Milady sleeps, I will steal away to the range for a little long overdue trigger-time. I think some .30-30, some .243 (still working loads on those two), some .45 ACP and some .22LR should be sufficient.

After work today I am going to hie myself over to Harbor Freight and see if I can find a tool box to store my propane torch and related tools. I find that as my tool collection continues to grow, having storage containers for each of the different types of tools makes a lot of sense. I have a mechanics box, a household box and a carpentry box. Some of the smaller tools, like staplers, drills, and timing lights get their own cases. I made a really nice case for a fuel pressure gage, out of an old Kimber case that I had laying around. It unclutters the bench when things are on a shelf with a labeled case.

My shooting boxes are a whole nuther story. I use an ammo box, a stapler case, a target holder, a chrony case, a tripod, and a spotting scope every time I go to the range, in addition to whatever firearm I am shooting that day. Sometimes, just getting set up takes a half-hour or so.

Y'all have a nice weekend. I'll check in later.

Alaska!

Today a teacher at the local high school conducted a small experiment in three 9th grade classes. A small number of stdents in each class correctly identified Alaska as an island north of Hawaii in the Pacific ocean.

Blame the problem on cheap maps and large class sizes. Alaska, as many of us know, is a huge state to the west of Canada. Small maps of the United States normally place Alaska as an insert, drawing it in the Pacific Ocean. Young minds find it there routinely.

Teachers. Get a globe in your classroom. Use maps, surely, but use the globe too.

Sex offender news

I open the Daily Wipe this morning, and learn that they have editorialized about sex offenders. The Town Talk is rightly concerned that Louisiana let a lot of sex offenders slip thru our grasp during the twin Katrina/Rita unpleasantness. Yeah, we did that.

In November, the Administration for Children and Families matched the names on sex offender registries in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama with the names of evacuees who applied for disaster assistance. They found 2,000 matches. The challenge now is to find them.

Due diligence is the watchword here.

Some folks are worried about privacy:

Horn has enlisted the Federal Emergency Management Agency in a system that allows state law enforcement agencies to find the offenders who received assistance. This may temporarily ease disputes about privacy issues such as those between local law enforcement agencies and the Red Cross and other agencies that helped and housed evacuees. In cases like this, the community at large has a right to know whether convicted felons are being housed in local emergency shelters.

I worked sex offender cases and sex offender registration while I was with the Division of Probation and Parole. Working with convicted predatory sex offenders on a close daily basis was the main reason I chose to retire and go to work in another agency.

I know that the good officers of the Division are trying to find the offenders. The list is here, and has come down from a couple of hundred right after the hurricane, to the list of a couple of dozen we see here. I would caution everyone that this list is only those folks currently under the supervision of the department. There are those sex offenders out there who are not under the supervision of the Department, and those guys cause me sleepless nights. The sex offenders I am talking about have completed their sentences. They are not on probation or parole. However, Louisiana law makes reference to them, and compels them to comply.

We look to RS 15:542.

§542. Registration of sex offenders

A. Any adult residing in this state who has pled guilty to, has been convicted of, or where adjudication has been deferred or withheld for the perpetration or attempted perpetration of any sex offense and any juvenile who has pled guilty or has been convicted of a sex offense as provided for in Children's Code Article 857 shall register with the sheriff of the parish of the person's residence and with the chief of police if the address of the residence is located in an incorporated area which has a police department. If the adult or juvenile resides in a parish with a population in excess of four hundred fifty thousand, he shall register with the police department of his municipality of residence

The onus is on the offender to register. It is his duty to register. The simple fact of not registering makes him a felon. We go to the sentencing provisions of that section to learn that:

F.(1) A person who fails to register as required by this Section shall, upon first conviction, be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned with or without hard labor for not less than one year nor more than five years, or both.

(2) Upon second or subsequent convictions, whoever fails to register as required by this Section shall be fined not less than one thousand dollars nor more than two thousand five hundred dollars or imprisoned with or without hard labor for not less than three years nor more than ten years without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.

It is my understanding that if an offender moves out of state and fails to register, he is still in violation of Louisiana law and may be in violation of the other state law, and may be prosecuted under either or both statutes.

If you are living in an area where Katrina/Rita evacuees are housed, exercise due diligence in dealing with them. The vast majority, 99% or better, are good honest, hard-working folks who need help getting their life together. That 1% might be a sex offender. That 1% might be a felon. Protect yourself.

Tuesday

Thankfully, I'm not paid for what I do, or I wouldn't have been paid today. I showed up for work this morning and made my rounds and showed people that I was available, and piddled with this and that. Some days are like that, being basically a beat cop. I was on the beat all day long, but everyone was making nice, so I didn't have to do anything. I did get out and direct a little traffic today, so it wasn't a total waste.

Of course, I listened to the police radio, and my boss was moving around, checking on things, doing the boss job. I never saw him. Not that it matters much, either my supervisor or the big boss are welcome to come see me whenever they like. There are occasionally times when I find my supervisor on my beat, and I ask if he is looking for me, and he isn't. He is just passing through.

Too many people are worried when the boss checks up on them, but it never bothered me much, because I will always be found doing my job. I've heard other cops say that it bothered them to have the supevisor check on them, but on a slow day he gets bored too. Let him come visit if he wants to.

I have to go back, for a game, so I haven't even taken off my uniform yet. Blogging in boots and a tee-shirt, as it were. I did get out of the duty rig for awhile.

I've been reading some of the other blogs, but nothing much really hits my eye. It is a slow news day. The lady works tonite, and when I get home it will be to an empty house.

Hurricane remodeling.

Oh, this just pisses me off. Blanco spends a half-million dollars remodeling office space in the Capitol.

The project cost $564,838.

The newly refurbished office space on the sixth floor of the State Capitol includes hookups and mounts for two flat screen televisions, Swedish granite countertops, walnut paneling and frosted laminated glass. The floor, which will not be accessible to the public, was redesigned to add three new offices, a conference room and file storage areas.

South Louisiana is still in the throes of hurricane rebuilding. We haven't decided how strong to build the levees. Many of the governors constituents are homeless. Many Louisiana residents are still out of state, and the Queen Bee blows a half-million on remodeling. Never let it be said her priorites are out of order.

While many Louisiana residents are living in FEMA trailers, or hoping to get a FEMA trailer soon, the Governor decides to best use Louisiana resources by purchasing Swedish Granite countertops. While many Louisiana residents still have uprooted friends and family in their homes, the Governor decides that her staff needs three more offices.

The Governor's staff needs two flat screen televisions? The Governor's staff needs walnut paneling?

I am amazed. Blanco has no concept of frugality, no understanding of deferred maintenance. No respect for the tribulations that tens of thousands of her citizens are experiencing. South Louisana is on the ropes as a home to hundreds of thousands and the Governor decides that the money would be better spent on remodeling. That's classy. That is our governor.

While the Louisiana Congressional delegation is trying to convince the nation that our region is truly needy, the Governor goes ahead with luxurious offices for her staff. Louisiana needs roads, bridges, and levees one heck of a lot more than it needs frosted laminated glass and a new conference room. Fiscal prudence at the highest levels of state government. Yeah. Right.

Hat tip to Rob.