I see from the Daily Wipe, that the Louisiana Attorney General, Charles Foti, is recommending that we get more land based casinos in this state.
With riverboat casinos in New Orleans, Lake Charles, Baton Rouge, and Shreveport, the casino industry has taken a beating over the last month.
The Jena band of Choctaw Indians has some land in central Louisiana they want to use for land-based gambling and from all indications, they are cocked-and-locked to build. Let'em build, but get some good revenue guarantees from them.
Hell, there is so much gambling in this state now that another casino or two isn't going to make much difference. We should have another election and let the voters decide if they want gambling in a specific area. If a parish decides to allow gaming, let the building begin. Throw it wide open, and let the marketplace decide.
Let anyone who can satisfy the Gaming Board have a casino, whether it is three slot machines or acres of tables.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Pulheeze!
Over at Michelle Malkin's (yeah, like she needs the link), I read this story, and the howler that follows:
As far as I know, there is no looting statute in Louisiana. It is all covered under the Theft statutes. Perhaps the malfeasance statutes.
Plain and simple, those cops are crooked, and need to be jailed, after one of those fine old ceremonies, where they strip your badge off, strip off all patches and identification, then take you directly to the jail wearing your stripped-out uniform. The inmates love it, and your first couple of days are.... well.... unpleasant.
I don't know how Police spokesman Marlon Defillo managed to keep a straight face when he uttered those words.
Police spokesman Marlon Defillo said police are looking into the possibility that up to 12 officers were involved in misconduct.My achin' ass.
The Police Department has 1,750 officers.
He rejected the use of the term "looting" but said authorities were investigating "the possibility of appropriation of non-essential items during the height of Katrina, from businesses
As far as I know, there is no looting statute in Louisiana. It is all covered under the Theft statutes. Perhaps the malfeasance statutes.
Plain and simple, those cops are crooked, and need to be jailed, after one of those fine old ceremonies, where they strip your badge off, strip off all patches and identification, then take you directly to the jail wearing your stripped-out uniform. The inmates love it, and your first couple of days are.... well.... unpleasant.
I don't know how Police spokesman Marlon Defillo managed to keep a straight face when he uttered those words.
Recovery
Yesterday I got a message from my boss that today we would resume our normal schedules, post Rita. A lot of extra work still remains to be done, but we are off the A-B rotation. Today I went back to my beat, and it was good to be back where I belong.
I spent the last couple of days at a shelter, caring for geriatric, female, mental patients. Whoo! Wadda ride! They are sleeping in a high school gym. I talked today with the R.N. running the place and they are trying to get the patients into more permanent accomodations while the nursing home in Lake Charles is rehabbed. I know the staff will be glad to be in a proper facility, and I know the school will be glad to get their gym back.
I came home today to find Milady off work. It seems she came down with a sore throat yesterday and went to the doctor today. He diagnosed strep-throat, so we are in quarantine. I'll let the kids know, so they don't bring the grandkids over. I don't need them getting strep. And frankly, Milady and I could use the quiet over the weekend.
On the downside, the grass is growing again. We had been in a local drought, without rain for the past 30 days. The grass had gone dormant, but the rain from Rita kick-started it growing again.
I started thinking about shooting, again, which means that life is starting to return to normal. I've loaded some loads for the .243 that I intend to shoot this weekend, and tonite, I hope to load some .30-30 to try out, pre-deer season. In the meantime, I have potato soup on the stove and Milady is taking a nap.
Squirrel season opens Saturday, but I won't be in the woods till after the first frost.
I spent the last couple of days at a shelter, caring for geriatric, female, mental patients. Whoo! Wadda ride! They are sleeping in a high school gym. I talked today with the R.N. running the place and they are trying to get the patients into more permanent accomodations while the nursing home in Lake Charles is rehabbed. I know the staff will be glad to be in a proper facility, and I know the school will be glad to get their gym back.
I came home today to find Milady off work. It seems she came down with a sore throat yesterday and went to the doctor today. He diagnosed strep-throat, so we are in quarantine. I'll let the kids know, so they don't bring the grandkids over. I don't need them getting strep. And frankly, Milady and I could use the quiet over the weekend.
On the downside, the grass is growing again. We had been in a local drought, without rain for the past 30 days. The grass had gone dormant, but the rain from Rita kick-started it growing again.
I started thinking about shooting, again, which means that life is starting to return to normal. I've loaded some loads for the .243 that I intend to shoot this weekend, and tonite, I hope to load some .30-30 to try out, pre-deer season. In the meantime, I have potato soup on the stove and Milady is taking a nap.
Squirrel season opens Saturday, but I won't be in the woods till after the first frost.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Humph!
I was again surfing over at the Geek's, and I see that Eddie Compass has resigned.
Good.
Resigning sure beats being fired.
With 26 years under his belt, he knows a couple of things if he hasn't been sleeping through the annual training that all Louisiana police officers have to go through every year. First, if it ain't against the law, it ain't none of your business. Yeah, you can help people, but you better not be doing any enforcement action unless a law has been violated, and you damn sure better know what that law is, when you take the action. Taking something from a citizen without permission is called robbery. That is a felony. Taking something from a business without permission is called theft. There are levels of theft, but any of them will get you fired.
Have I ever, in my twenty-five years of police work, confiscated a firearm? You betcha I have. More than a few of them. I've taken them from criminals and convicted felons. I charged them under the law and I took the firearm into evidence.
The officers that took firearms are guilty of one of a number of crimes (burglary, robbery, or theft) and could be prosecuted for those crimes. The officers who took other things could be charged under the same statutes.
Eddie Compass is already being sued. He is lucky he isn't being charged.
Good.
Resigning sure beats being fired.
"I served this department for 26 years and have taken it through some of the toughest times of its history. Every man in a leadership position must know when it's time to hand over the reins," Compass said at a news conference. "I'll be going on in another direction that God has for me."Yeah, right.
With 26 years under his belt, he knows a couple of things if he hasn't been sleeping through the annual training that all Louisiana police officers have to go through every year. First, if it ain't against the law, it ain't none of your business. Yeah, you can help people, but you better not be doing any enforcement action unless a law has been violated, and you damn sure better know what that law is, when you take the action. Taking something from a citizen without permission is called robbery. That is a felony. Taking something from a business without permission is called theft. There are levels of theft, but any of them will get you fired.
Have I ever, in my twenty-five years of police work, confiscated a firearm? You betcha I have. More than a few of them. I've taken them from criminals and convicted felons. I charged them under the law and I took the firearm into evidence.
The officers that took firearms are guilty of one of a number of crimes (burglary, robbery, or theft) and could be prosecuted for those crimes. The officers who took other things could be charged under the same statutes.
Eddie Compass is already being sued. He is lucky he isn't being charged.
Mike Brown on Louisiana Govt
Whoa! What a money quote. I just heard this on Fox News, and had to find the quote:
Well, the gummint might be disfunctional, but the people aren't. We've been handicapped by our elected officials. And frankly, we have been complacent too long.
Louisiana voters need to demand competent government. From the dog catcher to the governor, we have a right to demand that corruption not be tolerated. That elected officials not only avoid impropriety, but avoid the very appearance of impropriety.
Recovery money is already starting to flow, and if we don't get our act together, we will cement the nation's perception that we are a third-world backwater, only useful for parties and scandal. It's time to get serious about government. It is time to seriously look at cronyism, corruption, and special interest groups. It is time to demand good roads, good schools, and good infrastructure. It is time to demand that our elected officials perform for the good of the state.
It is time to demand an end to the poverty generating welfare state. It is time to demand that people get to work. It is time to demand that the stewards of our money account for results from that money.
We have the opportunity. The question is; will we use it?
At one point, questioned by committee chairman Rep. Tom Davis (search), R-Va., Brown said: "My biggest mistake was not recognizing by Saturday [Aug. 27] that Louisiana was dysfunctional."We've been telling each other that for years about state goverrment.
Well, the gummint might be disfunctional, but the people aren't. We've been handicapped by our elected officials. And frankly, we have been complacent too long.
Louisiana voters need to demand competent government. From the dog catcher to the governor, we have a right to demand that corruption not be tolerated. That elected officials not only avoid impropriety, but avoid the very appearance of impropriety.
Recovery money is already starting to flow, and if we don't get our act together, we will cement the nation's perception that we are a third-world backwater, only useful for parties and scandal. It's time to get serious about government. It is time to seriously look at cronyism, corruption, and special interest groups. It is time to demand good roads, good schools, and good infrastructure. It is time to demand that our elected officials perform for the good of the state.
It is time to demand an end to the poverty generating welfare state. It is time to demand that people get to work. It is time to demand that the stewards of our money account for results from that money.
We have the opportunity. The question is; will we use it?
Lessons being learned
As I sit here in Air Conditioned splendor, with a working washing machine and operating cable TV, I am grateful. The house is full of refugees, one from Katrina, two from Rita. I am grateful they are safe. I am grateful I could provide shelter. I am grateful for the bounty of this country that allows me to own a home to provide refuge to those whose home is unliveable. I'm grateful that my home is intact.
I'm also pondering some of the lessons of the past three weeks:
1. Society crumbles quickly in the face of a natural disaster. The strongest civilization this world has ever known can be reduced, locally, to the Stone Age in a matter of hours. You are on your own for three days. Be ready. Food, water, shelter become absolute imperatives when there aren't any. The Second Amendment is the greatest guarantee to your survival. Be intimately familiar with it, and the implement it recommends.
2. Evacuating is a good idea. Make it happen. Only, don't follow the madding crowd. If you roll one wheel on an interstate highway, you are screwed. Get good maps and use them. The greatest GPS device ain't worth a shot of snot if it can't tell you where the secondary roads are located. We still need paper maps, and the more detail you can get, the better. Get good maps for the areas you might have to navigate and put them in your bugout box along with food, water, ammunition. During both the Katrina and Rita exercise, folks who got on the interstate spend a lot of time in gridlock. Good maps are the US Survey maps that the Army uses. They show every road, down to the pigtrails the animals use. Go here for more information
3. Evacuate west if you are running from a hurricane on this continent. Everybody else is moving north, so going west is better. I have heard reports and seen evidence that moving 10 miles west is as good as moving 50 miles north. Moving 50 miles west is better. The benefit is that you get out of the crowds, you get out of the projected path of the storm and you get out of the northeast quadrant. Storms generally turn toward the east in the last hour before landfall, then take a north by northeast track. Go west, young man. Good advice for the 19th century, good advice for the 21st.
More as I consider them.
I'm also pondering some of the lessons of the past three weeks:
1. Society crumbles quickly in the face of a natural disaster. The strongest civilization this world has ever known can be reduced, locally, to the Stone Age in a matter of hours. You are on your own for three days. Be ready. Food, water, shelter become absolute imperatives when there aren't any. The Second Amendment is the greatest guarantee to your survival. Be intimately familiar with it, and the implement it recommends.
2. Evacuating is a good idea. Make it happen. Only, don't follow the madding crowd. If you roll one wheel on an interstate highway, you are screwed. Get good maps and use them. The greatest GPS device ain't worth a shot of snot if it can't tell you where the secondary roads are located. We still need paper maps, and the more detail you can get, the better. Get good maps for the areas you might have to navigate and put them in your bugout box along with food, water, ammunition. During both the Katrina and Rita exercise, folks who got on the interstate spend a lot of time in gridlock. Good maps are the US Survey maps that the Army uses. They show every road, down to the pigtrails the animals use. Go here for more information
3. Evacuate west if you are running from a hurricane on this continent. Everybody else is moving north, so going west is better. I have heard reports and seen evidence that moving 10 miles west is as good as moving 50 miles north. Moving 50 miles west is better. The benefit is that you get out of the crowds, you get out of the projected path of the storm and you get out of the northeast quadrant. Storms generally turn toward the east in the last hour before landfall, then take a north by northeast track. Go west, young man. Good advice for the 19th century, good advice for the 21st.
More as I consider them.
Monday, September 26, 2005
A-B Rotation
Yesterday afternoon I talked to my boss and he told me I was off today. I protested, but he ordered me to stand down. When I got home, I found Milady had also been sent home, so we went out for dinner. A place with a table and silverware and a tablecloth. Then we came home and crashed.
I'm off tomorrow too, and another 8-5 guy is watching over the evacuees that I have been watching over. I stopped by late this afternoon and checked on everyone. They improved the position today, making strides in creature comforts.
I talked to my boss late this afternoon and I am off tomorrow too. What they have done is put all us daytime guys on an A-B rotation. It is a standard law enforcement shift rotation and it lets you cover the maximum amount of man hours with the minimum people and keeps everyone rested, fed, and not burned out.
The way it works is this. They designate shifts as A shift, B shift, with day and night rotations. Sometimes they designate all four shifts from A-D. Anyway, lets say a guy on A shift works Monday Tuesday. Off Wednesday Thursday. Works Friday Saturday Sunday. B Shift is off Monday Tuesday, works Wednesday Thursday, is off again on Friday Saturday Sunday. The next week the days are reversed. Everyone works half of the available days in the month, and you have a three day weekend every other weekend.
Now, you have to cover day shift and night shift, and there are two ways to do that. You can either change from day to night every time you come back to work (Work days Monday Tuesday, off Wednesday Thursday, work nights Friday Saturday Sunday), or you can be stabilized on days and nights. There are pros and cons to both methods and I have worked both methods. Being stabilized on days and nights works best for me, but having rotating shifts spreads the wealth around. Actually, if I had my druthers on 12 hour shifts, I would rather be stabilized on nights, because nights are generally quieter than days. There is less going on, and the headquarters guys aren't around.
So anyway, I am off again tomorrow. Back to work Wednesday morning. I thought I was finally off the old A-B rotation, but things have a way of changing.
I'm off tomorrow too, and another 8-5 guy is watching over the evacuees that I have been watching over. I stopped by late this afternoon and checked on everyone. They improved the position today, making strides in creature comforts.
I talked to my boss late this afternoon and I am off tomorrow too. What they have done is put all us daytime guys on an A-B rotation. It is a standard law enforcement shift rotation and it lets you cover the maximum amount of man hours with the minimum people and keeps everyone rested, fed, and not burned out.
The way it works is this. They designate shifts as A shift, B shift, with day and night rotations. Sometimes they designate all four shifts from A-D. Anyway, lets say a guy on A shift works Monday Tuesday. Off Wednesday Thursday. Works Friday Saturday Sunday. B Shift is off Monday Tuesday, works Wednesday Thursday, is off again on Friday Saturday Sunday. The next week the days are reversed. Everyone works half of the available days in the month, and you have a three day weekend every other weekend.
Now, you have to cover day shift and night shift, and there are two ways to do that. You can either change from day to night every time you come back to work (Work days Monday Tuesday, off Wednesday Thursday, work nights Friday Saturday Sunday), or you can be stabilized on days and nights. There are pros and cons to both methods and I have worked both methods. Being stabilized on days and nights works best for me, but having rotating shifts spreads the wealth around. Actually, if I had my druthers on 12 hour shifts, I would rather be stabilized on nights, because nights are generally quieter than days. There is less going on, and the headquarters guys aren't around.
So anyway, I am off again tomorrow. Back to work Wednesday morning. I thought I was finally off the old A-B rotation, but things have a way of changing.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Rita
What's today? Sunday? I haven't posted since Wednesday, because, frankly, I have been busy. Busy taking care of unfortunates who tried to evade Hurricane Rita, without success.
Why someone would evacuate northeast is beyond my powers of comprehension. Every hurricane that has ever hit Louisiana has turned to the northeast after landfall. Evacuating from Lake Charles to anywhere in central Louisiana is like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. We missed the brunt of the storm, but we have power outages, we have trees down. Tornadoes came through the area. This is day three of the exercise and we have pretty much been on our own. I did see some gummint help yesterday, but we are bursting at the seams with evacuees. We have evacuees from Katrina and from Rita in this area.
Last night I slept for six full hours. The first time since Wednesday. In another couple of hours I will be back at work, doing whatever needs to be done for the unfortunates who came here to hunker down. Every deputy is involved in the operation. I have heard names on the radio that I haven't heard in years. Guys with desk jobs in headquarters are weilding chainsaws or answering calls. Either serving at a shelter, or helping clear roads, or answering calls for assistance, we are at 100% strength, doing yeoman duty for our citizens. The local police departments are likewise completely engaged. No looting, by God, not on our watch. No citizens who need help if we can possibly get to them. You call us, we'll be there, even if we have to clear five miles of road to get there.
Looking outside at the weather, the rain seems to have died down and the wind has moderated. We need good weather to begin the cleanup, and I think we'll have it for a couple of days. Some rain, certainly, but not so windy we can't put bucket trucks in the air. Yesterday, during the brunt of the storm, we worked at ground level, doing what we could to help folks. The power crews couldn't work because of the wind. Those folks are going to do the yeoman duty for the next couple of days. Telephone and power crews are going to have more than they can pray over.
More posting as I get a chance. Today is going to be a long one.
Why someone would evacuate northeast is beyond my powers of comprehension. Every hurricane that has ever hit Louisiana has turned to the northeast after landfall. Evacuating from Lake Charles to anywhere in central Louisiana is like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. We missed the brunt of the storm, but we have power outages, we have trees down. Tornadoes came through the area. This is day three of the exercise and we have pretty much been on our own. I did see some gummint help yesterday, but we are bursting at the seams with evacuees. We have evacuees from Katrina and from Rita in this area.
Last night I slept for six full hours. The first time since Wednesday. In another couple of hours I will be back at work, doing whatever needs to be done for the unfortunates who came here to hunker down. Every deputy is involved in the operation. I have heard names on the radio that I haven't heard in years. Guys with desk jobs in headquarters are weilding chainsaws or answering calls. Either serving at a shelter, or helping clear roads, or answering calls for assistance, we are at 100% strength, doing yeoman duty for our citizens. The local police departments are likewise completely engaged. No looting, by God, not on our watch. No citizens who need help if we can possibly get to them. You call us, we'll be there, even if we have to clear five miles of road to get there.
Looking outside at the weather, the rain seems to have died down and the wind has moderated. We need good weather to begin the cleanup, and I think we'll have it for a couple of days. Some rain, certainly, but not so windy we can't put bucket trucks in the air. Yesterday, during the brunt of the storm, we worked at ground level, doing what we could to help folks. The power crews couldn't work because of the wind. Those folks are going to do the yeoman duty for the next couple of days. Telephone and power crews are going to have more than they can pray over.
More posting as I get a chance. Today is going to be a long one.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Over at the Geeks
I was just surfing over at the Geek's place and found this post. The pertinent part is here:
I hate to take credit for the suit idea, but I believe I blogged it first, here.
However, now might be an opportune time to discuss the relative merits of the quoted paragraph, above. The Guardsman is identified as a Captain, and if he is, he knows that he has an obligation to directly challenge an unlawful order. Sometimes orders are given that are unlawful, either through ignorance or stupidity. The officer receiving an unlawful order has a moral obligation to directly question the order.
The conversation might go like this:
Colonel: "Captain, I want you to take your men and go do such-and-such."
Captain: "Sir, with respect, I wish you would reconsider that order. I believe it violates the law. (or Constitution.. fill in the blanks yourself)
Colonel, ire rising: "Captain, are you telling me that the order I just gave you is illegal?"
Captain: "Yes sir, I believe it to be, and I wish you would reconsider. If you won't reconsider, I would request to be given the order in writing, so that when charges are filed, I can mount a legal defense."
At this point the Colonel will probably blow a gasket, throw the Captain out of the office, and try to figure out just what the hell went wrong. I have had this conversation once in my twenty year career in the service of Uncle Sam (three active, 18 reserve, called for Desert Storm), and I have heard the conversation twice. Each time, the superior officer checked his facts, rescinded the order and apologized in private to the Captain.
Colonels are career oriented, and sure as hell don't want to get caught in giving an order that might lead to a Courts Martial.
However, the Captain in the story above has serious legal difficulties, both in a civil sense and in a career sense. Captains know to a moral certainty that the "just following orders" defense died at Nuremburg, and at My Lai. Captains also know that giving an illegal order to their soldiers makes them culpable on the same scale as the Colonel is, for giving the order. The Captain has a moral responsibility to do the right thing, not withstanding the point that he has violated his oath to "protect and defend the Consititution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic".
In an officers life, that oath comes first.
I received this in comments this morning, and am pursuing for confirmation and details:This may well be a troll at work, and the Geek considers this possibility. The other possibility is that confiscations continue. Most reports I have is that the firearms confiscations are over. The NRA and others are actively seeking plaintiffs for one hell of a civil suit.
My buddy Captain G, Oklahoma Guard, was activated and sent to N.O. His unit was tasked to "keep the peace" in a not-so-nice ward. I talk to him every other day or so, and let me tell you, he is mightily pissed off about this. He has been for 12 days now confiscating firearms from ALL but CCP folks. Did y'all get that? The F'n federal government is taking guns from law abiding citizens in the very moment of their greatest need! I looked for hours today online and found nothing about this, nor have I seen ANYTHING from the MSM since the Wednesday after the storm hit (big surprise). Why is everyone not totally frigging apeshit about this?
I hate to take credit for the suit idea, but I believe I blogged it first, here.
However, now might be an opportune time to discuss the relative merits of the quoted paragraph, above. The Guardsman is identified as a Captain, and if he is, he knows that he has an obligation to directly challenge an unlawful order. Sometimes orders are given that are unlawful, either through ignorance or stupidity. The officer receiving an unlawful order has a moral obligation to directly question the order.
The conversation might go like this:
Colonel: "Captain, I want you to take your men and go do such-and-such."
Captain: "Sir, with respect, I wish you would reconsider that order. I believe it violates the law. (or Constitution.. fill in the blanks yourself)
Colonel, ire rising: "Captain, are you telling me that the order I just gave you is illegal?"
Captain: "Yes sir, I believe it to be, and I wish you would reconsider. If you won't reconsider, I would request to be given the order in writing, so that when charges are filed, I can mount a legal defense."
At this point the Colonel will probably blow a gasket, throw the Captain out of the office, and try to figure out just what the hell went wrong. I have had this conversation once in my twenty year career in the service of Uncle Sam (three active, 18 reserve, called for Desert Storm), and I have heard the conversation twice. Each time, the superior officer checked his facts, rescinded the order and apologized in private to the Captain.
Colonels are career oriented, and sure as hell don't want to get caught in giving an order that might lead to a Courts Martial.
However, the Captain in the story above has serious legal difficulties, both in a civil sense and in a career sense. Captains know to a moral certainty that the "just following orders" defense died at Nuremburg, and at My Lai. Captains also know that giving an illegal order to their soldiers makes them culpable on the same scale as the Colonel is, for giving the order. The Captain has a moral responsibility to do the right thing, not withstanding the point that he has violated his oath to "protect and defend the Consititution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic".
In an officers life, that oath comes first.
Love bugs
We here in central Louisiana are undergoing an infestation of love bugs. A plague. A surplussage, if you will. The little bastards are everywhere. They came in with Katrina, and I believe they blew in off the coast.
Go outside and try to talk, love bugs in your mouth. There must be a couple of hundred thousand dead in the garage, and I swept it on Sunday. By Monday it looked like I had never swept. Today it looks like a disaster area.
They are even sifting in under the weatherstripping on the front door. We never use the front door, yet they wiggle in through the weatherstripping and expire (from exertion, I guess) in a semi-circle on the carpet. I just vacuumed up fifty of the little bastards.
The truly adventurous love bugs go to the highway and attack automobiles. Their little innards splatter everywhere and has some acid in it, attacking the paint on the cars. I hate love bugs with a massive dedication. They'll be gone in a month or so, and life can get back to normal. Until then, I can't sit at my workbench outside without a cloud of these things settling into my quickly thinning hair.
AAaargggh! I've got to move everything in to the kitchen table to measure powder.
Go outside and try to talk, love bugs in your mouth. There must be a couple of hundred thousand dead in the garage, and I swept it on Sunday. By Monday it looked like I had never swept. Today it looks like a disaster area.
They are even sifting in under the weatherstripping on the front door. We never use the front door, yet they wiggle in through the weatherstripping and expire (from exertion, I guess) in a semi-circle on the carpet. I just vacuumed up fifty of the little bastards.
The truly adventurous love bugs go to the highway and attack automobiles. Their little innards splatter everywhere and has some acid in it, attacking the paint on the cars. I hate love bugs with a massive dedication. They'll be gone in a month or so, and life can get back to normal. Until then, I can't sit at my workbench outside without a cloud of these things settling into my quickly thinning hair.
AAaargggh! I've got to move everything in to the kitchen table to measure powder.
870 Update
I went to Ace Hardware looking for paint remover and found a can of stuff there. It is an aerosol gel. Don't get it on your car, or your skin, or your wall boards. It is toxic and caustic, and it'll peel paint like nothing you have ever seen. The paint on the forearm and stock of my 870 had been there a few years, and the guy that painted it, used multiple coats. No problem.
With two applications, the wood on that shotgun was clean. I did go through a lot of shop rags, though. The instructions on the can said to flush the cleaned surface with water, so I did that. The water feathered the stock, which I took off with a piece of 220 grit Wet or Dry sandpaper. I followed up with two coats of boiled linseed oil, and reassembled the shotgun. It is under the seat of the truck now with 5 rounds in the butt cuff and four rounds in the magazine tube.
I am good to go.
I was thinking about slugs, and picked up a couple of 5-packs last week. The Remington basic slug is one ounce of lead, traveling at 1500 fps. Fairly devastating. I'm going to try some slug shooting and see how accurate they are out of a smoothbore barrel. I'll be reporting on the project at The Frugal Outdoorsmman.
With two applications, the wood on that shotgun was clean. I did go through a lot of shop rags, though. The instructions on the can said to flush the cleaned surface with water, so I did that. The water feathered the stock, which I took off with a piece of 220 grit Wet or Dry sandpaper. I followed up with two coats of boiled linseed oil, and reassembled the shotgun. It is under the seat of the truck now with 5 rounds in the butt cuff and four rounds in the magazine tube.
I am good to go.
I was thinking about slugs, and picked up a couple of 5-packs last week. The Remington basic slug is one ounce of lead, traveling at 1500 fps. Fairly devastating. I'm going to try some slug shooting and see how accurate they are out of a smoothbore barrel. I'll be reporting on the project at The Frugal Outdoorsmman.
Monday, September 19, 2005
Rita
They named a hurricane after my ex-mother-in-law, and if you know anything about hurricanes or mothers-in-law, then you know where I stand on this issue. As far out of the way as possible. I notice that it is barreling down on Miami, and you know where those hurricanes normally end up.
That's right. New Orleans better batten down again.
One of these days, the big one is going to hit New Orleans, and Katrina wasn't it. Maybe Rita will be. Maybe not. It's still a crap shoot.
That's right. New Orleans better batten down again.
One of these days, the big one is going to hit New Orleans, and Katrina wasn't it. Maybe Rita will be. Maybe not. It's still a crap shoot.
Pirates!
Today is talk like a pirate day. I know damned little about pirates, except that they were romantic, dashing figures that history has painted with a colorful brush. Many of them ended by taking a long swing on a short rope.
I thought it might be illuminative to look at some female pirates and try to determine how successful they were. Then I stumbled upon this, and decided to give up the search.
For more on female pirates, go here.
I thought it might be illuminative to look at some female pirates and try to determine how successful they were. Then I stumbled upon this, and decided to give up the search.
Cheng I Sao (Ching Yih Saou) — 1810s, South China Sea, commanded either five or six squadrons consisting of 800 large junks, about 1,000 smaller vessels, and between 70,000 and 80,000 men and womenNo doubt, she was a pirate fo the first rank. I bet she made the British navy soil themselves.
For more on female pirates, go here.
Sunday, September 18, 2005
Michael responds.
Cool! Michael responded to my Disaster post. You can read the whole thing in the comment section. He makes some good points. Lets look at some of them, shall we?
It is the job of Governor Blanco to do better. Worrying about turf and political power while her citizens are in danger is just a little petty in my view.
It is Ray Nagin's job to do better. He presided over a disaster, then watched his city dissolve into anarchy. When the citizens banded together to protect what was theirs, his police chief issued the order that firearms would be confiscated. When I watched the video of police officers body-slamming an elderly woman who just wanted to be left alone, I was sickened. That happened on Nagin's watch. When I saw pictures of police officers looting, I was sickened. That happened on Nagin's watch.
Lets move along, shall we?
More from Michael:
I tell my grandkids that I walked to school, 2 miles, in the snow, uphill both directions. They laugh, and rightfully so. I also remember a time that if you wanted something, you worked for it. I remember my people being horrified at LBJ's Great Society. I remember the first black person who came into my all-white school, and I remember wondering what all the fuss was about. She looked okay to me. I was in the fourth grade at the time, and I don't recall ever being taught in my home that we should treat anyone with less dignity or respect than we expected for ourselves. My mother was quite stern in that regard.
More from comments:
The next point:
About compensation:
The kicker:
The (almost) closing:
I've got laundry to do. Have a nice weekend.
Aw, Pawpaw--not my job? That's the best you can come up with?Yep. It's not what I choose to do. I choose to do my job and come home and play with my family. However, I am still actively engaged in caring for refugees. I don't know anything about you, Michael. You might be volunteering for the Red Cross. You might be standing in the mud helping the unfortunate. You might be cooking meals to feed the dispossessed. I just don't know. I know that I am still here, on the job, trying to make things better. Where are you?
It is the job of Governor Blanco to do better. Worrying about turf and political power while her citizens are in danger is just a little petty in my view.
It is Ray Nagin's job to do better. He presided over a disaster, then watched his city dissolve into anarchy. When the citizens banded together to protect what was theirs, his police chief issued the order that firearms would be confiscated. When I watched the video of police officers body-slamming an elderly woman who just wanted to be left alone, I was sickened. That happened on Nagin's watch. When I saw pictures of police officers looting, I was sickened. That happened on Nagin's watch.
Lets move along, shall we?
Yes, we've known since before 1927 that New Orleans was vulnerable to flooding, although check the record--NOLA didn't flood in 1927. Plaquemines flooded, thanks to deliberate dynamiting of levees below NOLA--and the data suggests that NOLA wouldn't have flooded even if they hadn't done that.Good point. Here is a better one. New Orleans is still below sea level. The Mississippi river is still above sea level at that point. This wasn't the big one, and all the disaster predictions are still valid. Katrina wasn't the big one. Katrina missed New Orleans. Katrina was a near miss with a flood wall breach. The big one is still yet to come. And it will, eventually. This disaster was just a rehearsal.
More from Michael:
It seems as if, judging from your post, that you have a certain yearning for the 19th century,Not really. I remember when air conditioning was something you found in state of the art restaurants and grocery stores. My dad didn't install A/C until I had left home. I remember being cold in the winter and hot in the summer. The good old days sucked in a lot of ways. Cars needed tuneups every 6000 miles. Stores closed at 6:00 p.m. There were NO 24 hour gas stations.
I tell my grandkids that I walked to school, 2 miles, in the snow, uphill both directions. They laugh, and rightfully so. I also remember a time that if you wanted something, you worked for it. I remember my people being horrified at LBJ's Great Society. I remember the first black person who came into my all-white school, and I remember wondering what all the fuss was about. She looked okay to me. I was in the fourth grade at the time, and I don't recall ever being taught in my home that we should treat anyone with less dignity or respect than we expected for ourselves. My mother was quite stern in that regard.
More from comments:
As to your suggestion re: foot toddling (see The Sweet Science by A.J. Liebling, also the author of The Earl of Louisiana for more on that)...present laws prohibit foot travel on highways, I presume for public safety reasons. Should we rescind those laws?I personally don't know of any Louisiana law that prohibits foot traffic on a parish road, state highway, or US route. I am aware that foot traffic is prohibited on Interstate highways except in emergencies. I have never arrested anyone for walking on a public road, and I'm not going to start. I'll grant that the folks in Gretna have some answering to do about turning around the refugees on the bridge. It'll be interesting to see how Charles Foti handles that one.
The next point:
I took about an hour to examine some logistics re: evacuation of upwards of 100,000 people lacking cars in a major metropolitan area without significant mass transit, and have come to the conclusion that, yes, it could be accomplished in less than 24 hoursIf you have come up with a way to move 100K citizens in under 24 hours, then you should run for office. Seriously. That qualification alone may be in great demand during the next election cycle.
About compensation:
Finally, your point re: water flows downhill, i.e., those schmucks should've known--well, the reality is that LOTS of folks with decidedly better resources than the dirt poor also have total losses...well, they've presumably got some sort of insurance to cushion the fall. However, survivors of 9/11 victims who were on the upper end weren't told to shove it--in fact, compensation was pro-rated based on factors like income (do you think this was wrong?).Actually, you analysis is flawed here on a basic level. The flooding was a natural disaster. The 9/11 strike was an act of war. You're talking about two different things here. As to your point on compensation, I don't believe that compensation should be expected on any level. I don't think anyone should expect government to take care of them. I believe that government should provide roads and bridges and competent police and fire protection. I'll include a competent military to deal with outside threats. Other than that, I pretty much want government to leave me alone.
The kicker:
Costs and logistics--and planning -- for a natural disaster can and should be handled by the federal government, and, whether or not we like it, it's the right thing to do.Here is where we differ on a large scale. I believe that the planning should be done by the locals, because we are best able to know what we need when it comes to disaster planning. If you ask for Federal help, then you have to put up with Federal boots on the ground. If the Feds are going to handle everything, then why even bother with state and local government? Lets just appoint a bunch of bureaucrats to run our local institutions. Hell, we've practically done that in education now.
The (almost) closing:
For every queer in San Francisco affected by an earthquake, for instance, there's someone who is the epitome of a family man. For every nutjob who chooses to live in a floodplain in Illinois, there's a farmer simply looking for a fair price for his corn (or wheat, if it's North Dakota--and don't forget that those folks also live in blizzard country). For every dumbass who lives in tornado alley, there's a rancher who's goal is to make a living providing what the public demands.I don't see a point here. We're diverse? Yeah, that is what makes America great. And that natural disaster can strike anywhere? Agreed. That doesn't mean I expect anything. It just makes us all equal.
I've got laundry to do. Have a nice weekend.
Remington 870 Express
I bought a shotgun yesterday. I was looking at my all-too-sparse battery of firearms and realized that I didn't own a personal riot shotgun. For my entire career I have fired shotguns during annual qualification and my personal armory has a couple of utilitarian hunting shotguns.
Mine looks like this:
As pump shotguns go, the Remington 870 is about as generic as it comes. Police agencies use them, sportsmen use them, target shooters use them. The standard Remington pump shotgun comes in a dazzling array of stocks, barrels, gauges, and styles to fit any game, or any budget. If it were to be introduced today, the 870 would be hailed as a breakthrough in shotgun design. It is strong, durable, sleek, with a silky smooth action. The fact that is has been around over half a century is testiment to its versatility and utility as a modern firearm.
There is no sound anywhere in the world that sounds like a pump shotgun being brought into action. That "shack-shack" sound shatters through the bullshit and puts everyone in earshot on notice that the conversation just got serious. Police shotguns are normally carried with the barrel empty and the magazine full. The officer only has to pump the forearm to put a shell in the chamber and be ready to fire 9 .30 cal balls. The shotgun is a devastating short-range weapon and people of all stripes universally accept that fact.
I have been present at large disturbances (read: bar-fight) where the combatant citizens were immediately brought under control by the simple act of an officer walking through the door of the building and jacking a shell into the chamber. No matter how drunk a person might be, no matter how combative he might be, no matter what else is going on immediately, that sound will clear the fog from his brain and the blood from his eyes.
The best part of the whole exercise is that I got mine cheap. I happened to wander into a pawn shop yesterday and saw it sitting in the rack. I engaged the shopkeeper in conversation. I dickered and bargained, and when it was said and done, I walked out with it under my arm for $225.00 cash money. My copy has some weird camo treatment on the stock, but a little sandpaper and linseed oil will take care of that. I might even spring for a synthetic stock for it.
I think I done good.
Mine looks like this:
As pump shotguns go, the Remington 870 is about as generic as it comes. Police agencies use them, sportsmen use them, target shooters use them. The standard Remington pump shotgun comes in a dazzling array of stocks, barrels, gauges, and styles to fit any game, or any budget. If it were to be introduced today, the 870 would be hailed as a breakthrough in shotgun design. It is strong, durable, sleek, with a silky smooth action. The fact that is has been around over half a century is testiment to its versatility and utility as a modern firearm.
There is no sound anywhere in the world that sounds like a pump shotgun being brought into action. That "shack-shack" sound shatters through the bullshit and puts everyone in earshot on notice that the conversation just got serious. Police shotguns are normally carried with the barrel empty and the magazine full. The officer only has to pump the forearm to put a shell in the chamber and be ready to fire 9 .30 cal balls. The shotgun is a devastating short-range weapon and people of all stripes universally accept that fact.
I have been present at large disturbances (read: bar-fight) where the combatant citizens were immediately brought under control by the simple act of an officer walking through the door of the building and jacking a shell into the chamber. No matter how drunk a person might be, no matter how combative he might be, no matter what else is going on immediately, that sound will clear the fog from his brain and the blood from his eyes.
The best part of the whole exercise is that I got mine cheap. I happened to wander into a pawn shop yesterday and saw it sitting in the rack. I engaged the shopkeeper in conversation. I dickered and bargained, and when it was said and done, I walked out with it under my arm for $225.00 cash money. My copy has some weird camo treatment on the stock, but a little sandpaper and linseed oil will take care of that. I might even spring for a synthetic stock for it.
I think I done good.
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Some thoughts on disaster recovery.
All eight of my frequent readers know that one of the blogs on my blogroll is Your Right Hand Thief. The author, who operates under the nom de plume Oyster, is one of the unfortunates from New Orleans. The Oyster is currently in other longitudes, but vows to return and help rebuild the city. I hope so. We need diverse viewpoints if this state and country are going to function properly. I like reading Oysters work. As much as I disagree with him sometimes, I feel that we are on the same side of the barricades and if we can get through the dialogue, we can make this state a better place.
I frequently comment over there, and today I voiced the opinion that Governor Blanco screwed the pooch during the Katrina exercise. One of the commenters, Michael, took exception and issued the following comment:
Michael, lets begin with your first paragraph:
We've known about this scenario for a long time. The basic scenario of a major hurricane hitting New Orleans was too doomsday to contemplate. Well, contemplate it now. All of our Governors since 1927 failed to take the warnings seriously. It happened to occur on Blanco's watch. She will take the heat, and frankly, a lot of her constituents have seen just how good the roads and bridges and infrastructure are in other states. If they come back to Louisiana, they are going to want to know why the roads here are so terrible. Politics in Louisiana changed on August 25, 2005. The Democratic leaders of this state failed their constituents. The Democrats have been in virtual control of this state since reconstruction. We still have the worst roads, one of the worst education systems, one of the most corrupt governments in the nation. Failure exists at every level. We need to start getting it right.
Now, I'm not naive enough to believe that the Governor of a state or a Mayor of a city should be held directly responsible for everything that happens during their watch, but I am naive enough to believe that if they don't take corrective action then the voters should take corrective action. I'm not campaigning for their job, nor am I saying they should be impeached, but I think that this disaster has opened the eyes of a lot of people and that politics as usual won't be tolerated in Louisiana. We have a hard task ahead of us. The citizens of Louisiana deserve leadership and the leadership displayed by Governor Blanco has fallen far short of the mark. I voted for Governor Blanco last time. I thought she would do a good job. I was wrong.
As to Mayor Nagin, his list of failures is too weighty to list here, but the simple fact that he hasn't fired Eddie Compass is enough to make me question his competence.
On to the second paragraph:
Take the Ivan scenario. If everyone is personally responsible, they grab their SHTF bag and head out the door. Check on the neighbors on the way out. Go to a pre-arranged location in another longitude. Wait three days and go home. I know that is simplistic, but the simplest plans are the best.
What about all those folks who couldn't get out? They couldn't get out since 1927? Hell, in seventy years you can walk a long way. The trek from St. Louis to Oregon didn't take that long. Millions of Americans made that trek on foot, back in the 1800's. Granted, the day before a hurricane is a little late to get started. You're probably going to get wet. It is about personal responsibility.
If people choose to live in New Orleans, then they should be willing to accept the risks. If you live in a place you can't get away from, then you probably should take a good look at your life. Understand the risks. Make decisions that will minimize those risks. And if necessary, start walking. Americans have done it before.
Now, having said all that, I'm still helping to care for internally displaced persons. Some of their stories tear at my heart strings. I hope and pray that they get their lives together, and make some decisions about how to spend the rest of it.
Frankly, I hope that New Orleans comes back stronger, more diverse, more exotic than before. I like visiting there and have lots of memories from that town. I hope to make many more memories there. But I won't live there, because water flows downhill.
I frequently comment over there, and today I voiced the opinion that Governor Blanco screwed the pooch during the Katrina exercise. One of the commenters, Michael, took exception and issued the following comment:
Pawpaw--here's a question/challenge: find the money in the NOLA or State budget to handle the disaster response--make an accurate estimate of total operational costs, identify who and how many responders (where they are pre-storm, how they'd be deployed post storm), identify shelter locations, identify and price equipment like spare pumps to handle the task of draining the city, identify specific instances of malfeasance by local and state officials as to levee maintenence...should be pretty easy since there's blame to spread.That is certainly worth fisking. Lets begin, shall we?
Finally, I'd like to know if, on the evacuation side, how a scenario like Hurricane Ivan would be handled, i.e., a dramatic near-miss that fortunately didn't hit the city but did force an evacuation.
Feel free to suggest taxes, revenue enhacements, specific budget cuts in other areas, or existing state Treasury funds.
Michael, lets begin with your first paragraph:
find the money in the NOLA or State budget to handle the disaster response--make an accurate estimate of total operational costs, identify who and how many responders (where they are pre-storm, how they'd be deployed post storm), identify shelter locations, identify and price equipment like spare pumps to handle the task of draining the city, identify specific instances of malfeasance by local and state officials as to levee maintenence...should be pretty easy since there's blame to spread.Not my job. I am a street cop. It IS the Governor's job. She wanted the job, directly campaigned for it. She should be doing it. Mayor Nagin shares responsibility because he is the CEO of the city. It is his job to answer those questions too.
We've known about this scenario for a long time. The basic scenario of a major hurricane hitting New Orleans was too doomsday to contemplate. Well, contemplate it now. All of our Governors since 1927 failed to take the warnings seriously. It happened to occur on Blanco's watch. She will take the heat, and frankly, a lot of her constituents have seen just how good the roads and bridges and infrastructure are in other states. If they come back to Louisiana, they are going to want to know why the roads here are so terrible. Politics in Louisiana changed on August 25, 2005. The Democratic leaders of this state failed their constituents. The Democrats have been in virtual control of this state since reconstruction. We still have the worst roads, one of the worst education systems, one of the most corrupt governments in the nation. Failure exists at every level. We need to start getting it right.
Now, I'm not naive enough to believe that the Governor of a state or a Mayor of a city should be held directly responsible for everything that happens during their watch, but I am naive enough to believe that if they don't take corrective action then the voters should take corrective action. I'm not campaigning for their job, nor am I saying they should be impeached, but I think that this disaster has opened the eyes of a lot of people and that politics as usual won't be tolerated in Louisiana. We have a hard task ahead of us. The citizens of Louisiana deserve leadership and the leadership displayed by Governor Blanco has fallen far short of the mark. I voted for Governor Blanco last time. I thought she would do a good job. I was wrong.
As to Mayor Nagin, his list of failures is too weighty to list here, but the simple fact that he hasn't fired Eddie Compass is enough to make me question his competence.
On to the second paragraph:
Finally, I'd like to know if, on the evacuation side, how a scenario like Hurricane Ivan would be handled, i.e., a dramatic near-miss that fortunately didn't hit the city but did force an evacuation.It's called personal responsibility. I understand basic physics, like the immutable fact that in a gravity environment, water flows downhill. I have lived in floodplains and made arrangements to evacaute, to do what I had to do. When water threatened, we took time to attend to our livestock and neighbors and got the hell out. I now live on top a hill. A big hill.
Take the Ivan scenario. If everyone is personally responsible, they grab their SHTF bag and head out the door. Check on the neighbors on the way out. Go to a pre-arranged location in another longitude. Wait three days and go home. I know that is simplistic, but the simplest plans are the best.
What about all those folks who couldn't get out? They couldn't get out since 1927? Hell, in seventy years you can walk a long way. The trek from St. Louis to Oregon didn't take that long. Millions of Americans made that trek on foot, back in the 1800's. Granted, the day before a hurricane is a little late to get started. You're probably going to get wet. It is about personal responsibility.
If people choose to live in New Orleans, then they should be willing to accept the risks. If you live in a place you can't get away from, then you probably should take a good look at your life. Understand the risks. Make decisions that will minimize those risks. And if necessary, start walking. Americans have done it before.
Now, having said all that, I'm still helping to care for internally displaced persons. Some of their stories tear at my heart strings. I hope and pray that they get their lives together, and make some decisions about how to spend the rest of it.
Frankly, I hope that New Orleans comes back stronger, more diverse, more exotic than before. I like visiting there and have lots of memories from that town. I hope to make many more memories there. But I won't live there, because water flows downhill.
10 Codes
Those of us lucky (accursed?) enough to have a job in law enforcement talk in 10-codes on the radio. We don't talk in code when speaking face-to-face. The surest sign of a rookie is someone who speaks in 10-codes when not on the radio. I don't know the origin of the code system, and I know that it varies from state to state. What I might call a 10-33 (network is reserved for emergency traffic) here in Louisiana, someone else might call by a different code. The CB radio boys picked up the 10-codes during the Smokey and the Bandit phase of Americana, and the long-haul truckers used it over the roadways with some regional variations. 10-codes are a vital piece of the law enforcement culture.
One of the most used 10-codes is 10-8. When you go 10-8 you let your dispatcher know that you are "in service, available for call". Most codes have opposites. For example, the opposite of 10-8 might be 10-6. 10-6 means "Busy". As in "I am busy doing what you last sent me to do."
Dispatchers and supervisors respect those codes. The dispatchers have a sergeant there, usually an officer of great experience and knowledge. The sergeant knows that when you are - - working a wreck, for example, you might have eight or ten things going on at a single time. You have rubber-neck traffic to deal with, you have tow-trucks to deal with. Maybe an ambulance or two, and maybe a fire truck. You have relatives showing up, cluttering up your traffic, to pick up the walking wounded, or inquiring about the nearest hospital, or wondering where the tow-truck hauled the debris. Not to mention the paperwork. You are in fact, 10-6. Busy.
The dispatcher, on the other hand, has to clear her calls. She (all personal pronouns are generic) has a list of incoming calls that need attention and a list of units available to service those calls. It is her job to get units rolling to protect and serve the public, to assist the officers on a call by sending the assets the officer needs, and to keep the sergeant amused during a long shift. A sergeant and a dispatcher are partners, just like the two officers in the cruiser are partners.
But, the sergeant knows how busy a routine call can get, and when you are 10-6, he (again, all personal pronouns are generic) will prevent the dispatcher from giving the officer another call. Lets say, for the sake of this exercise, that I am in unit 920. The radio conversation might go like this:
Dispatch: "Dispatch, 920"
920: "920"
Dispatch: "Are you able to go 10-8?"
920: "negative. The ambulance just got here and I have a wrecker standing by. It'll be a few minutes. I'm still 10-6."
The sergeant might ask again in 10 minutes, but they won't give you another call until you are finished with the first one. We can only do one thing at a time, especially when that one thing actually has ten or fifteen things going on simultaneously. As soon as you go 10-8, you'll get the next call, and it will be a long night when calls start stacking on the dispatchers log.
All this to tell you about 10-codes, and to let you know that for the next several hours, I'll be 10-6 at the range.
One of the most used 10-codes is 10-8. When you go 10-8 you let your dispatcher know that you are "in service, available for call". Most codes have opposites. For example, the opposite of 10-8 might be 10-6. 10-6 means "Busy". As in "I am busy doing what you last sent me to do."
Dispatchers and supervisors respect those codes. The dispatchers have a sergeant there, usually an officer of great experience and knowledge. The sergeant knows that when you are - - working a wreck, for example, you might have eight or ten things going on at a single time. You have rubber-neck traffic to deal with, you have tow-trucks to deal with. Maybe an ambulance or two, and maybe a fire truck. You have relatives showing up, cluttering up your traffic, to pick up the walking wounded, or inquiring about the nearest hospital, or wondering where the tow-truck hauled the debris. Not to mention the paperwork. You are in fact, 10-6. Busy.
The dispatcher, on the other hand, has to clear her calls. She (all personal pronouns are generic) has a list of incoming calls that need attention and a list of units available to service those calls. It is her job to get units rolling to protect and serve the public, to assist the officers on a call by sending the assets the officer needs, and to keep the sergeant amused during a long shift. A sergeant and a dispatcher are partners, just like the two officers in the cruiser are partners.
But, the sergeant knows how busy a routine call can get, and when you are 10-6, he (again, all personal pronouns are generic) will prevent the dispatcher from giving the officer another call. Lets say, for the sake of this exercise, that I am in unit 920. The radio conversation might go like this:
Dispatch: "Dispatch, 920"
920: "920"
Dispatch: "Are you able to go 10-8?"
920: "negative. The ambulance just got here and I have a wrecker standing by. It'll be a few minutes. I'm still 10-6."
The sergeant might ask again in 10 minutes, but they won't give you another call until you are finished with the first one. We can only do one thing at a time, especially when that one thing actually has ten or fifteen things going on simultaneously. As soon as you go 10-8, you'll get the next call, and it will be a long night when calls start stacking on the dispatchers log.
All this to tell you about 10-codes, and to let you know that for the next several hours, I'll be 10-6 at the range.
Friday, September 16, 2005
10-7
Today is done. I strapped on my duty belt at 6:30 a.m. this morning and took it off for good at 11:15 p.m. Yeah, the team lost, but they got points on the board against a real powerhouse.
So, I am sitting here at the computer, with a cold coke. I accidentally splashed a little bourbon in it as I was passing the bar. Shit happens.
Today was a smashing success because I protected and served the people I live among, and in doing so, I accomplished the prime mission for every law enforcement officer: I came home safe at the end of the shift.
For those who might wonder about the title of this post, it is the final radio call of the day. When you finally get home, when you are powering down the cruiser, the last thing you do is to pick up the mike and tell the station that you are 10-7. Out of service.
I'm 10-7.
So, I am sitting here at the computer, with a cold coke. I accidentally splashed a little bourbon in it as I was passing the bar. Shit happens.
Today was a smashing success because I protected and served the people I live among, and in doing so, I accomplished the prime mission for every law enforcement officer: I came home safe at the end of the shift.
For those who might wonder about the title of this post, it is the final radio call of the day. When you finally get home, when you are powering down the cruiser, the last thing you do is to pick up the mike and tell the station that you are 10-7. Out of service.
I'm 10-7.
Friday was a long day, and it ain't over yet. I have to work the local high school football game in a couple of hours, and the team we are going to be playing is going to kick our butt. Clean our clock. Show us how the cow ate the cabbage.
I'm home long enough to change tee-shirts. Body armor doesn't breathe, and in humid Louisiana, working traffic in the sun is a recipe for heatstroke. The tee shirt I just took off was soaked with sweat. Not damp, but soaked. I wrung it out over the toilet before I put it in the hamper. I'm gonna get some tea in me, re-hydrate a little, kiss Milady, and head back to work.
Gonna put that body armor back on, too. I have it hanging over a rack so it will dry out a little bit.
I'm home long enough to change tee-shirts. Body armor doesn't breathe, and in humid Louisiana, working traffic in the sun is a recipe for heatstroke. The tee shirt I just took off was soaked with sweat. Not damp, but soaked. I wrung it out over the toilet before I put it in the hamper. I'm gonna get some tea in me, re-hydrate a little, kiss Milady, and head back to work.
Gonna put that body armor back on, too. I have it hanging over a rack so it will dry out a little bit.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Wal-Mart guns
I was walking through Wal-Mart last night and happened to stop by the Sporting Goods section. (Imagine that!) I notice that the firearms are back in the gun case, ready for display and sale.
Very good.
Very good.
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