More Idiocy

It sounds like the opening to a bad bar joke.  "So, this guy walks int a Walmart wearing body armor and a rifle."

It's no joke.  Some jazzbo walked into a Neighborhood Walmart wearing body armor with a handgun on his belt and a rifle slung around his neck.  Then started taking video of the ensuring panic.  Luckily an off-duty fireman was carrying and held him at gunpoint until police arrived to arrest him.

The incident at the Missouri Walmart comes hours after police in Florida identified a man they were looking for who they alleged told a Walmart salesperson in Port St. Lucie that he was looking for something "that would kill 200 people."

I need to go to Sam's Club later today to pick up a few things.   I will not be causing panic.  But, I will be very alert.  It looks like the crazies have fixated on the Walmart stores.

Florida Man

So, this gun-violence-prevention-activist walks into a Walmart in south Florida and asks if they have anything that will kill 200 people.

He saw a "white-nationalist looking guy" buy a gun, and he got mad.

The mind reels.  These are the people who we try to have reasonable conversations with.  They are so convinced of their own righteousness that they are willing to look foolish or angerous to make a point.  My mind boggles.

If any red-flag laws (which I think are a horrible idea on constitutional grounds),  existed in Florida, this guy would be the poster child.  If you walk into a gun shop and ask for something that will kill 200 people, the clerk is absolutely beholden to deny the sale and call the police.  Which is what happened here.

Pore ol' Joe

Pore ol' Joe Biden.  He is known for his gaffes and yesterday while I was out politicing, he knocked one out of the park.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, the 2020 Democratic primary frontrunner, made another gaffe Thursday when he told a crowd in Iowa that “poor kids are just as bright and talented as white kids.”

Huh ?  Say what?

You gotta love this guy.  His heart is in the right place, but his brain runs in weird circles.  If he hadn't gone into politics, he might have been a very successful stand-up comic.

The Lever Carbine

On a discussion of a new M4-Clone I bought yesterday, Anonymous says inn comments:

As popular as the AR-15 platform is, I think the more practical version of the American Rifle is a lever action .357 carbine or trapper.

Oh, I concur, sir, you are preaching to the choir.  I've been a lever gun aficionado for several decades. I particularly lie the Marlin 1984c in .357 magnum.  I have some very nice loads for that particular setup that makes the little carbine into an effective 100 yard rifle, perfect for slipping though the pine trees and hardwood bottom of the woods I used to hunt.

I'm probably the only LEO who qualified with a levergun as a patrol rifle in Louisiana in the past 20 years.  This blog post from 2010 gives some particulars on the capabilities of the little carbine.  That particular rifle lives in New Mexico now, where my son uses it as a trail rifle, to keep whatever critter he needs to keep at bay.  A 180 grain bullet at 1600 will thump something hard enough that it will stay thumped for the interim.

Those particular rifles are still available, and I recommend them to whomever might like one.  Several companies make them.  I prefer the Marlin although by buddy, Junior always lied the Miroku clone of the Winchester 92.  Junior and I had many campfire discussions over the relative merits of each carbine.

Back to the M4.  The young warrior has been infatuated with that rifle, learning the intricacies of the mechanism.  I bet he has disassembled it several dozen times today.

America's Rifle

With all the hoopla over the weekend, I realized that I didn't currently have an AR in the stocks.  I've given them all away.  Each of my sons has an AR that I gifted to them, but the old man didn't have one in the cupboard.

So, this morning after qualifying for the Sheriff's race, I stopped by a local merchant to see what he had in stock.  I picked up an entry-level M4 clone  Pretty much everything on this rile sucks, but the price was very okay.  So, I brought it home.

Came home and laid it on the kitchen table, preparatory to giving it a good cleaning.  Grandson Quinton walked through the kitchen and expressed interest.  He's a soldier who hasn't yet been to basic training, so I thought it might be a good idea to expose him to the rifle he'll be carrying.  We went out to the shop where the cleaning gear is stashed.

Exploring the mysteries of the AR bolt assembly

He's fairly well versed, having disassembled and re-assembled it a half-dozen times.  He'll get more experience when he gets to basic, but I think that he has a firm understanding.

Today has been a very good day.

KSYL Radio Interview

I was interviewed by a local radio station, KSYL radio in Alexandria, LA, about the Sheriff's race and my candidacy.  They posted it online as a podcast, and the audio is here if anyone wants to listen to it.

Click here for the interview.

It was a lot of fun, and I hope that I get to talk to these guys again.

Qualfying

Today is the first day of qualifying for the various statewide and parish races in Louisiana.  All over the state, ccandidates are making their way to the courthouse to file the necessary paperwork to be included on the ballot.

Today was the first time I exercised this particular right and privilege of American citizenship.  I am now a qualified candidate for the office of Sheriff for Rapides Parish.

Listening to talk radio on the ay to and from the courthouse, I stopped by my local gun shop and picked up another AR.  This one is a flat-top M4 clone.  Nothing, fancy, nothing special, but BATF seems to be backed up on approvals.  Mine took about 45 minutes

Here We Go Again

Already, the strident voices calling for mass gun confiscation are shrieking into our homes.

Realistically, a gun control plan that has any hope of getting us down to European levels of violence is going to mean taking a huge number of guns away from a huge number of gun owners.

They do not want to open that Pandora's box. They really do not want to go there.

Weekend Updaate

So, as expected, we hear that President Trump is to blame for the mass shooting in El Paso.

Okay.  Who is to blame for the continuing casualty count in Chicago?

I don't believe that President Trump was either in El Paso or Chicago this weekend.  I doubt that his security detail would let him shoot up either place.

Haters gotta hate, blamers gotta blame.

The Great Taboo

If you like Scotch whisky, you've probably discovered Ralfy.  He talks about Scotch and does whisky reviews.  He's one of my go-to channels when I'm researching whiskeys.

In review 454, he talks about the Great Taboo.



Ralfy is a lot of fun, and he knows his whisky.

There is another channel that oes whiskey reviews that I lie, the Whiskey Tribe.  They are out of Austin, TX and have a lot of content.  They also do a thing called Dry Week, where once a quarter, they take a week off from consuming alcohol, for a lot of good reasons.



Moderation, guys.  It's always a good idea.

The Two Dollar Bill

There is a meme going around the Book of Face, lately.  A nostalgic meme.

Uh, yeah, I've used a $2 bill. 

Back in the late '70s I was stationed at a major Army installation in central Kentucky.  The Commanding General went to a local Chamber of Commerce meeting where the locals heartily bitched about the GIs who used local services.

The CG came back to the post and had a staff meeting to go over the complaints.  But, he wanted to demonstrate the economic power of the GIs in the local economy, so he directed that the paymaster put a single $2 bill in each pay envelope.  Direct deposit was an emerging technology, and a sizable number of soldiers were still getting paid by cash.

By early the next month, the local economy was awash in $2 currency.

That shut them up.

Mass Shooting at Wal-Mart

Multiple sources are reporting a mass casualty event at a Wal-Mart in El Paso, TX this afternoon.

Horrific news out of El Paso as authorities have told KTSM that 18 people have been killed at a local Walmart store.
Police are on the scene and there are some reports of "multiple shooters." A photo from a local police source shows at least two men entering the store armed with long rifles.

This is still breaking, and we will learn more in the coming hours and days.  It is way too early to draw any conclusions, and everything is rumor at this point.

It Ain't Hurting Business

A small gun shop in North Carolina put up a billboard mocking AOC and the rest of the "squad".

Free speech, First Amendment, etc.  I don't believe that this billboard will hurt his business, because folks who like those four ain't likely to buy guns, anyway.

Source article here.   Hat tip, Wirecutter.

Comey Again?

PJMedia is reporting that former FBI director Jim Comey broke the law protecting classified information and leaked information in violation of that law.  Of course, no one is going to prosecute it.

According to Solomon's sources, the IG report will conclude that Comey "leaked classified information and showed a lack of candor," but DOJ prosecutors declined to bring charges because they didn't think they had enough evidence to prove that Comey intended to violate the law.

I'm no lawyer, but I didn't know that intent was an element of the classified information law. If I were a DOJ prosecutor, I'd be looking hard at the law to see if intent is even covered.  Some laws require intent, some don't.  If this one doesn't, then what we're seeing is another attempt to shield a perful person fromm the consequences of their actions.

Whut? You've Never Heard This Song?

Free Bird (or Freebird) is an American power ballad first performed by rock band Lynard Skynard in 1973.  It quickly became an iconic recording.  Over forty hears later it still resonates.

Some folks have never heard it.



Heh.

The Things We Talk About

Belle's a nurse, and while shes strict on patient privilege, she's also apt to talk  shop with me on the back porch.
"The patient is on dilaudid, sublingually, in a hospice environment.  Which means we have to be really strict on medication documentation."

What do I hear?  'Yada, yada, strong medicine, someone has to be on their game."

Cops and nurses make good partners, because out jobs are remarkably similar.  We both deal with serious issues on a daily basis, working with people who may or may not understand what is happening to them.   Nurses and cops also tend to have the same perverse sense of humor..

Belle is leaving in the morning, going to Missouri to be with a family member who is having surgery net week.  This will probably be one of the longest separations we've had sine we were married.  It's okay, and I'm perfectly capable of cooking for myself.  But, I am going to miss her.

Big Tree

I spent the day at my buddy's ouse, thrying to help him get a big tree off the structure, after it feel in a wind storm.

The root ball.  Mark is at least 6'4" tall.

We cut branches, trying to assess the damage.  Mark lives in a trailer and the main trunk didn't get to the trailer, but we were cutting branches that were 6" thick.  It knocked the hell out o his place, and I suspect the little trailer will be totaled.

There were four of us working, and we're all old, retired LEOs.  I bet that none of us will be able to move tomorrow.  We'll all be spavined.

Town Folk Alley

A Town Folk Alley (now called Try Cowboy Fast Draw) is an event where a club sets up a range and lets anyone try the game, under supervision of an experienced shooter.  This is a great way to introduce new shooters to the game, and is very productive at giving folks a taste of what Cowboy Fast Draw is all about.

But, occasionally, someone will show up and pull you r leg.  In the video below, our good friend Delta Whiskey, a seasoned Cowboy Fast Draw shooter (and a champion in his own right.  He is currently the reigning Louisiana State champion,) showed up a a Town Folk Alley in Colorado and got in line, pretending that he was a neophyte.  At the time, he was the reigning Texas State Champion.

Then he started snatching 3s, which is champion level shooting.  Just watch the whole thing from the beginning.



This has become a classic cideo, and

Illinois is Anti-Business

TTAG and others are reporting that over half of Illinois gun dealers went out of business this week.  It seems that a new law went into effect that adds burdensome regulations to gun dealers inn Illinois.  Evidently, the new law requires a state license in addition to the normal BATfE dealers's license.

Previous Governor Bruce Rauner saw the writing on the wall and refused to sign the bill. However, our new Gov. Pritzker, along with the bill’s sponsors, see driving off dealers as a feature, not a bug.

I'm sure that this new law will result in an immediate, measurable decline in gun crime in Illinois, especially in that mecca of peace and prosperity, Chicago.   I bet that the immediate decrease in gun crime will save so much public money that it will offset the economic impact of driving business out of the state.

If you believe any of the above paragraph, I have a bridge I'd like to talk with you about.  Until then, we have our monthly gun match today, and I really need to start prepping for the gunfights that are sure to occur.  Peacefully and safely.

The Squad?

It appears that some freshman congress-critter proposed a boycott of Israel.  It amazes me that anyone listens to her.  hat is more amazing to me is the characterization of four young, female, leftists as a squad. 

This is no squad.  It's not even a parody of a fire team.  I understand that the President dubbed them The Squad to mock them, but he's giving them way too much credit.  Here is what a rifle squad looks like in today's Army.

I'm glad I could clear that up for you.