Southern Democrat

Our Louisiana Attorney General, Buddy Caldwell, is a bit of an idiot. He claims to be a Republican, but then endorses a full-scale government takeover of the health care system.

ThinkProgress spoke with Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday. Caldwell opposes Obamacare and the individual mandate, but for a different reason than most of his fellow litigants: it props up the private health insurance industry. “Insurance companies are the absolute worst people to handle this kind of business,” he declared. “I trust the government more than insurance companies.” Caldwell went on to endorse the idea of a single-payer health care system, saying it’d “be a whole lot better” than Obamacare:

If Caldwell is a conservative, then I'm Ghandi's nephew. Buddy Caldwell came up under the same populist, Southern Democrat system that I came up under. He was a Democrat until 2011, then switched over to the Republican party to avoid a challenger. He also picks guitar and does Elvis impersonations. His entire political career has been one of entertainment and accommodation.

This is what we've got to deal with in Louisiana. In addition to Katrina Mary, Diaper Dave, and Dumbass Rodney, I guess we should include Buddy the Impersonator. Louisiana politicians make us very proud.

Family Pictures

Digging around in an box of old stuff, I came across this picture.

I thought my sisters might get a kick out of it. Y'all do know how to save a picture off the computer?

I'm a sick, sick man

It turns out that there's this conference in London where people are talking about climate and there's this professor from Oregon who says that climate deniers are sick.

Professor Kari Norgaard, who is currently appearing at the ‘Planet Under Pressure’ conference in London, has presented a paper in which she argues that “cultural resistance” to accepting the premise that humans are responsible for climate change “must be recognized and treated” as an aberrant sociological behavior.

Recognised and treated, huh? Lemme tell you about "recognized and treated".

When I saw the picture of the good professor, the first thing I thought was, "She needs to get those teeth floated." Anyone who's been in the horse business knows that for an equine to be thrifty with their food, the teeth must be floated so that the grinding action is consistent.

While I had her at the vet, I'd go ahead and have her fit for a hackamore. Then all we'd need is a good blanket, and check her gait. Maybe we could teach her to neck-rein.

Aberrant sociological behavior, indeed.

Ouxouiga Lodge

Back in my mis-spent youth, I was a Boy Scout and during my later years, became part of a society known as the Order of the Arrow. I was inducted into the Order as a youth and became very active in the lodge during my late teens and early 20s. After moving away, growing up, and having children of my own, I got involved in Scouting again and was a Scoutmaster for a troop of boys in Natchitoches, LA. I'm very proud to say that during my tenure, we made 12 Eagle Scouts in the course of four years.

My first Lodge, my home Lodge, was Ouxouiga Lodge, #264 and when I came back to central Louisiana I found that it had been absorbed into another lodge during a Scouting re-organization. Old Ouxouiga Lodge no longer exists, but a number of us old Scouters have memorabilia.

Earlier this week, a fellow that I remember as a kid called me. He's doing research on old Ouxouiga and is picking the brains of old Scouters. He wanted to come by the house and interview me, and I told him I'd drag some stuff from the attic and we'd talk.

I've gone into the attic and found the box with the memorabilia. Cups, patches, pins, old stuff I'd forgotten I had. The kid will be here at noon and we'll spend an hour or so walking through memory lane.

Are Some Cartridges More Accurate Than Others?

Dave Petzal explores this question over at Field and Stream, and comes to basically the same conclusion that I've come to. No, basically, a cartridge is just a container for powder and bullet.

Some cartridges seem to shoot more accurately than others, but that's because some cartridges are made into accurate rifles, and some companies make really fine match components. Careful attention to detail, both in assembling the rifle and assembling the ammo, makes an accurate combination, but sometimes it's impossible to assemble match ammunition from over-the-shelf components. When's the last time you saw match-quality .30-30 brass, or match quality .35 Remington brass? I don't believe that Lapua or Hornady make much of it. On the other hand, match .308 brass is fairly ease to come by, and I'd bet that each and every piece of 6BR brass is match quality. If your brass isn't consistent, you'll probably not get stellar accuracy, although many of us get great accuracy from the .30-30. I've shot some groups with a bone stock M94 that would make tactical competitors proud. I've got a Marlin 336 that will put a 200 grain .35 caliber bullet into two inches all day long at 100 yards, and that with a 2X scope. If I could see the target and had a match barrel on the rifle, it might do very well indeed.

The most important part of accuracy is the nut behind the trigger. If the ammo is carefully assembled and fired through a good barrel, the difference in the target will be the difference between the riflemen. A guy that shoots 1000 rounds a year will probably shoot better than the guy who shoots 20 rounds per year.

In 1989 I found myself commanding a SWAT team as an additional duty at Fort Polk, LA. Our marksman was issued two rifles, one built on a Remington 700 action, and another built on a Winchester 70 action. The shooter's name was Williams. One day we were out shooting and he was making bug-holes at 100 yards with his Remington. He complained to me that the rifle wasn't right. His bug-holes were bigger than they should be. In the nature of SWAT teams, I told him to quit complaining and shoot the equipment he was issued. But, after the exercise, we boxed-up the rifle and sent it to the AMU at Fort Benning. Sure enough, something was wrong with the rifle. They fixed it and sent it back.

The point of that whole story is that Williams was a very good shooter with lots of rounds through his rifle and he knew exactly what to expect from it. I doubt that Williams cared what caliber he was shooting. A good rifle with good ammo and lots of opportunity to practice, and Williams could probably have cared less if he was shooting a .308 or a .30-30.

Well, Damn!

I went out to load the Mule this afternoon, so that I can work a track meet tomorrow at the school. Loading the Mule on the trailer, I noticed that the glove box sloshed. Sloshed? Yeah, I opened it and it was full of water, the rainfall that we've gotten over the past several weeks. The owner's manual and the roll of toiled paper I keep in there had turned to pulp and the whole mess had soured. Stagnant. Repulsive.

SO, I took the Mule out of the trailer and backed it into a convenient ditch. Sour, stagnant water poured out of the glove box, soaking everything including PawPaw. Lovely, just lovely. I loaded the Mule on the trailer, hauled it around to the front of the house near the water hose and washed everything down. Added gasoline to the tank. Then came in and cleaned up.

Milady was late getting home from work and didn't feel like cooking, so I went into the fridge and found some Black Forest Ham, some pepperjack cheese, a slice of purple onion, and some creole pickles. I made a couple of sandwiches and poured me a stiff aperitif.

The proper sandwich weighs about the same weight as a half-box of magnum shotgun shells. A handful of chips and I was done. I may pour myself another cocktail before bedtime.

Fake and Inaccurate

The Daily Caller is saying that ABC News doctored a tape showing Zimmerman being led into the police station. ABC News claims that the tape doesn't show any injury to Zimmerman, and the Daily Caller says that the tape has been doctored.

At the scene of the incident, according to a three-page preliminary police report, Zimmerman was given “first aid” by Sanford Fire Department paramedics. It is unclear what that treatment consisted of, and how much time elapsed between the paramedics’ intervention and Zimmerman’s arrival at the Sanford Police Department.

Martin’s family’s attorney, Benjamin Crump, appeared on television almost immediately after ABC News released the video, telling CNN’s Piers Morgan that the footage is a “smoking gun.” Crump added that it shows the Sanford Police Department’s version of events is a “fabrication” and that “it’s obvious to us that there was something that night they conspired to cover up.”

I'm sure that the Grand Jury that will convene on April 10th will hear evidence from the paramedics who treated Zimmerman, not depend on a low-resolution police tape that was taken later. ABC News is apparently trying to boost ratings, and if this is the tactic they're using, they're in the same boat that CBS was in when Dan Rather used Fake but Accurate documents to talk about George Bush.

This is the news media trying to drive the narrative and any thinking folks would discredit the information immediately. Of course, I haven't watch ABC news in a decade or longer.

Springtime

It's springtime and with that change of seasons comes the opening of the pool. It's not always an instant, easy task, but work is progressing well and the water is clearing up nicely. I vacuumed it again today and the pool will be ready for the planned opening.

This, so Patty is kept informed of important things. Mark Friday, April 27th on your calendar. Sister Patty is, of course, welcome to come jump in whenever she feels bold enough. Last year she tried to push the envelope and hearing her mutter "Sweet Jesus" through chattering teeth was sufficient to make a big brother smile.

Who?

I see that director Lee Daniels has tapped Hanoi Jane to play the part of Nancy Reagan in an upcoming movie. That's a shame, a dirty-dog shame. I haven't watched anything that Treasonous Bitch has done since 1972. I'm still surprised that she hasn't been tried and convicted. There's always hope, though. I don't believe that treason has a time limitation.

Oh, well, another movie I'll never see.

March Madness - Elite Eight

The next level of the March Madness poll is out at Field and Stream. Click here to view it and to vote. There is some surprising stuff, and some not so surprising. The Winchester 70, Remington 700 and Savage 111 continue to do well, as does the Ruger #1.

This is fun stuff. Some very good rifles are not going to make the cut this time. Don't let your favorite lose by one vote.

Don't get Cocky

If you've been watching anything this week, you've been watching the arguments in the Supreme Court over the future of Obamacare. The arguments have been described both as a train wreck and a plane wreck for the government, with lots of pundits thinking that the Court might overturn all or part of the law. Other pundits are concerned that it will be decided in a 5-4 split, one way or the other.

Lets not get cocky. There is more at issue here than the media would like to represent and the Justices are a more intellectual group than many of us realize, even if in the final analysis they're just damned lawyers. Many have said that the Court is divided into the liberal wing of Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, and Sotomayor, balanced by the conservatives Roberts, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito. Kennedy is the supposed swing vote.

At issue is the question of how far the government can go to influence our actions, to the point of making us buy a product, whether it be broccoli or insurance. I might remind my gentle readers that as I understand classical liberalism, they were very much in favor of individual liberty.

Trying to guess what the Supremes will do is an exercise in futility. I'm not much of a Court watcher, but I wouldn't be surprised if we see on or more of the Justices "jump the fence", one way or the other. This is an interesting case and the outcome is far from assured. In the final analysis, though, the Justices are just nine damned lawyers.

To Boldly Go

Read this article as a palate cleanser. It seems that the National Geographic Society has sponsored a trip to the Challenger Deep, a spot in the Mariana Trench that is the deepest in the ocean.

At 5:52 p.m. ET Sunday (7:52 a.m. Monday, local time), James Cameron arrived at the Mariana Trench's Challenger Deep, members of the National Geographic expedition have confirmed.

His depth on arrival: 35,756 feet (10,898 meters)—a figure unattainable anywhere else in the ocean.

We humans were built to explore and Cameron is exploring a place that very, very few people have ever seen. There have been more humans on the moon than have descended to the Challenger Deep and while we can all look at the moon, the environment in our deepest oceans is as alien to us as the surface of Jupiter.

This is very cool stuff. It's why we win. USA! USA!

Sunday Morning Dawg

We're watching a toddler this weekend and one of the benefits of having a pickup truck is that it's a great place for a toddler to explore while we piddle around in the yard. The dog, of course, feels a compunction to supervise.

Just one more for sheer cuteness.

There's nothing like supervising a toddler.

Football and Conspiracy

Disgraced New Orleans coach Sean Payton would do well to quit giving interviews and keep his mouth shut. No one may have talked to him about the possibility of criminal action, but I'm sure I'm not the only fellow who knows that conspiring to injure someone is a felony in the State of Louisiana.

Were I the District Attorney for Orleans Parish, I'd keep my own counsel until the NFL finished its investigation and handed down its penalties. Then I'd subpoena everyone involved, empanel a grand jury and determine if Conspiracy to commit Second Degree Battery changes wouldn't apply in this case.

I'm just saying. You have the right to remain silent.

Five years

Five years ago, I bought a ring for Milady, and because it was my sister's birthday and she happened to be with me, I bought a ring for her as well. While I was there, I bought a pistol, a Ruger Mark II.

My sister bought a set of Victorian chairs at the shop, so the pawnbroker did very well that day.

Late that night, or early the next morning depending on whose clock you were watching, my father passed away. I've always thought that Dad didn't want to die on my sister's birthday, and he didn't want to die on my wife's birthday, so he split the difference, leaving sometime around midnight.

I've still got the pistol and I'd bet my sister still has the ring, but I'd trade them both for one more cup of coffee with the Old Man. Has it been five years?

March Madness - Division II

The March Madness of deer rifles continues at Field and Stream. We're voting on Division II right now. Go over and vote for your favorite deer rifle. Not many surprises here as the Remington 700 is way out in front of the Browning BAR, but the Savage 99 is holding its own against the TC Icon, and the Ruger #1 is neck and neck with the Kimber Montana.

This is great fun and the results surprise me. A lever action rifle that hasn't been made since 1998 is beating a brand-new bolt action rifle. This is good stuff. And, let's not forget that the Ruger #1 is a falling block rifle and it's neck-and-neck with a semi-custom bolt action.

I've always thought that one day I should get a Ruger #1 and see what all the fuss is about.

Race Pimps and Hoodies

In case you have been living under a rock, the case of Trayvon Martin has spurred national interest. Trayvon Martin was killed in February in Florida following an altercation with a neighborhood watch captain in a Florida subdivision. The watch captain has claimed self-defense and has not been arrested. Trayvon Martin cannot tell us his side of the story, but the race pimps Jackson, Sharpton, and Farrakhan have all weighed in on the story.

The national news media is in full clamor, trumpeting any tiny, inconsequential movement on the story, keeping it at the forefront of our national consciousness. The police are investigating, but the elements of Florida law must be considered in any official deliberation. That's what police do. Bloggers are weighing in and after several days of watching this controversy, it's time for me to weigh in.

For me, the whole story looks like a tawdry tale of tragedy and sorrow. A seventeen year old kid is dead, a neighborhood watch captain will live a life of sorrow, and Sharpton, Jackson and Farrakhan will make money on this tragedy. That's what those three do, make money on tragedy.

I watched them during the Jena Six medial frenzy that roiled Milady's hometown. Both Sharpton and Jackson made appearances in Jena during that time. Reports from guys I personally know tell me that both Sharpton and Jackson used that tragedy as an excuse to raise funds and carrying armloads of cash out of the local area. The defense fund for the Jena Six was huge. They were later all convicted, as the media frenzy died down and the wheels of justice were allowed to turn. I note that the epicenter of the controversy, Michael Bell, has been in trouble ever since that episode with subsequent convictions.

Rivrdog weighs in with an essay on the effect of the hoodie in polite society. Appearances count in polite society. If you want to look like a thug, we're going to assume you are a thug. If you want to be seen as an upstanding member of society, dress like it.

I note that the District Attorney for Seminole Country has announced that a grand jury will meet on April 10, to review evidence in the case. This is the way the criminal justice system works. Police investigate, grand juries recommend, DAs prosecute, Courts deliberate. That's our system. The wheels of justice grind slowly, but they grind finely as well.

When Farrakhan, Sharpton and Jackson weigh in on a case, it's about money. Plain and simple. They are in it to make a dime, to further their financial security, and they make their money by inflaming racial tensions. Don't let Sharpton, Jackson, and crew color (pun intended) your views on the case. They're only in it to make a buck. That's the only reason they came to Jena and that's the only reason they're going to Florida.

Scout Rifle

I admit that I've been hankering to try a scout rifle, but I don't need any other bolt action rifles at the moment. Still, I'd like to try the scout system and I've got a couple of Winchester 94s in my gun locker. I'm thinking about mounting a pistol scope on a Model 94 to see how I like the whole Scout Rifle thing. According to some folks, Jeff Cooper liked the .30-30 cartridge and said that the Winchester 94 was one of his original sources of inspiration, although he later came to favor the bolt action rifle shooting the .308.

Still, there is a lot to like in the old .30-30 and I have several examples in the locker. I'm thinking of taking the lesser valued Winchester and buying a scout mount, mounting a low-powered pistol scope on it, and seeing what benefits might accrue from such a design.

I'm also a fan of Swift Optics and their scopes. It seems that they make a little fixed power pistol scope that might be just the bees knees for such a project. A little Googling around and I see that Optics Planet has it as well, and it qualifies for free shipping.

It looks like XS Sight Systems makes a rail for the Winchester 94. I might ask my gunsmith if he's got a better idea for mounting the rail. It sounds like a fun project, doesn't it?

Trimming the EPA

Donald Elliot, over at the Atlantic, makes the case for trimming the EPA.

Many of our environmental laws still command the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to eliminate pollution without regard to economic or job costs. They put the EPA on autopilot churning out one rule after another without heed to cost or competing values. Today in some (but not all) EPA rules, we spend huge sums chasing tiny risks that probably don't actually exist and thereby kill jobs and steal from the poor.

Mr. Elliot was EPA general counsel and a law professor at Yale. He makes a good case, but like Paul Ryan's budget, I'd say that it doesn't go far enough.

Abolish the EPA and rescind all the laws that caused the problem in the first place.

March Madness

No, not basketball, deer rifles. It's time again for Field and Stream's Sweet Sixteen of Deer Rifles. You might not agree with the brackets but they've got some fine rifles there.

I don't see the Winchester 94 in the bracket, nor do I see the Marlin 336, both of which should be included in any Sweet 16 list of rifles, but there are some fine ones there. You can go vote at the link above.