Fine with headlines:

Man Held for Coming Within Feet of Cheney

Wow, never figured Cheney was a hugger.

A news release:

WHAT: A rare “National Press Conference with President Bush.” As is typically the case, there will be obfuscation and no real answers provided to questions regarding the safety of all Americans and New Yorkers in particular given the Al Qaeda threat. Terrorists, mass murderers and other criminals know that America provides cheap and easy access to assault weapons. Bush will make it even easier to acquire these guns by allowing the assault weapons ban to expire on September 13. These issues will be raised during a mock press conference with five eight foot tall Bush puppets (often contradicting one another) hosted by New Yorkers Against Gun Violence (NYAGV). In addition, the event will include a number of different speakers throughout the program.

WHERE: Washington Square Park (Manhattan) Teen Plaza (between fountain and Garibaldi Statue)

WHEN: Wednesday, September 1, 11:30 am – 3 pm (Press conferences to be held at 12 noon, 1 pm & 2 pm)

WHO:

– Five President Bush Puppets

– Gun Violence Survivors

– Dr. Sheldon Teperman, Trauma Surgeon, Jacobi Medical Center

– Andy Pelosi & Jackie Kuhls (executive director & public policy directors of NYAGV)

– Ellen Freudenheim, Co-Founder, The Silent March

– Edie Smith, Pres., NY State Council, Million Mom March

WHY: The Bush administration has squandered lives by not addressing a major public health crisis. 30,000 Americans die at the end of a gun each year. Instead of tackling or even acknowledging the problem, Bush and the Republican Congress are making it worse by allowing the federal assault weapons ban to expire on September 13th, rather than working to renew and strengthening the ban. One in five law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty between 1998 – 2001 was killed with an assault weapon. Some of America’s most heinous recent crimes such as the Washington DC sniper murders and the Columbine High School massacre were committed with assault weapons.

VISUALS: Five 8-foot puppets resembling President Bush sitting around a dinner table – out to lunch. Posters displaying assault weapons.

Proof you can entertain idiots with a puppet show.

Robert Douglas tell us how to be legal with our shotgun modifications. That whole post illustrates just how stupid and arbitrary gun laws are.

As another example, have a look at this. Go ahead, I’ll wait. Alright, that gun is perfectly legal to own. It’s a handgun. No class 3 or NFA tax required.

Now, look at this one. This one is an NFA subject to a class 3 license and requires a $200 transfer tax. If you possess it without the tax, the crime is comparable to illegal possession of a machine gun.

Both guns are built on AR15 receivers and function like any semi-automatic AR15. The first has a barrel length of 7.5 inches and the second has a barrel length of, you guessed it, 7.5 inches. If you register the receiver as a handgun, you can build it as pistol subject to some regulations. If it’s a rifle and the barrel is less than 16 inches, it is classified the same as a machine gun.

Here’s more info on keeping SBRs, AOWs and pistols legal.

Update: It does the beg the question: Can you slap a stock on a pistol?

Update to the update: Robert answers my question, which again affirms that gun laws in the US are arbitrary and stupid.

Living in rural (OK, suburban) East Tennessee, you see some things that you probably won’t see other places. If you see a gun on rack in the back of truck, you don’t think twice. If you hear a gunshot, you figure Joe Bob from up the street is doing some target practice or has varmints in his yard. No big deal, happens all the time.

The other morning, my wife awakens to the sounds of the dogs raising Hell. She looks out the window to see what’s got them fired up. A herd of cattle (about 6 or so) is walking across the unfenced portion of my backyard. She says she watches them as they meander up the side yard, through the driveway and on across the street. Eventually, they settle in one of my neighbor’s yards until the farmers (who had a tree fall on their fence) come and get them. The dogs came in and were obviously proud of having deterred these invaders.

Then, this weekend, I was smoking some ribs on the old barbecue when I hear an odd sound. I look up and see a powered parachute flying over my house. If you don’t know what those are, you can see them here. To me, they look like someone strapped a parachute onto a lawn mower. The guy is low enough to the ground (I figure within 100 feet) to see me staring. He waved. I waved back. I’m pretty sure he mouthed the word Howdy but I couldn’t hear him over the engine. A few minutes later, here comes another and then another. Apparently, they were taking off from the field behind my house.

Just thought I’d share.

Tom Humphrey, whose pathetic DemCon blog has been followed up by his pathetic RepubliCon blog, writes:

After all, bloggers, I am instructed, do not have to follow those ironclad rules of attribution, fact-checking, logic and such that burden the daily production of stuff to print by traditionally ink-stained wretches. You can just babble like a talk show radio guy.

People are crowing about how that is so Old Media. Honestly, it sounds to me like he’s got blogging down.

Step one: Say something stupid and unverifiable
Step two: Wait for some prominent bloggers to notice
Step three: Traffic

Cool little letter to the editor:

I regret that a deputy was killed and another wounded in serving public interests.

The arrested man was described as a “gun enthusiast.” Having more than one firearm does not define him as a gun enthusiast and seems to denigrate lawful possession of such items.

The fact is that many like him who are engaged in criminal activity consider the possession of guns as a necessity. As an endowment member of the National Rifle Association, I support law enforcement but also find such a statement to be somewhat disturbing if made by either the press or a sheriff such as Ken Jenne (or by his department), neither of which has a track record for supporting Second Amendment rights or providing objective non-opinionated facts.

I am sure that there were many readers who perceived the implication that it takes a so-called “gun enthusiast” to shoot law enforcement officers.

Mark E. Zink:

The assault weapons ban has been effective in deterring crime, for crimes committed with assault weapons are down 66 percent since the ban was enacted. Moreover, a Department of Justice study has found that the Assault Weapons Ban has contributed to the reduction of the number of police officers killed with assault weapons.

First, the ATF has said gun trace data (where the 66% comes from) is irrelevant to overall crime statistics. And the Department of Justice study does not exist. It’s a Violence Policy Center interpretation of DOJ data. What the National Institute for Justice (the research arm of the DOJ) says is:

We cannot clearly credit the ban with any of the nation’s recent drop in gun violence. And, indeed, there has been no discernible reduction in the lethality and injuriousness of gun violence

and

It is thus premature to make definitive assessments of the ban’s impact on gun violence. Should it be renewed, the ban’s effects on gun violence are likely to be small at best and perhaps too small for reliable measurement

and

assault weapons were “rarely used in gun crimes even before the ban.”

The author concludes with:

As someone who lost his father to gun violence, I can not thank proponents of tough gun control enough. Hopefully, Congressman Fossella will eventually change his mind and support the assault weapons ban.

It is sad that your father was the victim of gun violence. I don’t wish that on anyone. However, don’t use it as a tool to lend credence to the bogus statistics of your cause.

George Bush:

Earlier in the day, in an interview on NBC-TV’s “Today” show that was broadcast to coincide with the start of the Republican National Convention in New York, Bush was asked “Can we win?” the war on terror.

“I don’t think you can win it,” he responded. “But I think you can create conditions so that those who use terror as a tool are less acceptable in parts of the world.”

Huh? Isn’t that the basis for your campaign? Obviously, you really can’t stop them all but you can deter them, which is what he was getting at (and, by the way, taking my tweezers at the airport hasn’t prevented any terror attacks). There will always be a few whackos waiting and planning to do something.

Update: Kevin has the whole quote, which it seems has been widely taken out of context.

With a release of a new book entitled He Can’t Even Show Up For His Day Job, the United States Senators for Truth (and they even have a hard time calling themselves that) have come forward to challenge John Kerry. They allege that the man doesn’t show up for work.

The USST has released an ad attacking Senator Kerry’s lack of a record excerpted as follows:

John Edwards: If you have any questions about what John Kerry is made of, just spend 3 months campaigning with him.

Lamar Alexander: I served in the US Senate with John Kerry.

Trent Lott: I served in the US Senate with John Kerry.

Lamar Alexander: John Kerry has not been honest about being a Senator.

Rick Santorum: He’s lying about his record, mostly because, you know, he doesn’t have one. Hell, as crappy as my record is, at least I’ve got one. I don’t even think he’s a Senator

Trent Lott: Who cares if he was in Cambodia . . . Can I try that again? You think this tie makes me look dorky?

Cameraman: Senator, it’s not your tie that makes you look dorky.

Trent Lott: Huh?

Cameraman: OK, 3 . . . 2 . . . 1.

Trent Lott: Who cares if he was in Cambodia on Christmas in 1968? He hasn’t been to a Senate Intelligence Committee meeting in, like, two years.

John McCain: John Kerry vote on an issue? I’ve never seen it happen.

Rick Santorum: John Kerry betrayed the men and women he is supposed to serve from Massachusetts, which is OK because most of them are gay.

Diane Feinstein: He showed up to vote for some gun control once, so he’s OK with me.

Trent Lott: John Kerry failed to act on behalf of his constituents. Mostly because he, you know, failed to act at all. I don’t even know if he’s really a Senator.

The KNS has put up Crosswire blog, which pits South(of)KnoxBubba (representing the left) and WestKnoxMomma (representing the right, and who is married to this guy) against each other covering RepubliCon. WestKnoxMomma is actually at the convention. I guess SKB has to TiVo it.

SayUncle is off to the Motel 6 in Athens, GA to cover the Libertarian Convention. He also apologizes to The Onion for stealling their joke.

Congrats to Norman Houle for winning the NRA’s National High Power Rifle Championship for 2004. Notice his high tech looking rifle in the picture. It looks a lot like one of these. The odd thing about that gun is that it’s a modified AR15, one of those assault weapons that has no sporting purpose. Yet he won a sporting event with one. Weird.

Whenever I see stuff like this, I cringe. A gunship over a US city. Oh, dear.

This blog is now two years old. I’ve enjoyed it. Hope you have too. Some numbers:

Between 255,000 and 320,000 visits, depending on which site tracker you believe.

Average of 647 or 980 visits per day, depending on which site tracker you believe.

One opinion piece published in a newspaper.

Eight dead-tree media mentions that I know of.

3,518 Total Posts

8,436 Total Comments (sorry to all the people who commented at the old blogger site, those were lost in the upgrade to MT)

407,464 Total Words in all posts

465,215 Total Words in Comments

Posts by category:

Blog Matters 420
Civil Liberties 264
Current Events 418
Eminent Domain 20
Guns 870
Humor 290
Media Watch 175
North Carolina News & Politics 5
Notes to Junior 51
Notes to Self 145
Pets 183
Politics 333
Pop Culture 111
Race Relations 43
Recipes 20
Taxes 66
Tennessee News & Politics 291
The Issues 121

I’m on my third blog software package (Blogger, Movable Type, and Wordpress)

Top referrers:

Instapundit
FirearmNews
KeepAndBearArms
AR15.com
SouthKnoxBubba

Top search phrases:

Big butts
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Note: SayUncle doesn’t really have an infatuation with butts but Google thinks I do.

Soon to be number one referring key phrase: Olympic Ass

Changed the minds of at least four people regarding the assault weapons ban.

Countless arguments with several idiots.

Countless arguments with a few smart people.

Countless go-rounds with media people. Many of which responded; two of which issued retractions; two of which were just total dicks.

Total money spent on hosting and other stuff: $319.90

Oh my!

Apparently and unsurprisingly to anyone who knows anything about guns, handguns (not assault weapons) are the weapon of choice for criminals. Gunscribe has the skinny on a secret ATF study:

Now we have a story about 4,852 guns siezed in Philidephia last year and not one, single mention of any assault weapon seized. (sic)

Update: HeartlessLibertarian asks:

Now why would a report like that be confidential?

Yes, why. I’d like to know.

Matt addresses how some gun owners mess things up for other gun owners. A friend of mine recently accompanied his nephew to the gun show. He explained to his nephew that there were different types of people at the show:

Newbies.

Hunters and sportsmen checking out gear.

Collectors and buffs looking for rare things.

Target shooters and collectors looking for new toys.

People in camouflage and combat boots who were never in the military and probably belong to some organizations and yammer on about black helicopters and the pending race war.

And yes that last group gives us gun owners a bad name.

The Geek has a public service announcement:

Congress is currently still in the August recess, and is scheduled to return on September 7th, the day after labor day, and only 4 days before the so-called “assault weapons” ban is set to expire.

The unrelenting rhetoric coming from anti-gun lobby groups, politicians, and editorial writers is becoming increasingly shrill and inflammatory, reflecting the sheer desperation felt by these people. Though they undoubtedly know the ban has had no effect on crime (they have access to the same studies that the rest of us
do), the symbolism of the ban not being renewed will be a stunning blow to their misguided cause. And, their credibility is at stake… these are the people who have been insisting that armageddon will befall our country on September 13th if the ban is not renewed. So, expect this outrageous “backed into a corner” rhetoric to worsen dramatically as we enter the ban’s final week.

Though neither the House or the Senate have shown any interest in wasting any of the precious little time that remains this session on this issue, the anti-gun organizations will undoubtedly unleash an intense barrage of mistruths in that final week, with the usual goal of trying to deceive the public into supporting something they otherwise wouldn’t care much about.

It is YOUR job to ensure your voice is heard too. There’s no time for mailing letters. Sending an e-mail won’t hurt, but the best thing you can do is to CALL both of your Senators AND your Representative on ***September 7th***, and politely state your strong opposition to renewing the ban.

Before calling your Senators, check this page to see how each voted on the Feinstein amendment to renew the ban earlier this year (the vote is in the far-right column, highlighted in yellow… green “N” was against the ban, red “Y” was for it)…

http://www.awbansunset.com/senate.html

Most politicians already know this is a loser issue that does nothing for public safety, violates the Second Amendment, and could very well cost them their job. If each gets a dozen or two phone calls from ban supporters, but receives hundreds or thousands of calls from opponents of the ban, this belief will once again be reconfirmed.

To help ensure a steady flow throughout the day, I suggest that we stagger our calls.

If your last name begins with:

A – F: call between 9:30am – 11:00am eastern time.
G – L: call between 11:00am – 12:30pm eastern time.
M – S: call between 12:30pm – 2:00pm eastern time.
T – Z: call between 2:00pm – 3:30 eastern time.

Of course, this is merely a suggestion… don’t fret if you can’t call at your “designated” time. Just call at whatever time you can! Remember, Tuesday, September 7th (the day after Labor Day) is when this phone call drive will take place.

You can easily obtain your elected officials’ contact info here:

http://www.capwiz.com/nra/dbq/officials/

Forward this to everyone you know, and let us leave no doubt in the minds of our elected officials as to just
how unpopular this gun ban is!

The rhetoric has started. Such as:

With two weeks left before the expiration of the assault weapons ban, the rhetoric is picking up. Here’s one:

From 1998 to 2001, 211 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty. According to a new study of FBI data by the Violence Policy Center, 41 were felled by knock-offs of military-style assault weapons, the arms of choice for drug dealers and gang bangers.

That so many police were killed by weapons most Americans assumed were outlawed in 1994 is the best reason for overhauling a loophole-ridden ban set to expire on Sept. 13. That’s just six days after Congress returns to work.

Quoting a discredited study that improperly classifies half the weapons listed and actually lists a Jeep as an assault weapon hardly makes the case for you.

The law halting the sale and manufacture of assault weapons barely passed 10 years ago. Enough votes were mustered only because supporters agreed to a watered-down version.

It barely passed because it was a stupid law that, in 1996, was actually repealed by the House. And the votes on this law cost a few people their seats.

Opponents of the ban say the law has proved to be ineffective and should be allowed to lapse. But closing the loopholes in a weak law makes more sense.

For example, gun makers can circumvent the law by making cosmetic changes to the design of the 19 banned weapons, give them a new name and put them on the market. It was one of these post-ban M-16 knock-offs called the Bushmaster XM15 that the D.C. snipers used to hunt down and kill 10, injure three and terrorize the nation’s capital in the fall of 2002. Among their victims were three Virginians.

Now, we get to it. Nevermind that that these weapons are the same as semi-auto hunting rifles or that the DC snipers only took one shot per victim. Just use them in the same paragraph for added effect. So, you entitle the article keep assault weapons off the street then acknowledge this law does not such thing. Why push for it then?

And this one intimates the ban affects machine guns, which it doesn’t.

And this one is for the children.

Here’s one that tries to make it sound reasonable by pointing out that some gun owners are for the ban. Anyone who knows anything about guns and the ban would admit that it’s frivolous legislation.

Expect these types of articles to keep popping up more frequently in the next two weeks. Keep contacting your representatives.

Not content with stereotyping the breed, now they must stereotype the owners:

Pit bull owners are mostly young, brash males with an attitude, who strut like they own the sidewalks, say some dog owners who feel terrorized by pit bulls in the area of Isabella and Church Sts.

The underlying message, they say, is: Don’t mess with me or my pit bull.

Yes, because every pit bull owner has something to prove.

Dog owners interviewed yesterday in the area where a savage pit bull attack occurred in a back alley early Saturday morning — in which a 25-year-old man who was walking two pit bulls for their out-of-town owner was mauled by the dogs and sent to hospital with extensive leg, back and arm wounds — weren’t mourning the loss of the two dogs, who were destroyed by police.

Dog owners, along with experts in animal training and safety, said that, as dangerous as pit bulls can be, the owners are sometimes the main problem. “Guys who want to look tough and want a macho-type dog sometimes get a pit bull, and they have no idea what they have,” said Liz White of Animal Alliance, an organization committed to the protection of animals through political action and education.

As dog owner and an expert in animal training and safety myself, the owners are almost always the problem. Yes, there are some bad apples who give the breed a bad name but a lot of us don’t. It has nothing to do with being macho for me. It’s that I like certain breeds of dogs. Don’t lump me and other responsible owners into the same category.

One thing about the pre-game show I’ve seen on TV for RepubliCon is that the protesters aren’t locked up behind cages. . . . well, yet. Good for NY.

Sitting on the couch playing with junior the other night with a little stuffed dragon looking thing. Took the toy dragon and started making growling sounds (why I think I know what a dragon growl sounds like is beyond me). When I made the growl, suddenly politically incorrect dog comes running to the couch, jumps on the couch. He then puts his ears back, tucks his tail and rolls over on his back. He was being totally submissive because he thought I was growling, I guess. Weird.

Real ones, too. Indianapolis PD to arm officers with M-16s. Not sure why that is, since we all know that these weapons are ONLY good for killing as many people as possible as quickly as possible. I’m not sure how that squares with a “protect and serve” mission, but what do I know?

The announcement follows criticism from IPD officers that they regularly face criminals who have more firepower, although officials say their announcement was not a response to those complaints.

The criticism increased after IPD Patrolman Timothy “Jake” Laird was gunned down Aug. 18 by a Southside man firing an SKS-style assault weapon from more than 150 yards away.

“SKS-style assault weapon.” Wait, it gets better.

In most cases, IPD’s 1,200-member force uses .40 caliber Glock handguns. Also, some officers have 12-gauge shotguns. Some on the force, such as SWAT members, already have access to specialty weapons and gear.

IPD received the [M-16s] last year but delayed their use, partly because of range safety issues. Indianapolis did not have a range where training with the more powerful rifles could take place safely, police said.

You gotta be kidding me. I guess it depends on what the training is going to be like. I can think of at least three ranges in my hometown where I can shoot rifles considerably more powerful than an M-16. Granted, these are from fixed positions, so they couldn’t train on fire-and-motion, or stuff like that.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Department has 49 of a similar patrol rifle, the Bushmaster AR-15 semiautomatic…”We felt the need . . . to equip ourselves, for lack of a better term, to meet force with force,” said Sheriff’s Capt. Phil Burton. “In order to provide safety to the public.”

I just want to know: how does an Evil Bushmaster Sniper-Rifle Assault Weapon provide “safety” if it’s only good for killing people?

Can I get an “Amen?”

I’m sure it’s entirely coincidental that multiple news articles are mentioning that some folks feel Bush isn’t too bright. For example, this one:

These are signs of the fierce conviction of some voters — and the secret fear of a quieter and perhaps larger group — that George W. Bush is not smart enough to continue as president. Indeed, if an unscientific survey of bumper stickers, graffiti and letters to the editor in this conservative mountain region is an indicator, doubts are spreading. Yet the subject is seldom taken head-on by the mainstream newspapers and network news. The discourse about presidential intelligence appears mainly on the Internet, in the partisan press, among television comics and at the level of backyard jokes and arguments.

And this one:

His supposed intellectual failings are the butt of countless jokes, but so far the question of George Bush’s brainpower hasn’t hampered his electoral prospects. Why not? In the latest of his dispatches for G2, former New York Times editor Howell Raines asks how important intelligence really is in an American president

And this one:

Upon losing a game at the 1925 Baden-Baden tournament, Aaron Nimzowitsch, the great chess theoretician and a superb player, knocked the pieces off the board, jumped on the table and screamed, “How can I lose to this idiot?”

Nimzowitsch may have lived decades ago in Denmark, but he had the soul of a modern American Democrat. After all, Democrats have been saying much the same — with similar body language — ever since the erudite Adlai Stevenson lost to the syntactically challenged Dwight Eisenhower in 1952. They said it again when they lost to that supposed simpleton Ronald Reagan. Twice, would you believe? With George W. Bush, they are at it again, and equally apoplectic.

Michael Silence attempted to use candy cigar sales as a tool to predict the presidential election. These candy cigars come in a Bush and Kerry variety. At the local convenience store, I saw some for sale ($0.59 each). The Bush box had sold considerably more. What was interesting to me was that the pictures of both men on their respective cigar boxes had been vandalized. It looked as though people had taken pocket knives or keys and scratched their faces. Bush’s face was vandalized considerably more, though he had sold more cigars.

Apparently, selling your vote on Ebay is illegal. Duh.

However, it is still legal to buy votes through pork barrel politics. Just don’t make direct payments. Go figure.

Here’s a pretty comprehensive list of advice and resources on starting a blog.

Another blog meme. This one is for recipes.

I should point out SayUncle has a recipe section too.

Damn! A man is walking his dog when an alligator clamps down on his dog’s head. The man takes out his pocket knife, stabs the gator in the eye and saves his dog.

Caught an episode of Drew Carey. The plot was Drew and his girlfriend discover they have opposing political views. Drew is right-winger and she’s a left-winger. Their first debate was about gun control. Drew had a couple of one-liners I wanted to share (paraphrased). Number one:

Girlfriend: If that guy had his way, everyone would own a gun.

Drew: Well, only half of us have them now and that’s not working out so well.

Number two:

Girlfriend: You’re three times more likely to be shot by that gun. And if you keep it up, I’ll be the one to shoot you.

Drew: If you want to win an argument, shouldn’t you stay on your side of it?

Gun control in sitcoms? OK, then.

Per this:

A Union man who said he was shot in the leg when a rifle he bought at a Florence sporting goods store discharged as he was driving home with the gun still in its box has sued the store and the weapon’s manufacturer.

Michael Woosley, a 43-year-old corporate jet inspector, was driving the family minivan Oct. 14 on Big Bone Road while his stepson, Austin, admired the $240 Marlin “varmint” .17-caliber rifle, still in the box on his lap.

Michael Woosley said he had bought the gun as a birthday present for Austin.

Woosley told The Post that Austin put his hand in the box and the gun went off. The bullet struck Michael Woosley in the right leg, hitting his thigh bone so hard that the slug “went to pieces,” he said.

When most people handle guns (like, when they buy them), they check the chamber. Did this guy not do that? I find this one a little hard to believe.

And at the end:

A Marlin spokesman has said it was “virtually impossible” for a loaded gun to leave the factory because of precautions that are taken there. The company’s guns are shipped directly to Dick’s Sporting Goods stores without intermediary stops.

A few technical missteps aside, this article about the assault weapons ban is fairly objective:

A decade after Buffalo led the nation in crimes involving assault weapons – and with the city again plagued with gang-related violence – the federal law banning some of those guns expires Sept. 13.

And while some gun-control advocates are up in arms, there’s otherwise little outcry about the fact that Congress appears unwilling to renew the ban.

Once touted as a sure-fire way to cut crime, the assault-weapons ban now looks like a loophole-ridden partial success even to some of its backers.

And to gun-rights supporters, it’s a joke.

Well, there aren’t any loopholes. The law specifies what and how many features semi-automatic rifles capable of accepting a detachable magazine can have. If they meet that criteria, they’re legal.

This quote by Josh Sugarmann, of the Violence Policy Center, is interesting :

For those who fear that if the ban expires there will be a flood of AK-47s and Uzis on our streets, the sad truth is we’re already drowning.

So, the ban as you (and Diaz) have mentioned hasn’t kept weapons off the street. Yet the crime rate and violent crime rates continue to fall?

But it seems that guns are turning up big in the political debates:

Petka, Keyes fire at Blagojevich, Obama for anti-gun rights vote and veto

Brady blasts Keyes on gun control (lame rhetoric is their headline, not mine)

Celebrating the veto of the law that let’s people bypass local law to defend themselves

I rather thought Illinois was a lost cause in terms of gun rights.

To whoever landed at this website doing a search for what color can a penis be, I hope everything is OK.

When I first heard about this, I dismissed it as some insane babblings by some idiots and thought it would never happen. I was wrong. I’m talking about this:

Election monitors that normally would be expected to observe elections in fledgling democracies like Azerbaijan and Moldova are scheduled to watch the vote in a more established democratic nation — the United States.

Responding to a request from 13 Democratic congressmen and the State Department, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe will be sending a group to make sure the United States holds a fair election in November.

Lawmakers who requested the OSCE presence said problems in the 2000 election spurred them to ask the international organization to participate. They say that the monitors will help ensure that the United States should have nothing to hide, but the observers will be there to make sure the election does not suffer any civil rights violations or other irregularities.

Who the Hell allowed this to happen? This is America. Aside from the issues of sovereignty, that it’s an insult to US citizens, and the appearance of kowtowing to international bureaucrats is the fact it’s embarrassing. Sure, Florida was an embarrassment but this is abysmal.

The fact that our government is allowing this crap is horrendous and should not stand. Who is the OSCE?

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the largest regional security organization in the world with 55 participating States from Europe, Central Asia and North America. It is active in early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.

The OSCE approach to security is comprehensive and co-operative: comprehensive in dealing with a wide range of security-related issues including arms control, preventive diplomacy, confidence- and security-building measures, human rights, democratization, election monitoring and economic and environmental security; co-operative in the sense that all OSCE participating States have equal status, and decisions are based on consensus.

So, if I understand that correctly, it sounds like a group with military capabilities. A peacekeeping force. Here. In the US. Monitoring our elections. That should scare the Hell out of us all. It does me. If it doesn’t scare you, I don’t know what to tell you.

As Jeff said: Didn’t we once fight a war over something like this…? Rest assured, any armed, foreign soldiers seen at SayUncle’s friendly neighborhood voting establishment will be confronted and told to leave.

This is my neighborhood, who the fuck let you in?

what he said. Spoons tells us why a Bush re-election would be bad for conservatives. A taste:

Got that? A conservative with reservations about a Repubican President who supports affirmative action, who wants the government to restrict political speech, who wants to open our borders and give amnesty to illegal aliens, who wants to pass restrictive gun laws, who resists arming pilots, who surrenders to Democrats on judicial appointments, who embraces liberal junk evirovoodo on the myth of global warming, who lets Ted Kennedy write his Education bill, who spends more than any Democrat President we’ve ever had, who proposes and passes the largest entitlement expansion in the history of the Republic…. Need I go on?

And any conservative upset that Bush is taking the liberal position on affirmative action political speech illegal immigration gun control arming pilots judicial appointments global warming education spending entitlements and free trade… is denounced as a “purist.” Whatever. And any conservative for whom any of the foregoing gives them “reservations” about Bush makes Jay “wretch.”

Spoons thinks that a Bush loss may get the Republicans back on the right track (pun intended). His commentators disagree stating that a loss may push the Republicans to a Giuliani type left. That may happen but, in all honesty, I’d prefer the downward spiral to the liberty-crushing machine to occur quickly as opposed to a socialist creep that oozes upon us so slowly that, once in place, is irreversible. As Donald Sensing said:

I predict that the Bush administration will be seen by freedom-wishing Americans a generation or two hence as the hinge on the cell door locking up our freedom. When my children are my age, they will not be free in any recognizably traditional American meaning of the word. I’d tell them to emigrate, but there’s nowhere left to go. I am left with nauseating near-conviction that I am a member of the last generation in the history of the world that is minimally truly free.

The AP:

John Kerry challenged President Bush on Thursday to weekly debates from now until Nov. 2 on campaign issues like education, health care and national security.

“America deserves a discussion like we’re having here today, which I’m prepared to have with this president every single week from now until the election,” the Democratic presidential candidate said.

No doubt it’s related to Bush’s small leap in the polls. I think it’s a smart move on Kerry’s part. However, the luster of such a thing would wear off after two debates and the public would grow bored of them. American’s aren’t known for there attention sp . . . what was I talking about?

Oh yeah. Seriously, Kerry’s lack of charisma and Bush’s isms could be damaging to them both.

The AP:

President Bush wants to work with Republican Sen. John McCain to go to court against political ads by “shadowy” outside groups, the White House said Thursday amid growing pressure on the president to denounce attacks on John Kerry’s war record.

“We want to pursue court action,” Bush spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to New Mexico. “The president said if the court action doesn’t work, that he would be willing to pursue legislative action with Sen. McCain on that.”

Heaven forbid someone level criticism against our politicos. George, you signed campaign finance into law. You created the mess you now have to deal with. I would thank you to do so without further infringing on the rights of the people to freely speak.

Well, someone actually hosted the Olympic volley ball butt pictures up on their own site. Check it out.

It’s rather like my post, without all the clicking.

Les is apparently all Kerry, all the time.

“If you are listening to a rock star in order to get your voting information on who to vote for, you are a bigger moron than they are. Why are we rock stars? Because we’re morons.”

– Shock rocker ALICE COOPER, who hasn’t been very shocking for quite some time.

Gunscribe has the skinny on the impacts (rather the lack of) of the assault weapons ban.

Alan Keyes apparently said the Constitution protects machine gun ownership. He’s right, it does:

“And, yes, does that mean that in this day and age people would have the right to have access to the kind of the weapons our ordinary infantry people have access to? With proper training and so forth to make sure that they could handle them successfully, that’s exactly what was meant.”

There are hundreds of thousands of machine guns legally owned in this country currently. I don’t know why this is such shocking news.

In a follow up on my recent The Daily Show posts here and here: Boy, Jon Stewart went pretty easy on Ed Gillespie last night too. Then Stewart pointed out why there’s a liberal slant on the show (or rather that the show wasn’t liberal but picked on the establishment). Then Stewart begged Ed to get Bush on the show and Stewart promised to be nice to Bush too.

Here, I said it would hopefully be my final word on the Swift Boat Vets. That’s not the case. It turns out O’Neill was part of the 1970 Cambodia incursion. Nothing to see here, keep moving.

And take this SayUncle quiz:

1 – Have you ever spent Christmas away from home? If yes, go to 2. If not go to 5.

2 – Did you somehow think Christmas that year occurred in, say, February or March? If yes, go to 3. If no go to 5.

3 – Do you suffer from a mental defect that causes you to think Christmas may occur in February or March? If no, go to 4. If yes, go to 5.

4 – You’re making it all up, aren’t you? If yes, go to five. If no, go to six.

5 – Sorry to hear it. Thanks for your time. You’re free to go.

6 – Thanks for reading my blog, Senator.

I suppose the right of the people peaceably to assemble is of no concern when, you know, it could damage the grass:

A judge on Wednesday denied anti-Bush protesters permission to rally in Central Park on the eve of the Republican National Convention, leaving open the question of where possibly hundreds of thousands of demonstrators will go after a march through midtown Manhattan.

The decision by New York Supreme Court Justice Jacqueline Silbermann is the latest in a running legal battle between the protest group and the city. She sided with city officials, who say they fear the grass on the park’s Great Lawn would be damaged and security could not be ensured for the huge crowd.

The lawn was restored seven years ago at a cost of $18 million.

I think that’s a little lame. I tend to think the grass in the park was made for people to walk on. But what do I know?

One other thing wouldn’t anti-Bush protesters be protesting anti-Bush? Aren’t they really Bush protesters?

A National Taxpayers Union study indicates an increase in eminent domain use and abuse at all levels of government. A good read. Also, it has examples:

– Brooklyn, New York — Well-connected developer Bruce Ratner’s ambitious proposal (four office towers, 300,000 sq. ft. of retail, 4,500 housing units, six acres of parks, and a publicly funded stadium for the New Jersey Nets) to redevelop the “Atlantic Yards” area of Brooklyn will kick out 150 tax paying homeowners and ring up nearly $1 billion in subsidies on the taxpayer’s tab.

– Toledo, Ohio — City officials offered to acquire nearly 160 acres of residential and commercial property — including 83 homes — in an attempt to persuade DaimlerChrysler not to relocate their manufacturing facility elsewhere. But the 4,900 jobs the city hoped to save dropped to 2,100 since the new plant was fully automated. Toledo taxpayers are left to pay off a $26.7 million relocation loan and cover a $47,000 rebate for each worker now employed.

– Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — Using subsidies and city- financed loans adding up to over $50 million — $150 for every person living in Pittsburgh — Mayor Tom Murphy lured Lazarus and Lord & Taylor to relocate in the city. However, both upscale department stores closed before they even reached the sales target that would require them to start payments on their taxpayer- financed loans.

Paraphrased:

Bob Dole does not refer to Bob Dole as Bob Dole.

Bob Dole, after losing the 1996 election, confronting Norm MacDonald on Saturday Night Live on his rather inaccurate impersonation of Bob Dole.

It seems one of the SBVs who said Kerry wasn’t in Cambodia admitted to Nixon (in 1971) to himself being in Cambodia, on a swift boat:

O’NEILL: I was in Cambodia, sir. I worked along the border on the water.

NIXON: In a swift boat?

O’NEILL: Yes, sir.

Oh dear.

To be clear, I think John Kerry’s service in Vietnam was honorable. Unlike other politicos, he went. He fought. He is not a traitor. However, I think that Kerry embellished his service considerably. Did he lie? Obviously. Did he lie with the intent to deceive or to prop up his political ambitions? Probably.

When you make your service central to your campaign, you should expect people to attack your service. When confronted with allegations about that service, you should address them outright. Don’t change the story, don’t avoid the issue, and be truthful. It makes it seem like he has something to hide. Whether that something is just little fabrications to prop up your political career or outright lies is important.

But make no mistake, Kerry should be proud for serving his country when so many other spoiled kids did not.

Update: And for the record, I don’t mean this instance makes Kerry a liar. But other instances (which can be read here – scroll down a few posts) seem to.

Bruce tells us about a mother who bought her 16 year-old son a 9MM handgun. The son then takes mom shooting. Most excellent.

For what it’s worth, I’m contemplating the exact build of Junior’s (so what if she’s only 9.5 weeks old?) flattop M4. I’m thinking a build like this one (go to page 3 for a good pic). Any suggestions?

Triggerfinger reports that there will be no criminal charges in the police raid of a high school. Civil suits are pending.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer (again, the dumbest name of any newspaper) has an opinion piece that shreds a lot of the lies and misconceptions presented by anti-gun groups:

Contrary to myth, guns affected by this ban are not machine guns. They fire one shot with each press of the trigger, the same as many shotguns used by duck hunters, or rifles used by big-game hunters.

Another myth pandered by the MMM is that these rifles use “powerful” ammunition. In fact, they are chambered for cartridges that are near the low end of the energy level spectrum, on par with a deer hunter’s .30-30 Winchester. That bullets from these guns will penetrate a police officer’s protective vest is not a secret, because virtually every centerfire hunting rifle bullet sold today will go through such a vest. Those vests are designed to stop handgun bullets.

Prohibitionists claim that these firearms have no legitimate purpose. Thousands of competitive shooters, who participate in registered matches with these rifles all over the country almost every weekend of the year, would disagree. Most of these guns are suitable for home defense, many are legitimate collector’s items and others are used for hunting.

These guns are not the “weapon of choice” among criminals. Studies at both the state and federal levels, both before and after the ban took effect, have shown that so-called assault weapons are used in less than 2 percent of violent crimes.

Anti-gunners note that crime gun traces on the banned firearms have plunged by 66 percent in the past 10 years. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Congressional Research Service say that trace data is not a reliable indicator of guns used in crimes. Such traces are conducted for a variety of reasons, only one of which is to establish the trail of guns actually used in crimes. A significant number of traces are used to track recovered stolen guns.

Ban proponents claim that after the ban expires Sept. 13, U.S. streets will be “flooded” with these guns. The “ban” only placed a freeze on production. Those rifles are still out there, legally for sale — albeit at premium prices because of all the media hype — and most of them are in the gun safes and cabinets of law-abiding gun owners. Banning their production did not eliminate them, and had nothing to do with a drop in homicide rates, as, apparently, neither do any other gun control laws.

Good for the PI for running it.

The Department of Homeland Security awarded handgun contracts to Sigarms and H&K.

People think Blount County has a strong market for an expo/convention center:

Traditional fairgrounds, the kind of places where you find county fairs and equestrian events, have given way to a more sophisticated type of community gathering spot: the expo center and arena.

After months of work, Charles Johnson, of Johnson Consulting Inc., gave Maryville, Alcoa and Blount County officials an idea Tuesday of what an expo park and arena offers this area, and how other communities are using them for their needs.

For the region’s equestrians, it could be a place for year-round shows. Roger Elder, a Blount County resident and president of Tennessee’s Quarterhorse Association, said there’s enough interest in horses here to keep such a facility busy all year.

“Within two years, we could book it every weekend,” said Elder.

An expo center and arena, with horse barns and adjacent softball and baseball fields, could host multiple community events, like high school graduations or year-round trade shows, according to Johnson. Some of the centers also include commercial venues, like retail stores and hotels.

Perhaps they should peruse the Knoxville Convention Center’s extremely sparse schedule?

Guys, you should try to take the airport back first.

A local dachshund attacked a black bear. It ended predictably. Well, not really. The dog did live, fortunately, but has some broken ribs.

The usual suspects are urging people to contact their legislators to support the extension of the assault weapons ban:

With the federal ban on semi-automatic assault weapons due to expire on Sept. 13, some New Jersey representatives are imploring the public to support an extension of the ban.

“This is a matter of life and death. We need to act expeditiously,” U.S. Sen. Jon S. Corzine (D-NJ) said at a news conference held on Aug. 6 at the Monroe Township Public Library in Middlesex County. Corzine was accompanied by U.S. Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Congressman Rush Holt (D-NJ).

“It’s not enough to talk about it,” Corzine said. “We have to make sure there is a federal effort to make sure we keep these weapons off the street.”

Corzine referred to the deaths of seven youths in Camden recently, all of which were assault weapons-related. He also spoke about a recent wave of violence in Newark and urged members of the audience to contact officials in New Jersey, surrounding states, and at the White House.

Seven deaths recently occured that were assault weapons-related? How did that happen? We have a ban, don’t we?

SayUncle would like to encourage his readers to contact their legislators and urge them not to push for the renewal of the ban. For info on your legislators, go here.

Stewart, who may as well have kissed Kerry, didn’t just throw Kerry softballs. Stewart did, however, ask questions designed to allow Kerry to rebut the claims of his critics (Were you actually in Vietnam? Have you ever flip-flopped?). And Kerry didn’t. He could have addressed the Swift Boat Vets but didn’t. Could have said that issues are complex and new information may cause him change to his mind so he’s no flip-flopper. But he didn’t. He made chit chat and stuck to talking points (Note to John Kerry: You cannot use the phrases health care and health insurance interchangeably).

Kerry kept speaking of the issues. But when asked about them, his only issue was that he was not George Bush. Kerry kept giving his statistics (1.8M jobs, 4M now without health care even though he means insurance, and jobs now pay $9K less) about how bad Bush was. Never once did Kerry detail how he would deal with those things, just the Bush was bad. And, of course, SayUncle feels obligated to point out that the president has no control over those things.

Stewart tried to help Kerry. He gave the opportunity to address things. Kerry didn’t. Instead, Kerry gave Stewart the opportunity to rebut Kerry’s critics and the president. Wasted opportunity for the Kerry camp.

Any bets on whether Bush will be on the show? And get such a cushy interview?

Update: And what was with that whole military records are public theme on The Daily Show? They do know Kerry hasn’t signed a full release, don’t they?

What would that be? Why, an editorial in Pravda!

Guns, fear, hate, and profit – the true American way

In the news today, another state relaxes their “conceal and carry” laws, the gun show loop hole close bill died on the floor today, another child was shot to death when she was caught in the cross fire of a drive by shooting.

And that’s the coherent part. What I find interesting is this:

Even now as I write, laws are being passed to nullify any and all gun control

No kidding? But then there’s this:

There never was a ban on assault weapons, only smoke and mirrors.

Which is pretty much true, but I’m sure this guy isn’t calling for the sunset of the ban, is he? Nope.

An assault weapon made in a country overseas is bad (cheap); the same weapon with very few cosmetic differences made in America is good (expensive). Regardless, we need to whip up the foam of rabid emotions as we have always done.

A true red blooded Texan to the end and a servant to the masters of death said he will extend the ban. Will he make sure that the cheap overseas versions do not infringe on the prosperity of the American arms industry?

So apparently the ban (I guess we have to call it a ban, even though it wasn’t really a ban, because we have to call it something), is really about protectionism? Interesting.

But, then again, not being able to get the cheap versions are upsetting people too and they claim this is a violation of their rights. But the cheap versions are violating the rights of the shareholders of the arms industry who demand a king”s ransom profit, and a CEO”s rights to have a far above mortal man compensation package.

Now, everyone’s rights are being violated diametrically equal in the endless and bottomless vortex of dichotomies, half truths, and contradictions.

The author claims to have grown up in America, but the English in this piece is so bad, I have to wonder if maybe it wasn’t originally written in Russian and translated by Yakov Smirnoff.

Heh. “I LOVE THIS COUNTRY!”

But I don’t care. Enough is enough. Someone blow that shrine up already.

It may be noble to show respect for holy places (which Al-Sadr has shown no respect for) and that effort was a good thing. However, this has been going on for far too long.

And I don’t mean blow it up literally, but take control of it.

I’m getting quite a few Googles for Olympic volleyball ass pictures. As a public service announcement, I’d like to point out that the round up of pictures is here and has new stuff.

Update: In other news, the American butts win the gold.

There’s actually a mainstream press article on Kerry’s Cambodia flop.

Took a while. However, it is an opinion piece.

The West Lafayette voted unanimously to draft a resolution banning pit bulls from the city:

The action came after several recent incidents within Coshocton County involving pit bulls or pit bull breeds, including at least three in West Lafayette this summer.

Not only would the ordinance keep the dogs from living within the village, it would ban dog owners from outside the village from bringing such dogs into the village to walk them. The ordinance will cover dogs with more than 1 percent pit bull bloodline.

Breed specific legislation does not work. Note the arbitrary criteria (more than one percent?). Additionally:

County Commissioner Kathy Thompson attended the meeting and provided council with her take on pit bulls.

“The pit bull situation is really bad,” Thompson said. “Nobody is following the rules that are in place and there are a lot more dog bites. Unfortunately, it takes some sort of incident before anything can be done. It’s definitely a problem and I don’t see it going away.”

And you think that someone disinclined to follow existing rules will follow the new rules? Try prosecuting people who violate existing dog laws.

Yeah, what he said.

No, really:

The closest observed asteroid yet to skim past the Earth without hitting the atmosphere, was reported by astronomers on Sunday.

The previously unknown object, spanning five to 10 metres across, has been named 2004 FU162. It streaked across the sky just 6500 kilometres – roughly the radius of the Earth – above the ground on 31 March, although details have only now emerged.

they keep scoring direct hits:

And questions keep coming. For example, Kerry received a Purple Heart for wounds suffered on December 2nd, 1968. But an entry in Kerry’s own journal written nine days later, he writes that, quote, he and his crew hadn’t been shot at yet, unquote. Kerry’s campaign has said it is possible his first Purple Heart was awarded for an unintentionally self-inflicted wound.

Kerry needs to start explaining some things.

The plan for Knoxville’s downtown library is done for now:

A new downtown library is history for now, with Knox County commissioners opting instead to designate planned borrowed funds for unspecified school projects.

In a 12-6 vote Monday, commissioners approved a recommendation by Commissioner John Griess that the library be shelved.

In the approved action, those long-term funds would be used for school projects, including a possible new West Knox County high school.

Money for schools? In Knoxville? Almost unheard of.

The Christian Science Monitor:

Starting Sept. 14, our law-enforcement officers and the general public will face a more dangerous environment in our communities. It appears that President Bush and Congress are going let the federal Assault Weapons Ban expire. This makes no sense.

On September 14, I’d bet dollars to donuts there will not be an increase in violent crime and I doubt our communities will be a more dangerous environment. Two government studies by he CDC and NIJ have concluded the ban has had no effect on violent crime.

The ban was passed for very practical reasons. Prior to 1994, criminals were armed with enough firepower to outgun the police, making them nearly impossible to subdue, and allowing them to wreak terrible havoc in public places. The ban kept military-style assault weapons out of the hands of criminals. Since the passage of the ban, federal crime statistics show a dramatic 66 percent drop in the incidence of assault weapons traced to crimes. Given that, I can’t think of a rational reason not to renew this law.

Actually, the ban was passed as a symbolic gesture for gun control. The ban does not ban weapons with enough firepower to outgun the police. It bans features weapons can have. An AR15 assault weapon is functionally identical to a Ruger Mini 14. And the 66% number means nothing. The CDC and NIJ (as mentioned above) have concluded there has been no effect on violent crime attributable to the ban. These weapons were used in less than one percent of crimes any way. 66% of an insignificant number is an insignificant number. Also, if these weapons were banned, wouldn’t that number be 100% if it actually did what people say it did?

The rest of the screed is essentially tying the weapons to terror in that they will detract officers from dealing with homeland security.

On assault weapons:

But should the good guys have them? You bet.

State Rep. Candidate Jeff Crites, R — Lafayette, Indiana

No, not a Jessica Cutler joke. Those are here.

Thibodeaux mentioned Butt Paste a while back. Now, the news is talking about it:

Retired Louisiana pharmacist George Boudreaux hasn’t needed Madison Avenue pitchmen to get the word out about his concoction to treat diaper rash. He just lets the name do it for him: Boudreaux’s Butt Paste. “Would you be talking to me if it was called George’s Diaper Cream?” Boudreaux recently asked a reporter.

Superb marketing.

Go read and laugh. You will, honest.

I have seen countless articles on the new overtime changes. What is missing from most of them is what the new changes actually do. Also, it seems our politicos who are making allegations about the rules don’t have much of an understanding of the new rules. The new rules weigh in at a massive 500 pages.

So, if I understand it correctly, the sky is falling but no one knows why.

Today, George W. Bush expressed regret for signing The Incumbent Protection Act err Campaign Finance Reform into law. No, I kid. He actually denounced the Swift Boat Vets’ ad. No, I kid. What he actually did was point out that Kerry should be proud of his Vietnam service and then he railed against political advertisements paid for and aired by outside groups.

Both candidates have now called for the cessation of third party political ads. Free speech for me but not for thee.

My ass. The NRA runs down his gun record. No surprises.

Sad news:

Fourteen search and rescue dogs who dug through the rubble of the World Trade Center have since died.

Eight of the dogs died from cancer.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine said they don’t believe there is a connection between the deaths and the chemicals the dogs were exposed to.

But the New York Daily News said some dog owners blame the mix of chemicals their dogs were exposed to during the hunt for survivors and remains after the attack on Sept. 11, 2001.

Update: Here’s a tribute to the SAR Dogs of 9/11.

I think this borders on dog abuse.

Heh.

Via XRLQ, the latest FL voting nonsense (this time it involves another state).

In the ever-growing list of weekly blog memes, Jed offers the Weekly Fusillade, which is another round up of gun stuff. Never a shortage of it, which is a good thing.

Janet Jackson claims (per Drudge, so take it for what it’s worth) that the Bush administration used her boob to distract Americans from Iraq.

Meanwhile, SayUncle claims Janet Jackson used her boob to distract her from the fact her career was in the shitter. But what do I know?

Seriously, Jackson’s boobs gaining that much coverage was the result of our media pandering to the lowest common denominator.

Taking a cue from the Kerry Campaign, a restaurant is suing a newspaper whose food critic gave the joint four out of five stars.

Another unsigned editorial:

THE senseless shooting that cut short the life of 6-year-old Bryesha Limbrick focuses attention on firearm legislation. The youngster was shot in the head July 18 while eating ice cream outside an El Monte convenience store. Police Chief Ken Weldon said he is sure the assailants used an assault rifle.

He is sure? Is there any doubt? Of course there is. The criteria defining guns as assault rifles is arbitrary and based on cosmetic features. I doubt that whether or not this weapon had those features is of consequence to the child.

The ban of such weapons didn’t save Bryesha, but failure to re- enact the 1994 prohibition against assault rifles by the Sept. 13 deadline could very well flood the market with the weapons.

The ban didn’t save her nor has it saved anyone else. These weapons have never been common violent crime.

In the Bryesha murder, witnesses said the shooters sprayed the area with bullets. All fully automatic weapons are currently illegal, but semi-automatic assault weapons are easily converted.

And converting those weapons is already illegal. All semi-automatic guns can be converted to full auto-fire. It’s not easier just because the same weapon has a flash suppressor or a pistol grip. In fact, civilian AR15s manufactured in this country are intentionally made harder to convert by not having the holes for M16 parts cut in them.

And, my favorite, is this ridiculous paragraph:

Only the most narrow interpretation of the Second Amendment is consonant with freedom not only to bear arms, but to produce, buy and own weaponry engineered specifically as weapons of war.

Weapons of war are machine guns. The ban does not affect machine guns. And possession of rifles is not a narrow interpretation of the Second Amendment, it’s the correct one.

The article then likens the correct interpretation of the Second Amendment to hate speech. Further, it repeats the tired argument that assault weapons serve no recreational purpose. I suggest the visit the local range or the national matches at Camp Perry.

There is a call for a ban in Indiana since a gunmen went on a rampage last week:

Many Indiana lawmakers say they wouldn’t ban assault weapons, despite last week’s shooting rampage that left one Indianapolis policeman dead and four wounded.

But calls last week to more than half of the state’s 150 legislators found much more interest in finding ways to keep guns out of the hands of people such as Kenneth C. Anderson, a schizophrenic who used an SKS military-style rifle to kill Patrolman Timothy “Jake” Laird during 16 terror-filled minutes early Wednesday morning.

The man was insane (which excludes him from legally owning a gun) and the gun (an SKS) is not covered by the Assault Weapons Ban. Indiana lawmakers aren’t taking the bait:

One big question, many said, was whether a state government can do anything without trampling on the constitutional right to bear arms. It’s a right that many of the lawmakers exercise themselves — about six out of 10 of those contacted by The Indianapolis Star said they own guns.

“Banning guns would not solve the problem,” said Rep. John Frenz, a Vincennes Democrat. “Would it have been better if (Anderson) had killed his mother with an ax and gone after the police with an ax?”

Lawmakers considering the rights of people? An excellent idea. Good for Indiana.

An update on the Americana at Brand case in California states that:

The owner of land where the proposed Americana at Brand shopping center project would be built does not expect to appeal a federal judge’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit claiming the city did not have the authority to take the land by eminent domain.

Instead, the company that owns the land plans to pursue its case in Superior Court.

The attorney for Better Foods Land Investment Company says:

We thought the primary issue is a federal issue about the right to take non-blighted property for what we see as a private use, not a public use.

See other posts here and here.

This American Daily Article writes:

In an unfortunate, but all too foreseeable event, the justices of the Connecticut Supreme Court, those stalwarts of individual liberty, decided that eminent domain should not be limited to merely public use of the land, but should now be expanded to the furtherance of a city’s economic plan.

Sadly, that has become a recent trend in the use (or rather abuse) of eminent domain. The details of the case are:

In Kelo v. City of New London, the plaintiffs were owners of various properties in the city of New London, an area that was targeted to be “revitalized” under a city development plan. 2002 WL 32372999 (Conn.) (soon to be recorded in the Atlantic reporter, second series) In conjunction with a city established development corporation, the plaintiffs were approached to sell their property in furtherance of this goal of rejuvenating the city. This proposal was underway because New London had recently experienced “serious employment declines”, much of which was attributable to the loss of 1900 government sector jobs. Id. at 4.

When the plaintiffs still refused to sell their properties, the government created development corporation, in October 2000, voted to use eminent domain to acquire the property from those refusing to sell. By November 2000, the development corporation began condemnation proceedings on those unwilling sellers.

It should be mentioned that the development corporation will own the area scheduled for development, but lease certain lands to private developers in order to carry out their plans. To add insult to injury, the court records state that one such developer, Corcoran Jennison, is in the midst of negotiations with the city on a ninety-nine year lease on three of the parcels for the staggering amount of $1 per year. Kelo at 3. In turn, the development corporation is forecasting the revitalization plan to create 518-867 construction jobs, 718-1362 direct jobs, and 500-940 indirect jobs, while producing between $680,544 – $1,249,843 in property taxes, all this despite 50% of the land area expected to be tax exempt. Id.

Another case of taking from one private party to give use to another private party.

Patterico nails one noting that the NYT’s ridiculous graph could be applied to, uhm, other connections.

BugMeNot is back.

I mean it hurt me. Junior got her shots today. She was a 9 week old trooper. They stuck the needle in and she didn’t flinch. The nurse pressed the plunger down to inject the medicine, and junior started screaming the worst scream I have ever heard in my life. It was heart wrenching. And, worse, it was followed by two more vaccinations. Pretty traumatic experience for her, me, and mom.

I picked her up after to console her. Then the wife had to get some holding time in. It was awful for us both but the baby seemed to forget it pretty quick. I know that it’s for her own good but that doesn’t make it any easier to watch.

I learned something about me today. If I ever had any doubt about my willingness to do violence to protect her, it’s gone now. If someone caused her that much pain and it wasn’t for her good health, I’d definitely use any means necessary to stop them.

Iran is threatening to preemptively strike US forces to prevent an attack on it’s nuclear facilities. In other news, Iran has nuclear facilities?

Ravenwood reports that the plug was pulled on BugMeNot, who posted passwords to bypass websites ridiculous registration schemes.

Thurlow has announced he will sign the 180. Meanwhile, Kerry still not expected to do a 180. As Patterico says: The ball’s in John Kerry’s court.

Meanwhile, Thurlow is stating that the paperwork the WaPo got hold of (which Thurlow called fraudulent) was based on John Kerry’s report from 35 years ago.

This time, not done by me but by Publicola. Go read.

An update to this post: In LA, city officials have declared a shopping center blighted and are seeking to use eminent domain to take the land. The land will then be used for a residential and retail project. The latest:

A U.S. District Court judge Thursday dismissed a lawsuit that claimed the city of Glendale did not have the authority to acquire land on the proposed Americana at Brand site.

Better Foods Land Investment Company, which owns the property occupied by Rite Aid and Big 5 Sporting Goods on Harvard Street and Central Avenue, argued that the city could not use eminent domain to acquire its land because the land is not blighted. Eminent domain gives cities the authority to seize land for fair market value when it’s deemed in the public’s best interest.

Judge S. James Otero dismissed the lawsuit, saying that the claim can be resolved in a Superior Court through normal eminent domain procedures. If a Superior Court judge grants eminent domain, the court would force the sale of the land for a set price.

Another abuse of the term blighted? No way to tell for certain. However, if it is blighted, shouldn’t the city enforce codes first to get the property in compliance? Also, the fact they plan on taking from one private party to give it to another wreaks of abuse.

Some time this evening or tomorrow, SayUncle will receive it’s 250,000th visit. A quarter of a million served. Cool.

In an update to my scientific study on Bumper Stickers As Political Indicators, I have expanded my research. I have concluded that most East Tennesseans will vote for either Earnhardt or Calvin pissing on something.

Seen at Fark:

Al Gore busted for doing 77 MPH in a 55 MPH zone. But after a recount he was only cited for doing 75

I just thought for my male readers that I’d alert them to the updates in the beach volleyball pictures coverage (AKA: butts from the Olympics), which has reached a new low (or high depending on your interest) in snapping pictures of the butts of the fans.

Bubba reports (no local press coverage, go figure) that:

Reader A.C. Citizen reports that First Utility District “just condemned” the Calloway’s Landing property “about an hour ago.” (I didn’t know a utility company could do that).

[snip]

Yesterday FUD filed legal proceedings to condemn the 18 acres of Lee Johnson’s family land known as Callaway Landing.

Once the land is condemned only a court case can stop FUD from proceeding. Lee Johnson’s lawyer Charles VanBeke will file an appeal Friday.

Lee Johnson is meeting with Mike Arms today at 1:30 PM to see what the County Mayor will do concerning the condemnation.

More info on saving Callaway Landing is here.

The WaPo filed an independent request for records about one of the Swift Boat Vets under the Freedom of Information Act. But they can’t do the same for the guy who’s running for president?

From Fark, I found this article describing how Microsoft is sending its employees to geography classes:

Insensitive computer programmers with little knowledge of geography have cost the giant Microsoft company hundreds of millions of dollars in lost business and led hapless company employees to be arrested by offended governments.

Seems that these furriners have a lot of chips on their shoulders, frequently over examples of furriners wanting to be even more furrin:

Perhaps the best known, and one of the most expensive, errors was a colour-coded world map showing time zones, which showed the disputed Jammu-Kashmir region as not being in India – an offence under Indian law.
…
[E]mployees were arrested in Turkey because Kurdistan had been shown as a separate entity on maps of the country
…
Microsoft employees were questioned by police in China, where it is an offence to refer to Taiwan as country or as the Republic of China.

The peace-loving followers of Islam are also quite sensitive:

One mistake that caused catastrophic offence was a game called Kakuto Chojin, a hand to hand fighting game. The fighting went on with rhythmic chanting in the background which in reviewing the game Mr Edwards noticed appeared to be Arabic.

“I checked with an Arabic speaker in the company who was also a Muslim about what the chant meant and it was from the Koran. He went ballistic. It was an incredible insult to Islam.”

Huh? Using a quote from the Koran in a game is an insult to Islam?

A game called Age of Empires 2 offended the Saudi Arabian authorities because it showed victorious Muslim armies turning churches into mosques.

Yeah, because we all know THAT would NEVER happen.

Of course, no “old media” piece would be complete without the obligatory head-scratching “say what?” quote:

The mistake led to the whole of the Windows 95 operating system being banned in the country, losing large sales. For its replacement, Microsoft Office 97, Microsoft removed the colour coding…

Office 97 was a replacement for Windows 95? What the…?

Screw that:

For your protection and ours we have established a procedure for parties wishing to introduce a link to the ATHENS 2004 website on their site.

Whatever.

New information contradicts one of the Swift Boat Vet’s claims. He has said there was no gunfire. However, the paperwork states there was constant gunfire.

Funny how the WaPo got right on that and, to my knowledge, hasn’t mentioned the Cambodia thing. Oh, that liberal media.

Triggerfinger reports that a judge ruled a no-knock search illegal. Technically, it wasn’t a no-knock search. It was a knock then count to five search, which is just about the same thing.

A local headline says:

Transporting body in back of pickup sparks probe

I would hope so.