Harry Reid has a blog called Give ‘Em Hell Harry.

Bill Bennett said:

But I do know that it’s true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could—if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down. That would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down.

Think about it for a moment . . . time’s up. While this statement is offensive and, honestly, stupid to make, it’s factual. Of course, you could also say the same thing and substitute the word Southern for black. Or male for black. Or poor for black. Bennett was not advocating doing such a thing.

Bob Krumm, in a must read, says:

Instead of being shocked that he said it, we should be shocked that it’s true.

If I say, more black people suffer from sickle cell anemia, would the response be that I am racist or that maybe we ought to look into why this disease is found almost exclusively in blacks? I’d hope the latter. And, no, I’m not calling crime a disease nor am I saying that there’s some sort of genetic predisposition to criminal behavior inherent in black folks. I’m saying that if something affects people of a particular race, maybe society should be serious about addressing it and not automatically offended when someone mentions it. Bennett chose a rather poor and offensive way of expressing his point.

Meanwhile, Stacey Campfield, noting that the Black Legislative Caucus restricted members based on race, said:

My understanding is that the KKK doesn’t even ban members by race

I don’t know anything about the KKK or its rules. For the sake of argument, let’s assume it is a true and factual statement. Is it racist? I tend to think it’s not. Sure, no one likes to be compared to the KKK but it is not an inherently racist statement. And it may even be true.

Via Ben, comes this from a NYC teacher:

Today in our weekly PD it was mentioned that the region doesn’t want us to use the term “bullet points” anymore because it has a negative connotation.

I guess we need to start calling them Nerf points?

There was a discussion a while back at the Knoxblab about socialism and how it is the best (or at least most viable) solution to some issues. In other words, governmental ownership or control of an industry or process by pooling tax payer dollars is a more efficient or, at least, less problematic means of addressing issues. Some items listed were education, the military, roads, transportation, and, of course, someone had to mention healthcare. I think with the exception of healthcare, I don’t disagree.

Obviously, governmental control leads to some issues of spending and efficiency (for example, our bloated military industrial complex, the declining quality of education, highway dollars are prized by everyone, and Canada’s free healthcare for everyone). I don’t think most people would think it’s a good idea to have privately owned roads that you’d have to pay to use every time. I really hate when I’m on travel and have to pay a toll on a highway. It’s inconvenient and time consuming. Additionally, I think a privately owned military industrial complex would be very scary, like Tank Girl kind of scary.

What other issues are best handled this way? What issues currently handled this way should be abandoned? What criteria should there be for such a decision?

Buckeye Firearms catches The Cleveland Plain Dealer lying or engaging in sloppy reporting:

As can be easily determined by anyone who bothers to read this portion of House Bill 347, the bill would simply make Ohio law mirror a federal statute with regard to drivers’ licenses, by allowing people to opt out of the public records provision if they swear under threat of perjury that they have reasonable cause to believe having their information made public could endanger them or a member of their family.

I’ve predicted it for a while but it looks like it has started again. Owen notes those opposed to the measure are up to their usual dirty tricks.

Looks like a good portion of the cops in New Orleans may not have really existed:

One story is that officials may have lied about their force size to be eligible for federal programs. Another possibility is that the missing cops are a sign of corruption. It will be interesting to see if those paper cops were cashing paychecks.

I think Eddie Compass is going to go down for a lot of things.

Yesterday, I filled up the tank. It cost $70.05. Seems like just yesterday it broke $50.

I asked about the lack of media coverage of the New Orleans police department. This article on the investigation of police misconduct in NO doesn’t mention the confiscations either.

Roberts has been confirmed. I share the Geek’s assessment.

Frank Cagle:

Bush may still be popular with the branch of the Republican Party that only cares about abortion, stem-cell research and displaying the Ten Commandments, but the fiscal-conservative small-government don’t-tread-on-me wing of the party has had enough.

Arguably, the two most popular holographic sights on the market are the Aimpoint Comp and the EOTech. Here’s the Aimpoint:

Here’s the EOTech:

Price: The EOTech can be had from about $175 (if you get the Bushnell version which lacks some bells and whistles) to $400. The Aimpoint can be had starting at $329 up to $450. The EOTech comes with a mount. With the Aimpoint, plan on dropping another $80 to $150 on a mount. Advantage: EOTech.

Battery life: EOTech from 200 to 1,100 hours. Aimpoint: 12,000 to 50,000 hours. Advantage: Aimpoint.

Ergonomics: The Aimpoint’s controls are twist knobs. The EOTech is push-button friendly. The Aimpoint is more like a rifle scope in feel whereas the EOTech is like a fighter jet targeting system. Advantage: Draw.

Reticle: Aimpoint has a 2 or 4 MOA red dot. The EOTech has a 1 MOA dot inside a 65 MOA circle. The circle can be used for a SWAG of range finding since it’s about the size of a man at 100 yards. Also, the large circle is adequate for close applications. Advantage: EOTech.

Glass Breakage: If you break the glass on your Aimpoint, game over. The EOTech will function when the glass is broken. Advantage: EOTech.

Cowitness: Both will cowitness on an AR-15. Only the Aimpoint will cowitness on an AK, if you use an UltiMAK mount. The EOTech with its built in mount sits too high for cowitnessing on the AK. Advantage, Aimpoint because cowitnessing on an AK is huge.

Night vision compatible, brightness, clarity: both come in night vision models, have brightness controls and are crystal clear. Advantage: Draw.

Environment: The Aimpoint functions at lower temperatures than the EOTech. The Aimpoint is submersible to five meters. The EOTech is supposedly waterproof (not sure how that’s defined). Advantage: Draw.

Flash: The Aimpoint dot can be seen from the other side as it projects a dot from the rear. There is a kill flash made for it. The EOTech does not project a light signature. Advantage: EOTech.

Adjustments: EOTech 0.5 MOA per click. Aimpoint 1 MOA per click. Advantage: EOTech.

By a score of 5 -2 – 3, SayUncle calls it for the EOTech. But it’s a close 5 – 2 -3.

Via Alphecca, comes this bit of news:

Eddie Eagle – a feathered National Rifle Association cartoon character who teaches children how not to handle guns – could actually be harmful, says an alderman opposed to a Police Department plan to use Eddie in programs for children.

The City Council will decide Tuesday whether the Racine Police Department can order hundreds of coloring books from the NRA for no charge and use them in conjunction with lectures the department holds with children.

[...]

Opposition Alderman Pete Karas, who is leading the charge against the police department’s efforts, said the booklets are harmful and ineffective, teaching children that guns are for adults, which could further a child’s interest in the weapons.

“These are things that usually aren’t brought up to children,” Karas said. “This is an introduction.”

In other news, if you don’t talk to your kids about drinking, smoking, drugs, playing with matches, and sex; they’ll never drive drunk, smoke, get high, set your house on fire, or become parents in high school.

Kids should be educated about many dangerous things and guns are one of those things. Eddie Eagle teaches kids how to react to finding guns and has been credited with saving lives. What Eddie Eagle teaches is, if you find a gun:

Why Pete Karas is such an idiot, I don’t know.

Update: David has more on Mr. Karas:

But this is the kind of nonsense we’ve come to expect from Racine’s Green Party Alderman Pete Karas, who is organizing a demonstration demanding his constituents be disarmed under force of arms–and he no doubt will have a gaggle of ninnies with him bleating in agreement.

Here’s Pete’s site.

The IRA has disarmed (and had some nice hardware, apparently). Or maybe not.

Unconstitutional would be another:

[ "anticipatory" search warrants] anticipate the defendant doing something in the future . . . and essentially find that, while there is no probable cause right now, upon the defendant’s doing the anticipated action, there will be probable cause in the future, so let the warrant issue now, to be executed only after the anticipated act. The minor problem is that the Fourth Amendment clearly says “no warrant shall issue but upon probable cause.”

I don’t think that’s a minor problem. I think the problem is that someone thinks this is 1) a good idea and 2) not unconstitutional. So, where’s the division of future crime? I want my minority report.

Adrian on the pending FCC regulation of VOIP:

And the less the FCC touches my VOIP service, the cheaper my bill will stay.

Read it all. I may need to look into VOIP.

Chris has the skinny on the Supreme Court taking the case of DaimlerChrysler Corp. v. Cuno:

The Cuno case could change all that. A group of Ohio taxpayers challenged a multi-million deal to lure DaimlerChysler, who promised to build a Jeep plant in Toledo. The plaintiffs challenged that the subsidies were a violation of Commerce Clause, which protects “free trade between the states” (since the goal of incentive deals is to keep plants from opening elsewhere). The lower court shot down the challenge, but on appeal the 6th U.S. Circuit Court ruled against DaimlerChrysler and the subsidies last October.

Powerful business interests quickly sprung into action, with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and several leading corporations filing supportive briefs for DaimlerChrysler’s request that the Supreme Court overturn the 6th Circuit Court’s decision. The Supremes agreed, taking on Cuno as one of just 11 cases they’ll consider in their new term starting Monday

Gunner thinks this is bad:

According to the three-page document, to preserve the openness that characterizes today’s Internet, “consumers are entitled to run applications and use services of their choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement.” Read the last seven words again.

Der Commissar is seeking the facts regarding Ronnie Earle, his partisan bona fides, and his prosecution of Tom DeLay.

One of those political tests, via everyone:
Read the rest of this entry »

First, Frist is accused of, basically, insider trading. Now, DeLay:

A Texas grand jury on Wednesday charged Rep. Tom DeLay and two political associates with conspiracy in a campaign finance scheme, an indictment that could force him to step down as House majority leader.

DeLay attorney Steve Brittain said DeLay was accused of a criminal conspiracy along with two associates, John Colyandro, former executive director of a Texas political action committee formed by DeLay, and Jim Ellis, who heads DeLay’s national political committee.

The indictment against the second-ranking, and most assertive Republican leader came on the final day of the grand jury’s term. It followed earlier indictments of a state political action committee founded by DeLay and three of his political associates.

There were gun confiscations in New Orleans. The mayor and police chief have denied that they occurred, even though some were caught on tape and some guns have been returned. Now, the New Orleans Police Chief (Eddie Compass) has resigned.

Is there a relationship there? Beats me. But the confiscation is conspicuously absent from most press coverage of the resignation (a few smaller media outlets excepted and a mention by the NYT with no follow ups). Also, the NRA victory in getting a restraining order against the police to stop confiscating arms has not received any major news coverage (again, smaller outlets excepted).

So, where’s the damn coverage? Wholesale violation of constitutional rights, cover-up, and resignations – yet not a mention of the event that proceeded said resignation? Feh.

Standard Mischief tells us about a particularly dumb Ebay seller. Read to the end, it’s hysterical.

The burst of the housing bubble has been predicted for a while. I think the impetus for it will be the hurricanes combined with the recent Fed Rate hike. Lumber, sheetrock, concrete and other building materials will be in high demand on the Gulf Coast. Also, some housing products are petroleum based (like roofing materials) and will rise as oil prices do. I think we may still be six or so months away from the burst since full-fledge rebuilding hasn’t really started yet. It will also take appraisers a while to recognize the increase in costs, making your existing home worth less on paper.

Anyone tried buying OSB lately? We planned on building this fall. We may have to wait for a few months or a year.

The latest is up at Forward Biased.

Zendo Deb tells us that only 6% of violent crime is committed with guns:

Even better, this 6% figure would make it difficult for them to demonize an object, a tool, and force them to look at root causes, and other solutions for violent crime.

Since firearms are used in most murders, I think that’s what anti-gunners will pimp.

Tam hit the 1,000 mark. Let’s go for 2,000. Go on, click over there. It don’t cost nothing. You can take a political test, learn about WW1 rifle sights, and hear about her AR (she really should put up pics of the thing).

Jeff has the latest.

Tennessee Governor, and very infrequent blogger, Phil Bredesen has stated he would not seek an income tax. B4B rounds up reactions from the Tennessee blogs.

Pete reports that weed is now the drug of choice for financing terror:

Saudi security sources said Sunni insurgents have been smuggling illegal drugs from Iraq to Saudi Arabia to finance insurgency attacks against coalition forces.

The sources said the drugs being smuggling now tend to be cannabis.

“In the space of one year, border police intercepted 10 tons of cannabis coming from Iraq,” a Saudi source said. “In the past, the [smuggled] merchandise used to consist of alcoholic beverages and prohibited drugs.”

The newer, angrier Rich continues to pull no punches:

The media lied and people died.

Now, in defense of the media (crap, never thought I’d say that), I’d wager they would get a report (i.e., a rumor) and it would be verified by some politico who also heard the same rumor. I’m not excusing it but the rush to get out any information was greater than the rush to get out correct information.

So, ATF Director Carl Truscott spoke at a college and the ATF is taking credit for the decline in gun crime. No, really:

Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Bureau Director Carl Truscott said his department is a major reason behind the all-time lows in the nation’s crime rate, a factor he attributes in part to successful relationship-building.

Truscott, who spoke Wednesday to Penn’s Criminology students, joined the ATF Bureau last year after earning numerous awards in 22 years of employment with the U.S. Secret Service.

“The mission of the ATF is to prevent terrorism, reduce violent crime and protect the public,” he said.

And to only occasionally engage in those acts itself, apparently. Like that time dozens burned to death for not paying a tax. Or that time they lied and said that a gun was a machine gun when it was really just a semi-auto with an old worn out disconnector and the gun could have fired out of battery and unnecessarily killed someone. Oh, and someone videotaped that.

Truscott firmly believes that the organization has played a crucial role in firearm regulation, which he said has put gun violence and homicide rates at a 30-year low.

Insert your own comment after that one.

The ATF has been working in New Orleans to recover guns that were looted from gun stores in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Have they looked in Eddie Compass’ basement?

This just in from Jay, Eddie Compass of the NO police department has resigned. No mention in the article of the gun confiscation thing. Xrlq in comments:

Damn, I was hoping he would stay on just long enough to have to explain why he just gave back the guns he never confiscated in the first place.

I wonder if Compass, like Brown, will serve as a consultant for NO?

The plaintiff in the gun confiscation case has had his guns returned.

Sharon Cobb’s surgery went well. Best wishes to Sharon.

Publicola has some analysis of the restraining order:

if it can be claimed that the firearms were not legally possessed then the restraining order has no effect. As in if they claim to have the authority to declare all guns contraband then they won’t be confiscating any legally owned firearms.

When Egalia isn’t busy lying about the state of North Carolina giving women who apply for restraining orders guns or trying to associate nutjobs like Fred Phelps (a registered Democrat) with Republicans, she resorts to misleading quotes about one of Knoxville’s state reps. Egalia says that Rep. Stacey Campfield’s decidedly small and selective blogroll includes a link to Staghounds, a white supremacist blog which features these repulsively racist statements. As supposed proof that Staghounds is a white supremacist blog, she quotes them as saying:

“Desperation? Yeah, right. I am beginning to believe that black people, no matter where in the world they are, are cursed with a genetic predisposition to steal, murder, and create mayhem.”

The problem is that the above quote was actually from this article. You see, the alleged white supremacist was actually quoting someone else, who happens to be black. If you just read Egalia’s entry, you would think that this quote came from the site she linked to. Apparently, Brittney at NIT fell for it and notes:

If they are smart, they’ll dump him.

Now, I don’t have a dog in the Campfield fight since I don’t live in his district. But I will call a turd a turd. Egalia is always good for a laugh. In this case (as with the NC gun incident and the Phelps incident linked above), she either willfully misrepresented the facts with the intent to mislead her readers. Or she’s just fucking stupid.

And Mike notes that Egalia has links to people who have links to anti-Semitic organizations. Heh.

Update: Bob Krumm says:

Bloggers, especially, should be willing to extend some latitude to Rep. Stacey Campfield

I don’t necessarily think bloggers should excuse anything by other bloggers. But hurling unfounded accusations is uncalled for.

I watched part of the Tennessee v. LSU game last night. I watched the first half and TN was getting slaughtered. I had do some stuff around the house during the half and didn’t get back into the game until the third had started to find UT had scored. 21 to 7. Then, UT sucked some more and LSU scored a field goal. I got mad, turned it off, and went to bed. Found out this morning UT came back to win. Apparently, they will do well as long as I am not watching. They’re screwed next week since I’ll be at the game.

Head recounts his hurricane experience, including some valuable lessons learned.

David Hardy has the run down on the NRA’s lawsuit, including a plaintiff’s name:

Teel was proceeding in his boat to carry out rescue missions when he was approached by a La. sheriff’s boat occupied by NYPD officers. They levelled M-16s at him, asked if he had guns. He replied yes (I think a couple of deer rifles). They boarded and confiscted them. He asked for a receipt and they refused, saying it was impossible to give them to everyone who was having guns seized. He continued on and had another boat, with local deputies, stop him the same way (guns levelled) with the same demand.

Even though confiscations were broadcast on TeeVee and tape exists of police stating there were confiscations, all parties deny such confiscations occurred. Going to get interesting.

Seen at Joe’s:

Remember what the no-fly list is. It’s a list of people who are so dangerous that they can’t be allowed to board an airplane under any circumstances, yet so innocent that they can’t be arrested . . .

No, I kid:

One gun control group is asking visitors to Florida to enter at their own risk, and that is creating a lot of controversy in the state’s destination areas like Daytona Beach.

It is part of an ad campaign designed to warn tourists about Florida’s new law that allows victims to shoot first in self-defense without fear of prosecution, WESH 2 News reported.

The new law goes into effect Oct. 1, the same day the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence will start an ad campaign in several major cities, including Miami.

A spokesman for the Brady Group said the new law may lead to the reckless use of guns on the streets. They are actually handing out fliers that say people face a greater risk of bodily harm in Florida.

Seems to me that the only people who would be affected would be those inclined to commit a crime.

On the History Channel, I once heard that a statistical measure used by the armed forces during conflict is the amount of rounds spent per kill. In WW2, that was about 20,000 rounds per confirmed kill. In Korea, it was about 50,000. In Vietnam, that number apparently went way up to 200,000. (ed note: these numbers are all from memory and I am TLTG). Now, in Iraq, it’s apparently worse:

US forces have fired so many bullets in Iraq and Afghanistan – an estimated 250,000 for every insurgent killed – that American ammunition-makers cannot keep up with demand. As a result the US is having to import supplies from Israel.

Zoiks! That is consistent with what the Wal-Mart sporting goods guys tell me.

Yeah, we gunnies already knew that but just to make sure we don’t forget:

Also, a check of Pistol License records shows that Senator Schumer possesses an “unrestricted” pistol permit, a rarity in New York City. Licenses are distributed in different categories in the Big Apple: Target Permits allow only use of a firearm at a licensed firing range; Premises Permits allow weapons to be kept in a home or apartment; Restricted Permits allow the gunowner to carry their firearms concealed but only within the purview of their job (security, jewelers, armored car guards, etc.). So it’s evident that Senator Schumer has two sets of rules — one for Americans and one for himself.

And then we have Senator Diane Feinstein on the Left Coast who possesses something more rare than a conservative Republican in San Francisco — an unrestricted concealed weapons permit. Apparently without shame, she participated in a citywide gun turn-in program that was intended to create some kind of statue from the donated guns that were to be melted down. One of her police body guards let it slip that she contributed a cheap model for the meltdown, while retaining her .357 magnum revolver for her own personal self-defense.

The NRA was successful in its bid to get the NO authorities to stop confiscating firearms. Now, it’s getting a bit more interesting.

Clayton Cramer has a copy of the NO injunction:

Okay, I’m confused. News coverage said that the police were seizing all firearms. Now the appropriate officials deny that they will do it, can do it, or did do it.

The authorities deny issuing the order and deny taking arms but the NRA claims to have the names of 30 – 40 people who reported their arms were taken. Plus, I’ve seen video of one person having their gun taken. I think someone is lying or someone acted on their own without orders. TriggerFinger says:

We still don’t know exactly what happened in that New Orleans courtroom. But thanks to this interview with Alan Gottlieb of the 2nd Amendment Foundation, recorded just before the injunction was issued, we can start to guess. In it, Alan says that the judge is waiting for one thing: he wanted to see the video clip himself. So we can presume that the judge saw the denials from the Nagin and Compass and wanted to see evidence that they were lying to him. Reasonable, and since he later issued the injunction, it appears he was satisfied.

He has much more, including further analysis of the court order. So, who’s lying? Nagin? Compass? Or The New York Times?

I’m happy to report that Head is OK.

Triggerfinger notes that he’s fighting to win and that, while the cold dead hands bit is nice, the living can be heard.

Khalan weaponry has 80% AR-15 lower receivers for $58.

Update: Thanks to a tip from a commentator, the page is now blank. May have ran out. The day before I posted that, someone told me there was a month wait.

Looks like Upper Marlboro, MD is looking to repeal its ban on politically incorrect dogs:

“Public policy should make sense,” said Councilman Thomas R. Hendershot. “It shouldn’t be overly expensive, and it ought to be fair. The pit bull ban is none of the above.”

The county captures and boards about 1,000 pit bulls annually, euthanizing about 800. That has cost about $600,000 over the past two years, according to a recent audit.

Hendershot’s bill defines a “potentially dangerous dog” as one that injures, aggressively provokes or chases a person or domestic animal or is impounded by the county at least twice in a year. He plans to introduce the bill as soon as this week.

A task force commissioned to review the ban recommended the repeal, suggesting the law be replaced with one that does not specify a breed.

That’s pricey for ineffective feel good, legislation.

The Rocky Top Brigade now classifies blogs by location. If you’re a member, head on over and check it out.

The latest is up rounding up secular and moderate conservatives.

These guys are new to me but Williams Mfg makes sound suppressors at a moderate price right here in East Tennessee. They have a 9mm suppressor for $230! And a 22LR suppressor for $185.

And they have the best price I’ve seen on Walther P-22 thread adapters ($30). Anyone familiar with them?

And don’t forget In Range, another local class II manufacturer specializing in AKs.

Michael Silence announces The Valley of the Blogs, which is a list of East Tennessee blogs. If you want to be added, head on over and email Michael.

Well, why not. He’s crazy enough. In March of 2003, I predicted:

The winner of the 2008 Presidential election will be from Tennessee.

I stand by it.

Ravenwood:

Thomas Wease was told by his doctor that he could grow medical marijuana reports the AP. But after he grew about a ton of the controlled substance, he decided to call the cops and find out if it was legal. Apparently, it wasn’t.

The latest Carnival of Cordite is up.

Excellent:

The United States District Court for the Eastern District in Louisiana today sided with the National Rifle Association (NRA) and issued a restraining order to bar further gun confiscations from peaceable and law-abiding victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

Note to Jeff and Ace: Please stop linking to and discussing Oliver Willis. Yeah, the jokes are funny (like unlike his pudding dish, his analysis is shallow and completely devoid of substance) but is it worth it? I mean, it’s Oliver Willis. Ollie isn’t too bright and he’s a hack. It’s not even sporting.

It’s like being in sixth grade and making fun of the kid who still eats paste. Yeah, good for a laugh but no matter how hard you try, you’re not going to convince the paste-eater to not eat the paste. Eventually, you stop making fun of the paste-eater because you realize the paste-eater may have some other problems. I think we’ve reached that point.

Update: And that goes for you too.

Via JR, comes the fully-automated sentry gun, capable of picking out a human target and accurately tracking and shooting him or her in the heart. Heh. Uses an airsoft gun to stop the guy’s little brother.

Jesse Fox Mayshark, formerly of Metropulse fame, has launched The Red State Reader. It features some former writers of the Metropulse and the artist formerly known as South Knox Bubba. It’s left leaning and focuses on The South and the misconceptions about The South. Jesse is now a New Yorker but lived for a decade in Knoxville. Here’s a taste:

Some days after Election Day in November 2004, I was walking to the deli on the corner a few blocks from my apartment on the lower Upper East Side of Manhattan, and I passed two men standing outside a bar, smoking cigarettes and talking. “They hate us down there”, one man said. “They hate us!” “Well,” the other man said, “I don’t know. I go to South Carolina every year, and…” The first man cut him off: “No. They hate us. They were glad when September 11 happened.”

So, go on. You know you want to see how that ends.

Via Der Commissar, I have decided to call out you lurkers. A lurker is someone who frequents the blog but never comments. And I know you are there because I get the occasional email from you and my referral logs tell me you’re there. So, if you’re a reader of this blog and have never commented or just generally don’t, please leave a comment. No need to identify yourself really (nicknames are OK) but I wouldn’t mind if you told me where you were from. Just want to know.

Update: And if you still don’t want to leave a comment, email me at:

Update 2: Thanks for the comments and emails.

Alphie notes that some votes are coming into question in the recent state senate election:

The 12-vote victory afforded to Democrat Ophelia Ford for state Senate is looking shakier all the time. According to a press release from Terry Roland, voting records indicate that 31 voters failed to sign the polling sheet (as required by state law).

This is an election in which all the voting cartridges were delivered except one which was mysteriously left behind in a precinct that, when the cartidge (sic) was eventually pried out of the hands of the poll workers in the heavily-Democrat station, miraculously went 101 to 5 for Ophelia.

The ATF has the TSA’s fact sheet on transporting firearms and ammunition on commercial aircraft. It’s also advisable that you contact your airline as rules vary for different companies.

Stacey Campfield addresses the black caucus issue at his blog.

A while back, Florida got rid of the duty to retreat provision in its self-defense law. Even though this brought Florida in line with the majority of states, there was much ado made about blood in the streets and other such nonsense. Like the predictions of the same when the assault weapons ban expired, none of that has happened, of course. Now, Michigan is attempting to do the same thing and the anti-gun folks are unhappy:

Earlier this year, gun control advocates failed to block a Florida bill allowing people to use deadly force in the street to defend themselves.

The advocates vow not to let that happen in Michigan.

The battle in Michigan over the so-called deadly force legislation is important for both sides in the gun debate. It could open the doors to similar laws across the country — a top priority for the National Rifle Association — or stop the effort in its tracks.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Million Mom March are sending out news releases criticizing the legislation and are calling lawmakers in an attempt to keep the bills from getting out of the House Judiciary Committee.

“This is a byproduct of having missed the boat in Florida,” said Peter Hamm, director of communications for the Washington-based Brady Campaign. “We have been watching like a hawk for this to surface in other states.”

No, Mr. Hamm, it’s a byproduct of being on the wrong side.

There’s this new gun blog by The Gun Guy, who I’ve never head of. It’s good, as though he’s been doing it for years.

Local Rep. Stacey Campfield, who blogs here and is white, may want to become a member of the Tennessee Legislature’s Black Caucus:

The chairman of the state Legislature’s Black Caucus has questioned the motives of a white Knoxville lawmaker who asked to become a member of the group and sought a copy of its bylaws.
Black Caucus Chairman Rep. Johnny Shaw, D-Jackson, denied both requests from Rep. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, according to separate interviews with the two men.

They differed on some details of their conversation, which for now has ended in something of a stalemate. Campfield said he might take further steps in the next legislative session.

“I think he just wanted to mess with somebody,” said Shaw. “Stacey Campfield is a strange guy. That’s the best I can say. He would never say why he wanted the bylaws or what he was trying to do.”

Campfield said he was “just curious” about operations of the Black Caucus and decided to ask Shaw for a copy of the bylaws. He said Shaw at one point asked for a copy of Republican Party bylaws and Campfield had a copy of the GOP document sent to Shaw.

“I have my questions” about the Black Caucus, Campfield said. “How is their money spent? What are membership requirements? A lot of things are contained in the bylaws. I haven’t decided how far to push it.”

In the course of their conversation, the possibility of Campfield becoming a Black Caucus member came up.

By Campfield’s account, Shaw replied in a staunch negative.

I think it’s hysterical. It’s also amusing to watch Campfield repeatedly poke the establishment with a stick. Now, who said this:

“We still want to make sure the black community gets the representation it needs,” he said. “But it’s not just the black community. We represent people as a whole. When you start dividing people up into race, if you’re not careful you can get yourself into a lot of trouble.

Not Campfield but Shaw. Maybe they do get Campfield’s point.

Two riders were attached to the senate version of the Protection of Lawful Commerce In Arms Act. The first requires all handguns be sold with trigger locks, which is kind of pointless since just about every handgun you buy these days comes with one. The second is a bit more troubling:

The second anti-gun provision — offered as a compromise by Sen. Craig — strengthens the “armor-piercing bullet” restrictions of federal law. At its core, the Craig language does two things:

* It gives impetus to adopting a “penetration standard” for armor piercing bullets by commissioning a Justice Department study of the issue. If a “penetration standard” were adopted, a gun-adverse administration could use it to ban virtually any ammunition.

* It establishes a fifteen year MANDATORY MINIMUM PRISON SENTENCE for anyone who carries a single armor piercing bullet during the commission of a “crime of violence” — or who “possesses” such a bullet “in furtherance of… such crime…”

This legislation scares me because of the potential for abusing the penetration standard.

The NRA still supports the bill in total.

Michael Silence notes that the Knoxville Titty Council may approve a red light camera contract in October.

Legislatures and courts keep scrapping the cameras and that the cameras correlate with an increase in traffic injuries. Also, the company that makes the cameras may be motivated to make a little extra money my monkeying with the settings. And they are not 100% accurate.

And, the cameras can be used by the police for harassment.

Joe Huffman reports that the NRA and SAF will be filing a motion in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana seeking a temporary restraining order to stop authorities in and around the City of New Orleans from seizing firearms from private citizens in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Good. It is a start. As Publicola said:

CNN filed a lawsuit within hours of being told their reporters would have limited access to the searches for dead bodies in New Orleans.

Where were you guys on September 9th?

Looks like the Pentagon blocked those associated with Able Danger from testifying before the Senate.

This is getting ugly.

Via the Geek, The Nation of Riflemen forums are back.

Best wishes and thoughts go to gun blogger Head, who is in the path of Rita.

A few of the Nashville bloggers had lunch with Senatorial candidate Ed Bryant. Blogging for Bryant was there and rounds up the lunch. Sharon Cobb has a partial transcript.

In the event there’s interest in doing one in Knoxville, let me know.

There’s a reason airlines don’t hire blind air traffic controllers or traffic policemen. How is this different:

A Swedish labour court fined Ford’s Volvo Car Corp 40,000 Swedish crowns (2,891 pounds) in damages on Wednesday for refusing a woman a job on an assembly line on the grounds she was too short at 160 cm (5.2 ft).

The woman, then 27, applied for a job at a Volvo car plant in Gothenburg three years ago to be told assembly line workers must be between 163 and 195 cm tall for safety reasons.

A local blogger named David Garrett is running for a Tennessee House seat. Here’s his campaign website. He hopes to be the Libertarian Party Nominee. He would be vying for the seat held by Stacey Campfield, who also blogs.

NY’s war against gun shows took its first casualty:

A federal judge Friday tossed out a significant portion of New York state law regulating firearms sales at gun shows.

U.S. District Judge Charles Siragusa determined that one of the statute’s definition of a gun show is so broad that it “infringes on … constitutionally protected rights to free speech, assembly and petition.”

Good.

Captain Holly has some harsh words for Gun Owners of America and a defense of the NRA:

Not without justification, of course. The NRA has often “gone along to get along”, especially when the Congress was controlled by the Democrats. Back then their philosophy seemed to be “we can’t stop it, so let’s make it as gun-owner friendly as possible”. Since 1994, they’ve stiffened their spine somewhat but their reputation as compromisers has lingered.

The GOA has exploited this to portray the NRA as perfidious turncoats and they themselves as the only “true” defenders of the Second Amendment. While it is true the GOA never compromises, they also never advance. The GOA will often kill a good pro-gun bill because it isn’t “pure” enough. They seem to be under the delusion that the only reason all gun control laws were not repealed years ago is because of the spinless Republicans and their greedy NRA masters. An exaggeration, to be sure, but not far off the mark.

Read it all. While I have leveled my criticism of the NRA regularly, the fact is all gun nuts should work together for the greater good of gun rights. Maybe the NRA isn’t pure enough and maybe the GOA’s no-compromise approach does more harm than good. But there’s a good middle-ground to be had and there are some things that they can agree on. But one memo to the NRA sportsman-only types:

If they come for your hunting rifle, I can’t help you because it means they’ve already taken my battle rifle

The Geek obtained word that the firearm confiscation is continuing in New Orleans. He’s asking for more verification:

If ANYONE has folks down there willing to directly verify with me that systematic confiscation of firearms persisted AFTER the forcible evac order was rescinded around 9/10, email me.

Nolan Finley of the Detroit News:

Hurricane Katrina might end up being the best friend the Second Amendment ever had.

There’s more. Read it.

I’ve covered the Tyler, Texas shooting before. You can get some background here. The long and short of it is that David Hernandez Arroyo, Sr. loaded up with body armor and guns, then killed his wife. As Arroyo attempted to shoot his son, a local CCW holder named Mark Wilson intervened and was killed. Mr. Wilson saved the life of Arroyo’s son and perhaps many others.

Reader Robert obtained access and took some photos. Here is a picture of Mr. Wilson’s Colt:

Below the fold are pictures of Arroyo’s MAK.
Read the rest of this entry »

Busy. But you can go read about unfunded mandates and pork regarding ATF paperwork at Tam’s.

And the NRA is asking people who’ve had their guns confiscated in New Orleans to call them at (888) 414-6333. Guess they were reading my take on this.

The latest RINO sightings is up.

Insty is taking on pork barrel spending. Good. Also, NZ Bear has set up a page to track pork. Says Insty:

How are we going to mobilize the blogosphere in support of cuts in wasteful spending to support Katrina relief? Here’s the plan.

Identify some wasteful spending in your state or (even better) Congressional District. Put up a blog post on it. Go to N.Z. Bear’s new PorkBusters page and list the pork, and add a link to your post.

Then call your Senators and Representative and ask them if they’re willing to support having that program cut or — failing that — what else they’re willing to cut in order to fund Katrina relief. (Be polite, identify yourself as a local blogger and let them know you’re going to post the response on your blog). Post the results. Then go back to NZ Bear’s page and post a link to your followup blog post.

The result should be a pretty good resource of dubious spending, and Congressional comments thereon, for review by blogs, members of the media, etc. And maybe even members of Congress looking for wasteful spending . . . .

Folks are battling pork after Katrina. I wonder why not many tried to battle it before? Oh yeah, the money.

Delaware Online:

The predictions were dire. The expiration of the 10-year-old federal assault-weapons ban would flood the streets with AK-47s and other weapons of war.

With the one-year anniversary of the expiration of the ban passing quietly last week, the reality has proved much less grim. The assault-weapons ban went out with a whimper, not a bang.

Although precise figures are not available, police in Delaware have not reported an increase in crimes committed with previously banned weapons.

And area gun dealers say they have not seen an increase in demand, possibly because so many guns that had been legally manufactured before the law remained on the market through the decade-long ban.

Six position, M4 stock for $52.50. Shipped.

Kim du Toit has disappeared without so much as a thanks or even a fuck off to his readers. Countertop said he quit but immediately blogged again. Have no fear. As I said in comments at CT’s:

You can check out any time you like but you can never leave.

You’ll be back. They always come back.

Like me, Ravenwood is no quitter and, like me, has time for it.

And Joe chimes in with:

The last few months have had a very sobering effect on me. Think about this:

Q: How many gun bloggers openly use their real names?
A: Not many.

Q: What percentage of those have had “problems” of some sort because of that?
A: A lot.

Q: How many anti-freedom bloggers do you know of that have “had problems?”
A: None that I know of. But I don’t “travel in those circles.” Anyone that you know of?

I think quite a few use their real names. I use a pseudonym merely because I don’t want this stuff interfering with my work. Also, I don’t want some wackjob reading and deciding to rob me because I have guns.

Oh, and I ain’t quitting either. But blogging may be light as, when this posts, I’ll be in the air headed out for business and returning later in the week.

David Hardy:

Second Amendment Fdn. has announced that, in cooperation with NRA, it’s investigating legal action over the NO gun seizures. They request that anyone who was on the receiving end email safalert@liberty.seanet.com with name, address, phone no, and date of seizure and number of guns taken. (I’d assume that many who were on the receiving end presently have no address or phone, let alone ability to access the internet, but it’s worth trying.

If you’re one of those folks or know of one, let them know.

I subscribe to the NRA’s newsfeed. Typically, it is overly concerned with whatever Hillary Clinton is doing and bashing the UN. Occasionally, they post some gun news there. Like these items:

A press account of the lack of balance on the gun issue.

This account of the Montgomery, AL mayor telling folks to buy guns:

Mayor Bobby Bright is unapologetic and stands firm behind comments he made this week about the need for residents to buy guns and learn how to use them to protect themselves from criminals.

It is a solid concept for people to protect themselves since the criminal justice system is not working, Bright said.

And, lastly, this account again telling us that gun sales are surging

Natural disasters typically jump-start gun sales, and Hurricane Katrina was no exception.
Evacuees who had lost guns, law enforcement officials needing additional firepower and locals fearing riots helped fuel a surge in gun sales in Katrina’s aftermath, local gun sellers said.

And one day in particular — Sept. 1 — spawned a frenzy after false rumors swirled about riots and looting in downtown Baton Rouge.

It’s like they’re reading this site or something.

Carnival of Cordite 30 is up. 30 and I haven’t hosted one?

Owen tells us that Chai Vang, who I blogged about quite a bit, is guilty on six counts of first degree murder. This post of mine has some comments from those in the area after it happened.

Heh.

Via somebody. Already forgot where.

After 2000, it seems a lot of elections are awful darn close. Check this out:

Tennessee Special Election — 60 of 60 precincts reporting (100%)
State Senate Dist 29
Ophelia Ford 4,332 50%
Terry Roland 4,320 49%
Robert Hodges 89 1%

12 votes. Let the recounts begin!

I predicted gun sales would go up after Katrina and early indications supported that. Now, there’s this:

Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. has reported that fiscal first-quarter sales rose and profits were boosted by a reduction in allowances for environmental contamination at a Springfield property.

The company said after the markets closed yesterday that it had profits of $2.7 million, or 7 cents a share, in the fiscal first quarter ended July 31. This compared to a profit of $1.5 million, or 4 cents a share, in the same quarter last year.

Seriously. Insty notes that he found something bad about Roberts. On the commerce clause:

I appreciate it’s a hypothetical, and you will as well, so I don’t mean to be giving bindings opinions. But it would seem to me that Congress can make a determination that this is an activity, if allowed to be pursued, that is going to have effects on interstate commerce. Obviously if you were successful in cloning an animal, that’s not going to be simply a local phenomenon. That’s going to be something people are going to…

This was in response to Chuck Schumer essentially asking if Congress could do whatever the Hell it wanted with regard to cloning (or anything, really). So, dear reader, here’s a question for you all:

Why do we even fucking pretend that there is a commerce clause? Our government acts like it’s not there by simply stating that, at some point, everything is involved in commerce. There is no commerce clause for all intents and purposes.

You remember that time (I think it was in Georgia) where some politico used the word niggardly to describe a budget and some folks were offended that a politico used a racial term (even though the correct term would have been racist)? And then that time where people thought that Bush was delaying the response to Katrina because Bush wanted to kill black people? Remember how fucking stupid that was? I mean, if you’re going to hurl accusations of racism, you should probably know what you’re talking about*.

Well, via Kevin, it has happened again:

The associate vice president of student services at Greenville Technical College referred to New Orleans evacuees in Greenville as “yard apes” in a staff meeting last week, said school President Tom Barton on Tuesday.

The college will decide by noon today what action it can take, Barton said. At least one local minority leader said she should be fired.

[snip]

“We’re going to rectify the situation and make it very much known that we won’t ever tolerate that kind of situation — ever,” Barton said, describing his reaction as “shocked” that someone with years at the school could make such an “asinine” statement.

The problem with this situation is that it assumes that all evacuees are black (the majority probably are). And that a ‘yard ape’ is a derogatory term for black folks. Yard ape is, actually, a derogatory term for children. This person called evacuees children. Yard ape is also a character in a children’s book. Nothing to see here, keep moving.

Update: *Speaking of knowing what you’re talking about, I did some more Googling and found a racist terms glossary (seriously, some one maintains one). So, maybe there’s something to it. I have never heard it used that way and have always heard it in reference to children. So, like the Confederate Flag, I guess it can be racist depending on the usage.

Bubba is back at Facing South. Looks like permanently. Good, he’s been missed.

This is pretty lame:

Despite promises to abide by a moratorium on eminent domain takings, the city agency in charge of development has sent notices to residents in Fort Trumbull ordering them to leave by the beginning of December.

And it gets better:

According to a copy of the eviction notice obtained by the Journal Inquirer, residents are being required not only to leave by Dec. 8 at the latest, but also to pay $600 a month to the NLDC in the interim.

Nothing some tar and feathers wouldn’t stop.

Church wants immigrant’s property via ‘eminent domain’

Surely, that would annoy the staunchest of ED supporters?

Via the folks at KnoxBlab, comes this:

The Rainbow Community Awareness Project of Knoxville, a local group supporting the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community, announced plans Tuesday for its “Come Out Knoxville” celebration.

The celebration, which includes activities stretching over two weeks starting Oct. 6, coincides with a similar national event. Gary Elgin, director of Rainbow Community Awareness Project, said this year’s events mark the largest celebration ever in Knoxville.

“This is the very first time that we have taken this amount of days to celebrate,” he said. “It’s the first time we have taken it to this level, and we are extremely excited.

“This is also the first time that the mayor has recognized the gay community and one of its events,” he said. “Any time you can bring this information to the public, it will help people better understand who you are and relieve the anxieties and dissipate the fear that seems to guide people’s opinions.”

Among the scheduled events are several concerts and lectures, a cabaret show that highlights advances in the GLBT community and a coming-out workshop that educates and encourages homosexuals to live openly and honestly.

The keystone event, the Come Out Knoxville March and Rally Festival, will be Oct. 15 downtown.

The mayor probably recognized that gay people have money. I wonder a few things: If there will be a political fallout over this for the mayor? If there is a chance of violence at the event?