No freedom of expression inside the Jefferson Memorial?

I don't see anything in the Constitution that gives any federal official the power to do this:



Every freedom lover in easy range of DC ought to show up all at once and start dancing. Flash mob!

Letter to the Editor

Stateline news again. Some woman from East Troy likes universal background checks and believes that 90% of Americans support her view.

So:

People just can't seem to understand that firearms are not subject to regulation in the United States. The Second Amendment is quite clear:

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

A "well regulated Militia" is all able-bodied Americans trained in the use of weapons. It has nothing to do with the National Guard.

"The security of a free State" means protecting the inherent rights of the people of the United States from tyranny, foreign or domestic.

"The right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" is pretty self-explanatory. "Infringed" means putting any obstacle at all between a law-abiding American and access to weapons common to the infantryman of the day.

Our country has a long history of infringing on American's right to keep and bear arms, starting with the 1934 National Firearms Act, which would have been found un-Constitutional in the Supreme Court but for the fact that a government lawyer only told part of the truth when testifying about a "prohibited" weapon.

"Universal background checks" will be worse than useless without universal registration - and history teaches us that gun registration inevitably results in confiscation and all too often in genocide.

By the way - that "90%" is from a dubious poll likely conducted by one of the many gun-hating groups out there. I know of no one who supports more gun control.

Chuck Kuecker

Responsibility

When you are the leader, you are responsible for the actions of those under you, whether or not they act at your direct orders or on their own initiative while on the job. This is a basic law of organizations.

So - we have a President who claims that everything that happens is news to him, he has no responsibility for any of the actions of those he oversees.

No. That's not how it works, Barry. You are responsible for the acts of those IRS agents - you should be leading the investigation and kicking butts if you truly did not know what was happening.

The Department of Justice is under your control, too. Your man Holder is responsible for the acts of those under him, and you are responsible for his actions - so you are responsible for illegal wiretaps and gun-running to Mexican gangs as well.

Instead of loudly proclaiming your ignorance and incompetence, why not try leading for a little while?

Letter from Jugears

Just received this from the White House. I don't recall sending anything to him lately - gave up the futile effort to get him to see reality a long time ago.

I'll snark on this in line.

Dear Chuck: Thank you for taking the time to write.  I have heard from many Americans regarding firearms policy and gun violence in our Nation, and I appreciate your perspective.  From Aurora to Newtown to the streets of Chicago, we have seen the devastating effects gun violence has on our American family.  I join countless others in grieving for all those whose lives have been taken too soon by gun violence. +++++++++++ Okay - you keep using "gun violence" and ignoring the fact that there are evil human beings operating that gun... +++++++++++ Like the majority of Americans, I believe the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms.  In this country, we have a strong tradition of gun ownership that has been handed down from generation to generation.  Hunting and sport shooting are part of our national heritage.  Yet, even as we acknowledge that almost all gun owners in America are responsible, when we look at the devastation caused by gun violence—whether in high-profile tragedies or the daily heartbreak that plagues our cities—we must ask ourselves whether we are doing enough. +++++++++++ Keep telling us that - in a few million years we might start to believe that YOU believe it! +++++++++++ While reducing gun violence is a complicated challenge, protecting our children from harm should not be a divisive one.  Most gun owners agree that we can respect the Second Amendment while keeping an irresponsible, law-breaking few from inflicting harm on a massive scale.  Most also agree that if we took commonsense steps to curtail gun violence, there would be fewer atrocities like the one that occurred in Newtown.  We will not be able to stop every violent act, but if there is even one thing we can do to reduce gun violence—if even one life can be saved—then we have an obligation to try. +++++++++++ Ah - the old "if only one life is saved" argument for creating a socialist  Utopia. You can't prevent ANY violent act without a fully integrated pre-crime police state. Give up. +++++++++++ That is why I asked Vice President Joe Biden to identify concrete steps we can take to keep our children safe, help prevent mass shootings, and reduce the broader epidemic of gun violence in this country.  He met with over 200 groups representing a broad cross-section of Americans and heard their best ideas.  I have put forward a specific set of proposals based off of his efforts, and in the days ahead, I intend to use whatever weight this office holds to make them a reality. +++++++++++ You gave Biden that job to keep him from tripping over his dick so often in public. He met with 200 anti-gun groups [ preaching to the choir. +++++++++++ My plan gives law enforcement, schools, mental health professionals, and the public health community some of the tools they need to help reduce gun violence.  These tools include strengthening the background check system, helping schools hire more resource officers and counselors and develop emergency preparedness plans, and ensuring mental health professionals know their options for reporting threats of violence.  And I directed the Centers for Disease Control to study the best ways to reduce gun violence—because it is critical that we understand the science behind this public health crisis.  From improving mental health services to looking more closely at a culture that too often glorifies violence, we must leave no stone unturned when working to keep Americans safe. +++++++++++ "Tools" like intrusive infringements on our remaining Constitutional rights to face our accusers and have property and freedom taken away by correct application or legal laws. It's politicians from your side of the fence that destroyed the mental health infrastructure we had un until the 1960's. Isn't there a law passed by Congress prohibiting the CDC from wasting more money on gun control justification? +++++++++++ As important as these steps are, they are not a substitute for action from Congress.  To make a real and lasting difference, members of Congress must also act.  As part of my comprehensive plan, I have called on them to pass some specific proposals right away.  First, it is time to require a universal background check for anyone trying to buy a gun.  Second, Congress should renew the 10-round limit on magazines and reinstate and strengthen the assault weapons ban.  We should get tougher on those who buy guns with the purpose of selling them to criminals, and we should impose serious punishments on anyone who helps them do this. +++++++++++ Yeah - let's do what was proven to be useless again, only HARDER! Let's get that Nazi-style gun registry all set up and running so you or one of your successors can disarm all the law-abiding in short order when it comes time for America's turn at building our own versions of Dachau. +++++++++++ These are reasonable, commonsense measures that have the support of the majority of the American people.  But change will not come unless the American people demand it from their lawmakers.  Now is the time to do the right thing for our children, our communities, and the country we love.  We owe the victims of heartbreaking national tragedies and the countless unheralded tragedies each year nothing less than our best effort—to seek consensus in order to save lives and ensure a brighter future for our children. +++++++++++ Last time I looked, the majority of Americans were against all of your proposals and buying guns and whatever ammo the DHS has left on the shelves at an amazing rate. What we owe the victims of violence is to make sure the survivors are free to keep and bear arms in defense of their families.  That change you keep wanting is coming - and you won't like it much. +++++++++++ Thank you, again, for writing.  I encourage you to visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/NowIsTheTime to learn more about my Administration’s approach. Sincerely, Barack Obama

Letter to the editor

The Stateline News today provides a response to my recent letter.

A Lindsy Schnell of Beloit completely misinterpreted my letter, saying I am "afraid" of what life without fossil fuels will be.

Damn right I am "afraid". Our standard of living would plummet, millions would die of starvation or lack of medical care.

So, here's my reply:

Here we ga again.

Lindsy Schnell misses the point.

First "climate change", as peddled by the scaremongers, does not exist, and there's precious little Man can do to stop it. Our climate is driven by the Sun's output, and I know of no way to alter that, unless we spend trillions to build an orbital sun shade for the whole planet. This has actually been discussed, believe it or not.

A little thought will show that being forced by government to stop using fossil fuels will kill millions, and reduce the standard of living of the survivors. This is common sense when you realize that everything we eat is produced with the help of oil-burning machines. Shut down the factory farms and see how many big cities can survive on backyard gardens.

The market will drive new energy sources much more efficiently than government will - as witness how much our current administration has squandered on "green" energy failures.

Why is there a disconnect with human activity and nature? We didn't drop out of the sky like alien invaders and lay waste to the planet. We belong here as much as a spotted owl.

And, in case you didn't notice, our air and water are a lot cleaner then even back in the 1960's, due to regulation and the efforts of private industry. The government mandated pollution reductions, and the market not only exceeded their demands, they gave us 40 MPG cars in the process.

Chuck Kuecker

++++++++++++

Since we are on the subject of fossil fuels - anyone else notice just how many things are now made of plastic that used to be steel or other metals? I noticed that the dumpsters behind my employer's plant are one piece molded plastic now - a few hundred pounds of fossil oil molded into a bin on wheels.

If we are running out of oil like the scaremongers all are screaming, how is this economical?

 

Truth in reporting

CNN isn't known as the Communist News Network for nothing, if not "pravda"...



Why does anyone still believe what they see on TV?

Letter to the Editor

Beloit Daily News, again:

We've heard for years that we have to do "something" about gun violence and the easy availability of guns. How gun crime is increasing. We have to ACT!

That we need "universal background checks" and have to close the "gun show loophole" even  though only 1% of weapons used in crime were obtained at a gun show and less than 15% were legally purchased.

That we have to ban scary "assault rifles" and "large capacity ammunition feeding devices", when under 2% of crimes involved a rifle of any kind.

Well, the truth hurts - the US Department of Justice just released a report that shows "gun violence" is down by two-thirds since 1993 - at the same time Americans have greatly increased the number of privately owned weapons, and all but one state now have some sort of concealed carry law.

A PDF of the report can be found here: http://bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/fv9311.pdf

Now, can we please not hear any more about how we need to add even more useless laws to the 20,000-odd gun restrictions now on the books - every one of them in violation of our Second Amendment?

Chuck Kuecker

Liberator update

The forces of evil are at work. The web site I posted a while back about the Liberator printed pistol was censored. Aged Demonrat lizard Chucky Schumer was pissed that there are people smarter than him out there, and proposed a law banning printed firearms.

So, go here to get those files. Freedom will not be denied.

 

Thanks to Day by Day!

Rally in Madison

The liberals managed to amass thousands to protest us taking Wisconsin back from them - let's amass thousands to preserve our basic freedoms!

 

I'll be there. How about you?

United in Freedom 2nd Amendment Preservation Rally 

 

More info:

http://conservativesconnect.wordpress.com/2013/04/26/2nd-amendment-rally-on-june-15th-at-the-state-capitol/ 

[link to a facebook page here - could not find another web site - sorry]

Saturday, June 15, 2013  2:30pm
June 15th 2:30PM WI State Capitol

 

Wisconsin State Capitol  -
2 East Main Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53702
Come support our state legislature, as they valiantly propose a Second Amendment Preservation bill to:

 

***Prohibit the Federal Government from adding WI gun owners to a national gun registry.

 

***Prohibit the Federal Government from confiscating guns in Wisconsin

 

***Prohibit the Federal Government from banning commonly owned guns and magazines.

 

```````````````````````` Please share the event information with anyone in the news media for whom you have the contact information.  If you are sending it to the media as a “community calendar” notice, be aware that in most cases the media outlets want a minimum of 3-weeks notice for inclusion in the “community calendar.

````````````````````````

 

For Liberty

Southern WI Alliance of Taxpayers
website:
www.wistax.weebly.com

We told them so!

More guns == less crime. We told them.

They told us the streets would run with blood if more people went out armed.

Now, the truth is out - direct from the US Department of Justice - PDF at the link:

U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics
BJS

Special Report

In 2011, a total of 478,400 fatal and nonfatal violent
crimes were committed with a firearm (table 1).

Homicides made up about 2% of all firearm-related
crimes. There were 11,101 firearm homicides in 2011,
down by 39% from a high of 18,253 in 1993 (figure 1).
The majority of the decline in firearm-related homicides
occurred between 1993 and 1998. Since 1999, the number of
firearm homicides increased from 10,828 to 12,791 in 2006
before declining to 11,101 in 2011.

Nonfatal firearm-related violent victimizations against
persons age 12 or older declined 70%, from 1.5 million
in 1993 to 456,500 in 2004 (figure 2). The number then
fluctuated between about 400,000 to 600,000 through 2011.1
While the number of firearm crimes declined over time, the
percentage of all violence that involved a firearm did not
change substantively, fluctuating between 6% and 9% over
the same period. In 1993, 9% of all violence was committed
with a firearm, compared to 8% in 2011. 

How about that "gun show loophole"?

In 2004, among state prison inmates who possessed a gun
at the time of offense, less than 2% bought their firearm at
a flea market or gun show and 40% obtained their firearm
from an illegal source.

 There you have it - proof positive that we are right and the loony Left is dead wrong.

LA Times article

Gun crime has plunged, but Americans think it's up, says study

Gun crime has plunged in the United States since its peak in the middle of the 1990s, including gun killings, assaults, robberies and other crimes, two new studies of government data show.

Yet few Americans are aware of the dramatic drop, and more than half believe gun crime has risen, according to a newly released survey by the Pew Research Center.

In less than two decades, the gun murder rate has been nearly cut in half. Other gun crimes fell even more sharply, paralleling a broader drop in violent crimes committed with or without guns. Violent crime dropped steeply during the 1990s and has fallen less dramatically since the turn of the millennium.

The number of gun killings dropped 39% between 1993 and 2011, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported in a separate report released Tuesday. Gun crimes that weren’t fatal fell by 69%. However, guns still remain the most common murder weapon in the United States, the report noted. Between 1993 and 2011, more than two out of three murders in the U.S. were carried out with guns, the Bureau of Justice Statistics found.

So, they report the truth - but subtly warp their language to keep the guns as evil ball rolling and make sure you still know that GUNS are the reason for most murders - not the murderers who use them.

If you keep pushing the rare school shooting into 24/7 coverage, and ignore the real statistics, what are Americans who have only mass media as their source supposed to believe?

I can't wait for the Koch brothers to buy them out!

Question

How about it, America?

The future is here

"Gun control" is now history. Anyone with the 3D printer can now make their own.



Get the files here. Beware the fake download links to various "free" PDF readers and such - the real download link is sort of hard to find, but it is there.

The name is appropriate - I doubt this gun is good for more than one or two shots before the barrel is useless - and I doubt that it is rifled. Just like a certain sheet metal one-shot mass produced for a couple bucks each back in the 1940's. Of course, a smoothbore like this might be classed as AOW by the BATFE - so printing one might make you a federal criminal unless you be their permission and pay the tax. Just saying.

Now - couple this with homemade plastic case ammo...

Zero intelligence

Or, just plain stupidity - after all, never attribute to conspiracy what can be thus explained:

Zero Tolerance Ruins the Life of a Good Kid… Again (UPDATED) 

I would like for you to meet Cole Withrow. In addition to being an Eagle Scout, Cole is an honors student and high school senior in Johnson County North Carolina … at least he was until recently.
Now, he is charged with a felony, expelled from school weeks before graduation, and sees his college plans crumbling since he will not be allowed to graduate.

 Well, go there and read.

There's good news, anyway.

Looks Like Negative Publicity Works

 Now, keep up the pressure:

f you want to help Cole, I would suggest polite, strongly-worded letters to the contacts below, as well as petitions and shares of this post.

1. Contact the Johnson County School Board and let them know what you think of their actions.
2. Contact the Johnston County DA Susan Doyle via email Susan.I.Doyle@nccourts.org or telephone (919) 209-5521 and ask her to immediately drop the charges against Cole.
3. Sign this petition that is going to the School Board.
4. Sign this petition to the Governor.
5. Keep up with the #FreeCole campaign at their Facebook page.

For once, the good guys win.

 

"Most of the guns used in Mexico came from the US"

So saith America's greatest gun salesman - who presided over "Fast and Furious".

Obama blames American guns for Mexican deaths: ‘Most of the guns used to commit violence here in Mexico come from the United States’

The president omitted mention of Operation Fast and Furious, his Department of Justice’s program that ‘walked’ thousands of guns across the border.

Nice video at the link.

Now, I need a 3D printer...

That 3D-Printed Handgun You've Been Waiting For Is Here

J.D. Tuccille|May. 3, 2013 9:15 am

 
Michael Thad Carter for Forbes

Remember when Defense Distributed's Cody Wilson promised to unveil an entirely 3D-printed handgun made of ABS plastic with the firing pin its only metal part? Well, he's apparently done it. Forbes's Andy Greenberg was given a sneak peek of the result, and it looks and appears to be quite an achievement. If all goes well, the plans will be unveiled at Defcad.org next week.

I wonder how many rounds you get before a mandatory barrel change?

Revolution?

It's coming:

Poll: 29% of Americans think 'armed revolution' coming soon

Three in ten American voters agree that "armed revolution" will be necessary within a few years.

Published: May 2, 2013 at 8:12 AM

By KRISTEN BUTLER, UPI.com

Many Americans believe armed rebellion is on the horizon, according to a Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll.

Golf post

I don't get into golf much, but this is worth sharing.

The truth about communism

Narrated by Ronald Reagan. 13 parts on YouTube.



History. Know it or suffer.

DHS training video

Because all terror attacks on US soil have been perpetrated by angry white Christian militia members.

A few things to consider from this video. As I mentioned, militias are perfectly legal under the United States Constitution. Keeping and bearing arms is supposed to be protected under the Second Amendment of the Constitution as well and as we’ve taken the time to point out, the federal government has no authority to regulate or restrict arms. They just aren’t given that authority in the Constitution. Therefore, the claim of “illegal possession of firearms” causes one to wonder, are these men felons and shouldn’t have a firearm? Are these men in possession of illegal guns and if so, upon what basis are they declared illegal? Federal legislation or state legislation?

Found here.

"High capacity" magazine bans explained

Death by "common sense" laws:



It's not about guns - it's about CONTROL.

From someone who should know

Russian Calls Out Barack Obama As A Communist

Barack Obama is called a pure Communist by the Russian Press and many in Russia are making that statement. Maybe that is why the Boston Bombers could get away with what they did. It seems that Russia knew that the older brother was one to watch and they informed our intelligence community of it, yet the FBI once again failed because they “did not want to inflame people with Jihad connections or ideology!” Obama has declared that the United States will not “attack” those who hate the United States and instead, Obama wants to try to appease the situation in the terrorists’ favor. One individual, a man named Xavier Lerma, who wrote many articles about Obama and what he has done, along with calling the people of the United States stupid and ignorant for putting him in office has openly called Obama a Communist! His article, “Obama’s Soviet Mistake,” discusses why what Obama is doing now has been done before in Russia and it failed.
Mr. Lerma stated:

“Putin in 2009 outlined his strategy for economic success. Alas, poor Obama did the opposite but nevertheless was re-elected. Bye, bye Miss American Pie. The Communists have won in America with Obama but failed miserably in Russia with Zyuganov who only received 17% of the vote. Vladimir Putin was re-elected as President keeping the NWO order out of Russia while America continues to repeat the Soviet mistake.”

Yes -WHY is our media so intent on ignoring reality?

Help needed

Calling all Vietnam veterans:

Can you please distribute the below request to you distribution list. Thanks

 

Any US Navy sailor on board a US Navy ship during the Vietnam War: I am requesting notarized sworn testimonials from sailors who saw barrels of agent orange and agent white on board their ship. Barrels would have an orange or white painted stripe around the middle or top of the barrels.  

Details: Name of ship to include hull number. Port where picked up and port where off loaded. Means used to load and off load the barrels. Any spills from damage and means to clean it up.

There will be no repercussions attributed with your testimonial, testimonials are in witness and are not classified information.

I want to build a case that the DoD and Dept of the Navy did not be truthful about these barrels being transported on board US Navy ships. At some point in time, I hope to testify before Congress relative to the Agent Orange Bills.

Send me a message or e-mail me at johnb1936@verizon.net 

If you are willing to provide me with your sworn testimonial. Thank you.

Carbon Belch Day

Celebrate with me on Saturday.

Internal combustion rules!

Damn. It's going to be cold enough that burning fossil fuel won't be gratuitous...

Know your elements

The Periodic Table on YouTube

Fluorine:

Letter to the Editor

Stateline News - the local shopper paper - this time. The writer tells us to fight Keystone XL and stop burning fossil fuels in favor of "renewables".

Here's what I sent:

Loren Johnson of Elkhorn tells us that "climate change" is settled science, and that we must stop a pipeline that will help us reduce our dependence on foreign oil and provide thousands of jobs in a depressed economy.

His "settled science" claim falls apart in the face of publication of emails between "climate scientists" who conspired to cherry-pick their data to "hide the decline" and produce scary "hockey stick" graphs that enable people like Al Gore to become billionaires preying on the fear of the uneducated.

Does he know that water vapor - which is always present in the atmosphere at much higher levels than carbon dioxide, is a much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2? Perhaps we should cap the lakes and oceans first before we stop using fossil fuels.

I agree that we should someday phase out fossil fuels - when we have a reliable, economically viable replacement for them. We have one clean, reliable, and proven power source available right now. Nuclear power. Too bad it's "politically incorrect" to even speak of it.

"Renewable fuels" will never replace oil, coal, and natural gas, even if all the arable land on Earth was converted from food production to bio-fuels. Our standard of living would return to that of the Middle Ages - and our population would perforce need to be reduced to that level to prevent mass starvation.

Like it or not, man is not responsible for "climate change".

Chuck Kuecker

Mike Fitzpatrick gun control survey

Here

He's running in Pennsylvania, but any education we can give him is worthwhile.

Reply from Tammy Gay

I've sent emails and letters telling this person "NO more gun control", and have included the Einstein quote about insanity more than once.

Color me surprised at her reply. He's in favor of universal checks, magazine and "assault weapon" bans, and "more research".

++++++++++++++++++++

Thank you for contacting me about federal gun policy. I value your input on a topic that involves fundamental constitutional rights and the safety of our families and communities.

The horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut in December of last year has prompted a national dialogue on guns and federal gun policy. Other mass killings at Fort Hood in Texas; at a grocery store in Tucson, Arizona; at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado; and in a place of worship in Oak Creek, Wisconsin have heightened our focus on strategies to reduce gun violence and save lives. But, the death of 20 young school children and six teachers at Sandy Hook demands that we try to find common ground to take action without violating constitutional rights.

A wide range of policy options have been put forth as a part of this conversation. In January, President Obama outlined his plan to reduce gun violence in the United States. Additionally, several bills relating to gun violence have been offered in both Houses of Congress and Congressional Committees are holding Hearings to inform the path forward.

In addition to hearing from you, it has been important to me to listen to Wisconsinites with various perspectives on the issue. To date, I have met with Chiefs of Police from a number of communities, family members of the fallen at Oak Creek, sportsmen and women, and researchers seeking to better understand what policies can be effective as we seek to reduce gun injury and death. I look forward to gaining additional insight as we continue the work on solutions to prevent gun violence.

Debates over gun policies often evoke strong responses because throughout our policymaking, we must safeguard constitutional rights at the same time as we endeavor to safeguard communities and combat crime. I am a gun owner and firmly believe in the Second Amendment and the right of law-abiding Americans to keep and bear arms. I also believe that, as the Supreme Court has ruled, this right can be reconciled with reasonable, common sense safety measures.

Ever since passage of the Brady Act in 1993, federal law has required criminal background checks for certain gun purchases. In the 20 years since the passage of the Brady Act and with the advent and widespread use of e-commerce, an increasing number of gun sales occur without a criminal background check.  I support requiring background checks on all gun sales. In addition, I support giving law enforcement additional tools to crack down on gun trafficking and the straw purchasers who help get guns into the hands of criminals.

The recent tragedies across the nation also give us reason to reassess our mental health system. Most people with mental illness will never become violent. However, if mental health treatment and services were more readily available, we would see fewer people in situations that spiral out of control. I believe that we should have a special emphasis on young adults, as most mental illnesses manifest themselves by the time a person reaches young adulthood. I have previously worked to ensure mental health parity, so that insurance policies cover mental illness in the same way that they cover physical illness. While mental health parity is now the law, it has not been fully implemented and its benefits are not felt by those Americans who lack insurance coverage.

I support the President's call to restore research funding that can help us study gun violence, gun injury prevention and gun safety.  Limits have been placed on such funding by Congress for a number of years, and it is high time those restrictions be lifted. Accurate data and careful, objective evaluation of that data informs better policy.

The President's plan to reduce gun violence in the United States makes a series of recommendations that include instituting a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines. Each of these proposals will get careful scrutiny. Every year in Wisconsin, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites go hunting. It is a time-honored tradition that is a part of our state's culture. We must assure that these proposals do nothing to inhibit the celebrated sporting heritage of our state. I look forward to reviewing these proposals and working with my colleagues to find common ground, so that we can reduce gun violence in this country while protecting everyone's Second Amendment rights.

+++

Please know that I will keep your thoughts and suggestions in mind as Congress considers gun policy legislation.

Once again, thank you for contacting my office.  It is important for me to hear from the people of Wisconsin on the issues, thoughts and concerns that matter most to you.  If I can be of further assistance, please visit my website at www.baldwin.senate.gov for information on how to contact my office.
Sincerely,
Tammy Baldwin
United States Senator

++++++++++++++++++++

I am sure her definition of "gun safety" does not include the Four Rules. It sure won't involve Eddie Eagle or teaching gun safety in grade school.

Current events

This guy tells it like it is:

545 vs 300,000,000

EVERY  CITIZEN NEEDS TO READ THIS AND THINK ABOUT WHAT THIS JOURNALIST HAS  SCRIPTED IN THIS MESSAGE.  READ IT  AND THEN REALLY THINK ABOUT  OUR CURRENT POLITICAL DEBACLE.
 
by Charlie Reese:

Politicians are the only people in the world  who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever  wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if  all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have  inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget.  The president does.

You and I don't have the  Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of  Representatives does.  They alone hold America's government purse strings.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress  does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You  and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve  Bank does, and it's a private corporation, not part of government.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one  president, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human  beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally,  and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague  this country.

 Read the whole thing. Think. ACT.

Busy tomorrow night?

Rock River Patriots Meeting this Friday April 12th

We would like to welcome everyone to our next meeting at the Library in Fort Atkinson.
The address is 209 Merchants Ave, Fort Atkinson, WI 53538.

At Friday nights meeting we have a special guest speaker who many of you may already know.

We would like to welcome Loren Spivack “The Free Market Warrior” was born and raised in Massachusetts and spent most of his adult life in New York City. Before becoming active in politics, Spivack worked for several non-profits and as a management consultant for both profit and non-profit companies.

Spivack founded “Free Market Warrior” in 2009 in an effort to make a positive difference in American politics and economics.

He was expelled from Concord Mills Mall in North Carolina in July of 2009 for selling material critical of the Obama Administration.  (Mall owners, Simon Property Group, are major Democratic donors.) Since then Loren has devoted his time to teaching

conservative groups about free market economics. He conducts “Economic Literacy” seminars across the United States. So far, Spivack has delivered his famous seminar on “Economic Literacy” to almost 200 groups in 17 states.

Spivack is also the author of the recently published “The New Democrat” a parody history of the Obama administration, based on a famous children’s book.  With pitch-perfect rhyme and clever illustrations, “The New Democrat” transforms the political personalities of our times into cartoon characters in a conservative morality play.

Spivack’s second book “The Gorax” is an anti-environmentalist/pro capitalism parody starring Al Gore and presenting his movement as a threat to American freedom and standard of living.  Once again Spivack is both funny and poignant as he makes the case that capitalism (represented by the “Onepercentler”) is the real victim of environmentalist wackos who destroy prosperity without achieving even their own goals.  In between, he takes shots at everything from The Fed to the teachers unions.  “The Gorax” will be available spring 2013.

We look forward to seeing all of you this coming Friday night.

Unbelievable

That flight-critical aircraft systems would be unencrypted...

Hacker uses an Android to remotely attack and hijack an airplane 

The Hack in the Box (#HITB2013AMS) security conference in Amsterdam has a very interesting lineup of talks [pdf]. One that jumped out was the Aircraft Hacking: Practical Aero Series presented by Hugo Teso, a security consultant at n.runs in Germany.

According to the abstract, “This presentation will be a practical demonstration on how to remotely attack and take full control of an aircraft, exposing some of the results of my three years research on the aviation security field. The attack performed will follow the classical methodology, divided in discovery, information gathering, exploitation and post-exploitation phases. The complete attack will be accomplished remotely, without needing physical access to the target aircraft at any time, and a testing laboratory will be used to attack virtual airplanes systems.

Well, he only hacked a "virtual" airplane, but why in HELL was this not thought of when they designed those systems?

Idiots. I'm ashamed of some of my fellow engineers.

Indoctrination

Prof at public univ under investigation for allegedly forcing students to make anti-gun posters

A professor at a public university in Texas is under investigation from school administrators for allegedly forcing students in her graphic design class to create anti-gun posters for a personal anti-gun campaign she had launched.

Midwestern State University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Betty Stewart confirmed to Campus Reform Friday the school has launched an investigation into professor Jennifer Yucus’ conduct after a student filed an official complaint on Thursday.

According to the complaint, obtained by Campus Reform, the professor compelled students in her graphic design class to create artwork opposing firearms on campus and opposing pro-gun legislation currently pending before the Texas state legislature.

The professor then used the artwork students created online to publicize an anti-gun petition entitled “MSU is anti-Concealed Carry on Campus” and on a now deleted Facebook page opposing firearms, says the complaint.

 

You go, girl!

I wish we had a few million more like her.

Extremists

I'm on the list. Are you?

Am I a Dangerous Extremist? Are You?

• Posted by Alan Caruba on April 9, 2013 at 4:05pm in Tea Party Nation Forum
• View Discussions

By Alan Caruba

If you should suddenly cease to find my commentaries, I will either have passed away or have been detained by agents of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or the Defense Department and taken to an undisclosed location for the crime of having been an “extremist” and a danger to the nation.

In April 2009, the Washington Times published an article reporting that “The Department of Homeland Security is warning law enforcement officials about a rise in ‘rightwing extremist activity’, saying that the economic recession, the election of America’s first black president, and the return of a few disgruntled war veterans could swell the ranks of white-power militias.”

Among those targeted by DHS were “groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single-issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.” Well, that’s only a few tens of millions of Americans. Little wonder why, on April 5th, we learned that a U.S. Army Reserve presentation regarding “extremist threats within the U.S. military included Catholics and evangelicals!

These two groups represent half of all Americans and some forty percent of active duty military personnel are evangelical Christians. The Catholics and evangelicals were lumped in with “white supremacist groups, street gangs, and religious sects.”

If our current leaders consider Christians a greater threat than Muslims, then they are idiots with a very dangerous agenda.

It begins

Remember all those people who insist that registration and gun control don't directly lead to confiscation?

New York is moving to Act II of the script:

NYS Police Departments Revoking Pistol Permits because of Anti-Anxiety Meds

This is hot off the press. I have first-hand knowledge that local NYS police departments are revoking pistol permits of those who are "blown-in" by the medical community for being prescribed anti-anxiety medications (for those who are in therapy for anxiety or depression), under the gray shroud of the UNSAFE Act. This is happening now folks, and it is likely to get worse.

EVERYONE needs to be aware of this, for the sake of keeping their pistol permit in NYS. Please spread this information around - Facebook, Twitter, by every means possible. We need to get the word out as quickly as possible.

If anyone faces such an ordeal with their pistol permit, or you know anyone in the future who faces this issue, you are urged to email info@tresmondlaw.com. It doesn't matter where you are located in NY.

By all means use this thread to discuss - this is something that was mentioned as a potential major issue with the new laws signed by Cuomo, and it's becoming reality.

Audio here: http://www.wben.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=6319907

Found through Ammoland.

Top Ten tune in the UK

A view of America's future?

Janesville Freedom Rally

Saturday, May 4th, there will be a Freedom Rally at the lower courthouse park, Court Street and St Lawrence, Janesville, from 12 noon until 3 PM. This is the big park just west of the Rock County Courthouse.

Come join the Wisconsin III% Militia and your neighbors to support our freedoms!

Insanity

Letter to the editor this morning in the Janesville Gazette. I can't find the original on their web site - it might be posted tomorrow, or they might not post letters to the editor. If I can find a link, I'll update this post.

Anyway, "Augie Augenstein" opines that we ought to license and register guns and gun owners just like cars and drivers, and somehow feels that persons using guns in crimes are not "held accountable" because we don't have this registry. He pulls up a reference to a poll where "90% of Americans" want more gun control, but neglects to tell us who ran that poll.

He tells us that here in America no one has ever come for our guns, so why worry. Ignorance is no excuse for trying to destroy our freedoms.

He wonders why NOW we are worried about gun control. I've got news for you, Augie - gun owners have been worried since 1934 nationally, and since the 1890's locally, if they were awake.

Then he tells us to be concerned about who has the ears of our leaders - at least he gets that one right. As long as we let people like George Soros and outfits like the Communist Party  of America tell our leaders what "we" want, we are in grave danger.

My response:

Augie Augenstein of Janesville needs a history lesson.

First, cars are nowhere mentioned in the Constitution. Guns - 'arms' - are expressly protected from legislation. Substitute "pen" for "gun" in your argument, and see where you end up.

Second, "90% of American people" is 90% of some poll, likely by the Joyce Foundation or one of their anti-gun groups. Anyway, you don't change the Constitution with opinion polls.

History tells us that first comes gun registration, then gun confiscation - and all too often, genocide. History. Read up on it, or get taken by surprise.

Definitely worry about who has the ears of our lawmakers. George Soros, international socialists, the American Communist Party...

You want to stop violent criminals who ignore thousands of laws to commit their crimes? You won't do this by infringing on our God-given right to self-defense, or violating our Constitution.

Trying to stop bad guys with guns by making it more difficult for good guys to get them is like trying to stop home fires by requiring a waiting period and government permits for fire extinguishers.

None of the proposed laws - or what has been passed in Connecticut - would have prevented Sandy Hook - and it won't stop the next tragedy. You can be sure that there will always be people who will insist on "more controls" despite the obvious failure of past efforts.

Albert Einstein said it: "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Naval history

The last of the breed

One reason Ill-Annoys is in trouble

They keep electing geniuses like this:



The theater in Colorado was posted "no weapons" - so of course no one pulled their gun and shot the perpetrator - because they were all law-abiding folks and he was a criminal.

Duh.

Found at Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler

History lesson

The NRA was not created to let fat white crackers shoot guns:

CCW class

A free CCW class will be held at 9am April 20th at the IBEW union hall, 17 S River St # 101, Janesville, WI 53548.




Call Sean Anderson at (608) 290-2698 to reserve a seat.



Sponsored by the Wisconsin III% Militia.

A reformed liberal speaks

This is great. Found at Ace of Spades:

No, he can't

I wonder if Sheriff Spoden is on the list...

 Rumor - or truth?

Federal Framework Being Set Up To Arrest Sheriffs

Colorado, and apparently Texas (next) are being targeted with an attempt to set up a federal authority framework that will enable Secret Service agents (not just those guarding the president), and others of the U.S. Secret Service including uniformed division officers, physical security technicians and specialists, and other ‘special officers’, to arrest and remove an elected sheriff for refusing to enforce the law (or anyone breaking the law).

The bills being introduced defines law as including any rule, regulation, executive order, court order, statute or constitutional provision.

Why are they doing this? Here’s why…

It would establish federal authority police powers in a State, enabling an enforcement arm reporting directly to the president (Secret Service).

It would enable the president / executive branch to theoretically override the actions and preventative measures that are now being taken by many States throughout the country who are trying to preserve 2nd Amendment gun rights and who are prohibiting the enforcement of unconstitutional law passed by Congress or pushed by executive order.
As some of you may know, a growing list of sheriffs (more than 340 so far) across the country have expressed that they will not enforce a Washington mandate that clearly violates the Second Amendment.

Many State laws to preserve gun rights are gaining momentum. States include Montana, Ohio, Kentucky, Idaho, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, Michigan, Utah, and New Mexico.

It would be nice to provide a link to the bill in question. I haven't the time to research this right now - anyone know more - or have evidence?

I knew it

Liars.

Media Lied About Sandy Hook Shooter? Say It Isn’t So!

Of course, Reuters would counter that the NRA is defensive and lying, or something along that line. Except for one problem that challenges Reuters’ credibility: Reuters conveniently left out the most important item in the killer’s inventory.

In early March, top law enforcement officials attended a semi-annual meeting in New Orleans. Danny Stebbins, a colonel from the Connecticut State Police, presented his report on the Sandy Hook shooting.
Investigators found a “spreadsheet 7 feet long and 4 feet wide.” This spreadsheet contained “extensive research” of “mass murders of the past, and even attempted murders.” Police concluded: “They don’t believe this was just a spreadsheet. They believe it was a score sheet.”

“We were told [the murderer] had around 500 people on this sheet,” a law enforcement veteran told me Saturday night. “Names and the number of people killed and the weapons that were used, even the precise make and model of the weapons. It had to have taken years. It sounded like a doctoral thesis, that was the quality of the research.”

Police reached other conclusions:

• This was the work of a video gamer who intended to place his name on top as all-time high scorer in real-life shoot-em-ups.
• He picked the elementary school because it offered the best opportunity to “score” the most points before police arrived to stop him.
• Video gamers lose all their points to the character who kills them, so this murderer planned to “retain” his points by committing suicide so law enforcement couldn’t take his points.
• Said one official: “They have pictures from two years before, with the guy all strapped with weapons, posing with a pistol to his head. That’s the thing you have to understand: He had this laid out for years before.” [emphasis added]

Reuters didn’t tell the whole truth because the anti-rights narrative succeeds by sympathizing with murderers and derogating law-abiding citizens. The NRA is America’s oldest civil rights and gun safety organization. But the NRA stands in the way of the anti-rights agenda, so the NRA, consisting of nearly five million law-abiding Americans, must be demonized in order to destroy its influence.

Corrupt media’s goal is to stop people from learning the truth about the Sandy Hook shooting, and instead socially engineer Americans into willingly surrendering their civil right of self-defense. To accomplish this, any lie is acceptable.

 

Waste of our taxes

Immoral, too. We paid for that brass, not to have it shredded.

Military installations sidestep questions on brass destruction

“I'm responding to a tip that Ft. McCoy brass from expended small arms ammunition is being shredded instead of sold on the civilian market,” this columnist wrote in the base contact form. “I’m told that as of the beginning of this month, no brass may be sold without being rendered unusable.

“Is this true?” the query continued “Is or was brass being destroyed? If so, who ordered it, over what time period, under what authority, and will you make a copy of such orders public? Did an order to destroy brass once exist and has it been rescinded? When and by whom? Does everything that is being destroyed meet the criteria of being ‘unserviceable or unsafe for further use’? What is the policy for destruction of brass that could be sold on the civilian market? Are all destruction activities consistent with appropriations and public law requirements?

“I'm following up on this because I've written in the past about the military destroying brass that, per appropriations requirements, should be designated for civilian market resale,” the inquiry explained. “As such, I'd like to establish the truth about this and make sure all of the points brought to my attention are addressed as specifically as possible.

“To that end, any for-the record response you could give to address these questions will be helpful and appreciated, as would any further information you could share about this,” the inquiry concluded.

“In reference to your Fort McCoy web site inquiry, please see view the article that was recently published in the Fort McCoy newspaper, The Real McCoy,” the Public Affairs Officer wrote back. That article confirms they are using a deformer “to demilitarize about 9,000 pounds of brass each day … including 5.56-mm, 7.62-mm, 9-mm and .50-caliber, and that “the ammo is transported up a conveyor belt and then struck by hammers in a rotary grinder that cause deformation of the casing.”

 

ACLU antics

So, right after posting about the Fabians, I hear about the ACLU filing a federal lawsuit against some Beloit elementary schools because the have single-sex classes.

ACLU wants the court to rule that somehow having boys and girls separate so they can concentrate on what little actual learning they still get in our public schools is somehow in violation of the Constitution.

Someone should tell them the ERA never passed.

Looks to me like the Fabians' right hand doesn't know what their left hand is trying to do.

Fabians

Did a search for "Fabian window" to show my son-in-law what the true "new world order" is all about. Found this old but still so true article from the Canada Free Press:

Beware Obama’s Fabian Window

- William Kevin Stoos (Bio and Archives)  Friday, August 21, 2009 

If you feel the ground shaking under your feet; if the America you once knew seems to be changing daily; if you feel that you have less and less control over your life and the country is being governed from the top down, then you should take heed. 

Why do we have to go to Canada to get the truth about America? Could the media be in the pocket of the Fabians?

Built to commemorate the founding of the Fabian Socialist Society, the Fabian Window contains images that are clear, unapologetic and, as a friend of mine once said—brazen. It is one thing, as Lenin said, to howl like wolves in order to live among wolves; however it is quite another to advertise the fact that you are a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Yet, the socialists who constructed the window had no qualms about advertising the fact that they had a hidden (or not so hidden) agenda when it comes to reshaping the world.

The window contains the image of two men—founders of the society—hammering the globe (from the top down no less) with sledgehammers—imposing their will on the world so to speak. They are not voting; they are not persuading; nor are they preaching to the masses. They are hammering the world with very big hammers. If imposing one’s will from the top down does not remind you of the current occupant of the White House, then you have been living in a cave for the past eight months. The Czar and his Commissars are imposing their will on America every day, ramming legislation down the collective throat of America—legislation that Congress itself does not even read. And we are paying hundreds of billions of dollars, ceding our personal freedom, and witnessing the centralization of power in the federal government to an extent never before seen since we declared independence from the last dictator to rule America over two centuries ago. Are we being governed from the ground up—by the consent of the people? Or, is someone imposing their will upon us—hammering us from above?

More ominous still—the wolf in sheep’s clothing. Amazingly, the Fabian Window contains an image—just above the fellows hammering the world—that is as clear as it is foreboding: the socialists are wolves in sheep’s clothing. I often wonder why they did not choose a less ignoble animal. What about a courageous lion? A proud bull? A vigilant hawk? A noble horse? No, they chose a wolf—a cunning, ravenous, devious, and scary critter—and cloaked him in a sheepskin. Why? Because, as Lenin taught, if you want to operate in a capitalist society you must disguise yourself. Put the sheepskin on and you can easily mingle with the flock. Until you decide to shed the skin and consume the flock. The most frightening thing about the image is that the socialists make no apology about being wolves and living among sheep.

Jugears is certainly wielding a big hammer here - with the cooperation of CONgress, either willingly or unwittingly. Somehow, I cannot see critters like Pee-Lousy being important cogs in the New World Order - more likely scullery maids and the like.

Sick

The DOD won't give out Purple Hearts to the wounded in the Fort Hood terrorist attack:

Dhimmi Defense Department says giving Purple Heart to Fort Hood Jihad victims would hurt Hasan trial

The Department of Defense is refusing to give Purple Hearts to the victims of the Fort Hood jihad and is blocking support of such a move by any means necessary, because it might hurt the long overdue prosecution of the vile Nidal Hasan. Despite extensive evidence that Hasan was in communication with al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki prior to the attack, the military has denied the victims a Purple Heart and is treating the incident as "workplace violence" instead of "combat related" or terrorism.

This is Obama's Pentagon -- killer over victim. Jihadi murderer over infidel victim. Obama's DoD is refusing the proper recognition of the victims of the Fort Hood jihad because such a provision will be viewed as setting the stage for a formal declaration that Major Hasan is a terrorist. That religious savage is a terrorist. Hasan was wearing the garb of the shaheed the morning of his jihad. Hasan was giving out qurans the morning of his jihad. His business card said "soldier of allah." He was ululating allhua akbar as he slaughtered our soldiers in cold blood.

Awlaki is dead but Hasan is still on the army payroll. Please, people, write your congressmen today.

Email conversation

A snippet of a conversation I've been having on a small list.

The gentleman thinks universal background checks are a good idea.

+++++++++++++++

If “By definition criminals don't obey the law and wouldn't submit to this check. It will only put a burden on the law abiding citizen.” then why have any laws?  We can’t stop all drunk drivers, all burglars, all murderers, all thieves and all those who flout the law.  All we do is inconvenience good people with silly rules the bad guys ignore, so what’s the point?  The point is, we do have laws which we try to enforce, albeit with limited resources (tax cuts don’t pay for police, prosecutors and our court system) and do the best we can to provide for the safety of our citizens.  That is a worthy goal.  If you’re not breaking the law, you have nothing to fear and aren’t we all safer for the effort?

 

+++++++++++++++

This is a common straw man argument. Criminals don't obey the law, so why have any?

The law allows us to punish those who violate it. "Enforcement" is a idea that appeals to the controller, the tyrant. Enforcement requires the police to take an active role in searching out "violators" rather than patrolling and being available to assist when they witness an actual violation.

Laws that prohibit certain items or force certain actions do nothing to ensure the safety of the public at large - they only allow the lawmakers to feel like they are "doing something".

Take laws against driving while intoxicated. No one would argue that allowing people to drink themselves stupid and then go out on the highway is a good idea. So, let's pass a law that you can't drive drunk.

Fair enough. Now, someone who gets tipsy on two beers gets pulled over for weaving. Only problem is - he's got a good lawyer, and convinces the jury that two beers is not "drunk", and the perp goes free.

So - let's pass a law defining "drunk" by blood alcohol content - and pick a number out of thin air.

Now, when someone is pulled over, they have to "blow", and if the detector registers under the magic number, they are let go with a warning. If the number is equal or greater than the magic number, they go to jail. No wiggle room for the guy who is inebriated with BAC under the limit - he goes out and kills someone, and then we have to pass another law lowering the limit.

Or, seeing as many people can function just fine with BAC at almost double the "limit" and never give the cops any hint they are DWI, we now have to have "sobriety checkpoints" where everyone on that road is stopped and has to prove their innocence before being allowed to continue on. Ever hear of freedom? It just got narrower.

Since roadblocks don't catch all the bad guys, now let's put a tester into every car, so you have to prove to your vehicle that you aren't drunk. Of course all the people who are responsible will have to buy one and the price of cars goes up - but we are safer. There have been suggestions that this actually my happen.

When you get to the bottom of it, it is a question of personal responsibility. Freedom has the price that we have to risk something in order to retain that freedom. The risk is that there are people out there who don't care, or actively are evil. They will always be there no matter how many laws we pass, but our freedoms will keep shrinking right up until we reach the Nirvana of the nanny state - where everything that is not required is forbidden.

And people will still commit violent and stupid acts.



By the way - "If you’re not breaking the law, you have nothing to fear" sounds very Orwellian. Do we really want to live in that world? I do not.

 Chuck Kuecker

+++++++++++++++

Rand Paul LEFT of Jugears?

Fox News apparently thinks so:



I don't watch Fox news anyway - who's the talking head?

I'm paying more attention to Mr. Paul lately.

Thoughts

Front page story in the Beloit Daily news today about a gay couple who married in Iowa hoping the Supreme Court somehow finds Constitutional reasons to force Wisconsin to recognize their union.

Now, I couldn't care less if two people - or twenty people - want to get "married". It's nobody's business but theirs, and unless there's force involved, the government should have nothing to say about the matter.

Marriage was a contract between consenting adults, perhaps with the approval of a church - up until the states started sticking their noses in. As in the case of "gun control", they could care less about marriage, and a whole lot more about licensing. From Wikipedia:

The requirement for a marriage license was used as a mechanism to prohibit whites from marrying blacks, mulattos, Japanese, Chinese, Native Americans, Mongolians, Malays or Filipinos. By the 1920s, 38 states used the mechanism.

The Constitution says nothing about marriage, as is proper and correct. Any decision the Supreme Court makes either validating or invalidating any such private contract is an overstep. They should have refused to hear the case.

It got me thinking about registration and "licenses". The Nazi government would have had a much easier time rounding up and exterminating homosexuals if "gay marriage" had been recognized in Germany in the 1920's.

I have to wonder if any modern gays agitating for state sanctioned "marriage" have considered that putting their names on a "list" might not be the smartest thing they could do...

The truth behind the "straw buy"

Mark Kelly, Gabby Gifford's husband, was recently widely accused (by myself, too!) of buying guns he intended to give away - a "straw" purchase. Turns out his purpose was something else:



See? Universal background checks are nothing to fear! They are SO easy to pass!

Just give up another little piece of your freedom. It's common sense!

And, it's totally unenforceable unless we couple it with universal registration, and a complete reworking of human nature. So, of course, next thing we will hear after it passes through Jugears' hands at the bill signing, will be a law requiring us to tell Big Brother everything about all our guns, or risk prison. I figure that will happen next year, after UBC fails to prevent another "gun violence" tragedy.

From there it's a clear path to those box cars - or a bloody revolution.

I would love to see where he gets "93% of American gun owners support UBC".

He's lying again

His lips are moving.

Barack Obama: We're Not Taking Away Anyone's Gun Rights

President Obama just wrapped up remarks at the White House pushing for more "common sense" gun control measures as public support for new legislation wanes.

"What we're proposing is not radical, it's not taking away anyone's gun rights," Obama said.
Flanked by a dozen mothers, Obama called on members of Congress to get on board with support for universal background checks, otherwise known as the criminalization of private firearms transfers. The President claimed proposals on the table will keep guns out the hands of criminals, but a deeper look at background check legislation (which will be voted on next month in the Senate) tells a different story. 

 Iowa Senator Charles Grassley cast a committee vote in opposition to the Protecting Responsible Gun Sellers Act today on Capitol Hill. The bill passed out of the Judiciary Committee along party lines and criminalizes all private firearms transfers, otherwise known as universal background checks. Grassley indicated in a statement today that the legislation was rushed and lacked bipartisanship.

"The first point I want to make goes to process.  When this bill was first listed on the Committee agenda to be marked up, it was just a list of findings.  It was not ready to be marked up. The language has changed.  It is still not ready to be marked up.  But we are marking it up anyway. We were told there was such widespread support for universal background checks that a bipartisan bill would be on its inevitable way to passage.  Instead, three of the four senators involved in those discussions do not endorse this bill. The bill is somewhat similar to a bill Senator Schumer introduced in the previous Congress.  So let’s start with the big picture problems," Grassley said. "And this bill would eliminate private sales. Talk about unintended consequences."

As has been pointed out by many pro-gun advocates already, Grassley reiterated that universal background checks cannot be enforced without universal gun registration and eventually gun confiscation.

+++++++++++++++

Yep. Just like he promised - first regulation, then registration, and we are ripe for the final step before the boxcars get filled - confiscation.

Write those letters and make those calls. 

A moving story

Go see what Old NFO has found.

Check out the rest of his entries today - lots of interesting history sitting out in the Pacific that we will likely never see otherwise.

Microsoft bullshit

Microsoft Windows is a big scam.

I bought my main computer, a Gateway FX gamer machine, a couple years ago, with 64-bit Windows 7 installed. I then paid these leeches to upgrade to Windows 7 Professional for my business.

Up until a couple weeks ago, I was running Oracle VirtualBox with Windows XP, so I could run my copy of AutoCAD 2000, which won't even install on 64-bit Windows 7 in XP compatibility mode.

VirtualBox refused to boot XP one day, and for some reason, I can't purge it from my computer so as to do a clean reinstall. So, I looked around, and lo and behold, Microsoft Windows virtual machine is out there.

So - I attempted to download it from Microsoft's website. It wanted to "validate" my Windows installation. I clicked OK, thinking, of course my machine is legitimate, since I bought it though Best Buy, and it is from a well-known manufacturer.

Silly me. The validation failed. There's a button to click to resolve the situation.

Click. Now, I'm presented with a "buy Windows" page. Windows 7 Professional is "only $149.95".

Well, I can either pay their baksheesh, or not do the job I contracted to do for my customers. I got out the credit card.

The receipt page shows one of those 25-character 'keys' they give you that you have to enter to validate your copy of Windows. It even told me how to find the box to enter it in. Only problem there is that they give you a "print" button so you can have a record of your purchase - that prints everything BUT the 'key'. Lucky for me I wrote it down.

Entered the 'key'. Rebooted the computer. Tried to download Windows virtual machine again.




Update - that message comes up every morning now. That's my thanks for giving Bill Gates anotehr $150 I can't afford.

My computer is not running a valid copy of Windows, it tells me. I look for troubleshooting hints. The best bet is to take the CD that comes with the original installation and reinstall Windows.

That's just great. Microsoft decided, without giving me any voice in the matter, that they would utilize the U S Snail for delivery of that disk, sometime in the next few weeks. Until it arrives, I can't use AutoCAD on this machine.

To add insult to injury, when I came home today, there was a nice notice in the middle of the screen telling me that I need to validate my copy if I want to use it without problems. It's really funny that the message only comes up AFTER you try to "do the right thing" by them. I've had this box running for a couple years without ever seeing such a message.

If Ubuntu could run my business CAD software other than in a virtual machine, I would reformat this hard drive and never give Microsoft another penny. Of course I could never buy another new assembled PC since almost all of them come with a Windows product pre-installed - so if I wipe it and install Ubuntu or other OS, I still pay for Bill Gates' great-grand-kids' vacations on the Moon.