I used to know a guy…

…who was a friend, a mentor, a good guy.  A gun guy, Gunsite graduate.  A libertarian.  Sadly, we are no longer in touch.

He used to say he’d not know how he’d react if things got so bad in this country, that if he was stopped and asked, “Papiere, bitte!” “PAPERS, PLEASE!”, what he might do?

I’m sorry to say, Bud, that day has come.

Here’s hoping none of us loses their cool if asked.

h/t/ wirecutter, John

Doing Wrong To Prevent Wrong – NSFW

(What follows has some language that is Not-Safe-For-Work.  I thought it best not to edit or censor it, to give it it’s full impact - Guffaw)

This is the crux of the libertarian, Constitutional argument.  Why are we so against all these ubiquitous encroachments on our civil liberties?  And why we should continue to be.

Every time I see something like this, be it use of a no-knock warrant (or no warrant at all), surveillance cameras everywhere, GPS on modern cell phones that we cannot disconnect, institutionalized warrantless searches at airports (and elsewhere) or beating a confession out of a suspect, I recognize we have lost something beyond price.  And, I know we probably won’t get these liberties back without a fight.

Kent’s “Hooligan Libertarian” Blog touches on the most recent of these issues.  The lock-down and methodical search of an entire city to locate a terrorism suspect.  He says, in part:

The same goes for imposing a police state and illegally/unethically/immorally locking down a city and invading homes to catch a suspect.  Every cop who entered any property without the explicit permission of the owner/renter deserved to be shot dead.  Immediately.  Good thing for those stormtroopers that the “people” there gave up their responsibility and guns long ago, and are cheering fans of Big Brother.  Makes me furious to even think about.

Follow this up with Lurking Rhythmically’s screed regarding some folks disdain for an individual’s natural rights.  She says, in part:

From a comment on my previous post:

You know, I like most of what you post, and followed you even though I disagreed with you on your position on so-called “gun rights”.

Oooh. Isn’t that just delicious contempt ? It’s so thick and creamy you could drizzle it on a pancake. I especially like the one-two punch of  so-called and the scare quotes. They aren’t rights, they’re “rights”.  That’s quality passive-aggression right there.

Here’s the lovely thing about rights:  They aren’t up for a vote. That’s why they’re rights.

Let’s put it another way:

• your so-called “suffrage”
• your so-called “emancipation”
• your so-called “integration”
• your so-called “religious freedom”
• your so-called “freedom of speech”
• your so-called “right to due process”

Are you offended yet? You should be. You should be screamingly furious that anyone would diminish these rights with the phrase “so-called”.

And yet my inalienable right to defend myself with the most effective means possible is threatened because one, ONE asshole out of 10 million law-abiding gun owners decided to commit a raft of crimes that another law would not have stopped.

You say, “Compromise.”  I say, ”Fuck you, you mewling cowards. I will not embrace victimhood. I will not willingly disarm. If you demand I give up my life just to make you feel better, you are selfish on a level that is beyond comprehension.”

I believe this is how most of us feel, even if we can’t quite put our feelings into words.  Individual rights are individual rights.  Whether ‘natural’ or ‘derived from our Creator’, it doesn’t matter.  They are not up for debate or vote.  Period.

And to allow them to be voted on is yet another encroachment.

Go and read the entire Declaration of Independence, and then the two links above.  Then look at the news, and read what we accept as a normal course of government business every day.

Then, perhaps become angry about the state of our Nation.  And cry a little.

For A Good Time, Call The KGB…

…the GRU, NKVD, MVD, Stasi, MSS – or the FSB (the current incarnation of Russian intelligence apparat)

It seems Borepatch has determined the FSB is using their own version of Google, and is quite happy with their algorithms.  Welcome to YANDEX.   He says:

1. Russia has a bunch of excellent computer scientists, and Yandex seems to have picked up a bunch of them.  The Russians always excelled at algorithms (I’d go so far as to say that their mathematics training beats ours handily), and search is a game of algorithms.  I’m told that the Russian language is more difficult for computers to deal with than English (it is an inflected language, unlike ours), and so the Yandex algorithms originally developed for Russian really shine when aimed at English sites.

2. It gives me very good results – for most things I’ve been looking for, better than Google.  Google’s blogsearch has become a joke, which is perhaps a testament to Google’s internal lack of focus.  I find that bloggy related searches are much more productive on Yandex.~

~And now we come to what brought me to Yandex in the first place: Google is evil.  We all know it.  Furthermore, Google seems to be playing footsie with the US Government Intelligence Agencies:

One privacy advantage Yandex has which Google never will: Yandex does not do business with American intelligence agencies.  I do not like the fact that Google has become an arm of US intelligence agencies. It is to their credit that Google discloses their relationship with the US government (most of Silicon Valley is in bed with the spooks, but they don’t talk about  it). It is the surveillance  state that I abhor. Yandex may very well be doing the same thing with the Russian government, but the FSB is a much smaller threat to American civil rights than our own spooks. While I see no imminent dangers from the all-seeing eye, and I am far from paranoid, the US is going through a weird time right now, and history is a dark and bloody subject. Do I really want the future government  to know what websearches I was doing in 2010? No, thanks,  tovarich.

Paranoia?  I don’t think so.  And, just for S & Gs, I ran Guffaw in AZ on Yandex.

20 returns on the first page – only one in Russian.  Only one about guffawing, and not the blog.  Seems focused, as Borepatch intones.

I’m thinking of using this occasionally (instead of BING), just to annoy the three-letter folks in bed with Google. Otherwise, what good is a “uncensored” Internet?

Hell, I’m already on ‘the list.’

Do YOU have Attenuating Cerebral Faculties, or are you over 55?

Old NFO lets a little-known secret regarding the United Nations Global Arms Trade Treaty out of the bag.  To wit:

Individuals 55 and older would lose their right to keep and bear arms under a provision that’s expected to be included as part of a comprehensive United Nations Global Arms Trade Treaty.

Seriously?  Ban Ki-moon further said:

“But also, the international community believes segments of the population that present a danger to themselves and others, chiefly individuals deemed or adjudicated mentally defective and persons with attenuating cerebral faculties, should be added to that list.”

So persons determined to be mentally defective, and persons with attenuating cerebral faculties are on ‘the list’!   What exactly does THAT mean?  Older?  As in over 55?

No wonder the Obama Administration is pushing so hard for a mental health component for background checks, universal background checks, etc.  If the government determines you are mentally defective (whatever THAT means) or have attenuating cerebral faculties (i.e. getting older) you can be included in the ban regarding possession and ownership of firearms.

I’m reminded of the scene in the film Jurassic Park, wherein it’s observed the velociraptors are noted to be continually testing the fences for weaknesses; never the same place twice.  The folks who love to control your rights will keep testing the fences.

Until we’re all neatly fenced in.

h/t Old NFO

Addendum – Rev. Paul says this was initially reported as an

April Fool’s Joke!

I certainly hope so!

(Not that the U.N. treaty isn’t troubling enough! – Guffaw

Training, Shooting and Fashion

Cornered Cat|Scratching Post always presents such well-reasoned wisdom.  You should read this link in particular, if you’re not already reading her blog.  Then you should remedy the situation by reading it, regularly.

Kathy Jackson walks us through the thought process of the new female shooting student.  After all, generally women are more concerned with fashion dictates.  (Yes, I know, Brigid, not every woman!  )

Some student concerns:

One person expressed it very well when she wrote, “[The Cornered Cat] course requires a holster type I have no intention of ever using. So that means even more money spent on a holster and clothing that would only be used the days of the class.”

Another person wrote something similar: “I’d have to invest in pants with belt loops, belt, and holster that I would probably never use again just to take one or two classes.”

Kathy intones:

Putting a loaded gun into a holster is the single most dangerous thing anyone ever does in a professional firearms training class.

I remember Jeff Cooper poo-pooing fashion with regard to its dictates versus the need to carry safely.  An  no one would have ever called The Colonel a fashion plate.  After all, what’s more important?

And men, don’t gloss over going to Kathy Jackson’s link because it’s aimed at women.  Her above quote applies to you, as well.

Both in training and (daily) carry, safety should be our foremost concern.  We are dealing with lethal instrumentalities, after all.

Fashion should come second.  Or even farther down the list.

As I’m on disability, my daily wear is usually a colored T-shirt, a long-sleeve over-shirt, Wrangler jeans, a belt from The Wilderness and my diabetic orthopedic walking shoes, with my right one built-up (aka ‘Ed’, the really big shoe).  On more formal occasions, I’ve been known to substitute a polo shirt.  George Clooney eat your heart out!  (I know – your bodyguards probably dress better!)

My shooting wear isn’t much different, except for the addition of my Tilly Hat and eyes/ears.  And sunglasses.

If you need to purchase (or perhaps borrow?) some clothes or holsters to meet the requirements of a particular class, I say go for it.  More training is always better.

h/t Kathy Jackson, Jeff Cooper

My Lott in life is to Drone on…

…about our continuing loss erosion outright THEFT of our civil liberties!

Hanging on the coat tails of such luminaries as John Lott, who reports to us through c|net the following:

DHS built domestic surveillance tech into Predator drones

Homeland Security’s specifications say drones must be able to detect whether a civilian is armed. Also specified: “signals interception” and “direction finding” for electronic surveillance.

And just for fun, I also noticed a disturbance in the Force on the Internet, today.  It seems a significant number of high-ranking military officers are taking their retirement, because they’ve been asked by the current administration if they’d follow orders to disarm American citizens!  And they’d rather break ranks than to violate their Constitutionally-supportive oath.

No wonder the gun stores are lacking stock in ammunition and popular firearms.  They’re flying off the shelves.

Scary stuff.  1984 was 29 years ago, and things were bad THEN.  I fear for the future, and I don’t make that statement easily.

h/t Declan McCullagh

The Eye Cannot Trespass. WAIT! Yes it can!

With the ubiquitous-ness of digital cameras (usually attached to cellular telephones) it’s only logical that the civilian populus would film any actions taken by the constabulary in public.  Think of Rodney King – squared.

One would think this is only fair, as most populated areas are now replete with cameras either filming the public willy-nilly, or those privately-owned that may be accessed, like ATM cameras.  AND, police dash cams.  And it would make sense to keep such actions free, as open government is a desirable thing.

Not to mention cases such as Kyllo v. United States and Boyd v. United States, which reaffirmed the English Common Law which said the eye cannot trespass.

Well, forget all that…

As more and more of the public are photographing and filming police activity, more States are acting to suppress the right of a free people to record such actions.  Why is that, if the government is acting within the law?

Asking permission to engage in free behavior in an open society?  And out-and-out prosecution in certain jurisdictions?

Outrageous and disgusting.  Expect more of this coming to your town down the road.  Because governments  never  rarely* expand to promote individual freedom.

h/t Miss Lisa, wirecutter

The NRA

Mama Liberty commented on my post yesterday, mentioning the National Rifle Association’s flip-flopping with regard to various issues involving federal law.  Specifically the whole ‘no guns in school’ thing.

It seems they initially supported such a thing, then became wiser.  They’ve done the same thing with regard to other gun control laws and politicians (giving some folks a Grade of A, when they voted mostly in the anti-rights tent).

In short, they’re wafflers and inconsistent, at best.

I’ve thought on more than one occasion about sending back my Life Membership Card (which I paid for in monthly installments!) with a better-than-terse letter regarding many of these inconsistencies.

But I’ve not yet done that.  Why not, you ask?

Well, because, in spite of their failings, they’re still one of the best tools we have in this battle.  There are others:  The Second Amendment Foundation and Jews For The Preservation of Firearms Ownership come to mind.

Find the group or groups you can support and do so.  Four-and-one-half million people coalesced into a lobbying force is remarkable!  47% of American households reportedly possess firearms.  The NRA and other pro-rights groups memberships should be even larger.

Yeah, they aren’t perfect.  But…

“We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately”  -  Benjamin Franklin

How Sad

One of the things I’ve enjoyed about blogging is finding out persons from all over The United States, in fact, The World have clicked on a posting or a Google/Bing response and found their way here.  I’ve stated many times before that I’m continually amazed anyone stops by – so anyone doing so makes me happy.  Or used to.

I monitor the (meaningless) statistics about the blog – Where are readers located?  How many?  Total views for a 24 hour period.  Then I compare that to what posts I did that given day in an effort to find more titles/subjects appealing to more readers.  It really doesn’t affect my titles or content.  I’m compulsive.  It’s not as if I make any money doing this!

But, the other day, I quickly inserted a blog post blurb regarding the horrific tragedy in Connecticut, as the reports were coming in.  Just the name of the town, Newtown Connecticut was the title.

And I was deeply saddened to see 333 search views in 24 hours!  My average is 163 over the previous 28 days!

Are people so ghoulish that this is what drives them?  Even worse is so-called ‘news’ organizations are so thirsty to ‘get the story first’ they report anything without verifying facts or sources!

It used to be there was a twenty-four hour news cycle, many times longer.  Now it’s minutes; seconds.  No time to verify anything, just get ‘it’ out there!  If it’s wrong, we’ll submit a correction – or not.

And the people who just can’t wait to hear about the latest exploits of Lindsay Lohan or Honey Boo-Boo are waiting like vultures to lap it up.  Or search for it on the Internet.

How sad.

Constitution? WHAT Constitution?

“They: The makers of the Constitution: conferred,
as against the government, the right to be let alone –
the most comprehensive of rights and
the right most valued by civilized men.”

-  Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis

What the Hell ever happened to this concept?

For the past seventy years (or more) there has been an eating away at the substance that used to be American Culture.  Not just political correctness, multiculturalism and unreasonable inclusion, but who we are as individuals.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.^[1]

Except:

The USA Patriot Act, NDAA, FISA, no-knock warrants, cameras on every corner, warrants unnecessary for GPS attachment, sobriety checkpoints, citizenship checkpoints, TSA rifling through personal belongings and groping etc., etc.  And this from an NSA whistleblower:

Perhaps the degree to which you’re being watched is surprising: this former NSA agent says “Everyone in the U.S. is under virtual surveillance.”

They’ve apparently turned it up to 12, and it’s accelerating, he says. Scary stuff.

More from the whistleblower:

“The problem is if they think they are not doing anything that’s wrong, they don’t get to define that. The central government does, the central government defines what is right and wrong and whether or not they target you. So, it’s not up to the individuals. Even if they think they aren’t doing something wrong, if their position on something is against what the administration has, then they could easily become a target.“

(emphasis in original post)

We’ve devolved from Norman Rockwell to George Lincoln Rockwell.  Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, doesn’t it?

h/t Rev. Paul