It Matters Now

The traffic jam in the Suez now matters because it's affected me directly.

A book on British bullpups I Kickstarted is apparently on one if the ships stuck in the queue.

I've already waited a year...

Overheard At Special Olympics

"Volunteering" for Special Olympics gets you community service credits for high school.

A friend's daughter reports listening to her fellow students raging and saying, "White Power ain't never seen no Black Power!"

I just want to give you the complete list of black victories over "white power".

1. Isandlwana.

2. ...

Thus concludes the list.

Talking to her about this a bit more and she had more detail about what they thought would win the day for blacks.

It amounts to riots, handguns and blunt instruments.

Well, allow me to sing the song of my people.

Rifles and artillery.

Pushed far enough and given sufficient belief that the ground cannot be retaken....

Go for it, I says.

I'm In

 

Operation Blazing Sword

I'm doing my part!

I got an email from someone who'd decided to get a gun for self defense and while walking to the car with their purchase realized, "I have no idea what I'm doing!"

Happily, OBS provides links to insufferable fools educated people like me.

Today I met them face to face and talked about the basics of owning a gun and the do's and don'ts.

In a couple of weeks we're going to hit the range and get that "new gun owner smile".

They were an excellent pupil, they listened, asked questions and demanded clarification where they thought I was being vague.

Winning!

Oh Snap!

From here.

I seem to recall these same Asians repelling boarders from the rooftops for the Rodney King riots.

Same Same

Never stop learning!

The M48 and M60 series tank have the same 85" turret ring.

In theory you could swap turrets between them and the T95 series of experimental tanks did.

In practice, no M48 was ever upgraded with an M60 turret.

In the process of finding this out I discovered that the reason the M60 has a flat bow instead of the M48's curved bow was to facilitate the use of siliceous cored armor, an early form of composite armor.

Siliceous cored armor never made it to production and Chobham supplanted it in development.

Saturday Night Meh

I can't be the only person whose interest in Saturday Night Live waned at the exact same time as being allowed to stay up late enough to watch it.

Looking back, was it ever really all that funny?

Or was it just being young and crude humor coupled with staying up past our bedtime made it seem better?

It sure as fuck doesn't seem to be funny at all anymore.

Our Democracy

It can't be ours unless we both own it.

I notice that "our democracy" involves you dictating exactly how it will be done and my wishes being ignored.

That's not ours, that's yours.

I ask again, what is it about a verifiable one person, one vote terrifies you so?

I'm pretty sure about the answer, but I want you to say it.

Surreal

Da.

Sigh Of Relief

I have a savior who wanted that 659 more than my typo made it look like I did!

He is my hero.

That's Odd

This guy, that the police shot, don't look black.

That can't be right.  I am "reliably" informed that the only people the cops shoot are black or brown.

What racist witchery is this?

Hard Drive Shuffle

The Mother-In-Law's dear, beloved, Gateway NV57H bit the big one.

We're sad because we bought it new and it's served honorably.

It's actually died before.  The keyboard had become unreliable and the batter was flat dead.

We sent her a Lenovo T410 because they were 1,600 miles away and it wasn't very simple to do the parts swaps.

When they moved down, the T410 started to act wonky, so I fixed up the Gateway.

Friday it started doing an uncommanded down-arrow.

"New keyboard!" says I.

New keyboard did not fix the problem.

Happily we had a T420 we bought as a back-up machine.

With JT's generous help I swapped the old drive off the T410 (because it was 500gb SSD as opposed to a 320gb WD Blue) and she's up and running.

YOUR God, YOUR Religion

Ace of Spades has a post complaining about the loss of meaning in Christian and Jewish traditions.

OK.

Except I don't believe in your imaginary friend.

Even if He were real I'd reject Him because He demands you be a happy slave to Him.  Never mind the sanctimonious pricks I'd have to share Heaven with if I repented and became a happy slave to God...

Should my lack of belief matter to someone who does have Faith and believes?

Nope.

Their belief does not require my approval, nor does my lack of faith demand theirs.

Where I object to this screed is the implicit blame is on people outside his faith for the loss of meaning in the Christian and Jewish traditions.

Why is y'all's lack of faith someone else's fault?

Losing your faith is on you.  I've read your book.

You want those traditions to mean something, they have to mean something to YOU and it doesn't matter what they mean to anyone else.

If others participating in a watered down version of your tradition dilutes the meaning to you, it's your fault not theirs.  Deal with it.

If only you had a tome of guiding principles and people who dedicate their lives to helping you find Faith and remain faithful... Oh, wait.

But if you're going to drag Christmas and Easter into it and bitch about how others ruined the traditions of the religion...  Christianity stole and rebranded those holy days from the Pagans they were trying to convert as a marketing deal.

SOUNDTRACK LOUD

A common "feature" of movies is the soundtrack is cranked to 11 and the voices of the actors is down about 2.

What this means is if you set the speakers so you can hear the actors, when the soundtrack kicks in you're treating the neighbors to your movie too.

How fucking hard is it to set everything at the same volume?

I already know this one, it's simple.

The soundtrack being too loud is deliberate.

What I've never gotten a good answer is WHY it's deliberate.

Only One '0' In $40

It's my own damn fault.

I was, for no good reason, looking at 2nd gen S&W pistols and saw a 659 running $22 with a penny start.

Knowing that would never stand I tried to enter a $40 bid, just for fun.

I double tapped the '0' and actually entered $400.

And confirmed the bid without reading, or paying any damn attention, that I'd done so.

To my surprise I was now the high bidder at $180!

Others have bid and now I am still the high bidder at $371.07.

FACEPALM HEADDESK!

If this bid rides I will need a grip screw.  Midway has the blued, but not the stainless it's supposed to have.

I think a nice set of rosewood or walnut stocks would look nice on the stainless.

He Dead Must Be Black

Today in Pasco County, my Pasco County, deputies burst into the home of a man, minding his own business, stabbing his girlfriend to death and, for no apparent reason, shot him.

According to Tariq Nasheed that means the suspect must be black.

In truth, we don't know anything about the suspect at this time.  Odds are he's a white dude because that's the race of most of the people up that way.

The thing that stands out for me in this situation is the multiple witnesses who didn't intervene.  They'd best be prepared for charges for doing nothing while a forceable felony was happening right in front of them.

GURPS Is Ahead Of You

Breathless Voice: Medieval longbows do the same damage as gunshot wounds!

Arrows do impaling damage, bullets do piercing.  Piercing is essentially just crushing damage which can hit the same special locations as impaling.

Piercing doesn't get a damage modifier, impaling wounds are doubled.

A longbow does thrust+2 impaling damage.  Which means we need to figure out the ST of our archer.

The average draw weight of an English longbow was 152 lb!  That translates to a ST of 17.  Strong motherfuckers they was.  You can see the physiological changes in their skeletons, in fact.

ST 17 thrust damage is 1d+2, so an arrow from a ST 17 bow will do 1d+4 imp.

+4 is changed to 1d... so an arrow does 2d imp.

Shooting someone in the torso will get you 2-12 raw damage then 4-24 hp damage with an average of 7 raw and 14 delivered.

9x19mm ball does 2d+2 pi.  That will do 4-14 raw and 4-14 delivered with averages of 9.  Hollow point ups this to 2d+2(0.5) pi+ that does 4-14 raw, 4-19 delivered with averages of 9 raw and 12 delivered.

.45 ACP ball does 2d pi+.  2-12 raw, 3-18 delivered.  Average raw of 7 with 10 delivered.  HP is 2d(0.5) pi++ is 2-12 raw, 2-22 delivered, average 12 delivered.

A longbow is a bit better than a pistol!

.44 Magnum does 3d+2 pi+.  5-20 raw.  7-30 delivered (average 18).  HP 3d+2(0.5) pi++, 8-38 delivered (avg 22).

A longbow is a bit worse than a magnum revolver.

The Maths

This is copied verbatim from Irish's place.  I'd posted a less detailed version a while ago and I cannot find it to link for comparison purposes.

Introductory Proviso: The following essay on possible gun confiscation is a purely conjectural gedankenexperiment about the future that extrapolates from recent history and current trends. Nothing herein is seditious (per 18 U.S. Code § 2384), nor a call to arms, nor a threat to our government or to any individual, agency, or group.

THE COLLECTIVIST DREAM

The current mass media-driven “debate” on firearms (actually more like paternalistic lecturing or chiding) seems to be leading toward greater restrictions by Congress. The collectivist gun grabbers have the dream of ignoring the Second Amendment and somehow magically removing all detachable magazine semi-auto rifles from civilian hands. But it is just that: a dream. If they think that they can disarm us, then they are thoroughly deluded.  I’ll explain why, with some simple mathematics.

The United States has the world’s first or second most heavily-armed populace, per capita. (It’s possibly second only to Yemen.) The number of FBI firearms background checks for transfers by Federally-licensed dealers from November 1998 to April 30, 2018 totaled 287,807,015. That isn’t all new guns. It of course includes many second-hand sales that cycled back through FFL holders. But it is still a staggering number. And it does not include any private party (“not through a dealer”) sales of used guns. That is thankfully legal in most states. Nor does it include guns that are legally made at home. (Typically made with 80% complete receivers.) Those home “builds” are becoming quite popular. Their ownership is mostly opaque to any would-be tyrants who might covet seizing them.

There are somewhere between 370 million and 420 million privately-owned firearms in the United States. Let’s just call it 400 million for a nice round figure. Most of those guns are not registered to particular owners. That is why there are only rough estimates. It makes me feel good to know that Big Brother has no idea where those guns are, and who owns them. When I last checked, the total U.S. population is 327,708,500.  So that is about 1.2 guns per person. The adult population is around 249,500,000. And according to Wikipedia, the “Fit for service” Military Age Male population (men, ages 16-49) of the U.S. is just 59,764,677. That equates to 6.6 guns per Military Age Male in the United States.

Of the 400 million American guns, roughly 20% are single-shot or double-barreled, 60% are manually-operated repeaters (e.g., bolt action, lever action, pump action, or revolvers), and 20% are semi-automatic. There are only about 175,000 transferable Federally-registered full autos. That number would have been much larger by now but production was sharply curtailed by a hefty $200 tax (starting in 1934) and then there numbers were effectively frozen in 1986. It is noteworthy that if it were not for the National Firearms Act of 1934, selective fire guns would by now be in what the Heller decision calls “common use“. After all, it costs only a few dollars more to manufacture a selective-fire M16 than a semiautomatic-only AR-15.

With every passing year, the predominance of semi-autos is gaining for both rifles and handguns. (In sheer numbers produced, revolvers are becoming almost passé.) The biggest-selling handgun in the country is the Smith & Wesson M&P 9mm, followed closely by the Glock Model 19 9mm. Gaining rapidly is the highly modular SIG P320, which was recently adopted by the U.S. Army. All three of these are semi-automatic. Standard magazine sizes for autopistols range from 13 to 20 rounds. And the most popular rifles of the decade are AR-15s and their clones. Their standard capacity magazines hold 30 cartridges. (That isn’t “high capacity”.)

THE MATH ON AR CLONES

AR-15 and AR-10 variants are truly generic and have been sold under more than 120 brand names. The number of ARs (AR-15s, M4s, AR-10s, and variants) sold from 2000 to 2014 was approximately 5,672,900. Since then, AR-15 clones have become even more popular and ubiquitous with approximately 1.2 million more produced in 2015, 1.6 million in 2016, and 1.5 million in 2017. At least 1.2 million will be produced in 2018. It can be assumed that 99% of the ARs produced since the year 2000 are still functional. There were more than 2.3 million other ARs produced for the civilian market between 1962 and 1999. It is safe to assume that at least 95% of those of that vintage are still functional. So the total number of functional ARs in private hands in the U.S. is somewhere around 11 to 12 million. (As of May, 2018.)

SOME MATH ON OTHER SEMI-AUTOS

Next we come to the more fuzzy math on the wide variety of other models of semi-auto centerfire rifles in private hands. They include detachable magazine, en bloc clip, and stripper clip-fed designs. Here are some rough estimates. (Some of these estimates are based on my own observations of the ratios of different models I’ve seen offered for sale):

• Various semi-auto hunting rifles (Remington 740/7400 series, AK Hunter, Browning BAR, Winchester 100, Valmet Hunter, Saiga Hunter, HK SL7/SL8, HK 630/770, et cetera): 2 million+
• Ruger Mini-14 and Mini-30: 1.2 million
• M1 Garand: 800,000+ (With many more being imported, soon.)
• AK Variants (imported and domestically made, from all makers including Valmet and Galil): 2 to 3 million
• M1 Carbine: 1.5 to 2 million
• AR-180 and AR-180B: 35,000
• M1A and other semi-auto M14 variants: 360,000
• SIG 550 series: 80,000+
• Thompson Semi-Autos (West Hurley and Kahr Arms): 75,000
• HK variants: CETME, HK91/93/94 series, PTR91, etc.: 600,000 to 700,000
• FAL variants: FN-FAL, FNC, and L1A1:  425,000
• SKS variants: 1 million
• Steyr AUG: 110,000
• IWI Tavor & X95: 70,000
• Various semi-autos assembled from military surplus full auto parts sets (M1919, BAR, Sten, M2 Browning, M3, Etc.): 75,000+
• Assorted Other Models (These include: Kel-Tec, Barrett, Leader, FAMAS, Uzi carbines, Wilkinson, Feather, Calico, Hi-Point, SIG AMT, SIG PE57, SIG MCX, SIG MPX, Johnson, BM59, HK USC, TNW, Demro Tac-1, Calico Carbine, ACR, SCAR, Chiappa Carbine, SWD (MAC), Robinson, Hakim, Ljungman, Beretta AR-70, Beretta CX4, CZ Scorpion, Kriss Carbine, FN-49, SVT-40, SVD, PSL, Gewehr 41 & 43, Daewoo, FS 2000, Ruger PCR, Marlin Camp Carbine, et cetera): 2+ million.

THE AGGREGATE GUN MATH

Totaling the list above and adding it to the preceding estimate on ARs, there are 20 million semi-auto centerfire rifles that are in civilian hands here in the States. And that number is increasing by nearly 2 million per year. (More than half of which are AR-15 or AR-10 clones.) Again looking at the Military Age Male  population (men, ages 16-49) of 59,764,677, that equates to roughly one semi-auto rifle for every three Military Age Males.

 

If a production and importation ban requiring registration were enacted, there would surely be massive noncompliance. For example, the registration schemes enacted in the past two decades in Australia, Canada, The Philippines, Indonesia, Brazil, and the States of California and New York have been well-documented failures. They have been met with noncompliance rates ranging from 50% to 90%.

Even with an optimistic 50% registration compliance rate, that would mean only 10 million of the nation’s 20 million semi-auto rifles would have a current name and address attached, to allow eventual gun confiscation.

 

Let us surmise that following several years of a registration scheme there were an outright “turn them all in, Mr. and Mrs. America” ban. I predict that even if $1,000 per gun were offered, no more than 11 million would be turned in, by compliant and history-ignorant Sheeple. (An aside: They’ll probably call this a “Buy Back”, but that will be a lie. They can’t “buy back” something that they’ve never owned.)

But that would still leave at least 9 million in circulation, as contraband.

THE SWAT AND ATF MANPOWER MATH

So let’s suppose that a full Federal semi-auto rifle ban were enacted with a gun confiscation order issued.

This is where the math gets very interesting: There are only 902,000 sworn police officers in the United States. At most, about 80,000 of them have had SWAT training. There are only 5,113 BATFE employees–and many of those are mere paper shufflers. As of 2017, there were just 2,623 ATF Special Agents. The FBI’s notorious Hostage Rescue Team (HRT or “Hurt Team”) has a cadre strength that is classified but presumably less than 200 agents. Together, they comprise the pool of “Door Kickers” that might be available to execute unconstitutional search warrants.

If they were to start going door-to-door executing warrants for unconstitutional gun confiscation, what would the casualty rates be for the ATF, HRT, and the assorted local SWAT teams?  It bears mention that the military would be mostly out of the picture, since they are banned from domestic law enforcement roles, under the Posse Comitatus Act.

THE DIVISION EQUATIONS

Next, let’s do some addition and then divide:

80,000    SWAT-trained police
+ 2,623     ATF Special Agents
+    200     FBI HRT Members
=  82,863    Potentially Available Door Kickers

… presumably working in teams of 8, attempting to seize 9,000,000 newly-contraband semi-auto rifles.

Before we finish the math, I’ll state some “for the sake of argument” assumptions:

1. That every SWAT-trained officer in the country is pressed into service.
2. That there would be no “false positives”–meaning that 100% of the tips leading to raids were accurate. (Unlikely)
3. That no local police departments would opt out of serving unconstitutional Federal gun warrants. (Unlikely)
4. That all raids would be successful. (Unlikely)
5. That each successful raid would net an average of three contraband semi-auto rifles. (Possible)
6. That every Door Kicker would get an equal share in the work. (Very unlikely)
7. That every Door Kicker would be alive and well through the entire campaign of terror–with no incapacitating injuries or deaths of SWAT officers, no refusals, no resignations, and no early retirements. (Very unlikely)

A lot of those are not safe assumptions. But for the sake of completing a gedankenexperiment, let’s pen this out on the back of a napkin, as a “best case” for an unconstitutional gun confiscation campaign. Here are the division equations:

9,000,000 ÷ 82,863 = 108 (x 8 officers per team) =  864 raids, per officer 

Let that sink in: Every officer would have to survive 864 gun-grabbing raids.

Those of course are fanciful numbers. There will be a lot of false tips, and there will be many owners who keep their guns very well-hidden. Each of those raids would have nearly the same high level of risk but yet many of them would net zero guns. And it is likely that many police departments will wisely decline involvement. Therefore the “best case” figure of 864 raids per officer is quite low. The real number would be much higher.

How long would it be until mounting law enforcement casualties triggered a revolt or “sick-out” among the rank and file Door Kickers?  For some historical context: Just four ATF agents were killed and 16 wounded in the Waco raid, and that was considered quite “devastating” and “traumatizing” to the 5,000-member agency.

 

Here is some sobering ground truth: America’s gun owners are just as well trained–and often better trained–than the police. There are 20.4 million American military veterans, and the majority of veterans own guns.

RESISTANCE STRATEGY AND TACTICS

Rather than meeting the police one-at-a-time on their doorsteps, I predict that resisting gun owners will employ guerilla warfare strategy and tactics to foil the plans of the gun grabbers:

1.) They will successfully hide the majority of their banned guns. This is just what many Europeans did, following World War II. There are perhaps a million guns in Europe that were never registered or turned in, after the war. Particularly in Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Spain, and Greece, there is still massive noncompliance. It has now been 73 years since the end of WWII. So the gun registration noncompliance in Europe is now multi-generational.

2.) They will form small, fully independent “phantom” resistance cells. This is commonly called leaderless resistance. Such cells are very difficult to detect or penetrate. These resistance cells will carefully choose the time and location of their attacks, to their advantage.

3.) They will individually target the legislators who voted for unconstitutional gun ban legislation. This will make it  almost suicidal for these legislators to return to their home districts.

4.) They will individually target any outspokenly anti-gun police chiefs.

5.) They will target all BATF agents and FBI HRT agents–first with intimidation, and then with targeted killings.

6.) They will pillage or burn down the facilities where confiscated guns are being stored and destroyed.

7.) They will anonymously phone in false police reports about gun control advocates. (This is commonly called “SWATing.”)

8.) They will use time-delayed explosives, time-delayed incendiaries, time-delayed bursting toxin containers, cell phone-triggered IEDs, computer program worms and viruses, and long-range standoff weapons to minimize the risk of being detected, apprehended, or killed. Likely targets will be Federal buildings, courthouses, SWAT training facilities, police training ranges, and especially the private residences of anyone deemed to be a gun-grabber.

9.) They will use anonymous re-mailers and VPN to encourage others to resist by forming their own leaderless resistance cells.

10.) They will begin a War of Attrition on the Door Kickers, with tactics such as these:

  A.) Ambushing SWAT vehicles while in transit, rather than waiting for the SWAT teams to set up raids.

  B.) Ambushing individual SWAT team members at unexpected times and places–most likely at their homes.

  C.) Sabotaging SWAT vehicles, most likely with time-delayed incendiaries.

  D.) Targeting SWAT teams or individual team members while they are at home, in training, or when attending conventions.

  E.) Harassing and intimidating individual SWAT team members and their families. The systematic burning of their privately-owned vehicles and their unoccupied homes and vacation cabins will be unmistakable threats.

11.) They will individually target “gun control” advocates, organizers, and group leaders.

12.) They will individually target the judges that issue gun seizure warrants.

13.) They will individually target journalists who have vocally advocated civilian disarmament.

14.) Some owners of M1 Carbines, AR-15s and HKs in the resistance movement will convert them to selective fire. (They will assume: “Well, if it is now a felony to possess a semi-auto, then what is the harm in making it a full auto?”)

15.) They will be willing to wage an ongoing guerilla warfare campaign using both passive and active resistance until the collectivists relent. This would be something like “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland, but on a larger scale, with greater ferocity, and with far more weapons readily available. Unlike the IRA, which had to import arms, all of the the firearms, magazines, and ammunition needed for any American resistance movement are already in situ. It is noteworthy that the agreed “Decommissioning” the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was delayed for more than five years because of their remaining caches of arms, which by then included only around 1,000 battle rifles!)

THE GUN CONFISCATION END GAME

I believe that once it was started, the whole affray would be settled within just a few weeks or months. American gun owners clearly have the numbers on their side. Once the shooting starts, the gun-hating politicians will quickly feel isolated, vastly outnumbered, and incredibly vulnerable. And when they realize they’ve lost their Door Kicker shock troops, they will capitulate. After some horrendous casualties in a brief but fierce civil war, the politicians would be forced to:

1. Declare a cease fire and stand-down for all gun confiscation raiders.
2. Repeal all Federal gun laws.
3. Order the destruction of all Federal import, purchase, transfer, and registration records
4. Issue unconditional pardons for all convicted Federal gun law violators.
5. Declare a general amnesty for all involved in the resistance, and drop all pending charges.
6. Disband the BATFE.

Without all six of those, the hostilities would continue.

BUT THERE’S MORE

The foregoing math on the roughly 20 million semi-auto rifles is not the full extent of the problem for the gun grabbers. Additionally, there are at least 50 million centerfire handguns that would be suitable for resistance warfare. (And another 3 million being made or imported each year.) There are also perhaps 40 million scoped centerfire deer rifles in private hands. The vast majority of those have no traceable paper trail. Fully capable of 500+ yard engagement, these rifles could be employed to out-range the tyrants and their minions.

 

Then there are the estimated 1.5 million unregistered machineguns now in the country.  Except for a 30-day amnesty in 1968 that generated only about 65,000 registrations, they have been contraband since 1934. Their number is particularly difficult to accurately estimate, since some semi-autos such as the M1 Carbine, HK91/93/94 series, and AR-15 are fairly easy to convert to selective fire. Similarly, nearly all “open bolt” semi-auto designs are easy to convert to full auto. Large numbers of conversion parts sets have been sold, with little recordkeeping. Some guns can be converted simply by removing sear springs or filing their sears. Just a trickle of unregistered full autos are seized or surrendered each year. This begs the question: If Federal officials have been unable to round up un-papered machineguns after 84 years, then how do they expect to ever confiscate semi-autos, which are 15 times more commonplace?

As evidenced by the 1990s wars in the Balkans, when times get inimical, contraband guns get pulled out of walls and put into use. We can expect to see the same, here.

Now, to get back to the simple mathematics, here are some ratios to ponder:

• NRA members (5.2 million) to Door Kickers (82,863) = 63-to-1 ratio
  
• Military veterans (20.4 million) to Door Kickers (82,863) = 249-to-1 ratio
  
• Unregistered machineguns (1.5 million) to Door Kickers (82,863) = 18-to-1 ratio
  
• Privately owned semi-auto rifles (40 million) to Door Kickers (82,863) = 485-to-1 ratio
  

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

The mathematics that I’ve cited don’t bode well for the gun-grabbing collectivists. If they ever foolishly attempt to confiscate semi-auto rifles, then it will be “Game On” for Civil War 2. I can foresee that they would run out of willing Door Kickers, very quickly.

I’ll conclude with a word of caution: Leftist American politicians should be careful about what they wish for. Those who hate the 2nd Amendment and scheme to disarm us have no clue about the unintended consequences of their plans. If they proceed, then I can foresee that it will end very badly for them. – JWR

End Notes:

Again, the preceding is a purely conjectural gedankenexperiment about the future that extrapolates from recent history and current trends. None of the foregoing is seditious (per 18 U.S. Code § 2384), nor a call to arms, nor a threat to our government or to any individual, agency, or group.

Permission to reprint, re-post or forward this article in full is granted, but only if credit is given to James Wesley, Rawles and first publication in SurvivalBlog (with a link.) It must not be edited or excerpted, and all included links must be left intact.

From SurvivalBlog.com via WRSAhe

Wear Items

The left-most two springs came with the pistol.  The one on the right is a new replacement.

Just a bit compressed over the years.

Changing your springs every 40 years seems like a good interval. ;)

Frivolous Gunleather

Got an OWB holster for the S&W 59.

It's nifty in that it has holes for wearing it cross-draw too.

Being a DA/SA gun, the holster is designed so that the hammer must be down to get the thumbstrap secure.

This purchase is frivolous because I really don't intend to carry this pistol.  I'm not sure I'd want to dress to conceal this holster as well.  Update: I just tried it under the same Hawaiian shirts I use to hide my shoulder holster and it disappears nicely in both strong side and cross-draw.

I prefer to have a holster for everything.  Prefer, not insist.

Bacon Time's Engagement Education Attempt!

Head on over to this link and, politely and respectfully, fisk away.

Their comments are moderated, so it's unlikely to get any traction, but it's possible they will listen, I guess.

Then Why Are There So Many Black People In Prison

If the hallmark of White is that the cops arrest you rather than gun you down on sight on the mere suspicion of having committed a crime:

How then, do so many Black people manage to survive being arrested and make it to trial?

Or are you, Tariq Nasheed, full of shit?

It's Supposed To You Moron

Several Florida counties contend that, "the threatened penalties [of violating the state pre-emption on firearms laws] have had a "chilling effect" on their ability to approve ordinances aimed at reducing gun violence." LINK

Well, you simpletons, the 1987 law, with no penalties for county and city officials breaking it, didn't slow you assholes down a bit; so we voters got our elected officials to put some teeth in that law.

You're essentially complaining that you will be affected by breaking the law.

You know who else says that?

Criminals.

I Like The Cut Of His Jib

Not Felon But Still Prohibited

The shooter appears to have been convicted of 3rd degree assault.

In Colorado this is a misdemeanor, but... is punishable by up to two years in prison.

ATF Form 4473, question 21.c:

Have you ever been convicted in any court, including a military court, of a felony, or any other crime for which the judge could have imprisoned you for more than one year, even if you received a shorter sentence including probation?

The shooter apparently passed a background check because they know the date he purchased the Ruger AR556 pistol used.

Just like the Texas church shooting, the prohibited person wasn't properly flagged.

These laws just don't work.  At all.

Apparently I Didn't Wait Long Enough

The named perp when I posted wasn't the correct person.

Looks like Religion of Peace.  Again.

You'll know it was a terrorist attack when the FBI tells us sometime today that there was no terrorist motive and the media remind us that not ALL Muslims are like this and we shouldn't treat one member of a group as representing all members of that group...

While asserting that ONE gun owner is exactly like ALL gun owners and demanding gun control.

A Letter To Senator Rick Scott

 I am certain that the party on the other side of the aisle will attempt to not let the crisis of the Boulder, Colorado shooting go to waste.

They will attempt, again, to punish the innocent and further restrict the everyday citizen's ability to obtain, own and carry a firearm.

I think it's especially important to write to you about this because, as Governor, you caved to this attitude and signed a bill into law which punished the innocent and further restricted the everyday citizen's ability to obtain, own and carry a firearm after Parkland.

I didn't want that when you were Governor, and I don't want it now that you're a Senator.

First and foremost, I did nothing wrong.  I murdered no one.  My firearms came nowhere near the site of the murders.  How will punishing me help?

Secondly, the shooter was forbidden to possess a firearm due to their being a felon.  By federal law they aren't allowed to purchase, own or possess a firearm; regardless of type.  It doesn't matter if it was a single shot shotgun or a rifle with every feature known to cause dehydration from pants wetting in the media.  Yet that law was broken and someone who was forbidden to have a gun got one anyway.

I think I'm more interested in seeing where he got that gun and if the person selling it knew he was a felon.

I'd be fascinated to learn how he obtained this firearm without undergoing the background check that Colorado mandates by law.  I want to know why both he and the seller ignored this law.

There, now you have someone who actually did something to punish and without even passing any new laws!

But there's something that's very important about several of these mass shootings that extremely alarming if we start banning the firearms which are most useful to a citizen who needs them.

The amount of time that the citizen is on their own while the police dawdle at the perimeter of the crime while the criminal is slaughtering the innocent.

In Boulder it was more than 50 minutes from the first shot to the suspect being brought out in handcuffs.  It was ten minutes from the first shot before police arrived on scene.  It was another 40 minutes before the police entered the supermarket to subdue the suspect.

Without the means to defend ourselves until the police arrive, we're at the non-existent mercy of those who would commit evil upon us.

You should be familiar with both the Pulse Nightclub shooting and Parkland because they happened in our state.  In addition to the police dithering outside, these were places where the law-abiding were prohibited from possessing a means to defend themselves.

It's counterintuitive, but the solution isn't more restrictions on the types of firearms allowed the citizen, but fewer restrictions.  Fewer restrictions also has the benefit of being in accord with the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

It's been said by people smarter than me that, given the gigantic number of firearms and huge population of owners, if the weapons that Dianne Feinstein, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer most wish to ban were a problem; not even the most ardent supporter of the 2nd amendment would be able to deny it.

But these guns and their owners are not a problem, despite a well organized attempt to make these rare occurrences seem commonplace.  They are not!  It's their very rarity which make them stand prominently in the public eye.

Don't fall for the propaganda.

Something More Prosaic

All glory to the Zip-Tie!

The timer knob on the dryer decided to split around the shaft.

A new knob has been ordered, but until it arrives, a couple of Zip-Ties have pressed it together well enough to restore it to service!

HUZZAH!

If the girls don't find you handsome, at least let them find you handy!

I Will Keep Repeating It

It wasn't me, I didn't do it.

Neither me or any of my firearms were present for the murders.

I do not deserve to be punished for the actions of someone else.

I am fucking sick of being blamed for shit I didn't do.

Pick A Lane?

I am old enough to remember when the press was all about defunding the police because they were, to a man, racists.

Now they're on their knees sucking any cop dick they can find over their heroism.

They must enjoy having aneurysms.

At Least Two Boxes On The Bingo Card

Boulder shopper shooter appears to have been a felon in possession in a state with universal background checks.

He was in jail as late as 2019, so he shouldn't have been able to purchase a magazine larger than 15 rounds either.

I Think Hero Has Been Cheapened Enough

If it takes you 40 minutes after arrival to rally to make an assault against a single opponent WHILE LISTENING TO GUNFIRE FROM INSIDE you lose the right to claim the title "hero"!

Just like Parkland, you let people die so you wouldn't be exposed to danger.

It'd be a lot easier to back the blue if they'd start thinking about something besides their own selves every once and a while.

That's tarring them all with the same brush.

What I am complaining about appears to be the norm in Democrat controlled areas, like Boulder, Colorado, Broward County, Florida or Orlando, Florida.

Update: 

It looks like there was one cop there whom 'hero' might apply.  Officer Talley appears to have run straight to the sound of the guns.

You don't have to succeed to be a hero, but you have to be brave.

Media Says Firearms Ownership Protected By 1st Amendment!

"Second Amendment absolutism and what can only be described as a religion of gun ownership," Ed Kilgore.

Huzzah!

We're a religion now!

That means our practices are covered by the 1st Amendment, our places of worship are now exempt from paying taxes and our speech can no longer be censored or suppressed!

Who?

Someone I'd never heard of who only got mentioned because they're a dancing monkey clinging to the success of a different dancing monkey whom I've only heard about because she wore a swimsuit once says, "guns are bad m'kay."

The big question I have is, "Why do I, or anyone else, care what you think?"

It's a common problem with dancing monkeys.

Mystery

If you look carefully at this pic:

You will notice that the Shield 1.0 magazine has two magazine release holes.

This is usually indicative of a reversible magazine release.

This is something that the Shield 1.0 lacks.

I Bear Away, Despite You, My Panache!

Cyrano de Bergerac is a better and more tragic love story than Romeo and Juliet.

Rostand did, however, have three hundred years to one-up Mr Shakespeare.

Size Comparison

The M&P 9 Shield 1.0 and M&P 9 Shield Plus are very nearly the same size.

The plus has just a bit more girth, but you hardly notice it.

Where you really notice is the capacity.

10 rounds instead of 7.

This was accomplished by making the magazine a touch wider and changing the throat where the two columns become one.

13 rounds instead of 8.  The new geometry really pays off here.

Interestingly, the 13 rounder is about the same size as the first 13 rounder made for a 9mm!

The pistol it fits, though, is considerably more compact!

Sums Up My Attitude About Yesterday's Wait

 

Preliminary Impression

Now that I've had a nap...

It is all but identical in size to the Shield 1.0.

The grip texture is really good.

The trigger is a vast improvement.

The safety is grittier.

It feels exactly the same as the 1.0 in my pocket.

I think S&W has a hit on their hands!

Everything compares favorably with the P365 that Marv used to have.

S&W definitely cranked these things out so that there would be plenty for sale on announcement day.  Also, unlike SIG, the option for a thumb safety is available out the gate.

According to the boxes both mine and Marv's were made on 08Feb21.  They are 4351 serial numbers apart with the same 3-letter prefix.

Works Every Time

Seeing as I have been up since 2am...  I decided to give up on FDLE and come back on Monday to see if they'd granted permission to collect my property.

That did the trick and permission fell from heaven!

Marv got approved too!

Pictures and comparisons coming, but sleep first.

Waiting For Permission

I'm sitting for the past two hours waiting for my FDLE background check to come back.

I've watched two others come in, fill out their 4473 and leave with their gun.

I'm tired and upset at the delay.

Had It

Marvyn just got some tests back.

He's got the Wu Ping Cough antibodies.

The Boy and I were sick before he was, and we're pretty sure we gave it to Marv.

Marv took the nose swab and was negative...

He ended up with pulmonary inflammation and some lung scarring from the event, that's why they tested him for anti-bodies.

We think that the reason he tested negative is his reluctance to get to a doctor took so long that the disease had run its course.

The Boy and I were certainly riding hind-tit for a while.  We had over 100° fevers for about a week and massive fatigue.  I lost my sense of smell, but kept my sense of taste.

I think Marv's anti-body test confirms our suspicions.

Bracing

Willard and I are pooling our resources and we're going to assemble a series of pics of guns with a handgun and long-gun in the same caliber.

This is going to take a while.

We've got a "couple" of guns.

We've even got a couple of "which pistol?" moments.

Uh... Pilot... Um... Diaaaaaaaaaalog

I used to fly a lot.

I've known a lot of pilots.

A recurring joke is how when they get on the intercom to say something to the passengers they suddenly develop a speech impediment full of 'uhs' and 'ums' and stretching out vowels.

Watching Mad Men and they have a pilot making an announcement and wishing the crew of Apollo 11 luck.  In perfect diction.

A method actor would have caught that.

Preliminary GURPS Stats

So far the stats for the Shield Plus are identical to the Shield except for the number of rounds and the magazine weights.

The overall weight is the same.

Shield is 1.5/0.3 with 7+1.  Shield Plus is 1.5/0.4 with 10+1.

Shield is 1.5/0.3 with 8+1.  Shield Plus is 1.6/0.5 with 13+1.

This should be clickable to make it more readable.

Except for not being on sale at an insane discount, there doesn't appear to be a downside to the upgrade.

MSRP is $553.  Most places on GunBroker are hovering in the $529 range, plus shipping and transfer.

Palmetto State Armory has it listed at $529 as well, but shows the normal price as $699.99; like they're really cutting you a deal.  They aren't.  It's little lies like that which serve to alienate the customers that notice.

Well... Thanks!

Dear Charles Schumer and Dianne Feinstein,

Thanks for the money!

I bought a high capacity semi-automatic pistol with the funds.

Should be a brand spanking new Smith and Wesson M&P 9 Shield Plus winging its way here very soon.

It's Marv's fault.  He stabbed 'buy it now' moments after I forwarded the video from TFB to him.

The seller must also assume some of the blame for their failure to sell out before I got there.

Now I need to decide what to do with my OG 9mm Shield.

I am amused that the two magazines that come with the new gun hold the same number of rounds as the three magazines I normally tote with the old one.

10 and 13 is the same as 7, 8 and 8.

They Grow Up So Fast

S&W has announced a higher capacity version of the M&P Shield.

I'm interested.  I like my Shield, but a couple extra shots would be nice, and it looks like I can get them without it taking up too much more space.

Sigh Of Relief?

The window for packet submissions for the second round of CMP M1911's has closed.

This will save you approximately $1,000 if you're assigned a number when it's drawn.

If you wanted to spend the money and get one... then you're going to be upset.

Don't Deprive Yourself

You simply must try this!

In Between

I've also packed .38 Super in the form of a Colt Government Model in the same Miami Classic II as I used for the Springfield 1911 A1 USGI.

They're externally identical, after all.

I got the Miami Classic rig I used for the M&P 45C for an M&P 9.

I've considered trying an M&P 9C since the 45C totes just a bit better than the full-size 9.

What really amazes me about this entire carry saga is, with the exception of exchanging the Springfield 1911 A1 USGI for a genuine USGI M1911A1; I still own all of them.

I should also mention my first legal carry gun.  It was my Grampa's business defense gun.

H&R Automatic in .32... it could be .32 H&R or .32 S&W Long.  Hard to tell.

I tucked it in, cross draw, in an Uncle Mike's shitty nylon IWB pouch-like holster.  It rode pretty comfortably there too.

As a talisman against criminals, it's not too shabby.  For actual use...

Medical technology advanced to the point where slow .32 rounds don't assure the criminal shot with one a lingering, painful, death from infection.  When death by bacteria was a likely end to being shot by anything even a .25 ACP is scary.

Sulfa drugs and penicillin changed everything.

Pillow Company Bit The Big One?

I guess he's happy that his name keeps coming up.

He really showed us capitalists how to do it, didn't he?

As near as I can tell he's the only Parkland kid who still manages to make the news.

The others appear to have decided they prefer dignity to notoriety.

All .45 ACP All The Time

I have carried each of these over the years.

The Glock 21 was the first "real" pistol I ever carried concealed.  It sat in one of the inside pockets of my flight-helmet bag when I went to gaming.  Double plus illegal because no permit and gun-free-zone Iowa State University.

This was also carried in an Uncle Mike's Sidekick vertical shoulder holster.  That was a difficult to adjust and uncomfortable X style holster that absolutely sucked.  But I persisted because... didn't know any better.

Later, when I'd moved to Florida and gotten my CCW, I bought a Galco Summer Comfort holster and discovered what a gigantic pig the Glock 21 was.

Next was a Springfield 1911 A1 USGI (not pictured here) in a Ross... I don't know what model holster it is.  They don't make it any more.

The Springfield was moved to a Galco Miami Classic II rig and I started carrying spare ammo.

The M&P 45C has been carried both in my Vette Kustom holster and a Galco Miami Classic.

All in all The Precious and my expansive gut have killed the idea of carrying inside waistband, regardless of placement.  Cross-draw still works, but it's not near as comfortable as a shoulder rig.

Wearing clothes baggy enough to cover IWB, for me, means I'm wearing enough to cover a shoulder holster anyways...

Sky Ground Sky Ground Sky Ground Sky Ground Sky Ground

In the way back...

My dad and two of his buddies decided that they were going to form a drag racing team.

My dad contributed at Keith Black Hemi.

Lenny contributed at Lenco trans.

Robert contributed his Charger and hemi K-frame.

All was going well getting the car together until they noticed my dad was the thinnest one of the bunch and he wouldn't be fitting inside the roll-cage.

Slowly they turned... and looked at my skinny 16-year old self.

Angus can drive!

So I became a licensed NHRA driver.

I don't even remember what class we were in, but I do remember that it doesn't exist any more.

All was going swimmingly until one day at Brainard International Raceway.

The drag strip was the straight away of the road course, but running backwards from the road direction.

It was plenty long enough for even top fuel cars running in the fives.

It is NOT long enough for a steel body Charger running wide open with a stuck throttle and a kill switch that didn't kill the motor.

I knew there wasn't much gas in the car, so it would shut itself down not too far past the finish-line and shut-down area.  If only I could make the turn to the straight that led to the main.

I got the car turned... but I didn't change it's vector much as I went straight off the track sideways.

Sky-Ground-lather rinse repeat.

TREE!

The cage and helmet did their jobs.

The engine and trans survived.  The Charger did not.

I was definitely sore for a while afterwards.

Genuine Gimp

Some Karen gets what she deserves.

I tend to not be directly confrontational about the handicapped spots, even though I do have the mirror-hanger.

There's an online, and tedious to fill out on the phone, form to report people in Florida.  I use that one a lot.

There's a gym next door to a brewery we frequent often where the gym-rats park in the striped area that's supposed to provide room for a van ramp.

You'd think that someone going to a fucking gym would be healthy enough to walk a bit, wouldn't you?

The most fun is 6 out of 10 times it's been a really expensive car too.

I take pics.

Normally I hear nothing back.

What happens is, the DMV mails a violation to the owner of the car.  They can either pay the fine, show they have handicapped credentials or fight it.

Twice I have gotten a phone call from DMV asking me to confirm what I saw, I ask for an email to send the picture to.  They've provided one and I've sent the pic I took.

I've note heard anything more.

In two other cases, I've heard one of them bitching that his other car got busted for parking there... just after I had reported the current car in the same place.

Jocks be stupid, no?

I've also been confronted by people who seem to think that just because I drive a Corvette I can't possibly be handicapped.  Unlike the man in the story, I have both legs.  They're in bad shape, but still present.  Normally the cane gets them to clam up.

If they persist, I make them aware of the web page and remind them to get a good pic of my license plate and the parking space.

Shocking

I see they've arrested a big-wig of Oath-Keepers.

From what they've released so for, it seems very contrived.

But, that's how Socialist Totalitarian governments roll.

I despair that we're going to get out of this.

But then, Socialism is something you vote your way into and have to shoot your way out of; thus the fresh press for gun control from the desiccated zombies in the Senate.

Packtacular

The very first gun I conceal carried was an FIE Titan .25.

Because Story County, Iowa didn't issue carry permits to unwashed poors, I carried it illegally.  I sold it for a pittance when I started carrying a Glock 21 illegally in the flight-helmet bag I toted my gaming stuff in.

Considering how rare this grip and finish proved to be, I occasionally wonder if this is actually the same pistol I used to own.  Even the little discoloration on the stocks are the same.

.25's are handy because they are tiny.

Much later, when I could carry legally I still packed a .25 because the summer setting in Florida is "melt lead".

You could practically carry it in a watch pocket.

I don't tote these light guns any more.

9mm's are much larger, but lately they've shrunk down to where they're comfortable, even in the Hellish summer heat of The Gunshine State.

When I can't use the back yard to smelt lead, I prefer a shoulder holster under an Hawaiian shirt.  You can carry anything that way.  It also works better in a car, especially one with a tight interior like The Precious!