All posts by MadOgre

Crusader, Gear, Government, Training

Conflicted

120 Comments

I’ve been struggling with this subject for some time.   Not just the subject, but even if I should post this.   Publishing my thoughts on this – feels dangerous.  But the First Amendment is backed up by the Second.  So here it is:

Here’s the thing.   Sometime ago I observed a TSA Agent going about her business of providing Security Theater at the Airport.  She was Muslim, and wearing her traditional Muslim head-covering.   My knee-jerk reaction was that of anger.  It was her people are the reason why we have the TSA now.  Why we have to take off our shoes at the Airport.
But what got me even more angry – was that I got angry about that.  Damn it!  I’m not racist.  I never have been.  I’m not against anyone of a different faith than mine!  I’ve been wired against Hate all my life!
You see, I swore an Oath that I took and still take very seriously.  To protect the constitution.  To protect those that believe and say things that I might disagree with, but I’ll fight to the death to protect their right to say it.   That includes Muslims who wish to worship Allah and hold to the beliefs and practices of Islam.
Here’s another thing.  I’m a Mormon.  One of our Articles  of Faith says:

We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.

We know what it feels like to be looked down upon for being different.  Mormons were driven out of their homes, several times.  Our church built homes only to be forced to leave them.  We built a whole city, only to be forced to leave it… A new temple that took so much sacrifice to build.  (Nauvoo) We only got to use it for a little while.  The Hayes Administration tried to block Mormon Immigrants.  A Governor declared a genocide on us.   If you study Mormon history, you find you are studying persecution and abuse for a very long time.  One of my own family was murdered for simply being Mormon.

So when we hear people speak like how Donald Trump is speaking, a part of us feels sick inside to see this happening again, even to another people.   It’s wrong, and all of my upbringing is against it.

And yet, there is a part of me that agrees with Trump’s assertion that we should hold off until we “figure out what’s going on” as he said.  Is holding off until we have a viable vetting process such a bad idea?  President Jimmie Carter did just that.  Yet when Trumps says that, he’s a badguy?  I don’t get that.

Continue reading Conflicted →

Government

No Fly No Guns No Brains

9 Comments

NO-SOUP-FOR-YOU

Obama’s latest speech was a laughable hot mess.
He started out by basically saying that the mass shooting in California was Work Place Violence, before he said that it was Terrorism… but being careful to say that it wasn’t directed by ISIL.
Pretty much the only person calling IS “ISIL” anymore is Obama.  ISIS called themselves ISIS… and now they and pretty much everyone in the middle east just calls them “IS” now.  As in “Islamic State”.  Obama is tone deaf when he keeps saying ISIL.   I think he says that just to reinforce he hates Israel.

He espoused one idea that on the surface sounds good.  If you are a Terrorist on the No Fly list, then you shouldn’t be able to buy a gun.  On the surface – I agree with that sentiment.  Who wouldn’t?  The problem though is that lots of people on that No Fly list are not Terrorists.  There have been Small Children on the No Fly list.  Even a sitting Senator was put on the No Fly list…. Let’s call it the NFL for the time being.   The NFL is a shady government roster that no one knows who controls, how it’s vetted, and no one has oversight on it.  Names get added but it takes an act of The Great Pumpkin to get a name off it.   And that’s the problem I have with it.  Secret Covens muttering over secret documents…

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How do you know if you are on the list?  Pretty much the only way to know is if you try to board a plane.  Heaven help you if you bought a No Refund type ticket through Priceline.
Without any Due Process you could have your Rights revoked… and it would take your Congressmen to try to help you get your name off that list.
Another problem…
If you are  a proscribed person and you try to buy a gun… sign that 4473… Boom.  You just committed a felony.   You walked into that store a regular joe, and walked out a Felon.

The Progs don’t have to Ban any gun.  They just ban you.  And it’s as easy as just adding your name to the list.

Another problem.  Some folks I know have Job Applicants run through NICS.  No Approval means no job.  This can have a dire effect on your whole life… not just getting a new gun from a dealer.

Again, all of this with no due process.  No way to know if your name is on there.  No notification, “Hey, you need to talk to your local FBI agent to get this cleared off.”  All you get is “Denied”.  No reason.  No warning.  And there’s really no help for you, because quiet seriously, your Congressmen do not care.  Especially if you live in a Democrat Held State.  Welcome to Shit Creek, your paddle has been revoked.

Obama breezed though this little tidbit rather quickly.  Of course he doesn’t want you to think about it.   If you think – you question.  And that’s the last thing They want you to do.

Food

BBQ

12 Comments
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14 large pork shoulders. Rinsed, patted dry, trimmed, scored the fat cap, coated in olive oil and covered with a more mild version of my Redrub. This is off to a great start.
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The pork shoulders went on the grill at Midnight… Low and Slow… Temp set to 275 degrees. We’ll let this go for about 10 hours.
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After 5 hours, I wrapped them in foil, and splashed a bit of pineapple juice on them… And let them go another 5 hours. After lots of watching of the temp… They came off the heat, and allowed to rest for another hour.
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The results were incredibly moist and tender and delicious. If you zoom in, you can see the pork is very moist… Many folks in the Carolinas take the pork and chop it up into a fine mince while splashing in large amounts of NC style Sauce which is basically apple cider vinegar and red pepper flakes. I don’t do that. I pull the pork into shreds and chunks and let the pork speak for its self. I only serve sauce on the side. My bride has made excellent sauces at home. Nothing store bought. We serve Eastern Carolina, “Carolina Red” which is basically Eastern but mixed with ketchup, and South Carolina Mustard based sauce. You don’t need a sauce but some people just have to splash sauce on everything. That’s fine too.
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This was enough to feed my entire ward at my church, with left over to spare for those having hard times at home… and for those that just wanted more. Those that tasted it – said it was the best they ever had. Considering how seriously people from the Carolinas take their BBQ, I consider this the greatest of compliments. I’m thinking about getting my own BBQ Trailer and getting into Competition. Or maybe doing Q for special events… Such as at a Shooting Competition or special shooting class maybe. Catering for special events. I don’t know. I’m considering this.
Uncategorized, Weapons

Mike Kupari’s “Her Brother’s Keeper”

3 Comments

Mike’s new book, “Her Brother’s Keeper” is a fantastic mix of old school sci-fi and modern genre-blending.  I was highly enjoyable.  I  used an Audible credit to get the “Book on Tape”… having forgotten I had ordered the paper version.  So now my boys are reading it – and they too are enjoying it.  Get this book.  It’s an excellent Sci-Fi.  You will love it too.

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The gun is of course my Ruger GP100 Match Champion.  The Blade is… some Benchmade push dagger… I forget which.  The patch, was Mike’s “Team Duchess” patch.   It’s one of my favorites.

Weapons

Ruger SP101 GunPron

8 Comments

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The Ruger SP101, .357 Magnum, 3″ Barrel. Equal parts sophistication and malice. Astute and Brutal.
This one isn’t mine.  Mine, is just like it, but it’s loaded and on my hip while I took the photos of this one.  Those are my rounds though.
I love Speed Strips.  So much easier to carry than Speed Loaders.

We discussed revolvers on ArmedAmericanRadio.com Daily Defense Hour.  Packing a .357 Magnum is a luxury… an obscene display of power and glory, in a subtle little package of satin stainless malice.

Weapons

Beretta 92FS change?

24 Comments

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I love shooting my Beretta.  I just do.   But I’ve had a “Wake up” moment about it.   Let me explain…
I’ve never had a problem with the safety.  In fact, I rather like the safety mechanism as I consider it to be one of the safest safeties in the industry.  Now, when I carry my Beretta, my routine is to safe the gun, holster, and then flick it off safe.   This allows the first trigger pull to be unhindered.  More like a SIG.  I like that.

Friday the 30th, I participated in PointBlankRange.com’s Zombie Shoot.  It was a blast!   However in one stage, at two different points, I ran into some thorns.   From the first position of 3, you fire your string and safe your weapon and move to the second position to engage.   So I hit the safety, scooted to pos-2, and tried to engage.  Trigger was nothing but slack.  Two pulls, “Oh”, *flick*, bang bang bang… And then it happened again, exactly the same going into pos-3.

This was all me.  I recognize and own this.   It was not the gun – it was me.  Normally, the safety never “gets me” because I almost never keep it engaged.  I just don’t.  But because I did – broke from my routine – it got me.  twice in a row.   And I really really don’t like that.

Also, I’d normally have run my 1911… I just don’t run the Beretta enough.  Again – this is all me and my Ogreish habits.  How I do things.  And I was tasked to do things outside of my operating procedures – and evidently I don’t do that well.   I’m not making excuses here, I’m recognizing my malfunctions.

I think it’s time to look at doing “The G-Mod” on my Beretta.  Converting my 92 FS to a 92 G.   This changes the safety mechanism to a De-Cock Only.  So the lever will automatically spring back to the Fire Position.  This is evidently something that is so much of an issue for enough folks that Beretta even HAS a G model.

So now the question that I must ask myself… and only I can answer this for me.  Is do I get the G-Mod done, or do I train on this safety more so I don’t have those stumbles again?

Government

Hillary Clinton’s Testimony

9 Comments

clinton_wide_eyed_afpBecause I was in traffic much of the day that Hillary Clinton was testifying before the Benghazi Hearings… I was able to hear much of it.  First off, to give credit where credit is due – Hillary Clinton answered those questions impressively well.  She delivered her message clearly and strongly.   She’s a MASTERFUL politician.
And that’s why she is so utterly dangerous.  She was smooth and almost effortless in how she lied and misdirected.  It was an impressive performance.  I came away with a couple of things.  1.  Hillary is very good at what she does.  2.  There is no way on Earth I could trust her… not even telling the time of day.

Listening to the Talking Heads dissect her testimony has been almost as entertaining… they act so proud that they caught her in lies.  If they had listened to the questions and how Hillary either didn’t actually answer the question and misdirected, or just outright lied… they would have been able to instantly tell that she was completely full of it.  Her lips were moving.

Weapons

SIG on my Mind

10 Comments

I really wish SIG had an M-11 Legion edition.  I’ve been thinking about SIG’s more and more lately.   I sold a P229R the other day and it’s just reminded more and more how much I enjoyed shooting my 229R and how much of a mistake it was selling it.
I admit to be very smitten with the M-11 pistol  (P228) and that itch to get one is getting very… itchy.  The new 229 pistols and the M-11 are the same pistol, the M-11 just doesn’t have the frame rails.
The enhancements on the new Legion series – I really dig.  And quite frankly, I need.  I love the color of the finish, and grips are just cool.  The extra checkering, yes, I’m a fan of it.  But most importantly is the big bright front sight post.
I need that.M11-A1-D-LARGE

Any SIG 22X pistol (Any SIG model that starts with 22) is a Shooter’s Pistol.  They are exceptionally accurate and reliable, hammer fired and made of metal, the way I like it.  The double action pull on most any SIG 22X is very good.  Not too heavy, not too long for DA’s.  It’s good.  But what’s even better is the SA pull.  In Single Action mode -maybe I’m just used to them – the trigger is divine.  And the stability of any of the SIG 22X guns is incredible.  They handle the recoil, with no drama.  Sure, there’s a bit more muzzle rise during recoil than say a Glock thanks to bore axis… But the SIG’s come back on target perfectly.  And no matter what trigger package I put in a Glock, I can get better accuracy out of the SIG’s.
And I like the fact that the hammer is set up in the Rebounding configuration so manual safeties are not a bother.  You don’t need them.  Just take your finger off the trigger and/or decock… the weapon is perfectly safe.  It’s probably the only semi-auto pistol that I’d feel perfectly comfortable packing Appendix.   I trust the SIG safety more than any other semi-auto pistol out there.  I just do.

There’s a thing there… that word.  Trust.   I trust SIG.  I trust several gun brands… but SIG is probably at the very top of that list.