Why isn't the Government taking border security seriously?
Didn't Bush say his job was to protect America?
Wednesday, 8-31-05:
One of The Horde's more astute
members has sent us something that did not come up on my radar
yet.
Police controversy in Falls Church,
Virginia over their issued SIG P220 pistols.
Now as The Horde knows, when it comes to double action, .45ACP
caliber, automatic handguns, the P220 is at the top of the list.
(Followed by the CZ-97 and the Beretta Cougar) The SIG is so
good, that it has been dubbed “The Thinking Man's .45” by many
gun writers. I don't know if I would go that far over it, but it
is a personal favorite of mine and of many of The Horde. BTW, my
teeth hurt I want the compact version, the P245, so badly!
Anyways, this article also mentions that Henrico County has
dropped the P220. This article makes the P220 sound as if they
are substandard arms. In reality, these guys are complaining
about having to drive BMW M5's. The issue of the reliability is
probably because these guys in Falls Church have not had the
weapons serviced. Recoil springs and magazine springs need to be
changed out every so often... just like the oil in the M5 needs
to be changed or pretty soon its going to have reliability
issues too. They also said in the article that they didn't yet
have the chance to test fire the reserve P220's yet. The reserve
guns are nothing but brand new guns that were purchased with the
issue guns and these guns were set aside to replace the active
duty guns should problems come up. And the article makes this
out to be a bad thing? That's crazy. How many times do you get a
zero mile new car as a replacement for your used car when you
take it in for service? I think these new SIGs will prove to be
perfectly reliable as long as the Officers are using new
magazines with them. If they are using the old mags in the new
guns, they could possibly get the same problems. Also if these
old pistols are just flat worn out, then these new “reserve”
pistols should be just fine, and again... like trading in your
old car for a new one. The SIG is more than outstanding, but
like everything else, they have to be taken care of and can
eventually wear out. Now, as I understood it, Henrico County was
getting a special version of the P220, one with hardened feed
ramps to prevent the stress fractures that can develop there
over time. (I had a conversation with one of Henrico's armorers
about this some 8 years ago) Why they dropped the P220 is an
interesting question, and I am curious as to what they switched
to. One reason that they probably switched was that they have
been running the P220 forever and they just wanted to freshen up
the image or wanted a different caliber. For you of The Horde
who owns a SIG P220, take it out of the gun vault, give it some
love, clean it, inspect it, maybe put in some fresh springs...
and you can feel confident that you still have what is hands
down one of the finest handguns ever built.
It must
be just freaking awesome to be President Bush... to have the
power to control the weather! Wow! No wonder the Liberals hate Bush
– He's GOD! In all seriousness, it is truly arrogant to think that
mankind has much influence over the weather... to look for blame
over this hurricane is just asinine. Its no one's fault... it's the
weather. It happens. Hurricanes are naturally occurring storms that
have been happening since before the Vikings discovered America. If
you want to blame anyone for New Orleans being flooded out, blame
the people who built the place in an area that is below sea level.
This is all very small minded though, and I do not like it... this
disaster is bigger than 9-11.
Funny
thing... this is the first thing that has happened since the war
has started that justifies in my mind any reason for oil prices to
rise. It seems all year people have been using any reason whatsoever
to jack up gas prices... the trading has been a comedy of horrors
over oil futures. Death of Saudi Royalty, Back Street Boys has a new
album... everything lately has been meaning higher oil prices all
year. But this storm has actually taken out some of our
refineries... meaning an actual logical reason for higher gas prices
at the pump.
Now I am
going to lay some blame here. If it wasn't for the jackass
environmental wackos and the Democrats in their pockets, we would
have plenty of domestic energy resources on tap. This goes back
decades. The gas shortages in the 70's were one of the symptoms of
this problem because even back then we had put our dependency on
OPEC. And since then, the situation has only grown worse, as many of
the refineries we had have been forced to shut down from sanctions,
legislation, or because of EPA mandates. And other reasons of course
include the cost of domestic production verses just importing it.
Yada yada yada. Here where I live, the Uintah Basin of Utah... this
is oil country. Every major oil company has a stake set out here
someplace. We have tons of oil and some of the oil guys have made
some rather impressive estimates about potential production
capacity. The only problem is that we don't have any refineries
anywhere near here, so even though we are pumping it out like made
just a few miles from here, I'm paying 2.50 a gallon for the cheap
stuff. Premium is about 3 bucks a gallon here. I don't blame Bush
for this situation, and I don't see how he is supposed to help it
either. But I do blame the Liberals for this. If they would just
shut the hell up and leave us alone, we could not only be burning
cheap gas, but we could be enjoying it out riding on trails in our
SUVs and ATVs in peace!
Tuesday, 8-30-05:
Email from the
Horde's Department of Dissenting Opinion: “Mad...Mad
Ogre....There are protestors for every President. A mother
doesn't agree with the war...and has lost her son. She should be
allowed to express that however she wants, and that should be
respected. Even if you disagree with her. Just let her do her
thing. She isn't hurting anyone...this is how she is grieving
and getting support. Some people may find her going about this
the wrong way...that very well may be...but its the wrong way
for 'them' to go about it. This might be the right way for 'her'
to go about it. She isn't hurting anyone...this isn't making the
enemy stronger...this country is founded on these kinds of
expressions. This is where I think yourself and many others lose
track of this freedom. People CAN do this...and just because you
disagree with them...doesn't mean you have to belittle them.
Disagree with them... fine...but their thoughts...and
expressions should be respected if its not hurting someone.
Express your thoughts on why she is wrong...fine...but there
isn't any reason to call names...or be mean spirited. All that
does is fuel the fires that have long been burning. Respect
those that have differing thoughts...and I think you'd be
surprised at the reduction in turmoil. - Noel”
Noel, my friend... I agree
and disagree with you. Yes, she should be allowed to speak her mind.
I never said otherwise. However I am not obligated to respect her,
nor does she have a right to be heard. Her freedom of speech does
not obligate me to listen. She isn't the only one that has suffered
a loss, but her disconnects from her first meeting with Bush, and
her asinine comments that she has made are nothing more than
spiteful and hateful. This woman is a full blown loon. Yeah, I can
belittle her and people like her because I have my right to free
speech as well. Her whole act is a joke and I'm just calling a spade
a spade. Or in this case, a lunatic. Her son is lost, but this
hasn't been about her son for a long time.
And yes, she is hurting
people. The protesters that she has gathered and her "Movement" when
they protested in front of the VA hospital... You bet they hurt
people... maybe not physically, but can you imagine how the soldiers
inside that hospital felt? Her and her kind are causing a lot of
pain to people who wont complain about it... who wont say a word
about it... but it does hurt them. And she is hurting her son. His
sacrifice for something bigger than himself (or his mother) is being
used as a doormat for protesting an unpopular president.
Now let's look at who she is
helping. Who is benefiting from Cindy Sheehan's protest? Her son?
Most people don't even remember his name now. (hint: Camp Casey. I
have to point that out as it has been forgotten who her son was...
not that he was any more special that anyone else that has gone over
to Iraq) The DNC? You bet. Anything that takes a bite out of the
Administration is a feather in the DNC's cap. The Palestinians? Well
all this is just Bush's way of helping the Jews according to Cindy.
(If that actually makes any sense to anyone, let me know.) The
terrorists, or according to Cindy, the “Freedom Fighters”. No, her
son wasn't a Freedom Fighter, but the guys that killed him are. WTF?
How does that work?
This brings me to something
else I wanted to mention yesterday... another peeve I have about the
Liberals comments on Iraq. They have repeatedly said that Bush has
destroyed the Iraqi national infrastructure. This is very untrue and
anyone who watched the actual “war” part of this situation where
were did the whole “Shock and Awe” bit... and then the following
attacks when our tanks rolled all the way into Baghdad... American
and other Coalition Forces took great pains to avoid as much
infrastructure damage as possible. And as soon as that phase was
over, Halliburton rolled
in and started repairing everything. Including infrastructure that
was left to rust before we ever got there.
A little story about the
Guard unit here where I am at. One of the jobs they did, as Combat
Engineers, was to rebuild the zoo in Baghdad. The zoo was in a long
state of disrepair... decades of neglect. Just think about this as a
little bit of infrastructure. We didn't get a bomb near it. We never
touched it. But American Combat Engineers fixed it up. Cleaned it
up. And now, Iraq has a real zoo again.
We don't even need to go
into all the actual utilities such as power and water that were
restored to areas that hadn't had it in 15 years... or ever
before... that now do thanks to Bush. How's that for infrastructure?
How about all the schools we've built? How about the schools that we
have built that allow girls to come in as students and learn too?
How about that for infrastructure? You want to talk about
infrastructure? I got your infrastructure right here. Iraq hardly
had any infrastructure before we kicked out Saddam... now they got
it, real and solid, and if it wasn't for the terrorists and the
Liberal Media, people would realize that we are not just completing
a regime change – but we are building a whole new democratic Iraq
from scratch; and we are doing it live in real time for all to see
if they can get past the anti-Bush and anti-American BS the media
and Cindy Sheehan is spewing.
Yeah, Iraq has some growing
pains. It's not easy forging a new nation. It took us a long time
too. It never starts out perfect, because there are a lot of
decisions to be made. Hard choices. But this is actually a good
thing. Because the people in Iraq now have something that they never
had before since Saddam first came to power. Choice. That's what
Cindy Sheehan's son died for. And that is as noble a cause as anyone
could ever hope to die for. For Freedom. Casey and all
the US and Coalition soldiers in Iraq... they are all Freedom
Fighters.
The only question about it,
is if the people of Iraq actually deserve it.
BTW, I can't help
it... but Cindy Sheehan reminds me of a paunchy Sterling Holloway.
Monday, 8-29-05:
I am so sick and
tired of these Anti-Bush jackholes out there. They are
chanting that “Bush Lied” crap again because of this brainless
wench down in Crawford. Listen to me carefully for a second:
Bush did not lie.
Fact: UN Weapons
Inspectors cataloged massive amounts of WMDs.
Fact: UN Weapons
Inspectors upon doing their inspections, found a full 20% of
previously cataloged WMDs to be missing and unaccounted for.
That missing 20% of Saddam's
stockpile is a large amount of hurt waiting to happen. Just because
the US Military has not been able find a warehouse full of boxes
marked “WMD” doesn't mean that Saddam never had WMDs. As noted in
the above facts, UN Weapons inspectors documented and cataloged the
whole lot of them. The UN mandates against Saddam required Saddam to
prove that these WMDs were actually destroyed or to turn them over.
The mandate was not for Bush to find them.
Another liberal battle cry
I'm tired of: “Iraq had nothing to do with 9-11.”
Fact: The airline
fuselage that terrorists and hijackers practiced doing their hijacks
on... was in Iraq.
Fact: High level Al
Queda terrorists ran to Iraq when the fecal matter hit the fan.
Fact: Saddam was on
all the terror watch lists since the first Gulf War.
Fact: The CIA has
documented several meetings between Al Queda officers and officials
from Saddam's regime before 9-11 and before the war. No, Saddam
wasn't directly involved, but his regime was and that means as
Captain of his ship – that he was by his position. And he even
stated publicly several times that he wanted to rain fire down on
America.
Taking Saddam out was a
righteous move. It needed to be done not just to protect America,
but to insure stability in the middle east, which has drastic and
disproportional economic influence in the USA and the global
economy. No thanks to the Liberals in America which have prevented
every move to develop our energy resources thus making us dependent
on middle east oil thus forcing our hand!
Bush did the right thing in
pulling the trigger on Iraq. It had to be done, and Bush did it.
That's all there is to it.
However – Bush is
really dropping the ball and pretty much missing the boat when
it comes to securing our borders. All the Department of Homeland
Security bullcrap going on at the airports mean nothing if the bad
guys can just across the border and come into the USA just as easy
as Boy Scout hike. The southern border is an absolute joke that has
a very high price. The massive influx of illegal aliens is costing
the US Taxpayer far more than the cost of the war in Iraq. And this
isn't just Bush's fault. It's all on the Congress and the Senate
too. The whole Government. They are not just allowing this to
happen, but it is as if they want it to happen. Cindy Sheehan is
just a distraction from this. (and what a load of BS that is!) What
has the Government been focusing on lately? Baseball players hitting
the juice. I am so glad that the Government is doing everything it
can to clean up Baseball. It's not right that any one player smashes
out too many home run hits... that could make watching the games
interesting! We can't have that. If Baseball became too popular
again, it could reduce the popularity of World Cup Soccer in the US!
Last
Fact of the Day:
Without secure borders, there is no Homeland Security outside of the
Second Amendment. Buy a gun, buy lots of ammo for it, and buy
some range time and practice. Everyone who can legally own a
gun should own a handgun, a rifle, and a shotgun, in serious
calibers...and a .22 of some sort. So that's a minimum of 4
guns. If you don't have these... you are coming up short.
If you have all the guns you need, then help your family members get
guns. After family, then your friends. Because THAT is
Homeland Security.
To all our friends in the
path of this hurricane, you are in our thoughts and prayers...
For you computer geeks out there:
OpenOffice.org now has the version 2.0 Beta 2 out now... and its
goood!
Check
it out here. I was just talking to my bro in Iraq about this
stuff earlier today. Open Office is awesome... I do all my
writing with it. All my spreadsheets (admittedly I do few of
them as I don't need much if it) All my office work is done with
Open Office. I like it better than MS Office, even better than
2003. Of course that is just opinion. It's also free to
use, and MS Office is not, in fact it is quite spendy.
WordPerfect 12 isn't as much, but I don't like it at all. Free
OO.o is the way to go. Now if there was just an WYSIWYG HTML
editor that was both free and better than FrontPage and available
cross-platform... and that isn't NVU - then I'd be extremely happy.
(I tried NVU and find it to have potential, but currently is still
in the sucks category)
We have a report from Steve in SLC
that the place to go is the new
Cabela's store near Point of the Mountain. It sounds
just outstanding and will have to be the Objective Rally Point on
the next mission that takes me out in that Area of Operation.
When that is, I do not know... but I do know that it will involve
shooting and eating with old friends long missed. If the
mission profile was to go something like "Meet up at Cabela's and
spend some money, go shooting, eat something good, and then catch a
good movie"... then I would be contented.
Canada has good looking girls? I
thought they were all chubby, flannel wearing hosers.
I
stand corrected.
Monday, 8-22-05:
This week is starting
out just completely f'd up. First day of school and the bus
for my oldest son is a no show. Him and every other student in
Lapoint going to the same school is stranded. So I go to jump
into the Turbo Van to take him to school... and it's dead. I
call my wife out to move her van over to jump mine... and her
van is dead too. The Bronco of course fired right up, and so did
Mrs Ogre's old Cherokee. Unfortunately neither of those would
make it into town or are legal to drive anymore. So we got both
vans jumped and running, get my boy to class 30 minutes late,
and I'm now at work. Here at work, nothing is working right, and
I get a call to go over to the city's justice court... so I hope
into the shop's van – and it's DOA too. I swear this is no way
to start out the week.
But we received good news
via email from our old friend, Matt. This made my day. Check it out:
“Hey
George, Just wanted to share a couple of thoughts with you that I
think you will relate too. I just completed my first weekend as a
newly anointed CCW carrier and for me it was an awakening. I often
wondered what I would feel as I started to carry a weapon on me at
all times. I am actually surprised at what happened. All weekend
long I felt my field of view get wider. For example, at Liberty Park
with my kids on Saturday, not only was I keeping my eye on my 4 kids
but I found myself watching out for all the other kids playing
around me. I was paying attention to the adult\child interactions
going on everywhere and assessing them to make sure things looked
good. The same thing happened at the Children's Museum, and at the
restaurant, and at the 7-11. I noticed that wherever I went, I paid
attention, I interacted more, I cared more. And people also noticed.
I had good conversations with strangers, I felt respected more and
it's not because they knew I had a weapon on me, it was because I
respected them and cared for them a little more and they felt it. I
have always known that I am one of the good guys. That if push came
to shove, I would side with right and do all I could to make sure
right won. But now I KNOW that I am one of the good guys and if the
unthinkable happens, I have a little more power to make sure right
comes out on top. So how do I feel after my first couple of days on
sentry duty? I feel quietly confident that I have made a good
decision and that my family and those around me are just a little
safer than they were before and that is worth everything in the
fucked up world we live in today.”
I couldn't have said it
better myself. But I think all of The Horde will agree that when you
said you cared more, it is not because you are packing heat and
caring for your family... but because you care, you are packing the
heat to protect your family. This is why we carry... and now you
fully understand. As Ben Kenobi said “You've taken your first steps
into a larger world.”
Saturday, 8-20-05:
We read in the news
that a Ranch in AZ has been turned over to illegal aliens.
This is infuriating. Between the illegal aliens plundering
the south west like the vikings plundered europe in the 9th
and 10th centuries, and Governments willingness to
totally go along with it... and our giving away all our tech
jobs... This is just getting insane. America is being given away
right out from under our feet. This is outrageous. I'm not
defending this guy for pistol whipping anyone, because that's
not right either. But giving the home he was trying to defend to
the guy he was defending it from? Asinine. Don't look at it like
this guy is being punished. Take a look at this situation from
the other side of the coin. These Mexicans are being rewarded
for breaking American law. That's what is so outrageous. This is
showing them that they can break the law here in the USA, pitch
a fit about it, and be awarded the American Dream. Hell, if it
was the other way around, I might just drive my ass down to
Mexico and get hooked up with a nice villa. The borders must be
closed. This bullshit must not be allowed to continue.
China: I'm reading
through a book called “SSN” by Tom Clancy. It's a dramatized tour of
a submarine and how it operates... set in a fictional but most
likely very probable war with China over some island. It's an
interesting read, but not one I can take too seriously. The reason?
Clancy is hugely overconfident and has China as nothing more than a
source of targets of opportunity for the heroic American subs.
Clancy is right about our subs being so very good and that they
outclass the Chinese boats. That is true. But evidently Clancy
hasn't given any thought to the idea that maybe China's military
could take this into account and come up with some tactics and
strategies to help counter balance the technology, nor are is there
any thought that maybe China's stuff is getting better and better
every year. You look at China's Navy and you see mostly Ex-Soviet
shapes, sure. But what you are not seeing is the massive refitting
that has been done and is being done to every boat they can put on
the water. New systems that can be every bit as good our systems.
China isn't a backwater 3rd world nation. Yeah, it has
it's poor areas that are stuck in centuries past... but hey, we have
those areas too... we call them “Appalachia”. China has a high tech
manufacturing infrastructure that can rival anything in the US.
That's why we buy our stuff from there... that and they do it much
cheaper because they only have to pay a worker 5 bucks a day. You
would have to be very silly or Liberal to think that China can make
all our electronics, routers, switches, computers, and everything...
but that they can't put them into a military platform. We can not
afford to underestimate China's military potential. In this book,
SSN, Clancy has one Sub sinking like 5 Chinese subs and a frigate
before he mentions the Captain drinking a cup of coffee. It's not
going to be like that, Tom. China is a real threat that has to be
taken seriously. The situation is just as bad as the borders, and
I'm still waiting to see what the Government is going to do about
it. China has threatened many times now to use Nukes on us. That
would suck a bit more than a couple buildings catching 747's.
TGI-FRIDAY! 8-19-05: As promised,
the S&W
640 article and the overdue
Springfield Ultra Compact articles are posted.
For those in Dade County,
Floriduh - these articles have been published in
Concealed Carry
Magazine. And of course, if you are not a subscriber
of CCM, then you are wrong.
Thursday, 8-18-05:
Israel and the Palestinian situation... this is a very old
and very complicated situation there in Israel, probably more so
than any other geo-political situation. Israel has to be very
cautious in everything it does, and they've had to be cautious
since the very beginning. As a result they have also developed a
strong reputation for not playing around when it comes matters
of national security. Given this background, I am very curious
as to just how they think that this path of appeasement – giving
in to the terrorists – is going to help them out in anyway. The
Palestinians want the Gaza, so the IDF is evicting thousands of
people. Their own defense force is being used to displace
them... Insult to injury.
The IDF
should be setting up a perimeter defense and protecting the Jewish
settlements in Gaza! Giving in to the Palestinians in hopes that
they will stop popping off suicide bombers is foolish. All it does
is show the enemy that terrorism works, and that if they keep it up
they will get what they want. This validates and justified all the
suicide bombers, all the pain and suffering that they caused... and
gives motivational support to groups doing the same in Iraq and
other places.
This isn't
going to work in Israel... this isn't going to stop the terroristic
actions of the fanatical Palestinians... do you know why? Because it
doesn't resolve the core reasons for the terroristic actions – the
seething Palestinian hatred for all things and all persons Jewish...
the systematic indoctrination of hatred of young Palestinian
children starting even before they go to school and reinforced daily
as part of their studies. And Israel just rolled over for it.
Pathetic. Just bloody pathetic.
I don't
pretend to have any answers for Israel... but I do know that one
thing is for sure – giving in to the enemy is no way to attain
peace. Appeasement has never worked in the history of this globe,
and it never will.
Speaking
of pathetic... Israel's rolling over is almost as pathetic as
Microsoft's new OS, “Vista”. A new OS that is just as buggy and
insecure as the old one which is pretty much a digital model of the
US-Mexico border. Sure, the new Vista OS will be more like the
Canadian-US border... just as insecure and buggy, but it will be
more quiet about it. An out of control bloated 3.2 gig install of XP
Pro that's missing MSCONFIG. Brilliant. In all seriousness, if you
want to upgrade your XP to an OS that is more secure and stable...
its called Linux.
Speaking
of even more pathetic... Cindy Sheehan, the mom of a fallen
soldier who said George Bush is a good and honest man, and now says
he isn't while trampling her Son's memory by using his death as a
political protest poster... yeah, that wench... She represents a
great deal of what is wrong with America. I'll say no more about
her, other than to say that she sickens me. If we were to pull
everyone out now, then her son's sacrifice, and what he believed in
and what he believed risking it all for... it would all be for
nothing. If she wants her son's death to mean something – then we
have got to finish the job. And yes, with everyone a US Soldier
kills – every insurgent/terrorist that is sent to an early meeting
with Allah – we are one more step closer to making Iraq truly free.
Monday, 8-15-05:
Afternoon: I've posted my Ruger P345
review
here.
Again, this was supposed to
have been published in CCM Magazine, but because they had
already run a review on it, they have declined to publish it.
They offered to pay for the article per my normal rate, which
was nice of them... but I declined that. They do not need to pay
for an article they are not going to print. So, you
members of The Horde get to read it now. The S&W 640 and
Springfield Ultra Compact articles will be posted shortly as
well.
AM: I'm typing this from my Dell Dimension 8300 running Windows Vista Beta 1. Since I'm at home in Lapoint and have no internet access, I'm pretty much looking at the OS as it comes “in the box” so to speak. I'm pleased that many of my XP applications are working just fine Especially “Open Office” which is the most important application for me at this time. I'm very disappointed that Longhorn doesn't support Sound Blaster Live I would think that the OS should be bundled with the drivers for the leading sound card on the market... but this is the Beta 1, so I will cut it some slack for that. After all, it found the Radeon 9600XT 256 DDR (best damned graphics card you can get for a hundred bucks!) driver with no problem. I installed another sound card to try out, a Sound Blaster Audigy, and still had no luck with the OS automatically hooking me up with the drivers. I tried this with Linspire Linux and while Linspire didn't like the “Live!” Card, the Audigy was found with no problem. The install was very easy. You boot to the CD, answer a couple questions, and the rest of the install is totally hands free, you can really just walk away. It's actually a good idea to do that because the install time is pretty long. Set the install, then go get a Cold One. Take a walk or something... go test drive a car... anything. Take your time. Don't worry about the computer, it will most likely be there waiting for you. What I don't like about the install, is that there is no estimated time of completion given. You have no idea how long the install is going to take. Plan on about an hour. This is the second install I've watched today, on two very different machines. Oh, by the way, I'm the 3rd guy in the Uintah Basin to install Vista... 1st guy in Lapoint to be sure. Feather in my cap? I don't think so. The install for this beta release – Build 5112 – is installed off a DVD and is a whopping 3 gigs of hard drive space. I'll admit the OS pretty snappy for such a bloated piece of work that can't even find a bloody Sound Blaster audio driver. Things pop up fast, even my beloved Open Office. The visual look of Vista isn't as groovy as we were led to believe it would be from screenshots off Slashdot. The color scheme is pretty much a dark grey and black affair that will please any Goth. When a new window pops up it does so with a nice fade in effect that seems very fancy, but not necessary or even very appealing. When you close a window, it does the same thing. Is this all worth the upgrade? I don't think so. Stability is pathetic. In installing Mozilla Firefox and Sunbird, I've had two crashes... well... not so much crashes as spontaneous reboots. I'm not going to blame Mozilla for this... that's an OS issue. Everything else is pretty much laid out like Windows XP, so if you are unfortunate enough to have had to learn XP, then you will feel right at home in Vista... but it might feel to some that the Pimp My Ride crew has worked over your XP. Here is my take on Vista so far. Considering the system requirements and the 3 gig install, If you already have a computer that is running XP just fine... then don't worry about Vista. As Officer Barbrady says, “Nothing to see here, move along.” But if some time in the future you are looking for a new PC and Vista is an OS option, then maybe you might give it a consideration. Especially considering that Vista is more optimized for 64 bit system (or so it seems) you will want to make sure you are getting a powerful 64 bit machine with a minimum of 512 megs RAM... better a Gig... and a solid graphics card. If you want the Vista “look” without the calories, then download a Windows Theme and you pretty much have the best Vista features. The new File System and Display engine are still buggy in this beta version.... which brings me to some desires for the final commercial release. First, have every device driver on the planet ready to roll... or at least for the device most likely to be encountered... like anything for Sound Blaster or Sound Max. 2. Stabilize the damn thing. Add in some games that are not the same ones Windows have come with since 98 SE. BTW, whatever happened to Free Ski? Note to Microsoft: Give us something that is actually compelling enough to want to upgrade. I remember ME vividly... Vista had damn well better not be another ME. I don't want to see another Windows OS for the desktop coming out anytime soon. I also don't want to see a bunch of Windows Updates for Vista.... Patch it up completely before you ship ship this. If you can't patch it up – hold off on the shipping. Don't even set a ship date. Take your time and do it right.
Monday, 8-8-05:
It's been some time, so let me tell you whats been going on. Well, I'll sum it up. I've been busy. Work has been quite busy, and finishing up an article for CCM, which has been turned down because they realized that they ran a review six months ago of the gun they wanted me to review. Oops. It happens. I'm not upset at this. This means it gets posted here on MadOgre.com shortly. This is especially not very bothersome because magazine articles require a handful of good photos that I just wasn't able to get done. I hate doing the photo thing because, well, I'm not a photographer and it feels like I'm taking the same bloody pictures over and over again and it's all rather boring. The most interesting things about my magazine article photos have all been the backgrounds. I think next time, I'll just take some cool scenic pictures and just photoshop the pistol into the photo, floating in mid air with the caption underneath “I want to believe”. Family matters have been a priority and this included a family reunion for my mother in law's estranged extended family. This was at Lava Hot Springs, or LHS as I'll call it for the time being. LHS is a very small town in Idaho that wants to be a miniature Steamboat Springs, Colorado. But it's more of the red neck NASCAR version. Less snootiness, more beer bellies. I probably fit right in, but the thought makes me shudder. Very small town as I said. Through the middle of which wanders a slow and shallow little river/stream/creek which you float down on inflatable tubes.... repeatedly... endlessly. People think they are having fun doing this, so much so that it is good business renting out those inflatable tubes. There are a couple places to eat in LHS, one of which is called the Wagon Wheel. You enter it and find that it is of course very busy and the waitress (emphasis on “wait”) tells you to take a seat and it's going to be “awhile”. Evidently “awhile” means 1.5 Hours according to my watch. This wouldn't be so bad considering she is johny on the spot with drinks while you wait in air conditioned bliss after being outside in the scorching freaking Idaho summer sun all damned day. After 1.5 hours she brings out the food. Now, if you, like me, ordered the steak... you will be rewarded with a very sad little steak the size of Gorbachev's birth mark. On the side will be a half a spoon full of mushily (not a word, but it fits here) cooked carrots and some cold french fries that you didn't order. The scone that was supposed to have come with your meal and is documented on the bill is MIA like Johny Kerry from his shipmates after getting a scratch. This is Idaho. Idaho is not known for it's great eating establishments, but I did have the expectation that they would at least know how to serve up a fricken steak. Even the most inept and drunken NASCAR fanatic can manage to do a steak if you give him enough lighter fluid... and the results would have been far superior to what was served to me at the Wagon Wheel in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. After waiting for an hour and a half for this meal which cost about 10 bucks, I was exceedingly and visibly disappointed. I ate the steak in 3 bites, chewed it with a quite and increasing fury. All of this would not have been so bad had I not been in the company of 5 boys who were getting more and more bored, hungry, and tired. Every time were were about to get up and leave, the Wait-ress would swoop in with salads or drinks or crackers or “just a minutes”. We should have bailed out, I felt in my bones we should have bailed... but this does serve a purpose... DO NOT, under pain of hunger and good taste, step through the doors of the “Wagon Wheel” in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. Complaint was made to management and a good discount of the bill given, but the damage was already done. We went to the Taco Time right by the freeway and had some real food... some ½ pound tacos... only then was everyone happy and satisfied.
New addition to the Manufacturer Roster. Lighting Rifles. These cats make some very fine cowboy action rifles... pump action with a tight short stroke. They look absolutely blessed... I want one.
The Turbo Mini Van is fast and handles very well for a mini van. But it looses coolant like crazy. No leaks. But the coolant empties after about 40 miles. No, there are no fluids in the oil other than the engine oil, so the coolant isn't going into the engine block. This is why the van was so cheap, they wanted to get rid of it! In perfect condition, the blue book is just shy of 600 bucks. With this problem, the vehicle is far from perfect. Not that I'm complaining, I'm just point out the facts regarding this weird thing... a van... from the factory... with a turbo. Gas mileage has been excellent, but the 8.50 for a jug of coolant offsets the fuel savings – a lot. I've overheated it twice already. Now, if this engine didn't have this coolant issue, this van would probably last for a decade or more of Ogre Family usage. Only 116K miles, and for an 89, that's not bad at all. But now we all know why. The previous owners couldn't take it out of town! Everything on the engine looks fine, but I am pretty sure the coolant is leaking into the pistons and going out the tail pipe. Needless to say, fixing this isn't going to be worth it. After paying tax, tags, title and insurance, I'm about ready to see what I can do about trading it off or something. Will this make it to SLC? I don't think so. It would overheat before I got out of the Uintah Basin.
The American Brain Drain. There is a tangible drain to talent pool in America. Looking at art and design, we can tell that it started a long time ago. Not just with art and design, but in other matters as well, such as movies and books, but that's another rant for another day. Looking at art and design, the most obvious form is in our automobiles. Sometime in the late 50's, the drain plug was pulled on creative automotive design. Cars became about as visually interesting as dishwashers rather quickly and the situation has only been getting worse. What modern cars today get kudos for being great designs are only throwback “retro” designs bringing up memories of when these cars were actually cool. This is why there is such a demand for old classic cars... the older the better. I've seen dozens of flatbeds rolling down the highway with old cars on them destined for restoration. I've seen several car carriers with brand new cars on them... and each one with one car being something from 1974 or earlier. Our own local Ford dealership has all the new rides... but in the one corner parking place reserved only for the dealership's crown jewels, is a old car fully restored and shiny. If you are going to go to that dealership to drop a chunk of change on a new ride – you would be a fool to overlook that old restoration. Our cars today are getting further and further from what made cars great back in the day. Example, the new Dodge Charger. Take a look at the new Dukes of Hazzard movie and ignore Jessica Simpson's magnificent ass for a minute and look at the orange car with the numbers on the side. That's a Dodge Charger. A Classic muscle car. Now take a look at the new Dodge Charger which is a giant rolling turd with a hemi engine under the hood. Sad. For those out there that may have purchased a new Dodge Charger or its sister car, the Dodge Magnum... well... you have my condolences. The only area where automotive design is actually getting better... Motorcycles. They are getting better by leaps and bounds every year. Not just in performance, but in the looks too. The new bikes are sexier than the older ones... Wait a second... I started this section of ranting calling it the American Brain Drain. American bikes are championed by Harley Davidson, which hasn't had any real solid improvements in the last 20 years, and still uses 20 year old technology... the new “V-Rod” bike is an attempt at making a modern roadster... but it falls flat on it's face. At the local HD dealership they had to drain all the oil out of it to keep the new bike from dripping a bigass slippery puddle all over the show room floor. Yeah, thats some advancements right there. Well, one thing is for sure about these POS V-Rods... they remain pure Harley Davidson. Thank heavens American Motorcycles now have another options, the Victory brand bikes. They are made with the help of HD, but at least they are actually up to date and they sound better.... and they don't leave an oil slick behind them. The Victory Vegas is one hell of a nice bike. Not that I'd buy one. For me, my money would be in a new Honda, but that's another rant for another day.
Speaking of Ford. You want to buy something brand new and affordable? Well then you have got to check out the new Chevy Cobalt SS Supercharged. What does this have to do with Ford? Well, if you were dumb enough to buy a Ford Focus, this Cobalt will make you want to go back to the Ford Dealership and slap your salesman. My Dad told me to look into the Cobalt SS Supercharged, and I did. He was right of course. My Dad knows two things very very well... one is cars, and the other is CIA wet work in East Germany. The Cobalt feels like a real and much larger car when you get in it and shut the door. It feels solid. Driving it, it feels even better. Scary that the chassis is basically a Saturn, but Chevy has actually built a car out of it. Now as much as I admire my father's knowledge of all things internal combusting... we have divergent opinions on what constitutes performance. You see, my Pops likes razor sharp handling and balance... to him a car should be like a throwing knife used to take out Russian border guards. He also likes a spirited but very stingy small 4 cylinder engine. To me, I'd rather like that nice handling wrapped around big fat high output engine that gushes Horse Power like a Democrat spews bullshit. Personally, I think the new Cobalt SS Supercharged is a nice little car. Perhaps a much better option than the Neon SRT thing. However it has in my opinion one glaring fault that is unforgivable. It is very much underpowered. The engine cranks out a max of 205 horses. Some time in the future there will be an option for a 230 HP version, so I would advice to wait for that if you are eyeing one of these wee little beasties. Also, you will want to opt for the package that includes Recaro seats, because, well, the standard seats are only somewhat better than office furniture cubical farm chairs.
The little computer shop I work at is getting a new vehicle for service calls. After considering all options, the shop owner is getting very close to pulling the trigger on a Jeep Liberty. Admittedly the Liberty would look with the company logo on the sides... and in bright red, it will be attention getting. We need a little eco-rig that has all wheel drive ability, is reasonably fuel efficient, and will make people look twice. The Liberty would do this well. For all you Off-Road Warriors, I have to confess... I like the Liberty. Jeep purists berate the Liberty because of it's IFS front end because it is not a solid axle like all the Jeeps great of the past. These same fellows scoff IFS as unworthy of the rocks and mud it rolls over... but rolls over IFS can do. Let me point your attention in the direction of Iraq and all the HUMVEES in service over there. The Hummer as it is known to cake eating civilians is the ultimate off road vehicle bar none. Yeah, it's big, but it has a big job to do. It replaced the old Jeep because the old Jeeps were just plain too damn small. No one has yet ever complained about a Humvee being too small. Some might complain about it not having enough armor, but give me a break here... it's a freaking overgrown Jeep and only a moron with a severe case dumbass would think it could replace an APC on a mission (Hello Joint Chiefs! Rummy!) The Hummer has IFS. Independent Front Suspension. And this gives the rig a big advantage when off roading when it comes to ground clearance over rocky terrain. I know this first hand because I've driven them many times doing things my Dad would disowned (or assassinated) me for had he witnessed it. The Liberty has the same set up under the front end, but not nearly as ground clearing and assaulting. I think the Liberty does just fine in 90% of all off road situations. Yeah, they made it be comfy driving on the road too, but you guys have to admit your daily driving trail rigs are on pavement more than they are on dirt, so give it a rest.
Speaking of Hummers and confessions, while I still and forever will hate the H2 with all my Hummer “H1” loving heart... uh... How do I say this? I like the H3. HOLD on! Hold your horses! Let me explain it before you get that rope up over a tree branch! I think this medium sized platform is a good thing... but the strange little weak 5 cylinder engine has got to go. It needs a real truck engine in there, a V-6 at least, optimal would be a small block V-8 cranking out some real power! But everything else in the H3 is just right. Size, Capacities, all that jazz. Of course it could use a set of bigger tires and a 4 inch lift, but then again everything four wheel drive does. Fit a real engine into an H3 and I deem it Horde Worthy. To get to this opinion you have to get past the name Hummer and look at the vehicle on its own individual merit. Forget the sins of the H2 father, and be glad that this is a real SUV built on a real truck chassis and not a granola eating car that thinks it wants to go on a hike.
Thursday, 8-4-05:
Two things I'm so very grateful for. First, I'm thankful that we have celebrities like
Joan Collins who are so smart, and so wise and are so concerned about everyone else. Her little rant about England self destructing is probably one of the funniest things I've read in some time. Her references to history are just hilarious. “The whole scene evoked the image of hordes of inebriated Vikings sacking devastated towns. Even during the day, feral mobs roamed the cities with absolute disregard for anyone else's property or well-being. Traditional virtues of male chivalry and female propriety were very far from view.” Oh come on! Talk about day time drama here! Everyone knows that the viking invasions are what started the beginnings of feudalism and only after another several hundred years did the concept of chivalry even start to form. Sheesh, even my 11 year old knows that. The other thing that just makes me all tingly with joy in my heart... Astronauts using the shuttle as a political platform to preach environmentalism. This Astro-Chick is pretty good... she can see erosion and problems from space! That's impressive. Because you can't even see most large cities from space unless it's after nightfall. Don't believe me, download and check out Google Earth and see for yourself. In order see anything, you have to zoom in pretty far. If the shuttle is going to be used as a platform to preach from – I'm of the opinion that we shouldn't have to pay for via taxes. DNC can sponsor it now for all I care. If I was the Emporer, I'd seriously take ½ NASA's budget and put it into other programs. The other ½, I'd award to private contractors, businesses... maybe just give a chunk to Rutan because his junk is so cool. He'll get us to Mars well before NASA ever does.
You knew it was only a matter of time... before the ACLU sued someone over the subway searches in NYC.
They didn't disappoint. They sued. Who's side is the ACLU on? Don't answer that... we all know.
The new mini-van. Let me tell ya... I've never owned my own mini-van before. And I don't ever want to own one again. This unit is a 4 cylinder '89 Plymouth Voyager... with a turbo. The gas mileage looks good, and its actually very quick... its even comfortable to drive around in. Cruises at 75 with a slight vibration that's probably just a tire balance issue. The only real issue this thing has is that it looses coolant. Looks like there is a slight leak in the rad or a hose. After you drive it for awhile you can smell hot coolant, but you can't see where it's coming from. No big deal for an around town ride. Ultimately, hey, it's wheels. Beats walking and I'm grateful for that! Brutus? He's retired now. Off the insurance and everything. I would love to turn it into a trail rig, but then I'd have to have another huge rig to tow it out to the off road area. I'm torn. I don't know what I'm going to do with it. Besides, I still have a Jeep XJ to build into a trail rig. Anyone need an FSB to work on or for parts? Will trade for a motorcycle.
Wednesday, 8-3-05: Kim DuToit asks an interesting question on his blog. “If I could have only one more handgun in my safe for the rest of my life, which one would I get?” Man... that's a tough one. This doesn't have to be a do everything handgun... I've got others... but one last fling... one last indulgence... what would it be? After pondering this question for some time now, I'm thinking a Korth. I mean, hell, if it's the last one ever, let's go all out. The Korth pistol is an interesting unit. The lines are both elegant and clunky at the same time. While I'm sure it's made to the highest quality standards, I can not help but to be reminded of a certain Monty Python sketch. Then again, maybe these pistols are like the Maybachs. Super spendy and insane on many levels, but ultimately probably worth it if you have the means. I will probably never know.
Monday, 8-1-05: I'm pleased that the IRA has decided to throw down their arms. Of course in order to stay alive, they had to. Really they had no choice. Considering the global War On Terror going on, a group of terrorists like the IRA would be not much more of a speed bump if the Coalition of the Willing decided to clean up Northern Ireland. Of course having said that, let me say this. I agree with the goals of the IRA. If you are not familiar with the IRA, they have been fighting for years and years to unite Ireland. You see, Ireland is divided. You have Ireland, which is under Irish rule; and then you have Northern Ireland which is under British rule. They have been fighting a very harsh, but very quite little war, and hopefully now they are done with the violence. Of course, they have said this before. While they are not nearly as bad as the Palestinians are when it comes to dishing out random violence... the IRA has a history of being pretty brutal. I'm not aware of them blowing up children though. Claiming they are seeking political and diplomatic solutions and resolutions to their issues... I would hope that the British will take everything into consideration and really ask themselves, “what's the downside to a united Ireland?” United or not, they of course remain in the “UK”. But I'm not British. This is only my opinion and I may be wrong. If anyone in the UK has a take on this, I'd like to hear it.
Planet X. The newly discovered but long time hypothesized planet now officially exists. Question: What to name it? I have a suggestion. In keeping with the tradition of using Mythology as the source for the solar system's naming convention, Freya. Of course this isn't a Greek Mythological name... it's Norse, and for an outer rim planet so far from the sun, I think it especially fitting. She is the Goddess of beauty and sensuality. Of course, Skadi might be even more suitable, she is the Norse Goddess of Winter. And she's a Frost Giant, so you don't want to argue with her... but Freya is an easier name to remember. Just my suggestion.
While talking about space, I have to say I am laughing at NASA right now. Evidently they are talking about trimming some dangling fabric. Do they call Martha Stuart about this one or The Fab Five?.
I promised to give a summary about my Select Comfort bed. After sleeping on it for some time now, I've come to a conclusion. It's fricken awesome. Seriously. I love it. Sleeping on anything else is annoying now. Best bed ever. Don't even bother with those foam mattresses... they hold too much heat in so you are sweating like a pig, and you sink in so deep you can't roll over... Other nice beds are heavy. Select Comfort all the way. I'm not buying anything else ever again.
Brutus again. For those in Florida, Brutus is my beloved 1984 Ford Bronco. The engine has some very serious issues and the rig is basically not drivable. I've found a couple engine options. For $500 I can drop in another 351 out of another 84 Bronco. Straight in swap. Or even better, I could drop in a '92 460. While the engine is only 500, I'd have to locate a C6 transmission that would mate with this Big Block V-8. The 351 is the top of the “Small Block” range of engines when it comes to Ford. I'm not worried about fuel consumption... It couldn't get any worse. And the 460 with a 4 barrel carb could possibly do better thanks to the smaller primaries and being able to pull off a stop while staying in lower RPMs.
Helen Thomas might kill herself if she sees Dick run. Run, Dick, run! Not that she has that long to go anyways. She looks like she is what, 90? Why is she still allowed into the White House? She is one of the nastiest women I've ever heard of. It would be funny for Dick to give her a call. “I'm running, biatch.” Truthfully, I'm not exactly wanting to see a President Dick. I don't like Cheney all that much. He's just an unpleasant fellow. Too much of an elitist like all the rest. I'd still like to see a Ted Nugent in the White House.... someone who stands for freedom, has no political back ground, and has no political debt. I'd also like to see Helen Thomas flat out barred from the White House... she is a waste of everyone's time and only asks the most juvenile of questions.
WTF is this BS!?! I am so sick of the Southern Border issues. When will the Government take this issue seriously? I say we empty dugout on this. Send all the Marines who are not already busy kicking someone's ass, and send them down to the Border and let them kick everyone's ass. Any crossing – they stop it. Put up signs in Spanish. “Fuerza Mortal Será utilizada!” Lethal Force Will Be Used. Sniper training. Land Mine Warfare. Predator Drone Live Fire training... Experimental weapons testing... tactical nukes... Xenomorphs... I don't care. Screw them. Time for the Minutemen to go back to work, but this time armed to the teeth.
Kudos to Bush for finally showing he has the stones to appoint Bolton, who likes the UN about as much as I do. Now lets see if Bolton has stones.
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