May 12 to May 25

May 25th - Saturday. I let that lift kit get away. In the middle of the bid war I read the detail closer... The kit is JUNK. It says "It's not junk" but then it details that its nothing but blocks you put under the springs. Junk. And I almost spent money on that! The other items are NOT getting away from me. They are MINE! I'll never freakin find them again if they get away!

Dang. Ran out of PB Blaster. That's good stuff. This morning after cartoons and a some cereal and updating MadOgre.com I went outside to do some maintenance on Scooter. The hood wouldn't pop so off came the front grill. Got it open, found why it wouldn't pop, and wired in a fix. Adjusted the hood's bumpers to bring it more inline with the fenders too. Now that's all set. Time for the real work. Bushings. Replaced a couple bushings and banged up my knuckles something bad. I also came up with some new swear words I'm sending them to George Carlin so he can update his list. Anyways... Finished it all up and the Jeep is set for another week! YEAH! I'd rather work on a Jeep than on a computer network... I do both equally bad, but at least the Jeep gives me some satisfaction when I am done. The lingering smell of PB Blaster. It's good shiz. When your hands are all greased up and grimy, squirt them down with the PB and then wipe off on the wife's towel. All that remains in an odor of solvent on your hands that I find pleasant. Reminds me of cleaning guns. (Yes my jeep floats 3 feet off the ground... I gotta get a pic of it now that it has a lift.)

That reminds me... I gotta clean my .45. This cat on TFL said he was going to send me out a cleaning kit that he made. It's like the "DUNK IT" kit from Cylinder & Slide, but he says his stuff works better. It should be showing up soon. I've used the DUNK IT stuff before. What it is, is a bucket of solvent/lubricant. You just take your grips off, open the action and drop your gun into it. This is what we did to clean the M-249 SAW back at Benning. Fast. It was awesome. So was the DUNK IT that I used. Worked great. Dunked the gun and then blew it off with some compressed air from the shop's compressor. Took just about 60 seconds all together. Done. Anyways, this cat said he was going to send me out a sample. I was going to wait until it arrived and see how it worked. It hasn't arrived yet. I'm not expecting it anymore either. If it comes, great. If not, no skin off my nose. I'll just break out the Break Free CLP as I usually do. It has a good smell too.

The Jeep is done, the Gun is done... Time for some recreation. I'm taking my boys to the park so they can terrorize some new ground on their bikes. See you fellas later!

I have the ad scans up now. For those that missed it, I have some scans from some old military journals. See for yourself. They rock. Thanks, Jim. You rock too.

I hate E-bay. Grrr. One of the items I am trying to get is being hijacked... I'll have to snipe it when the auction nears closing. This is a lift kit for the Sammy. Not essential, but it would be really nice. Spectre would love it.

Just applied for a job at E-bay. Life is a strange thing. They had a couple jobs posted and I'm going to go up Monday morning and talk to HR about those positions.

Email from reader. Before I post the email - let me just say this is the perfect example of emails that I like to get. Well thought out and formulated. His take doesn't suck, and he isn't droning on about bullshit. Kudos to Bruegger: "George (oops, I mean "Ogre"): I'm another guy who generally doesn't sign credit cards. I picked up this habit from my Dad, who was a senior executive with a bank. I'm not worried about someone being able to make charges that I'll have to pay, since federal law holds consumers harmless from charges they didn't make (if they report the card lost in a timely manner), though this is NOT the case for DEBIT cards. These days the biggest reason would be to prevent identity theft. On DPF: I have used a similar formula for comparing cartridges for a while, but I divide by 7,000 – which is of course the # of grains in a pound - instead of by 1,000. I got the idea from somewhere else, but can't recall where. Actually 1,000 is probably a better # to use because it's easier to divide in your head. Another critical factor in wounding potential is ogive shape: a bullet with a broad meplat - even at modest velocity - can cause permanent cavitation far greater than the nominal diameter of the bullet. You don't need to factor this stuff (bullet construction) into the DPF because if you aren't comparing cartridges with the same bullet form factors, you're comparing apples & oranges. Semper fi, Bruegger out." I'm glad to see I'm not the only one to refuse to sign the cards. I watch the clerks... if you sign the card... They don't check you out. They don't ask for your ID. There is no protection. Identity theft is a big issue these days. Scary. My Mad Ogre identity has been hijacked all over the place. I use Mad Ogre on just a few sites out there. If you see someone with the handle "Mad Ogre" and it's on a site that I DO NOT have it linked to from my Links page, then it isn't me. Or if you get an email from someone named MadOgre from hotmail, yahoo, lycos, or any other domain other than MADOGRE.COM - then it isn't me either. I know sometimes I am not even myself, but at least I can take the blame for it if I did it. About the DPF... I've been working on a way for accurately factoring bullet shape, construction and such but I keep coming to the conclusion that its a pointless effort. Your right. You should be comparing similar loads... Like a boxes of ammo from Winchester and Federal for example. As any tool it's only as useful as how you use it. Just don't hit your thumb with it.

May 24th - Friday. Hell hath no fury. Judas Priest! I told Mrs. Ogre than I applied for the Border Patrol... Damn. She would have been more understanding if I told her I shagged Jennifer Lopez! Now she wont talk to me. She's going to go off in 10 minutes when the Pizza guy makes his delivery. I didn't consult with her on that either. *sigh* Oh Well.

I want a sword. A couple nights ago I had a dream where I was armed with a sword. Which is odd because I have NEVER had such a dream before in my life... ever. Anyways, I was looking at another knife and saw this under the one I was looking for. Exactly the sword that I was armed with in my dream... Exactly. I had never seen it before either. I didn't know Cold Steel made swords other than the Cutlass.

Believe it or not, I just applied for the US Border Patrol. My hands were shaking as I did so. The idea of going back to a gunslinger type job scares the hell out of me. Why? I have 5 reasons now that I didn't have before. I'm not sure why I did it... but I did. If offered, I'd take it the job. I'd have to relocate to the southwest... Arizona or Texas most likely. Doesn't matter. I'd go. Lots of shit is going down at our boarder. I'd like to be able to lend a hand. I've met a couple Border Patrol Agents in my time... Solid guys. Rock Solid. Not bad people to work with. I'll have to learn Spanish. That's cool. I'm game.

Speaking of Game. I also signed up for the Star Wars Galaxies beta testing. If I don't get any other job, at least that one will be some fun.

Slow news day. Nothing going on worth talking about. Accept maybe this... The Government has finally used tax dollars for something worth while. Check this out. Free game from the US Army. Looks like they put a lot of work into a Ghost Recon type game. Looks pretty cool. You can order it for free, and as a bonus you can have Army recruiters call you at all hours for the night. This game is going to be killer - first off, it's based off the latest and greatest. Secondly... It's FREEWARE. Game's don't get any better than when they are free.

May 23rd - Thursday. Last night I watched the most enjoyable film. The scriptwriting was fantastic and the whole thing was just very well done. "Bandits" with Bruce and Billy Bob. I was laughing through the whole flick. Maybe it was lame and I was just drunk, but got a huge kick out of that movie. Cate Blanchett was a gem. And very hot with the red hair... She was great. Lot's of talent. Billy Bob gets a lot of flak due to his name and his wife (lucky bastard), but he is a lot better of an actor than people give him credit. These 3 actors just gelled perfectly. The script and the timing of the delivery of the lines was flawless and just made it come to life. You could really get into it. I did.

Manager wanted: Required 5+ years of experience and a Bachelors Degree in Business. Masters preferred. Wage: $9 bucks an hour. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING. Dumbass. Sometimes, I really hate Utah. Once Project Jack is delivered, I'm going to be searching on a Nation Wide basis. I love Utah for many reasons... but I hate Utah for just as many as well.

I've got a collection of advertisement scans for small arms and a few APCs. These were sent via Ogre Reader James, who has a collection of old military rags. I'll be uploading this this weekend. These are very cool. You'll like them.

May 22nd - Wednesday. LUCKY DAY! Some of the Samurai parts I've been hunting for have turned up on E-Bay! I've been looking for them for some time now. All I have to do is win the bids and I'm set. YEAH! I am stoked! BOOYAA!!! All I have to do now is WIN THE BIDs and Project Jack will be FINISHED!

My DPF article is posted over at Defense Review. Some cat had to go dish out some smack on it. Too bad he made little sense. The guy just didn't understand the point of the exercise.

Got this email - "This is a funny game. This game is my first work. You're the first player. I hope you would enjoy it." This email comes from "ibzrg470@apk.net". I don't know what the hell this is, but I suspect that I just got hit with a virus. Fucker.

No, I'm not going to be talking about any of the news headlines today... Why? Same things are going on... The liberals are attacking Bush, Jews are getting attacked by Palestinians, Rosie is leaving the TV show, and a lot of people have done a lot of horrible shit to each other. That's the news. Nothing interesting.

Speaking of horrible shit. Thong underwear for little girls. Fox News showed a picture of them. A&F says that these thongs are Cute and Adorable and if you think there is anything wrong with them, then your just a dirty bastard. Okay, let's look at them again. "Eye-Candy" is written on them along with "Wink-Wink" and a graphic of Cherries there on the front. No, I don't have any daughters, I don't know how to make them. But I do know that should I have one, I would be over protective. I'd have a damned US SECRET SERVICE detail protecting her. Maybe that's why I don't have one. One thing is for damned sure, my little girls will not be wearing slutvertisments like that! I've walked through the mall a few times and have seen what teenie-bopper girls are wearing. One girl with a playboy bunny logo, another girl wearing a T-shirt that says "Pornstar" on the front. Isn't that sweet? That's just adorable. I have a better idea... let's just have all the girls walking around nude with bottles of Astroglide and towels. I mean really. Let's get real. The assault on our youth has never been more aggressive. I am offended my the sexualization of children. It should be stopped. The new styles of pop culture are leading our kids down the wrong path. We don't have to compare things to the 1950s... Let's look at just 10 years ago. This kinda shit would not have flown back then... but is normal now. Normal and perfectly fine, now. Kids are learning how to perform oral sex in public schools, how to have homosexual sex... Wearing PORNSTAR shirts and THONG underwear. These people that are promoting this shit are so SICK. I'm not just offended by this, but pissed off. Here is the kicker... It's only going to get worse. This stuff is just getting started. Why? Even though people are often offended by this stuff - nothing is being done to fight it. Yeah, there is an online petition for Abercrombie to knock it off... so what? That isn't doing anything about it. That's just spinning wheels. Someone should take them to court. Child protection laws should be enforced and these sick bastards should get locked up.

Our last diesel powered sub had a little problem. The USS Dolphin had a fire on board. All sailors escaped and were rescued quickly. Wow how horrible could a fire be onboard a sub? Geeze. I can't imagine.

Here is something else I just can't imagine regarding Diesel engines. A diesel powered corvette. My knee-jerk reaction is one of shock and horror. I can't believe this guy did that! The engine is very heavy and the car is no longer quick... but then again 55 MPG is not a bad trade off. Think about it... this Vette can tank up, and go 1100 miles before refueling. I could handle that. Just because it isn't fast doesn't mean it isn't powerful. How many Corvettes out there can pull a fully loaded logging truck?

While we are on the automotive trail here. Let's talk for a moment about this trail vehicle... The Jeep Wrangler. Everyone knows what a Jeep is. Everyone knows what Jeeps are for. Everyone that is, but these two "automotive journalists". These guys are comparing the Wrangler to some cushy street luxo cruiser or something. I don't know what they were thinking. Dumbass people piss me off... The Wrangler is the ultimate off road vehicle. Yeah, a lot of college girls buy them because they think that they look good in them (Okay, they are right) and Barbie has her own pink Jeep... And that's just fine. If your a parent and your girl wants a Jeep when she is big enough to drive, get her one. They are good vehicles. Give her a manual and a set of tools to go with it, sure. But still, it's a damn good machine and if she breaks down, she can fix it her self, and get rolling again. She can go anywhere. Also, since they are not rocket powered, she isn't going to be getting splatted going warp speed. I want my sons to all have Jeep Wranglers! Or Cherokee, or Liberty, or Wagoneer, or Grand Cherokee... as long as it's a Jeep, it's okay. "Hey Dad, I want a Mustang GT." "No." "Hey Dad, I want a Miata with a turbo." "No." "Hey Dad, I want Jeep with a wench and 33 inch tires." "Let's go looking for one!" I'm biased. After they have some experience under their belts, and they want a street machine - no problem. I will teach my sons performance driving skills, just like I will teach them all how to shoot and how to fight. Knowledge isn't the problem. It's the misunderstanding and misuse of the that knowledge that the problems come from. For example, these two journalists have displayed a huge amount of misunderstanding regarding the Jeep Wrangler. The result is asinine.

Congratulations go out to Correia and his wife. They had a baby girl yesterday. The baby is a healthy and happy 9 pound baby. All is well and we wish the Correia clan all the best.

My ISP, "Psionyx", switched email servers yesterday and made a small mistake on my account on the new server. I gave them a call and they got everything squared away with no problem. So, if you sent me any email yesterday that I didn't respond to - those messages are gone and I never saw them. Go ahead and resend them if you can. Sorry about this. What is a little annoying is that I was expecting a couple important messages that never came through. Oh well.

May 21st - Tuesday. Couldn't sleep all night long. Instead I stayed up and worked on a projects. Then played with Paintshop Pro.

Okay so I'm running around the local junkyards. Looking for some sammy parts so I can finish Project Jack. I'm crawling over the same rigs I've crawled over before... Picked Over. If your in Utah and you know a cat with an old Sammy, let me know. Then while I'm out there, it hails on me. Marble sized hail stones. Tucked under a chopped up Cherokee until that stopped. It only lasted about 2 minutes... but still. Annoying. It's always a bother when God throws rocks at you. Still need a few odds and ends to finish things up. Looking for a new source for these parts. Let me know if you find anything. On the similar note but different topic, I still have a set of 4 wheels for a Ford Ranger. They are stock wheels, but the upper lever custom factory option wheels. They look sharp. Very cool wheels. On these wheels are some 31 inch tires. Tires are not that great, one is worn bald. I'm looking to sell these wheels. I don't know what I want out of them. I just want rid of them. A hundred bucks would be fine. I don't care. A trade for something would be cool. If you rolled up, "Hey Ogre, I have a 2 shot extension tube for your Nova... Trade you for them wheels." I'd say "Done." "Take'm." Or, hey, I have this cool PDA. Palm 500 something... I don't know. Just need to get rid of these wheels. If you know anyone with a Ford Ranger that has fugly wheels, tell them I have what they need.

May 20th - Monday. You have to be a total idiot to think Star Wars is racist in any way shape or form. Problem is that we have too many idiots here in the world. Guys who are college professors are saying Lucas is putting out racist messages. Gimme a break. Your just looking to make a name for yourself. I think you would like to avoid the name your making. Moron.

Well, that was more fun than I've had in a long time. Had a blowout on the freeway. The right front tire just SHREDDED to bits while I was cruising at 65MPH. Make a long story short I damn near got killed but I kept a level head and got her safely to a stop. Dude driving a tow truck offered to pull me to the tire shop of my choice. For free. Small blessings mean a lot at this point. Anyways... it feels great to be home with the family again! I was lucky.

Oh, the interview? Went fine. The company isn't my ideal of who I want to be working for, but who cares. Like I can be picky. Whatever. Just tickled to be alive.

Ogre’s take on Episode II. Yeah, I saw it last night. Mace Windu is gigantic dick for killing Jango Fett. Anakin did a very bad thing and Padme just blew it off? Excuse me, but if you are to level a whole town, and then go tell your girlfriend… I think she might get a little upset. Yoda really is that cool. Some things to note: Fett broke a very basic rule – Never mess with a Jedi. And he was all up in Kenobi’s grill. Windu cut off his head, the bastard, but Fett really did get what was coming to him. If your wanting to be a responsible parent, you don't go out and put yourself in situations where you could get killed. Namely, screwing with Jedi. Especially a whole freaking mess of Jedi. I feel bad for little Boba. Poor little monkey. Second, the ship SLAVE I is THE coolest ship in the Star Wars universe. Might be smaller than the Falcon, and maybe not as fast, but it makes up for it with some added features. Fett was jamming away at Kenobi like someone else was paying for the ammo. And the Slave 1 can really pour out the firepower. More than a Tie or an X-wing. And its stealthy. The demonstration of combined arms assault was impressive The shear numbers and volume of firepower was stunning. There are so many reviews of this flick going on right now, I’ll not write one. But I will put together some articles for the Star Wars section. The usual. Takes on certain aspects and characters, the weapons, and look for the humor. But not right now. Gotta get ready for an interview.

I've noticed more and more that when some people send me emails, they come through blank. This is due to some bad html coding or they are trying to script me. If your wanting to send me an email - do so in PLAIN TEXT. If you send via HTML... I'm not going to be able to read it. Yeah, I know how to enable HTML email... but I'm not going to because of the security risk. I don't want uninvited scripts or guests in my system. Sometimes it happens, but I'd still rather not leave a door open for them.

May 19th - Sunday. I have received several emails this morning regarding one of the images posted yesterday. The image of the AR-15 I'll be using for the Match. That is not a Flash Suppressor. It does look like the new military style suppressor, but it is in fact just a muzzle break. If you look closely you can see that the ports are shaped to direct gasses to counter recoil. Maybe not the best view to show that, but it's true. 2 FFL holders examined this rifle before I ever got my hands on it. If it was fishy, it would not have been able to transfer to me. Would it? Recoil with this rifle is NIL. Muzzle jump is minimal. I've fired .22 Mags that kicked harder.

I also received an email from an Anti-Mormon A-hole here in Utah. I wont post it as it contained adult language, but here is my response: DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. BRING IT ON!

I downloaded Paintshop Pro 7 again. Had some fun with it this morning. Took a couple separate images of my sons and put them together into a group photo that is just awesome. I also did this image to the left. That's my oldest boy Kade. He is so awesome. Oh, and that's Skully giving him a lick. He's such a cool kid. At 8 years old, he has fired M-16s, AK-47s, an L1A1 (FAL), 1911s, SIG P220, HK USP in all calibers, .22, and the Benelli Nova. My kids all Rock, but Kade is the coolest. My wife said that if I had put my picture there with Skully - she would have killed me. I don't see what her problem is. I don't have a thing for Skully. Now, Linda Carter on the other hand...

Love Sundays. Quiet, Peaceful, Fresh Sunday paper. Sent out 12 resumes to newly posted positions. Just like every Sunday. Sometimes, it just feels fucking hopeless. Upside is that I have an interview Monday. Hopefully something will pan out. I'm needing some freaking income. Ideal, a job in management working 4, 10 hour shifts.

May 18th - Saturday. I picked up the rifle that I will be using for the World Championship 3 Gun Tactical Match. It's a Colt Match HBAR and it's very nice. StratfordHoldings came buy and we went shooting. Had a good time. Took some pictures.

May 17th - Friday. The Hogle Zoo, 18 school kids ages 5 to 12, and 4 hours of the longest day of my life. Next time, I'm sitting it out. I'll just take my own kids when it's a slow zoo day. I'm pooped. If I've ever considered a career in Teaching. Ever. Today I've changed my mind.

About George W Bush... If anyone thinks that George W Bush knew what was going to happen on Sept 11th and didn't do anything about it - You are a MORON. That's all I have got to say about that at the moment.

Farewell to one of the good guys. Our friend Bill "Gunslinger" Elliot has passed away. This comes as a relief from some long pain and suffering. His wife Terri has been a rock through this and our prayers are with Her, Him, and the whole Elliot clan.

May 16th - Thursday. I went over my DPF theory and decided to add it into my Weapons Section. Here it is. I offer this only as a simple tool to use while your in the store shopping for your next carry load. I think it works well and the DPF scores shake out well. Feel free to offer comment.

I was sent something from a fellow who is totally trustworthy. Read this. I'm posting it so more people can read it rather than it float around via email. It's a report from one of our own in Afghanistan that was involved in a very serious engagement. It gave me chills.

You've got to give United Airlines some Kudos. They had a computer glitch the other day that cut fares to 5 bucks... round trip coast to coast for only 25 bucks. Normally, a glitch such as this is responded to by the company canceling all the orders. United is HONORING these! That is AWESOME. I remember reading news stories about places that advertised a TV for only 100 Bananas. A lady came in with 100 bananas. The store said, no, Bananas was slang for dollars. The court the lady took it to said no, you advertised Bananas. Sorry. So the lady got the TV. Similar things for cars with clams and stuff like that. Now, we've seen the orders for Digital Cameras and other things... "Oops, sorry. That was a misprint." Hundred of orders tanked. United did the right thing. And I bet you anything because United owned up to the mistake - these people will be more than happy to pay full fares on United next time... and every time. United has a chance to get some good gain off this. And really, did they really lose any money anyway? Those planes would have flown the routes regardless of that 1 or 2 lucky passengers on board. A hundred bucks? Peanuts. Kudos to United!

I had a question from the Editor and Chief of G2Mil regarding the idea of a 10MM rifle. I had some thoughts on the subject. I sent them over to him. Maybe he can use them in some way or another. I've added this to my Weapons Section.

Last night I watched a movie that never fails to bring a tear to my eye. It was on AMC. Courage Under Fire. About the Army Officer that blasted a friendly tank and then investigates this female officer who is said to be a candidate for the Congressional Medal Of Honor. Great movie. Washington is a great actor and Ryan did a startling good job. Great actress as well. This made me want to see more of the Armored warfare. There is a couple books that I am personally fond of written by Harold Coyle, an author that I have had the chance to do some talking with at VMI. TEAM YANKEE is his first and remains my favorite. However Sword Point and Bright Star are also excellent. He has some others that are every bit as good... but I'd like to see any of these made into a movie. The reason why I like Team Yankee so much is that he didn't write it as an Author... He wrote it as a Grunt. The way he wrote it, at least to THIS grunt, made me feel like I was really there. Sights, sounds, even SMELL. Right from page one. PLEASE HOLLYWOOD - Your making such shit these days anyways... what do you really have to lose? Make one of these into a Movie! Okay?

May 15th - Wednesday. I don't know what it is about guys like this. But they damn near give me a panic attack... I just have got to beat the shit out of them. I see guys like this here in Utah... and I'm biting my tongue to keep from either busting out laughing and pointing - or breaking out my tire iron and going to work. Since when did these guys turn Black? I've nothing against African Americans, seriously. However these guys are just retarded. They think they are tough, threatening, cool? It's not the black culture that offends me - I'm fine with it. It's just that I've had some Black friends that would have come UNGLUED upon meeting these wimps. These guys are INSULTING to the culture they are pretending to play with. These cats are Satire. Yet they take themselves so seriously. They are trying to be RAPPERS. And I'm not kidding. Must. Stop. Fist of Death...

I walked into an establishment to do some business and after I conducted my transaction I was greeted by a college kid who was decked out in “Granola Gear”, wearing glasses that look like contact lenses held in frames made of piano wire, and of course the obligatory backpack. He was polite, but smelled of elder berries. For some reason I didn’t like him from the start.
“Excuse me, but I have a question about your hat.”
“Sure” I said as I looked at my watch, making the non-verbal hint that “You should be brief.”
“Is that some fraternity slogan?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, it is… but not for any college clubhouse.”
“Explain?”
Okay, what I can’t communicate is the snobbish air this kid had. He looked like a good kid, clean cut and clear eyed… but he had an attitude that screamed jackass louder than his “I buy outdoor looking clothes and wear sandals, but I’ve not touched actual dirt since grade school.”
“It’s Greek, and says ‘mo-lone lah-veh’ which means ‘Come an get them’.”
He looked like he has some questions, but couldn’t formulate the language to ask.
“That’s what the Spartan King Leonidas said to Xerxes, the Emperor of Persia who came to invade Greece with 600,000 troops. When Xerxes offered to spare the lives of Leonidas and his 300 bodyguards if they would lay down their arms.”
The kid furrowed his brow as he was thinking really hard, and then said “So why do you have that on your hat?”
“Because I am a gun owner, and the message is the same today as it was then.”
“You wouldn’t give up your guns.”
“No, I wont.”
“But…” I held up my hand and cut him off.
“No, no, no butts. I’m a citizen who has served his country, I pay my taxes, I’ve no criminal record, and I even feed a stray cat once in awhile. I may not be a Saint, but I’m still one of the good guys. There is no valid reason for me to give up my guns other than to subjugate me. You and I are not Subjects to Rule – we’re FREE MEN that live in a Democracy.”
He looked stunned for a second, and yet had a glimmer of understanding, but then went and said something stupid. “But the Second Amendment doesn’t say that you can have guns… it says that the Militia can have guns. An organized group of men with muskets.”
This is where it felt like a white hot needle was shoved forcefully through my right temple… “Look, it doesn’t say that… I know where your going on this and your wrong. Who ever told you that is an Idiot.”
“My Professor…”
“Is an idiot.” I held up my hand as he started to open his mouth again to say something stupid. “The militia is defined as able bodied men over the age of 17. That means You and Me… WE are the Militia. Do you know what a Militia is? It’s a group of Civilians that come together to fight. The militia is at all times a group of regular people… until the moment we are needed. You’ve’ heard of the Minute Man? The colonial citizens that at a minutes notice can grab a rifle and join the line… They are ready to go and fight because they have military weapons. They own them.”
He thought he had me here “Yeah, muzzle loading muskets… not Uzis!”
Why is it that the Uzi is the icon of Evil? I’ve got to get one!
“So you think that the right to keep and bare arms is limited to a musket?”
“Yes, because that’s all that was available to the people at the time with that law was written.”
“Okay, that fine… You hold on to that argument. Now apply it to the rest of society today and all the other Amendments.”
“So?”
“So?! That means the Freedom of speech is limited to your own vocal range and what you write with a Quill and a bottle of ink on Parchment… and maybe a typeset printing press that can only stamp out one sheet at a time, because that is all that they had back then. That means no radio, no tv, no movies, and certainly nothing on the internet… none of those are protected forms of SPEECH. If the founding fathers couldn’t imagine an Uzi, how could they imagine computers, cell phones, and satellite radio? You limit one Amendment you have to limit all of them.”
The boy looked like I hit him on the head with a rock.
“What part of ‘SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED’ is hard to understand? Look, I’ve got to go.”
“Thanks for talking to me.”
“No problem.” I said and started to walk away.
He called out “Where can I get a hat like that?”
“You have to earn one.”

So, the Cold War is officially over. Or so the Germans would have us believe... Is it just me, or is this really old news? What is interesting though is the Russian's move to JOIN NATO! I didn't see that one coming. Most of my training was involved in countering Russian -excuse me- Soviet military doctrine. That and some other shit... but still The Soviets were the ultimate bad guys. life was so simple back then... Now we have North Korea, China, Iraq... and now MEXICO? Didn't we kick there asses back in the 1800's? They still want a piece of this? (that was referencing yesterdays rant.)

More on the V-22. Check this out... That thread at TFL I started brought in an interesting participant. Note the new member Leatherneck. An actual member of the Osprey project. Guys knows the V-22 better than anyone else. Interesting reading, his comments.

May 14th - Tuesday. Credit Cards. Why do we have to autograph the back of the card? If it was stolen, the thief could just practice your scratch and presto - he becomes you. A C-Card is even used as a form of ID! Gimme a break. I will NEVER sign my cards. Sometimes I have to show another ID card, big deal. Other than that, I've never had any problems still using the card. Now, if a criminal snags my card and starts using it... I call it in as stolen, it is an easy thing to see what was mine and what the jackhole did. Why? Because my scratch is different. It's not even my name... just a signature mark. Why is that? Because when I got married, the manager of that 1st apartment was a crook. He was spoofing the owner of the property saying no one was renting while pocketing my cash. This caused many complications. One of the things that slime did was forge my signature. We proved it was a forgery by doing a spelling test of sorts so that the county could see what was mine and what was his. Since then, I changed my mark. You wont be able to duplicate it easily and especially not without studying it. Anyways... why would I want to give a thief my autograph? Especially scary, is when they as for ID, just to see you have it. Because they don't even LOOK at them! No, I wont sign my card.

More thoughts on the V-22 Osprey... I took the subject to TFL for discussion. Of course, a Marine Apologist had to take up arms supporting it. But he is the only one. I throw out a better idea, and of course he has to show fault and say the V-22 is still better. I found it amusing.

Email from Reader: “I was just catching up on your page when I ran across some feedback on your .32NAA Guardian that went a little something like : "So why are higher-velocity bottle-necked cartridges good now, when before, sheer caliber and slug weight were the most important things to consider? Hmmm..." When I was taking a forensics class in med school, we had to memorize a little equation about bullets that goes "Kinetic Energy = (Mass x Velocity^2) / 2g" In other words, modest increases in velocity can bring about a greater increase in kinetic energy than even larger increases in bullet mass can, given that energy transfer from the bullet to the target is complete. The hole made by a bullet isn't nearly as deadly as the damage caused by the shockwave, which is greater in higher velocity rounds. Of course, I'm beating a dead horse... I'd still take the .45, it makes a better bang. – Joshua” Joshua, thanks for the email... But your wrong. Here is why. The Hydrostatic shock effect that you mention... Out of a handgun, that effect creates a temporary wound cavity... this last only a split second as tissue stretches. But as fast as it happens, it goes away and what is left is the Permanent wound channel. A handgun is not powerful enough to make that effect lasting. Out of a rifle, that effect is sometimes great enough to shatter tissue. Some tissue. But it's not nearly enough to be the font of all stopping power. If you've ever hunted you can easily follow the bullet track through deer. It's often difficult to remove that slug. If that hydrostatic shockwave was as damaging as some would think, that hunting bullet would be parked in a glob of deer-meat jelly. Handguns are just not powerful enough for that shock effect to make a difference. Often, a bullet it just like a stab-wound. Especially with small caliber FMJ bullets. There is the penetration, but not a lot of tissue damage. Such a wound may or may not bleed a lot because of the amount of damage and the limitations of the path the flood flows out of. A .45 does twice the damage, and leaves a greater channel for blood flow. Hollowpoints allow for bullet expansion, which causes greater tissue damage. Out of a handgun, velocity allows for greater penetration, and with a hollow point, more reliable expansion. This is the advantage that the .32NAA has over a regular .32ACP or most .380ACPs. The .32NAA also gives you better reliability, which is critical in a handgun used for defense. I agree, I'd rather have a .45 too. But this is for when your not packing your regular gun. I've actually carried an NAA .22 Mini-Revolver as a key chain. I carried others guns too, but for a 2nd or 3rd gun it was great. Also, when I couldn't pack my heat, it was still there. Even when I was on a flight. Just dropped my keys and change and wallet into the dish and it was on the other side of the scanner waiting for me. No, I wouldn't do that now... not after 9/11. Security is way too tight now... But I did in the past. I may have not explained myself very well... I have a 1 year old on my lap batting at the keyboard. sxds dz;o kohjn

Last night I went shopping with the Mrs. We went to Wally World to pick up a few things. One thing we needed was a shower curtain. The one we had currently has become somewhat shredded. Cheap things - you know how they always tear at the top cause of the rings? Yeah. So I wanted a heavy duty one with the metal rings in the holes for extra strength... Yeah... so we're there and looking at the assortment. She asks what color I wanted. I didn't know this was Man Thing to select the color so I say "Chrome"? Hoping she would take over this task. She picks one that looks silvery. That's because the thing is CLEAR. I say, "That one is clear." She's like "Oh, okay..." and goes to put it back. I say "No, that's okay, we'll get that one... I'm not ashamed of my body." At that instant I looked over and there is this little lady with this jaw dropped looked... like she is shocked that this big 220 pound guy would say such a thing. Hey, I'm not a bad looking guy... I'm well hung... what do I have to be ashamed of? Anyways. I laugh... and the Mrs. leans over to the other lady and says, "I hate shopping with my husband sometimes..." or something like that. And that little lady then gives her this understanding nod like "It's okay dear, you'll be alright." What's up with that?

NASA is looking for Space Shuttle parts... on E-Bay. What? Wow... you really can find anything on E-Bay!

A list of banned books. Uh, I've read many of those books... I'm in trouble!

More on Mexico - This issue of armed Mexican troops crossing the border... That pisses me off. Armed troops crossing our border uninvited is an act of war. If Mexico wants us to lock the doors, then that is a good way of making it happen. We'll throw troops all over the place and the next group of Mexican Military that crosses the line will get slaughtered. However, I am of the opinion that these troops are not operating on orders from the Mexican Government. These guys are privateering. They are escorting something across the boarder... people or drugs... whatever it is - it needs to be stopped. I've nothing against immigration, but this shit has gone too far... I don't mind having an open door, but that doesn't mean you just let your armed forces come waltzing through it. And if the reports of them shooting at our Boarder Patrol are true - then I want to know how come we are not dropping the 101st into the area already!

May 13th - Monday. Great, a Monday the 13th. Nice. As Han Solo says, "I have a bad feeling about this." Let's go ahead and look at the news...

You can see this one coming... Iraq and Iran may together launch an attack on Israel to stall a US attack on Iraq. Can't you see this happening? I was thinking that Saudi Arabia would be jumping into this too, but the more I think about it, the more I dismiss it. SA's Prince is one greedy mother. He wouldn't want to do anything that would cut off his main source of income (US DOLLARS). Should an attack be launched on Israel, the US will respond to protect it. Simple as that. Never underestimate the power of greed. I think this Prince guy's actions are all posturing for the benefit of his Palestinian friends... just posturing. He doesn't want any of this. What he really wants is for them to shut the hell up and buy more oil. Okay, I am over simplifying things a bit, but I think it all distills to that point. We have not had to deal with Iran since the 80's. Iran saw what we did to Iraq last time we were there. They know what we can do. They are not stupid. Iran doesn't want to throw down with us, not for them. Because they know that W is not his father... W will FINISH what he started. He wont just kick them out of Israel, but will bomb them all the way home, bomb the home. Take out the leadership. Install a new government. And generally change the whole freaking landscape. Iran and Iraq have not been the best of friends in the past. I doubt Iran is really ready to take a bullet for them. This doesn't mean that this threat is without any consequence. I think what this will result in, is a stepped up time table for the US to kick Iraq's ass again. Now, while I dread the idea of a full scale military action again, I have some hope. "SoDamn Insane" has boasted that they are ready for US aggression and that they have prepared. Maybe he does have something up his sleeve, maybe not. Sure he might have some chemical weapons, but then again our troopers train for chemical attack all the time. Not only that, we have the means to destroy those delivery systems before they are used, or before the delivery platform is near US positions. I remember that scumbag's bravado last time. His "Million Man Army" and his "Mother of all Battles". Yeah, that really panned out didn't it? His military effort was a JOKE. His army was surrendering faster than we were ready to deal with. Yeah, there was some fighting, and we kicked some asses... but most of it was them surrendering as fast as they could. They were surrendering to MPs in a HUMVEE, they were surrendering to CNN reporters, they were surrendering to France... they had given up as a whole even before they started fighting. Now, here we are 10 years later with little or no improvement to Iraq's attitude for the individual grunt. What makes them think that those guys wont be throwing in the towel again at the first chance? Sure they will. Why? Because Iraq really does suck that bad. His people don't want to die for him. There isn't enough loyalty there to drive such a conflict. Powell says we are not planning on attacking Iraq. Right. Like we haven't been thinking about doing that very thing since we ended hostilities last time and Sadam was yelling at our backs "That the best you got? Your lucky I didn't kick your ass!" Okay, actually it was more like Monty Python's Black Knight, "Running away are you? I'll bite your kneecaps off!" As King Arthur said "Your a loony." Enough of that guy. He gives me a headache.

I have some thoughts on the Immigration issue. A lot of assholes have used the September 11th attacks as an excuse to forward their bigoted agendas. They want to use US troops to close the boarder between the US and Mexico. Now they are being given more fuel for the fire because of this story. Families are suing the US because we didn't put up water fountains out in the middle of nowhere. Look, Ogre has a pretty solid IQ... tested to be much higher than Mensa requirements for membership. Ogre can think for himself. (Ogre might not be able to type worth a damn, but that's another thing) Ogre also knows that the jackholes that took out the WTC did so with legally obtained visas to enter the US for business or educational purposes. What does that have to do with MEXICO? Seriously... WHAT? Nothing. This "Securing the Boarders" bullshit is just an agenda by the same type off assholes that will call a black person a nigger when nobody is around. Let's take a look at Mexico. 1/2 our country used to belong to Mexico. Our best restaurants serve Mexican Food. (okay, that is just a personal opinion and I'm not talking about Taco Bell either) Mexico is a country made up mainly by people of the Catholic faith. This means at a core level they have the same values as America. The same core, basic Christian values that founded our own country. Latinos are not a threat. Mexicans are not a threat. Instead of closing the boarders, we should EMBRACE MEXICO. I'll agree Mexico's government is corrupt. So what? So is our own. Everything we don't like about Mexico is just a mirror of our selves. Sure there are differences. We hear stories about Mexican prisons... hey, we have problems there too... What about that hacker dude that we have locked up? He isn't even CHARGED! Instead of cutting the Mexicans off, we should embrace these people and help them out. Give Mexico the proper support so that Mexicans don't want to leave Mexico... I've been in Mexico, and my two young twin bros served 2 year missions to Mexico. Yeah, we know that it's one screwed up place. But it doesn't have to be. And face it - it aint even partially as screwed up as the middle east is. You want a VW Bug? I know people that do. Where you going to get one? Mexico. That's right. Look, Latinos are beautiful people that are just like us, but speak another language. One that shaped our own. They are not the enemy. And you should look sideways at anyone who says so. Yeah, I got shot by a "Wet-Back" a guy that crossed the boarder illegally... but another one saved my brother's life by risking his own. I can hold no grudges. "Remember the Alamo"? Sure... I also remember that we traded a lot of shots with Germany. Today, you could give me a joygasm by giving me any German gun or better yet, a German car! I wont mention Jennifer Lopez. When someone says we should close the boarder... just opine that what we should really do is make Mexico a 52nd state. (Porto Rico is already the 51st) No one is saying we need to seal off the northern boarder are they? Hey, Canadians are just as strange and foreign. They have different laws and everything. They even have socialized healthcare! How alien is that!? As Captain Kirk says "DON'T BELIEVE THEM. DON'T TRUST THEM!"

Of course I don't have any bad feelings to the Canadians... So you guys can just calm down. Canada is just an easy target to pick on. As a country they are like the members of the Chess Club back in Jr High. Odd ducks, but there is nothing wrong with them.

What we should REALLY be afraid of is this. Be afraid. Be very afraid. Talk about the SUM OF ALL FEARS... Judas! What a nightmare that would be. A lot of really ignorant folks support that harpy while bashing George W Bush. The fact is, George W Bush is the best President we have had since Reagan. Sure the economy is suck city right now, but that was Clinton's fault. W is just stuck with the remains that Clinton left over. The economy was already sliding down hill fast with Clinton anyways. Yet these liberals blame Bush? Who was in the driver's seat for 8 years? But guess what? There are some signs that an economic recovery is on the horizon. What are they going to say if that happens? They don't want that to happen while Bush is in office. That is why Tom Daschle is doing EVERYTHING that he can while he controls the Senate to STOP ECONOMIC RECOVERY. You see, Liberals don't care about the economy and the people. They want absolute power. Liberals scare me. If people want to close a boarder - let's throw all the Liberals into Mexico and then I'll be saying LETS LOCK THE DOORS!

Wow, after all that I need something funny. STRONG BAD EMAIL.

May 12th - Sunday. Review of Attack of the Clones. "There are Clones. A lot of them. And they attack." You have to go read this review. Written by a guy who, like me, is a True Fan. His site, Slackers Guild is the newest link going up in my link section. Dude is funny. Go read it now.

For those that have complained that MadOgre.com is hard to read... To this effect, I have changed fonts to something that I think is easier to read. But I decided to remain with my Green on Black colors. Yesterday I tried black on white, yellow on black, red on black, pink on fuscia and it all sucked. It just wasn't Ogre. As noted by several emails. To those who don't like my green and black look.

MAY 1st to May 11th is Archived HERE.