NOVEMBER 2008

11-30-08:  Kim DuToit has officially retired from blogging now. We knew this was coming and kind of hoped it wouldn't or that Kim would change his mind and keep on... but alas, he has pulled the cord. He's valued opinion will be missed, as will be his taste in guns and cars and of course... the ladies. We wish Kim well, and hope that he enjoys a long and contented retirement.

Product Pitch: Brownells Action Lube Plus. I got a small tub of this stuff from Brownells a long time ago. It is the best grease I've ever used for internal parts. Lever guns, Shotguns espectially. The grease is black and filthy looking on the gun, but the results are worth it. Open up the side panel on your revolvers, Clean it out, then put in some ALP... awesome. Striker fired auto needs a trigger job? Hit it with some ALP instead. I have the same 2 ounce tub and it's only half used. A little goes a long way. I've used this on other things as well... such as the roller mechanisms in bank ATM's.... I remember one had a history of jamming up. Hit it with some ALP. No more jams. Which also meant no calls late at night. This stuff is the slickest greasy stuff I've found. I love this stuff.

MHI News: Monster Hunter International is now available as Pre-Order item on Amazon. Everyone in The Horde should pony up and pre-order a copy. You will be quite pleased with the book and you are helping out our good friend Larry Correia. Larry's book as amazing... it's a cover to cover page turner.

I was asked my take on the incidents in Mumbai. This level of violence and the degree of focus on westerners is shocking. What is even more shocking is the degree of professionalism these terrorists illustrated. These guys knew what they were doing and they did it well. These guys were well trained, well organized, and they executed their plan like a machine. This is what made it extra scary. Now this isn't just Pakistan attacking India... they were targeting westerners... Americans and British were made specific targets. The US doesn't need to get into this mess between these two countries. But America does need to do something... because Americans being targeted isn't just an isolated incident. This happens all the time. Everywhere. We should effect a new policy regarding US Citizens abroad. All US Citizens 18 years or older, their passports become Global Carry Permits, open or concealed. US Citizens should also be granted diplomatic immunity of anything related to the defensive use of their weapon. Handgun, Rifle, SMG... whatever they feel they need. If they are on holiday in the UK, a small pistol would work out nice. Rolling through the Middle East, an automatic rifle over the shoulder would be advised. If these countries want our money – and you bet your ass they do – then they need to accord Americans the right to self defense. If they don't – No Americans, no American dollars. Period. Americans should also have means of contacting the US Embassy for a Rapid Response of Army or Marine soldiers who should be at a Ready 5 Status standing by to back up all Americans who need help. Message to the word: Don't Fuck With Americans. Americans wanting a Passport should also be required to take a security and firearms course.

11-28-08:  Lisa, I mean, Josh Hunter, gets his Man Card back. He called in and put a nice weapon on layaway. He selected a great rifle... a Remington 798 in .270 Winchester. The 798 is a classic Mauser. A true Man's Rifle. Well done.

GunDoctor noticed something on WeTheArmed.com that needs to be repeated:

“Wear a gun to someone else’s house, you’re saying, ‘I’ll defend this home as if it were my own.’ When your guests see you carry a weapon, you’re telling them, ‘I’ll defend you as if you were my own family.’ And anyone who objects levels the deadliest insult possible: ‘I don’t trust you unless you’re rendered harmless’!”

11-28-08:  Black Friday: Today was busy in a way that I expected, but I wasn't ready for it. It kicked my trash. We made record sales today... it was insane. We kicked butt... we had customers in lines buying guns and scopes and rangefinders and GPS's and binos... it madness. Now, when I said that we broke records, I mean we seriously shattered them.

Thanksgiving: The day was peaceful and full of love and good food. This year, I am especially thankful for The First Amendment. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” This is going to be very important to all of us in the future. Especially the redress of grievances part. The freedom of speech is the most critical of all the Bill of Rights. Most of those that I associate with believe the Second is the most important... don't get me wrong, but guns are important... but they are not the most important. Speech is. Hands down. Speech and Guns... but guns are just the punctuation marks. Without Speech, the rest of it all is pointless. And vice versa.

Watch out for anyone who would take away your right to speech. Watch out for anyone who supports the “Fairness Doctrine”.

SIG Lights: SIG has a new weapon light and laser unit that is a step up from everything else out there on the market and about 50 bucks less. No toggle switches. So silliness. Three buttons on the side for laser, light and strobe settings and two buttons on each side of the rear for momentary and for constant. The laser is in the light reflector... not below it. This puts the laser as close to the barrel as possible... which is ideal. I think this is the best laser/light module on the market.

11-25-08: Man Card Revocation Alert: A certain individual out there has violated the Man Code... Now, I don't want to name names here.

JOSH HUNTER

What happened was that someone told someone that he was buying a certain AR-15 rifle. And then that someone goes off and tells someone's wife about the AR-15 purchase... that someone who shall remain nameless...

JOSH HUNTER

This is a grosse violation of the Man Code which specifies that What Happens at certain places stays at those certain places... Vegas, Bachelor Parties, Bars, Shooting Range, Hunting Fields, Any Road Trip, and in Alley ways. Violation means he gets his Man Card revoked. While revoked he shall be called by random female names until he can reestablish his Manhood Credentials. Since this violation has brought down the Guilt Hammer on another Man, restitution must be made... In this case, it's at least 1 box of ammunition for the unwary victem. Then he must go a step further and purchase, in this case specifically a certain Remington... He knows what I am talking about.

JOSH HUNTER

So hereby until that time, the unnamed someone shall be known as Lisa. We have to follow The Code of course.

H-S Precision and Lon Horiuchi: Word has come down that H-S Precision is proud of getting the endorsement of Lon Horiuchi. This looks legit. Evidently this is on the back cover of their catalog. Do you guys remember this name? He's the FBI sniper that was made famous at Ruby Ridge. While he was cleared of any wrong doing, he still did wrong. He shot a mother who was holding her baby. He didn't have a clear shot, and fired anyways, just in case the baby was really a rifle. This is disgusting and in every way revolting. It's even more revolting that H-S Precision has published the letter from Lon as if this was some feather in their cap. This is like a Jim Jones endorsement of Koolaid, and them being all proud of that.

I'm never going to buy anything from H-S Precision again, and neither should you. I don't know what they could do to remedy this. Ruby Ridge was a Cluster-Fuck of the highest order, and Lon fucked up the biggest and the mostest. Not only that, but Lon was vindicated and promoted. For shooting a Mom holding her baby. This is an outrage.

A valid email in response to my H-S Precision post: “Dear Ogre, My first reaction was like yours, but I don't think it's a fair one. Let me pose some questions to you. Should H-S not have tried to have their rifle selected by the FBI because Horiuchi was the official in charge of the selection process-- or should they have entered, and having won, take pride in their accomplishment (which was not done by sucking up to Horiuchi, but by satisfying relevant, objective criteria)? Having won, should they have not printed the FBI's (i.e. Horiuchi writing for the FBI's) letter? I suspect that the news that it was Horiuchi would have gotten out, and then H-S would have been under fire for trying to suppress it. That's why I think they did what they had to do. And BTW, if the H-S rifle really is that good, even though Horiuchi made the FBI snipers' reputation stink, isn't it better that, despite Horiuchi, the FBI ought to have them? There may well be something wrong with the FBI that someone like that is still with the agency, but how could H-S do anything about it by not submitting their rifle? Peter”

I don't buy it... Rock River posted ads about their selection by the DEA for rifles... Springfield's TRP for the FBI's HRT... And other such ads bragging about selection.    No one else threw out the name of who selected it.  It didn't matter. H-S didn't do that... they had to brag and open their mouth a little more than they should have, and printed Lon's tainted name. Lon brings out the worst images of the FBI and the Government, not as Law Enforcement who Protect and Serve but as Federal Henchmen and Jackbooted Thugs.  Because Lon did not Protect and Serve the Weaver's.   He murdered them. H-S Precision's ignorance and bravado would be like me rolling in to Harlem and shouting out "Yo, what up Nigga's!" That would be uncool and I'd get what I deserved. Well, H-S Precision needs to get the same kinda beating.

Now I am not defending Randy Weaver. The man was a jackass... all men are at times jackasses too – but that doesn't mean the Feds should come in and kill your family. The whole SNAFU could have been easily and cleanly resolved had the Feds used some good old fashioned Police Work rather than sending in the Storm Troopers. The heavy handed Ultimate Force response shows a failing of planning, forethought, or any sense of rational thought. Randy sold a short barreled shotgun. This is like driving 5 MPH over the speed limit – a couple miles per hour faster than some out dated arbitrary rule says you should drive. A couple inches shorter than what some outdated arbitrary rule specified. Arbitrary numbers set by people who do not know the subject they are ruling on. Politicians are not firearms experts just like they are not automotive performance experts. They are freaking politicians... which means they are whores by a different name. Randy Weaver is not innocent... he did what he was accused of doing. But the way the Feds handled it was FUBAR. Just like Waco. This is how the Democrats rule... heavily hamfisted. Buckle Up. We'll see more instances of this sort of thing in the future.

Have you guys heard of Suzanna Gratia-Hupp? Watch this. Seriously, watch this video and listen to this woman all the way to the end. And look at those she is talking to. One of which is Chuck Schumer, asshat of the highest order.

11-24-08:  A lot of guys have asked me about building their own AR's. I've even been playing with the idea myself. It's simple to do. If you want to build your own, go for it. It's fun and you have a rifle that you will appreciate more. The key to this project is of course the quality of your parts. Get your parts from only well known sources. This is like cooking and we all know you have to have good ingredients to make a good dish. The foundation of the AR is the lower receiver. While some say any lower will do, I've seen what could have been great rifles made mediocre by a lesser quality lower. If you are going to order a lower, order one from a respected source. Seriously. DPMS, Stag, Rock River, there are a lot of factories that will sell you a lower... but some want something a little different. And that's cool too... if that different is actually making a good product. One of the best I've seen is from Territorial Gunsmiths. Oleg Volk turned me on to these and has had nothing but good things to say about them... but I didn't want to say anything until I had seen one for myself. Now that I have, I can honestly say that those lowers are indeed very very good. So much so, that I would love to get one myself. If I was going to actually start another AR project. The Fremen, a DPMS project rifle has never really satisfied me. And I don't know why. The next AR I build, if I decide that I want to do one, will be as light as possible. Lighter than the DPMS build. I have my big SIG 556, and I have other big guns... so any AR would have to be smallish... short as legally acceptable, and light. Magpul CRT stock and grips, simple free float handguard, light barrel, either flip up's or no iron sights, and just a Holo or Dot type sight on top. Small, light, handy. Really those are the only AR types that interest me. These long heavy AR's that are so popular just don't do it for me. At least, not at this time.

This just in: Al Gore blames Global Warming on the fall of the Byzantines. Lots of emails regarding Al Gore's climate change crap, and I am pleased to see that so many of The Horde are well versed in both History and Science.

The Feds are going to give away 7.4 trillion dollars. Wow. This is a clear cut case of just throwing money at a problem and hoping it helps... without addressing the actual cause of the problems. As a result, this is going to be the most expensive and useless bandaid in the history of the US. AIG was given millions of dollars and they wasted it. They were given more, and did the same thing with it. Obviously this doesn't work. This is like giving a homeless guy some cash. It makes you feel better about yourself, brightens the homeless guy's day, but doesn't change the situation at all. Here is how you fix it:

First, we get rid of the Democrats who put us in the situation because of Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac... All the politicos that had money from Fanny and Freddy have got to go. That means Obama too. He's out of there. Bad lending was the start.

Gas Prices going up which drove up the cost of consumer goods and people no longer were able to pay those mortgages. “You can' drill your way out of this?” Yeah, you can... but you can not conserve your way out of it.... you drill and drill more. You get us out of the Middle East SNAFU and concentrate on developing the resources that are right here. We have just seen that soon as gas prices came down, the cost of consumer goods has also fallen. This is an effect We The People can actually feel. Instead of spending 85 bucks to gas up my truck, I topped off and gave the attendant a fifty and I got change back. That's a direct form of economic relief right there. Other prices for things, I've seen come down a bit too. It stacks up.

Taxes need to be lowered on everything. Sales taxes, income taxes, property taxes... all of it has to come down. I've seen too many tax hikes to pay for specific things that once done, never saw the reduction in the taxes. You want to tax someone? Tax Mexico. America spills billions of dollars into Mexico. Tax them for it. A direct tax to the Mexican government for all that money. If they don't pay up – we shut down the fucking borders like vault door. Tax Iraq. They owe us for freeing their asses, they can pay off our war effort in oil. Free oil for America. We will take half of their production capability as payment. War for oil? You bet, we'll take that oil now, thank you very much. That oil goes directly into the US Consumer Market. Lower prices even more. The oil companies still make money because they are selling a product they didn't pay to inventory, and we get to buy it at a discount.

Government spending, such as all these stupid bailouts, need to stop. I held up my hands and said “Okay Democrats, you have the wheel, let's see how you lead.” Now were are seeing this kind of crap already? Obama isn't even in office yet. This is how they are going to lead? Tossing money like Rip Taylor tosses confetti? Sorry, but that's not the right way of doing it.

Ease the pressure on consumers, consumers are able to spend more and that spins our economy... not the government. We are the Economy.

Obama and the Democrats are going to do none of this. Instead they are going to restrict or even shut down oil and gas production, driving up prices. They are going to raise taxes. And of course are already seeing them increase spending. This is going to crash our economy like a helicopter that just lost it's Jesus Nut. We really really needed Mitt Romney. If we had a Romney / Palin presidency coming up – this situation would not be a problem for very long.
Bush may not have been the slickest President, but we had the dow over 14 thousand, and now that we have Democrats in full control – almost instantly everything has tanked. Go figure.

Best reason to go out and buy the new Guns & Roses album... it pisses off the Chinese Government. Awesome. Makes me want to buy it right now. But I wont. Axle Rose is a douchebag.

11-21-08:  Al Gore is such a clown I can't believe people take him seriously. He's saying, and other moronic scholars agree with him... that Global Climate Change killed off the Mayans. I'm thinking Gore must be really fun at parties because no sane person would want to hang around this guy. This pretty much goes against everything I've ever learned in history, and probably you too. The Mayans were a people like any other. And like any other people, when the environment changes, they adapt. Ever other civilization did. What makes a civilization disappear through the rest of history is War and Disease. In the case of the Mayans, they had a lot of both. Next up, Al Gore is going to blame global warming for the disappearance of the Aztec and Anasazi. Were the Mayans so weak of mind and body that they couldn't deal with a climate change? Is he saying that the Mayans were like insects or something and could be killed off by a fraction of a degree of temperature change? It's insulting that he, and others like him, would put that very poor theory out there in the face of real actual scientific, archaeological and historical evidence. The gall of him.

There is a good series of historical videos you need to watch, called “Who Killed The Maya?” I point this out because it's interesting, educational, and tells historical stories that have not been heard before. Fascinating. I love history and it is a passion of mine. The key bit against climate change is spoken in the last part of the 3^rd part of this 5 part series. “Even in the face of the drought, many Mayan cities continued to thrive.” Sorry, Al.

Of course I put forth another theory that I've used in Silvershot. What wipes out whole cities mysteriously and seemingly overnight... Zombies. Any time a people have a mass disappearance like that... Skinwalkers, evil necromancer shaman raise an army of undead and launches them against the city. Now I'm putting that out as a fantasty. Al Gore is putting his out there as some sort of a fact. I don't know who's fiction is more outrageous.

I was asked what can we do to help protect our rights. That's a good question. Because it can happen. And not just in New Orleans. “What can we do?” Realistically and effectively. Posting your rage on online discussion forums is only preaching to the choir and has little effect if any. We have to get real. Joining the NRA is one thing we need to do, but don't get carried away in donating money.  The NRA, for all their faults, is our best defense.  They are entrenched, they have the assets, and they have the experience.  Something the GOA and other "The Next NRA" type groups don't have. They do good work, but the NRA is a biggest and best weapon... like it or not. But we can't put our faith and hope in the NRA alone. We have to all take up the sword ourselves - figuratively speaking.  Join the NRA, but also be active yourself.  Write and Call the offices of all your state reps.  Congress on both the House and the Senate sides.  They have to know who they are facing.  And you have to get your friends all to do the same. That's the hard part. We couldn't even get them out to vote. Conservatives had a voter turn out of less than 26% of Registered Voters. We have to fight the APATHY. Our voter turnout was less than the last general election.  Had our turnout been like it was in 2004, Obama would have lost. He won a lot of states, but did so with small margins in a great many key states. Apathy gave the election to Obama on a silver platter. Various reasons for that Apathy... but that's another post.

Notice in the videos I just linked to... tyranny comes in very small groups at a time. Small groups that can be easily resisted with coordination. Sure, they'll come back and in greater numbers... but well... that gives you time to relocate to another position. Ahem... I don't like to talk about it.

11-20-08:  A bit frustrated. I've been teaching some small weapons courses to certain groups of people... keeping it small and easy to manage because of my knee. Now my knee is fixed and I can expand my training programs and open my courses up to the public and offer more. Unfortunately I am now into the Holiday Season because I work selling guns and this is our busiest time of year. Not only that, but this year the situation is compounded by the rather drastic Obama-Effect on gun sales. I'll talk more about that later. Back to Training. I need to offer my courses twice in the same month due to student schedules... some guys can take a weekend class, some need a mid-week class. So no courses until after Christmas. Fine, we can start in January. Unfortunately come January, we have temperatures about in line with a nice summer on Pluto. You can be outside for more than 20 minutes unless you are bundled like an Eskimo. Not that Cold Weather Fighting wouldn't be a good thing to learn – it's just all manner of unpleasant to learn and even more unpleasant to try to teach. I had been hoping to roll through maybe two full courses before I had to break till spring... but looks like I am out of luck. This is my frustration.

I've been getting congratulatory emails from Readers who know where I work: Reason being is that the Utah Shooting Sports Council Information Alert for 11/19/08 posted something interesting:

WHO SELLS THE MOST GUNS IN UTAH?
BCI Statistics for 2007 report the top ten dealers (number of guns sold) in Utah are:
1. Cabela’s
2. Sportsman’s Warehouse - Midvale
3. Sportsman’s Warehouse - Riverdale
4. Gallensons
5. Sportsman’s Warehouse - Provo
6. Vanwagenen Finance Co
7. Basin Sports Inc
8. Dougs Shoot’n Sports
9. Impact Guns - Ogden
10. Smith & Edwards Co

The 2008 numbers are going to be different. Sportsman's is circling the bowl as they have burned credit lines and bridges with the factories. When you are trying to sell your own building so you can rent it back, just to raise some capitol... you know you are in trouble.  They are having a hard time getting anything in to sell and people have reported to me that they have hardly anything of interest anymore. While Basin Sports has the honor of being one of the biggest new gun collections on the western states. We have more guns than Cabela's... they have 500 firearms SKU's and about 1500 in inventory. We have 800 different models and almost 1800 in inventory. Our prices are outstanding and we do price matching when the factory product numbers match... so don't try to get the stainless for the same price as the blued... we are not that dumb. We keep a tight ship and dudes from all around the country comment on how nice our little store is. Our staff are all knowledgeable... Former military and or life long hunters. Save for the one new guy but we don't really expect him to last much longer. We know shooting. Muzzle loading. Archery. And Fishing. We don't just higher a clerk like some of the others on the list. This is why people will drive for 3 hours to get to us and 3 hours back home. We also entertain the customers quite a bit with our debates and arguments behind the gun counter. Between Travis and I, would could charge admission. I'll state an opinion – about anything. And Travis will take up the Counter Point and we'll debate back and forth about it. Even if I start out with something from his previous point of view. So he eventually argues against his own logic. As noted by several customers in the past. It's fun, and makes the long days shorter. I'm expecting Basin Sports to get as high as 4th. As noted by one reader and friend who works for a big gun related publishing house – We are 3 hours away from a population center. It's pretty good when every day we have guys from SLC come out just to buy their guns from us. So while Sportsman's is going down, Gallenson's and Cabela's are really our only competition. Vanwags sells a lot of crap. FBMG sells a lot of guns but they do a lot of those tactical guns that we don't do out here... we have some... but that's not who we are. Doug's? Doug's is the Dive Bar of the gun dealers. I've not been to Smith and Edwards. Impact? I honestly didn't know their volume was that high. The 2008 numbers will be interesting.

I'm thinking about jumping tomorrow. Some friends are going sky diving... kind of a reunion thing. They really want me to come out. I really want me to go for some reason. My wife says I can go, but takes great pleasure in pointing out my jump record in correlation with my traumatic injury record. I jump just fine. Let's get that straight. I've no problem with the whole jumping and letting gravity work thing. Ahem... It's the landings that tend to break things... like my ankles and knees and those long bones in there that connect the two. But this time it's casual, more controlled, better chutes, and I don't have to take anything with me on the jump. Just for fun. And since the air is cooler and denser, the descent speed would be slower. I'm thinking I'm going to jump. We'll see.

9mm vs .45ACP. The US Army is still going the rounds in regards to their service pistol. I'll admit I am biased. I'm a huge fan of the .45 ACP cartridge. I think with proper spring weights in a decent platform you can load in the .45 Super cartridges and you then have a pistol that can really dish it out... I think this is what the US Army should do. The 9mm is not an American cartridge... it never was, and it never should have been. I feel that going to the M9 was a mistake. While I am not aware of any specific case of this actually costing a soldier his life, like say the transition to the M-16 did in a great many instances.... I feel that our Armed Forces have been short changed with the M9.

The Beretta 92FS is a fine handgun. It is easy to shoot with, accurate, and with decent magazines, it is very reliable. It's a good looking gun. And it is arguably one of the best handguns in the world. But that doesn't mean its fit for military service. I know all the trial details that the weapon passed for it's adoption... Yes, it went bang when asked. But it makes small holes. It penetrates, but the required ball ammo doesn't do enough tissue damage to make it effective as a fight stopper. Police and Civilians don't have this consideration... they can use hollow points. HP bullets can multiply the effectiveness of the cartridge. (Can, not always... but can)
The 1911 remains not just a fine handgun, but in my opinion the best of the best from around the world... nothing is better. Different, sure. Newer, certainly. But nothing is better.

I think we need to adopt the 1911 again. But this time, we do so with all the improvements to the 1911 that have become popular. Wider ejection ports, better sights, checkering, etc. Bump up the spring ratios for a hotter loading of the .45 ACP cartridge and there you go. Done. Soldiers will always complain about their equipment... but no one would then be able to complain that our weapons are not potent enough. At least not in our handguns.

But wouldn't it rock if the US Army adopted the 10mm? More potent with not much more recoil if any... that would be awesome. All the sudden the 10mm would be a real player instead of a curiosity.

We got in a couple very interesting guns: The FNH FNAR. This is pretty much the tactical version of the Browning BAR, which is how the FN is also named... the FN Autoloading Rifle. Not much imagination in the naming department there at FN. But we can forgive them because they do make some very decent weapons. The Browning BAR has been the autoloading hunting rifle for a long time now. It is what all the others are judged by, including the Remington 740 and 7400.. the Bar just smokes them. Most of the BAR's are built around big hunting calibers. Then Browning came out with the Short Track BAR... same goodness, but in a shorter action. We have had these for some time in .270 WSM and .300 WSM. Heavier recoiling calibers and they shoot like pussycats out of the BAR action. So with FN taking that gun and chambering it in the mild little .308... that gun is going to be like butter. Hardly any recoil at all. It is not an attractive gun... in fact it looks like just what it is... kind of a modpodge of parts. They gave it a 20 round magazine, took off the nice wood furniture of the Bar and put on some black plastic... because wood isn't tacticool. But they didn't just slap on plastic. This is where it's kind of impressive. They have actually thought this through. You have different cheek rests and widths of recoil pads to allow you to tailor fit the gun to you. This is important for a marksman's rifle. It's got to fit you. The barrel is fluted to better cooling during longer shooting sessions. The accuracy is reported to be very good. You take an FNAR and top it with a PFI RR800-1 and you have a fantastic weapon system for delivering round on target hard and fast. I can see these as being very popular with police and security agencies. This would be ideal for a great many people and uses – if they could just get past the “It's not an AR-10” thing. Yes, it's different... but this is all based on a solid and proven reliable and accurate hunting platform – just like the Remington 700 and other bolt action sniper rifles. Proven hunting guns adopted for military use. Same thing here, just in an automatic action.

We are selling the FNAR for 1399, and we only have one left.

WeTheArmed.com: We are about to hit 1000 Members. I am very pleased with the turn out and with the support of the community. We have a lot of cool things most other gun forums do not have, which are areas for discussions on the subjects of movies and books, automobiles, technology. We have an area for Archery too. We allow “Off Topic” discussion. And we will let a thread wander in it's natural discussion flow. Moderation is light and every moderation action is carefully considered. While we have some of the best experts in the field of firearms and firearm training – no one is taking themselves too seriously and it just feels like everyone is having a better time here. It actually reminds me of the very early days of TFL.

11-18-08:  I had been thinking about selling off my Savage .22-250. Reason being, I could step over in to a Browning Varmint Stalker in .223WSSM. A rifle that is shorter and much lighter, yet much higher performance. Read about it here. You can see that I had decided to keep the rifle as I had taken it back out to shoot it... and it just shoots too dang good to give up.

I've also been thinking about killing off the Shoutbox widget... I don't really like it all that well, and it's kinda redundant as we have the WeTheArmed.com to use for discussion, comment, and such... and in a more coherent fashion. So its going to go away.

Zeiss has really impressed me. A guy I know had run over his scoped rifle last hunting season, and his Zeiss was just fine, in fact it didn't even lose zero. Now the other day a different guy came in with a different Zeiss... this one had been hit directly with a negligent discharge from a .45 ACP. The scope was deeply dented. But if you looked through the scope... it was just fine. It even adjusted properly and tracked perfectly. Again, the scope held the zero. Lots of little things have come about regarding these Zeiss scopes taking the beating and they keep going. This isn't just a couple things... this is a constant parade of testimony to the Zeiss's strength. Their Rapid Z scope that they got from Pride and Fowler is fantastic. Until PFI makes a Magnum grade long range Rapid scope that goes to a Grand... I'd have to get a Zeiss. Barring that, I'm still a fan of PFI scopes.

11-14-08:  Best comment I heard today: If you have a company and need to do some lay offs, the best way to sort out who goes first is to walk around the parking lot and see who has Obama bumper stickers... and can them first.

It's already starting... on the threat of shutting down the drilling out here, one of the companies is already starting to make cut backs and will be moving their operations elsewhere in the country. I know one of the guys laid off. He voted for Obama. I told him he got just what he voted for. The dude got pissed at me. “Not my fault you were a dumbass.” This is just one company... and a small one at that. But this is a ripple effect on a pond. Everyone out here is worried. Obama can turn this area into a ghost town. It happened before.

Email: “George, If you're gonna plug the Guard, you can plug us! We need the Joes. This is our "Ain't we the shit?!" video. I think they did a good job, us snipers are just camera shy...keep up the good work!”

Dude, you know you get a Plug. Infantry always gets first priority. Everything else is just support. Great video. Looks like the Grunts of Oregon know how to have a good time training. Hooahh!

We have been selling the crap out of Black Rifles, still. The demand has not gone away. Right now we have 3 left. That's it. We got in some AR-10's in .308. GONE. Didn't even hit the shelf. We do have an Armalite AR-50 available... a big old .50 caliber. You know you want one. We got one. First come, first serve... and come in person, because we aint shipping this thing. BTW, the AR-50 is shipped in the most retarded freaking way possible. A big box with the rifle suspended in the middle by cardboard blocks. Someone at Armalite needs to be fired. Every other .50 is shipped in a nice Pelican case or something like that. Not the Armalite. It's shipped in crap. This is not a time to be picky. In know a lot of shooters are still “shopping” but check this out. This jackhole has been shopping from home all day. He'd call and ask about a rifle and I'd say he needs to come in because I have only one left. He hangs up and then calls back 5 minutes later. “Which model is that”” Don't worry about it.. it's gone. He did that 3 times more, each time, the gun he wanted to research on the internet was gone within minutes. Instead of home shopping and dinking around, he should have got his butt into the car and come into the shop. If you go to a gun shop, and they have an AR – just snag it. It's an AR and if you don't like the configuration, you can change it later. Because if you snooze, you loose. Like I said, I have 3 left, two Armalites and a used Colt. That's it.

On the upside, we have about 150 AR type rifles on order. More S&W M&P15's. More Armalites. More Sabers. And more Remington R-15's and R-25's. The only problem is when. We don't know. Hopefully before Christmas.

Super Saber: The other day I put together just about the sweetest AR set up I've ever dealt with. A Saber Defence Competition Deluxe with a Trijicon Accupoint 3-9 scope on top of it using the post and triangle reticle. Man... that set up just works. Super light, handles great, accurate as all get out... no recoil thanks to that gills break thing... and the scope... man... I mounted it as low as possible using the Weaver Tactical rings. It had a good look that matched the rest of the rifle. You could tuck into it perfectly and make your hits as fast as you can pull the trigger. That's a set up I'd have loved to have taken home myself. The rifle was about 2200 bucks and the scope was about 650. That sounds like a lot of scratch – but you should have seen this set up. It freaking rocked. Worth every penny.

Our buddy Ben picked up a new pistol: The Dan Wesson Bobtail Commander. That is a sweet handgun and Ben can't stop geeking over it. He has it in .45, but I would have to go for the 10mm version my self. The BTC is one of the best made 1911's for under a grand. I dare say, it is the best. The fit and finish is fantastic., it looks sharp, and it feels great in the hand. Dan Wesson makes a great pistol. You hear some guys bad talk the Dan Wessons... but we have sold a lot of them and no one has come back with any problems. In fact, every owner has done nothing but rave about them. It's the guys that don't own one that will talk them down. I think they have a case of sour grapes. I had said that the BTC would be my celebration pistol if Obama was defeated. Well, that didn't work out. Oh well... so many guns... so little money.

11-11-08:  Watch this:

I wish to say THANK YOU to all Veterans today. To them, and to the families of all Veterans. In the face of the oncoming loss of our liberties and our nation circling the drain because of mass ignorance in electing a pack of socialists... this Veterans Day is all the more poignant... bitter sweet like I've never felt it before. This morning I dropped my boys off at school and looked up at the flag pole. There, waving in the breeze was Old Glory. Brothers and Sisters, I felt a pain in my heart as I looked up at it, took in the full meaning of what that flag means... and how so many people out there... these Liberals... these Socialists... are trying to change the very meaning of the word “Freedom” and to destroy everything Old Glory stands for. Well, let me tell you all right now. I will not forget. When I look at the flag, salute the flag, and ponder the depths of my patriotism... I don't see the flag as what we are now... I can't take it. I see the flag as an emblem of where we have been, what we have done in the past as a Nation... and what we could be. They want to take our guns, then bring back the "Fairness Doctrine" that muzzles Free Speech.... to them, the Bill of Rights is an obstacle to be overcome.  I see the Bill of Rights as the framework of the greatest country on the planet.  These are some very hard times we are facing. Don't give up the faith. Don't give up on our Nation... remember it... and just imagine what we can become again.

Have you guys seen the movie “Memoirs of a Geisha”? Well, if you have not seen it, I recommend it. Its one of the most beautiful movies ever filmed and has perhaps the best cast ever assembled for Asian cinema. The movie is poetry on film... it really is. One of the actresses in it, Gong Li, is easily one of the most beautiful women on the planet... she can act with just her eyes. She is hypnotic.... you can't look away from her. Well, evidently China can. China has branded her a Traitor. She married a man – lucky bastard – from Singapore. As a loyal bride she decided to take her husband's citizenship and become a citizen of Singapore. For this, China has branded her a Traitor. I think this is just cause to celebrate Gong Li. Because any Traitor to China is a Friend of ours.

11-10-08:  Top Sci-Fi Books that should be made into movies: Instead of Hollywood rehashing old movies to make new movies... why don't they made some movies from some of the best Sci-Fi books every written that no one has done a movie for yet? No, no remakes... not even a remake of Starship Troopers or Battlefield Earth. Great books that deserved better movies. Topless Robot has a list of the top 5, and it's a pretty good list. But how the hell can you pick just five? I'll throw out my picks, and we can talk about them at WTA. Okay, here we go:

Diamond Age and Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. Fantastic Cyber Punk stuff...

Virtual Light and Neuromancer by William Gibson. The Father of Cyber Punk. If you make these four movies – you will bring Cyber Punk back into style after Johny Mnemonic killed it.

Everything written by Robert Heinlein. Are you kidding? He was a master of hard core sci-fi and the fact that only one of his books has been made in to a movie shows a deep lack of IQ in Hollywood.

Roger Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber... the whole Amber series. Great series, great characters... one of the most interesting reads I've ever had the pleasure to sit down with.

The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison. Make each book it's own movie... a whole series of films. James diGriz is my hero. If you haven't read these books – you are wrong.

Larry Niven's Ringworld saga. This is where Halo gets it's idea from. Let me be frank here... While Halo was a fun game... it's limitations while being on such a vast world like a ringworld or “Halo” as they call it, is insulting. It should be absolutely endless and open. Again, if you have not read Ringworld... oh man... you are in for a treat.

The Stars My Destination was only recently introduced to me... and it has instantly become a personal favorite.

Man Kzin Wars, also by Larry Niven. This wasn't so much of a book, but as a series of shorts in a collection. Each story painting a part of the overall picture, much like World War Z. Which brings me to my next pick...

World War Z. The mother of all Zombie Movies is just waiting to be made. No more small scale shopping mall BS here... this spans the globe. This can only be done in a 3 hour epic. Anything less would be shameful.

Warhammer 40,000. This is a universe darker and more brilliant than Star Wars could ever hope to be. An Epic of this magnitude could only be contained in a series of epic films that would make Lord of the Rings shrink.

Armor by John Steakley. Instead of yearning for a Remake of Starship Troopers... do this one. It's like a Part II... sort of. Brilliant writing that was more fun to read than ST.

Greg Bear's EON is seriously good book that deserves a great movie.

And the #1 book that needs a movie: The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, by Stephen King. WHY has this not been made into a movie yet?

Barrett has a new rifle coming out: And I'm not talking about the AR thing... I'm talking about a whole new big bore sniper rifle that looks like a work of sinister art. The 98B, or the 98 Bravo as you can call it in Grunt-Speak. This thing is amazing. 10 round detachable box magazine, bolt action, breaks open like an AR, .338 Lapua Mag, fluted barrel, low recoil, and the gun only weighs 13.5 pounds. Stunning. And the price? It's only $4,495. The line forms to the left.

I'm a huge fan of the .338LM. I had one some years ago when I was working with Cisco Systems... a Dakota Longbow topped with a Springfield scope. It was quite a rifle. I miss it... then I got to shoot an Armalite AR-30 at LRI... it too was in .338LM. Oh man was that some fun. It makes shooting at long range – easy. Makes you shoot like a hero. The .338LM has a much flatter trajectory than the .50 BMG, with less felt recoil. Unless you are planning on engaging enemy APC's... I'd roll with a .338LM. And this gun? At only 13.5 mounts... that's amazing. You can actually pack this thing around. I've packed a couple FAL rifles in .308 that are heavier than this 98 Bravo. And best of all... it looks good. It really looks cool. It's not a copy of anything... Doesn't' remind me of any other gun. It is new and unique. The accuracy is supposed to be very good. This thing is hot. Let me tell you – I want one. I want one bad. I'll never be able to afford a gun like this again... But I want one.

11-9-08:  Okay, check this out. Now that gas has dropped back down to below 2 bucks a gallon in some parts of the country – the Dem's Lord and Savior Obama MUST do something about this.  And he has plans to do just that. If he shuts down domestic oil and gas development – these prices are going to go insane.  This is going to be the pulling of the lever that sends the rest of the country circling the drain.

The Perfect Handgun: In one of my handgun reviews, I said that a certain pistol was almost perfect. For a 9mm, that statement was true. But I don't believe the 9mm is the perfect cartridge. Without launching into a long build up – I'll be blunt. The perfect cartridge for defense is the .45ACP, and the perfect platform for the cartridge is the 1911. The first model, the Government model specified a 5 inch barrel, but that length is a touch too long. The Commander length is ideal. So, in short, the perfect handgun is the 1911 Commander. There are a great many versions of this pistol. Kimber, Springfield, Wilson... everyone who makes a 1911 makes a Commander sized and they go about doing so with different names for it... but I call them all Commanders.

The one that has been my absolute favorite has been my Kimber Tactical Pro II. It's just a hair shorter than most Commanders... at four inches instead of four and a quarter. It comes with everything that I wanted in a Commander and it needed nothing else done. It is the perfect handgun.

One more thing I have to say about the Democrats. How fitting that since they fucked up the country so completely... that they have been given the task of fixing what they broke. They have 2 years. Then we will see them driven off of Capital Hill because everyone will see how wrong they have been. The Dems have the audacity to boast of their intelligence. They think they are so smart. I think they are imbeciles. We just have to hold fast for two years.

MOLON LABE!

11-8-8:  It was like Christmas Eve, but much less happy. Our sales volume was extremely high and we've not see the like of it. I personally did over 23 Thousand Dollars in Black Rifle sales. That was just me. The other guys I work with all did between 5 to 10 each themselves. It was a madhouse. We are almost completely out of black rifles. We've got a few left. Monday, probably by lunch time, the crumbs will be licked clean.

I saw it was like Christmas eve, because it was, in terms of volume... but that was it. Usually, on Christmas Eve, everyone is happy... spirits are up. But not so today. There was tension in the air... tangible apprehension. Fear that the loss of our Liberty is closing in. I believe that to be the case. I believe Obama to be cure for Freedom. I believe him to be no friend for Liberty. He promised Change... I am sure that is the one campaign promise he is going to keep.

God Damn the Democrats.

Sure, we had good sales today... made a few bucks. But let me tell you... I'd rather have had McCain and Palin win and not have sold as much as a BB Gun today. When you buy a new rifle, you should do so with a big grin in your face... not a jaw set in grim resolution. Guys who can barely keep their heads above water, buying whole cases of ammunition... untold personal sacrifice... to keep some ammo socked away... just in case. Just in case our fears or founded. Normally, such a purchase means good times for a weekend with friends. Not this time.

God Damn the Democrats.

Save the Cars? Drudge reports that the Dem's highest priority at the moment is to bail out or otherwise rescue the Auto Industry. They want to look like the saviors of the American Auto Industry... That's a laugh. It's the Democrats that put the Industry in the position it is in today. Ford, GM, Chrysler – they made cars, sure enough. But the Bread and Butter for these guys were TRUCKS. It used to be, every 6 seconds a new truck was being sold. The Dems and their asinine policy and regulations forced this Energy Crisis on to us... this drove oil prices and thus gas prices through the roofs. Obama even said he didn't care about gas prices, he was just troubled they rose so fast. This put a choke hold on truck sales. Now automakers are practically begging people to buy trucks, huge discounts and incentives and rebates... please please please come buy trucks! But it's too late. Those guys that would have purchased that truck... they can't afford to. Gas Prices crippled that, and now on top of that the housing issue and the credit issue that came with it. No one can buy a new truck right now. Everyone is too busy trying to keep their old trucks running and to pay the mortgage bill. Sure, there are some that can still buy... but they are buying economy cars. A few trucks are going out... a few people are buying them. But no one can buy enough of them to make the difference. And how sweet is this... the Democrats who made this bed the Auto Industry is sleeping in... the Democrats are going to tuck them in at night. Say good night, Nancy.

God Damn the Democrats.

11-7-08:  I decided to write a little letter to Mr Mike Duncan, Chairman of the RNC.

Mr Duncan,
I am writing you concerning this situation with Sarah Palin.  Many in the GOP have pointed fingers and have blamed her for McCain's loss.  
The way I see it, I blame McCain for Palin's loss.  She was the best thing to happen to the GOP since Reagan switched... and you guys are trying to throw her under the bus.  If the Nominee had been anyone other than McCain - the election results would have been drastically different.  Obama won most states by rather slim margins... and if you take out all the multiple votes and other cheating the Democrats got away with... We could have taken it.
I say "We" only in the lightest sense of the word, because I am new to the Republican Party.  I joined it this year, having been Independent and Libertarian for most of my voting life.
Leave Sarah Palin alone.   She is the reason the Republicans did as well as they did.  The GOP put up the weakest candidate, and the results are deserved.  The Democrats have been moving further to the Left, while the Republicans have been trying to fill that void  and take that middle ground.
Well, let me tell you.  Your base doesn't want the middle ground.  We want strong Conservatives.  We don't want Moderates.  We don't want Centrists.  We want strong conservative values.  Fundamental conservative values.  Core conservative values. 
And we wanted Palin.
Tell your attack dogs to put the long knives away.  She's the future of your party.
Sincerely,
George H Hill IV
The Ogre of MadOgre.com and WeTheArmed.com.

I'll let you know if we get anything back. This situation with Palin is pissing me off. They are making personal attacks on this woman and it's disgusting. Palin was heroic when McCain was a flaccid puss. I think it would be fantastic if everyone out there could write similar letters. Check this out... the Contacts page for the GOP. Let everyone there get a copy of your letter. 

This is why I like the PMAG from Magpul. 

Contact FBMG to get yours.

Okay, this is the second time I'm going to do this... for some reason I closed out of everything last night without saving it to the webserver and I didn't save the document that I initially wrote it in. Double failure. Let's get it right this time. The Shoutmix widget you guys are loving has been full of comments that deserve better attention that a quick reply back. So let me answer them as best as I can.

Q: Jay.Mac Just a heads up- Obama wants to make the AWB permanent- and he has a Dem majority at his back. See his Change.gov website.

A: Yup, this is something we have seen coming. Remember back when I used to have up on my site, “We have two years to get all the guns we want”? Well, now it's crunch time. Get your guns now, while you can. Because they will be going away. With hope, they can try it, and the SCOTUS will step in and save our asses. I hope.

Q: Trent Does the .308 SCAR Take propriatary mags? Or what?

A: Honestly I don't know yet. I'd imagine so.

Q : SonofASniper Obama got his first intelligence brief today. I hope he aged 10 years and puked his breakfast while realizing he just won more than he bargained for.

A: No he wont. He'll just shrug and say “That's above my pay grade.”

Q: Bigjake Ogre, which rifle would you go with given a choice, the new SIG or the SCAR?

A: This is a good question... In short, the SIG 556. Now let me explain why... The SCAR won the SOCOM contract for the new military rifle. Unfortunately they are on the verge of losing that contract because the SCAR is having some issues. The details of which, I can't say. But this is one of the reasons they are also releasing the SCAR Heavy version when before they had said they would not do so... they want you to buy the FNAR rifle instead. Well, since they are going to lose the SOCOM contract, they need some more funds, and the SCAR H is the most anticipated new rifle to come out in ages. I don't know if the SCAR H, or the 17S as they are going to be calling it has the same issues... lets assume it does. But this is neither here nor there. So the SCAR has some issues. The SIG 556 rifle does not. It's a proven design, tweeked for the US market to accept our AR style magazines. This is the best possible scenario for us. And the SIG is a hell of a lot cheaper. If you like that SCAR, the SIG 556 SWAT is in a similar configuration as far as rails go. While the SWAT is more expensive, you could get the base model, and then the rails later only 250 bucks, and your a couple hundred off the SWAT model... and much much cheaper than the FN. I really love my SIG. Absolutely... and I'm missing it. Joe at FBMG has it duracoated, but the money I was going to use for that went to my knee surgery. My deductible doubled. I need to sell some PFI scopes now. Now the other option is the Bushmaster ACR or Magpul Masada... The Masada has all the hallmarks of a great rifle, but it's still kind of an unknown quantity.

Q : Bigjake I just got new Kel tech PLR 16 on a whim...

A: Be sure to give us a full report on WTA.

Q: Radhnoti Another prediction...when the auto industry fails it'll be another bail out situation. "We can't let all those union members go jobless!"

A: No, Obama will bail out the auto industry, be the hero of all the union workers and insure his second term.

11-05-08:  I am becoming my old self again. For the last 2 years, I've been virtually crippled by my legs. You guys know what I did today? I cut and chopped a cord of wood. Before my surgery, there was no way I could have done that. None. Also, in this last two years, I've lost weight. Dropped a pants size. The combination of these two factors, man... I tell ya... I feel like my old self again. Not just my old self... but my old self from like 8 years ago or more. I don't even remember when I felt this good. Sure, my blood sugar is fucked up, I'm going grey, and I have liver spots on my feet like I went running through puddles of tanning crème, and I can't sleep through the night without having to get up to piss... but still.  I feel great.

Okay, Democrats. You have won this battle. You now have a firm imperial grip on every aspect of the Government. This is extremely dangerous not just for America as a whole, but for you as a party. Because now that you have full control, you now have the means and ability to prove to us that you are right, that you know how to govern and prove us wrong. Because I think your a bunch of fucking idiots and I think you are going to prove yourselves fools and traitors... but please... prove me wrong. You have 2 years to prove yourselves.  Then we will have the Mid Term elections and we will see the power come back to balance. Where it should be.  You have the chance to prove me wrong and you right. So get to it. We will remember your promises and expect you to fulfill them. One word of warning. You come for my guns, you'll get the barrel end first.

Here is my predictions. The unemployment rate is going to skyrocket. The economy is going to get a hell of a lot worse because gas prices, and the prices of everything is going to go through the roof because “Corporations” are going to be taxed. The auto industry and the energy industry is going to face stiff and unreasonable regulations and it's going to crush them. The Government is going end up Federalizing a large portion of the energy industry. Liberals are going to force small, grandfathered coal power plants to install expensive scrubbers to clean up their carbon emissions... which means your power bills are going to go up – a lot.

What we need to do: We can not give up the fight. This was a battle, but the war rages on. A set back, not a defeat. Conservatives will not roll over and we have to FORCE those pussies in Congress that call themselves Republicans to knock off with the “Moderate” bullshit and to start being conservative. Bill Clinton got in office, and two years later we took the House and the Senate. We should plan on that again two years from now. This means we have to get the Republican Party to unfuck themselves, and get new candidates ready to stand up.

Why did we really lose? Because we put forth a Republican Candidate that looked like a Democrat and no one could really see the difference. Palin was awesome, absolutely awesome. But McCain was weak and tired by comparison. Our next candidate is going to have to be young, good looking, and charismatic. Because it really doesn't matter what they do or say as long as they are good looking and charismatic. No more flaccid old guys. We need a guy that looks like Brad Pitt up there. Young, handsome, tanned, and solid conservative. We need a rock star. The Democrats put up a rock star, and they won... it's time we do the same thing. But at the same time we need our Conservative side to be a hard core Conservative and none of this “reaching across the isle” BS in hopes that the Democrats will cut them some slack... because they never have and they never will. There is no compromise with Democrats – because we are always the ones that give something up and they never do. The Republicans are fragmented, while the Democrats universally speak with one voice. The two Dems that didn't follow the party line got themselves ousted. Zell Miller and Joe Lieberman... The GOP needs to start kicking ass like that. No more of this “Maverick” bullshit. I hope with McCain's defeat we see McCain fade out as soon as possible. He had a good run... now it's time for him to go away. Palin on the other hand, I hope she comes back again. She's the type of Republican that needs to be supported. We need more like her.  

Let's not lose our heads... keep cool, keep collected, and let any anger you feel turn in to cold resolve to be used in two years.

Some good news: FN is releasing the SCAR rifle to civilians, in two forms. The SCAR 16S, which we have called the SCAR Light... and the SCAR 17S, which has been called previously, the SCAR Heavy. The 17S is of course the .308 version, which was the most anticipated rifle I've ever seen in my life.

11-4-08: 

11-3-08: Palin vs Biden: Sarah Palin, looking hot in a pair of jeans... a look we've never seen Hillary try... pulls in 18,000 fans... and leaves to the song by Gretchen Wilson, “Redneck Woman”. How freaking awesome is that? Joe Biden on the other hand, only manages to bring in 400 people.

Guys, the polls are slanted to discourage us.  Please pay them no heed and only take it as a sign that we need to hold fast... we need to get out and vote.  No matter who you are, or where you are... get out and vote and be heard... Vote a Straight Republican ticket this time.  No write ins, no games, no second guesses... vote these Dems to hell.  Bring your friends to the polls.  Bring co-workers to the polls.  Because online polls, zogby polls all that crap doesn't matter.  The only poll that matters is the one in the voting booth on election day.  Make that one MEAN something.  Vote out all the Dems.  The ones in congress especially... those asshats have run our country into the ground this last 2 years and with a 9% approval rating, we can see even Democrats are not happy with them.  This gives us an opportunity.  Vote those clowns back home.  GET OUT AND VOTE!.

I love the middle finger she gave to the Liberals... while leaving, she had Gretchen Wilson's Redneck Woman blasting. How awesome is that? Sarah Palin is the Coolest politician to come around since Teddy Roosevelt... and she's a hell of a lot better looking.

(and I just have to say that Redneck Woman is hot as shit)

Obama = Leadership Fail: I think that in order to be an effective President of the United States, one should have certain attributes and skills. He should have a basic understanding of economics, global geography, understanding of infrastructure, and foreign relations. Obama doesn't have any of these attributes. Obama thought we have 57 states. Fail. Obama wanted to meet with foreign terror-state leaders without preconditions... which means appeasement. Fail. Obama wants to “spread the wealth”. Fail. Obama wants to bankrupt the coal industry. Fail. He wants those who are building power plants to go bankrupt. Fail. He wants us to have higher gas prices, so we can't afford to drive to work. Fail. He want to take care of all of us, yet his family, including favorite aunties he wrote about in his very thin biography, lives in slums. Fail. He cant make hard decisions, so he just votes “present”. Fail. He can't say when “life begins” or when a baby gets human rights... because that's “above his pay grade”. Fail. He refused to wear a flag pin until polls showed he should. Fail. He refused to put his hand over his heart during the National Anthem. Fail. He says that if you don't want to pay higher taxes, your selfish. Fail. He claims to have a lifetime of accomplishments, yet no one can name one. Fail. He wants to be our President? Fail.

Rock River Arms: One of the better AR makers out there has also been known to make some damn fine 1911's. In fact, I would rate their 1911's as some of the very best out there. Unfortunately RRA has recently killed off their production of 1911 handguns. They are still going to make the ones they have on order – but they are not taking orders for any more of them. This is too bad. I know the 1911 industry is pretty dang crowded and it takes a long time to make your name known... but RRA does an outstanding pistol. I was saddened when I found this out. But yet, I see hope. RRA is expanding their facilities. I hope RRA uses this expansion in some way to continue to produce their version of the classic 1911 pistol and expand their offerings of it.

11-2-08:  I really can't see how this nutjob, Obama, has gotten to where he is. He wants to bankrupt the Coal industry. What a moron. Guys – that's half of the power generated in this country. Half. So just go ahead and imagine your home electricity bills – more than doubled. Think gas prices have effected things? Just wait. Obama is an idiot and has no place being a Senator let alone being the President. His policy ideas will kill America. He's a Socialist, he's an economic moron, and he is flat out dangerous. He's been compared to Jimmy Carter... my hell... he makes Jimmy Carter look good.

11-1-08:  Small Trucks: I was called out about Small Trucks. I've made no comment about them and it seems as if I've almost totally ignored them. This was not intentional, I assure you. If I didn't need the internal room for my boys, I would have been all over a smaller pickup. Let's start with the Toyota Tacoma. You can get it in a 4x4, with a V-6, and it's going to still give you 20 miles per gallon and you can still tow 6500 pounds. That's fantastic.

Ford has their Sport Trac, which is a like a 4 door Ranger... cute little truck, comfortable, lots of room inside, and it has a bed that is perfect for small loads or a couple dogs. Not much else though... Try moving what I've moved recently, and you would be taking multiple trips. The Ranger its self is almost a classic, but it's also a touch too small. It needs more room in the cab. That's my only complaint about the Ranger. That and Ford's SVT team hasn't revamped it. Where is the Ranger Lightning version? The Ranger GT version?

GMC has the Canyon and Chevy has the Colorado... these are Mid Sized trucks, a bit larger than the others, but these trucks are offered with a not just 4 cylinder option, but an I-5 option. I don't get the inline five configuration... which is actually also offered in the Hummer H3 which is a family relation to these trucks... If you want to spend a lot of money. The Isuzu i-Series is also a family relation, if you want to spend a little money... the i-370 and the i-290. The i-370 can be had with that inline 5 engine as well. I don't see why anyone would want an i-5. You get 1 more mile per gallon out of the engine, and you lose some power for it. I don't know if that's a good trade. The trucks are otherwise just fine. Good size and capacity, good looking, and they are comfortable enough to make for a fine every day driver. I like the Colorado's more aggressive looks.

How come no one is offering an inline 6? The I6 configuration isn't just a classic, but are historic winners. BMW uses that. The Ford trucks have long had them until rather recently. Toyota had that in the Supra. It's an almost bulletproof engine layout. Lots of torque, efficient, and probably the most reliable engines out there.

Dodge has their little Mini-Ram, the Dakota. This is the one smaller truck still offered with a V8 and over 300 horses. This is the hotrod of the bunch, but it doesn't give up too much economy... It only loses 2 MPG according to ratings, yet has the highest power output. I've never been a Dodge guy... I've only dealt with Fords and Chevys. But I know a lot of guys that have Dodges and they seem to be quite fond of them.

Now, looking at all these smaller trucks... the one I like the best overall... as far as looks go, reliability, capacity, and comfort. The Toyota Tacoma. With the V-6 and four wheel drive, it's unstoppable.

10-31-08:  Scariest thing I could find to post for Halloween: Obama is a religion now. It's official.

If this retarded lady was right, and I didn't have to pay for gas or a mortgage... hell, I'd want to vote for him too.

Okay, no... I still wouldn't. This is reason #8,879 of why Obama scares me. He's Black Jesus.

The second scariest thing is Event Horizon. There is a WTA Thread here.

10-30-08:  Obama is a Socialist: More than anyone else in the USA right now, the Cuban-America community that fled Castro has the clearest perspective regarding Obama and Socialism. Here is what they think about it. These folks saw the political stew brewing, saw the take over, lived through the changes, the disappearances, the arrests in the middle of the night. And they are seeing the same crap with Obama. If you were not worried before, be worried now. Obama is living nightmare for our nation. My sympathies go out to our Cuban friends... living in exile from their country... most have adopted America as their new country and good for them. But there are those that dream of returning home to Cuba. I wish them luck. Cuba is a beautiful little island nation and it deserves better than a communist dictator. We really should have done something about Castro a long time ago.

I would love to go down there with some money and buy up a bunch of those old 1950's cars they have, bring them back and restore them.

Grace Jones can't stand Palin: That sounds like a good endorsement of Palin if you ask me. Who is this freakish woman anyway? She looks like a super-villain nemesis for The Tick. She played the bad Bond chick in the worst of the worst of Roger Moore's abuse of the series... she's like a circus side show. And she can't stand Palin. You know what? That right there is reason enough to vote for McCain/Palin without knowing anything else about them.

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