Quote of the Day - Lawdog Edition

Personally, I think Loyalty Day should follow in the footsteps of our ancestors and involve fire. A Big Fire. A Big Fire in front of various State and Federal Capitals, and involving the ceremonial burning of effigies. Dancing and flowers mandatory; drinking and partying encouraged; and fertility rites optional.

To my mind I'm thinking that watching papier maiche versions of themselves burned at the stake every year would go a nice way towards reminding various political critters of where their loyalties better damn-well stay.

-- The LawDog Files, Beltane

Can I get an "AMEN!"?

The Economy in Rifle Prices

A fascinating (for gunnies) economics article from The Market Oracle: It Can't Happen in America?  It Already Did! Excerpts:

I am sure more than one Southern gentleman desired to own the Spencer rifle to protect his hearth and home during this era, but the 1866 Spencer Repeating Arms Catalog shows the rifle in the 44 caliber retailed for a whopping $45.00.

To a present day buyer this may not sound like a lot but let’s put this in perspective; a frame of reference, which will remain constant throughout the rest of the article.

In 1866, according to nber.org, the average weekly wage of working Americans was $41.18, (adjusted to 1866 dollar), with the average work week being estimated at sixty-four hours. The results were an hourly wage of $0.64. With this in mind it would take a worker dedicating everything they earned from 70 hours of labor to purchase a Spencer rifle.

--

In 1870 the Montgomery Wards catalog (of 1870,) advertised the Sharps (?) 7 shot repeating rifle at $50.00 still requiring the American worker to dedicate 59.25 hours a 15% reduction in hours needed to work before purchasing the rifle.

--

The 1876 Winchester catalog shows the least expensive standard New Model ‘73’ Sporting Rifle with 24 inch barrel in the 44 caliber sold for $45.00; requiring the purchaser to contribute his earning from slightly more than 47 hours of toil before claiming it, as opposed to 70 hours in 1866.

--

As the end of 1880 approached Winchester Repeating Arms August catalog reports that the Model 73 had been reduced in price by 33% to $30.00 from $45.00 in 1876. The American buying public now was able, with less then twenty-nine and a half hours of labor to purchase a Winchester, down nearly 58% from 1866.

I won't give away the conclusion.  Instead, I urge you to give it a read. 

Carry Your Gun

It's a much lighter burden than regret. - Breda

So a couple of young reporters were beaten by a mob:

Wave after wave of young men surged forward to take turns punching and kicking their victim.

The victim's friend, a young woman, tried to pull him back into his car. Attackers came after her, pulling her hair, punching her head and causing a bloody scratch to the surface of her eye. She called 911. A recording told her all lines were busy. She called again. Busy. On her third try, she got through and, hysterical, could scream only their location.

When seconds count, the police are only minutes away!

May Victims of Communism Day

Today is the fourth annual Victims of Communism Day, a day to remember the people murdered by their own governments in their quest to achieve a "worker's paradise" where everyone is equal, where "to each according to his needs, from each according to his abilities" is the beautiful dream lie.  R.J. Rummel, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the University of Hawaii, has calculated that the total number of victims of Communism - that is, the domestic victims of their own governments - in the USSR, China, Vietnam, North Korea and Cambodia is 98.4 million people.  For all Communist governments during the 20^th Century, he puts the estimate at approximately 110 million.  And this wasn't in warfare against other nations, this was what these governments did to their own people - "breaking eggs" to make their utopian omlette.

Six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, and another six million people the Nazis decided were "undesirable" went with them.  "Never again" is the motto of the modern Jew, and many others just as dedicated.  But "again and again and again" seems to be the rebuke of history.

The Communists are hardly alone in these crimes.  Rummel estimates that the total number of people murdered by their own governments during the 20^th Century is on the close order of 262 million, but the single biggest chunk of that truly frightening number is directly due to one pernicious idea:  That we can make people better.

Why do I own guns?  For a number of reasons, but one of them is this:

And how we burned in the camps later, thinking: What would things have been like if every Security operative, when he went out at night to make an arrest, had been uncertain whether he would return alive and had to say good-bye to his family? Or if, during periods of mass arrests, as for example in Leningrad, when they arrested a quarter of the entire city, people had not simply sat there in their lairs, paling with terror at every bang of the downstairs door and at every step on the staircase, but had understood they had nothing left to lose and had boldly set up in the downstairs hall an ambush of half a dozen people with axes, hammers, pokers, or whatever else was at hand?  --  Alexandr Solzhenitzyn, The Gulag Archipelago

--

The Second Amendment is a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare circumstances where all other rights have failed - where the government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get to make only once. -- Judge Alex Kozinski, dissenting, Silveira v. Lockyer, denial to re-hear en banc, 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals, 2003.

I intend to repeat this post each May 1 that I continue to run this blog.  This is the third time I have put it up.

Last year, Sipsey Street Irregulars had a post to go along with this one.  STRONGLY RECOMMENDED.

May Victims of Communism Day

Today is the fourth annual Victims of Communism Day, a day to remember the people murdered by their own governments in their quest to achieve a "worker's paradise" where everyone is equal, where "to each according to his needs, from each according to his abilities" is the beautiful dream lie.  R.J. Rummel, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the University of Hawaii, has calculated that the total number of victims of Communism - that is, the domestic victims of their own governments - in the USSR, China, Vietnam, North Korea and Cambodia is 98.4 million people.  For all Communist governments during the 20^th Century, he puts the estimate at approximately 110 million.  And this wasn't in warfare against other nations, this was what these governments did to their own people - "breaking eggs" to make their utopian omlette.

Six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, and another six million people the Nazis decided were "undesirable" went with them.  "Never again" is the motto of the modern Jew, and many others just as dedicated.  But "again and again and again" seems to be the rebuke of history.

The Communists are hardly alone in these crimes.  Rummel estimates that the total number of people murdered by their own governments during the 20^th Century is on the close order of 262 million, but the single biggest chunk of that truly frightening number is directly due to one pernicious idea:  That we can make people better.

Why do I own guns?  For a number of reasons, but one of them is this:

The Second Amendment is a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare circumstances where all other rights have failed - where the government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get to make only once. -- Judge Alex Kozinski, dissenting, Silveira v. Lockyer, denial to re-hear en banc, 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals, 2003.

I intend to repeat this post each May 1 that I continue to run this blog.

And, if you've got a spare 51 minutes, I recommend strongly that you watch this lecture, "Why Socialism?"

Just to Emphasise that I Am Not an Objectivist

The most recent XKCD:




The rollover text says:

I had a hard time with Ayn Rand because I found myself enthusiastically agreeing with the first 90% of every sentence, but getting lost at "therefore, be a huge asshole to everyone."

And she's a terrible novelist. Excellent essayist, but terrible novelist.

Recycling

Robb's got a great meme going on the Republican bumpersticker format, but I'm not as creative or talented as he is. What I am good at is recycling other people's ideas. Here's one from the depths of 2009, done by Bubba of What Bubba Knows that pretty much says what Robb's stickers say without using a single word:

Yeah, that about says it all.

Except the RINO should be fucking a map of the United States.

The OWS Philosophy In Action

Dr. Sarah "Stickwick Stapers" sent me a link to this video. I think it's quite appropriate here the day before the Left "celebrates" Victims of Communism Day. Watch it all the way to the end for the payoff:




Tomorrow may illustrate an interesting variant on this behavior.

I Feel Better Now

You know, as a blogger, you're just not sure if you're reaching anyone unless you get some negative feedback from time to time.

I received an email this afternoon from one "Chris Carlsen" - no subject line, just two sentences of missive and a sigline:

Your(sic), sir, are a fucking idiot.  Good day.

"Beauty is truth, truth beauty,--that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know." Ode on a Grecian Urn, 49-50.

I replied:

Good to know you care!  Don't be a stranger.  Keep in touch.

Kevin

I have no idea just what offended him enough to fire off, but hey, I must be doing something right!

Quote of the Day - Education Edition

Very few people complete a math or engineering major without learning a lot of math and engineering, but it’s entirely possible to major in the humanities and never learn to read, write, or reason with any rigor. The problem isn’t inherent to the subject matter, it’s a symptom of professorial self-indulgence and laziness, together with the lack of external scrutiny, a problem that is much, much worse in humanities than in STEM. - Glenn Reynolds

OK, So I Wanna Build an AR

I put my order in today for a "Fill Your Hands You Son of a Bitch" York Arms stripped AR-15 lower, and I want to build a .50 Beowulf .458 SOCOM on it.

I've never built an AR.  I don't have a bench vise, but I can pick one up from Harbor Freight fairly cheaply.  I know Brownell's or somebody had a series of videos on building your own AR, but I haven't been able to find them.  I've checked both Brownell's and Midway and they are out of stock on AR-15 lower parts kits.  I don't want to buy an Alexander Arms complete upper, I'd like to build an upper based on this 18" AR-Stoner stainless barrel. I'm going to buy a Rock River complete upper.

I have a stock wrench and standard hand tools. So what other tools will I need?

UPDATED:  I've decided to go .458 SOCOM instead.  Thanks for all the suggestions and recommendations!

But He's a BIRCHER!

Robert Welch's 1974 speeches at the John Birch Society Council Dinner. A paranoid crazy? Give him a listen:



Found at Francis Porretto's Liberty's Torch.

Mystery Political Theater 2012

Andrew Klavan and Bill Whittle fisk Obama's campaign film:

Want!

Found at AR15.com

Theory and Reality Are Only Theoretically Related

And Love of Theory is the Root of All Evil:

Once a Month Until the Election

Dallas Blogshoot AAR

Sorry I'm late with this, but here it is.

I left Tucson Thursday afternoon about 4:30 with the intention of stopping in El Paso. I got to Deming, NM before I decided I'd better stop. That was about 8PM Mountain Time. I left Deming the next morning about 6AM, which put me in El Paso just in time for rush hour.

Aaand there was an accident on I-10 East. I spent 45 minutes to go two miles. Oh well.

I got to Arlington, TX about 5PM Central time, and met up with US Citizen at his palatial abode. I took the family out to dinner. We went to Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen. I'd never been to one before. They say everything's bigger in Texas, but for a restaurant, this place was HUGE. And FULL. The food was excellent, as was the company.

We discussed the Super Secret Shootin' Location, and I was concerned about whether the Mustang would possibly get stuck going in. There had been a significant amount of rain on Thursday, so there was some concern about the condition of the access road. So when we got back to the house, I transferred my firearms, ammo and range back from the trunk of the Mustang to the already overloaded Traction Control SUV. Then I went and got a hotel room and got some sleep.

The next morning, I waited for US Citizen to pick me up. I called him at 9:00 and he said "I'm waiting out in front!" but when I went to the front of the hotel, no SUV. He was in front of the La Quinta. I was staying at the Quality Inn. Once we got that worked out, we were on our way to the blogshoot. When we arrived at the prearranged meeting point, there were already a half-dozen people waiting. We introduced ourselves, and got acquainted around waiting for others to arrive, which they did over the next thirty minutes or so. Best line of greeting: "Are you from the internet?" "Yes, we're from the internet, and we're here to help you."  To the best of my knowledge, a total of seventeen people turned out for the shoot.  A partial list:

• The aforementioned US Citizen
• The Redneck Engineer
• Southern Belle and kx59 of Bells A Ringing
• Borepatch and Mrs. Borepatch
• The Scribbler
• Bob S. of Three Boxes of BS
• The misnamed Bikerscum
• Cormac of the not-a-blog Sovereign Screwups
• Rabbit

And there were more whose names I did not get. "Blogless" was one of them.   Chime in in the comments if I missed you.

About 10:15 we headed off to the range.  I'm pretty sure I would have had no problem getting the Mustang in and out.  Apparently the worst of the storm missed the range site.  Oh well.  What a beautiful place to go shoot!  Sixty-five acres on a branch of the Trinity River, about 100 yards across to the opposite bank, and there's a flat area about 500 yards downriver from the shooting area.  Oh, and in Texas they have these huge tall wooden things with these "leaves" that block the sun!  Imagine that, natural shade!  I wonder if we can get those here in Arizona?  We could not have ordered more perfect weather.

So, the obligatory photo dump.

I got to shoot a semi-auto M1 Thompson, and a .50AE Deagle.  I'd already shot US Citizen's Kriss SBR.  The one gun I wish I'd taken a crack at was Southern Belle's SVT-40 "Natasha."  What a beautiful piece!  As mentioned previously, I brought four rifles; my M1 Garand, M1 Carbine, LRB M25 and my M4gery.  I managed to break the M4gery.  The first couple of (blurry) photos in the slideshow are of the missing extractor hook.  It shot well for two or three magazines, but then started failing to eject.  It was failing to eject because there was no extractor hook.  Oops.  Gotta fix that.  Several people shot the Garand, and uniformly loved it.  It's cosmetically beautiful and functionally perfect, but a bit worn.  It is, after all, a Danish rack-grade return from the CMP, but it's still a lot of fun. When I finally run out of milsurp .30-06 on en bloc clips, I may just have to break down and have it rebarreled in .308.

We shot until after 3:00PM, and then packed it up for the day.  The only thing I'm bummed about on this trip is that I wasn't able to join the rest of the crew for dinner.  I was riding with US Citizen, and we were headed in a different direction from the crowd.

So I took vacation, drove about 2,000 miles round-trip and spent three nights in hotels to make this trip.  I think it was worth it.

HOME!

I pulled out of the hotel parking lot at 8:15AM Central time and pulled into my garage at 8:20PM Pacific Time - 14 hours and 5 minutes and 957 miles later. That included three stops for gas and one for food. Actual time on the road: 12 hours 52 minutes.

I'm beat. Blog Shoot AAR tomorrow. I've got the day off.

Doggerel

Jim of the blog Smoke on the Water (where he doesn't post much these days) has re-written the lyrics to that classic ditty How Much is That Doggie in the Window? and has allowed me to premier it here first at TSM:

How much is that doggie on the menu? (arf! arf!)

The one with the chicken-fried-tail

How much is that doggie on the menu? (arf! arf!)

I loves me a fried doggie tail

On Air Force One to Indonesia

Vacationing far from my home

But they’ll serve me dog, yes I’ll eat some

I’ll chew it clear down to the bone

How much is that doggie on the menu? (arf! arf!)

The one with the chicken-fried-tail

How much is that doggie on the menu? (arf! arf!)

I loves me a fried doggie tail

I know that my party are robbers

Who love to keep folks in the dark

So I’ll have me a plate of some doggie

Halal or haraam but no bark

Don’t fry me a bunny or kitty

I don’t want a bird in a wok

I don’t want a plate full of fishies

I just want some fried dog, not dog talk

How much is that doggie on the menu? (arf! arf!)

The one with the chicken-fried-tail

How much is that doggie on the menu? (arf! arf!)

I loves me a fried doggie tail

Don't blame me, I'm just the messenger!

On the Road Again

Headed out for El Paso on my way to the Dallas Blogshoot.  See everyone on Saturday!