Thursday, December 13, 2007

Someone to Watch Over Me

The Pentagon is about to embark on a stunningly ambitious research project designed to gather every conceivable bit of information about a person's life, index all the information and make it searchable.

What national security experts and civil libertarians want to know is, why would the Defense Department want to do such a thing?

What kind of mind would want to have such control over other minds?

And what kind of mind could read about this and conclude the Second Amendment is no longer relevant, and government really should have monopoly of power, that is, complete control over us?

As an aside, this reminds me of nothing so much as the opening paragraph in "The War of the Worlds."

[Via Jeffrey H]

Chuck Goudie Delivers as Promised

No surprises here...

No "laws" broken by the gun shops either, but that doesn't stop this despicable police state apologist from making it seem that way.

So much for "government watchdogs."

Chicago "Authorized Journalists." They really do make guys like Goebbels seem like primitive amateurs.

Today's Red's Update



Questions for BATFU: You really expect us not to think this is a vendetta you're conducting against Ryan Horsley and his family business because he dared to stand up to you instead of baring his throat and letting you kill him? Who the hell is up at 4:30 AM doing Internet searches for "reds trading post news" except someone obsessed with trying to find...anything...to use against him?

This is the kind of stuff you expect to see in a criminal investigation. I'd like to see someone explain this web search and their motives--under oath.

In other Red's news, Ryan has a warning for Curios and Relics holders: Don't think the eye of Sauron hasn't noticed you...

He also posts some good news in the ongoing effort to deny confirmation to Maximum Mike. For a reason that totally escapes me, some are discouraging gun owners from participating in this, and I think that's unnecessary and destructive. It's not like asking people to send an email or letter to their senators is going to break anybody's back in terms of effort. If they don't want to support this, fine, that's their business--but why they feel a need to derail the efforts of those who wish to participate is something I don't understand.

We'll see if it's a lost cause--two senators disagree with you, and even if it is, what does it gain us to give any ground without a fight? It's not like if we lose this that we've lost any more than a few minutes apiece writing letters--and the gun groups ask us to do that all the time.

What I do know is, all the major "gun groups" --except NRA, the "leader"-- have taken a position on this. I know Fairfax knows about this, so that means they're choosing to be silent. They can't claim this would overwhelm their resources, as they put out alerts anyway, and all it would take is a paragraph or two asking their members to contact their senators. So without a break in their silence, I can only assume their priority is not pissing off the 4 am lurkers and impairing their access to the BATFU hierarchy.

This Day in History: December 13

As Maj. General William Howe entered winter quarters on December 13, 1776, Lt. General Charles Cornwallis now received permission to halt his advance at the Delaware River. Howe, supported by Maj. General Henry Clinton, wanted to pull his line of defense to between Brunswick and Newark. However, Cornwallis convinced Howe to extend the lines for several reasons. The Americans were considered a minimal threat to the distant garrisons and lines of communication. Pulling back would make the British appear weak and unable to maintain positions. Such a move would also deprive New Jersey Loyalists of military protection during the winter.