The Politics of Hate

I hate...

I hate...

I hate...

And that's just the first three paragraphs.

Well golly, Mary Mitchell--doesn't that make your column "hate speech"?

Not that it should surprise anyone...

From the Ivory Towers of Higher Learning

Law Prof Presidential Campaign Contributions: 95% to Obama, 5% to McCain

I trust no one is surprised that academia is cranking out brainwashed little twits like Barbie...?

Law professors. Think about what that means.

More Guns Are Not the Answer

Well, I dunno, Barbie.

Like its "war" counterpart, don't you think that might depend on the question?

Still, I'm willing to hear you out. What's your rationale?

Even if people were given a greater opportunity to defend themselves with guns, it would not stop people from being killed. Think about it: If someone kills another person in defense of their own life, their attacker is dead. A life would be saved, but one would be lost, too. It is not our job to determine whose life is more valuable.

OK, Barbie. I've thought about it. You've made your qualifications to offer advice on this more than clear.

And I think you win. Academia and law enforcement side with you: it's their job to determine whose life is more valuable. And ultimately, they're willing to kill anyone who defies the mandate foolish little girls like you have given them.

"Not Properly Bound"

I received the following email. By way of caveat, I have not personally verified this information, but my source has proven reliable in the past. I am told the principal may be willing to come forward and identify himself if they actively try to remove his license, but for now wishes to avoid the revenge this would surely prompt if he removes the mask.

----------------------------------

He wishes this to be in no way connected to his name, but he'd like the story out.

He would like to be described as a Southern/Southwestern 20+ year long Type One FFL holder. Never been cited for anything ever ever ever before. Occasional gunsmith and does some trading on the gun show circuit. He's getting on in years and doesn't get out and around as much anymore. Happens with age.

BATFOO appeared on his doorstep last week unexpectedly and for the first time in 23 years requesting to look at EVERYTHING, including personal firearms. Cited him for "improper bound book" even though he has been using the "bound book" pages and binders that Brownell's has sold for years..."not good enough, not properly bound". Checked the serial numbers on everything both inventory and personal. Some of his collectors pieces pre-date mandatory serial numbering and have none, which caused an issue with the "inspector". He was also cited for "lack of significant business activity" whatever that means, and it was "implied" they are going to consider revoking his license and are planning to come back to look for further infractions "soon", whatever in hell that means.

He deals primarily in high-end collectables and high-end shotguns, so his inventory turnover isn't very high, it's quite low actually, but it is a business, not a hobby. It's a limited market. He does and has done ABSOLUTELY NO EVIL BLACK RIFLE gunsmithing or sales, NO HIGH CAP PISTOLS, "SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIALS", etc, and has never had any interest in military rifles post M1 Garands/M-14s, and didn't like M1/14s much, outside of shooting them very well in Marine Corps Military Rifle matches and in actual combat when he was in the service Korea/Vietnam, he's mostly always been a bolt rifle and bird hunting oriented High End Shotgun guy (Think Browning Citori and up to and including Holland and Holland) who perosnally likes German and Belgian pistols of the WW I era, GI early 1911s (NO-MODERN-HI-CAP/RACE-GUN STUFF), and .22 Match Pistols of the Ultra High End Bullseye-Olympic variety.

He was a competitive shooter of the Pre-IPSC/IDPA "bullseye" generation, and has no knowledge or interest of the modern stuff other than the blather that's more or less advertisements in the National Rifleman that comes in the mail each month.

Now he's a possible criminal?

Utah Gungrabbers to Bring Back Frontier Days

"The issue of restrictions on guns in terms of carrying should be left up to local control," Hatch said. "I believe in the Old West thing - there's a sign at the front of the town saying, 'Check your guns before you enter.' "

I've seen variations of this statement before and suspect much of it is movie fiction assumed to be true. I'd heard that the Earps imposed disarmament in Tombstone, but I don't know how much of that is movie lore vs actual historically-recorded law. I did find this reference to the "Dead Line" in Dodge. Brutal--shooting armed citizens on sight "if an officer was so inclined, and meant certain arrest." That's what Utah's latter day gungrabbers seem intent on emulating.

I confess ignorance here, and wonder who has done research on gun control in the Old West to know if this was a common occurrence or a rarity, and whether or not local edicts would have been backed by state or territorial law if challenged. Is there an authority on frontier gun laws?

I put the question to Clayton Cramer, who offered:

I've long been curious about this. It is clearly the case that some frontier law officers imposed such rules to deal with drunken cowboys. I don't know how common such laws were; they have left very little case law for the Wild West era. There is a bit of case law from the close of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century--and generally, local laws completely banning carrying of guns didn't do well. For example, Lewiston, Idaho, had a ban on carrying of guns in town, struck down by the Idaho Supreme Court case In re Brickey (Ida. 1902).

State v. Rosenthal (Vt. 1903) struck down a similar Rutland ordinance. City of Salina v. Blaksley (Kan. 1905) is one of the relatively few such bans of that period that survived court challenge. You can find other examples of the period in _For the Defense of Themselves and the State_.

The Human Factor

Jones shows that the CIA is not doing its basic job, penetrating our enemies’ organizations and getting their people to work with us. One of The Human Factor’s most surprising revelations is that, despite all the hue and cry about the need for more and better human intelligence, despite the billions of dollars that have been poured into this project, we don’t have any more case officers today than we did back when. So where did all the money go? It went to create a domestic empire right here in the United States.

Well, uh, yeah...

We "Homegrown Terrorists" are basically a peaceable lot. I'm not aware of one recorded case where we've sawed anybody's head off and posted the video to the Internet.

Safety first.

Anybody who wants to go home at the end of their shift knows that.

[Via Michael G]

Why Herbivores Don't Top the Food Chain

Scientists have discovered that going veggie could be bad for your brain-with those on a meat-free diet six times more likely to suffer brain shrinkage

Yeah, but on the other hand, it gives you huge...uh...what I meant to say is this may explain Pamela Anderson...

New Research vs Old-Fashioned Know-How

“Officers often feel they are prey and that there’s nothing much they can do about it. We need to alter that mind-set.”

Yeah, taking the paranoia and the us vs. them "Only Ones" worldview out of their community relations would be an improvement.

According to Smith, about 85% of the counts in federal indictments brought against terrorists in the U.S. relate to precursor activities, such as manufacturing silencers, failing to pay tax on explosive devices, converting semi-auto to fully automatic weapons, and illegal immigration.

Now hold on just a dang minute--aside from that last part, I'm wondering who the people who ought to feel like prey are...

And research by policy wonks notwithstanding, I keep coming back to "uneducated" Muhammad and Malvo keeping an entire region of LEO's at all levels in blind, Moose-headed befuddlement for weeks. In the end, it was their own arrogance that allowed a citizen to call in their whereabouts.

[Via Carl S]

Summer in the City

CBS 2 Chicago will be tracking all reported shootings between Memorial Day and Labor Day--considered the unofficial summer season in the city. Shootings marked in red are fatal.

Maybe they should ban guns or something.

Forget it Jake, it's Chi-Town.

[Via Zachary G]

This Day in History: September 15

We are infested by Ministerial Ships and Transports—I gave your Commissary General a Narrative yesterday—beg leave to refer you to him, from the haste of this Express—Our Coasts are kept in continual Alarm, Three Ships of War with thirteen other Vessels of divers sorts were seen off Fisher’s Island and in the Sound yesterday, they have gained no provisions from the Main—have heard nothing from Montaug or any part of Long-Island—New London is in great fears, and Stonington expect another Attack...