Blog
Homeland security
The Best Defense
What is the best defense against a lone wolf terrorist?
Common sense makes sense — to most people. Homeland security begins in the home, and with an armed and trained citizenry.
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Law & Order
Life in a gun-free zone
NEW YORK (AP) — A brazen daylight hatchet attack against a group of police officers on a busy New York street was a terrorist act by a reclusive Muslim convert... Police were examining [the attacker's] computer for clues about a motive.
"This was a terrorist attack, certainly," [Police Commissioner William] Bratton said... [The attacker] purposely targeted four rookie New York Police Department officers... [an] officer was hit in the back of the head and fell to the ground... As the suspect raised the hatchet again, the two uninjured officers drew their weapons and fired several rounds, police said. The bullets killed the assailant and wounded a bystander... Both [victims] were [listed as] critical.
Evil incarnate neither has, nor needs, a motive.
While we have an estimated half-million radical muslims in the USA, I suspect that this guy's problem was also drug-related. Like others before him, I suspect that his record will show a history of drug abuse.
Regardless of what the experts designate as a cause, It pays to be ready to deal with people like this.
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Canada's Hero
Canada's Hero Is a Man's Man
The hero in Canada, that sergeant-of-arms, have you seen the video? I know, five minutes standing applause, House of Commons. I know, I saw it, it was stunning and I also, like everybody else, saw the video of this guy walking out of his office with a gun, five minutes later he's back after shooting the guy, like just went out for drink of water at the fountain. He's got the gun in his right hand, is walking out, does his business, you don't see that. He comes back, goes to his office, took care of the shooter, had his gun. His name is sergeant-at-arms.
How long is it gonna be before the gun control crowd goes nuts on this? "You mean somebody's armed inside the Parliament? Why, that's dangerous," blah, blah, blah. Don't put it past 'em. They won't do it today or tomorrow, and they may never, but such a response would not surprise me. Yeah, five-minute standing ovation for the guy. How'd they stop this again? What was it? A gun, right?
That's another thing. He didn't need a grief counselor, and he didn't need to go home and reflect for a couple of weeks. And they didn't send internal affairs in with a therapist to ask him, "Do you like shooting people? Are you worried you want to do more of this? Do you think maybe you're starting to like killing? Do you think maybe you ought to turn in your gun?" That's what happens. You think I'm making that up? That's exactly what happens.
If a police officer discharges their weapon, that's the first thing that happens, a shrink from IA greets 'em. "Do you think you liked it? Do you think you can really get used to shooting people? I mean, you haven't discharged your weapon very often, Officer. How do you feel? Need some time off?" It's an in-depth thing. I know they do it because they think it's the best procedure, and plus they've gotta do it to handle potential lawsuits that might come from the victim. Sorry for the lingo. But this guy is in his fifties, early sixties?
I mean, this is John Wayne. Oh, yeah, I mean I was gonna say that. I think I will say it. I was gonna hold back on saying that because it would be purposely and thus unnecessarily provocative. But he is a man's man.
He's in his office, all hell's breaking loose, there's a shooter on the loose. Oh, yeah? Well, who am I? Sergeant-at-arms. So reaches wherever his gun is, grabs it, walks out of his office, finds the guy, pow, pow, problem solved, back to his office. Reluctant hero, just doing his job. Man's man. Didn't call anybody first. Didn't consult a policy manual. Didn't call any insurance company to get the okay. Yeah, wasn't a campaign donor stuck in some position. He was a real guy and took his job, sergeant-at-arms, very seriously.
The rhetorical question in the above quote: "How'd they stop this again? What was it? A gun, right?" is worth repeating. In the USA, armed citizen's are all "Sergeant-at-arms" when duty calls.
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Weather: Hurricane Gonzalo
Hurricane Gonzalo Update
Reported by Dr. Jeff Masters of wunderground.com
Gonzalo's damage not as heavy as Fabian's of 2003
Thankfully, no one was killed on Bermuda from Gonzalo. Damage on the island was considerable, though appears to be much lower than that wrought by Category 3 Hurricane Fabian of 2003, the only hurricane to get its name retired exclusively because of its impact on the island of Bermuda. Fabian did $300 million in damage, making it the most expensive hurricane ever to hit the island. Fabian's storm surge destroyed the causeway connecting the airport to the rest of the island, and this causeway withstood Gonzalo's impact--though divers are scheduled to inspect its footings Saturday afternoon before reopening will occur. Damage at the airport was mostly minor (roof damage and minor flooding), and all the navigational infrastructure seems intact. The storm surge damaged the airport's weather sensors, though, according to the Bermuda Weather Service. According to the island's utility provider, BELCO, about 35,700 of the island's 36,000 metered homes were without power at the height of Gonzalo. Virtually all of the island's major roads were blocked by downed trees and power lines.
Gonzalo is steadily weakening as it speeds north-northeastwards towards Canada. Infrared and visible satellite loops on Saturday morning showed that Gonzalo had lost its well-defined eye, and the storm had been stretched into an elliptical shape by high wind shear. Gonzalo is still expected to have Category 1 strength winds when it makes its closest pass by Southeast Newfoundland, predicted to occur between 4 am - 6 am EDT Sunday by the 00Z Saturday runs of the GFS and European models. In their 5 am EDT Saturday Wind Probability Forecast, NHC gave Cape Race, Newfoundland a 57% chance of experiencing tropical storm-force winds, and a 1% chance of hurricane-force winds. Heavy rains from ex-Gonzalo are likely to be the main threat to Newfoundland.
The following video was recorded LIVE from PTZtv's Port Bermuda Webcam during Hurricane Gonzalo. Port Bermuda Webcam is located on the Commissioner's House at The National Museum of Bermuda in the Royal Naval Dockyard.
Weather: Hurricane Gonzalo
Category 3 Gonzalo Pounding Bermuda
Reported by Dr. Jeff Masters of wunderground.com
The winds are rising and huge waves are pounding Bermuda as powerful Category 3 Hurricane Gonzalo closes in with sustained 125 mph winds. Gonzalo is gradually weakening, thanks to wind shear that has risen to a moderate 15 knots and Sea Surface Temperatures (SSTs) that have cooled to 28°C (82°F). However, Gonzalo is not weakening fast enough to spare Bermuda from a devastating strike by a major hurricane. Infrared and visible satellite loops on Friday morning showed that Gonzalo remained an impressive hurricane with a large area of intense heavy thunderstorms, good spiral banding, and solid upper-level outflow to the north. The appearance of the storm was somewhat ragged, with the storm stretched into an elliptical shape and the eye filled with clouds. But Friday morning data from the Hurricane Hunters during their 9 am EDT eye pass showed that Gonzalo remained a dangerous Category 3 hurricane with a central pressure of 947 mb and surface winds of 125 mph. With an eye 35 miles in diameter, Gonzalo's strongest eyewall winds were spread out over an area about 45 miles across.
Bermuda links
Current conditions
Bermuda radar
Port of Bermuda webcam
Storm chaser Jim Edds is providing Twitter updates from Bermuda for Gonzalo
Edds was on Bermuda during Hurricane Fabian in 2003, and put together this 26-minute video on the experience.
Fabian did $300 million in damage, making it the most expensive hurricane ever to hit the island. Fabian was also the first hurricane since 1926 to kill people on Bermuda; four people died when a storm surge swept over the causeway connecting the airport to the rest of the island, washing their car into the ocean. That causeway was replaced by a temporary bridge, which has remained to this day--and is of particular concern for Gonzalo's impact.
Law: "Stand your ground"
The facts, ma'am, just the facts
Is it any wonder that some of the public, some police, and some prosecutors struggle with the concept of "stand your ground", i.e. 'no duty to retreat', when there are some law professors that apparently don't understand it. It's (SYG) a good law, with a sound concept, that is not difficult for most people to understand.
Recently, Andrew Branca reported:
I came across the University of Miami Law School Summer 2014 edition of their law review, and noted that it had a particular focus on Stand-Your-Ground... It did, of course, talk about several of the recent (and upcoming) self-defense cases, including Zimmerman, Dunn, and Alexander–none of which, of course, actually are Stand-Your-Ground cases...
I have to confess I didn’t make it all the way through myself, as I bumped up across an interesting factual claim [by University of Miami School of Law Professor Donna Coker] with regard to the Zimmerman trial.
Ah yes, it seems that a misunderstanding of the facts is the common denominator in these things; throw in a little emotion, and you always have a good news story...
I was invited to debate “Stand-Your-Ground” at UC Berkeley Law School... A law professor on the anti-SYG side asked me how Zimmerman’s conduct could have been defensible given that he got out of his car and pursued Trayvon Martin after being ordered by the 911 dispatcher not to do so...
I immediately offered her a $100 wager that her statement of fact was incorrect. She fell silent, but her debate partner, CNN Legal Analyst Sunny Hostin, fairly lunged at the opportunity: “I’ll take that bet.”
I’ve previously dealt in great detail with this issue of whether Zimmerman got out of his car contrary to police instructions. He did not.
In fact, the sequence of events as they actually occurred is:
(1) Zimmerman informed the dispatcher that Martin had fled from sight around the corner of a building.
(2) The dispatcher asked Zimmerman where Martin was running to.
(3) Unable to observe Martin from his vehicle, Zimmerman exited the vehicle and set out on foot to look around the corner of the building.
(4) The dispatcher, sensing that Zimmerman had exited his vehicle, asked Zimmerman if he was following Martin.
(5) Zimmerman affirmed that he was.
(6) The dispatcher advised Zimmerman, “We don’t need you to do that.”
(7) Zimmerman responded, “OK,” and began returning back to his vehicle.On the way back to his vehicle Zimmerman concluded his call with 911. It was then that Zimmerman and Martin had their fateful encounter.
Mr. Branca extended some professional courtesy to Professor Coker in an attempt to help her get her facts straight. We'll have to see if that has a better result than his wager with Sunny Hostin.
I've posted the link before, but if anyone has the time, and would like to watch the Zimmerman v. State of Florida trial, gavel to gavel, it can be found at this link.
/fl
Hunter Safety
Free hunter safety course offered in Santa Rosa County, FL
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is offering a free hunter safety course in Santa Rosa County.
The class is at Avalon Middle School, 5445 King Arthur's Way, Milton. Instruction is from 6-10 p.m. Oct. 21, 23, 28 and 30. The range portion of the class is Nov. 1 from 7-10 a.m.
An adult must accompany children under the age of 16 at all times. Students should bring a pencil and paper with them to take notes.
Anyone born on or after June 1, 1975, must pass an approved hunter safety course and have a hunting license to hunt alone (unsupervised). The FWC course satisfies hunter-safety training requirements for all other states and Canadian provinces.
People interested in attending this course can register online and obtain information about future hunter safety classes at www.MyFWC.com/HunterSafety or by calling Hunter Safety Coordinator Will Burnett at the FWC's regional office in Panama City at 850-265-3676.
Guns & Public Health
NSSF Poll: 'Gun Violence' Not a Public Health Issue
An overwhelming majority of Americans agree that the misuse of guns in violent crimes is a matter for the criminal justice system, not a public health issue. They also believe that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) should not spend resources on the study of "gun violence" but instead should concentrate on viruses and disease. These findings are among the results of a national scientific poll commissioned by the National Shooting Sports Foundation to determine whether adults share the view of some gun control organizations and activists that the use of guns in crime, for which they use the short-hand "gun violence," is a public health issue. Now we have an answer and it is a resounding "no." Read the Townhall.com story.
For safer streets
Bumming Around
I gave the lady in the video money the other day because she holding a sign that said 78 year old widow needs money for food. Yesterday I pulled up to the Shell on the same corner and saw her sitting in this cute, little Fiat. As I'm sitting there thinking "I got scammed by a little old lady", a man approached her car.....and this is what happened...
This story has received widespread coverage. It illustrates how foolish it is to give money to any person standing at an intersection holding a sign. If you feel compelled to "help the homeless," there are usually shelters in most municipal areas, any one of which that will gladly receive your donation and see that it's put to good use. Then you can, with a clear conscience, refer any "bum" to the shelter.
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Home Security
Totalitarians target Connecticut home-schoolers
We deal primarily with the physical sanctity of the home when we talk about home defense, but the intellectual sanctity of the home is under attack as well. A war with two fronts, physical security and intellectual security are both vital and vulnerable. This article by touches on how the two are connected.
The sanctity of the home, and the ability to defend it, are vital to freedom.
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Left for dead
Canadian hunter discovers 20 puppies during moose hunt
A Canadian hunter stepped out looking to bag a moose... Greg Zubiak was on his annual hunt when he said some movement up ahead [caught his attention.]
"As I walked up, they all just kind of looked at me and I guess my moose hunt was over"
A good day for both moose and pups!
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NICS
Commercial Gun Sales in September
Data from the NSSF (National Shooting Sports Foundation):
- NSSF-ADJUSTED NICS BACKGROUND CHECKS . . . The September 2014 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 1,024,272 is the second highest September on record for the 16-year-old system, even with a decrease of 1.0 percent compared to the September 2013 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,034,701. For comparison, the unadjusted September 2014 NICS figure of 1,447,485 reflects a 4.0 percent increase from the unadjusted NICS figure of 1,392,423 in September 2013.
Over one million law-abiding citizens voluntarily paid a $5.00 fee last month, for nothing more than to prove that they are scrupulous. That's over $5M bucks to placate the bureaucracy! And yet there are people still worried about gun owners being a threat to society... They should be more worried about the people that didn't pass a NICS last month!
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