"The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved." -- Confucius

Saturday, September 11, 2004

Gizmo Archieve

So as to avoid offending folks with my political rants and the occasional picture of boobs, and still pass on the helpful bits, I've added an archieve area to the righthand sidebar. I'll try to remember to add each new gizmo to it.

This just in from the Department of Big Friggin' Deal...

Anti-Kerry Veterans Collect Nearly $7M

WASHINGTON (AP) -- WASHINGTON - A group running ads accusing John Kerry (news - web sites) of exaggerating his decorated Vietnam War service record is nearing $7 million in contributions, thanks in part to several Republican donors.

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth has raised at least $6.7 million since it was founded in April. That includes at least $1.9 million in donations of $1,000 or more, with several coming in from people who previously gave to President Bush's re-election campaign and the GOP, according to a report the group filed Friday with the Federal Election Commission.

So frigging what?

And that's just three anti-Bush 527's. I used anti-Bush and not leftist (although they are) for a reason. To apple-and-apple the comparasion. The Swifties are an anti-Kerry organization, not a right-wing one as they would be gunning for John Kerry were he the GOP nominee.

The Swiftboat Veterans for Truth are still small potatoes compared to the hordes of left-wing 527's. The media's fixation on them is still indicative of their bias.

In Remeberance...

Friday, September 10, 2004

This just in from the Playing On Our Fears Department...

Kerry Links Assault Weapons to Terrorism

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- John Kerry linked U.S. assault weapon sales to worries about terrorism Friday and said President Bush was bowing to the National Rifle Association by not pushing to keep alive an expiring ban.

If Bush is serious about fighting terrorism, the Democratic presidential candidate said, he would extend the 10-year ban on sales of 19 kinds of semiautomatic assault weapons, due to expire on Monday.

"In the al-Qaida manual on terror, they were telling people to go out and buy assault weapons, to come to America and buy assault weapons," Kerry said.


What an utter load of horsecrap. Why in the name of all that is good and tasty in Odin's beard would terrorists schlep over to the US to buy non-assault weapon assault weapons when they can easily acquire really real assault weapons in Africa, the former Soviet Union, or the Middle East?

Senator Kerry is, to paraphrase former VP Gore, playing on our fears!

For those not in the know, the assault weapons that the so-called "assault weapons ban" banned were not assault weapons at all. Assault weapons, by definition, are rifles capable of automatic fire that fire intermediate-powered cartridges.

That is to say, they fire rounds more powerful than a pistol cartridge (like a .45ACP), yet less powerful than a rifle cartridge (like a .30-'06) and do so in a manner that one pull of the trigger continues to fire the weapon until either the trigger is released or the ammunition is expended.

The so-called "assault weapons" the so-called "assault weapon ban" banned covered firearms firing both pistol and intermediate-powered cartridges. And they only banned semi-automatic firearms. That is to say, one pull of the trigger means one round fired. Fully-automatic firearms have been heavily regulated since 1934. The sunset of the AWB will not change that one bit. You will still need a Class III license (with the thorough FBI background check and transfer tax etc.) to purchase a fully-automatic weapon.

Furthermore, the so-called assault weapon ban only focused on cosmetic aspects of firearms. Things like folding/collapsing stocks, magazine capacity and placement, bayonet lugs and flash-suppressors were deemed too dangerous for John and Jane Q. Public to own. Nevermind that these features did nothing to enhance the lethality of either the 5.56mm or 7.62x39mm rounds (the two most commonly used intermediate cartridges).

Also, nevermind that these weapons constituted less than 1% of pre-ban crimes involving firearms.

The AWB was, and is, a useless bit of feel-good legislation that does did little more than infringe upon the law-abiding citizen's right to keep and bear arms.

The point that more often than not gets lost in the whole "gun control" debate is that the people who are the most in need of controlling (ie. criminals) are the least likely to adhere to gun control legislation.

One last parting shot (no pun): al-Qaida didn't fire a single round, from an assault weapon or otherwise, on September 11th, 2001. Not one. They used knives, box-cutters and civilian airliners to murder 3,030 and wound another 2,337.


Proving a Negative - Still As Hard As It's Ever Been

Just caught Dan Rather's broadcast involving the (clearly bogus) memos he started waving around on 60 Minutes II Wednesday night. First thing I noticed was his voice. I, like a whole slew of people, haven't watched Dan Rather's... er... unique take on the news in years. So, I don't know if his voice normally sounds like he's been screaming like a fifteen year old girl at a Beatles concert all day, but his voice sounded... well... like he's been screaming like a fifteen year old girl at a Beatles concert all day.

Second thing I noticed was how defensive he was. Defensive and arrogant. Then more arrogant than defensive. His attitude virtually screamed, "How dare these peons, these bloggers, question me. Don't they know who I am?"

We, Dan, are the ones who have shot your "evidence" full of holes. Period.

I'd say we're also the ones that made you look like a sap and a bias partisan hack, but you've got that covered well enough.

You keep harping on about on how we are focusing on the documents (and their alledged authenticity) instead of the allegations you put forth in your report. The reason for that, oh Titan of the Unbiased Media™, is because if the documents you are basing your conclusions upon are bogus, the conclusions are also bogus.

That's not to say that then LT Bush didn't fail to show up for duty as you and yours are so desperate to prove. It simply means that what you thought was a smoking gun, isn't.

Look, Dan, seriously. You were had. You were had because you wanted to believe. That's how con-men work. They show you what you want to see. Tell you what you want to hear. You were had. Just 'fess up and deal with it like a man.

This just in from the Department of Admit Nothing, Deny Everything and Make Counteraccusations...

McAuliffe denies involvement in memos flap

Stephen Dinan -- Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe today said neither his organization nor John Kerry´s campaign leaked to CBS documents questioning President Bush´s service record, which may have been forged. He suggested White House adviser Karl Rove could be behind the documents.

"I can unequivocally say that no one involved here at the Democratic National Committee had anything at all to do with any of those documents. If I were an aspiring young journalist [read: biased liberal water-carrier - ed.], I think I would ask Karl Rove that question," Mr. McAuliffe said.


Duh... me not see dis coming.

Sheesh.

Just when I think Terry McAuliffe simply cannot be any more pathetic he manages to dig deep and come through.


Keychain Gizmo

The blackout that socked much of the northeast last year made me glad I had planned ahead... just in case. Luckily, the area I was in at the time wasn't affected by the blackout, but I could very have been. To make matters worse, I, like many of the folks in NYC, was away from home.

On my keychain, in addition to keys to the house, the office and my vehicle I have three extra gizmos.


The first is the Utili-Key made by Swiss-Tech. It looks like a key, but when you unfold it you have yourself a knife (with a half straight / half serrated blade), a bottle-openner, phillips and two flat bit screwdrivers. It's technically a multi-tool but a Leatherman it is not. But if you need it, the stainless steel Utili-Key beats the heck out of having nothing.



Next is a Photon Micro-Light II. The picture contains some loose change to give you and idea of scale of the whole kit. The light is quite bright, handy in a survival situation to make your position known to rescuers. The M-L II has two switches. One a pressure, or "squeeze" switch, and the other is a small "constant on" switch.



Finally is a small version of the popular magnesium firestarter. If you need to make fire, first gather the makings, then shave some of the magnesium rod (the silver-colored part) and then either use the enclosed striker or use the Utili-Key on the embedded ferro rod to shower the magnesium shavings with sparks.


It's nowhere near a full survival kit (or hotel room with room service) but if you need it, this little setup gives you the basics: a knife, a light source, and the ability to make fire. And at around thirty bucks, it's cheap insurance.

All three, and lot's more, are available at Survial Keychain.

Bushmaster Pulls a Spain

U.S. Gunmaker, Shop Settle with Sniper Victims

SEATTLE (Reuters) -- The company that made the Bushmaster rifle used in the Washington-area sniper killings and a gun shop that lost track of the firearm agreed to pay $2.5 million to victims in what lawyers said on Thursday was an unprecedented settlement

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Bushmaster is not resposible for a legal product they produced being used to kill ten and injure three. John Muhammad and Lee Malvo are. This bit of kowtowing sets a dangerous (and stupid) precedent.

Stupid move Bushmaster. I had every intention of picking up a Bushmaster when this moronic "Assault Weapons Ban" sunsets in two days.

Keyword: had

Commies for Kerry at the RNC

The Great Lenin and his band of merry revolutionaries have their pics from the RNC in NYC posted.

Memogate - Day Two

Questions Arise About Authenticity of Newly Found Memos on Bush's Guard Service

ABC News -— Questions are being raised about the authenticity of newly discovered documents relating to George W. Bush's service in the National Guard during the Vietnam War.


Anyone else find it interesting that these miracle memos found their way to Dan Rather shortly after James Carville and Paul Begala joined the Kerry team? Just a thought.

And while we're at it, we need to look past Dan Rather on this one. We need to be asking who created these memos? Who gave them to CBS? What does Terry McAuliffe know, and when did he know it? What does the Kerry team know, and when did they know it?



Thursday, September 09, 2004

This just in from the Department of Desperate Flailings...

Power Line is all over the story about the authenticity of the memos CBS is waving around in their (increasingly desperate) attempt to get Senator Kerry into the Oval Office.

First thing I noticed on the "CYA" memo was the date at the top of the memo:

18 August 1973

When I was in the Army (1987-90) we used a Day Month Year format too, but while it may have changed in the years between 1973 and 1987, I doubt it. When I was in, that date would have read:

18AUG73

Furthermore, I doubt strongly the whole 1973 thing. Nobody bothered with the 19 in the year until we hit the year 2000.

This, and other examples currently burning up the blogosphere, stink like week old fish. I hope it blows up in the face of CBS, the Kerry campaign, and whatever other leftists it can hit.


Kettle? Yeah, it's Pot again...

Gore: Cheney'Wrong Choice' Remark Sleazy

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Vice President Dick Cheney's remark that "the wrong choice" by voters could result in another terrorist attack was "a sleazy and despicable effort to blackmail voters with fear," Al Gore said Thursday.

Really? And the whole "He betrayed this country! He played on our fears!" screechfest wasn't?

What the Vice President was getting at was not that electing the Kerry-Edwards team will result in terrorist attacks. Heck, nothing can really prevent that. If they want to, they can attack with President Bush or Senator Kerry or anyone else for that matter in the Oval Office.

What he was warning against was that we, the government, would slip back into the pre-Sept 11th mode of thinking. Treating the terrorists like criminals instead of like combatants that have declared was on the US.

I see nothing from Senator Kerry's history that would refute this.

"W" Stands For...

Kerry: 'W' in Bush's Name Stands for Wrong

(AP) -- Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry unveiled a new tack against President Bush this week, arguing that the W. in George W. Bush stands for "wrong."

Silly Senator. Everyone knows the "W" stands for Whoopass.


Tuesday, September 07, 2004

This just in from the Fact-Checking Department...

This is a follow up to the Kerry-shotgun-gift story posted on the Drudge Report...

In West Virginia, Cecil Roberts, president of the United Mine Workers of America, gave Kerry a rifle as a gift. Kerry, a self-described gun-owner and hunter, quipped: "I thank you for the gift, but I can't take it to the debate with me." -- Associated Press Writer Darlene Superville.

Dear Associated Press Writer Darlene Superville;

The firearm in question (if the photograph below is from the current "Gee, I have a gun" photo-op and not an older one) is a shotgun not a rifle, as you reported. Seriously, I'd have more respect for you media-types when it comes to covering anything involving firearms if you knew the first friggin' thing about firearms.

No wonder the "assault weapon ban" got dubbed the "assault weapon ban". I doubt you, and those like you, know, as G. Gordon Liddy puts, "which end of the tube the round comes out of" let alone what the difference between a shotgun, a rifle, or an assault weapon is.


This just in from the Department of Irony

KERRY COSPONSORED BILL BANNING GUN HE WAVES



Drudge Report -- Was Dem presidential hopeful John Kerry seen this weekend waving a gun which would have been banned if legislation he co-sponsored became law?

Yup. Then again, for Senator Kerry, and those like him, gun control has always had a firm "guns for me, not for thee" policy. And while you're wondering if he filled out the proper paperwork hoops he, and those like him, have foisted upon the law-abiding citizens of this country to have to jump through ponder upon this...

"I thank you for the gift, but I can't take it to the debate with me," Kerry told a cheering crowd as he held up the device.

Err... whatcha mean by that, Doc? Seems like Senator Kerry is suggesting he'd like to take a shotgun (an eeevil assault weapon-y shotgun no less) to a debate with President Bush? Why? He couldn't be joking about assassinating the President could he?

(Anyone else remember Michael Ramirez getting the once over by the Secret Service for this cartoon? And it wasn't even an anti-Bush 'toon either.)


What a Beautiful Sunset...

(Hat Tip: SondraK)

It seems like many if not most people agree that they are for the second amendment but against those big bad “assault weapons.” I have one question for them: why? In all likelihood, they do not even know what was banned or if any of these “weapons” were used in many crimes.

Great article by Amber Pawlik.


Monday, September 06, 2004

CB's Back

The Stryker trooper known as CBFTW, the blogger whose work on My War (aka My War - Fear and Loathing in Iraq) gained national (and no doubt international) attention is back. Not sure for how long, or how much he'll be posting, but those of you who've either been reading his blog, or found out about it after it got yanked, will no doubt be glad to see that he's back.

Interesting Development...

Russia, Israel Agree on Anti-Terror Union

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Russia's foreign minister welcomed Israel's offer of help in combating militant groups on Monday, saying Russia needs to be more effective in fighting terror after last week's deadly hostage school standoff.

Maybe, just maybe, people are begining to understand that we're fighting World War IV here and that the days of Chamberlianesque appeasement and Ostrichian policies are over.

Maybe.


Meanwhile, on the Planet of the Delusional...

American Muslim Leaders Rally Community

ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) -- American Muslim leaders ended their largest annual meeting with a rousing plea to thousands of community members that they vote in the presidential election.

"We have to demand justice," said Mahdi Bray, head of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, as the convention wound down Sunday night. "We have to stand up to this government and say, `What you're doing is wrong.'"

No. What you have to do is stop pointing fingers at people who aren't the problem. You need to pressure your fellow Muslims around the world, not take it out on a President who finds himself in the position of having to deal with Islamofacsists.

Maybe you should take heed of Abdulrahman al-Rashed's words...
"Muslims worldwide are the main perpetrators of terrorism, a humiliating and painful truth that must be acknowledged...".


Sunday, September 05, 2004

This just in from the Department of Nah, You Don't Say...

Self-criticism in Arab media follows school siege

Associated Press -- CAIRO, Egypt - Muslims worldwide are the main perpetrators of terrorism, a humiliating and painful truth that must be acknowledged, a prominent Arab writer and television executive [Abdulrahman al-Rashed, general manager of Al-Arabiya television - ed.] wrote Saturday, as Middle East media and officials expressed horror at the bloody rebel siege of a Russian school.

Now that the Muslims are starting to see that Muslims are the main perpetrators of worldwide terrorism maybe we can get the folks at the New York Times (and International ANSWER and CAIR and Michael Moore and the anti-Bush/anti-US protestors etc.) to admit it as well.


And So It Begins

Saddam, Aides to Go on Trial Within Weeks - Daoud

KUWAIT (Reuters) -- Iraq's toppled leader Saddam Hussein and his top aides will go on trial within weeks, Iraqi Minister of State Kasim Daoud said on Sunday.

Why is it that the first thing I thought when reading this was "Have Mark Garagos and Gloria Allred been alerted?"


DNC: The Democratic Party (and other misnomers)

Dems Sue to Keep Nader Off Ballot

Newsmax

The Florida Democratic Party and an independent group of voters separately sued the state Tuesday...

Ah, democracy... sheesh.

... trying to keep Ralph Nader off the November ballot and accusing the Reform Party's nomination process of being a sham.

A sham? Why?

The Reform Party nominated Nader during a two-day conference call earlier this summer.

Ah. Heck, knocking off these week long coronations and going for a conference call doesn't exactly sound like a bad thing.

But more importantly, where the heck is it written that our elections involve only two parties? I say let the whackjob run. Besides, the DNC's still up by one Perot. Another Nader-influenced election will even the score.

This just in from the Department of Corroboration

Bush Has Double-Digit Lead on Kerry - Newsweek Poll

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- President Bush emerged from the Republican National Convention with an 11-point lead over Democrat John Kerry, according to a Newsweek poll released on Saturday, the second straight survey showing him ahead by double digits.

The Newsweek poll of 1,008 adults conducted on Thursday and Friday showed Bush leading Kerry by 52 percent to 41 percent among registered voters, with independent Ralph Nader at 3 percent. The survey had a 4-point margin of error.

First TIME, and now Newsweek, neither one considered to be a "right-wing rag" (quite the opposite) by any rational person has President Bush up 11% or...

That represented a 13-point bounce for Bush since an Aug. 5-10 poll by Princeton Survey Research Associates International for the Pew Research Center, Newsweek said. Polls for months had shown Bush and Kerry running neck and neck.

Huh, maybe this AOL straw poll is on its way to fulfilment.