Just before the 2008 election, and throughout the first half of 2009, ammunition for rifles and pistols was a hot commodity. Folks were convinced that Obama and Holder were coming to get their guns and ammo. Finding .223, 9mm, 5.56NATO, or 7.62 in stores was very difficult - and shipments to the stores were generallly gone within a day. Hucksters at gun shows were charging premium prices for ammo, even if its age and parentage was questionable.
Well, gun control/confiscation hasn't been mentioned very much so far by the Obama Administration. Not that it isn't on their agenda ... it just is down the list from Obamacare, prosecuting anyone associated with George Bush, and ruining our economy for decades to come.
As a result, the run on ammunition has calmed down a bunch. Local stores, seeing the run, upped their orders. Manufacturers ramped up production to meet the demand. Now, the demand has ground to a halt. Lots of folks have more ammo stocked up than they could possibly use, and aren't in the market to buy more. Stores have lots of bullets on the shelves.
I fully expect this to change again. Obama will get around to pursuing gun control in a year or two, and folks will start trying to hoard bullets again.
If you are into shooting sports, it is a good time to go bullet shopping. They are plentiful, prices are reasonable, and if you look carefully, you can find some pretty good sales. One of my favorites is Dick's Sporting Goods - every 6-8 weeks they have a 30% off ammunition sale.
So, if you need a few hundred rounds of NATO standard to pop off at the target range, or a couple of dozen clips' worth of AK-47 rounds to go squirrel hunting with, go for it ... while it's cheap!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
A Glorious Texas Day, Dedicated to Outlaw13
This has been a glorious Texas winter day - 65 degrees, sunny, with a calm southern breeze here in the North Texas area.
I took Outlaw13's black rocket out of the barn for some exercise. Nothing quite as pleasant as windows down, music up, 390 horses jamming through 6 speeds, burning premium gas for no reason at all other than to yell at the top of my proverbial lungs "F*** Y** Algore!"
A Rudy's spicy chopped beef with Fritos and a glass bottle Dr. Pepper out on the porch in the sunshine for lunch ... don't get much better than that!
Anyway, this day dedicated to Outlaw13, who continues to serve our country over in the sandbox. Just a couple more months, and he'll be back here doing all of this himself.
I took Outlaw13's black rocket out of the barn for some exercise. Nothing quite as pleasant as windows down, music up, 390 horses jamming through 6 speeds, burning premium gas for no reason at all other than to yell at the top of my proverbial lungs "F*** Y** Algore!"
A Rudy's spicy chopped beef with Fritos and a glass bottle Dr. Pepper out on the porch in the sunshine for lunch ... don't get much better than that!
Anyway, this day dedicated to Outlaw13, who continues to serve our country over in the sandbox. Just a couple more months, and he'll be back here doing all of this himself.
God Bless the United States Army
God Bless the Republic of Texas
Friday, February 26, 2010
Final Countdown for the Space Shuttle
NASA's fleet of Space Shuttles is rapidly approaching its retirement. Four missions remain - after that the United States will have no way to put a man into space. We will have to rent space on Russian rockets if we need to send anyone up. The three remaining Shuttles are Endeavor, Atlantis, and Discovery. Atlantis will fly the next miission, STS-131, scheduled for liftoff on March 5. Discovery will fly the last mission, STS-134, later this year. With -134, there will have been 134 launches of the Shuttle (and sadly, only 132 landings).
The Shuttle is still a wonder. It is a magnificent sight to behold on liftoff, a loud, visible symbol of our country and its technical expertise. The fleet is long in the tooth. The time for retirement is right, the '70s equipment and technology they are based on need to be put out to pasture. The problem is that there is no replacement available, and the Orion replacement vehicle that was on the drawing board has been cancelled by the Obama Administration.
Retirement of the Shuttles and cancellation of Orion will mean the loss of about 23,000 jobs at and around the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, to say nothing of the contractors that were going to build Orion and its related projects.
Launch and recovery of the shuttles has become a 'non-news' event. Most Americans don't even know when they are up in orbit. If you count yourself in that category, you might want to make note of the remaining lauches. You have 4 more opportunities to view it live. Many of us will not see another US manned space mission in our lifetimes.
Photos Credit NASAThursday, February 25, 2010
Danica Already Wearing Thin With NASCAR
Danica Patrick's stock car racing career is 3 races in length. She ran the ARCA event at Daytona, and finished 6th. She ran the Nationwide Series event at Daytona, and crashed out on lap 65 (not of her doing). She ran the Nationwide Series event at California this past Saturday, and finished 31st, two laps down. She is scheduled to run the Nationwide Series event at Las Vegas this weekend, and then will take a two month break from stock cars to get back in her Indy car.
Her public face during this has been good. She has been humble, and said all the right things. She's earned praise from all corners, particularly at Daytona, for her driving skill and attitude. The public loves Danica mania, delivering very high TV ratings for the events she has participated in.
However ...
Danica the prima-donna is apparently on the loose.
Unofficial sources have leaked out that behind the scenes, Danica has been bad mouthing Dale Jr. According to her, she's a better driver than he, she doesn't respect him, and the only reason he signed her to drive his car was the money involved. Those sources and others report that Dale Jr. isn't exactly happy with her behind his back antics.
Dale Jr. is NASCAR's golden boy. NO ONE bad mouths him, or Junior Nation goes nuts. Danica is all about the money - that is what this entire foray into NASCAR is all about. Why would she be biting the hand that has given her a lucrative ride and all the rope she needs to establish herself in the sport?
I don't know for sure, but have a couple of ideas.
First, she doesn't like NASCAR. Horsing the big stock cars around is a lot of work. The crowd she is forced to hang around with isn't the 'elite' bunch that hangs around Indy car.
Second, another team has approached her about moving to Cup racing much sooner than was planned with Dale Jr.'s plan. She may be trying to piss him off enough to cut up the contract. Danica has never been known for patience.
Third ... maybe she's just a spiteful, self-loving prima-donna who can't get along with anyone.
I don't know ... but she's killing what should have been a great thing for her, for Dale Jr., and for NASCAR.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Absolutely Ridiculous Lawsuit
Dallas Police Senior Cpl. Victor Lozada died in a motorcycle accident on Feb. 22, 2008. He was participating in a motorcade escorting then candidate Hillary Clinton to a campaign stop. He was the only one involved, his bike hit a curb and threw him into a concrete barrier. He died instantly. It was a tragedy.
Anyone who has read this blog knows I am no Clinton fan. However, her behaviour in the aftermath of the tragedy was admirable. She cancelled her campaign event, and went to the hospital to give her condolences to the family. She was genuinely shaken when interviewed that day.
Victor Lozada's family has just announced a bevy of lawsuits in response to the accident. The defendants:
Hillary Clinton, and her campaign staff - for not giving the city of Dallas adequate notice of the campaign event.
The Dallas Police Department - for knowlingly allowing Lozada to participate in the motorcade even though he had supposedly done poorly in his motorcycle training, AND for not having supervisors make certain that each and every rider had driven the motorcade route ahead of time.
SuperSeer, the officer's helmet manufacturer, because the force of Lozada hitting the concrete barrier broke the chinstrap of the helmet.
The City of Dallas, for delays in its 911 service that caused a short delay in arrival of an ambulance (even though he died on impact).
The family's lawyer insists that the lawsuits are only so that the underlying issues are brought to light and resolved. No mention has been made as to the monetary damages they are seeking, and from which defendants.
If the lawyer's statement is true, then the remedies sought by the lawsuit will be limited to correction of the situations the family feel are wrong. If the lawyer is full of crap, then the family will be looking for money from everyone. My personal opinion is that they are flinging a wide net with the lawsuits, hoping that someone will cave and try to settle before it goes to court.
It will be interesting to see if his statement is true, or if this is just an attempted money grab by Lozada's relatives.
Anyone who has read this blog knows I am no Clinton fan. However, her behaviour in the aftermath of the tragedy was admirable. She cancelled her campaign event, and went to the hospital to give her condolences to the family. She was genuinely shaken when interviewed that day.
Victor Lozada's family has just announced a bevy of lawsuits in response to the accident. The defendants:
Hillary Clinton, and her campaign staff - for not giving the city of Dallas adequate notice of the campaign event.
The Dallas Police Department - for knowlingly allowing Lozada to participate in the motorcade even though he had supposedly done poorly in his motorcycle training, AND for not having supervisors make certain that each and every rider had driven the motorcade route ahead of time.
SuperSeer, the officer's helmet manufacturer, because the force of Lozada hitting the concrete barrier broke the chinstrap of the helmet.
The City of Dallas, for delays in its 911 service that caused a short delay in arrival of an ambulance (even though he died on impact).
The family's lawyer insists that the lawsuits are only so that the underlying issues are brought to light and resolved. No mention has been made as to the monetary damages they are seeking, and from which defendants.
If the lawyer's statement is true, then the remedies sought by the lawsuit will be limited to correction of the situations the family feel are wrong. If the lawyer is full of crap, then the family will be looking for money from everyone. My personal opinion is that they are flinging a wide net with the lawsuits, hoping that someone will cave and try to settle before it goes to court.
It will be interesting to see if his statement is true, or if this is just an attempted money grab by Lozada's relatives.
Signs of the Times
A little more than a year ago, you'd be hard pressed to find political yard signs with Republican on them, much less Conservative. Candidates didn't want the R or C words hung around their necks during the 2008 elections, while Obama-mania was conning the country.
Times have changed.
In this season of primaries, I have seen very few yard signs that identifies their candidates as a Democrat. I've seen few that identify the candidate as a Republican. I see a lot of signs identifying the candidate as a Conservative Republican.
Most of the radio ads I have heard are the same way - the candidates are touting themselves as Conservative, especially fiscally Conservative.
The two Democrat candidates for Texas Governor are both pushing Conservative traits and ideals - creating jobs, business tax cuts, smaller government, lower taxes, cutting government waste. Not exactly an Obama script, is it?
A recent poll of Hispanics in Texas indicates that over 50% of them identify themselves as Conservative. Not Republican ... Conservative ... The same poll showed that as many as 23% of them will vote in the Republican primary for a Republican candidate.
A national poll a couple of months ago seeking to identify political ideology rather than party affiliation showed that 40% of Americans identified themselves as Conservative. 22% identified themselves as Liberal. The rest were those undefined in the middle.
Any Democrat touting his links to Obama is committing political suicide. Having Obama actually campaign for you is like hanging a dead albatross around your neck ... just ask the folks in Virginia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. Harry Reid asked Obama to come to Nevada to campaign for him - he's so far behind the Republican challenger, he's got nothing to lose ...
Being a Conservative is becomming the 'in' thing. I can't wait until some Hollywood bigwigs start spitting out that they've really been Conservatives for all these years. I can just see Babs Striesand blabbering "I've always been a Reagan Republican, silly ... are you coming to my party?"
I only hope that the country can hold on long enough for this Conservative wave to take effect at the polling places. Come on America ... you can defeat Obama!
Defending Humanity Against the "Moob"
Women's underwear manufacturer Spanx has launched a new men's line of undergarments. The first offering is a slimming T-Shirt, said to flatten the stomach, straighten the back, and squish those man boobs (moobs).
What will be next?
Disclaimer - this picture is not of a Spanx product. This is not a picture of me, or anyone that I know. It is a picture of some idiot that posted himself on the internet. Who is he? I have no idea, but looks like he might be a good friend of Barney Frank ....
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Superbowl XLV - Discrimination?
Superbowl XLV will be held at Jerry World in Arlington, TX in 347 days. Preparations are well under way. Part of that preparation has me scratching my head.
The NFL has a program it calls Emerging Business Development. It's been around since 1994. It was created to help promote minority and female owned companies' participation in Superbowl activities. This program is holding three workshops in the DFW area, to show small developing companies the rules of the game when it comes to landing contracts related to the Superbowl. OK, that sounds good ...
Except, that the workshops are limited to minority and female owned companies. Companies owned by white males are apparently not welcome. Isn't that discrimination?
Exclusion because of one's sex or race is the very definition of discrimination, isn't it?
If the NFL is concerned about being fair to all, shouldn't the workshops and program itself be open to ALL business owners, regardless of sex or race? Seems to me that would be the definition of fair ...
News coverage of these events has been heavy in the local DFW area - nothing but positive news coverage. I sure would like to see some enterprising investigative white male reporter go to this event and try to register his company - would love to see how the NFL reps react.
Now, I have absolutely nothing against business owners of any race or sex participating in the first North Texas Superbowl. I feel that the best company for the work at the best price should win the contract - regardless of the skin color or plumbing of the owner. Shouldn't these events be open to ALL small business owners?
Here is some official video promoting these events.
The NFL has a program it calls Emerging Business Development. It's been around since 1994. It was created to help promote minority and female owned companies' participation in Superbowl activities. This program is holding three workshops in the DFW area, to show small developing companies the rules of the game when it comes to landing contracts related to the Superbowl. OK, that sounds good ...
Except, that the workshops are limited to minority and female owned companies. Companies owned by white males are apparently not welcome. Isn't that discrimination?
Exclusion because of one's sex or race is the very definition of discrimination, isn't it?
If the NFL is concerned about being fair to all, shouldn't the workshops and program itself be open to ALL business owners, regardless of sex or race? Seems to me that would be the definition of fair ...
News coverage of these events has been heavy in the local DFW area - nothing but positive news coverage. I sure would like to see some enterprising investigative white male reporter go to this event and try to register his company - would love to see how the NFL reps react.
Now, I have absolutely nothing against business owners of any race or sex participating in the first North Texas Superbowl. I feel that the best company for the work at the best price should win the contract - regardless of the skin color or plumbing of the owner. Shouldn't these events be open to ALL small business owners?
Here is some official video promoting these events.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Tea Partier, Or Tea Bagger?
We're all familiar with the Tea Party movement sweeping across the US. You may have heard folks who are part of this movement referred to as Tea Partiers, or Tea Baggers. There is a big difference ...
Tea Partier describes, accurately, someone who participates in the Tea Party movement. It is also used by some in the mainstream media to describe anyone who is considered a conservative.
Tea Bagger is something different altogether. Shortly after the Tea Party movement started gaining steam, left wingers started referring to participants as Tea Baggers. Mainstream media has picked the term up, and you frequently hear it used in newscasts. The far left is laughing their butts off about it.
Tea Bagging is a very coarse, vile, arrogant insult. I will not describe what it is here, but if you google it, you will find plenty of references to what this insulting, degrading act is. By referring to conservatives as Tea Baggers, the far left is hurling that insult at conservatives. With the mainstream media picking it up (some innocently, others not so much), conservatives are the target of this insult over and over in public. The media have used the term so often that I've heard some conservatives refer to themselves and the movement via this term - they just don't know what the real meaning is.
Whenever you hear Tea Partiers referred to as Tea Baggers, in the media, in the blog world, in person - realize it for what it is.
Tea Partier describes, accurately, someone who participates in the Tea Party movement. It is also used by some in the mainstream media to describe anyone who is considered a conservative.
Tea Bagger is something different altogether. Shortly after the Tea Party movement started gaining steam, left wingers started referring to participants as Tea Baggers. Mainstream media has picked the term up, and you frequently hear it used in newscasts. The far left is laughing their butts off about it.
Tea Bagging is a very coarse, vile, arrogant insult. I will not describe what it is here, but if you google it, you will find plenty of references to what this insulting, degrading act is. By referring to conservatives as Tea Baggers, the far left is hurling that insult at conservatives. With the mainstream media picking it up (some innocently, others not so much), conservatives are the target of this insult over and over in public. The media have used the term so often that I've heard some conservatives refer to themselves and the movement via this term - they just don't know what the real meaning is.
Whenever you hear Tea Partiers referred to as Tea Baggers, in the media, in the blog world, in person - realize it for what it is.
The United States Constitution, Interpreted by Obama
The first words of the United States Constitution, as written by our Founding Fathers over two centuries ago ...
We, The People
The first words of the Constitution, as interpreted by Barack Hussein Obama ...
Me, The One
Do You Miss Me Yet, Part Deaux
Yeah, laugh all you want. But ... we were in a hell of a lot better shape with him in office than we are now .....
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Your Olympic Curling Update
The US men and women have truly sucked so far in this year's Olympic Curling competition.
The women lost matches with the Japanese and Germans. Although the scores were close, the US strategy was questionable and shooting was far from accurate. Losing to the Germans was kind of expected, but a loss to Japan was an embarrassment. The women have six more matches to go, but advancement seems very unlikely after this start.
The men lost matches against Germany and Norway. Again, the scores were much closer than the actual matches played out. The US team was out thought, out strategized, and outshot - and frankly looked like they shouldn't have been in the same building. In last night's game against the Norwegians, the US captain choked on his last shot, sending the match into overtime, where the US lost.
In their match this afternoon against Switzerland, the US sucked in the first half of the match, repeating their mistakes form the first two matches. Then they picked it up, came storming back, and had the game won if their captain hadn't choked on his final shot, allowing the Swiss to tie it up and send it into overtime. Once again, the US captain choked on the last shot, giving the victory to the Swiss. The team needs to make sure their captain stops taking the last shot.
So, after 5 matches the US teams have been shut out.
The US team's poor strategy and shot making was too much for even the commentators, who fought hard to try and find something positive to say when you just knew they wanted to shout "WTF ARE YOU DOING?"
In other, better, news, USA Hockey is doing well so far. The women have beaten China and Russia, and have made the semi-finals. The men won their first game against Switzerland.
Friday Feb.19 Update - Have I mentioned how much curling sucks? The US men's team lost to Denmark yesterday, once again in position to win when their captain choked on a key shot and lost the match. In response, the men's team has replaced the captain with the team's alternate for today's match against France.
The women's team also lost to Denmark. They were in great postion to win it handily, and lost because of horrible shot making. Both teams have lost all 7 matches they've played so far.
In brighter news, both the US men's and women's hockey teams won, and are both undefeated in competition so far.
Saturday Feb. 20 Update - The men's and women's curling teams have won two matches each since the last update, all four games in last shot or overtime style. Guess I'll have to jump back on the bandwagon, at least until tomorrow ....
Tuesday Feb. 23 Update - Well tomorrow has come and gone, and they've been put out of their misery. Both teams won two matches each, losing 6 apiece. Neither team was considered a medal contender, but no one figured they'd finish so badly.
The women lost matches with the Japanese and Germans. Although the scores were close, the US strategy was questionable and shooting was far from accurate. Losing to the Germans was kind of expected, but a loss to Japan was an embarrassment. The women have six more matches to go, but advancement seems very unlikely after this start.
The men lost matches against Germany and Norway. Again, the scores were much closer than the actual matches played out. The US team was out thought, out strategized, and outshot - and frankly looked like they shouldn't have been in the same building. In last night's game against the Norwegians, the US captain choked on his last shot, sending the match into overtime, where the US lost.
In their match this afternoon against Switzerland, the US sucked in the first half of the match, repeating their mistakes form the first two matches. Then they picked it up, came storming back, and had the game won if their captain hadn't choked on his final shot, allowing the Swiss to tie it up and send it into overtime. Once again, the US captain choked on the last shot, giving the victory to the Swiss. The team needs to make sure their captain stops taking the last shot.
So, after 5 matches the US teams have been shut out.
The US team's poor strategy and shot making was too much for even the commentators, who fought hard to try and find something positive to say when you just knew they wanted to shout "WTF ARE YOU DOING?"
In other, better, news, USA Hockey is doing well so far. The women have beaten China and Russia, and have made the semi-finals. The men won their first game against Switzerland.
Friday Feb.19 Update - Have I mentioned how much curling sucks? The US men's team lost to Denmark yesterday, once again in position to win when their captain choked on a key shot and lost the match. In response, the men's team has replaced the captain with the team's alternate for today's match against France.
The women's team also lost to Denmark. They were in great postion to win it handily, and lost because of horrible shot making. Both teams have lost all 7 matches they've played so far.
In brighter news, both the US men's and women's hockey teams won, and are both undefeated in competition so far.
Saturday Feb. 20 Update - The men's and women's curling teams have won two matches each since the last update, all four games in last shot or overtime style. Guess I'll have to jump back on the bandwagon, at least until tomorrow ....
Tuesday Feb. 23 Update - Well tomorrow has come and gone, and they've been put out of their misery. Both teams won two matches each, losing 6 apiece. Neither team was considered a medal contender, but no one figured they'd finish so badly.
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