#1 Sniper

I found an article online about the current record holder for longest distance confirmed kill, Cpl. Rob Furlong, a sniper in the Canadian Army. Shooting a man 2.43 km away is impressive, even if it took two shots to make the kill.

The weapon used was a McMillan TAC-50. The TAC-50's cheaper than a CheyTac M-200 by a long shot!

Japanese Gun Law

I was reading what Wikipedia has to say about the Satsuma Rebellion (Seinan Sensou), which had a link to the Meiji Haitourei, and from there I jumped to the Japanese version, which had a link to information about the current Japanese weapons law (Teppou Toukenrui Shoji Tou Torishimarihou, established in 1958). Talk about a convoluted path.

Pro-Firearm Commentary

Posts to the Pro-Firearm discussion board on Facebook:

Reasons for having firearms:

Any organism has only two directives: to survive and to reproduce. It's been observed that humans are distinct from other animals in that they use tools. Firearms are tools used to survive. Note that technology, once created, cannot be destroyed, so arms now can only be regulated by a monopoly of force (whether we're talking about firearms or nukes). A person who doesn't own his own arms when given the opportunity, abdicates control of his personal well-being, and surrenders himself to the benevolence of his neighbors. Not everyone is moral, so this isn't a good idea.

In a capitalist society, possession of means is power—the power to get what one wants. Rather than work for material wealth, some people acquire it by force. Therefore, a successful capitalist will necessarily possess the capacity to keep his wealth secure. A person who does not believe in bearing arms is not a true capitalist. Such a person, who expects the government to regulate his life, is really a socialist or a communist.

Anyone who believes in stocking away gold or food for a SHTF scenario, which is a wise diversification, needs to be able to protect those resources.

That was a sort of tongue-in-cheek answer, but I believe it. The truth is, I just like guns. Some people dig fast cars or gold watches or whatever, but to me, guns are more interesting (not that I don't like cars or watches). I don't trust the government, and I refuse to rely on the police to come to my rescue if I get robbed—cops are only there as a deterrent and to clean up the mess after the fact. I believe that the only freedom one has is the freedom one is willing to fight to hold on to.

Opinion on "no infringement" of the 2nd Amendment:

There should be no infringement. Anyone of the age of majority should be able to obtain a firearm. Background checks presume that you may be denied the right to purchase. That only happens when the government decides to exclude certain types of people. Currently that is felons (note that unauthorized computer access [!!] in many states is a felony) and people with psych issues, including veterans with PTSD. Consider that both of these groups are very subjective—I would call them arbitrary. Therefore NO individual should be disbarred the possession of arms, unless they are 1) a minor without parental approval, 2) in retention for the commission of a crime, or 3) serving a criminal sentence.

However, that applies to one's property only. Bearing arms in public is a separate matter. While Vermont Carry is admirable, not all places would like to have people carrying openly and unlicensed. Therefore, each state should be able to institute licensing of CCW as they see fit. People need a license to drive on public roads—but NOT private roads—so the analogy makes sense. Socially, that makes sense, too.

Another bit of food for thought: much of the argument about the right to bear arms centers around the value of human life. Personally, I think the life of someone who would kill another to steal his stuff is worth less than dirt. The ACLU would have you believe differently, but they're crazy. In the case where a bad guy took a gun on rampage, the armed good guys would shoot him dead, and that would be a GOOD thing. The Bible's "Thou shalt not kill" is a mistranslation: it really is closer to "Thou shalt not murder". Unprovoked killing is bad. Killing in self-defense is good. Until people agree on such value judgements, the argument about the right to bear arms won't get any less contentious.

Bin Laden in 1998

From a PBS interview with Bin Laden in 1998:

The American government is leading the country towards hell. ... We say to the Americans as people and to American mothers, if they cherish their lives and if they cherish their sons, they must elect an American patriotic government that caters to their interests not the interests of the Jews. If the present injustice continues with the wave of national consciousness, it will inevitably move the battle to American soil, just as Ramzi Yousef and others have done. This is my message to the American people. I urge them to find a serious administration that acts in their interest and does not attack people and violate their honor and pilfer their wealth. ...

AR-15 Maker

Found a site, AR-15 Plus (actually a company called Vida Rica, Inc.), selling kits of partially-completed receivers for AR-15 lowers. Apparently an 80% completed receiver doesn't require an FFL to receive, but is less work to 'smith than a flat or similarly raw part. At the price they're selling the lowers, though, it'd be cheaper and easier to just buy finished receivers, such as DPMS's, for about $210. The only advantage, as I can see it, is for someone who wants to build their own—or to fly under the gov'ment's radar.

曖昧3センチ

最近嫁はあるアニメのテーマソングにハマっていて、よく歌う。でも俺は歌詞の意味が全然理解できず、ネットで調べた。そんで、こんな面白いスレを発見。その「曖昧3センチ」ってのは「スカートの裾上げ」、「ウェストが伸びた」、「おっぱい」の隠喩などの説が伸びてある。実際は何の意味かまだ不明だが、わけ分からないのは俺だけじゃないのでひょっとした。

郵便番号検索

年賀状を出すために郵便番号を調べることがあり、検索サイトを探して日本郵便のページに辿り着いた。後で使うかもしれないからリンクを保存。

HK G3/91 Resources

Lately I've been consumed with the Heckler & Koch G3/91, and have read up extensively on it. Here are some of the fruits of my labor:

Parts Stores:

• Numrich - the best for general parts
• RTG - the cheapest source for mags, surplus parts, and some new parts
• HKParts - expensive, has the MagPul stock, rear sight adjustment tool, and MSG-90 buffer
• HKSpecialist - expensive, has the vented handguard, bipod, PSG-1 parts
• PTR - manufactures HK-91 clones on HK tooling from Portugal, and they also sell some parts
• HKPartsOnline (not very useful)
• Arizona Response Systems - HK refinishing and parts (no pictures)
• Hi-Vel (parts list, no pictures)
• POF-USA - manufactures some parts on HK tooling, like PTR, but their website is slightly broken
• Copes Distributing - has a good price on the Hensoldt scope with mount

Build Information:

• HK-91 disassembly/reassembly
• G3 build using Century Arms receiver
• G3 trigger disassembly

Mod Information:

• Williams' custom set trigger
• 'Smiths for G3 clones
• C&P for SEF grip frames
• Rail mod for the HK wide handguard

Specific Part Info:

• BufferTech's plastic buffer
• Picture of the famed heavy bipod (which I can't find for sale anywhere)
• Here's a good price on HK's mag loader/unloader
• Knight's Armament makes a RAS for the HK-91 (see the bottom of the link), sold here
• Brugger & Thomet Tri-Rail Handguard - The picture shows a brass catcher on a G3, but all DSArms has is one for the MP5
• Smith Enterprise makes a version of their Vortex flash hider for the HK-91 (spec), sold only by Brownell's
• Compensator
• "Recoil Eliminator", aka "tank brake/comp"
• PSG-1 style Ergo Grip for metal grip frames

List of Surplus Ammo

As for forums, HKPro is pretty cool. Useful posts:

• How to check the bolt gap
• Installing a heavy 2-stage buffer
• Picture of the different buffer options (G3, MSG-90, G3 heavy, HK-21)
• How to bend an HK flat
• How to avoid marks from attaching a claw mount (more info also on mg-42.net)

Manuals and such:

• G3 Armorer's Manual (found here)
• G3 Green Book

I may update this post as I find new stuff. Last update: 2008.04.13 20:25.

Blogger enabled OpenID

Interesting. OpenID looks cool, but is too insecure. There should be a middle-ground between OpenID and separate login.

Internet Crime Complaint Center

The IC3 handles complaints of Internet fraud, etc., for the FBI.

Gun Laws

Over on the Guns Network, I found a post with some links to gun law information. Notably, the 922(r) "foreign parts" law—which is total and utter gestapo bullshit—is detailed. One majorly useful piece is the state gun law summaries, which are better than the cut-and-paste ones that are on the BATFE site. Some of the links in the post above are outdated, but once you know what you're looking for, it's easier to find.

Comment on CNN Blurb to Ron Paul Donations

I posted a comment on the article, since I couldn't leave some asshole troll's comment alone.

To Robert of Pensacola, those comments are misguided and factually inaccurate. Dr. Paul's core base are middle-class individuals, not rich special interests, unlike donors to major campaigns who can afford to dump the maximum $2300 into their candidates' coffers. (Check FundRace for details.)

I'm a middle-class working stiff who's sick of government bloat and incompetence, and I've donated what I can. There are plenty of people like me who support Dr. Paul. Don't talk about things you don't know about or understand.

Furthermore, I've been a registered Republican for as long as I've been able to vote, and I'm disgusted with the current crop of "Republicans" who are closer to neo-cons than Republican. Dr. Paul's as close to a classical Republican as I've seen.

Vote Ron Paul!

FundRace 2008

When looking for fundraising information, after donating to Ron Paul's campaign, I found this site that shows all donors over $200 by name, zip code, company, and employer. This could be useful. Maybe I should donate an extra $100 so I get listed.

Riviera Maya

Don showed me a diving magazine that had a list of dive spots, and the Riviera Maya was one of them. Perhaps after going to Cozumel, that should be the next on the list for Mexico.

100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time?

From Rolling Stone, ca 2007. I haven't even heard of most of this shit! But, uh, Utada Hikaru is definitely not rock.

Military Optics

Some gear that would be cool to have, although since it's produced for the military, naturally it's expensive.

• Trijicon ACOG [ MFG, Wiki ]
• AimPoint CompM2 [ MFG, Wiki ]

Bruce Schneier Q&A

The Freakonomics site has a great Q&A session with security guru Bruce Schneier (blog).

Import/Export-Related

International Trade & Transportation Glossary - A very useful glossary to international trade jargon, including a chart of ocean/air container dimensions.
US Customs FIRMS Codes - "A US Customs FIRMS code is a four digit alpha-numeric identifier for a container freight station, warehouse deconsolidator, or other US Customs Service bonded facility."

ATF P 5300.5: State Laws and Published Ordinances on Firearms

Useful reference to firearms laws in all 50 states plus territories.