"Change We Can Believe In"

Not sure where the tag line comes from, but it certainly is. Moreso than Obama, anyway.

So I found this YouTube-like pr0n site called "SpankWire" and they have a bunch of free pr0n. I think I know a few people who would appreciate this....

Going through some folders I found a Jade Hsu vid, and the site came up when I googled it. She's gotten to be pretty trashy looking, though, and never exhibited much personality. Chinese Hawaiian Jandi Lin is much more spirited, and the tattoo on her back is pretty cool.

Plus, I discovered Allie Sin, aka Naughty Nati.  Her tattoos are less than impressive, but she's got a hot body and those eyes are absolutely piercing.

Kneeling Chairs

Was thinking a kneeling chair might be good for temporary use of the iMac on the console in the living room, except it looks like the decent ones are spendy. To wit:

Varier Variable balans [store]
HÅG Balans [store] (doesn't appear to be on HÅG's website)
Over the top: Varier Gravity balans chair [store] (only $2k!)

Saw some reference in searches that indicate the kneeling chair design (balans) is Norwegian, but I have yet to confirm.

Comment on Int'l Marriage

My remarks on an article:

I bet you don't have many friends from other countries, eh? Indeed, most people don't care about issues that don't affect them. Even so, America's origins are in its immigrants -- the opinion you're espousing is quite un-American.

As long as the institution of marriage exists, the U.S. has legal responsibility to handle diplomatic cases involving cross-border custody. Now if we got rid of marriage, then I might agree with your position. Even as a small-government advocate, diplomatic issues are one of the few legitimate roles of the Federal government.

I would be interested to see the divorce statistics for marriages where both parties are from the same culture versus where one or both parties are foreign-born. My guess is that they aren't that different.

There were several problems with the guy who tried to steal back his kids: 1) he was married in Japan, and never divorced there, 2) he became a naturalized Japanese citizen, thereby losing his U.S. citizenship, 3) his kids were born in Japan, and 4) he cheated on his wife before divorcing her in the U.S. and marrying his mistress. Not exactly an open-and-shut case in his favor.

Immigration Comments

Navarette is a dillweed in general, but he knows how to get a rise out of the reader.

Useyerhead: I agree that it sucks that Spanish gets special treatment. I would require English for all legal doings, but suppose that signage is at the discretion of the locality -- their tax dollars.

In my case, I'm a native English speaker, but speak Japanese with my wife. Since I'm not white, I know that some people are probably put off when we're out and not talking in English. She can understand English well enough, so it's not an issue. Not having most people know what we're talking about is way useful =)

Incidentally, in the more metropolitan areas of Japan, most signs also have English (sometimes Chinese and Korean also). Of course, we occupied them, so that's not so strange.

YBR: I'm mixed as well, although not as resentful of being treated differently. People think what they're going to think. How you're perceived in the long term is up to you. On the other hand, I do have a CCW just in case: "minorities" in particular benefit from being armed.

My Snowblower

Despite the earlier models I posted, I ended up getting a Troy-Bilt Storm 2620 over at Lowes. I put it to use on Sunday morning and cleared the 4-foot wall of snow blocking half of the front of my driveway as a learning exercise, then cleared the curb, sidewalks, and half the neighbor's driveway (theirs is in the shop right now). Having a gas-hogging monster snowblower is actually fun!

Propolis

We're running low on propolis, so I've been looking for some online. I've read that the Brazilian kind is best, which is what my mother-in-law gave us, so we're looking to stick with that. The brand is Apiario Silvestre (apparently apiario refers to a bee farm), which is available via ExpoBrazil. Unfortunately, they charge quite a bit for shipping. Alibaba.com has a list of propolis manufacturers, and Silvestre has a listing. Interestingly enough, on Alibaba they claim to have a 45% concentration, whereas on ExpoBrazil they list 30%.

There's another advertised brand of Brazilian, alcohol-free (not that I have anything against alcohol, but the Silvestre is as well) propolis by Uniflora. They have concentration in 45%, 55%, and 60 "Brix", which apparently also means percent by weight.

Not Without A Fight

Via one of the pro-firearm blogs I subscribe to, I found out about a 2A-themed amateur documentary called Not Without A Fight, which interviews various people from the gun culture. Looks interesting, although I'm not sure I want to $15.97 without seeing it first.

MBP Accessories

So I'm already looking for accessories for my new MacBook Pro even though I'm still waiting for it to acclimate to room temperature. (Booting up a frozen computer is a Very Bad Idea, and this was on a truck for most of the day in sub-zero weather.)

Current candidates:

• moshi ClearGuard - ultra-thin (0.1mm) urethane keyboard protector (even though the MBP manual says to not cover the keyboard...), $23 on Amazon through myGearStore [good blog review]
• RadTech ScreenSavrz - cover that sits between the keyboard and screen to keep the latter clean; ShaggyMac's product is a close second (color is a concern), but both are made in the USA and cost $15
• RadTech Sleevz - form-fitting sleeve, helpful when going through airport checkpoints (only been asked to remove my Powerbook from the sleeve once out of dozens of flights)
• (Also have a Portectorz for the PB, but they don't make one for the MBP yet.)
• Monoprice Mini DisplayPort to HDMI Adapter - to output the display to an HDTV (which I don't have yet...); this $38 one has audio capability via USB whereas the $14 one only supports MDP audio, which the MBP does not

Don't forget to check Retail Me Not for coupon codes: RadTech has one FAMILY09 that's 10% off $30+ and 15% off $70+.

iPhone Tethering

Found a site that allows the enabling of tethering with iPhones. Cool.

Well, I do want an iPhone, there's just the matter of $400 (two phones) plus $100/mo for 24 months (with company discount but without taxes and fees)....

Prohibition Commentary

Just had a discussion with the co-op in the lab about the "war on drugs", then I hit this article on CNN.

Agreed that the "war on drugs" is the same as the Prohibition. The problem with legalizing drug use is that what are all those law enforcement officers going to do afterward? Several months after the 21st Amendment repealed the Prohibition, Congress passed the National Firearms Act, giving the long arm of the law another, similarly injust, malum prohibitum to crack down on.

The populus still seems to be torn on the morality of the drug issue. A number of people support the legalization of marijuana, but they have yet to reach the kind of critical mass that is necessary to sway the lawmakers. Part of the issue is how hard the crackdown is for drug-related violations of the law: People who would be inclined to conduct civil disobedience might think twice about an infraction that could land them serious time and a felony record. No, the government is seriously out of control in forcing citizens to play by their rules.

Netwealth-e Int'l

So I met the owner of this online business, Netwealth-e International, over at Ikea a few weeks back. I finally checked out his website, but still don't have a good idea of what they do. Weird, I would've thought it should be clear from the pitch, I mean if one wants to line up capital as well as talent.

Snowblowers

After the blizzard, I decided that I need a snowblower. (Apparently the semantic distinction between "snow blower" and "snow thrower" is that the former is a 2-stage (with an auger and an impeller) and the latter is a 1-stage. So says Wikipedia. But I prefer a single word rather than a phrase.)

I'm only interested in the 2-stage variety given the insanity that is Minnesota winter. Fishing around on Amazon, I found a Murray 24" 205cc 4-cycle with electric start. Apparently Murray doesn't have product pages on their website.

Chad has an Ariens, although he didn't say which model. (A version with a Tecumseh engine, without headlights, he said, but most of them seem to have Briggs & Stratton engines.)

Honda has a medium-duty 2-stage, the HS520AS, but I question the 12" vertical clearance of the housing.

$800 ain't nothing to sneeze at, so I'm going to be looking at as many different models as I can.

Mark's Mobo

Mark's desktop's motherboard is an ECS 848P-A. Whatever use that info is.

Tank Suppressor

This is hilarious.

NRA & Firearms Freedom Act

Posted commentary on this article.

I too was disgusted by the NRA's lack of support for the Firearms Freedoms Act laws in several states. Just like their unfulfilled promise to work to repeal the Hughes Amendment of the FOPA (banning civ ownership of machineguns manufactured post-1986), they talk like they're for preserving rights, but fall far short. I sent the NRA a letter to that effect, but I suppose my remarks will be ignored.

Granted, the Montana law was intended to force a showdown regarding the enforceability of intra-state jurisdiction of the ATF. They didn't intend to make use of the law until a ruling was solidified at the SCOTUS level. The NRA is right that actually ignoring the un-Constitutional 1968 GCA is dangerous (the ATF will kick down your door and shoot you), but the wording was highly unsatisfactory.

Support the NRA since the gun-rights winds are judged by their membership. Then really support the Gun Owners of America. The GOA is by far the best pro-gun rights group out there.

Monoprice

I just heard about Monoprice via comments in a /. post. They seem to have some good prices on cabling, etc., that always gets sold at a markup via retail outlets, and even by Newegg.

Not So Good

/. had a post on how Sprint released GPS data to law enforcement via automated system 8 million times in a year. The linked blog post has a quote from Eric Schmidt that is quite disturbing.

"The reason we keep [search engine data] for any length of time is one, we actually need it to make our algorithms better, but more importantly, there is a legitimate case of the government, or particularly the police function or so forth, wanting, with a Federal subpoena and so forth being able to get access to that information."
-- Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, All Things Considered, NPR interview between 5:40 and 6:40, October 2, 2009.

So much for "don't be evil"—that sounds pretty fucking evil to me. Government tends toward evil, and pandering to them is also evil. That explains why they kissed the Chinese government's ass with regard to censoring political dissidents.

Apple may not be very different, but at least they make no pretense of being "good". There's nothing like someone raping you and telling you that it's for your own good.

My comments posted to the blog anonymously:

I have a problem with financial disincentives: where the money comes from. Law enforcement is paid for via taxes, so not only are we paying a higher bill to the phone company (TPC) on the front-end for the infrastructure, we're also funding federal, state, and local governments to pay for wiretaps, etc., on the back-end. Business is business for TPC, but the "law" is being used to strong-arm the consumer into paying for the privilege of being spied upon.

A Righteous Gun Law

Require registration of non-gun owners and require them to pay a fine? Sweet!

マルカイ

テレビジャパンのCMで知った、日本商品のオンラインショップマルカイ。値段は安くないけど、手に入れたければ買い道はある。

Caroline McCarthy

After reading an article by Caroline McCarthy that was above the typical c|net blog-type posts, I felt the need to google her for profile pictures bigger than the c|net bio thumbnail. Yeah, I e-stalked her for five minutes, haha.

Magazine.org has a bigger version of the bio thumbnail
ValleyWag, circa June 2008
Daily Style Phile, circa October 2008

McCarthy's also on Twitter, as one might expect.

Is it just me, or is she fairly stacked? Well, um, I read her for the articles.

xkcd

This is so, so sick: Movie Narrative Charts
Very timely: iPhone or Droid

GoodGuide

Hmm, maybe my idea is a bit late. GoodGuide is getting close....

Alternatives to Ikea

On a whim I searched for alternatives to Ikea and found a page that had some suggestions: 2modern, CB2 (apparently affiliated with Crate & Barrel), and Design Public. 2modern seems to be on par price-wise with Room and Board, and for that matter, Design Public is too. Not really alternatives....

The poster also noted Green Your Decor for eco-friendly furnishings.

I also found another expensive alternative: Design Within Reach. Seems like there are no cost-effective alternatives to Ikea, hence their appeal. When one can outfit an entire dining room for the price of just the table at Room and Board, it's just ridiculous. Well, this isn't going to be our final house, so why buy custom furniture for it, and some of Ikea's stuff isn't made in China, so I can at least not have that hanging over my head.

Go

Not the game, but the Google programming language. Taokodr posted a link on FB pointing to the Go site. Looks interesting. Wish I had time to learn new languages. One really needs a reason to spend the time.

Swedish Mauser

Information on the brass disk on the stock of a m/96:

The one screw disc is divided into 3 sections, each of which is marked in such a way as to reveal some information about that particular rifle. The smallest "slice" of the brass disc bears the numbers 1, 2, and 3 with a triangular punch mark over one of the numbers. This indicates the condition of the bore. No punch mark is perfect. 1 means a very few dark areas in the corners of the lands and grooves. 2 indicates rust in the corners of the lands and grooves and possible light rust in the grooves. 3 indicates spots of light rust throughout the grooves, but no sharp edges; this is still acceptable. A rifle scoring lower than 3 was rebarreled. My rifle is a 3, but any rifle passed by the Swedish armorers will shoot very well, as the inspectors were quite picky. The bore of my rifle looks good to the naked eye.

The next slice of the little brass disc indicates the elevation aiming error when shooting the standard m/41 Swedish service load, which used a 140 grain boat-tail spitzer bullet at a MV of around 800 m/s. There are three Swedish words in this sector of the disc. "Torped" indicates the 140 grain BT spitzer bullet (there was an earlier 156 grain RN bullet), "Overslag" means over, followed by a space and then "Str." Str is the abbreviation for streck, a unit of angle, and there are 6300 streck to a circle. Streck were used in a manner similar to the way North American shooters use minutes of angle. If there is a number in the blank space between Overslag and Str. it indicates the amount the rifle shoots over in terms of streck. 1 streck equals approximately 1/10 meter at 100 meters. So a 1 in the space on the disc indicates that rifle would shoot 10 cm (or a little less than 4") above the point of aim at 100 meters. The space is blank on my rifle's disc, indicating that it shoots to point of aim.

The largest slice of the disc has an outer and an inner arc of numbers. The outer arc bears numbers "6.51" followed by the numbers 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 (my rifle has a punch mark over the "2"). The inner arc bears the numbers "6.46" followed by 7,8,9,0 (no punch mark over a number in the inner arc on my rifle). It is my understanding that these numbers reveal the nominal bore (6.46mm) and groove (6.51mm) diameters of a new barrel. The punch mark(s) reveals the actual diameter of the particular barrel (and thus, presumably, any wear). Thus, my barrel has a groove diameter of 6.52mm. Apparently the bore diameter of my barrel measured right at 6.46mm.

If the groove diameter measures between 6.51mm and 6.53mm all was well. If the groove diameter measured 6.54mm-6.55mm the rifle was used only for training. If the groove diameter exceeded 6.56mm the rifle was rebarreled. The Swedes are very meticulous people!

That's good to know!

Another collector site has a picture of the disk.

Military Gun Supply has an m/96 for $300 in "very good" condition.

Medical

The wife was asking about whether or not we should have the kid get the H1N1 vaccine. Personally I don't like flu shots because I got the flu from one the last time I did. However, since the wife and kid are going to PAIIR now and are additionally exposed potential sources of infection, it may be a wise idea.

CNN had posted a couple things regarding the H1N1 vaccine, basically cribbed from the CDC [1 2].

There was also a decent piece regarding how to avoid having mistaken operations performed on you in the hospital.

S.G. told me about thiomersal/thimerosol in multi-dose vaccines. I'd heard of the alleged relationship between vaccines and autism, but not the mechanism. Maybe there's no correlation, but why the hell should I take a chance with my kid?

Pelican Products

Was looking at getting a Pelican flashlight with bore sight adapter from the NRA Store, but found it for cheaper from a distributor, Pelican Products, who also has a much better price on shipping. It's one thing to support an organization, and another for them to rape you on S&H, heavy emphasis on the 'H'. The MityLite 1950 would make a good Christmas present for gun folk, who like flashlights and never seem to have a bore light handy.

Animal Rights Idiots

While searching for close-ups of an NRA-published print, I came across some schmuck's blog post about some NRA brochure that was supposedly leaked. So I left a pointed comment, linked here for posterity.

I absolutely believe that the PETA terrorists who threatened the families of scientists who use animals in lab experiments should be snuffed out. What's more important, people or lesser creatures? So they're for baby-murder and against killing lab rats, what kind of fucked up logic is that?! And it was funny and sad how PETA issued a statement when Obama killed a fly on camera. I mean, what the fuck?! By now Obama must be starting to see all the looney tunes who voted for him crawling out of the woodwork.

Animal rights? Shit, they can have rights when they get together and draft themselves a fuckin' constitutional government.

Ok, so the above was somewhat facetious—I don't favor killing things unnecessarily, pro-gun though I may be. (If it's not a pest and you shoot it, eat it.) But still, PETA and their ilk are a bunch of psychopaths who don't have anything better to do with their lives.

鬼のパンツ

最近嫁が子供の世話をする時にそれに合う唄を歌うことにしている。おむつをかえることは、「鬼のパンツ」である。しかし、その歌詞にないところを加えたか、「トラの毛皮で　できている」ってゆー代わりに、「鬼の母さんが縫ってくれた」にしている。

いったい　なぜ　みんな鬼のパンツを履きたがるのだろうか。

Girls w/ Guns Pix

There are a few girls with guns pix on ReyTrajano.com, found via a calguns link.

Microdonations

Well, I'd been looking at doing an automatic donation NPO since United Way stopped hosting HGST's charitable donations for free. Maybe I don't need to?

Mac Tablet

If you can't wait for the iTablet or whatever, Axiotron mods Macbooks into a tablet. Pretty sweet-looking, if you ask me. Too bad I don't really have a use for it.

GunPal

What the firearms community has been waiting for: a gun-friendly version of PayPal. GunPal.

.50 BMG Eye Candy

A forum topic on Primal Rights has some pictures of various flavors of .50 BMG rifles.

Wingnuts, huh?

On a CNN op-ed "piece" from 10/7: Since when is the 'center' the right place to be? They're a bunch of people who don't stand for anything substantial and don't really care about anything but their tiny little lives. The article attempted to seem unbiased by mentioning leftists, but obviously this was a tirade against the so-called "right-wing extremists". Wingnut? Better than being a fucknut centrist, Johnnie Avlon.

Saiga-12

I've been interested in the Saiga-12 for a while because magazine-fed shotguns are hard to come by. The manufacturer, Izhmash, has a PR video that has been posted to YouTube. There's also a site dedicated to information about the Saiga-12.

According to Wikipedia, Izhmash is facing bankruptcy due to the global recession.

1より小さいかず

「にほんごであそぼ」で見たうなりやべべんの歌を聞いて気になったけれど、最初に意味が分からなかったから調べた結果、小さい数の単位であった。

Paypal Alternative

In a meeting at the moment, so I'm link blogging.

I bumped into a Paypal alternative someplace recently. This looks like an interesting payment method—I'll have to inquire if they're gun-friendly.

Life, Liberty, etc.

Pro-gun and pro-liberty products—what more could a guy ask for? They have some funky stickers and such.

Fuck the TSA

xkcd hits the nail on the head!!

Jessica Abbate

A post on arfcom turned me on to this gun girl, who's on Team Glock. Of course she'd have to have a champion shooter hubby.

Well, I'm going to have to set the daughter on the path to being a world-class shooter. I'd better improve my own skills first, though....

U.S.-Made Canteens

I saw something in an ad for "USCanteen" stainless steel canteens. It looked cool, so I checked the site. Of course they don't say where the product is made, but I found on a forum that they're made in Hong Kong.

If you want a real U.S. canteen made from stainless steel (the metal ones used in service this century were made from aluminum, it seems), head over to Fall Creek Sutlery, which has U.S.-made stainless steel, copper, and wood canteens, all made in the U.S. From this I learned the word "sutler"....

The Viability of Monogamy

CNN published an article on the viability of monogamy, which was likely intended to inflame. There was a good point or two, for instance:

"[Americans] think if an affair happens, it's the end of the story, the fairy tale has been completely shattered, the person isn't the person we thought they were. The knee-jerk reaction is you have to get a divorce," Druckerman said.

"[In France,] there's less of a sense that the person who cheats is a terrible human being or that this is a marker of a person's whole character."

Perhaps that's the Puritanical character of the country showing up. And yet, even saying that it's bad, it still happens—the forbidden fruit must have the most attraction.

Well, I suppose the people who get the most bent out of shape when a partner cheats are the ones who have the lowest self-esteem. In that case, infidelity impacts the person's self-image. I would think that most people who have an affair do so not to hurt their partner. On one hand, if the expectation is total fidelity, then a breach is a violation of trust. On the other hand, one could view it as "no harm, no foul", or that one has to do things to make oneself happy. I would define the line between the pursuit of happiness and hedonism as the presence of patience and circumspect in the former, and wanton shortsightedness in the latter.

Maybe. I haven't hit that seven-year itch yet.

rsync Algorithm

Cool.

.950 JDJ

I just read about the .950 JDJ. That is one badass caliber! The trail of links that led to me finding this: was checking out the Tactilite .50BMG conversion, and the owner has a blog, upon which he posted a blurb about the 0.95. The post links to another guy's blog, which has a teaser picture and links to other source of information: a picture of the rifle, a McBros 95, and a picture of the ammo. The Guns Lot comments included text from Wikipedia that's enlightening. One guy commented that "20mm shits on that", except that the .95 is 24.1mm. Granted, the .95 bullet weighs 230g and goes 670m/s, whereas the Vulcan 20mm is 100g and goes 1030m/s, so the Vulcan has slightly higher muzzle energy.

Apparently SSK Industries has another cartridge that has a "sporting use" exemption: the 14.5mm JDJ (.585). And here I thought the .50 was the biggest cartridge that didn't require an NFA tax stamp (for a Destructive Device). Sweet!!

Edit [2012.03.11]: The 14.5mm JDJ link moved.

Bohica

Just when I was thinking about ordering a FAR-50 from Bohica Arms, I noticed that the website no longer listed Primal Rights on the front page as the official accessories store. So I found on the Primal Rights' forum that they'd had a falling out with Bohica. The thing that bugs me is that Bohica isn't shipping orders to PR even though they were already paid for. It sucks to screw one's customers over—even though they bought through PR, they were buying Bohica products.

I'd thought about getting an ALS, and right before I pulled the trigger on it, news of two kabooms showed up in the news. The way ALS isn't coming clean on the circumstances of the "safety recall" kind of rubs me the wrong way.

The one left that I'd be interested in is the Ferret-50, mostly because people are winning competitions with them. It's spendy and not very attractive, though. Or I could go ahead and try ordering the FAR-50, since at least that didn't involve a safety issue. Fuck, why do things have to be so difficult?

Libertarian Publications

I've been looking for a copy of 101 Things to Do 'Til the Revolution by Claire Wolfe, but can't seem to locate non-used copies for a reasonable price. I hope it's not out of print, but it sure seems that way. The publisher is Loompanics, which according to Wikipedia has gone out of business and Paladin Press, publisher of The Ultimate Sniper, has picked up some of the titles. Unfortunately they don't appear to be as bulk-purchase friendly as Loompanics was.

Incidentally, I found a scanned copy of the aforementioned book on Scribd. There's also an online bookstore called Laissez Faire Books that sells libertarian-type printed matter.

Apparently a revised version of the Wolfe book is available as The Freedom Outlaw's Handbook, published by Paladin Press.

Furthermore, a mirror of the apparently now-defunct clairewolfe.com exists. Fight on!

Composting

CNN had a rare useful article on how to compost.

Composting upgrades garden soil, keeps plants healthy, and can even lessen planet-unfriendly greenhouse gases. Here's how to do it.

It's not just for people in the sticks anymore: Composting is great for all gardeners because it improves soil, which in turn prevents plant diseases.

And it can even reduce harmful greenhouse gases.

"Organics that break down in a landfill produce methane gas, which is about 120 times more harmful than carbon dioxide," says Cary Oshins, assistant director for programs at the United States Composting Council, in Ronkonkoma, New York.

So why not help the planet and your yard by piling it on.

How to Get Started

Choose a container that's made of wood (or some other sturdy material) and no smaller than three by three feet. Place it in your yard in a shady spot with good drainage.

Start adding waste in a ratio of three "browns" to one "green."

Browns are carbon-rich materials and include wood chips, straw, branches, and leaves.

Greens provide nitrogen and include grass clippings and kitchen scraps, like eggshells and carrot tops.

When you're adding new material, Oshins suggests, dig a hole in the pile and stir the new stuff in so it gets coated with the old mixture.

How to maintain the pile

Composting is a smelly process.

You're breaking down food and yard waste, after all. But it shouldn't be so offensive that the neighbors complain.

If you notice a stench, make sure you have enough browns in the pile. (Ask a tree service or a landscaper for extra wood chips or brush.)

Also check the moisture level by grabbing a handful of the heap.

It should be at about 50 to 60 percent, meaning the compost feels like a wrung-out sponge.

If it's too dry, let rain even out the moisture. If it's too wet, add a few more browns.

How to tell if the compost is ready

When it's ready for use, which could take anywhere from a few months to a year, compost looks and smells like very dark soil.

If you're unsure, put it to the baggie test: Place a small amount in a plastic bag and take a whiff before sealing.

Then place the bag in a drawer for a few days.

When you open the bag, the sample should smell the same as it did before. If it smells worse, your compost needs more time in the pile.

ヘルシオ

Apparently Sharp has released a version of the Healthio in the U.S. under the name SuperSteam. Amazon sells it for about $950 for the stainless model.

Sharp also makes appliances such as a funky drawer-type microwave, a cooktop/oven combination unit, and a range hood.

Steve D. strikes it rich

A Newsweek article on the App Store Millionaire.

E. Coli Burgers

The New York Times ran an article on how ground beef can be contaminated E. Coli. (A copy that doesn't require login....)

Just cook it to 165 degrees and you'll be fine!

Original Intent

I found this website called Original Intent that has some interesting articles on various base legal topics, such as the origin of government authority, constitutional law, etc. The one I was looking for was regarding the basis of state sales tax. It wasn't readily apparent by reading the law itself what's covered, much less what authority gives them the right to lay claim to a piece of every transaction.

Botach Tactical

Botach Tactical has a couple interesting items: a slimmed down Remington 870 rail forearm and a UTG HK-style claw mount (cheaper than RTG).

Commentary on Health Care

Forgot to post this one. CNN had an article that was actually an opposing viewpoint to the one they usually espouse regarding health care. However, I think their motive was to paint the opponents of universal health care as heartless, money-grubbing bastards. A lot of the commenters pointed out that "afford" to a doctor is still a lot higher than a lot of people. That pisses me off! Yeah, a doctor spends like 10 years in college to learn his trade. I bet a lot of those irate commenters are unskilled laborers who can't fathom the forbearance of investment in education. What's so bad about wanting to secure a financial future for oneself and family? Where does one draw the line between prudence and greed? The self-righteous shitheads who are pro-UHC seem to imply that they have it all figured out. Too bad their blustering is all for show.

Sturdy Safe

If one is considering a Sturdy Safe, here's some info. First of all, there's a good review on UziTalk. Of course, having the price lists (for the small & large safes) helps too.

Political Commentary

CNN apparently only posts comments that support their political views, surprise, surprise. My reply, which of course they won't post:

Funny how typically it's white folks who cry "racism" against other white folks. Apparently it's a tactic to shut down the opposition, although I do agree that most Caucasians have no idea what racism is because they've never experienced it.

As a non-white I used to be a Republican, but the Bush-era neo-cons turned me off: they're just the other side to the same big-government, profligate-spending, rule-with-an-iron-fist Democratic coin.

I support the Tea Party folks. However, unlike the one poster opined (who needs to re-read *his* history), these modern protesters are *much* more mild than the original Tea Party crew. In the current environment, the original Tea Partiers would be called terrorists and hunted down by government agents! They were armed and destroyed a lot of property in support of their political objective, yet are heroes of American history (of course that might change due to left-wing revisionists) for standing up against political injustice. The modern-day protesters are peaceful and polite by comparison, but the symbolic connection is there.

Come on, CNN, post some balanced comments, willya?!

Me ol' bamboo

Apparently it sucks. At least according to a forum on finishing.com. Caveat emptor, apparently.

GreenerFlooring.com - site with info
Vencon USA - vendor of supposedly low outgas flooring
Kronoswiss - ditto

Metals Sites

Interesting gold/silver sites:
Freedom Mint for their Ron Paul coins
Boston Bullion as an alternative to Kitco

Government Surplus

Found a site with government surplus items. Cool!

無線給電

I found this term on Yahoo Dictionary, which piqued my interest. Of course Tesla really proved that wireless power was realizable. Well, I thought up an idea on how to monetize it, but we'll see if the Japanese have any better ideas.

無線給電

電気コンセントに給電装置を差し込み、この装置から電波で家庭にある家電に電気を送り込むシステム。これまでは家電を操作するためには乾電池を利用するか、電気の差し込み口にコンセントを差し込まなければならずその場合は電気コードがどうしても必要となり、長いコードが室内中に張り巡らされる場合もある。そこでテレビやパソコン、ビデオ機器などの各種のデジタル家電を電気や通信用のコードなしに利用できるようにする技術の研究が始まった。東芝を中心として約15社が集まり、官民共同で研究開発を行い、2015年の実用化を目指している。家電のネットワーク化が進めば配線は今以上に増えかねないのでコード不要の新技術に対する消費者の期待は大きくなっている。これまで電話の子機など小型機器向けに実用化されているものもあるが、給電できる距離は1センチメートル以下にとどまっている。これを1～2メートルに延ばしてテレビなど大型機器にも無線で電気が送れるようにする研究を進めている。

HDD v. SSD: If v. When

Another link in my Firefox tab stack that I need to clear.... It's been present through about four browser restarts, so it's about time. This article on C|net talks about the reliability issues of SSD, and how they're actually less reliable than HDDs.

The Sagulator

The Sagulator is an interesting calculator that will compute the deflection of shelves depending on the load, material, and dimensions.

What you need for earthquake preparedness

ケーティの友達はフェースブックにこのリンクを貼った。「備えあれば憂いなし」と。

Op-Ed on Obama's First 200 Days

Comment on an opinion piece by Michael Steele.

Mr. Steele hit the nail on the head.

To "bob", there are times when doing "something" is worse than doing "nothing": if the plan is completely wrong. It is very worthwhile to provide feedback to let our representatives know that their constituents aren't happy with the way things are going.

Amnesiac Youth

How quickly the youth forget.

AGE IN YRS....... INCOME............. POL PHIL.........
18-34 35-54 55+ <50 50-100 >100K Lib Mod Con



Right thing 50% 60% 73% 57% 67% 69% 47% 63% 69%
Wrong thing 32 23 13 25 22 20 37 24 13
DK/NA 18 17 14 19 11 11 16 13 18

The pictures are disturbing, but that's war.

Anti-Privacy Article

What a dumb article. My retort:

Ah, how naive. When your plans are widely known, bad people can take advantage of those plans. Going to London? How about a bunch of guys clean out your house for you while you're out? Could be an employee of one of the corporations with access to your data, or maybe they got hacked. Either way, you're screwed. But you'd only have yourself to blame. Ignore the warnings about intrusive surveillance to your peril.

Smarter folks are buying more things with cash to avoid tracking, and even bypassing increasingly worthless Federal Reserve notes with other intermediates, or bartering. The government hates that because then they can't track what you're doing. Suck it, Big Brother!

DIY Home Surveillance

Something I've been thinking about lately, via c|net.

ALS Kaboom

A few weeks ago when I was looking into getting an ALS, I noticed the safety notice on their website that wasn't there before. Turns out that at the FCSA World Match, an ALS fired out of battery, causing serious injury to the shooter. Furthermore, it came out that this was the second incident. The first incident was not widely reported, and the shooter received much more serious injuries, namely the loss of an eye and other bodily harm.

Note to self: When shooting fifty cal, always bring a buddy—he may need to cart you to the hospital.

R.I.P. Gidget

The Taco Bell dog, Gidget, died last week. I didn't realize she was that old, or that she was a she. Yo quiero Taco Bell!

More xkcd

Augh, I can't stop!

Disaster Voyeurism - I like the detour idea...
Outreach - The dangers of being a marine biologist
1337: Part 2 - Don Knuth, the algorithm master

xkcd: Matrix

This xkcd on the Matrix is absolutely hilarious.

You know, every time I see "xkcd", what inevitably comes to mind is a CD player app for the X Window system....

50 Things to Do Now

Not into anarcho-capitalism—anarchy doesn't work any more than communism—but this list on desirable behaviors I found to be rather interesting.

A Logic Named Joe

I need to read this at some point.

Left-Wing Nutjobs

CNN published a piece of shit op-ed piece by perennial dumbass Roland Martin regarding the Obama birth certificate scandal. I say produce it or get the fuck out of office. The dude isn't my president until proof of eligibility is demonstrated.

Revolver Checkout

How to tell if a revolver is any good—a highly useful article.

.50 BMG Price List

I thought I'd put together a fairly complete list of .50 uppers, but it looks like I missed a few. AR15.com has a price list that includes all available firearms chambered in .50 BMG, along with prices.

Comments on Terrorism

A comment on some inane C|net article:

@Brehhah
That's an inaccurate and somewhat racist comment. I don't see a problem with a suicidal attack during wartime. After all, a charge up a hill toward a machinegun nest while under fire could be considered a suicidal attack. It all depends on which side you're on, and of course the victors write the history books. Pearl Harbor was crappy. However, we knew about it and let it happen. Plus, we were embargoing Japan to curb their nationalist expansion, so from their point of view they had no alternative. It was conflict -- there isn't always a right or wrong, just sides.

@Lerianis3
I completely agree that the Founding Fathers of this country were considered terrorists by the British. And as the saying goes, where the government fears the people there is liberty and where the people fear the government there is tyranny. The danger of the "war on terror" is that it invites the thought police to go crazy. Law enforcement has always been about dealing with crimes after the fact. Otherwise how do you know the crime would've actually been committed? Thinking about committing a crime and actually doing it are two different things entirely! Until the act is perpetrated, there's time for redemption. Apparently the government wants to control what people think, hence the push for mandatory public schooling and censorship of people who disagree with their agenda.

As for robots feeding on corpses -- how will they tell that the bodies are really dead? From an ethical standpoint, this is bogus. But who cares about ethics anymore, eh? Apparently not us.

TweetPsych profile based on 388 posts:

Cognitive Content

Feature	Description	Score
Past tense	You tend to talk about the past.	38.29
Future tense	You talk about the future often.	20.24
Negative emotions	You express plenty of negative emotions.	17.53
Insight		11.93
Certainty		11.65
Inhib		9.99
Similes		9.81
Physical references	You often talk about the physical characteristics of things.	9.7
Positive emotions	You express plenty of positive emotions.	7.77

Primordial, Conceptual and Emotional Content

Feature	Description	Score
Aggression		65.19
Abstract thought		48.1
Moral imperative		35.99
Restraint		30.32
Audio sensations		9.89
Constructive behaviors		9.34
Affection		8.05
Order		5.46

Colossal MR Effect

Will the "Colossal Magnetoresistance Effect" be the next big thing for HDDs? I can't say that "CMR" is the greatest acronym ever.

Guide to YouTube

Hmm, I've had this tab open in Firefox for a month now and I'd like to close it.... C|net's An Expert's Guide to YouTube has some interesting tips and tricks that may or may not be useful.

Gun Stores

A couple of shops listed in Shotgun News that caught my eye:

Apex Gun Parts - They have a selection of HK-91 parts. Good, since I'm kind of pissed off at RTG.
The Second Amendment Firearms - Interested because of their ad for stripped LRB Arms AR-15 lowers for $85. Especially since those schmucks at R Guns haven't gotten back to me on the DPMS lowers—which cost more, by the way!

IWB Holsters for Glock

From a GlockTalk thread:

• Bagmaster - CNG, $21.95 (Cordura nylon)
• Kholster - Crescent, $45 (Kydex)
• CrossBreed Holsters - Super-Tuck, $69.75 (Kydex)
• RM Holsters - Low Rider IWB, $49.95 (Kydex)
• Tucker Gun Leather - Silent Thunder, $85.00 (Kydex hybrid)
• Comp-Tac - C-TAC, $80 or MTAC, $80 (Kydex)
• Don Hume - H715-M.S.O., $34.60 or H715-M T.B., $36.80 (leather)
• Aholster - hip IWB, $54.95 (Kydex)
• Garrity's Gunleather - Inconspicuous, $70 (leather)

Still trying to decide....

Airport Security Theater

Another comment about disgusting government bullshit (passenger imaging at airport security) and the disgusting bend-over-and-take-it responses of the left-wing assholes.

I see a lot of comments from wimps here. "Safety, safety, safety." You want a sanitized life experience or what? Sure you can make things safer, but what people as a whole lose in freedom is huge and invariably irreplaceable. Don't forget your helmet!

This kind of invasion of privacy is "no big deal"? That's a sad statement about American society and present culture. Just because YOU have no shame doesn't mean that there aren't people who don't want to be violated. To force that down people's throats is selfish and cowardly. It's just another step in the direction of desensitizing the herd to another government intrusion. Don't buy it!

Reloading Berdan

Apparently it's possible to reload cases with Berdan priming. The hard part might be finding primers of the right size. Apparenly PMC imports them from Russia? RCBS makes a tool for depriming. What's this about a hydraulic method, reforming the case a second time while it's filled with water...?

Berdan v. Boxer
Depriming Berdan Cases

Baby Girls

There's actually a good op-ed piece on CNN, about a mother of two boys who's dreading her 3rd kid being a girl. My comments:

Hey, thanks for writing this article. When my wife and I found out we were pregnant, I immediately assumed it was a boy, because in my family the past two generations had only boys. Before we found out the baby's sex, I said I didn't care which, just as long as he/she was born healthy. When we found out the baby was a girl, I felt a pang of disappointment in not having a son first, then panic in "I don't know how to deal with a girl!" The anxiety persisted until well after our daughter was born. Once she started developing her personality and reacting to me, though, I came to the realization that she's just as much of a blessing as a son, if not more. Actually, seeing friends' boys run about and smash stuff, I'm kind of glad I have a princess to ease me into fatherhood. Odds are she'll be a tomboy like her mother, but even if she's not, she'll still be my little girl. In the end, you'll enjoy having your girl -- she'll push your envelope just like I'm sure your boys did!

Of course, I object to the part about her not allowing toy weapons in the house. My kid will be shooting real guns as soon as she's strong enough to handle the recoil.

Natalie Portman the Gangsta

Toby's Facebook banter led me to this gem of a video clip, Natalie Portman on SNL. How about:

"What do you want, Natalie?" To drink and fight!
"What do you need, Natalie?" To fuck all night!

Now that is what we want to hear.

Fewer Americans Support Stricter Gun Control Laws

Finally, some decent news reporting from CNN!

Pimp-Ass Trucks

Kev sent me a link to an article on a truck that has a WMD-grade sound system. That led me to info on other sports celeb trucks, built on a Ford F-650 base.

And I learned of the "Canyonero", which I was previously unaware of because I gave up on the Simpsons after a couple seasons.

Concealable Sub-gun

Now this is how one should do concealed carry: with an "M6" submachine gun! I like the built-in laser sight. Only $12.5k if you live in a state that allows MGs.

Viet-Justice

I found this blog called Viet-Justice that looks interesting. Was searching for "kill Skumanick" after reading a shitty CNN article (Skumanick is a holier-than-thou fuckhead crusader who needs to not exist). I found myself agreeing with VJ—maybe I'm just fucking hardline.

Mega-Expensive Baby Travel Systems

The wife is trying to get me to buy a new travel system for the kid. I'm trying to avoid buying shit from fucking China, so that means I'm going to pay through the nose. (We found a reasonably-priced U.S.-made infant car seat, and reasoned that the cheap imported stroller base was ok since it wouldn't actually touch the kid.)

I'd been looking at Peg Perego's products, since they're made in Italy. For a seat with the lesser grade stroller base (P3), the set is about $600 plus S&H. The higher grade stroller base (Switch) is $400 itself, but allows forward- and rearward-facing placement of the seat rather than just forward.

Then I found Orbit Baby, which is apparently what a lot of celebs use. Their stuff costs even more than Peg Perego. The thing is, they never say "made in USA" so I'm guessing it's not. If I were to shell out $1k for a stroller system and it was made in China, I think I'd have to take a dump in the box and send it back.

Rosanna Pulido

Rosanna Pulido may be the most promising newcomer politician in Illinois. May have to donate. IL needs a concealed carry law.

Vaccines

There's some conspiracy-theorist type information regarding the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) triple shot. It's hard to discern the fact from fiction from what we really don't know. Even so, I'm not so inclined to take chances with my kid.

I found a site with some FAQs on vaccines.

Alcohol Flushing Response

Kev posted this link on Facebook. Apparently the "Asian flush" response to alcohol can be an indicator of esophageal cancer.

Doesn't explain why my reaction to beer is much more pronounced than liquor. I'm not sure I buy it, but it's an interesting piece of data.

HK Cleaning Gear

The chamber face area of HK-91 style rifles is a bear to clean. There's a factory chamber face brush available, but it has stainless steel brushes, so I'm a bit leery. HKParts sells the factory brush for $25.

There's also a U.S. manufacturer, E&L Manufacturing, of a similar brush. The clone chamber face brush plus the receiver cleaning brush and rod cost the same as the factory brush itself. Hard to tell what the relative quality is without having both, however. E&L has a brass catcher for the HK-91, although it's unclear whether that will function with a port buffer and claw mount.

Lathe

Most affordable lathes for metalworking that I've seen are made in China, like the Grizzly brand. A company called Prazi has some equipment that's made in Germany, which will definitely be of better quality. Their SD300 is about $1900.

Snoopy Futon Set

Sachie wanted to buy a Snoopy futon set. Only $400. At least it's made in Japan rather than China. I'll think about it.

HK Trigger Packs

I didn't link this earlier, but a post on HKPro indicates that HK is now putting serial numbers on trigger packs, bolt heads, and bolt carriers, and aren't accepting orders from anyone except law enforcement. This apparently is due to a new German law on firearm parts for export, and is not just an HK thing.

This really sucks in that real HK parts will go up in price. On the other hand, I'm sure someone in the U.S. market will step up to the plate and make clones. I've seen U.S.-made bolt carriers and bolt heads for the MP5, anyway.

Great Lines

Forgot to post these two links from...two weeks ago. Oops.

'Apocalypse' writer: Most scripts today 'are garbage' - John Milius kicks ass! To wit:

For example, here's Milius on stopping murderous drug traffickers in Mexico: "We need to go down there, kill them all, flatten the place with bulldozers so when you wake up in the morning, there's nothing there," he said in a phone interview. "I do believe if you have a military, you use it."

My personal favorite: [Conan! What is best in life?] "To crush your enemies, to see them driven before you and to hear the lamentations of their women." [That is good!]

But Milius has some real insight, unlike most of the shitheads in Hollywood:

"There's no shame in the world, and without shame, you cannot have honor. Our world is ruled by consensus now. There is no sense of honor."

CNN also had an article with the top 10 movie lines, according to them. Actually, the article was interesting because it mentions the propensity of recent generations to quote movie dialogue. At least I'm not alone.

Ammo Concerns

I found some XM80 .308 ammo online for a reasonable price. Since .308's in demand, I figured there had to be a catch, so I did some searching. The stuff is copper-gilded steel. So the logical next question would be: is the copper gilding thick enough to prevent the rifling from engaging steel? If I had a polygonal-rifled barrel perhaps I wouldn't be as concerned, but unfortunately I don't (yet). Now, I couldn't find information on the thickness of the copper, though I did find some interesting sites.

Ammo Oracle - Copied from AR15.com
5.56mm Ammunition - From "Gary's U.S. Infantry Weapons Reference Guide"
Naval Gun Ammunition - Has very interesting diagrams of cannon rounds
Gunshot Wounds - A book digitized by Google containing some useful-looking info from a quick scan

The only way I can think of to check the jacket thickness is to buy the stuff, pull the bullet, and mill it in half. Two problems with that: The ammo is in 500-rd packs, and I don't have a drill press or mill to do the cuttin'.

Letter Regarding WSJ Article

In last Friday's WSJ, there was an article regarding the Alabama shooting incident. There were several factual inaccuracies that I felt I had to write in about. To wit:

I'm sure you've already heard from a number of gun owners regarding the your article "Gun-Control Calls Are Renewed" in the March 13th edition of The Wall Street Journal. As a WSJ reader and a participant in the so-called "gun culture," I similarly felt that I should point out a few things, and correct where necessary.

First of all, I think the WSJ is an exceptional publication. However, it still tends to not report on firearm-related topics in an entirely neutral fashion. Case in point, this article made mention of the expired "Assault Weapons Ban" in connection with the shooting incident, leading the reader to conclude that a renewed AWB should follow. There wasn't much of a counter-argument presented, which was highly unfortunate.

The use of the term "semi-automatic assault rifle" is an oxymoron. "Assault rifle" has a specific definition, being a selective-fire rifle with detachable magazine that uses an intermediate cartridge between handgun rounds, which would be termed a "submachine gun," and full-fledged battle rifle rounds. Examples: Submachine gun - H&K MP5, IMI Uzi, Auto-Ordinance Thompson; assault rifle - Colt M16/M4, AK-47; battle rifle - M14, H&K G3, FN FAL. You meant to use "semi-automatic assault weapon," which is a political term used in legislation such as the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (HR 3355, Sec. 110102) and has no meaning in weapons technology.

As already corrected in the online version of the article, "unlicensed dealer" is a misnomer. (Though it reminds me of the pithy remark, "Calling an illegal alien an 'undocumented immigrant' is like calling a drug dealer an 'unlicensed pharmacist'.") The Gun Control Act of 1968 established the requirements of the current Federal Firearms License (FFL) system, requiring persons dealing in weapons for business obtain a license. Not doing so brings down the wrath of the ATF on one's head, which usually leads to imprisonment or death. Malum prohibitum, indeed. You meant "private sellers," not the politically charged and biased phrase used. Legally, I could sell any gun in my collection, since it doesn't (yet) include NFA weapons, to anyone not prohibited by law from possessing firearms, whether at a gun show or in a grocery store parking lot. (There are a few wrinkles in that, such as selling across state boundaries, and state laws mandating certain conditions for transfers.) The point is that "dealers" aim to make a profit, and such sales of firearms require a license.

Lastly, the article contained this statement: "Whether the expired federal law would have banned the particular semiautomatic assault rifles that Mr. McLendon is alleged to have used is unclear." This is in error. The text of the expired AWB specifically names the Colt AR-15 and clones. The typical SKS configuration is also banned, as it usually includes a detachable box magazine, bayonet, and grenade launcher mount. (SKSes with internal magazines are not affected.) However, regardless whether the AWB was in effect or not, transfer of affected items existing at the time of the ban was still legal. Such legislation simply makes guns more expensive, which is discrimination against low income individuals, who probably live in areas where they need weapons the most. Subsequent proposed AWB legislation specifically names the SKS in the ban list.

I find the mere prospect of a renewed AWB to be disgusting. Other than such legislation is in direct conflict with the Constitution, why truncate others' freedoms just because a few people can't handle it? Apparently, arrogance -- in certain legislators and their supporters presuming to know what's best for everybody -- knows no bounds.

Relevant links:

• Assault rifle
(Wikipedia)
• HR3355 (the expired AWB, Title XI, Sec 110102)
HR1022 (proposed in 2007)
• HR6257 (proposed in 2008)

More Anti-Gun Drivel from CNN

In an article on the shooting in Germany, CNN included a link to the comment page with the text, "Do you think the gun control issue is taken seriously enough?". What a bunch of weasels! So I had to comment:

"Do you think the gun control issue is taken seriously enough?"
In the U.S., gun control is out of control, and is being taken more seriously than it should. Knee-jerk reactions to incidents never produce good results, especially since gun control legislation is motivated by fear.

Germany has tougher gun laws than the U.S., and obviously it doesn't help. What more do you want, a police state?! Furthermore, criminals will just ignore any new gun laws and obtain weapons illegally. Logically, gun control legislation just doesn't make sense. Citizens of intellect repudiate it.

I guess I have to keep reading their site to note their factual and intellectual abuses.

.223 Ammo

AR-15.com has a page (edit: moved) in the vein of the .308 ammo master price list. Check the last few pages for the list. A separate page seems to exist for up to the minute discussions—literally, since ammo inventory disappears quickly these days.

Since I'm up for 5.56x45mm now, I've got to keep an eye on prices. For the moment, .223 is about half the price of .308, so it's a bit easier to buy.

20mm Cannon Cartridges

I came across an interesting guide to collecting 20mm cannon cartridges. Well, call me weird, but I find big bullets fascinating. I have a couple dummy M61 shells (20x102mm). If I ever become independently wealthy, I'd love to collect 20mm guns like the Solothurn. Right after I buy a huge ranch to shoot on. A guy can dream, can't he?

Comment on medical records

A comment regarding medical records and confidentiality:

Normally one's medical records are confidential. However, when applying for insurance, one signs a waiver that allows the insurance company to access your records. So if the doctor makes a note of it, someone else may see it. Normally your information is confidential unless you voluntarily give away access or "the law" wants to know by issuing a subpoena.

This is one reason why the notion of setting up a system for sharing medical records electronically is a bad idea -- that makes it easier for your private information to get spread around. It's one thing if the insurance company has to actually call up your family doctor's office. Electronic data tends to get copied, leaked, and hacked.

'Social media is like teen sex'

I just couldn't resist commenting.

Even better said than Mr. Kaushik, who must be from an era gone by. As for the metaphor (well, this commentary is over-analysis for sure), my generation was well-steeped in "pr0n", and I think pretty much everyone who was inclined to do it knew how. Of course, Mr. Kaushik meant "no one knows how to do it right" -- the efforts we see are stab-in-the-dark attempts to gain experience to do it right.

That "everyone claims to be an expert" seems to represent well the typical American characteristic of thinking too highly of their ability to get things done, hence much of the overconfidence and hype. (Disclaimer: I'm American, and while I eschew egotistic behavior, I imagine I'm guilty of it from time to time.) Conversely, my experience in the said metaphor wasn't that it was sub-par relative to expectations, but rather that everything else that went along with the relationship was hard to deal with. For me, social media is similar: the cost of the desired result in work involved isn't a good tradeoff.

Depending on one's temperament, it may be better to pass over quick gratification for a more mature "user experience" a couple years down the road that may be less emotionally scarring ;-)

Anzio Ironworks

Now this is fucking sweet: a magazine-fed 20mm rifle from Anzio Ironworks. Yeah, it's a "Destructive Device"—put a suppressor on there and it's the coolest two-stamp gun out there!

They also have a .50 BMG model (actually, several), although I'm less interested since none are AR-15 upper conversions. Point being, if one just wants a .50-cal, it's better that the government not know about it, since they'd have a harder time confiscating if things came to that. With a 20mm, there's no such loophole, so one would be stuck in any event. This is a slightly cheaper alternative to a Solothurn, and since it uses M61 ammo, perhaps finding ammo would be easier.

John Ross

JR is one hell of an interesting dude. Other than writing a kick-ass book, he has a lotta machine guns. I am envious. Moreover, his website has some good advice on buying insurance to cover firearms that I really should take into account.

MP5s

More interesting links to HK clone sources. (Refer also to my previous G3/91 links.)

HKPro had a post that tipped me off to a MP5 flat manufacturer, LSC. They had a link to Rim County Manufacturing, who sell a U.S.-made PSG-1 barrel. For only $725! (Ouch.) It's 1:11 twist, target crown, 25.5 inches.

Might have to look into an MP5 clone build with a flat from HKParts (previous post on building an MP5).

NFA Handbook

The ATF's NFA Handbook doesn't seem to be linked off their main page. Thus I'm posting here so I'll be able to find it in the future for any updates. The document is available as a single PDF file.

I had to kill some time making a couple of comments to some tripe on CNN.

Congressman Chaffetz:

I'm greatly amused by the Democrats posting negative comments to Congressman Chaffetz's report. Are they the very same Democrats who claim that Republicans are so negative in regard to proposals from their own party? As typical, hypocrisy abounds on the left. And don't these guys know that "Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit"? Since they can't make a constructive argument, they're reduced to ridicule, which requires no intellectual activity.

I'm encouraged that this freshman did the right thing and voted 'no' to the bailout provisions. He's already more responsible than most of Congress.

Good luck, Congressman Chaffetz.

Congressman Polis:

Well, Congressman Jared, I hope you'll settle in quickly and not spend too much time playing around. Your constituents should be eager to hear about real progress in place of frivolity. That's what you're paid for -- out of taxpayers' dollars!

Also, hopefully you'll uphold your oath of office and support the Constitution. Too many Democrats feel it necessary to violate it with asinine legislation, particularly the 2nd Amendment.

Obama Inauguration

Some links so I can close them out of my browser:

Obama's inaugural speech
Inauguration in Legoland
The balance of power
Retaking the oath of office (But he didn't use a Bible this time! What are the conspiracy theorists going to say?!)

Concussions

I'm reading too many CNN articles today. It's bad for my brain. However, the concussion I had as a kid might've been worse, according to an article on a CSTE study: "Symptoms can include depression, sleep disorders, headaches"—uh-oh.

Republican Negativity

I don't like this guy's political bent, but he's right about Republicans being too negative. People seem to detest negativity or criticism in general even if the arguments are completely warranted. That's a tough one because the Democrats are always blue-sky irrationals, but they're upbeat about it.

Zelizer is correct in asserting that Republicans can't be too negative. People are irrational and seem to disdain criticism even if it's logical and correct. In that regard, the Republicans will have to appear to be "building" something to appeal to the emotional populists who don't have the faculty to comprehend the reasons behind saying "no."

However, that FDR "saved" the country in the '30s is highly inaccurate. The country was no better for all the socialist programs FDR perpetuated. Let me remind the FDR champions that WWII was what "saved" the US's economy. (And FDR robbed the American public with gold confiscation and devaluing the dollar via EO6102.) This time, even if there were such a horrific world war, we wouldn't have the manufacturing capacity to win it!

NSF funds "connect-the-dots"

This is pretty freaky, although not unexpected. I guess I'd better watch out what I post on here. Not! If I don't call things out, that's one less person perceived to be in the opposition.

Democrats are the root of all that's gone wrong in America! "Expel the socialist liberals, revere the Constitution!"

Rare illness deaths in Minnesota?!

Now that I have a kid, this sort of thing scares the shit out of me. The CDC has a page on this so-called Hib disease.

Japan's Birth Rate

Yet another wonderful CNN article, which I had to comment on:

The low birth rate is a big problem because Japan, like the U.S., has a Ponzi scheme for a retirement system: future generations pay for retired previous generations through their taxes. If Japan doesn't have the young workers to support the system, it will collapse under its own weight. Social Security in the U.S. is similar, except we don't have a low birth rate and many people don't rely exclusively on SS for retirement.

Also, many Japanese people do work 12 hr days or more. To my perception, from having lived and worked there for several years, in general the Japanese work harder than we do in the U.S. If they had more natural resources, the power balance in the world would probably be very different.

Also, what's up with these racists criticizing Japan for trying to maintain their population? Perhaps they should be clamoring for population control in their own country!

Coinage

I had never been clear on which coins had valuable metals, e.g. silver. A site called Coinflation has all the pertinent info. Furthermore, I found a coin chart that lists dates and composition of the valuable U.S. coins.

AR-15 Builder

Brownells rules! The AR-15 Builder site they have also rules!

...too bad AR-15 lowers are sold out everywhere. That's a message for ya, new administration!

The Emperor's Chair

Russ found this somehow. What the smoke?! All they need is an IV and a catheter and you'd never have to get up!

Random Before Reboot

Some tabs in Firefox that I have open before needing to reboot:
The Cost of Raising Children
Failing Hard Drive Sounds
生命力テスト　変なことに、俺は「生命力は満タン！　ヤル気全開なあなた」って出てきた。うそだろと思うよな。ぎりぎり生きてる位じゃないか！

6.8 SPC FAQ

Meant to post this a while ago but it kept slipping down the list of things to do. 6.8 SPC looks to be pretty cool. Still, it's another caliber to stock in addition to 7.62x51mm, 5.56x45mm, 6.5x55mm, .45 ACP, 9x19mm, .22 LR, 12 ga, and 20 ga. And I have at least one more cartridge to add....

Feedkiller

I was trying to merge RSS feeds for a couple blogs into a single feed that I could import into Facebook. This site Feedkiller supposedly will do that, so I tried it. Not sure yet if it works. My feed is #1509.