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Gary Lewis, a senior director of media relations at OSU, told The Daily Caller via email that the “unique, special-purpose vehicle is a replacement” for the “police fleet.” He called the armored jalopy “an all-hazard, all-purpose, public safety-response vehicle” with “obviously enhanced capabilities.”

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Politicians Put On Notice

Recalled. Start passing ridiculous laws and it could some negative political outcome, just ask some lawmakers in Colorado.

The issue came to a head in Colorado after gun-rights activists accused Democrats of ramming through the gun control legislation in the aftermath of a series of shootings which included the killing of 12 people in a suburban Denver movie theatre last year.<br>Angered by the gun control push, gun rights advocates had sought the recall to send a message to current and future legislators that the bills had gone too far with efforts to curb firearm access. Opponents viewed the recall effort as a bullying tactic and not the proper way to handle a policy dispute.

It's a bullying tactic? I'm sorry, but when it comes to politics a recall is the best non-violent way to force politicians to listen to their constituency. Funny that it turns out the people with the guns chose the polite way to get their point across. Recalls can work both ways. Unfortunately when one elects to come down on the side of gun control they have chosen a highly emotional topic and should expect fierce opposition. They should know they will face tough opposition because the fighting spirit still exists in a large portion of Americans. I foresee more of this in the next few years.
Go read it.

Go Read This Right Now

Speaking after the clash, Massachusetts Governor Thomas Gage declared that the extremist faction, which was made up of local citizens, has links to the radical right-wing tax protest movement. Gage blamed the extremists for recent incidents of vandalism directed against internal revenue offices. The governor, who described the group’s organizers as “criminals,” issued an executive order authorizing the summary arrest of any individual who has interfered with the government’s efforts to secure law and order. The military raid on the extremist arsenal followed widespread refusal by the local citizenry to turn over recently outlawed assault weapons.

This is how it would read on today's mainstream media sites. 

It's Just Sad

Organizing for Action held a gun control rally and three people came out. Now, I'm not pointing this one out because I want to ridicule them. (Well, maybe just a little.) I'm mentioning this because I think it shows a little bit of the gun control mindset.
The majority of people who show up after a tragedy are running on pure emotion. As time slips by, emotions fade and many of the supporters of gun control slip away. In this instance they were attempting to make it a patriotic thing by having a flag rally on Flag Day. Shame on them. They won't wrap themselves in the flag along with thousands at a pro-rights rally and fight to protect the rights they were born with. Those thousands that usually show up at pro-rights rallys are not there because of emotion. Most of those folks know there is something larger at stake.
So, if you hear of a gun control rally being held in your area go out and observe. Check out what they are doing and figure out what is going on in your community. Go read it.

That Sick Feeling You Get

When you realize that you are being watched.
I'm hoping a bunch of people have developed it recently. Major Garrett over at CBS News National Journal may be helping some of those who were asleep to wake the heck up.

The larger question is this: Can efficacy justify a gradual dismantling of liberty? Can it, and should it, erode or erase basic human aspiration, central to revolution and the Constitution, to own one's humanity without government search, seizure, or perpetual data collection and storage? A government that promises near-perfect prevention of terrorism or crime will also demand near-endless compliance from you about access to all you do, say, think, write, spend, save, invest, imagine, live, and hope. It might also demand your genetic blueprint.

And an excellent question it is, too. The answer must be an emphatic no.
Go read it.

I Need Advice

or at least, a recommendation. We're looking for a storm shelter and would prefer something that can be  attached to the slab in our garage. Anyone have experience with this in North Texas?

This Could Get Interesting

I'll be off on a rifle purchase tomorrow. The exchange is supposed to take place outside a small gun store that has been around as far back as I can remember. At least, when I was essentially a kid new to the area in the mid-80s. It's near a restaurant and a bunch of other businesses. The seller said the transaction will take place outside the gun store. Paraphrasing, he said it was so neighboring businesses and people will get used to seeing guns in the parking lot. He finished with, "There is a story behind this. I will tell you later. :-)"

Sounds like a purchase opportunity with side benefits. I'm liking it already. 

More details tomorrow.

The Law of Averages is True

There really are pro-gun celebrities. I guess they just don't get as much airtime for those views.
Go read it.

I Never Thought It Would Come To This

But, I'm throwing in with Britney Spears. Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America has lost their minds.
Go read it.

There's Apoplectic And Then There's Apoplectic

I don't know why the hubbub over weapons coming to 3D printing is really bothering me, but it is. I think it's just because people who should know better are jumping up and down and shouting that crazy people will be making weapons in their basement.

Because it isn't. Kokesh's march is just the latest product of the great American panic machine, the mechanism by which the extreme right works itself into spasms of apoplectic terror over threats that don't exist.
"We're going to be under Shariah law!"
Except we're not.
"We've become a socialist country!"
Except we haven't.
"There's a war on Christmas!"
Except there isn't.
"They're trying to take our guns away!"
Except that it is now theoretically possible for a mental patient to manufacture his own gun in the comfort of his aluminum foil-lined basement. That's a sobering development with far-reaching implications barely considered, much less addressed, by lawmakers, though this technology has existed for over a decade. Since Wilson's test, there's been a flurry of calls for legislation. On Friday, the federal government ordered Wilson to remove the blueprints from his website. All of which is the very epitome of locking the garage after the Hyundai has been hot-wired.

Speaking of working oneself into spasms of apoplectic terror...people have been making weapons in their suitably decorated basements since the first hole was dug. So the Hyundai analogy is a bit late, the cow go out of the barn a long time ago.

So, I'm here to tell the ninnies in pressland, 3D printers aren't going to be much aid anyone in making a gun right now. The printers are too few and far between to be a serious source of concern. The real concern from my vantage point is that some of these people who should know better are finally coming to grips with the fact that the determined person cannot be stopped.
Yes, Virginia, there are boogeymen. And, my dearest V, the boogeymen have always had the ability to make improvised weapons. Humans are smart animals and have a long history of giving themselves bigger and better claws and teeth. Just because the process has been streamlined by a fancy piece of tech that could potentially be housed in someone's living room doesn't mean they weren't already making items that scare you. It's just that before someone had to make a trip to the local home improvement store to get some pipe and lumber. Realization sometimes makes a thunderous crack when it dawns, huh?

Go read it.