February 2010 – Page 5 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Sunday Distractions: Falklands War Documentary

While I’m waiting for Bitter to get up and ready so we can go appreciate some Starbucks, here’s some good history for everyone. I found this in one of Richard Fernandez’s posts where he expresses concern that the British military is falling below the critical point where it’s really capable of carrying out its mission, and probably below the point where they could no longer conceivably retake the Falkland Islands again if they were threatened. Then again, even at the time there was doubt as to whether the Royal Navy and Marines were up to the task, and they succeeded. Either way, he links to a very interesting documentary, from The Falklands Portal,Â thatÂ covers the fate of the H.M.S. Coventry, which was one of two destroyers and two frigates sunk during the Falklands War:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNUnbr_voHs[/youtube]

That’s part one of six. You can find the other six at this link here. I was only eight when this war broke out, but I certainly remember it.

UPDATE: Also see this six part documentary on the lessons learned from the sinking of the H.M.S. Sheffield: part1, part2, part3, part4, part5, and part6.

I Don’t Want To Hear Crap About Militia Folks Again

Lately we’ve seen a lot of hysterics in the media about the militia movement. For some reason they really want to portray some resurgence in the movement now that Big-O is in the White House. The militia movement was never my cup of tea, but I don’t think there’s any harm from people declaring themselves defenders of the Republic, and heading out into the woods with guns and playing army. But to hear the media, you’d think these folks were a few truckloads of semtex short of Al-Qaeda, rather than enthusiasts of a different stripe.

As proof that everyone is somebody else’s weirdo, we discover that there’s a group that likes to get together and play Mars astronaut in the Utah desert.

The Mars Society is a group that prepares for man’s eventual exploration of Mars with simulations in the Utahan desert. But their mission logs, posted regularly on the group’s website, reveal a tension that is very realâ€”and very funny.

The two-week simulations, including various experiments and equipment tests, take place at the Mars Desert Research Station, located outside Hanksville, Utah. The volunteers who participate are expected to take the matter very seriouslyâ€”after all, our future Mars colony depends on it. But of course, some pretend Mars astronauts are more dedicated than other pretend Mars astronauts and this is where the trouble starts.

Read the whole hilarious thing. The comments are pretty funny too.

Report from the Front

A report from the protest outside of Shooter’s Shop:

I was rather unimpressed by the numbers that ceasefire and heeding god’s call drew.

I drove by and saw what looked like 50 people out front, and thought “Gee.. this is gonna fun”. Once I arrived at the shop, and started talking to people, I realized that from the 50 people, half were on our side, a quarter were police, and the other quarter were the nutjobs.

Also, props to Son of the Revolution. That man cameÂ prepared, and the antis were simply no match for his debate skills and facts.

So it would seem we outnumbered them. That’s good to hear, though I feel bad I couldn’t make it.

UPDATE: Some video coverage here. I’m not sure there’s honestly anything to gain by trying to argue with the other side. The folks who show up to these things are true believers. You won’t convince them. In the mean time there will be reporters there taking note of everything said, and the worst of it is going to end up in the papers.

UPDATE: More video, talking to the media, which I think is helpful if you know your shit, and this guy seems to.

UPDATE: Fairly unbiased reporting of the event from the Inquirer.

UPDATE: From the sounds of things, it would seem that Shooter Shop has their act together. They were checking IDs at the doors to prevent a repeat of the “sit in” protest experienced by Colosimo. Plus they had their attorney on hand to speak to the media. According to this person, they also asked people not to open carry, probably because they know how the media would likely spin it.

UPDATE: It would appear Shooter Shop is generally pretty careful about checking IDs:

I would like to clarify, the police were not checking IDâ€™s, they were employees of the Shooter Shop. The shop has been requiring ID from all patrons for some time now. Nobody enters the shop without ID unless they are known to the shop. This practice helps prevent potential robbery and straw purchases. A person who is ID at the door is less likely to enter and commit any type of crime. Though there is no sure fire way to prevent any sort of crime, we feel this acts as a deterrent.

I agree considering the neighborhood that this is a reasonable precaution, and I agree it’s likely to discourage criminals. So why is Heeding God’s Call protesting a gun shop that, at considerable expense, is hiring Act 235 certified security guards, to prevent straw purchasing and other criminal activity that can facilitate guns ending up in the wrong hands. This seems like a responsible shop. Do the anti-gun people want to argue that people who live in crime ridden neighborhoods don’t deserve the same access to personal protection that middle-class people enjoy in the ‘burbs?

Quote of the Day

From Megan McArdle, who speaks of a horrific program by the government to poison the black market alcohol supply during prohibition:

I wish I could say I found it surprising, but it seem to me to be of a piece with too many other brutalities in American law.Â We pass a law with the best of intentions, and find it doesn’t work, and so we pass new regulations and policies designed to crack down on non-compliance, until we are brutalizing the population all out of proportion to the original good we were pursuing.Â Consider the way we have cracked down on pain medications, impeding the effectiveness of pain control for people in chronic agony out of the fear that somewhere, someone might be getting high.Â Or the terrifying authority we’ve handed the IRS, because if anyone gets away with cheating on their taxes, the terrorists will have won, or something.

Gee. Sounds familiar doesn’t it?

Remember Starbucks Appreciation Day

It’s tomorrow, but it could be today if you can’t do it tomorrow. The important thing is, you let corporate know.

Heeding God’s Call Protest Gun Shop This Weekend

They are protesting the Shooter’s Shop this weekend. I’m told an NRA alert is going out about it:

Various anti-gun organizations have mounted an offensive to harass legitimate firearms dealers across the Keystone State.

One of these groups, Heeding God’s Call, will be holding a rally tomorrow in front of The Shooter Shop in Philadelphia between 12 noon and 1 p.m.

Please attend a silent vigil of support for legitimate firearm dealers who are under mounting harassment by this anti-gun organization. Show your colors and proudly display your American flag.

The Shooter Shop is located at 2001 E. Allegheny Ave. in Philadelphia (on the corner of E. Allegheny and Emerald Streets).Â It is two blocks east of the Allegheny stop on SEPTA’s Market/Frankford el/subway line.

Be advised that Shooter’s Shop is located in a dicey neighborhood. You should have no problem in daylight, and I doubt the local neighborhood folks are going to mess with a bunch of NRA members, but carry your gun with you, do not leave it unattended in a vehicle if you go where someone could break into your car and steal it!

Pretending Gun Control Doesn’t Exist

It would seem like the organizers of the London Olympics want to pretend as though gun control doesn’t exist. I noticed that their page on Shooting has a “Get Involved” section that pretends shooters don’t have to leave the country to practice.

Shooting is a fun way to learn discipline and responsibility. In the UK, more than 350,000 people currently practice the sport, with equal numbers of boys and girls entering competitions.

If you want to get involved, British Shooting is a good place to start.

As with many sports, there are schemes to encourage young people to reach a high level.

Find details of all the Shooting clubs and facilities in your local area in the ‘related websites’ section.

It’s just so casual, like British shooters haven’t been effectively ostracized by society and the UK sporting world. Let’s just pretend like there’s a local gun range where you can pick up any gun to shoot so conveniently for every British youngster! It’s almost as if they choose not to mention that the only reason the world’s shooters are even allowed to compete in the London Olympics is by special exemption and that these athletes will have to go abroad to even practice.

But there is one thing that stands out to this description of how to get involved in the sport. There’s a justification for why people would even want to consider involvement. There’s no list of reasons why people want to play handball or go swimming. It’s as if they feel the need to make excuses for why shooters are even being listed as athletes.

NRA Lays off Obama at CPAC

It’s interesting that NRA had to go on the warpath against…. Bill Clinton at CPAC. The fact of the matter is there just hasn’t been all that much Obama has done to us, save nominating Sotomayor and Holder:

“If you think thatâ€™s all ancient history, Iâ€™m going to tell you itâ€™s still going on today,” LaPierre said, before cutting to a clip not of President Barack Obama but of Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell.

I hate to say it, but at this point, I think even I’d suggest that Rendell is a bigger threat to gun rights than Obama, though Obama remains a larger potential threat. Rendell has been actively undermining the lock we have on Pennsylvania, and if that lock is broken it won’t bode well for the rest of the country. Pennsylvania has one of the highest percentages of NRA membership of any state. If they can break us, none of you are safe.

Radnor Tabling Lost and Stolen?

So says the President of the Board of Commissioners in Radnor Township:

Bob, just to let you know, due to a clerical error the Lost and Stolen ordinance has been legally advertised as being on the upcoming agenda for Feb 22. This was wrong. As a result the agenda will list the ordinance BUT it will immediately be tabled. I do not want a bunch of folks coming to the meeting who would normally not attend. I give you my personal word that this will not be voted on at the upcoming meeting.

Don’t take his word for it. The residents who showed up at the hearing should show up on the 22nd regardless. There’s probably no need to make a huge presence, but they should know we’re paying attention to this issue and aren’t willing to be played as fools. I’m not saying it won’t be tabled, but I wouldn’t trust the word of a politician.

Lost and Stolen in Lower Merion

Not what you think. Eugene Volokh has some pretty good coverage of the spying incident where school officials are alleged to have spied on students at home using laptop cameras. Apparently the School District is claiming the feature of activating the cameras was only in case the laptop was reported “Lost to Stolen.” Â I guess law abiding gun owners aren’t the only people who are being victimized by this issue:

pon a report of a suspected lost, stolen or missing laptop, the feature was activated by the Districtâ€™s security and technology departments. The tracking-security feature was limited to taking a still image of the operator and the operatorâ€™s screen. This featureÂ has only been used for the limited purpose of locating a lost, stolen or missing laptop. The District has not used the tracking feature or web cam for any other purpose or in any other manner whatsoever.…

I guess we’ll find out in court.

UPDATE: Orin Kerr takes a detailed look at the legal issues.