Three Rounds Brisk...

I Wonder Why He's Not On The Purser's List?

2012-01-26T13:59:00.002-07:00

Now, what is truth? Well, for one thing, it is the thing that results in bad stuff happening if we fail to appreciate it. This applies to every level of reality, from the lowest (i.e., physics) to the highest (i.e., spirit). Ignore the law at your own peril, whether it is the law of gravity ("I can fly!") or the law of humility ("I'm a god!).

So, we are always free to disobey the law. But "Failure to teach and practice any of these principles can lead to an underestimation of human dignity, a decline in culture, the abuse of individuals and groups of individuals, and an underestimation of ourselves and our potential in life."

And "Failure to teach and practice several of these principles will most certainly lead to widespread abuse and a general decline in culture" (Spitzer).

Take the example of the Islamic world. Why is it so systematically f*cked up? Conversely, why is America that shining city on the globe? The latter (mostly) obeys the law (or used to, anyway, before the ascendence of the left). The former is a metacosmic scofflaw.

Via American Digest.

If I Had The Patience (Anymore)

2012-01-26T13:47:00.002-07:00

I might write something like this:

And that is where the real concern arises. For those who wish an overturn of western culture and the rising of a worldwide Islamic "republic," these basic principles have to go. For the radical Islam growing in numbers and voice in Europe, particularly places like France and Holland, the concepts of western civilization are at odds with what they believe and wish to see implemented. For them, equality leads to corruption, democracy leads to the unlearned commanding law, and liberty leads to sin. It is "un-Muslim" to have a civilization based on anything but submission to Allah and his prophet.

Want to fix something? Read the manual.

Sunday Reflection: When muddling through is the best you can hope for | Glenn Harlan Reynolds | Columnists | Washington Examiner

2012-01-01T11:05:00.001-07:00

Sunday Reflection: When muddling through is the best you can hope for | Glenn Harlan Reynolds | Columnists | Washington Examiner

Happy New Year folks.

If the world situation was the result of mere opportunism and political corruption I might be more in agreement with the Blogfather.

I believe that Western Civ may well be suicidal. Our American political class is a fail across ethical, technical, and competence measures. The fault is no "them" to levy blame for any specific failing. We have failed as a nation, failed in the primary duty born by citizens.

Being free means being responsible. The founders built our republic on that foundation. We have walked away from the rock and now swim in a swamp of our own making.

The future is not written.

If You Doubted The Country Was Under Attack...

2011-12-22T22:35:00.002-07:00

LightSquared.

I've commented on many different subjects in this space over the last few years, and many of those times were merely subjective rants.

The threat to national security and our economy presented by LightSquared is a different breed of cat entirely. The first time I saw a demonstration of GPS was probably 1986 or 7. At that demonstration multiple receivers were set up over both known and unknown points and then allowed to observe the GPS constellation for several hours over two days. This was because there were very few satellites up at that time, and solutions required at least four satellites in view.

It wasn't only the observations that took a long time. The tech rep running the demonstration had the first 286 PC I had ever seen, and it took him hours to reduce the raw data to positional information.

The GPS spectrum is a national security asset. It is as critical to our "just in time" national logistic system as is the internet. Real time, accurate ground navigation makes many businesses not only profitable, but possible.

LightSquared's technology is no different than any other cellular service. By being given access to the same frequency spectrum that GPS lives on LightsSquared avoids the costs paid for bandwidth any other broadband outfit has to pay.

But by being Friends of Democrats they are angling to enter the arena on the backs of the U.S. taxpayer. They (LightSquared) know full well their technology has been proven to disrupt GPS service (go back and read the article) but they don't care.

Solyndra wasn't about solar power. The GM/Chrysler bailout wasn't about jobs, and neither was the stimulus.

A coup. Not an administration.

Back to the Future

2011-12-21T20:11:00.002-07:00

When I was a newly minted Marine running around Camp Pendleton in 1980 I noticed you couldn't march ten feet in a straight line without tripping over a Chrysler Dodge vehicle. GSA cars, M880 pick up trucks, Ram Chargers in grim OD paint jobs...

But there were also dozens, scores, hundreds of D50 pick up trucks, and later K cars and Rampages. The Feds bailed out Chrysler in '79. 60K automotive jobs went away, never to come back, but Chrysler did return to profitability in the mid eighties and ran that way until the Great Recession.

The news that Chrysler "paid back" their bailout seven years early was no shocka to anybody working for the feds.

Now I find that the public (cost to you and me, whether we ever sit in a Volt or not) cost for each Chevy Volt works out to about $250,000 each, what with subsidies and current Federal purchases.

That's pretty spendy for a coal fired golf cart that sometimes bursts into flames three days after a fender bender.

I keep hearing "What cannot go on forever, won't" but I'm really beginning to wonder what that bubble is going to sound like when it pops.

Merry Christmas.

Feel Good Post of the Day!

2011-11-08T21:10:00.002-07:00

Beginning of my comment on Jeff Goldstein's post on Attorney General Holder's latest appearance before Congress:

"Even at this late stage of collapse most Americans just sort of assume that when an especially egregious and blatant crime is committed that there will in fact be rough men with badges, guns, and who are possessed of a strong sense of duty who will stand up and bring the perpetrators to justice."

Septermber 22, 2011

2011-09-22T21:07:00.001-06:00

Richard Fernandez:

The market is writing down the value of the world economy. Right across the board. It is making a judgement on what they think the future is worth. By recent numbers, not much. Not just because policymakers have gotten it wrong about the “root cause” of terrorism, or the Euro; but also about “Too Big To Fail”, population policy, multiculturalism, a crippling environmentalism and Global Warming, to name a few. The financial, national security and educational systems of the world are in utter collapse because they are stuffed with lies, which even when they are shown to be obviously false suck up trillions of dollars in their pursuit . And nothing will turn the global elites from continuing their ruinous path until they have spent the last nickle and dime they can lay their hands on.

got food?

(via American Digest)

Required Reading : Jerry Pournelle

2011-09-19T20:37:00.000-06:00

An essay that drips great steaming piles of common sense.

Do not despair.

Here's the link.(Via American Digest)

Who...

2011-08-30T20:50:00.001-06:00

... will the Democrats primary against Obama?

Monday

2011-07-23T13:53:00.003-06:00

Seems there won't be any budget deal coming out of the meetings that have been held between the administration and Congress.

The media covering the story still at this late date presume that their guy - the President - seeks a solution. They are willfully mistaken, and terribly, sadly so.

Obama is a Marxist. Not the banner waving, leader- of- the- pack kind of romantic figure we see in the manufactured histories of people like Che or Fidel. More the fellow traveler type, that annoying git from the dorm or faculty lounge, with extra points awarded for race. He would like to have been one of the revolutionary types, but frankly that would have meant hard work. His most striking qualities, being both intellectually lazy and morally directionless, combined with his affirmative action status to make him a prime candidate for a bunch of folks who were indeed revolutionaries. What glory is there in being leader of a nation one despises and of people to stupid to see the con?

Being the instrument of disaster is what Barak Obama has settled for. Don't laugh; not everybody gets to be good at something, finally.

The toughest part of his day is when he doesn't laugh into the camera.

Writing in Commentary magazine, John Podhoretz proposes that the President is seeking to panic the markets.

(via Instapundit)

Not a panic. A collapse. A coup, not an administration.

Independence Day 2011

2011-07-03T23:40:00.003-06:00

Proud to be an American. Looking forward to better days.

There is a seven pound pork roast out in the kitchen quietly converting into some serious pulled pork for tomorrow's neighborhood barbeque.

Tomorrow we'll be burning powder at Cherry Hill Park. Kids who know their American history even a little bit will light the cannon.

The goddesses and Mom and I all went to see Transformers III this afternoon. More than worth the ticket price. No spoilers!

Sleep well, America. Better days are coming.

Twenty-Nine Reasons to Be Angry And/Or Scared

2011-06-22T20:55:00.002-06:00

Twenty-Nine Reasons to Be Angry And/Or Scared

I have been sober eleven years today.

Thanks to God, Valeri, the Goddesses, and the fellowship.

I want to be clear of mind and have peace in my heart for the coming trials.

(via American Digest)

Egad a Month...

2011-05-18T19:03:00.002-06:00

Still here, still working, still putting my best foot forward.

We went cannon shooting two weekends ago. Powder is now $20.00 dollars a pound which makes hitting the mark even more sweet than it was before.

It's been the first day of spring here about forty times now. With all the rain and the 200% snow pack we won't have to listen to media reports of the coming drought disaster this year.

Have a fine one.

Do Something Nice

2011-04-19T21:42:00.001-06:00

That's it. Just try to be a bright spot in somebody's life, if only for a moment.

That's all.

Good luck.

It's a Gibbon Moment

2011-03-23T17:46:00.002-06:00

**

"The exit strategy will be executed this week in the sense that we will be pulling back from our much more active efforts to shape the environment."

Ya know, I never really understood what “horrifying” meant.

Not over a period of years at least.

The Won Everyone Was Waiting For has reduced the gravity of state sanctioned killing by uniformed armed forces to an activity best administrated by a “political committee” to be named by the remaining members of the international debating society that shamed him into doing SOMETHING …

This isn’t amateur hour. This is our country in free fall.

Japan

2011-03-15T20:11:00.002-06:00

I have not posted on Japan because I simply do not have words.

We are giving through the Red Cross.

I pray for them in the mornings, just before I ask for the grace of another day.

Please help, if you are able.

Goodbye Old Friend

2011-03-06T15:18:00.004-07:00

I don't know what the predicted service life is for one of these, but I got twenty two years out of mine.

Sunday mornings I usually putter around in the reloading room. I tossed about forty pieces of Mosin brass into the tumbler and fired it up and it struck me that I've been using this same piece of equipment since we lived in an apartment in Clairemont, above Mission Beach in San Diego. In a few hours the brass was shiny, so swapped out the cases for some pulled .303 bullets to get rid of the tar sealant the Pakistanis used and clicked the "on" button. It just sat there and hummed.

Goodbye old friend.

A Glimpse Into The Man Cave

2011-02-20T15:35:00.005-07:00

Ten years ago I ran up a deer load for .280 Remington for a friend. He called me up recently and asked if I could put together one for elk, and also do some middle of the road .30-'06 loads for his step son. He provides all the components, I get to practice the craft.

In January I managed to crank out about fifty rounds of .280 Remington 140 grain Sierras for varmints but was only able to get to the elk loads today.

I guess he got a deal on the nickel cases but they are turning out to be a bear to use. They come "sized" according to the literature but after I weighed out fifty charges and tried to seat the bullets on to the loaded cases I found that the case mouths were all too tight. The seating process shaved off nasty amounts of the gilding jackets (Nosler 160 grain AccuBonds over 51.7 grains of IMR 4350) of the first two projectiles, even with their boat tail configuration.

I poured the powder charges back into the cannister and returned it (the powder cannister) to the sub basement, then set up to size all the cases in my Herter's double ram press. This meant I had to remove the decapping pin from the sizing die, which took all of five minutes. I shot the cases with spray lube, gave them a minute to dry, and proceeded to get about half of them sized before I had a stuck case. I destroyed the neck expander/ decapping pin holder in getting the case out of the die.

I think I'll suggest he not buy nickel cases. Brass is our friend. I'd be done now, had I been working with brass cases. Now I've got to time getting off work early enough to hit my reloading supplier to pick up another pin.

But I got fifty rounds of .30-'06 done before any of this kerfluffle. I got to spend time in The Cave.

It's been a good weekend. I hope yours was, too. And there is still Spaghetti Night to come!

No new Mosins recently. I let a Ministry of Defense marked 1939 Tula get away Saturday. That's okay, too, since I can't shoot more than two of the ones I own at one time, anyway. I joke, I joke... here's one of my favorites from downstairs, just for fun:

Come on SPRING!

2011-01-29T22:45:00.000-07:00

That is all.

Shucks

2011-01-17T21:26:00.001-07:00

I liked being an Aries.

Times change.

Yes.

2011-01-03T21:17:00.000-07:00

This Year To Come

2011-01-01T13:58:00.002-07:00

Some things I'll be doing or looking for in the coming year:

1. Be True.

2. Nail down my grasp of AutoCADD, at least enough that I am able to effectively resource CADD data to my surveying software.

3. I'd like to see a Fair/Flat Tax act introduced, preferably by spring. I know it won't pass until after 2012 but getting every franchised citizen a skin in the game is the first most important step toward possibly saving the Republic.

4. I know there won't be any rescinding of Obamacare. The most we can hope for is complete defunding of its provisions. While the socialization of the health care system is a crisis for myriad reasons, remember that the primary goal behind Obamacare is that it is designed to expensively and emotionally distract and entangle the House and Senate from addressing the more lethal threats launched by this administration - exponential growth of regulatory agencies and regulations, specifically EPA, FCC, FDA, and FTC, and the transformation of Justice into a political hit squad.

Destroying the world's premiere health care infrastructure is just a step toward controlling the people, not a goal.

It's an attack. Not an administration.

5. Glass bed one of my Mosins. Just because I can.

6. Find a silver coin with my metal detector.

7. Read three good books I haven't read before.

8. Take a straight week off during the summer and see something of the world with the One True Love.

I hope you have a wonderful New Year. Just be ready.

EVERYBODY!

2010-12-24T23:27:00.004-07:00

Please have a merry, merry Christmas. May your life be filled with joy this most holy of seasons.

May you be surrounded by loving family, and good friends.

May tomorrow bring you opportunity to succeed at being a better person than you are today.

God bless, and may he keep you well.

I am a lucky guy.

Came to Understand

2010-12-02T19:35:00.002-07:00

We don't have a governing class.

They have presumed to be a ruling class.

It's nice to see honest and appropriate descriptive vocabulary every once in a while... but the attack on the Republic is probably going to end up being fought out in the streets.

Fought to the end, in the cold, hungry, dark.

A few years ago some Islamist mook made waves saying that our grandkids would be moslem.

I think there's a better chance they'll be slaves, myself.

Friday Night Game

2010-11-12T20:47:00.001-07:00

Name the party!

Energy Delivered At A Distance

2010-11-07T21:03:00.004-07:00

What's a max load for a .280 Remington, using the 160 grain Nosler Accubond bullet over IMR 4350 powder, new Remington nickel plated cases, Winchester standard large rifle primers?

I'm thinking it must be around 53 grains, just looking at case capacity. I'm also thinking that would be a compressed load.

The available industry info I've been able to research indicates they want folks to use another powder... but I'm working with what I've got. IMR 4350 gives excellent results with heavy bullets in this caliber range.

Rifle is a well- cared for Remington 700 from the eighties.

Take your time. This is for a friend, and for next year's hunt.

I've already put together the varmint knockers - 110gr TNT's over 52gr of 4350. They zip right along.

Unfortunate Word Choice

2010-10-25T18:17:00.002-06:00

Now I saw the teaser on Drudge, so made sure that it wasn't just a goof. Nope:

"He said Republicans had driven the economy into a ditch and then stood by and criticized while Democrats pulled it out. Now that progress has been made, he said, "we can't have special interests sitting shotgun. We gotta have middle class families up in front. We don't mind the Republicans joining us. They can come for the ride, but they gotta sit in back.""

Make no mistake about it: we have a childish ideologue occupying the highest office in the land.

His not being very bright is just spice for the mix.

He's about out of my prayers. Even with two years of lame duck to go.

Didn't See That Coming.

2010-10-24T18:24:00.000-06:00

You are a
Social Liberal
(60% permissive)

and an...
Economic Conservative
(76% permissive)

You are best described as a:

Capitalist

Link: The Politics Test on OkCupid.com: Free Online Dating
Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

sundaySundaySUNDAY!!!!

2010-10-24T11:08:00.002-06:00

Required reading:

"These are good men who just happen to hold different beliefs. Like, for instance, you believe in free enterprise and unalienable rights, while they believe you should be their bitch."

Now that's some wisdom.

Jeff Goldstein has been a daily read for me since my earliest days on the web.

If you have ever witnessed or been a participant in an important public event and then found the subsequent reportage to be not quite on the mark... then you might consider following Mr. Goldstein around, too.

Language, intent, control, and what tomorrow may look like. Depending on who controls who gets to think and what they think, of course.

Have You Noticed?

2010-10-11T18:24:00.003-06:00

Reloading powders are suddenly very expensive. Or maybe I just noticed. I knew that black powder was already way past silly as far as cost goes.

I'm in the middle of working up some Mosin food, using projectiles pulled from some truly horrible Pakistani production milsurp .303. I have arrived at the end of an inherited can of H4895 and went out to pick up another pound and found they wanted $25.00.

The election hasn't even been stolen yet. Sheesh.

HoHum

2010-10-05T21:02:00.001-06:00

*

A wee bit of vaporing, that. Premature, presumptive, and preternaturally fantastic.

As in fantasy.

One term. And nobody associated with this administration is going anywhere a majority of citizens supports them.

Oh My Goodness!

2010-09-09T19:39:00.002-06:00

What kind of outfit lets a drunk monopolize a microphone at a public event?

"Later in his impromptu speech Mr. Sha turned to an American colleague, singling out Bob Orr, from the executive office of the secretary-general.

"I really don't like him: he's an American and I really don't like Americans," he said.

A second senior UN official who was at the dinner said: "It went on for about ten or fifteen minutes but it felt like an hour.""

Mr. Sha needs himself a cold beer in the Rose Garden. That would set him right up.

(via Instapundit)

School is Back in Session

2010-09-07T20:26:00.004-06:00

Prepare and eat a light meal, refill your glass, then open your philosophy book to:

"That is, the Founding Fathers took the English constitutional principles, the institutional forms that already existed in the colonies, and set them down on paper. They were not inventing a new society. They only unified and systematized already existing principles. So this is not a revolutionary movement in any way. As a counterbalance to this, some movements which, in the Brazilian popular culture, in the Brazilian mass media, and school textbooks, are regarded as reactionary and anti-revolutionary, such as the Italian Fascism, or even Nazism, are obviously revolutionary. Why? Because they raised the proposition of a radically new society: they would destroy all existing institutions and rebuild everything from scratch. In the German case, this was an even more radically revolutionary because the foundations of the new society to be created were derived from a recent science, evolutionist biology."

You may need to break this up over a few sittings. It's worth your time.

What makes a revolutionary a revolutionary? Just where did the movement of "movements" origniate? I never really gave it much thought.

(via protein wisdom)

Never Gonna Stand For This by Teachenor Clark

2010-09-04T12:27:00.000-06:00

I remember Garafolo before she was such a dessicated, vicious harpy.

(h/t Gerard Vanderluen)

Tiresome.

2010-08-30T21:51:00.002-06:00

*

He really is an embarrassment.

Guesses on when the Democrats formally announce his primary challenger?

It's a Circle. (Updated)

2010-08-25T20:00:00.003-06:00

Tyrants fear those they rule and they will go to great lengths to keep them unarmed.

Sometimes it works.

Sometimes not.

It's about ... 1936 again, give or take a season. No Olympics, of course. But the stage has certainly filled with quite a few interesting players. Who will step out of the shadows now that the cop has officially left the beat?

UPDATE 2000 8/28:

EPA decides to lay back on this one. For now.

Didn't See That Coming

2010-08-13T20:28:00.001-06:00

Coin Toss

2010-08-09T19:57:00.001-06:00

Read the essay here: Borepatch: The Bonfire of the Vanities.

Then go check out the essay and comments I linked to in Positive Waves.

I'm done with the philosophy for a while. About two years back I undertook a short study of litcrit, semantics, and rhetoric using books recommended by Jeff Goldstein. Time well spent, but not an education by any means.

I think it's better for me just to go out and build some big stuff. Foucalt, Gramsci, and company just piss me off, anyway.

Have a fine one.

(H/T American Digest)

Positive Waves

2010-08-08T20:09:00.002-06:00

From time to time, Mrs. Utah chides me for being cynical. Everyone gets an opinion, and I value hers most among the people I know.

But she might be just wide of the mark.

The following is a comment left here, in response to a question about cultural evolution:

TmjUtah said...

The essential unit of human advancement is the individual.

Societies that nurture healthy, responsible individuals who are able to realize the benefits of their labors, inventions, or art... those societies leave the others behind.

Free men, in free markets, change worlds for the better. For themselves and their neighbors.

Until they forget that it is the individual that counts first.

Our FOUNDING PRINCIPLES pivot on the absolutely radical idea that before any strongman, before any chief, before any apparatus of The State, stands The Individual, who PERMITS the State to exist, and only exist to perform specific, enumerated duties.

But the individual must be of stern enough stuff to handle the responsibility inherent with being responsible for his own governance. Franklin and Jefferson and to a lesser extent Adams were all right; it would be failure of citizenship, not conscious machination of tyrants, that most threatened the Republic. They were simply off in their time frame.

Principles are just goals, and the absolute very best a mere human can ever hope to accomplish in pursuit of individual achievement is to make progress in the right direction. The pursuit of perfection to the absence of any other standard is always fatal. We are only men.

We are all expendable. But it was expendable men who built the pyramids, harnessed steam, and walked on the moon, too... so there is always that level of "just men" to aim for.

Have a fine week. Smile. It's contagious!

The Greatest Instapundit Post Evah!

2010-08-08T07:51:00.001-06:00

Follow the linky.

Dodd-Frank Financial Reform Act...

2010-07-17T07:36:00.002-06:00

...isn't that like a Dillinger-Kelly-Floyd-Barker Bank Security Act?

Message for Mr. Cloward and Mr. Piven:

Your train is in the station.

I Could Take Subtitles For This...

2010-07-10T11:51:00.001-06:00

Even French subtitles.

Looks like a hoot.

How Did THAT Happen???

2010-07-10T11:16:00.003-06:00

Via Instapundit, John Hindraker opines that some folks might be catching on that the President might not be who he was represented to be...

... which indicates that a lot of them just might not notice being raped until the baby was delivered, as well.

In the words of the great tech support gurus: you must R T F B.

Summer Half Past

2010-07-08T18:42:00.001-06:00

Still here. Still kicking the survey and layout gig up in Salt Lake.

I can't wait to see what happens next.

Easy Call To Make. No Good Outcome.

2010-06-22T12:14:00.005-06:00

General McChrystal should be relieved, immediately.

Failure to do so is just icing on the cake of incompetence and and ineptness that is this administration.

The President of the United States has never hesitated to exercise civilian control over the military when the need was clear and present. Gen. McChrystal's public statements are disloyal to a degree that makes it necessary to relieve and retire him immediately. That the general's staff was poorly led enough to become ammunition in the same article is merely additional proof of the lack of leadership and absence of character that permeates the organization.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are lost. They are over as was the American involvement in Vietnam ended with the ink wet on the paper of the Paris Peace accords. No Democrat congress/Socialis Marxist administration has any interest in dealing with resurgent Islam; less even than in defending our sovereignty or our borders. All that remains where (UPDATE) Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran (END UPDATE) is concerned is to see where the political and human costs will be ultimately levied. A military leader in McChrystal's position, knowing this reality, had two options: push for militarily efficient retreat, and call it what it was, or to resign.

I have no clue what McChrystal thought whining to the Rolling Stone would do for himself, or for the military he thought he might be helping...

His actions make MacArthur's insubordination to Truman look like a class move.

Fire him, or just cement the accurate perception by the world that Obama is incapable of executive command.

Poorly Yet Honestly Presented

2010-06-15T18:04:00.003-06:00

I believe the relationship that now exists between the citizenry and our government - state and local - has evolved to a situation strongly akin to the policy known as mercantilism that was in large part the proximal cause of our original revolution.

Our contemporary political class behaves more as rulers than representatives. Their observed conduct in economic matters defies logic; is it simple corruption, or merely ideological fantasy, that drives their agendas?

The incumbency rate of legislators coupled with the rise of power of public employee unions explains the vicious circle of payoffs to the latter in return for donations to the former. Yes, that's a quid for the pro...

I know the analogy is weak, but at bottom we have a ruling class that has defined the good of the nation as what is best for itself, right now. The elite act as if they are managers of a static environment, and the world is anything but. Something (more) is going to give, and soon.

Epic Fail

2010-06-07T18:35:00.002-06:00

First it was the boot on the throat posturing, now this.

Jimmy Carter cries tears of gratitude into his pillow every single night this national nightmare continues.

(via Drudge)

A Little Gratitude Here

2010-05-30T17:16:00.003-06:00

Via Instapundit, I have been gently reminded (again) that we do in fact live in wondrous times:

Tomorrow, please honor those that gave all but always remember:

"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived."

George S. Patton

I live in a culture where the concept of heroism has been sufficiently corrupted so that not merely incompetent, corrupt (or both) men and women but even outright evil individuals and groups have risen to positions of national power.

In spite of that, we still do live in wondrous times. The fight isn't over until the your ashes are in the wind. Never, ever give up.

Return

2010-05-25T21:14:00.003-06:00

We had a blast.

Mom sat in this guy's chair.

I sat in on the welcome aboard part of the tour and actually traded some "we had to do this" stories about construction with two Boeing engineers; if I remember correctly the younger of the two gentleman was the program manager for the SGANT system being installed on the ISS as we spoke.

Mom spoke with THREE astronauts. She has pictures to prove it, too!

I got to touch a moon rock. Still get shivers thinking about that.

Three thousand miles.

Mount Up!

2010-05-15T18:49:00.002-06:00

Mrs. Utah has a slot at the NASA tweet up at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, Wednesday May 18th. They offered up one hundred seats and have over six hundred thousand followers. She won one! She's been following NASA since the sixties and this is the second to last shuttle mission; this is real bucket list stuff.

This was all so sudden that I didn't think I'd be able to swing (or afford) the time to go with her, but my boss got wind of what was up and kicked my ass off the job all next week. "Go with her, you moron, because we open the next project in June and we'll be back on fifty-five hour weeks, minimum."

And I was way too conservative on withholding last year, so Uncle Joe got to hold way too much of my money. The refund arrives in our account Tuesday so it's

ROAD TRIP!!!

time.

We will stop in Waco to visit my brother, and then on to Houston where we will be staying with one of Val's friends. I'm going to meet up with an hold high school buddy, too. When we last met, the Knack was bleeding edge.

Where does the time go?

We leave tomorrow at 0430. Y'all have a fine week.

Update

2010-04-29T21:31:00.001-06:00

Just ducky.

Attitude Check

2010-04-28T22:11:00.001-06:00

Happy as a clam.

Check

2010-04-27T20:10:00.002-06:00

I believe that the timing of the Goldman Sachs suit is near the end of - and possibly the climax - of a decades - long list of actions planned, and now executed, by Leftist agents intent on destroying the Republic.

Destroy the national economy by accumulating debt four or five times greater than the annual GDP, compounded by unbelievably onerous taxation spiced with a shotgun blast of mandates, regulations, new entitlements, and oh by the way destroy the currency while they are at it...

Check.

Destroy the populations faith in free markets by regulating them out of existence over decades of incremental nationalization.

Then blame business for the collapse. Show trials to follow. Followed (immediately, as we have seen in the last couple of days) by even more onerous government siezure of control.

Check.

Destroy the faith of the citizenry in the representative republic form of government.

Well, if Obama, Reid, and Pelosi don't alarm you, you probably don't pay attention anyway...

Check.

Destroy the moral, ethical, and scholarly foundations of what a citizen should be, aiming instead, via public education, to create classes of victims conveniently manipulated as needed by whatever Leftist faction floats to the top of the current political cycle.

Go ask Bill Ayers what a Weatherman would do if he could end up writing curricula for public schools. Bring a camera; he'll be happy to talk to you.

Being right is supposed to bring ... joy? Satisfaction? Not here, not now.

Correspondence

2010-04-11T08:39:00.004-06:00

To whom it may concern -

Today marks the last time I open a newspaper that I asked to be delivered to my doorstep only to be insulted. And then insulted again.

Our subscription is in the name (of my wife). Cancel it. We will be calling on Monday during business hours to confirm this change.

I used to open up those random copies of City Weekly I found blowing through the streets of Salt Lake just to read the breathless, trapped behind the lines editorials in the front of their cage liner. The casual hate and self righteousness was always good, too.

Your paper makes the vaporing of those overgrown dorm room communists look like journalism.

I'll have to go back to using junk mail circulars for fireplace tinder and drop cloths for painting/hobby projects. The average intelligence of individuals and grasp of current events by the occupants of this house will be vastly improved by the absence of your product from our home.

Sincerely,

A.R. Jones
Orem, Utah

(Edited slightly)

*UPDATE*

"This message is a confirmation that we have received your transaction request. Your request will be completed within two days. Thank you for the opportunity to be of service to you.

Customer Service Department
Newspaper Agency Company"

In Other Venues

2010-04-10T11:05:00.003-06:00

Mr. Cobb asks a question I have addressed repeatedly over the last few years:

"I want to know the financial meltdown scenario that makes domestic politics turn violent.

What do you think? Why is nobody thinking the unthinkable?"

See Van Der Luen's Sidelines for more comment.

The socialists are way, way past being out of other peoples' money.

Now we just wait.

It's Official!

2010-04-05T19:45:00.002-06:00

Worst.President.EVER.

The way a strategic deterrent works is that you publish the rules and then follow them. Simple rules. Known consequences. The dead certainty that actions will bring crushing retaliation.

Say goodbye to all that. I believe that this president has never won a fist fight. He might have scuttled the odd career or assassinated a character or two on his way up the thug life ladder in Chi. But the President of the United States has just telegraphed to the world that he thinks that "smart" or worse, "clever", counts for something on the field he's just stepped upon.

Simple. Known. Accepted. Well, we'll see how high the pile is, I guess.

At least now I understand now why Joe Biden is the vice president. Barak Obama picked the Senator from Delaware because Obama valued his keen intellect.

Somewhere, Jimmy Carter is weeping quiet tears of gratitude. He's off the hook.

Will the Democratic congressional caucus be able to fill a bridge table after 2012? If the world was fair - no, not a chance... but the only way out for the Dems is to be ready to impeach Obama at the drop of a hat, and then drop it themselves. And that's not going to happen - not with O being the second black president and all.

Not that the Republicans have anything going for them. But not being a Democrat might just be the most important quality a candidate or incumbent can have going into 2010 and beyond.

I've sold my old burb to the recycler, FedExed oldest Goddesses' long board to the East Coast, and repaired a niggling bolt issue on a good friend's Mosin Nagant M44.

Have a fine evening.

Batching It

2010-04-03T09:44:00.002-06:00

Mrs. TmjUtah and the Last Goddess are on the road to Cabo!

My youngest daughter pulled almost 4.0 the last two years of high school and has been taking college courses this last year as well.

Mrs. Utah and I decided that special effort and results demanded recognition and reward beyond a nice dinner out or a reasonably used economy car... so the Goddess is cruising the Mexican Riviera for seven days, and Mom gets to get out of the house during the last snows of the winter.

Me? I get to finish my garages. The one spanning Block 75 just off Temple Square in Salt Lake, and the modest cinder block affair off the back of the Home of the Team here in south Orem.

I have BIG PLANS... but to name them would kill them. Look for an update in these spaces.

Off to the vet to get our allergy cat shot (with her SERUM. Geeze. Happens every Saturday, folks.)

I'm still looking for a buyer for my old 'Burb; want a parts price (it runs) and then I'll change that gelt right into Mosins or bulk ammo.

On the road....

21 March 2010

2010-03-21T21:31:00.002-06:00

You may have woken up this morning to enjoy your rights and privileges as a citizen of the world's most successful and powerful republic. Make no mistake about it: your status is not what it was when you were enjoying your waffles and coffee. Citizen? Not really; your ability to pursue your happiness, your responsibility for your own freedom, has been denied by The State.

Subjects? Serfs? I'm not sure what we are now.

Citizens were understood to have rights inherent and inviolable; rights granted by a creator. Government was to be an expression of the people, established to execute those activities generally beyond the scope of the individual. Government was defined by the Constitution, and its duties enumerated.

And all other powers reserved to the states, or the people.

That's over now. We have arrived at that moment where the government that promises to give everyone everything they desire gets down to the business of taking everything we have. Don't know if we are subjects. Merely wards of the state? But we're not citizens. Not in the eyes of the Democratic executive and legislative office holders who earlier this evening nationalized our health care sector.

Oh, and the financing of higher education.

There are judicial challenges on the horizon, for sure... but I've got two words for you: Eric. Holder.

Welcome to the Coup.

I don't feel fine. Not at all.

Eve of Destruction

2010-03-20T12:54:00.003-06:00

Professor Reynolds unleashes the ultimate weapon:

HEH.

Here is some required reading from Jeff Goldstein.

Neoneocon brings us news from Mr. York. Silver linings, perhaps?

I expect this weekend to bring the death of the Republic. Hyperbole?

Government now owns our core manufacturing, banking, and insurance entities and regulates the rest to a standstill. The last four decades of government subsidy of various sectors of pharma and health have been the prime mover in the spiralling costs of both. Nationalizing health care (and at the same time financing for higher education; you were not supposed to notice) makes Uncle Sugar your undisputed master... not your representative, nor anything resembling a shield of individual freedoms.

You may think you will have electoral options come 2010. Have you considered how fast this congress and president may move to provide amnesty for the millions of illegal aliens residing in the country? The natural result of such a move would be to invite a flood of yet more illegal aliens banking on the hope that the government might extend that amnesty to them, too. This is exactly what happened the last time an amnesty was tried, back in the eighties.

That legislation had amnesty with an assurance of increased enforcement of border security. That worked out well, didn't it?

Nothing like millions of unskilled workers to take the sting out of twenty percent unemployment numbers, I always say. Especially in the cities.

When the flood comes you must swim across the current to get to shore. Then go from there.

I've got nothing else to say, except for "good luck".

Range Day

2010-03-11T22:32:00.002-07:00

0900 Saturday, 13 March, Lee Kay Hunter Education Center.

Testing .30'06 in my Remington 700 and Garand, shooting at least two Mosin-Nagant 91/30's for groups using four different surplus ammo lots, various pistols, with a special guest appearance by the EBR*.

If you are in the area, drop me a line at TangoMikeJuliet@gmail.com. Right now it looks like Mrs. Utah, a couple of coworkers, and me. Youngest Goddess is going to pass the word to some of her Fine Young Men and I may end up hosting a few of them, too. That doesn't mean much of anything, except I'll probably pack up my K98 8mm carbine(Russian Capture) and a hat full of that robust Turkish machine gun ammo on top of everything else...

Have a fine weekend, where ever you are.

(*EVIIIIIL Black Rifle)

Pretty Full Weekend

2010-03-07T21:55:00.002-07:00

Work is NOT going to be ten hours a day, five days plus Saturdays. We'll just get the amount of production in we would have in that amount of time but no man goes over forty until further notice. Without overtime I miss several hundred dollars a week. That stings more than a wee bit.

I previously mentioned that I was having trouble with my reloading hardware. A pleasurable and profitable half hour spent in the august presence of Mr. Lamont Christensen, proprietor of Christensen Reloading Supply gave me the good scoop on how to get my equipment back on line, as well as providing some seriously useful data on loads for some of my favorite calibers. In exchange for his time and counsel I went ahead and purchased a hundred .310 diameter 180gr soft point bullets for building my Mosin target loads.

On Friday night Mrs. Utah and I ran out the last 200 rounds of 9mm Parabellum that was left on the table when the Dillon went down last week. Saturday and today I washed about five loads of laundry, decluttered and cleaned up our dining room and long bar, and in between those tasks went ahead and ran out a small lot of .30 caliber tracers and a test lot of twenty .30-'06 150 gr Sierra FMJBTSP deer loads. I noticed that the stock on my Remington 700 has warped a tiny bit and that it now fails the dollar bill test. So there's another weapon in the safe that needs a tweak...

Have a fine week.

Blink

2010-02-24T19:21:00.004-07:00

Just a note to say that content will continue to be nonexistent.

I am buttoning up my part of a city block's worth of underground parking plus six floors of a tower...

... and I am back on a five tens schedule - at the very least. There will be some Saturday work, too, to get this baby put to bed.

Random thoughts:

1. The Democrat caucus in DC is acting in a suicidal manner. Good. I hope they get the help they so desperately need. Sometimes stepping off that ledge takes a little push. I've got a shower curtain rod they can tie off on, and a whole closet of out of style ties and dress belts.

Hell, I'll hang an extra rod down stairs if they don't mind forming a line.

2. After fifteen years of faithful service, my Dillon XL650 progressive reloading machine has developed a bind of some sort. Cursory inspection and a tiny bit of web research indicate that the arm pivot bushings need to be greased, but I really won't have a moment to spare to get it done for the next few weeks.

It was quite jarring to realize that the equipment had gone down. At the time the fault manifested I was actually in process of trying to find an empty ammo can to store the 9mm I had just finished loading up. I keep the ready ammo in Dillon Blue boxes, with the overflow living in .30 cal cans. I'm plumb full up. So I guess not having the reloader is not THAT big a deal. Still, it grates. These are interesting times.

I will probably tear it down Sunday...

Manspace

2010-02-07T16:36:00.003-07:00

I spent the morning down in my reloading/ gun maintenance/ technical library/ art gallery/ leather crafting/ model building/ and gun safe room. Ten by fifteen feet with no external windows. Twelve feet of bench space is evenly split between the masonite topped half upon which there are two permanently affixed loading presses, and on the other half that I use for cleaning, leather work, and model building which is covered by outdoor carpet.

Wow. How cool is it to have all that in one place? Two places, really, since I store the bulk components and SHTF ammo in cans in the sub basement.

We really do live in wondrous times. I'm not ready for the future. But I'm prepared for it. That will have to do.

I wonder...

2010-01-28T21:14:00.002-07:00

A poor read indeed, but I made it through the transcript of the State of the Union speech.

I am incapable of listening to the man any more. I thought that the Clintons were offensive but the revulsion induced from being lied to by that happy duo of grifters pales in comparison to the clumsy dishonesty, hubris, and arrogance that is The Won.

In one future to unfold there could be a Democrat desertion from the field; a wholesale retirement or even abandonment of seats from both the senate and the house.

Obama is clinical. He's already killed the Democrats. He's lining up the country for a head shot next.

The first man with black skin elected president, and he ran as a Democrat.

There's no way in Hell they will clean their own mess, our Democrat friends.

They'll bail. And in the midst of the rubble of our once great nation, as the pundits dissect the sad fate of The Won, the Democrats will begin to whisper how racist it was of the Republicans to take down that articulate and clean black man...

Buckle up.

What Next:?

2010-01-20T22:03:00.002-07:00

"Charismatic authority, on the other hand, is part of the expression of schismatic tendencies in society. In contrast to legal or traditional authority, charismatic authority is the antithesis of routine activities and represents the desire for disruption and change of the prevailing social order. It is a necessary part of the dialectic between the human need for structure and the equally human need for variation and innovation in society. Charismatic authority is different from rational or traditional authority in that it spawns not from established orders or traditions, but rather from the special trust the charismatic leader induces in his followers, the peculiar powers he exhibits, and the unique qualities he possesses. According to Weber, it is difficult for charismatic leaders to maintain their authority because followers must continue to legitimize this authority. There is a need for the charismatic leader to constantly exhibit leadership performance to his followers to reinforce the legitimacy of his authority."

I don't think Mr. Obama has the capacity to change what he is. Buckle up.

Spring Is Right Around The Corner

2010-01-19T21:44:00.002-07:00

... and there is certainly a glimmer of something good happening out there.

Seriously, though - we had almost TEN MINUTES this afternoon of full on blue sky sunshine. Out on the P1 deck it was almost warm enough to ditch a layer or maybe even go shirtsleeves. Ten minutes. It was fleeting.

Snow tomorrow. But today was a good day.

EXTRA EXTRA - Oldest Goddess living in New Hampshire just texted:

"Oh, and I'm watching MacGyver and he just said 'I hate it when that happens" and made me think of you. Lol, as do his nifty pocket knife skills."

Okay. GREAT day.

Me Too

2010-01-17T15:27:00.003-07:00

Greg Mankiw, writing in the Gotham Litter Liner, musing about inflation:

"Second, the Fed could easily overestimate the economy’s potential growth. In light of the large fiscal imbalance over which Mr. Obama is presiding, it’s a good bet he will end up raising taxes for most Americans in coming years. Higher tax rates mean reduced work incentives and lower potential output. If the Fed fails to account for this change, it could try to promote more growth than the economy can sustain, causing inflation to rise."

It's a good read. He ends where I have been for the last while - that we are in uncharted territory here.

History teaches that demand and supply will always meet. I believe we are in a Monopoly Money economy already.

Who will kick the board, and when?

(via Instapundit)

Musings

2010-01-15T21:05:00.001-07:00

It's a damned tough time to be historically literate.

That's all.

Range Report

2010-01-02T16:13:00.003-07:00

Mrs. Utah and I spent a loud couple of hours at Rangemasters of Utah with a friend and coworker of mine. We brought my Springer MilSpec, a Glock Model 26, and our Ruger P89.

He brought his Springfield XD/9 Compact, and I have to say that had I had an opportunity to try one of these head to head with the Glock 26 (last year's Christmas present from Mrs. Utah) I might have filled out my wish list a tad differently.

The two pistols are almost identical in exterior dimensions. Perceived weight in the hand with loaded magazines was very similar as well.

Both compact pistols use a safety action trigger and have striker actions. The XD has a light rail where the 26 does not, and the geometry of the XD trigger was surprisingly comfortable. We traded pistols for a couple of magazines and I actually shot smaller groups with his pistol (nine yards) than I was getting with my .45.

Mrs. Utah humbled the both of us, however, with whatever pistol she happened to be shooting at the moment, which meant that we had a standard range day outing.

No stoppages or FTF for any of us. My friend buys a lot of reloaded ammo from Center Street Brass in Provo. His 115gr FMJ reloads were quite snappy, with expended cases showing some primer deformation and other signs of high pressure. I gave him a box of my 115 FMJ (Blue Dot 8.0 gr.). Cases from my reloads showed no signs of high pressure; his groups tightened up a little but we didn't whip out the compass to generate a number.

A fine day was had by all.

And A Happy New Year, As Well!

2010-01-01T12:47:00.004-07:00

Well, here we are one day closer to spring.

I believe that 2010 will be better for us than was 2009.

In searching my id for resolutions or predictions, the best I can come up with are the following:

1. I resolve to spend an hour every day, by the clock, on decluttering my life. We suffer from an embarrassment of riches and our house leans closer to midden than to home.

We can make that change for the better.

2. 2010 will be the year that the carbon market scam implodes. I am not wholly convinced that Al Gore will be anything like impoverished by this time next year, but I do believe his net worth will be a shadow of what it is today. At the very least, he'll be out of the news. Unless he's been stupid enough to let his name exist on foundational documents...

Hmmm. Have to think that one through.

The cap and trade scam depends on government coercion to work - specifically, that developed Western nations gut their economies. France has decided that EU or no EU, they aren't going to play. Without the French, the EU is officially out of play. Climategate and emerging scientific reports indicate that atmospheric CO2 is not and never has been the villain in climate change/global warming/man's agenda of earth raping destruction...

We have elections in 2010. I am intrigued; how dirty will they be? Will the Republicans find a clue, or is the party truly dead?

I think it is dead - stiffer than a Whig and smells worse than last week's fish. The Republicans under Steele are unfit both philosophically and ethically to be trusted with governance. So what will the coming months bring to us in the way of choices? Who will come forward?

I guess I'd have to insert point number 3 here: Legacy media officially loses the ability to influence the narrative, much less define it, this year. And it's not a moment too soon. I believe that the 2010 mid terms are the last chance we have to keep our Republic via the ballot. More on that later.

I'm all worried out, folks. The only things to do are to not surrender to cynicism and to keep on paying attention and to continue to do the right thing when given the chance.

God bless and keep you all.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T13:31:00.002-07:00

That is all.

Times Are Tough All Over

2009-12-13T11:22:00.003-07:00

Imagine waking up every morning and heading into work at your desk at the Onion, and having to top this:

"You might be able to make this up. But it would require a pretty disturbed mind. Where to begin. Initially being investigated for disabling the fire alarm systems in his hotel room, due to shower steam, he claimed, it was discovered he had replaced the hotel room door with a piece of plywood. The plywood contained a circular padded hole believed to be used for sexual acts."

I guess if you are making six figures a year keeping the proles in line, you can afford to do your own remodeling at a motel.

Jack booted thugs need love, too, you know.

A Meme That Should Stick

2009-12-12T19:29:00.003-07:00

Neo-neocon shoots, and scores.

UPDATE: Commentary ensues!

Just Saying

2009-12-06T12:30:00.003-07:00

Friday I noted that Craftsman had made last minute Changes in his Copenhagen schedule.

The rhetoric from the administration remains apocalyptic and a random search of scare words and "global warming" generates grave, grave, grave predictions and protestations...

Fucking luddites, the lot of them.

I don't have the time or tech chops, but somebody should to do a "Hitler Rant" on Obama being told that Al Gore has backed out of Copenhagen.

Obama would explain that "Climategate" would only matter for a news cycle or two, but only if the scammers don't back off. I'd prefer that he refer to Mr. Gore as "the wooden man" at some point. Bonus points from the Academy if Biden gets labeled the "first White House garden gnome".

Obama would point out that the burlap boxer/bra-less/birkenstock legions that are the BASE don't read past the New York Times or watch anything but MSNBC or listen to anyone but NPR (except during pledge weeks). And how much "Climategate" news is there? Really?

He'd also remind Emmanuel, Gibbs, and Axelrod that all that one green world horseshit was just that, and that Team Craftsman was and always has been in the revolution business. He would also remind them that BIG lies are the key; that turning back, temporizing, or stooping to honest debate are certain roads to defeat.

That little bit at the end of the video, where Hitler's voice drops and he is hunched over the table - that could be rewritten to show Craftsman directing that his minions get busy about finding the next CEO for GM. No particular care should be taken that the candidate be fit for the job; they just need somebody who looks good on TV and won't go tits up before they are ready for him/her to go...

AGW is this administration's "Jewish Problem". Make no mistake about it.

Feh. Maybe I've overdone my Craftsman attention for the week.

You have a fine Sunday, and a better week. I'll be shoveling snow tomorrow.

MMMmmmm Good

2009-11-26T10:25:00.001-07:00

Team Jones is doing ten pounds of bone-in picnic pork roast.

Peel and cut four apples into rings (red delicious this year).

Sea salt and coarse ground pepper

1/2 cup fresh pressed cider
tbsp extra virgin olive oil
tbsp BRUTAL oak aged balsamic vinegar
tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
teaspoon soy sauce
dash tabasco

1/3 cup dried ground onion (we forgot to buy a fresh sweet onion)
tbsp garlic powder (you can use cloves of garlic, but powder seems to work better in the slow cooker)
dash paprika
dash ginger
two scruples parsley flakes (gives contrast to dried chopped onions/forms nice coating on meat)

Some recipes call for putting in two bay leaves and removing them after some time interval. The last two times I tried this, I left them in too long and was not impressed with the result.

To cook:

Get all your ingredients located. Locate the meat thermometer. Go down to your daughter’s room and steal back your heavy gauge extension cord so you can put the six quart crock pot on the end of the long kitchen bar.

Sear the meat in a dutch oven. You want it smoking hot with just enough oil to coat the bottom of the oven. The roast will shed enough fat to do the rest of the job. Have your big honking fork and heavy mitts on hand (so to speak) BEFORE dropping the meat in.

Mix the wet and dry spices and set aside.

Turn on the crock pot - set for “High” tempature for 3 hours.

Place 3/4 of the apples in the bottom of the pot.

Take the seared roast out of the dutch oven and place on a cookie sheet or platter. Rub pepper and salt to taste (less salt is always better - look at all the other spices already in the broth). I fork the heck out of the meat, and cut a shallow slit in the top as well, to allow the spices to penetrate. Fat side up with pork, always.

Place meat on top of apples, skin/fat side up. Place remaining apples on sides/top of meat.

Pour spice broth over meat, cover, and cook on “high” for 2-3 hours, then reduce to low heat for about 3-4 additional hours, until a meat thermometer pushed to center of roast reads 150f. According to some recipes you may remove from heat now and let stand, and then serve when temp reaches 160f. We usually leave the roast in until the temp actually registers 160f.

Make sure to argue with your spouse about whether or not to reduce the fat that will accumulate in the pot; every body needs a Thanksgiving tradition, you know.

Serves four adults with generous leftovers for sammiches.

Warning Order

2009-11-25T21:09:00.003-07:00

Weather permitting, this Saturday morning at 0900 The Team, friends, and a random number of FYM*, will be on the ground here:

View Larger Map

We will be in the clearing shown in the center of the map, with the tube set up at about 6 o'clock oriented WSW to have the ridge as a back stop.

Yes, Virginia, it's time to shoot cannon. And Mosins. And whatever else we decide to throw in the truck.

The forecast is better than we expect for late November, but rain is still a possibility.

Anyone who is interested in this outing, or simply interested in going shooting, can contact me at tmjutahAThotmailDOTcom.

Bonus: There is a 1943 Izhevsk arsenal retired PU at the West Jordan Big 5. It is on sale at $99 dollars right now, and will be marked down to $89 from 0500 to 0900 on Black Friday. This rifle has excellent rifling, a pristine, compound radius crown, and I believe that the stock is custom to this action. By this I mean that the wood to metal fit exceeds any example of Mosin I've seen to date, that key dimensions are "fat", most notably the wrist and fore end diameters, and finally that I think the wood may not be birch but some other hard wood. The shellac finish is very well done, with no flaking.

The receiver marks are clear, with a lined-out seven digit serial number on the left side above the wood. There are the typical welded holes visible through the open receiver. Matching numbers throughout, including the bolt. It appears to me that the straight bolt handle was attached to the originial sniper bolt. I have never felt an action so smooth on a Mosin. I didn't have my scale with me, but the trigger felt like it broke clean at somewhere around four pounds - sweetly clean, too.

I have called a few friends about this one but money is tight. I also found a 1935 Tula retired PE in Sugar House today, and it did follow me home. I considered trying to sell Mrs. Tmj on getting both rifles, but she remembered that there are already two 1943 Ishevsk retired PU's downstairs.

Happy Thanksgiving to you!

Keep your powder dry.

*Fine Young Men. The Goddesses always have a few following them around.

Blink

2009-11-08T10:12:00.003-07:00

Jerry Pournelle has observations on last night's house vote here.

I left my some opinions here.

My wife of twenty one years will not speak of politics or the economy with me any more. She will not understand that “Healthcare” isn’t about care, it is just another brick thrown on the back of a national economy and society about to break.

I have failed as a husband here; I cannot protect my family from a threat they will not see.

Range Day

2009-11-06T18:37:00.003-07:00

I will be at the Lee Kay Hunter Education Center in West Valley City tomorrow, hopefully arriving between noon and one.

My veterinarian friend is coming out (if he's not needed in surgery) with his P17 and my partner from work will be there around two as well. No word at this time if Mrs. Utah will be up to a session or not, or if the Goddesses or their Fine Young Men are interested and/or available, either.

I will shoot. I will coach. I will not think much, frankly.

What a week this has been.

God bless the dead of Ft. Hood, and may He keep and comfort the survivors and the wounded.

God help us all in this country under siege. We are a nation bending dangerously under the weight of an evil and corrupt administration. We are a society weakened by generations of sloth and ignorance and these are sins that will be paid for.

We will bear the burden of a defeat by retreat in this round of the war against Islamist fascism. Our elected representatives fully intend to shove this war behind socialized health care and American Idol.

Our economy and our freedom are under attack. The crises are upon us, and they are indeed just too "good" to waste. In 1982 unemployment topped ten percent but 83 and 86 saw tremendous growth... after tax cuts, easing of government regulation across many sectors of the economy, the dawn of the information age, and most importantly the appeal from the chief executive to the citizenry to be Citizens.

The Obama insurgency is not about any of that. Incompetence or mere corruption would be bad enough but this administration truly sees itself as the instrument that will end the republic. Make no mistake about that.

God bless and keep you in the dark, dark days ahead.

Sunday (Updated)

2009-10-18T17:42:00.004-06:00

I got her back from the smith later Thursday. I had the barrel flutes peened in hopes that she would return to reliability without the purchase of a new op rod or gas cylinder. Saturday at Lee Kay I divined that Something Was Wrong. The bolt wouldn't open far enough to lock into the receiver. Wouldn't open far enough to accept a clip, for that matter.

I took her apart on a table at Lee Kay to find that the clip release tab wasn't connected correctly over the follower assembly. It's been literally years since I've taken her down to pins and springs, so I just put her back together with the tab in the "right" spot and headed back in to see if she would shoot. The bolt went all the way to the rear but the clip would not seat. I declared surrender and waited to get back home and the reference books to figure out what was going on.

Last night I found that the follower assembly was installed backwards. The fact that it had fallen out instantly when I detensioned the operating rod spring earlier at the range should have been a give away. So I put it in correctly and loaded a dummy clip with zero problems.

This morning I fired three clips with one FTF. In the course of this action I noticed that the front sight on my rifle is no longer stamped "NM" for National Match.

***UPDATE: Upon further review of my records, I found that the only part that bore an actual "NM" stamp when I purchased this rifle in 1987 was the operating rod handle. Old age is creeping up on me.***

I will discuss these ***assembly*** issues with the smith on Monday. (That didn't happen - got home after dark again.)

Well, I Wasn't That Into The Show Anyway

2009-10-13T20:25:00.003-06:00

CBS is trying to piggyback on the success of NCIS with a star power spin-off set in LA. LL Cool J and Chris O'Donnell work at it, but two episodes I watched before tonight required more suspension of disbelief than even a Kucinich voter might marshall.

Then tonight, the shark jumping moment came when the crack NCIS psychological profiler opines on why a former Marine, recently in the employ of a private security outfit and working Iraq, beat a victim to death and left him hanging in the back of a gun shop instead of just stealing the missing pistols.

The babe with large breasts and legs up to her shoulders ponders (paraphrasing; I wasn't listening real close): "The report says he was beaten to death; why go to the trouble? Why not just steal the guns?" And the Dr. Freud character drops this line on the room (which contains LL Cool J's character, a multi tour SEAL)

"He was an interrogator in Iraq. He might have gotten a taste for it."

And everybody in the scene nods sagely, because EVERYBODY knows that Marines just love hanging sand n**** ass from a hook and beating it all bloody, over there in the sandbox. Or where ever that Evil Boosh war is still sputtering along.

Nobody in the room of full of crime solving geniuses wonders why the dead guy was dead... or why the suspect, whose only link to the victim was that of being a childhood friend, was automatically the killer. We're halfway into the episode at this point and nobody has thought to ask why the guy was shot AT at the airport... when he wasn't a deadly threat. Or why he carjacked a car by gently pushing a woman out of the way instead of incapacitating or abducting her.

The night wasn't a total waste. From now on I get another hour on Thursday night to do something productive.

Clarity

2009-10-10T20:51:00.003-06:00

The Obama presidency isn't merely a bumpy stretch of road in the American journey.

It is intended to be an end to the Republic and a beginning of utopia.

"Whatever Barack and the people he has surrounded himself with may profess with their mouths at any particular time, their actions show they still loathe America and our standing as most powerful nation on earth, as well as our free enterprise, individual liberty, reverence for family and local communities, Main Street, the U.S. military, Christianity, and every other hallmark of the traditional culture and values of Western civilization.

And now they think they have the power and position to do what they've always wanted to do - tear it all down and remake it in their millenarian image of Leviathan. As philosopher Erik Voegelin would say, they don't merely intend the immanentization of the eschaton, they are securing the appropriations and regulations to make it happen.

Viewed from that assumption, things become so much clearer. On foreign and military policy, Obama's dominant principle is to apologize, to reverse a previous course - thus disavowing the intrinsically moral role of America in protecting freedom - and to seek rapproachment with our enemies on their terms."

I can't talk politics or finances with my wife any more. At all.

Will I have a job a month from now? Will we have capital in any form other than what's on the shelves in the basement or in the cans next to the safe?

And I grew up thinking that watching the wall fall was the pivot of my generation. Not nearly. Not even close.

(via Instpundit)

Just Trying To Help

2009-10-03T21:13:00.003-06:00

Somewhere in England, just before D-Day, General George S. Patton speaks to his Thrid Army:

"When you, here, everyone of you, were kids, you all admired the champion marble player, the fastest runner, the toughest boxer, the big league ball players, and the All-American football players. Americans love a winner. Americans will not tolerate a loser. Americans despise cowards. Americans play to win all of the time. I wouldn't give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That's why Americans have never lost nor will ever lose a war; for the very idea of losing is hateful to an American."

Times have changed quite a bit since June of 1944 but the sentiment expressed in Patton's words still pertains. Amphorous hope, suggesting change without purpose, and huckster populism as foundations for political power fade against stark failure on the part of The Won. Town Hall tension and TEA Parties are just the foam on the crest of the wave that is rolling across the nation.

We've elected the hind tit on a boar hog, haven't we? Pay attention, Mr. President. It's not going to get any easier.

It's turning out to be a lot more of a bummer, this bringing down the system, than TOTUS man thought it would.

Silly little Marxist. The Soviets tried for sixty years, and had nukes, armies, and half the cabinet agencies in the government, and they got beat by blue jeans, toilet paper, an actor, a British dame, and a Polish Pope.

Just who the f*** did Obama, or his handlers, think he was, to succeed where Vlad's best and brightest had failed?

It's going to get ugly... but my money is on the possibility that Team O will be going under the bus they've so readily tossed all those other folks, and a lot sooner than they ever thought such a thing could happen. The nation will not shed a tear for their absence.

Fall

2009-09-27T10:18:00.003-06:00

Fall. Turn of the season, or something else? Who knows?

Gagdad Bob popped up on my screens ,via Van der Luen, this morning:

"Just as it is possible for a person to lose the grace, so too can a nation; in other words -- or symbols -- no (↑), no (↓). With an Obama presidency, we will find out what this will be like. It may well turn out to be as his spiritual mentor, Reverend Wright says: God damn America!

And why not? If we abandon any pretense of spiritual ideals, it is not God who will damn America. Rather, we'll do it ourselves. I'm pretty sure we'll discover what it felt like to be a Christian living in Rome, as the barbarian hordes were about to put an end to that world (which at the time was "the" world)."

Interesting times of the Chinese kind are upon us.

We are heading into a winter of discontent, boys and girls. I was going to set some fence posts today but I think I'll just grab the Mosin closest to the door of the safe and a jump bag and head across the lake instead.

We have been up on a neighbor's roof for most of the last week, after work, to help him get it sound before the weather breaks this coming Tuesday. Mrs. Utah cannot stand very well so she has spent two days scooting about on a six inch foam pad helping to hand supplies down from the crown to where ever they have been needed. We have a third of the surface done complete and lack only shingles on the other two thirds. Hopefully the owner wasn't too conservative in his estimate but we think we may need another two units of shingles. Roofing in this corner of Happy Valley is as close to an Amish barn raising as I'll ever see. Very, very good times.

I hope you have a fine week.

Local News

2009-09-13T10:14:00.002-06:00

I stopped by the American Fork Big 5 on the way home Friday evening and found out that they will be stocking M38 Mosins in the near future.

The counter staff headed back and pulled out a couple of examples for me to look at. I liked what I saw, but I am not sure that I can really justify another Mosin right now. I may have to put a couple my 91/30's up on KSL.com Classifieds in order raise funds as well as to open up some space in the Team Armory.

One of the two they brought out has a bunged up front sight, which probably happened in transport. The globe and post is knocked almost out of its dovetail slot. The damage to the slot would require five minutes of work on my anvil with the right mandrels but I have gotten deals on marred or damaged merchandise here before.

This rifle is the one of the two that has the actual M38 stock - not a more common cut-down 91/30 stock. So I'll probably mosey over there after lunch...

In other news, youngest Goddess attended Homecoming dance last night and had a fabulous time. Unfortunately, she found that her high heels were poor equipment choices for operating our Dodge Dakota. She slipped off the pedals and punched a parking bollard just left off center of the trailer hitch at some speed and shoved the rear bumper right against the bed. The tail gate will still open, but just.

She gets to learn the economics of body work. This will be her first experience with higher education.

ROE

2009-09-10T21:33:00.003-06:00

Via Belmont Club:

"U.S. commanders, citing new rules to avoid civilian casualties, rejected repeated calls to unleash artillery rounds at attackers dug into the slopes and tree lines — despite being told repeatedly that they weren’t near the village."

It is my personal opinion that we no longer have any business putting American servicemen in harm's way in Afghanistan. I will be writing my representatives and senators to urge them to end our involvement in the nations of Afghanistan and Iraq.

NCA has abandoned the mission. We are not willing to kill the enemy where we find them, when we find them. From this day forward our dead, wounded, and maimed are pawns in a game that has already been conceded.

Wish it wasn't that way. Tomorrow in the anniversary of a tragic day. I will remember where I was that day. Just as I remember 1979 and 1983, when I first noticed the war.

Our government, too busy attempting to overturn the Republic, will accept a trickle of pointless deaths until they are ready to formally surrender.

They Said There Would Be Tests.

2009-08-22T14:02:00.006-06:00

Howdy.

Mrs. Utah and I are spending the weekend in the idyllic metropolis of Pocatello, Idaho. Why, you ask?

I'm glad you did. We are here because I didn't work today, Wendover, Nevada holds no attraction as an escape, and Vegas is too far away.

This morning we made our way out to the boonies and paid our fees to shoot at the Oregon Trail Shooting Club. Mrs. Utah is bad, bad news with our compact Glock 26. Once again she has proven a better shot with a pistol originally intended for me.

I elected to take one of my Mosin carbines, a beautiful model 91/59 I picked up a few years ago. This weekend marks the third time I've had this one out. I shot about thirty rounds offhand, mostly mixed lot old milsurp light ball, and then moved to a bench after my groups started to show I was getting tired.

The groups tightened nicely from the bench. I was shooting across the top of my range bag at my fifty yard target the same time as Mrs. Tmj was shooting to my left. Her target was out at fifteen yards to start and later moved out to twenty five. She shot scary good; sight radius on a 26 is about as long as that of a derringer and she was still putting all the rounds inside a twelve inch bullseye at the close target and almost all of them at the twenty five yard range.

This is the unscripted weekend. As we shot, we chatted back and forth. We have a lot to catch up on with my work taking up so much of our time. I had just finished complimenting her on her marksmanship when I turned and buckled down to dump another bullet into the black...sights lined up, target on the post, finger sliding down to caress the trigger, stop breathing, begin to squee...

*clonk*

I own and shoot a lot of military surplus weapons in many different calibers. I've had production lots of surplus ammo where every second round was a dud and every third was a true one-second hangfire. (Pakistani production .303 Mk VII headstamped early sixties. Useless stuff.) This morning I'd already noticed some cracked necks and one spectacular split on one of my spent brass cases.

So a misfire, possibly a hangfire, I thought. Wait for a solid thirty seconds, keeping the muzzle aimed at the target. I turned my head to explain to Mrs. Utah what I was up to at the same time I gently worked the bolt to extract the bad round. I was too vigorous and the "dead" round flipped over the edge of the table before I could catch it. No biggie - I'd police it up with the spent stuff later.

I broke the rules right there. Did you see it?

I went to return the bolt to battery on top of the next round. The bolt refused to seat. I immediately executed Mosin Sticky Bolt Immediate Action and slapped the crap out of the bolt trying to get it down. I could slap it forward where it just started to rotate down, but there it hung. So I pulled the bolt back, this time catching the good round before it could get away. I inspected the open bolt and the face of the chamber that I could see. There appeared to be some soot or lube build up on the mating surfaces so I pulled a q-tip out and made a few passes around the radius of the chamber face. Then I initiated another round of Immediate Action, actually getting the bolt to drop a few degrees. I stood up to get better leverage and then had a thought. I pulled the bolt out of the rifle, then dropped the floorplate and emptied the last two rounds from the magazine.

I stepped over to the side of the table where I'd lost the "dud" round and inspected the ground. Twenty or so spent cases... but no matter how hard I looked, I couldn't see a bullet anywhere on any of those cases.

I picked up the rifle and looked through the breech up the bore... into blackness. The primer detonation (clonk) had pushed the 147gr steel core bullet out of the empty copper washed steel case ALMOST far enough for me to chamber another round behind it.

We searched through the empty cases on the ground and found, indeed, one case that didn't have soot in the neck, but just a patina of corrosion with red specks from the primer material.

If you have a misfire on the range - anywhere out of combat, actually - you must wait safely for a hangfire (fifteen seconds in some books, I believe in thirty myself) and then open the action and inspect the bullet AND the bore.

If I'd been a little more committed to trying to close that bolt you wouldn't be reading this. Or if the squib bullet had been a sixteenth of an inch deeper into the bore, as well. Mosins are widely acclaimed for being a weapon that often requires a highly physical manner of operation. They aren't acclaimed at all for surviving a shot taken with the bore plugged by a squib bullet.

It's all a test. Study, learn, and live.

(UPDATE 2100 08/23) Here is a picture showing (left to right) a normal fired case, the case that had no powder, and the bullet I punched out of the bore:

Spur Of The Moment

2009-08-10T21:17:00.003-06:00

(UPDATED: Expletives deleted. I apologize for letting my tiredness make me lazy.)

Howdy. Busy as heck, hair on fire, no time for anything like following current events.

I spent my Sunday off not thinking of work, though, so I eventually had to spend fifteen or twenty minutes looking at news.

Our money comes out of what is left of our stock market portfolio next week.

If you were a president bent on destroying the constitution you were elected to protect, wouldn't it be wise to remove Congress at some point? Even given the fact that the hockey helmet and rubber spoon political class as exemplified by Pelosi and Reid is temporarily an asset (in a sad and twisted way) for The Won in that they make Obama appear a tad less incompetent and terrifying than he is, really, at some point it will be necessary for them to ... go away.

What's the no go point for keeping them around? I'd expect it would be failing to pass cap and trade; health care is programmed too far out to do more than exacerbate the catastrophe inherent in cap and trade.

Were I a Senator or a Rep, I'd make it a point to keep lots of the administration's people in the Capitol building during business hours. Shucks, it's not like there's not enough Czars to fill all the hearing rooms twice over, right?

What a world we live in.

Passi It On

2009-08-01T21:18:00.002-06:00

The following excerpt is from a recent essay posted by Cobb:

"What I do believe we all should be involved in no matter what our background is the principle and practice of advanced civility. What America lacks is a firm sense of practical decorum. The proper way of doing things is in doubt. We haven't completely forgotten our manners, but we've seen them beat down so many times that we think they don't matter any more. And it has practically destroyed our ability to communicate trust and strong love in public."

I was raised a "yes ma'am/sir" kind of guy, and I am still that way.

I am an anachronism, even here in Milk Toast Valley, Utah.

Civility is the lubricant of civilization. We are running rather more than a quart low. Without the common sense and respect inherent in even minimal form or simple good manners, the machine develops a fine, almost subliminal whining we hear at speed. Without attention, that whine will soon become a knock, then a grind, then a last violent crunch... then silence.

It's a great essay. Enjoy.

Great Scott!

2009-07-12T20:16:00.002-06:00

Forget politics for second, okay?

There are TWO Mosin Nagant M91/30 retired PU snipers in Utah county.

One, a 1943 Tula with good rifling and a wartime stock, is at Gunnies in Orem and is going for around a $110.00. The other is up at the American Fork Big5 and is a very nice 1944 Izhevsk with even better rifling and a very smooth bolt. Big5 has upped their prices quite a bit, and even on sale this rifle will be above a hundred dollars.

Well... okay, some politics:

This morning I took the Goddesses up to Tibble Fork reservoir for a few hours of fishing and then some gold panning.

No bites, one speck of gold, and a vote on whether or not to go camping next weekend was passed unanimously.

Have a fine week.

Fire Them. All of Them.

2009-07-07T20:20:00.003-06:00

I expect 2010 to be the last mostly free and fair election I'll see.

The case laid out in this article closely coincides with my own conclusions as to the origins of the ongoing collapse of our economy.

It is important to remember that the hackery committed by Congress over the last thirty years transcended party lines. The mortgage bubble popped when it did because the government didn't have complete control over the books; the racket was too public/private to be maintained.

The coming failures of Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare will be as bad or worse. Possibly much worse, because millions of Americans still have what is left of their retirement in the market (read this) , which isn't close to bottoming out yet.

All a lot of us will have to look forward to is Social Security. Which won't be there at all.

If we let the wrecking crew execute their 2010 strategy and effectively replace the FEC with ACORN, we'll all know what card check really means.

But we have the power to save ourselves. The first step is to vote out any sitting representative or senator. First or fifteenth term, it does not matter. They know that it's about getting elected FIRST... which is why they - both sides of the aisle - are actively working to destroying our election system or are turning away and saying nothing.

America is under attack. We have pulled the trigger on ourselves.

In A Nutshell

2009-07-04T07:39:00.003-06:00

Behold the new paradigm:

"U.S. officials claimed that a tough stance toward Iran could backfire, bringing about an opposite outcome to that desired by those who support such measures."

The above statement is all you need to know about the new American diplomacy. It is the distillation of the deepest wish behind all the puppet heads, all the unwashed and incoherent chant leaders, and all the apologia for American exceptionalism these last decades. Moral relativism and narrow political calculation has replaced objective national interest as the philosophical guide of American foreign policy.

Now we will look toward properly credentialed progressive ideologues to support at the expense of democratically elected governments or traditional allies. We will negotiate with the most repressive dictators if doing so gives time for consolidating domestic political power.

We have elected a government filled with a majority that views individual liberty as an obstacle, not the reason for their offices.

I liked Ronnie better:

"If history teaches anything, it teaches self-delusion in the face of unpleasant facts is folly. We see around us today the marks of our terrible dilemma--predictions of doomsday, antinuclear demonstrations, an arms race in which the West must, for its own protection, be an unwilling participant. At the same time we see totalitarian forces in the world who seek subversion and conflict around the globe to further their barbarous assault on the human spirit. What, then, is our course? Must civilization perish in a hail of fiery atoms? Must freedom wither in a quiet, deadening accommodation with totalitarian evil?"

and

" The objective I propose is quite simple to state: to foster the infrastructure of democracy, the system of a free press, unions, political parties, universities, which allows a people to choose their own way to develop their own culture, to reconcile their own differences through peaceful means.

This is not cultural imperialism; it is providing the means for genuine self-determination and protection for diversity. Democracy already flourishes in countries with very different cultures and historical experiences. It would be cultural condescension, or worse, to say that any people prefer dictatorship to democracy. Who would voluntarily choose not to have the right to vote, decide to purchase government propaganda handouts instead of independent newspapers, prefer government to worker-controlled unions, opt for land to be owned by the state instead of those who till it, want government repression of religious liberty, a single political party instead of a free choice, a rigid cultural orthodoxy instead of democratic tolerance and diversity?"

In this same speech, Mr. Reagan pointed out that the resilience of the free individual was not something to be taken lightly:

"I've often wondered about the shyness of some of us in the West about standing for these ideals that have done so much to ease the plight of man and the hardships of our imperfect world. This reluctance to use those vast resources at our command reminds me of the elderly lady whose home was bombed in the blitz. As the rescuers moved about, they found a bottle of brandy she'd stored behind the staircase, which was all that was left standing. And since she was barely conscious, one of the workers pulled the cork to give her a taste of it. She came around immediately and said, "Here now -- there now, put it back. That's for emergencies."

On this Independence Day 2009 do not be dismayed. Proudly fly your flag. Go watch a parade, or attend a Tea Party. Burn some burgers. But do not become consumed by anger, nor pessimism. This freedom we celebrate today sprang not from the right government, but from the people, and we will not let it disappear from this nation.

Barak Obama may have big dreams, but this isn't 1917 and he surely is no Lenin.

God bless America, and keep her strong and free. And God bless you and yours, too.

You have a fine day.

Cannon firing in Cherry Hill Park sometime after three today.

Only Few Are Called

2009-07-03T07:42:00.003-06:00

I see the Washington Post tried to conduct a revenue stream enhancement strategy.

They forgot to dress for success. (Fast forward to 2:40 if you can stand it.)

We live in the Age of The Won!

Well, the world will turn.

I'm off until Monday. Today I am taking a friend up above Tibble Fork Reservoir for some gold panning and maybe some fishing. That means chores need to get done toot sweet, so you have a fine day and a better tomorrow.

The Team will be burning some powder in Cherry Hill Park tomorrow afternoon, probably after five o'clock.

On The Road

2009-06-25T21:43:00.001-06:00

Tomorrow we are off to Maryland, south of D.C., for a weekender family reunion.

Back on Tuesday.

Have a fine one.

Iran Policy Evolution

2009-06-23T21:15:00.002-06:00

Last week, when the first rumbles of unrest began to spread in the wake of the Iranian clown show our media chose to call an "election", the President of the United States voted present.

By Monday last, The Won had seen the poll numbers and came out with a Strong Statement. He even got some props from traditionally conservative folks, too, I hear.

If Barry stays true to script, I guess Thursday we'll get a riff right out of "The Untouchables"...

"I want him DEAD! His family DEAD!"

Then he'll bounce a basketball off a reporter's head and talk some hoop smack. Or something.

Rhetoric aside, The One has let stand the invite to Iranian diplomats for a friendly Fourth of July picnic. I always say there's nothing like a good steak and a cold drink after you get done cleaning your rifle and having a prisoner wash the dried blood off your boots. If Mousavi calls ahead, I'm sure the Leader of the Free World will make sure the embassies clear a primo parking space for the Iranian Diplomatic Ryder Truck.

In other news... my company has been awarded the contract to build the north office tower that will go on top of the parking garage we are halfway done building. I give humble thanks that I will have a job that much longer.

Links shamelessly lifted via Instapundit, American Digest, Weasel Zippers, and Hot Air.

Comment

2009-06-22T22:02:00.002-06:00

I left this at Protein Wisdom:

"Finding yourself on the side of a road in a driving rain really, REALLY wishing you had a spare tire is nothing compared to the feeling you get when it becomes “Damn, really could use a basement full of Mosin Nagants and a bunch of bullets right NOW”….

… because when you figure out you really need a weapon, it’s generally too late to begin your waiting period."

I recommend the thread. It's all quite good.

Who Knew?

2009-06-07T21:15:00.002-06:00

Lincoln was right:

" As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."

In other news:

"The bond market is calling the Federal Reserve out," said Mike Larson, a real estate analyst at Weiss Research Inc. in Jupiter, Fla. "Investors are saying that the Fed can't just print money out of thin air to finance a massive deficit."

I've read history my whole life. Which means that empires' ends are kind of a known quantity.

I never expected to watch it happen from my living room.

Bonus (via neoneocon)

In the week just passed I ran into two former coworkers, a boss from a decade ago, a couple I met through AA back in 2000 or so, and the couple that ran the day care our daughters went to beginning in 1992. All totally random. And all asking "what's next??" somewhere in the conversation.

Wish I knew.

Required Reading

2009-05-19T21:34:00.002-06:00

From Belomont Club, best comment I've seen on a blog in years:

"The Fed is an independent entity. It is a network of 12 Regional Federal Reserve banks. The Presidents of these Regional Fed banks are chosen by an independent board of directors. Each Regional Fed bank is owned by member banks, but the board is controlled by non-bankers (6 non-bankers, 3 bankers).

This means that the control of the Fed banks is in the hands of private citizens, and not Congress. Each President works for their respective board, which hires and fires them.

Some folks complain about this arrangement, but it has saved our bacon, IMHO. This independence has allowed the Fed to act without having to go to Congress or the White House for permission. This keeps its OODA loop tight, and helps shelter it from partisan political fights. Its independence has also allowed the US dollar to be the world’s reserve currency.

But here’s things get sticky. The Obama Administration is proposing the most dramatic expansion of Federal spending in history. Trillions of dollars will be added to the Federal Debt during the next 3-4 years, and if they pass healthcare reform, it will get even worse. In addition, by increasing marginal tax rates, economic growth will slow, and growth is the only way we can eventually pay off the debt we have accumulated."

It's all good.

In other news, I had a clinic day at the range on Saturday. I believe that the M91/59 Mosin carbine probably represents the cream of the crop as far as mechanical condition is concerned among that vast ocean of old Russian bolties floating around out there. It would appear that the Commies converted their best 91/30's into the 59's.

I will have the holiday weekend off. I'm trying to get the Goddesses out for a fishing day, but their social calendars are probably already booked. If it's not fishing I'll ask a couple of friends out to Tibble Fork to go fishing and maybe even gold panning.

We are going great guns on my project. Scary fast, some have said. We are going to run out of mud in about two months at the rate we are going, then there will be nowhere to go but up.

Warning Order

2009-05-13T21:13:00.002-06:00

I'd like to be upbeat, but I just don't have the will.

Today I see that defining Chrysler's advertising budget has become a presidential duty.

That suddenly Mr. Obama understands what a shit tsunami would accompany releasing more Abu Ghraib photos; what looked like an easy sop to his vicious, anti-American base turns out to carry a cost he declines to pay.

In financial circles, the sucker's rally continues as congress continues to explore yet more ways to tax individuals and businesses.

Just how great a tax burden they will hammer us with is a mystery. What is absolutely certain is that they will continue to shield their own from any annoying questions about ethics.

Here at the home of Utah we are doubling emergency cash on hand at the house, refilling prescriptions out to three months, and have decided to double our garden area. I don't know when I'll find time to tend it properly but I think that come fall we'll be glad we grew our own this year...

What a joke we have become.

Won't be anybody laughing by August, I'm thinking.

Day Of Rest

2009-05-02T21:38:00.002-06:00

I just finished watching a couple of episodes of 'Firefly' with Mrs. Utah. Damn, the good die too young, don't they?

We watched 'Serenity' earlier in the week.

In it, the captain utters one of the greatest lines in Hollywood history:

"I aim to misbehave."

Think I'll get that on a smallish sticker for the rear window of my Dakota.

Shooting tomorrow morning. I'm taking a Mosin out across the lake and am going to shoot jugs until I get tired. Then it will be home for yard work until it's time for Mrs. Utah's famous Sunday Night Spaghetti Feast. Now with TWO kinds of homemade bread!

I hope you have a fine week. Comrade. Because now we ALL are comrades...

But I aim to misbehave a bit, myself...