The Drawn Cutlass

And Yet Another Example...

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 10:27:00 +0000

...of newspaper editors omitting any mention of radical Islam in a crime story out of Wilmington, NC:

A federal magistrate judge says a North Carolina man must stand trial in a plot to hire a hit man to behead three witnesses in his brother's terrorism case.

Click the link to read the rest.

Ex-Marine Pleads Guilty To Firing On Pentagon, Marine Museum

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:50:00 +0000

And nowhere in the story are the words "Islam" or "Muslim" mentioned.

Today's Musical Interlude

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:29:00 +0000

The Carpenters, Superstar. What a voice Karen Carpenter had. The "superstar" mentioned in the song, by the way, is Eric Clapton. I like the oboe and horn arrangements in this song, too. It's been fashionable to snark on The Carpenters for decades now, but they had some great songs, and Karen was a hell of a singer. If you don't agree...well, ~~fuck you, everyone that looks like you, and the horse you rode in on~~ de gustibus non est disputandum, as the Romans said.

Cooking Day

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:25:00 +0000

Well, every day here is cooking day, but today being payday it's a little more sophisticated than the usual 2 baked chicken thighs. I bought a beef roast, and it's currently in the oven, should be ready to eat by lunchtime. I also bought the makings for crab dip, which I have an insane craving for right now. I'll provide photos if the food comes out halfway decent.

He Is the Very Model* of a Modern...Eccentric Englishman

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:50:00 +0000

For 62 years, 79-year-old Phillip Waren, of Brandford, Dorsetshire, has built warships out of wooden matchsticks and the wooden boxes they used to be packaged in.

The master modeller, from Brandford, Dorset, has created every ship built in the Royal Navy since 1945, as well as 60 other ships from the US navy and other impressive floating fortresses from 18 other nations. One of the largest ships in his collection is the famous USS Nimitz, the largest aircraft carrier in the world.

Throghout his career as a ship model builder, Phillip Waren created over 400 individual ships, as well as 1,200 airplane models that make his aircraft carriers look more real. The average ship in his collection is made using around 1,500 matchsticks and takes about a month to complete, but for his larger creations he used over 5,000 matchsticks and 200 wooden boxes. These took him about a year to complete. All in all, Phillip Waren used around 650,000 matchsticks, to create his entire fleet.

Some pics:

More pics at the link.

*Double Entendre unintended but fortuitous.

h/t The Mellow Jihadi.

I'm More Elitist Than I Realize

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:48:00 +0000

A quiz about how closely you fit into the American mainstream.

How Thick Is Your Bubble?

Guest

Score » 7 out of 20 (35% )
Result

On a scale from 0 to 20 points, where 20 signifies full engagement with mainstream American culture and 0 signifies deep cultural isolation within the new upper class bubble, you scored between 5 and 8.

In other words, you can see through your bubble, but you need to get out more.

Quiz School

Take this quiz & get your score

How Thick Is Your Bubble? » Quizzes

via Michael Graham.

The Five

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:32:00 +0000

Over at Sharp As a Marble, Robb has started a meme about what 5 guns you most lust after. I'm more a knife nut than a gun nut, so I don't have a lot of guns, myself. I don't even own a .22 rifle or a shotgun, so my list of five will work to fix that lack:

1. Ruger 10/22. I'll take one in stainless steel with a nylon stock.

2. Ithaca Model 37 12-gauge shotgun, riot gun or Deerslayer configuration.

3. M1 Garand.

4. Remington Rolling Block rifle in .45-70. Most modern Americans are more familiar with the Sharps buffalo gun, but the Rolling Block was very nearly as popular, and was the rifle of choice for many of the world's armies in the pre-Mauser era.

5. Mauser HSc. In .32ACP, please. I just love the look of these WWII-era pistols.

Another Endangered Dog Breed In UK

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:15:00 +0000

The English Setter, one of the best bird hunting dogs known to man.

Pic:

You need a minimum of 300 dogs registered in any given year to maintain a breed, and the English Setter has fallen to 234 last year.

Looks Like Gov. Perdue Can Read the Poll Numbers

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:53:00 +0000

She's apparently decided she won't run for re-election.

I guess that former Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory had better send someone to Raleigh to start measuring for new drapes in the Governor's Mansion.

USS Laffey Back at Patriots Point

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:51:00 +0000

After undergoing a restoration that took almost 3 years to complete.

Pic:

I Am Running Out of Constituents

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:14:00 +0000

Update to this post.

Down in Spartanburg, SC, the city's only Democrat on the County Council wants the County Sheriff to stop advising law-abiding citizens to acquire concealed weapons permits.

Spartanburg County Council's lone Democrat wants Sheriff Chuck Wright to stop encouraging residents to obtain concealed weapons permits. Councilman Michael Brown says his constituents believe the statements promote an environment of lawlessness in the community.

“I think it's irresponsible, irreprehensible and of course incendiary if you keep on making these types of comments,” Councilman Michael Brown said during a portion of Monday evening's council meeting devoted to honoring a local group's efforts to mentor at-risk youth.

Wright, who did not attend the council meeting, said Tuesday that he's always insisted the use of weapons should be a last resort.

Brown, [who is black - - ed.] with about three dozen young members of the group Black Boys of Distinction gathered at the front of council chambers on Monday, said community leaders should be focused on spending time with at-risk youth in the community rather than encouraging residents to obtain weapons permits.

“I would say to continue to advocate for the instrumentalities of violence is contrary to a large group of people in this community,” Brown said during Monday's meeting. “The fact that you see me standing up here, I represent that segment of this community, the community that often times you will find yourself dealing with in a negative manner.”

I'll Just Stick To Mexican Hairless, Thanks All the Same

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 06:16:00 +0000

I don't think I can pronounce "Xoloitzcuintli."

Dog breeds to debut in the Westminster Dog Show.

What Sort of "Exhaustion" Was She Taking?

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:46:00 +0000

Celebrity cougar Demi Moore rushed to the hospital for substance abuse.

Demi's rep tells TMZ, "Because of the stresses in her life right now, Demi has chosen to seek professional assistance to treat her exhaustion and improve her overall health. She looks forward to getting well and is grateful for the support of her family and friends."

Leave Them Flytraps Alone!

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:13:00 +0000

A family of Venus Flytrap poachers has been arrested in Brunswick County, NC.

Three people from Shallotte were arrested on charges of poaching Venus flytraps from a nature conservancy in Brunswick County as authorities found 200 of these rare plants pulled from the ground Monday.

The accused poachers were arrested Monday after staff from the N.C. Division of Forest Resources notified the Nature Conservancy’s Wilmington office about suspicious behavior in the Green Swamp Preserve, one of the last bastions of naturally-growing Venus flytraps worldwide.

They only grow in the coastal plain of NC and SC. Only place in the entire world.

I remember giving a book report on insectivorous plants back in 5th grade in Catholic school. Had to get up in front of the class to deliver it, and I was so enthusiastic about the subject that the teacher called the principal, Sister Trinita, to hear me give the lecture over again.

In North Charleston, Babies Shit Heroin

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:22:00 +0000

"North Charleston police find heroin in dirty diaper."

A North Charleston patrol officer arrested a 32-year-old father Monday night after uncovering more than 3 ounces of heroin in his infant’s soiled diaper.

That's the ghetto version of the Goose That Laid the Golden Egg.

NHL - - And I'm Not Referring To Hockey

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Studies have shown that most of the people that are licensed to carry concealed weapons are middle-aged, male, and white.

Studies have also shown that a disproportionate number of violent street crimes such as robberies, rapes and assaults are committed by young black men.

Similarly, the recent phenomenon of criminal "flash crowds" that engage in thefts from stores or beatings of victims of opportunity are also committed mainly by black young people.

Thus, as encounters between the white gun owners and the black lawbreakers increase in number, the concealed carry license will more and more come to be seen as a de facto n*gger-hunting license, at which point the NAACP, ACLU and the usual race baiters will step in and start legal proceedings to stop the disproportionate killing of young blacks by whites.

Thus spake Nostrabobus on 24 January, 2012.

Says the Plagiarist of the Adulterer

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:37:00 +0000

"Biden on Newt's Marriage: 'Character' Matters."

Note In Passing

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 16:39:00 +0000

Re: the prospect of voting for Newt Gingrich:

If it comes down to Gingrich winning the GOP nomination, it'll be a lot like having to vote for Nixon in '68 or '72. You know it's your civic duty to do it, but damn, you just want to have yourself disinfected afterward.

(Bear in mind that I'm supporting Ron Paul for President).

"By Law and By the Constitution"

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 14:10:00 +0000

A Usual Suspect® got his ass blown away when he and a buddy tried to rob a Waffle House in Spartanburg, SC:

According to an incident report, two armed men entered the restaurant and tried to rob it. A customer in the Waffle House, who is a concealed weapon permit holder, was also armed with a handgun and attempted to hold the suspects at gunpoint until law enforcement could arrive, deputies said.

Deputies said one of the robbery suspects pointed his gun at the customer, and the customer then shot the man, who died on the scene.

"The gentlemen said it scared him. He thought he was gonna die, so he shot the armed robbery suspect," said Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright.

The incident follows Wright's recent encouragement to citizens to get concealed weapons permits and to arm themselves against criminals.

"This guy defended his life and the life of others at the Waffle House by law and by the Constitution. We will not be charging this gentleman," Wright said.

So there ya go. We're often told by the Brady Bunch and other gun-haters that this scenario is so unlikely to happen that it doesn't justify people being allowed to carry firearms. Well, the reason it's so unlikely is because it was illegal for so long that people got out of the habit of self-reliance in those situations. As more and more CCW's are issued, the more often this scenario will repeat.

Double-tapped his sorry ass, too. One in the chest, one in the head. There'll be wailin' and cryin' at the A.M.E. Zion, I can tell you that.

update: The other robber has been caught.

h/t Cedar Posts & Barbwire Fences.

Nunya

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 12:23:00 +0000

To Protect and Serve.

The public isn't best served when police refuse to release information on crimes.

Hey, Cletus, I Got Me An Idea...

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 11:26:00 +0000

...How 'bout we see if we can cross that 6th Street railroad bridge in the truck?

How'd that work out? Not too good:

Quote of the Day

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 11:10:00 +0000

...The worst oppression is condoned if it is committed in the name of socialism. Intolerance of opposing ideas is openly extolled; The tragedy of collectivist thought is that, while it starts out to make reason supreme, it ends by destroying reason. There is one aspect of the change in moral values brought about by the advance of collectivism which provides special food for thought. It is that the virtues which are held less and less in esteem in Britain and America are precisely those on which Anglo-Saxons justly prided themselves and in which they were generally recognized to excel. These virtues were independence and self-reliance, individual initiative and local responsibility, the successful reliance on voluntary activity, noninterference with one's neighbor and tolerance of the different, and a healthy suspicion of power and authority. Almost all the traditions and institutions which have molded the national character and the whole moral climate of England and America are those which the progress of collectivism and its centralistic tendencies are progressively destroying. - - From Why the Worst Get On Top, by F.A. Hayek.

via Amy Alkon.

Johnny Depp Filming "Dark Shadows" Movie

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 01:34:00 +0000

Story.

Look at this creepy photo:

That Hipster, Buddy Holly Vibe

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 20:49:00 +0000

The US Military is getting rid of the "birth control glasses" or "BDC" eyewear issued to recruits in boot camp.

I'm glad. My first military ID card featured them. I had to keep that hideous ID card with its image of a young, shaven-headed, moon-faced Bob peering nearsightedly through those black specs until I made E4.

Here's what the new boots will get:

Here's the funny paragraph I quoted in the post title:

The glasses, with a hipster, Buddy Holly vibe, will soon be the rage on recruits’ faces in Great Lakes, Ill., Parris Island, S.C., Fort Sill, Okla., Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, and elsewhere.

I wonder if they'll be called HBHV's by the recruits?

Random Reflection

noreply@blogger.com (Bob) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:40:00 +0000

I just visited the Smith & Wesson website for the first time in a long time, and noticed that, in most of the photos of revolvers, the right side of the revolver is shown, with the barrel pointing to the right. I wonder if that's to avoid showing that stupid hole made by the nanny state internal lock mechanism? I seem to recall that Smith & Wesson used to always photograph their revolvers with the left side facing forward, so you could see the cylinder release and crane mechanism.

I guess that S&W must be unhappy with showing those internal locks, since they have been directly responsible for the boom in used S&W revolvers without them.