Created Equal ? Made Equal!
(Originally posted on May 10th, 2008)

“I hate people with guns. They are cowards.”

In the now defunct TruTV “reality” series Operation Repo, one of the characters is Matt who is the muscle-bound goon/enforcer for this repossession company. If you ever have the misfortune of catching a rerun, you will see Matt doing his specialty: jumping on people about half his size and wrestle them into submission.
In one episode however, the tables were turned when a car owner pulled a firearm and threatened the Repo-Idiots with deadly force. Muscle Matt became a quivering mass of fecal decomposition and was looking for a hole to hide. In the post-event interview Matt made clear he despised armed people and considered them cowardly because they did not fight fairly. This is typical of bullies and criminals who like to have the upper hand on their victims, they bitch and moan about a gun giving an “unfair advantage” as if their physical abilities to pounce and stomp somebody without the body mass or fight training is supposed to be fair. I guess that your average steroid-enhanced moron think he has the OSHA-mandated right to pulp the hell out of a smaller person and such person should not have the means to defend him/herself and having a gun is some sort of Federal Violation punishable by death.

Is having a gun and the ability to administer deadly force in case of attack by Matt or one of his colleagues considered unfair advantage? Well, yes! It is my life we are talking about here and I plan to used every mean and perform every trick in the book if I can stay out of the hospital or the morgue. And if Matt or someone like him makes the tactical error of considering that I am not a physical match to them and thus easy pickings, it will be his mistake by initiating an unprovoked attack and then find himself with a new orifice where one was not that morning. Fair means I get to go home alive. So allow me to repeat those famous words (infamous to bullies and criminals) uttered by somebody but that reflect a deep and enlightening truth.

“God created men, Sam Colt made them equal.”

Whenever I fee too polite, I drop by Monster Hunter Nation and read Larry Correia’s latest which inspired the butchered Photoshop creation displayed above. Click on it for better resolution.

This year we are faced between a shit sandwich and a shit hot dog. Not very palatable options and still we must ingest one.

Set aims for Congress 2010. We were caught asleep at the wheel too many times already. We cannot let it happen again or risk lose everything.

The Responsability of Starting People on the Road towardas CWP.
(Originally posted on July 29th, 2008)
People at my workplace and some non-gun friends know I am involved in guns and IDPA shooting so it is not unusual that they come to me to ask questions. Day before yesterday I found myself again answering the doubts of somebody who wanted to get a Florida Concealed Weapons Permit making him the 6th person this year who has initiated the process by going through me first. I would lie if I say I am not proud that people thinks I know enough and I am approachable enough to confide in me for their initial steps towards self-protection. It also scares me silly because I know how limited my knowledge can be.

I usually don’t ask why do they want to get a CWP since I’ve noticed that I usually get a canned response and I get a better feeling when they start asking questions. Most of the inquirers are people who are truly worried about being defenseless and feel they need tools to protect themselves. The minority have some sort of Rambo complex and feel they can achieve instant justice if they are packing and to both of them I said that they are better off without even owning a gun.

I should not be, but I am still amazed at the amount of misinformation floating out there regarding CWPs. I have no doubt that the Media and Hollywood are to blame and it is a titan’s job to counter all the lies but it must be done. I patiently tell them that no, you cannot shoot somebody in the State of Florida because they are stealing the car and you cannot “shoot in the air” either to scare them. Just get Police on the phone and then call your insurance company. I tell them to repeat over and over Reasonable fear of death or grave bodily harm and to memorize it alongside the Four Rules of Gun Safety. I tell them to get, study and know by heart Jon Gutmacher’s Florida Fireams Law, Use & Ownership and to remember that every bullet he shoots has a possible lawsuit attached to it. I also leave politics aside and concentrate on the issue of getting the permit. The Second Amendment will come in full force when they are part of the Gun Culture and realize some cretin in D.C. wants to leave them defensless.

And you want to know what surprises them the most ? When I tell them that the moment they officially put on a legally concealed gun, their first casualties will be ego and pride. They blink hard when I tell them that from then on, no matter how vile the insult, how nasty they were cut off on I-95 by the idiot in the green truck or how maddening they feel when they see somebody cut in at the register line their emotions must be in check and they must avoid conflict at all costs. Add to that that if they never drove by a bad neighborhood before, the gun does not give them permission to do so now, nor to resolve conflicts between neighbors or to assist police when not requested. And also that Avoidance, De-Escalation and Deterrence are now their guidelines for life. The final straw for a few was: “If you ever have to shoot somebody in Self-Defense, that will probably will not be the end of the whole thing but the end of Chapter One with more to come.”

Some, a few, decided that the new responsibility was too much and forgot the whole CWP idea.The rest still went on and obtained or are in the process to get theirs. I just hope the meager basic instructions I gave them serves them to start on the right path.

I want to say that I am not an instructor nor I have any experience as an Operator in any conflict area or have an impressive a rray of certificates from attending many schools of Guncraft. My little experience comes from a dedicated study of those “who have been there, done that have the T-shirt”, one long weekend having a class with a well renowned instructor, the instances where I had the unpleasant experience of having a weapon directed at an unarmed me and those rare occasions when I had to use a firearm to avoid trouble. As of now, I have exact ly the same number of orifices that I came to this world with and the only scars I have in my body come either from utterly mishandling of sharp objects or surgery due to physiological maladies so I guess I haven’t done too bad after all but do take this post with a grain (or two) of salt.

The Lone Sheepdog.
(Originally July 31st, 2008)

In some Gun Forums, the now famous On Sheeps Wolves and Sheepdogs article seems to create furor among the ranks. Some identify with it, some take umbrage at calling those less than aware Sheep, some who serve or served in the Military or Law Enforcement communities seem to believe that it does not apply to those who are not in their groups and some think it is a Ramboesque thing that wannabes spout. I never served, I am not LEO. I am a Citizen. I know “I don’t get it” because I wasn’t there but I get things others don’t. I am a Lone Sheepdog.

Like many modern Sheepdogs, I started as Sheep, a believer in the goodness of Mankind and with the hopes of a better World. However life taught me differently and, in my case, my eyes were finally and totally opened by the death in my arms of a dear friend who was killed by roaming Wolves. I swore then I would do my best to avoid that same situation or die fighting so I began the process of learning to become a Sheepdog and I still do every day.

And you know what? A Citizen Sheepdog is a lonely endeavor. We must provide for our guns, our ammo and our training. We must walk alone the streets without back up a radio call away or the support a squad of friendly sheepdogs with more guns and even air support which the Wolves shy away from while they look and seek me since I am alone or with my family. Wolves are not afraid of Civilians since most are sheep ready for the picking but turn around and hide if they see a black and white or a Humvee. But since I look like the other Sheep, I can be targeted at any time with any degree of violence and I must respond to save my life or the lives of my loved ones.

And it something happens and I am succesful in defending myself, a new wave of attack begins. I will be interviewed by Police and Prosecutors and if I am unlucky I will be seen as a Wolf. The Press will try to crucify me as a wild predator, thirsty for blood. Friends and Family might see me as Cain, the slayer of the Brother now holding the Mark of the Beast in my forehead. I will have to reach into my savings for a lawyer if a politically hungry prosecutor decides to make me his campaign issue: No FOP or Union Lawyer for me, no Laws Of Warfare apply to me, I will get the brunt of the Sheep Law as I was some scum of the Earth.

And yes, I call them Sheep because they are Sheep. I was one, see? Lots of them had the same warnings I did, sit with me in the same lunch rooms watching news reports on TV about the horrible things Wolves are doing to the flock and they just moan and complain about needing more Sheepdogs to defend them. The thought of becoming Sheepdogs themselves is bothersome at best or frightening at worst. They refuse to take the responsibility because it is too cumbersome and too dangerous and prefer to ignore the world out there and its dangers till it is too late and then complain and seek justice as long as someone else does the dirty work.

And please, do not construe this as a criticism of Soldiers and Cops: God knows their jobs are hard enough and they could not pay me enough to do them. But then again I ask you to understand that we are faced every day with the evil you fight since it seeks us. We are not Rambos or Jack Bauers or Chuck Norrises, we are Joe and Tom and Rick and Mary and Sylvia, every guy and gal who lives next door, has a lawn, flowers and a pot belly and roots in their hair and loves his or her family but must stand alone when the Wolves come howling in the middle of the night.

It is scary but we swallow hard and face the Wolves. I do hope you understand.

Am I the only one in the Gun Culture that has no space to put his crap away? Mind you, I am not one to have a house full of guns with safes everywhere but the bathroom but I somehow manage to collect an impressive amount of gun related crap that I cannot seem to get rid of.

My “kingdom” consists of a 12×10 room which was designated as a “Wife-Free-Zone” in order to promote household peace and avoid divorce by clutter. The final agreement (sort of a prenuptial for my sake) was that she controls the house except this room and I don’t mess the house with my stuff. I am allowed to transit the rest of the edifice, use the privy, sit at the table to eat, sometimes use the stove and even watch TV. No major changes might be implemented without the written consent of the wife and her legal team consisting of my mother and our 2 cats (Yes, dear Mom went with the enemy).

So I am to contain all my belongings in the above mentioned 12×10 and space is getting to be a irrational premium. Several hundred books adorn the walls alongside other couple of hundred CDs. Desk cluttered with the modern electronics of computer, printer, external drive, phone, printer, etc and about 6 months to three years worth of papers. a gun cabinet, a closet full of reloading accouterments, old magazines that I will not part from, old studio audio equipment (anybody interested in an Alesis ProVerb or Peavey noise gates?), gun projects, ammo and a bunch of odds and ends I don’t recognize. And of course all the floor is covered in tools, cans und jars of spent brass, range bags, BOB bag, beach umbrella (don’t ask) and a spot of cat oral emissions.

And of course, I am not the most organized person in this world. My filing system consist of the notion that whatever I need must be contained in the 12×10 and will surface after an exhaustive search.  Add to that a slight streak of procrastination (and that is why I am writing this instead of cleaning up the mess) and what you have is a maid’s nightmare. If by perchance this room should become a crime scene, a team of valiant forensic scientist would be condemned easily of a decade of searching and cataloging while succumbing to mental breakdowns in the process.

Oh well, back to work.

Tropical Storm Gustav is right now south for the Dominican Republic & Haiti about to become a hurricane. The infamous Cone of Uncertainty has it hitting South Florida in a 30% chance for Sunday or Monday so once more it is time to get ready. I had a post relating to Hurricane preparedness but lost it in the WordPress upgrade, I will re post it here:

2008 Hurricane Season. Are you ready?
(Originally Posted June 3rd, 2008 )
With the 2008 Hurricane season already here, it is a must to re-stock your hurricane kit or get one if you do not have one. One of the best list I have seen floating around is the one Southcom’s Hurricane Survival Kit and it would be my recommendations you print it and follow it. I will personally bump my supplies to at least 3 weeks worth for the family and pets and I would add to it comfort/morale items such books, playing cards and board games. Once the worse is over and your mind has adapted to the new circumstances of less creature comforts, having something to distract you and your loved ones is a great morale booster.

Of course weapons, accessories & ammunition are not in the list. It still baffles me that there is some sort of political correctness timidity in getting the obvious in the list but we know better and learn from lessons past. If you have a semi auto pistol and only 2 magazines, What are you waiting to get a couple mags more? And with the political nightmare that might come in November, you better buy 5 just in case. Also, do you have weapons with red dots, lasers or lights attached? Don’t forget the batteries for them! Have 2 cleaning & lubrication kit: one full size and another portable that you can carry and use if SHTF and you are away from your home base.

So, Are you ready? And I mean mentally ready. Do you have a plan other than sitting there waiting for the hurricane to be over and wait for things to come back to normal or are you already mentally planning on the WhatIfs” of the after-storm? If you already forgot about New Orleans & Katrina, you better take a refresher as soon as possible. If there was an event that showed in full force that your safety is not guaranteed by the government, this was it. Louis Awerbuck expressed it succinctly when he wrote in a recent article that “The first of the loot-shoot-scoot brigade will deploy immediately after a disaster, looking for an easy mark. Those with nothing to lose will be ready to take, and the sooner they start, the more they can take.” And that means your stuff and possibly even your life or the life of your loved ones.

Although when Hurricane Katrina visited South Florida as a small category one, it did enough to leave lots of areas without power. Those who had a generator were doing OK but were suddenly facing a rash of critters who were intent on stealing such a precious commodity. A friend of mine was the target of two of those critters who were bold enough to openly stroll into his backyard and attempt to take the power source. My buddy confronted the critters from a second story window and politely asked them what did they want. The critters indicated in no uncertain and foul terms that they were about to steal the generator and there was nothing he could do to which my friend responded by producing his Bushmaster and aiming it at them. The critters immediately reconsidered their initial thieving position and disappeared in a flash.
During the same Post Katrina time frame, yours truly was enjoying a smoke at 2 am sitting in the threshold of my front door. It was miserably hot and humid with little breeze and sleep was AWOL for me that night, the battery operated TV was on but repeating the same old news that we were without power and it was hot (yippee! like I did not know.) when three critters drove by in a small white vehicle. Now I live in a small somewhat closed community and I pride myself in knowing which vehicles belong to the area and this particular one did not. The critters drove by slowly following the posted 10 M.P.H for the community and that raised the first flag: nobody here drives at that crawling speed. I kept my eye on them as they went away hoping that they were just joy ridding around. About three minutes later, they drove by again slowing just a tad and the three occupants eyeballing be without shame. Again the went away but by now my slow brain had decided that:

1) These guys are up to no good,
2) I am a moron for having the gas lamp on inside the house so I can be
silhouetted by it and
3) Get ready ’cause probably I will see the critters again.

By the time I finished reasoning the above points, the critters were approaching once more and at a higher rate of speed. The driver slammed on the brakes and 2 doors flew open while the 2 companions tried to extricate themselves out of the car. I reached inside the house and presented the profile of my WASR-10 to the critters who after taking a good look and recognizing the traditional AK shape in the hands of that fat bearded guy, decided that the target was not as soft as it initially appeared and it would be a good idea to initiate a hasty retreat which they did with a selected choice of cuss words as background music.

The point I am trying to make is that not only have weapons and ammo but the mental preparedness to use them in case interlopers decide to pay you a visit. This mental preparedness alongside knowing how to use your tools and what to do with it is what is called The Combat Triad: Mindset, Marksmanship, and Gun-handling. To be up to date in the Combat Triad is as important as a fully stocked pantry or having a good First Aid kit with you in emergency situations.

So, Are you ready?

Cruising DefensiveCarry.com (A great forum for those in the Concealed Weapons Permit Lifestyle) I found the following tidbit of information:

Police tell owners: ‘We’re inspecting your guns’
Investigators searching community for firearm used in murder.

Oklahoma police investigating the shooting deaths of two girls have told area residents with guns to bring them in for a test to determine whether they were used in the attack, sparking concern among those who own guns for hunting and self-defense.

According to reports in the Tulsa World the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation sent letters to members of the community who were registered as owning .40-caliber handguns suggesting they voluntarily bring in their gun or guns for a test.

That story in itself is disturbing as hell. Oklahoma does not have gun registration so how the hell OSBI managed to get a list of gun owners? Those enlighhtened in the gun business report that about the only way to get any kind of list would be for the OSBI to call ATF and get a hold of the “Yellow Sheets” or as we know the Firearms Transaction Record or Form 4473. Some are questioning the legality of using Tax Forms without proper judicial request since none of the reports so far indicate that legal measure.

The story in Fox News reveals that OSBI knows that a .40 caliber Glock was used as the murder weapon but the clincher is that from the list of 60 OK gun owners, 40 of them voluntarily turned their weapons in for testing. The precedent of such absurdity is astounding. A Law Enforcement Agency goes into a suspicious fishing trip looking for clues in a murder case that has stalled and you will relinquish your rights so easily? And to top it all off, here is a quote from the first article:

Brown said those weapons were taken by investigators and test-fired, and the results of those tests now are being evaluated. She said nearly half a dozen former gun owners contacted authorities to identify new owners

So just to be in the safe side, I will not only trample my own Second and Fifth Amendment Rights but I will do so unto others. This is just plain sad and worrisome. You’d expect this from New York, Chicago, Miami or Los Angeles but not from Oklahoma.

I do feel ashamed and sorry for the Sooner State.