Arizona, Oregon, Nevada, Texas. What is it that these states have that Missouri does not have?
A Democratic Gun Owners' Caucus.
Traditionally, Missouri is a red state largely due to the wedge issues that seperate the Conservative 'hinterland' from the Liberal urban areas. Gun ownership (the individual right to bear arms) should not be one of the wedges used to keep this state's Democrats from public office.
I have been in contact with several of my elected officials. It troubles me that I hear the familiar 'whistle words' of 'gun show loophole', 'assault weapons' and so forth. These are just buzzwords made popular by pro gun restriction forces such as the Brady Group and Mayors Against Illegal Guns. These terms need to be removed from the lexicon of OUR elected officials as they are code words for 'no private sales of personal property' and 'modern firearms'.
So far, my efforts have not produced much traction but I am digging in and will continue to post up when I have more information on the Missouri Blue Steel Democrats.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
Why does a Liberal use the Gadsen Flag as an image?
Why does a Liberal use the Gadsden Flag as an image?
Isn't that the image of the Tea Party?
Not really. The yellow field backed Gadsden flag was started to be used by the Tea Party movement to show that they were fed up with the direction that the USA was taking after a black man was elected to the POTUS. I held that symbol in very high esteem for most of my adult life and hated that a group that I found so disagreeable 'co-opted' it.
At that point, I decided that as a counter-point symbol, the First Navy Jack should be used by Liberals, especially those of us closer to Classic Liberalism than Progressivism to show our lack of trust in the Establishmentarians that created the Tea Party Movement as well as the same demographic that is controlling both the GOP and the Dems.
We've seen since 2010 that the ONLY THING that the TP Congress members want is NOT less government (none of these junior Congress critters are forgoing their expense accounts or running smaller staffed offices and have done nothing to effectively shrink the Federal government)but to get the sitting POTUS out using any means necessary such as government shutdown threats and scorched earth tactics. It seems that they are worried that if this POTUS looks good.
I am a bit of an odd duck. I see the Federal and State governments as necessary villains to assist individuals in their ability to keep their personal rights as well as to provide those things that individuals may not be able to provide for themselves, such as public schooling, health care facilities, common defense and emergency services. I also see Corporations the way that Thomas Jefferson did. An Aristocracy of Corporations, indeed.
I close with the last political note from that great man, sent ahead to the 50th anniversary of the signing of that beautiful act of Treason, the Declaration of Independence:
“May (July 4) be to the world, what I believe it will be -- to some parts sooner, to others later, but finally to all -- the signal of arousing men to burst the chains under which monkish ignorance and superstition had persuaded them to bind themselves, and to assume the blessings and security of self-government. That form (of government) which we have substituted, restores the free right to the unbounded exercise of reason and freedom of opinion. All eyes are opened, or opening, to the rights of man. The general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth, that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God.”
Isn't that the image of the Tea Party?
Not really. The yellow field backed Gadsden flag was started to be used by the Tea Party movement to show that they were fed up with the direction that the USA was taking after a black man was elected to the POTUS. I held that symbol in very high esteem for most of my adult life and hated that a group that I found so disagreeable 'co-opted' it.
At that point, I decided that as a counter-point symbol, the First Navy Jack should be used by Liberals, especially those of us closer to Classic Liberalism than Progressivism to show our lack of trust in the Establishmentarians that created the Tea Party Movement as well as the same demographic that is controlling both the GOP and the Dems.
We've seen since 2010 that the ONLY THING that the TP Congress members want is NOT less government (none of these junior Congress critters are forgoing their expense accounts or running smaller staffed offices and have done nothing to effectively shrink the Federal government)but to get the sitting POTUS out using any means necessary such as government shutdown threats and scorched earth tactics. It seems that they are worried that if this POTUS looks good.
I am a bit of an odd duck. I see the Federal and State governments as necessary villains to assist individuals in their ability to keep their personal rights as well as to provide those things that individuals may not be able to provide for themselves, such as public schooling, health care facilities, common defense and emergency services. I also see Corporations the way that Thomas Jefferson did. An Aristocracy of Corporations, indeed.
I close with the last political note from that great man, sent ahead to the 50th anniversary of the signing of that beautiful act of Treason, the Declaration of Independence:
“May (July 4) be to the world, what I believe it will be -- to some parts sooner, to others later, but finally to all -- the signal of arousing men to burst the chains under which monkish ignorance and superstition had persuaded them to bind themselves, and to assume the blessings and security of self-government. That form (of government) which we have substituted, restores the free right to the unbounded exercise of reason and freedom of opinion. All eyes are opened, or opening, to the rights of man. The general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth, that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God.”
Sunday, April 15, 2012
It begins!
On Friday I excersized by 2nd Amendment rights and have now started my AR build.
* Smith & Wesson M&P-15 stripped lower
* Pearce Grips AR-1911 grip adaptor
* Custom 1911 stocks from my buddy Tim's Etsy store in their green respendant Liberal Gun Club selves.
Got the grips installed and within two weeks I will have the lower parts kit. I'll have to remove the grips in order to get the selecter/safety detent pin and spring installed as I do not have those parts just yet.
We celebrated how quickly I passed the form 4473 process (I did forgo my paranoid fears and put my SSN # on the form. I have no doubt that this helped) by going to Ultimate Defense and getting some trigger time on their rental S&W M&P-15 and my DW put 50 .45 ACP downrange on their rental Springfield Government 1911A1.
It turns out that since the NRA was in town, KMOV 4 wanted to get some information on women who shoot guns after speaking with Mr Bastian (owner of UDRange.com) at the NRA Annual Meeting and Trade Show earlier Friday afternoon. They did interview Ms ALIMO but only used footage of her and not her interview. I overcame my temptation of putting my Liberal Gun Club hat on her for the interview. LOL
I did not attend the National Meeting and Trade Show for one simple reason. I am not an NRA-ILA member and have no interest in joining at this time but may in the future if they decide to agree that the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is _NOT_ just a Conservative position but one for all people. In the past, the NRA fought for gun rights for individiuals and supported politicians that did the same. At some point after Mr la Pierre took over, the tone and targets changed. Now the NRA is working to increase teh gun rights for those who would most greatly benefit the firearms manufacturers and Conservative interests. For example, in 2004 and 2008, the NRA backed several Democrats and Independants that held strong RKBA beliefs and had histories of working to preserve these rights. In 2008, a feaver pitch was reached when 'OBAMA WILL STEAL YOUR GUNS!' was the battle-cry. In 2010, all non-Republicans were thrown under the bus. Now in 2012 the 'OBAMA WILL STEAL YOUR GUNS!' is the message again, causing there to be major runs on guns and ammo.
The current run on guns and ammo will keep me from finishing my AR-15 rifle build in May as I had initially planned. Manufacturers are hitting it huge, orders are piling up and things are going out of stock faster than they are being replaced. Even the manufacturers that historically are on the bottom end of acceptable are getting record orders and have waiting lists for shipping dates.
The level of FUD spread like pasture pucks has gotten out of hand. Membership in the Liberal Gun Club is growing daily.
And here are some pics of my build in progress:
* Smith & Wesson M&P-15 stripped lower
* Pearce Grips AR-1911 grip adaptor
* Custom 1911 stocks from my buddy Tim's Etsy store in their green respendant Liberal Gun Club selves.
Got the grips installed and within two weeks I will have the lower parts kit. I'll have to remove the grips in order to get the selecter/safety detent pin and spring installed as I do not have those parts just yet.
We celebrated how quickly I passed the form 4473 process (I did forgo my paranoid fears and put my SSN # on the form. I have no doubt that this helped) by going to Ultimate Defense and getting some trigger time on their rental S&W M&P-15 and my DW put 50 .45 ACP downrange on their rental Springfield Government 1911A1.
It turns out that since the NRA was in town, KMOV 4 wanted to get some information on women who shoot guns after speaking with Mr Bastian (owner of UDRange.com) at the NRA Annual Meeting and Trade Show earlier Friday afternoon. They did interview Ms ALIMO but only used footage of her and not her interview. I overcame my temptation of putting my Liberal Gun Club hat on her for the interview. LOL
I did not attend the National Meeting and Trade Show for one simple reason. I am not an NRA-ILA member and have no interest in joining at this time but may in the future if they decide to agree that the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is _NOT_ just a Conservative position but one for all people. In the past, the NRA fought for gun rights for individiuals and supported politicians that did the same. At some point after Mr la Pierre took over, the tone and targets changed. Now the NRA is working to increase teh gun rights for those who would most greatly benefit the firearms manufacturers and Conservative interests. For example, in 2004 and 2008, the NRA backed several Democrats and Independants that held strong RKBA beliefs and had histories of working to preserve these rights. In 2008, a feaver pitch was reached when 'OBAMA WILL STEAL YOUR GUNS!' was the battle-cry. In 2010, all non-Republicans were thrown under the bus. Now in 2012 the 'OBAMA WILL STEAL YOUR GUNS!' is the message again, causing there to be major runs on guns and ammo.
The current run on guns and ammo will keep me from finishing my AR-15 rifle build in May as I had initially planned. Manufacturers are hitting it huge, orders are piling up and things are going out of stock faster than they are being replaced. Even the manufacturers that historically are on the bottom end of acceptable are getting record orders and have waiting lists for shipping dates.
The level of FUD spread like pasture pucks has gotten out of hand. Membership in the Liberal Gun Club is growing daily.
And here are some pics of my build in progress:
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Post-February wrap-up and updates
Well, the no-spend February wasn't as profitable but we did manage to get things back on track. No real savings but some items that we've needed for some time have been purchased and we've cut back our 'eating out' a fair bit.
Back in January I traded some .40 S&W brass and a 1/2# of fresh Unique powder for a set of RCBS .223 full-length sizing dies so I can reload .223 ammo for my upcoming AR-15 rifle build. I had the dies in my hot little hands for less than a day before I stuck a case. Long story short, I've contacted RCBS support a few times and still have not gotten the replacement spindle that they have been promising me since January 25th. I broke down and bought the X-spander spindle from Cabela's. Since that point, I have now sized and expanded several hundred pieces of .223 PMC, Federal and Lake City brass. Now to get a pound of Ramshot TAC powder and some Hornady VMAX 62-grain bullets...after I get a scale that is more accurate than the used RCBS 5-0-5 scale that I have.
I guess I'll send the 5-0-5 to RCBS to have them check out and recalibrate if needed. While I have heard many good things about thier customer service over the years, my experience has been less than stellar.
The lay-away Smith & Wesson M&P 15 lower reciever that I have on hold for me at Bud's Gunshop in Lexington, KY should be in my possession before I turn 40 at the end of the month. Then it's $69 for the lower parts kit, $54 for the stock and recoil spring with another $400-$500 for the upper. Or, I may just order a rifle kit from either www.akpartskits.com or www.model1sales.com. Or both, there are still cheap stripped lower recievers out there...
Back in January I traded some .40 S&W brass and a 1/2# of fresh Unique powder for a set of RCBS .223 full-length sizing dies so I can reload .223 ammo for my upcoming AR-15 rifle build. I had the dies in my hot little hands for less than a day before I stuck a case. Long story short, I've contacted RCBS support a few times and still have not gotten the replacement spindle that they have been promising me since January 25th. I broke down and bought the X-spander spindle from Cabela's. Since that point, I have now sized and expanded several hundred pieces of .223 PMC, Federal and Lake City brass. Now to get a pound of Ramshot TAC powder and some Hornady VMAX 62-grain bullets...after I get a scale that is more accurate than the used RCBS 5-0-5 scale that I have.
I guess I'll send the 5-0-5 to RCBS to have them check out and recalibrate if needed. While I have heard many good things about thier customer service over the years, my experience has been less than stellar.
The lay-away Smith & Wesson M&P 15 lower reciever that I have on hold for me at Bud's Gunshop in Lexington, KY should be in my possession before I turn 40 at the end of the month. Then it's $69 for the lower parts kit, $54 for the stock and recoil spring with another $400-$500 for the upper. Or, I may just order a rifle kit from either www.akpartskits.com or www.model1sales.com. Or both, there are still cheap stripped lower recievers out there...
Friday, February 3, 2012
'No Spend' February
Last month, my DW came to me with an idea, a 'no spend' week. Basically, we would go for one paycheck and only spend money we needed to spend - only bills, rent, food, transport - and not spend money we don't.
I didn't think that a week was quite enough time to make a difference in either our bank account or our spending habits, so I figured we should expand it to the month of February. Short month, should be easy.
To offset some concerns, we're each allowed $50 for the month to spend however we want, Valentine's Day is exempt and we get one family dinner out a week.
This is now Day 3, first payday and so far so good. I used the $50 to cover some Colt 1911 custom stocks that have been sitting in a buddy's etsy store since, well, too long ago. Meanwhile my wife has the next week's worth of lunches and dinners bought for $150 at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.
I planned ahead and bought us another 525 pack of Winchester .22lr which means that we should be able to shoot all month at the range for $0. Cheap entertainment at its finest!
I didn't think that a week was quite enough time to make a difference in either our bank account or our spending habits, so I figured we should expand it to the month of February. Short month, should be easy.
To offset some concerns, we're each allowed $50 for the month to spend however we want, Valentine's Day is exempt and we get one family dinner out a week.
This is now Day 3, first payday and so far so good. I used the $50 to cover some Colt 1911 custom stocks that have been sitting in a buddy's etsy store since, well, too long ago. Meanwhile my wife has the next week's worth of lunches and dinners bought for $150 at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.
I planned ahead and bought us another 525 pack of Winchester .22lr which means that we should be able to shoot all month at the range for $0. Cheap entertainment at its finest!
Friday, January 6, 2012
Merry Christmas
In my quest to no longer be a non-firearm owner, I now have a Smith & Wesson M&P15 stripped lower on lay-away with Bud's Gunshop in Lexington, KY.
Once that along with a few bills are taken care of, my wife's SIG 238 Rainbow and my Rock Island Tactical .45 will go on lay-away. breaking up gun payments over 90 days means taht you don't ahve to settle for guns you don't want.
Once that along with a few bills are taken care of, my wife's SIG 238 Rainbow and my Rock Island Tactical .45 will go on lay-away. breaking up gun payments over 90 days means taht you don't ahve to settle for guns you don't want.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Starting to get worn down
For months I've tried to be the 'Liberal Outreach Person' for the 'Right to Keep and Bear Arms' issue. I think that I am no longer going to attempt to 'reach out' to the more conservative gun owners to try and bridge the gap on this issue. They seemed determined to marginalize all Liberals into the 'gonna grab our guns!' camp.
I feel that my efforts on this front have been wasted. Yes, I have met several folks who are able to comprehend that RKBA is NOT just a 'conservative' voice but many many more just don't 'get it'.
I am going to focus instead on reaching my fellow Liberals on this issue to show that this is a Civil Liberties issue and not just a bunch of gun-crazy xenophobic rednecks.
I feel that my efforts on this front have been wasted. Yes, I have met several folks who are able to comprehend that RKBA is NOT just a 'conservative' voice but many many more just don't 'get it'.
I am going to focus instead on reaching my fellow Liberals on this issue to show that this is a Civil Liberties issue and not just a bunch of gun-crazy xenophobic rednecks.
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