Via Sebastian, some hoplophobic mom is all spooked because her ex wants to teach her son to shoot. Now, here’s the deal: I don’t advocate getting everyone out to shoot. And I don’t advocate forcing people to. And I don’t advocate dragging hysterical pant-shitters to the range. But I do advocate education. Now, the kid doesn’t want to shoot (at least, that’s what mom tells us – I don’t know of many young boys that don’t want to watch stuff go boom!) and that is fine. But acting like firearms are some mythical beastie that should be avoided like uranium is not healthy. If nothing else, such an exercise would teach the kid how to safely secure a weapon. And what to do if he comes into contact with one.

That said, I have some close friends who will not have a gun in the house. Well, more to the point, the woman of the family is the hysterical kind about guns, which means the rest are. But even they have asked that I take their children shooting so that they learn gun safety as they know (this being rural Tennessee) that eventually the kids will probably be in close proximity to a weapon. Teach them what to do because ignorance kills. More importantly, the exercise would likely teach him not to be hysterical about guns, which is probably the mom’s real fear.

Update: Pissed Off Housewife has more. So does Ahab.

Informational packets for reporters covering gun issues.

Some think the ATF is expanding the definition a little too broadly.

49% don’t favor additional gun controls. 43% do. And:

In answer to the question, “Will stricter gun control laws increase or reduce violent crime?”, 40% said it would have no effect at all, 16% said it would increase violent crime (only the criminals are armed. . .) and 37% said it would decrease crime.

We heard the stories about rampant gun confiscations in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. Now, a suit alleges:

For nearly two years, pet owners from the low-lying Louisiana parish of St. Bernard have accused sheriff’s deputies of having wantonly killed dozens of dogs they forced evacuees to leave behind during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, without regard to the dogs’ size or the potential threat they might pose.

One owner said her family was forced at gunpoint to leave its dog behind. Another owner said residents became frantic when, they said, they overheard one deputy claim that “once everybody’s gone, we’re going to have target practice tonight.” They claim in court papers that deputies were under ” authorization…of their superiors and employers.

Two deputies have already been indicted by a grand jury in New Orleans on charges of felony, aggravated cruelty to animals. The Louisiana attorney general’s office is investigating and this morning lawyers for a group of owners will file a comprehensive complaint in federal court in Louisiana seeking class action status for their clients.

When the shit hits the fan, the law should act like the law and not a bunch of goons.

A loss for property rights in Tennessee:

Governor Bredesen on Monday signed into law a measure to extinguish most workplace smoking in Tennessee.

The law will go into effect in July, but the ban will not be enforced until October to give businesses time to comply. The ban would apply to most businesses, including restaurants.

Exclusions include bars or restaurants that prohibit people under 21 years old at all times, businesses employing no more than three workers and retail tobacco stores.

The market has pretty much instituted the same rules and has done a fine job regulating smoking. Where do they allow smoking in Tennessee other than bars? But someone who owns a business should decide what otherwise lawful activities they allow in that business. We don’t need big brother making those decisions.

Additionally, it looks the state can now build toll roads:

A bill to allow the state to build its first modern toll roads passed the state Senate today by a 20-10 vote.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation would be authorized to develop two pilot toll road projects — one road project and one bridge project — under the legislation. The House is scheduled to vote on the bill during its session at 5 p.m. today.

So, in years of record surpluses, our congress monkeys decide to allow the state to build toll roads. And, of course, the increase in cigarette taxes also corresponds to record surpluses. When there’s a shortfall, they need to tax. When there’s a surplus, they need to tax.

To my fellow Tennesseans: vote every one of these morons out.

What not to do.

If you comment here, you do too:

The Tyler native added to his resume last month when he won the Texas State Rifle Association’s High Power Rifle Championship at Camp Swift near Elgin, during a two-day competition.

Well, that could explain it. I await verification but I thought the truck driver looked familiar. Kinda doubtful that all those folks would be in it together.

From Slate:

Scientists may have figured out how to make stem cells without embryos.

Old trick: Put a nucleus from a skin cell into a gutted human egg, and let the egg’s processes turn it into an embryo, thereby producing embryonic stem cells (ESCs).

New trick: Identify the relevant processes and apply them directly to the cell, turning it into an ESC with no egg or embryo required. Pro-lifers approve the new method.

Remaining hurdles:

1. We’ve only done this in mice; it might be harder in humans.
2. We did it with viral genetic engineering; we need to find a safer method.
3. Some of the genes that worked also caused cancer in many of the mice; we need to find other genes.

Optimistic view: We’ll solve all these problems and fulfill the promise of stem-cell therapy.

Realistic view: We don’t need to solve the safety problems to achieve what stem cells are really about: facilitating disease research.

While I never saw anything wrong with harvesting embryos for stem cells, now that a good alternative appears promising, we should probably stop doing it. After all, it would be great if the social harm caused by abortion opponents didn’t spill over into curing diseases.

The law-abiding obey the law. Even at gun shows.

Don’t you hate when your tactical Tupperware jams?

A hypothetical situation: two men who have not seen each other in a while finally decide to get together for a beer. One dude shows up at the other dude’s house. Here’s an actual conversation they might have.

Dude 1: Hey, man, what’s up?

Dude 2: Aah, not much. You?

Dude 1: Same old, same old. New TeeVee?

Dude 2: Yeah, wanna beer?

Dude 1: Sure, man.

They proceed to watch the game. To you women readers (both of you) that’s all you see. But to men, what they really said was this:

Dude 1: I understand you’ve been having a hard time lately and I’ve come to check in on you and make sure you’re OK.

Dude 2: Yeah, the new job might be more than I can handle. I think I may have overextended myself financially. Me and the significant other aren’t quite getting along like we used to. The IRS is kicking my ass. If this deal doesn’t go through, I might be screwed. I feel a bit depressed and I’m hoping that you can provide me with some advice and companionship to get me through this tough time. And I think my house has termites. What significant things are going on in your life?

Dude 1: Stressed out about raising kids. Feeling the effects of middle age. I’m kinda tired all the time. Marriage ain’t what it used to be with constant activities involving kids. I really need some more me time and alone time with my wife. I need to start working out and taking better care of myself because I want to be there for my kids when they’re older. And I should probably have this twinge checked out but I hate doctors and I hate bad news from them more. So, in the fine tradition of men, I’ll just ignore it. And, given your financial troubles, you bought a new TeeVee?

Dude 2: Yeah, not smart. But I needed something to take my mind off of things. And I appreciate you coming by and showing concern for my general well-being during this tough time. And I’m here for you.

Dude 1: You know I’ll always be there for you, in that non gay way, of course.

With men, less is more.

Yes, I know it’s broken. No, I can’t do anything about it. Some blogs don’t get picked up for some reason and some counts of inbound links don’t work right.

Here.

Well, I guess they needed dessert.

For the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Ownership. Like I said, no one is buying what they’re selling.

First Deadwood, now The Sopranos. Seriously, did you see that shit? So, Meadow walks in, Tony looks up, screen black? I thought my TeeVee went out. Feh. I am totally not watching another HBO series.

Update: In other news, I decided to check the news to be sure. Nothing there. But there are already hundreds of angry bloggers noting the same thing. Blogs: like news but faster. But they’re right, that sucked and just served to leave the door open for other crap.

Update 2: hbo.com is down. I’m guessing everyone is pissed. My prediction: a movie.

Fast: wikipedia.

You’ve probably heard by now that the NRA and Democrats reached a compromise on the band aid after Virginia Tech err NICS improvement act. Overall, not a bad deal, really. It looks to have a means of getting firearms rights back if convicted of minor infractions. Of course, currently this was the case but Congress never funded it nor did Congress fund appeals to have rights reinstated. Looks like the feds will be picking up the tab for the checks and offer incentives to states to keep the database up to date (which it rarely is because there were not standards and each state was on their own). I wonder how this will affect states that have their own system, like Tennessee.

Bitter thinks it’s good, so does Sebastian. Joe’s not happy. Jeff has more.

What do I think? I think it’s the same as it always was. It’s just funded now.

Oh, and I think highlighting the political impotence of Carolyn McCarthy is beautiful.

Anti-gun Congressmen forced to give up guns.

HR 1022, the expansion of the old ban on weapons that look like assault weapons, has gained some co-sponsors.

Alphecca has the play by play. And someone at The Tennessean must be retarded to note:

The law may result in more criminals getting their hands on guns. That’s especially true if more citizens seek permits to carry guns in their vehicles and those vehicles are broken into.

Well, simple solution is to repeal restrictions where guns can be carried (like bars, .gov property, etc.) so folks don’t have to leave them in their cars. I mean, if it will get guns off the street and save just one life, it’s worth it. For the children.

And we don’t have permits to carry in our vehicle. We have permits to carry handguns.

Guide to building an operational M41-A Pulse rifle from Aliens.

He’s strapped. Is he the only pres candidate to say that publicly?

I noticed since the NYT ran their piece on black rifles, that I’m getting quite a few google hits for the term. Be careful though as black rifle disease is a serious disorder that eats up time and money:

They have a no CCW policy. Robb sent them a letter. And gets a response.

Mixed breed genocide in Cali:

“Unbelievable” was the reaction from PetPAC today after Members of the California State Assembly voted 41-38 to outlaw the existence of mixed-breed dogs and cats in the Golden State.

Assembly Bill 1634, authored by Los Angeles Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, will allow only select purebred dogs and cats to breed. Pet owners who don’t sterilize their mixed breed pets by four months of age will face a $500 fine and possible criminal penalties.

“This crazy measure will end up costing families heartache and taxpayers billions,” said Bill Hemby, Chairman of PetPAC, an organization dedicated to the rights of pets and owners. “California will be the poster child for an invasive and overreaching government mandate that is impossible to fund, administer or enforce.”

AB 1634 will blanket all 58 counties in California with an expensive forced spay/neuter law that not all shelters want – or need. According to the State of California, dog impounds have fallen 86% over last 30 years. Puppies and kittens are already being transferred between counties to alleviate a shortage of adoptable pets: San Francisco and Marin Counties need to bring pets in from other areas to be adopted locally. In San Diego County – which has no mandatory spay/neuter law – only one adoptable animal was euthanized in 2004-05.

All dogs share about 99% of their genes:

a few distinct differences account for the different breeds. However, some supposedly different breeds have been found to be genetically identical. And some dogs are genetically closer to wolves than other dogs.

And the wolf kept locked in its genome everything that was necessary to make a Pekingese to a Great Dane.

But then given how politicians typically deal with dog issues, I don’t find this sort of stupidity surprising.

Update: And who exactly determines pure breds? There’s only about two dozen registering entities.

The Knoxville News Sentinel breaks a story today about extravagant spending from the humble public servants of Knox County.

Do any of you spend over $300 for dinner at a restaurant? Sounds like John Edwards “Two Americas”. Like John Stossel says, “It’s your money”.

From the News Sentinel:

County Commission Finance Committee Chairman Paul Pinkston blasted the county mayor’s staff Thursday night over credit card expenses for meals in Knox County, travel and one trip that included a charge of $917 for a hotel stay in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The credit card expenses dominated the commission’s agenda during a public hearing on the budget – expenses that totaled $715,537.51 over a period of less than three weeks.

Those charges are for the use of all 350 credit cards issued to employees across the county, including school workers and those in other departments.

A $187 charge to Club LeConte by Cynthia Finch, the senior director of community services.

A $351.15 charge to Morton’s of Chicago in Nashville by Ragsdale.

A $322.61 charge to the Palm Restaurant in Nashville by Ragsdale.

A $290.96 charge to Morton’s of Chicago in Nashville by Finance Director John Werner.

A $322.61 charge to the Palm Restaurant of Nashville by Werner.

Kim reminds me of something I’ve said before: Keep your mouth shut.

And be polite.

M1 Carbine.

Update: all the cool kids are getting M1s!