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I was giving out school supplies to military families today. (About 1000 kids) A mom with several kids came in with a special needs son. He was obviously in sensory overload and mom was having issue taking care of him and her other children. The entire room stopped. You could see how uncomfortable everyone was and how some disapproved of how mom handled it. I've been in the same situation most of the times I'm in public with my daughter. My daughter is also blind so she tends to get excited easily. I always feel guilty for interrupting someone's night out and putting them in that situation, but I also want to make the most of the time we will have with her. If you see us out, please don't hold your breath. Your child can't catch it. You don't have to feel sorry for us. It's okay to ask questions. I'm not going to freak out. I only break down when I'm alone. I wish I would have hugged that mom and told her it was okay.

Been looking the last couple of months for a replacement deer rifle after my M1917 Eddystone got stolen. Was heavily considering a 721 Remington and then found a scoped 1903 that wasn’t the prettiest, but got a helluva deal on. Was in my hometown today for my sons birthday at grandmas and found the one I’ve been looking for. Pre-64 Model 70 Super Grade in 30-06... priced at $350. Needless to say, that’s one less they have to sell this year .

I like to think there will be a special place in heaven reserved for parents and kids like this. On the other hand, I have no pity nor tolerance for parents of children who've simply not been taught discipline. It usually isn't hard to tell the difference.

A little bit that and a little bit Remington Precision Rifle.

That's a friggin pre 64! It has been dinked with and refinished, but still......wow! I can't wait to hear how it shoots. I've yet to have a model 70 that wasn't scary accurate. You paid for half the floorplate. https://www.customshopinc.com/product/winchester-model-70-pre-64-super-grade-floor-plate-like-new/

You stole that! How ‘bout some pictures?

Pimptastic.

For what it's worth...I've never owned a derringer of any sort. Always thought I'd like one, preferably a High Standard in 22 Mag. I've shot several HS models and a few Bond as well. For me, far more trouble than they are worth. The weight, as Rob says, is awful, and the triggers are worse. Cleaned a HS 22 mag for a friend that had left it in a closet. Yep, the ammo was green, and crud fouling everything. I took it down as far as I dared, soaked it in Hoppes 9, and got my dental picks out. Got in clean, put in fresh ammo and shot a few rounds. Did I say I hated the trigger? It's terrible. It measured at 14-17 lbs. Gave it back and I think it went back into her closet. To top it off, I find myself still thinking that I want one.

I also know several families with autistic kids. Others that have kids with diagnosed anxiety disorders. It is as hard of a struggle for the kids as the parents. People just don't realize these kids are not just spoiled like so many others I know. One long term friend has 1 autistic kid and one very energetic (possibly adhd) kid. She is blind but still works a full time job while not being supported by her ex. At one point she could have made more on disability/welfare than working, but she still chose to work. She is a real hero doing it all herself. I dont think I would have the strength. Taking her kids to school and going to work is a convoluted, slow, and painful series of multiple special transportation bus rides each day. Unfortunately she is too far away to visit often. Seeing peoples reaction to her family in public is just ridiculous.

Still stuck on the stripper. That, and the subsequent retorts started my day with a smile. Thanks guys!

Ever great parents, as a rule, are mortified when their kids act out in public. "That man or woman or ALL those people must think I'm a bad parent." Ever say to yourself, "if that was MY kid..." Praise the Lord and prayers of joy for the parents who gracefully and lovingly raise these beautiful children of God.

I know several families with downs or autistic kids. Its not easy for them. I've learned that the best thing is to treat them with simple courtesy and offer to hold the door etc. Acting agitated only makes things worse. I now have several young friends that are always happy to see me. The love these kids are capable of expressing is the only contagious thing about them! Their parents are remarkably courageous on a daily basis. It is hard work, sometimes it isn't pretty. Give them a break and dont make a spectacle of things, again common courtesy goes a looooooong way.

Edward Uhl, the Man Behind the Bazooka More info

I'm still waiting to hear from Coleman Tractor. I dropped it off to be fixed two weeks ago! It broke because the spindle had obviously cracked a year or more in the past. I could tell because there was rust on part of the break and fresh metal on other parts of the crack. I was mowing on a hillside and the stress on the downhill side was apparently enough to make it crack the rest of the way. Why did it crack a year or more ago? I don't know. Maybe there was a hairline flaw in the metal.

Have you handled one? I had a 3" (I think) model for a while & whilst undoubtedly built like a vault door, it was unbelievably heavy, impossible to aim, had a trigger I couldn't work (pull up & back simultaneously?!) & was physically bigger than my .45 XDs. With 2½" birdshot it was merely unpleasant. With Winchester Pdx defense loads, it was god-freaking-awful. I admire them, I think the build quality is as good as anything & better than 95% of firearms & you couldn't give me another. Wrapped in money. Delivered by a stripper.

Okay, I’ve gotten some time to come up for air. I’ve reread everything here and will offer a few thoughts. Upfront, there will certainly be folks who disagree with me. Take these thoughts for what they are, and maybe use them to process your own church’s response. It sounds like you’ve got a good engaged leadership. First, this is absolutely Kingdom work. Scripture is concerned with three types of people over and over again - the sojourner, the widow, and the orphan. You might argue that a young drug addict doesn’t fall into any of these categories. But, he’s clearly an “other” who society has little use for. Jesus would see this young man and engage with him. This young man is Jesus’s kind of person. Second, working with folks like this is a long effort. It’s dirty. It’s personal. It can be life changing - for the people doing the work as well as the person being helped. When you decide to help - it will change the way that you see things. Things are rarely as simple as we like to try to see them. And working with folks with needs like these will change the way you see things. We’re a small church (150 on a good Sunday) and have worked regularly with 3 or 4 folks who’ve struggled with addiction and homelessness for years now - literally 8 years in a couple of the cases. There are rarely any clean breaks. We work towards that - but there are definitely systemic issues that make it tough. Be prepared for the long haul. Third, there are going to be some people who will be quite vocal in opposing working with this young man. The way I think about this is sort of like this - if this is Kingdom work - it’s very much at the border of the Kingdom. We’ve built our comfortable suburban churches to be at what we see as the center of the Kingdom. So, we rarely have to get our hands dirty if we don’t want to - and a lot of us don’t want to - so we’re really uncomfortable with it when we experience it. Think of a person who’s only ever bought meat neatly shrink wrapped at the grocery store suddenly having to slaughter their own meat. Many really aren’t going to like it. —- File this next part under the thoughts of a church of Christ guy who is deeply skeptical of some of the ways we’ve organized our churches today. What I’m about to say is likely to offend a lot of folks. Feel free to skip ahead. I’m deeply skeptical of the “security teams” that we’re organizing in a lot of our churches. We’ve organized these suburban churches that give us these curated experiences that make us feel good about our personal relationships with Jesus. But, do we see the Gospel in our churches? if we’re not careful - the illusion of security in our churches can become idolatrous. I think we really need to struggle with this more than we do. To go back to my Kingdom language from earlier, I think we see ourselves as being close to the center of the Kingdom. But, in reality we’ve created these cloistered, walled off churches and don’t realize that we’re way more isolated than we think we are. Jesus referred to folks like this as whitewashed tombs once upon a time - and I think It’s probably worth holding up mirror every now and then and taking a good hard look. The irony of it is, we don’t realize it - but we’re not fully experiencing the Kingdom either. There’s a rich seven course meal waiting, but we’ve convinced ourselves that the stale sandwiches we’re eating are as good as it gets. This young man is isolated in ways that are public. But, what we don’t realize is that a lot of us experience isolation in ways that are just as debilitating - but we suffer in private. One of the things that we’ve lost in the modern Western church is that historically there was no idea of personal salvation. Redemption and salvation was delivered through community. I’d offer for thought that by leaving our comfort and heading to the borders of the Kingdom, we might find that salvation comes to us all. Happy to discuss this further out of this thread. —- Back to this young man, I’d offer some pragmatic thoughts. 1. Let your safety team operate as sort of “congregational concierges.” I think we see shootings and want to see the outsider as an opposition force. But, in the Kingdom, everyone is welcome. This young man may in fact go to the front of the line at the proverbial wedding banquet. We need people on these teams who default to being welcome and generous. 2. This young man may not be in a place where he’s ready to accept help. He may not know that he needs help. But, if we figure that God brings people though our doors for a reason - then we need to see him and invite him into the Kingdom. 3. But, it’s okay to set some ground rules. Sort of a framework like - we’re happy to help - but you can’t be high at services. You cannot ask members for money. Appoint a point of contact (maybe a deacon) and funnel through that person. 4. Think about other resources in your congregation who might be able to help. For instance, you might have folks who would never volunteer for a “safety team” - but who work in other helpful spaces. In our church, we have nurses, a mental health resource, people who work in non profits in housing, and social workers. The value that they bring to the table is infinite. And, it’s great to see them use their professional talents for the Kingdom. 5. Consider outside help. We put something in place a while back where we basically subsidize counseling for our members. Specifically, any member of our church can go to counseling for $5 per session - which basically rounds to free. We pay $70 as a church to make up the difference. I see both the bills and the uptake in our church - and from a pastoral perspective, this is probably the best money we spend in a given year. You’re in middle Tennessee - so I could put you in touch with resources that could set something like this up. 6. Scaffold your help. This is a long effort and there is some fatigue that can go along with it. Have that point person or persons - but check in regularly and have your elders keep up with what’s going on. 7. Work towards reconciliation. This young man needs healing - and his family needs to be a part of it. He and they may not be ready for it - but it’s worth looping back on. 8. Know that the Holy Spirit certainly plays the long game and will work in ways that we cannot even fathom if we’ll just make room for it to happen. That was a long answer to your question - but know you’re doing Kingdom work. Certainly my prayers are with you. Happy to talk further if it’s helpful.

I wonder how long before they make one in 9mm.

I have met Rob. He doesn't. He really doesn't.