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If it makes you feel any better about your chance at getting the vaccine sooner than later, a lot of group 1 doesn’t want it. Our fire department conducted an anonymous poll yesterday to determine how many doses they needed to get. Only 6% of our department is willing to take it, and yes it is optional. Similarly my wife (nurse) had to participate in a similar survey today at her hospital and only 14% of those polled so far are willing to get it, and yes it’s optional for her as well. I’m a casual observer in a few first responder forums and FB pages, and this thought process is pretty common across the board. A few people had asked earlier in this thread why we wouldn’t want it, and someone had asserted that we were possibly in the wrong line of work if we weren’t willing to get it. To the former I would say that I deal with some form of physical risk ever single day at my job. We are well versed in identifying and mitigating risk when possible. The virus is a known risk, the vaccine is an unknown risk. One I can take precautions for, and even if I do get it my chances of recovery are extremely high. The other is completely unknown as to the short term and long term effects. Once it’s in your body that’s it, you aren’t sucking it out later. The vaccine requires two shots to be effective, and has to be re-administered every year. Other than being a bit overweight I am not in a high risk group for dying if I get the virus, if I was then I would factor that in and it might or might not tip my risk scale. My 22 years of working for federal, state, and local Govt has taught me to trust them 0%. It’s a keep your friends close and your enemies closer situation. There are plenty of good people that work for the Govt, but at every level where decisions are made their are people driven by greed and fear. For those driven by greed it is both in the financial and fame sense, they will do anything to achieve either or both. Those driven by fear just want to maintain the status quo and retire comfortably, and in most cases they are so afraid to make a wrong decision that they are almost frozen and can’t make any decision, or when they do, it is so risk averse that it is ineffective or misguided. There are also those in it for all the right reasons, but they typically won’t make it very high before being choked out by the other two. All that to say, if the Govt is pushing the vaccine so hard, to include some legislators wanting to tie the next stimulus check to you getting the vaccine, then I absolutely don’t trust anything about it. To the individual that thinks we are in the wrong line of work because we don’t want to take the vaccine, maybe we are, but I guess we’ll have to stick it out until you and your friends that have all the answers are willing to come take our place. For some reason there is a nationwide shortage of EMS personnel, so the sooner you can get your initial year of training knocked out to start at $12 an hour would be great. I hope you don’t have an aversion to smells because there is ALOT of vomit, poop, and piss involved. While I personally don’t trust or want the vaccine, I do 100% support your right to choose to get it if you want to. I respectfully request that you honor my right to choose for myself without disparaging me and my profession. I would’ve thought that in a 2A group we would all know first hand the frustration and danger of other people trying to choose for us what they think is best for us. Stay in your lane

I've invested heavily in AR specific tools over the past year or so and increased my knowledge a good bit. I'm planning some armorer's classes in the future to take my understanding of the systems even further. I guess a lot of my friends know that so they've been asking me for help in assembling kits or replacing parts or diagnosing issues. Something that I've come across a lot of recently are headspace issues and receiver extension issues. I had to send a bolt back that wouldn't close on a 5.56 go gauge in any barrel that I had. The company was great about it and they replaced it without issue. I also had a friend bring a rifle by that had the same problem. It was a home built setup that he bought second hand from a shop. Luckily the shop owner knew who made the bolt and took care of it. Another rifle was a complete upper from a reputable company. The rifle headspaced fine but using one of my tools, I noticed that something was off between the receiver and the barrel extension. Or so I thought. I thought maybe the extension was clocked wrong inside the receiver. Even though it functioned fine, you could see wear on the lugs of the bolt where they were having to push past a bind to lock into place correctly. On further inspection, it appeared that the barrel extension lugs were machined poorly and had little tabs that were causing the binding. The company asked for pictures and then asked for it back. They replaced the barrel and sent everything back quickly and it was fantastic. I ran it through an inspection and everything checked out great. Most of these were pre-panic rifles and each one had some small issue. With the current state of things, check your parts before you get out and run your rifles. I'm worried about QC dropping even with the best names out there. And if you are in the Memphis area and want or need anything checked out, I'm happy to help. I'm not a gunsmith and I will happily admit that I don't know everything but I know a good bit and I enjoy doing this stuff. (Also, since I'm not a gunsmith, I don't charge anything. It's purely a hobby for me at this point.)

I would disagree. If a newbie is not competent enough to handle a striker fired gun, they probably shouldn’t handle anything without supervision or training. All the safety gadgets in the world don’t matter if the user won’t keep his finger off the trigger.

It Snowed Last Night.. 8:00 am: I made a snowman. 8:10 - A feminist passed by and asked me why I didn't make a snow woman. 8:15 - So, I made a snow woman. 8:17 - My feminist neighbor complained about the snow woman's voluptuous chest saying it objectified snow women everywhere. 8:20 - The gay couple living nearby threw a hissy fit and moaned it could have been two snow men instead. 8:22 - The transgender man..women...person asked why I didn't just make one snow person with detachable parts. 8:25 - The vegans at the end of the lane complained about the carrot nose, as veggies are food and not to decorate snow figures with. 8:28 - I was being called a racist because the snow couple is white. 8:30 - I used food coloring to make one of the snow couple a different color and be more racially inclusive. 8:37 - Accused of using black face on the snowman...snowpersons. 8:39 - The middle eastern gent across the road demanded the snow woman be covered up . 8:40 - The police arrived saying someone had been offended. 8:42 - The feminist neighbor complained again that the broomstick of the snow woman needed to be removed because it depicted women in a domestic role. 8:43 - The council equality officer arrived and threatened me with eviction. 8:45 - TV news crew from ABC showed up. I was asked if I know the difference between snowmen and snow-women? I replied "Snowballs" and am now called a sexist. 9:00 - I was on the news as a suspected terrorist, racist, homophobe, and sensibility offender, bent on stirring up trouble during difficult weather. 9:10 - I was asked if I have any accomplices. My children were taken by social services. 9:29 - Far left protesters offended by everything marched down the street demanding for me to be arrested. 9:45 - The boss called and fired me because of the negative association with work that had been all over social media. 10:00 - I cry into my drink because all I wanted to do was build a snowman... Moral: There is no moral to this story. It is what has happened to our world. We need to get back to: LOVE ONE ANOTHER copied and shared

I’ve trained a few shooters and shoot competitively pretty seriously. I’m pro-LEO AND support the cops, but don’t get me started on the lousy gun handling incompetence/shooting skills I’ve seen from police officers. Not all of them, but a significant portion of them make me cringe. I wish they used more ammo and time at the academy and had a more rigorous annual qualification. The LEOs you mentioned ignored the basics—booger hook off the bang switch til you’re ready to shoot. This is more important than any manual safety, heavy trigger, etc.

Correct. And we see a heck of a lot of experienced trained shooters become complacent and do something stupid/careless/reckless.

Striker guns with no safety is NOT the issue. There are plenty of videos of people shooting themselves or having an ND with 1911s and revolvers and whatever else. Also, what you witnessed was an ND, not an AD.

Ego is often a factor. We have LEOs occasionally come shoot USPSA or IDPA and the thinly veiled attitude is sometimes “I’m about to show ya’ll how this is done.” Them they get their asses handed to them and never come back. The LEO/tactical community sometimes writes off competitive shooting as irrelevant because the targets don’t shoot back, etc. But I’ve heard cop after cop comment after sh*tting the bed on their first ever USPSA stage “I’m not used to being on a timer with people watching.” If a little artificial match stress makes a cop’s brain turn to jelly, how will they resct in a real fight?

Do you ever do work as a firearms instructor? I do. I work with complete and total beginners. It is my experience that it is much easier to work with them when you are using Glock style pistols. You are removing as many "complications" from the equation as possible. It simplifies the process for them and helps to put their mind at ease. We don't do any work with fully loaded magazines. The thing is, you have to teach safety from the get go. Its the first thing we cover in a class and the last thing we talk about as we part ways.

I've never said otherwise. Gun handling is not for everyone. But just because some people shouldn't own them, doesn't mean that they don't still have that right.

In fairness I left out one category that deserves some sympathy. Newbies. Lousy time to be starting the path to gun ownership.

I’m a member of the NRA and FPC. No plans to let my NRA membership lapse. Hopefully they are getting their house in order because a strong NRA is needed more now than ever. I joined FPC because they are very active in litigation.

Prayers for an excellent outcome.

Prayers for your surgeons hands and a speedy recovery.

Prayers for you full recovery. you'll be back in no time.

Thanks to everyone for the good wishes, prayers and all of the encouragement and advice on PT. I’ve got to be there at 7am so I’ll be “seeing” y’all in a day or two. This is quite a family we have here on TGO. Merry Christmas guys.

No, there’s nothing wrong with us. Our hineys are fresh and clean. Think about it this way. If you got some poop on your hand, would you wipe it off with a dry paper towel and call it good? I wouldn’t. So I am all about a bidet or wet wipes now. If you’re just using dry toilet paper, you might as well still be using leaves. It’s just plain uncivilized.

I’ve said it before and I'll say it again…. There’s something wrong with you guys.

Thanks much. The guys have preferred buying them instead of loan. Getting $40.00 to $45.00 a brick depending which flavor. Unfortunately I’m out of what I was willing to pass on. It was a pleasure to meet great guys who enjoy this sport.

I know a couple cops who shoot lights-out, but they didn’t learn it at work. No disrespect meant to the LEO community and the ego thing is not just cops. I cringe when I hear a new competitive shooter say “I’ve been shooting X years and I know how to use a pistol.” Sometimes I am wrong. I would rather train a newbie female because they don’t have to put their ego away. Their attitude is usually “I don’t know what to do, so teach me” vs “my granddaddy taught me to shoot and I really don’t need to listen to this” that some guys are thinking.

Virginia Mayo Colorado Territory - 1949 Colt Single Action -Something?

I took this guy this morning about 30 minutes after daylight.

It certainly is great to be in the want instead of need on both guns & ammo.

Its circular. You have first timers and you have speculators. The regular user is crushed by both, but probably more so the speculators. Speculators start drying up sources as demand from first timers rise. I have empathy for first timers, I have much annoyance from speculators. The good part is watching the speculators trying to unload after the tide subsides. Main reason I want the tide to end is so I can start negotiating with speculators on their cache of drawer parts they overpaid for hoping to turn a huge profit. Those are the best most pleasing deals!

I think if Trump is re-elected the left will double down on their craziness. They have been emboldened by what they’ve gotten away with the last 4 years. Now, they’re going to be even angrier. So, I expect the market to remain unchanged for some time. Plan accordingly.

Well, if President Trump is reelected I believe the gun/ammo business will get back to some reasonable level, if biden wins, all bets are off.

After 3 surgeries and nothing left to work with in there, I’m having a knee replaced. Thursday is the day. Prayers appreciated. Successful surgery and no COVID picked up by wifey and I.

"They" should be called a snowperson. Or maybe a snow entity, since labeling somebody as a "person" might be some form of profiling. It's hard to keep up nowadays ...

THIS is what I've heard since Eflea started doing it and unfortunately I see it as no different than buying an item from a local auction house "estate sale" that doesn't charge sales tax but instead charge up to 18% premiums

Just one more reason to not use them, I'll be canceling and closing my GB account, I'm not about to pay nearly 10%tax on top of buying a $3500 + 1911, or any other collector grade guns. Just my $.02.

The state does not care what the item is that is sold, just the total sales. I file sales tax reports every month. All the state cares about is the total amount of sales. That determines what they are owed in tax. Even the one time I was audited, the auditor didn't care what we sold or who we sold it to just that the total of my invoices in my system equaled what I reported to the state. Because of the way Gunbroker is set up to operate, although a little convoluted, it is probably the most efficient way for them to collect the tax.

Well done! And ain't it the truth comrade....

Thanks to everyone. I bought two of these Samsung monitors, hooked one to the HDMI port and the other to the USB C port and I'm pleased with the screen resolution. I tried to order the MK540 keyboard/mouse bundle, but BestBuy said they weren't available anywhere. I'm a little ticked off that they teased me with a $25 savings and when I got to the cart, it said it wasn't available except for pickup and none were in any store within 100 miles.

Here is some interesting information that Vanguard just posted about How America Invests. There are links to 2 pdf's near the bottom. No earth shattering news or anything but being a voracious reader, trends, reports, etc. intrigue me. https://investornews.vanguard/introducing-how-america-invests/?cmpgn=RIG:EM:CMPGN:SELDIR:12032020:TXL:TXT:HOWAMINVEMSHORTLINKINTEXT:EDU:MTOP:RGP:XXX:ALL:POS01:XX

^^^^ x 10. I'd recommend doing this before you build, especially if you dont plan on getting to it right away. I have gotten into the practice of doing a thorough spec check on part arrival as I have noticed increasing defect rates over the last 3 to 4 years. Irrespective of expense and brand. With todays turnarounds, its especially important. The barrel check mentioned is a great start. I'll add a few more that I run through on parts as they also effect BCG and stacking tolerance. 1. Check upper extension pin slot for spec. Out of spec allows the extension to overclock also leading to bolt lug contact and peening. Pin gages are best, spec .126 +.002. Interference fit at .125+ is ideal. I recently had an upper that was at .137. Manufacturer is a big name and due to their design it could not be shimmed. They stopped production to run thru as they prod staff had a WTF moment when they inspected it. 2. Ideal extension placement is flush fit of extension to the inside receiver face. If you get any setback your BCG runs forward and the stacking tolerance could have your carrier not push the buffer off the detent pin, resulting in the buffer face having hammering against the pin on each firing cycle. 3. BCG carrier flush to rear of the receiver pretty much guarantees your stacking tolerance would be an issue for the item above. 4. bolt to carrier resistance should support carrier weight when held on end and better if its got a bit more resistance. Carriers coatings allowance sometimes are high so diameter allows excess ring blow by leading to being undergassed. Gas system stuff is its own novel.

With mine you either position it through trial and error while mounting, or you just move your butt. I use the latter. You get a sense of the right position. Once you get used to the cold water it's not bad.

So now the Government is using Gestapo tactics for retaliation. DeSantisbis fkn moron!

I wouldn't use FL as any kind of comparison as to veracity of anything Covid related. DeSantis has played fast and loose with all data since the gitgo, even squelched it entirely for a while. He reached a new shameful level today by raiding Rebkah Jones' home. (pick your poison); https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=fl+raid+on+rebekah+jones If anything, TN daily rate may be often a bit under reported, as per this note: "Please note for deaths: Some deaths may be reported by health care providers, hospitals, medical examiners, local health departments, or others before they are included in the statewide count." That said, Tn weekend/holiday daily totals are almost always lower than most M-F rates; I'd put that down to localized reporting lagging from the average facility that is less clerically staffed during those times, so some of those counts may well get folded into the next biz day. - OS

Ok, my "goof" post earlier was an attempt to get you one of these devices. I had one that was probably 10 years old. My wife used it on her knee, and I've used it for both of mine. I was planning on offering it to you, but my wife said the hoses from the motor pumping the cold water out were worn out and leaking. So she had discarded it when I was finished last time. I'm sorry to even have brought it up, but it is a very helpful device. Please ask around and see if you can borrow one. It will be worth the efforts. Ask the PT people if they can help you out. They might know of previous clients with one to lend. Good luck with the surgery. It's so old hat with the orthopedists now they can do it in their sleep. Be prepared to get up, or be gotten up, as soon as you wake in recovery and they think you are awake and aware. At least to stand or maybe a step or two. I think I was still half asleep when they pulled me up. Won't lie. It hurt. But the drugs at this point are so strong you will shrug it off. Don't try to "be a man" and refuse the pain meds. It will cause you pain! More than is necessary. Take them as offered. As frequently as they come around. If you stay overnight, every 4 hours seems to be the norm. At 3 hrs 45 min, call for them. It's for your good. You'll find it better in the long run. Doc and PT will try to get you off them soon enough. Recap: Take your meds. Do all the PT. Do at home on your own. Take meds as prescribed and on time. It does get better sooner than you might think. And last but not least...don't stop moving. Don't sit too long. You will not like the results. Ask me how I know. lol Prayers for you my friend.

The tiny ballerina sold me I sent this link to my girlfriend and she sent this back saying "does it come with the butt balarina"

Short & painless call to the bods in the Nashvegas office this morning. They have me a carcass number over the phone & the tenderloins were delicious! Thanks for all the help & moral support y'all. I rarely worry about much, but in my immigration situation things like this keep me awake. I appreciate all the help!

My theory is up talking is popular amongst the youth because they overly concerned about offending people. Up talking allows them to make statements without committing to the statement because everything is made to sound like a question.

Better than toilet paper. They also don’t rub your ass raw. There’s your legit answer to a humorous question.

Start your shopping list or letter to Santa

Just about everything comes with a risk. Not taking a vaccine has a risk, just like taking the vaccine has a risk, as we will see once it becomes widely available. As we have seen with the virus to this point, unless you are in a high risk demographic group, your chance of being very ill or dying is extremely low. In that case, most likely feel there is less risk in not taking the shot until more is known. I know I have an aversion to being a guinea pig.

Bringing it back for this year. I took this bad boy about 10 minutes ago! I get to sit here for another 3 hours now so as to not mess everyone else up going out.

Belgian soldiers march into battle with their dogs, ready to stem the German tide and throw a wrench into the Schlieffen Plan. Aug 1914

The cool thing about being prepared is that you can sit back and enjoy the show. We've seen this before, and we'll see it again.

Any of the CZ Tactical Sport models or the Shadow 2 (or it's variants.)