TMF

He's right. Just like with ammo, it's the stupid people who drive the price up. That's fine though, I'll just stay out of the market until people calm down. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Oh Shoot" post="1130226" timestamp="1395857868"]Entrapment seems almost a non-legal concept anymore after various rulings through the years. LE can suggest somebody bomb something, even help them build the bomb, then cuff 'em right before they do it, of course cops have been able to pose as hookers or johns and get solid convictions from their unwitting takers, etc. Not even sure how you can "entrap" someone anymore, seems the law mostly just says if you did it, you did it. I guess pleading ignorance that the act was illegal at all might be about all you can do ... oh wait, that doesn't work. ;) - OS[/quote] Yeah, happened with the "terrorist plot" thwarted up in Washington. They befriended an 18 year old on an extremist website, then provided him training and explosives to take out a government building, then arrested him when he tried. Who do they think they're saving by doing that. Go out and find real bad guys rather than trying to make them. That's what third world countries do. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="RichardR" post="1130218" timestamp="1395857092"]No thanks, I am not going to take you up on your offer to "fight you". Your desire to do me harm for disagreeing with you says an awful lot about your character though.[/quote] Look ma'am, you took two words from my post and chose to use them in a context so you could take it to the extreme then ridicule the results. That is how a 8 year old makes a point. Your post served no other purpose than to stir the pot. So if you want to be a big man and poke the bear just for kicks, I'm again extending the offer to strap on the gloves, head to the ring that is convenient for you and I'll whoop your sorry ass. It has nothing to do with a predisposition to violence at disagreement. I strap on gloves and fight my best buddies all the time. I'd just enjoy it a lot more if I could have the pleasure of a PT session with you. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="RichardR" post="1130210" timestamp="1395856553"]If walking a creek is a "serious threat" than I must be on a most wanted list or something, because me & my kids love going creek-stomping, canoeing, bicycling, walking, hiking, etc. I'll be the first to admit that I don't always know where one property ends & another one begins, I of course respect no-tresspassing signs & fences, however the OP stated that he hadn't yet posted his property, so I don't see the "OMG a dangerous tresspasser! quickly everyone into the bunker!" urgency/emergency here. The trash/littering thing does seem to be a serious problem here in TN, there have been times where I have spent more time picking up other peoples trash/litter than I did much else on certain walks/hikes, very sad to see such disrespect, I just don't understand why some folks would litter up these beautiful rivers, creeks, woods & trails like that. Anyway being aware, vigilant & prepared is always a good thing, especially out in remote places where police response times could be measured in hours not in minutes. But I'd suggest refraining from out-right demonizing people for wandering about enjoying the outdoors, I wish more people would "unplug" and spend an afternoon playing in a creek or walking a wooded trail, the world would be a much better place if we all reconnected with nature a bit IMHO. Chances are that if the OP's property been posted the guy as well as most reasonable/responsible people, probably would not had "knowingly tresspassed" (if they saw a sign) so putting up private property / no tresspass signs is a good idea, if the problem persists then I'd probably put up a couple game-cams to see exactly who was ignoring the signs. Someone tresspassing on/in your "curtilage" (up close to house, barn &/or outbuildings buildings) is a lot different IMHO than someone walking a creek at the far end of your property & would definately be considered a potential security threat. Apppearence/clothing might be decieving, I don't wear a suit & tie to go get wet, muddy or sweaty in, so usually I'll wear old clothing while out & about on my adventures, I'd think most folks would do the same. Their manners (or a lack thereof) however does tell you an awful lot about a person/people you encounter, if I am unknowingly tresspassing & some guy comes out with a shotgun cussing & threatening me, well he better be real, real careful what he does because I'll be a fraction of a second away the whole encounter from stepping behind the nearest piece of cover & engaging his stupid ass for pointing a deadly weapon at me. But if he'd just said "hey, this is private property .. the property line is over there" defending myself would had never entered the equasion, I'd just appologized & thanked him. So waving a shotgun around while being a complete asshole to someone just because they accidently/unknowingly crossed an invisible line on a deed or map somewhere isn't always the wisest course of action IMHO.[/quote] Okay, if you're gonna be a dick at least PM me first so I can extend you the same invitation as before. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Welcome back! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'm simple when it comes to bacon. I eat it as is, or cut up and mixed with eggs, potatoes and grits on top. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Chucktshoes" post="1130180" timestamp="1395851609"]A lot of that is determined by what one's position is on what a proper foreign policy would look like. It shouldn't be a big surprise that I take the non-interventionist view. I agree that idle threats are a bad course of action as they do invite future aggression. The question I would pose is should we have been making threats (idle or otherwise) on events that are not happening within our borders in the first place? I say no. What went on in Syria is no business of ours, so we shouldn't have been drawing "red lines" for Assad to cross when he used chemical weapons against the opposition forces that we armed with weapons funneled from Libya. The land grab Putin is going for in Ukraine also isn't our business. Well other than the fact that we helped depose a legitimately elected government that was friendly to Russia in an attempt to install one we liked better. I think the common factors should be evident and it isn't a lack of foreign policy, but a bad one.[/quote] Having an ambassador murdered by terrorists then minimizing it and blaming it on a con artist in California purdy much told the world what kind of leader we have. We didnt need Syria to prove that. But I do agree, many of these scenarios we should have left to the EU and Arab nations to lead. Obama just tried to look like he had a tough foreign policy, but it was all fluff which he was called on. You can't play just the tip. As much as I didn't want us to have any part of Syria, once he made those threats he should have backed it up with some bombs at a minimum. That isn't to say I think we should be involved, just saying that we have to back up our smack talk or else it will be meaningless in the future... as we see. Would have been a lot easier if Obama hadnt said anything, or deferred such rhetoric to the EU and Arab nations. But we're getting off topic. Somehow we've managed to take a completely unrelated issue and attempt to connect it to a tragedy that just happened to occur in our lifetime. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Chucktshoes" post="1130180" timestamp="1395851609"]A lot of that is determined by what one's position is on what a proper foreign policy would look like. It shouldn't be a big surprise that I take the non-interventionist view. I agree that idle threats are a bad course of action as they do invite future aggression. The question I would pose is should we have been making threats (idle or otherwise) on events that are not happening within our borders in the first place? I say no. What went on in Syria is no business of ours, so we shouldn't have been drawing "red lines" for Assad to cross when he used chemical weapons against the opposition forces that we armed with weapons funneled from Libya. The land grab Putin is going for in Ukraine also isn't our business. Well other than the fact that we helped depose a legitimately elected government that was friendly to Russia in an attempt to install one we liked better. I think the common factors should be evident and it isn't a lack of foreign policy, but a bad one.[/quote] Having an ambassador murdered by terrorists then minimizing it and blaming it on a con artist in California purdy much told the world what kind of leader we have. We didnt need Syria to prove that. But I do agree, many of these scenarios we should have left to the EU and Arab nations to lead. Obama just tried to look like he had a tough foreign policy, but it was all fluff which he was called on. You can't play just the tip. As much as I didn't want us to have any part of Syria, once he made those threats he should have backed it up with some bombs at a minimum. That isn't to say I think we should be involved, just saying that we have to back up our smack talk or else it will be meaningless in the future... as we see. Would have been a lot easier if Obama hadnt said anything, or deferred such rhetoric to the EU and Arab nations. But we're getting off topic. Somehow we've managed to take a completely unrelated issue and attempt to connect it to a tragedy that just happened to occur in our lifetime. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="JAB" post="1130149" timestamp="1395847261"] My point in all of this is that - depending on the age of the person in question - if he really did live there at some time in the past this fellah really might have just been reliving old memories. If he was an older person, it really might never have occurred to him that you would mind him walking his old stompin' grounds or that there should be any need to ask permission. Just a thought.[/quote] Or he coulda been lying. Who knows? Point is, you still take it as a serious threat when there are women and children involved. I'd rather have a guy think I'm a total ahole than have a bad guy think he's found a mark. Sorry, if you trespass on my property and you don't belong there I'm not going to be nice. I'm gonna want you to know that if your intent is to do harm you're gonna have to work for it. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Chucktshoes" post="1130165" timestamp="1395849516"]If you are referring to the events with Russia and Ukraine, what makes you think that is due to a lack of our foreign policy? The US government fomented and funded the revolution that ousted Yanukovych. Putin almost definitely had designs on Crimea and Ukraine, we just served them up to him on a golden serving platter.[/quote] Perhaps it is true that we had a hand in stirring up the opposition with financial support and promises of some kind to a potential new regime, but it can't be argued that our perceived weakness due to a general lack of foreign policy and repeatedly not making good on idle threats didn't invite such aggression. I'd say there's a pretty good chance that if we had a man of his word in office we could have effected such events in Ukraine without concern of Russia making an opportunistic land grab. Point is, we can't say that our actions invite hostile intent while at the same time saying a lack of action doesn't. Otherwise Neville Chamberlain would be a hero in the history books. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Oh Shoot" post="1130155" timestamp="1395848595"]My layman's take is that "they" (hodgepodge of systems and governments and technologies and capabilities) don't actually see and record everything that happens on the face of the planet in enough detail to be useful for most purposes. Unless manually aimed and zoomed on an area of interest don't show the detail folks assume.And yet the data is still far too much for human eyes alone to search if you don't already know exactly where to look. - OS[/quote] Yeah, like I think back to Iraq when we had to go through a nutroll to get updated imagery of enemy locations/compounds. Like, we had to have intelligence and stuff. I don't suppose there are 1 million geostationary satellites to take pictures of every 100m square area of the Indian Ocean. I think people forget how big the world is, or never had a comprehension of it in the first place. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Chucktshoes" post="1130151" timestamp="1395847550"]Recognizing and acknowledging that US foreign policy does not exist in a vacuum is not a case of blaming the victim. Too often we picture the US as some God-ordained, global cop on a mission to set the world to right when it is really just looking after its own selfish interests in a short sighted and destructive manner. [/quote] US foreign policy most certainly does not live in a vacuum. However, as we have seen, a lack of US foreign policy doesn't exist in a vacuum either. Kind of the zen master and the horse thing. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="reed1285" post="1130122" timestamp="1395841664"]will do! I'm also going to try to make a trip out to Clearwater beach while im there. Also the one TMF suggested, Sand Key i think was the name of it[/quote] Yeah, I was there back in November and took the kids. Real long stretch with not a lot of people. I think it's $5 parking though, but that helps to keep the riff-raff out. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="sigmtnman" post="1130119" timestamp="1395841226"]We would canoe the Withlacoochee. [/quote] Same here. Used to go to a summer camp there in the Withlacoochee forest when I was young and canoeing that river was part of it. I got into doing the Wekiva river when I got older. Used to see more wildlife on the banks and I had a couple islands there I'd take the ladies to for a mid-canoe trip romp. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

This thread has got me all pumped up now. I am going to be in Tampa for a few days in mid-May. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="sigmtnman" post="1130103" timestamp="1395839022"]mmmm smoked mullet.[/quote] Yes, I'll add that to the list of things to do in Tampa. Smoked mullet and boiled peanuts bought at a roadside stand is a must do while there. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="sigmtnman" post="1130096" timestamp="1395837871"]TMF is right about about the the South Florida Museum in Bradenton. I was born two blocks from there. They have some cool shows at the planetarium; cool laser light shows too. Speaking of Manatees. It's a bit of a drive north, but Homasassa Springs has some pretty cool stuff: [url="http://www.floridastateparks.org/homosassasprings/default.cfm"]http://www.floridastateparks.org/homosassasprings/default.cfm[/url] If you want to see hot chicks dressed up as mermaids in an aquarium go to Weeki Wachee [url="http://www.weekiwachee.com/"]http://www.weekiwachee.com/[/url][/quote] Ha, been a loooong time since I've done Weeki Wachee and Buccaneer Bay. Plan on taking the kids there when they're a little older. I used to canoe the Weeki Watchee as a kid. Looked like you could reach in your hand and scoop out mullet as they swam by. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="sigmtnman" post="1130080" timestamp="1395835508"]You will be close to the ice palace. I'm not a hockey fan but man that is a good time. If the lightning is playing try to catch it. [/quote] I remember going to Lightning games during their first season. I used to be a huge fan. I've only been to a few games at the Ice Palace... was pretty disappointed they named it that as the previous place was called the Thunderdome. "Ice Palace" sounds a little "dandy". I took a wrong turn by the Ice Palace when I went to watch practice one day and ended up in the part of town where a prostitute had her breasts completely exposed. It sounds a lot cooler than it actually was. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="reed1285" post="1130086" timestamp="1395836485"] Aside from food. I'm also an aquarium nerd. Any good aquarium's in the area? I'd imagine there are.[/quote] Yes! My favorite is a small one at the South Florida Museum. It is about 40 mins south of Tampa in Bradenton. It houses Snooty the Manatee, which is the oldest manatee in captivity... they've had him since the '40s. I remember seeing him when I was a kid at his old home, which was nothing more than a tank, but now they have a state of the art aquarium facility for him which includes other manatees who are being rehabilitated. I took my son there last year while down in Florida. Very nice Museum/Aquarium/Planetarium. You won't see anything like it anywhere else in the country. Just enough stuff to see in an afternoon. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I've slowed down on buying guns because people seem to think their used stuff is worth more than what I can buy it for new from the store.  Every once and a while I see something I like at a dumb price, so I'll ask a reasonable price since it's used.  People get insulted about it.  I don't get it.  I guess there are just that many people who are too dumb to price things out, so they're buying people's used crap for far more than what it's worth.   I made a lot of offers on guns people were selling at the end of the great panic; people trying to squeeze what they could out of the crisis.  I made fair offers on used ARs and AKs that were priced twice what they were worth.  I was told a lot of things in those replys.  Some of them quite vulgar, but most instructed me to look on the research on the internet how much their crap was "worth".  I like to go back and look at those emails some times.  I get a kick out of the fact there were people paying $2,000 for a rifle I can get now for $6-700.   It used to be you could get some good deals from folks selling their used firearms; that's how I came by most of what I have.  Now it seems like everyone lost their mind for no good reason.

What if the plane never existed and this is all just your dream?  Or maybe we're just all characters in someone else's dream, where time itself is relative and our existence will be exstinuished upon them waking up???  What if we're all actually dead and don't realize it????   AAAAHHHHHHH!!!! BIG NEWS STORY!!!!! AHHHHH!!! MUST BE SOME CONSPIRACY!!!!   I wonder if they had crackpot tinfoil people when the Titanic went down, and if they did, I wonder what all their nutty theories were.

  That isn't a very sexy theory though.  It must be sensational.  Rational theories are not welcome when we have a void of information.

  I second the motion!  My favorite theme park I've ever been to.  Gonna hit that place up again this summer, hopefully.   To the OP, just north of Tampa is the Tarpon Tap House, which has all you can eat crab and drinks on Monday.    Also, if you're into beaches, there is Sand Key park which is nice and doesn't get too busy like the regular public beaches.  If you like beaches and a little bit of history, go to Ft. De Soto Park.  They still have guns on display there at the battery.  Very scenic, and a sense of "old Florida".  Also, Fort De Soto was surveyed orginally by (then) Colonel Robert E. Lee.  March/April is the best weather the Bay has to offer, so take advantage of that and see some sites.

[quote name="wileecoyote" post="1130027" timestamp="1395803418"]It is interesting that folks can be very pro-gun and believe in owning, storing, and carrying guns at all times, including for home defense, and they typically spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to outfit the family with the proper firearms, ammunition, safe storage devices, and training to properly defend themselves should the need arise. Yet some of these same folks question the need for basic or intermediate security measures to protect their loved ones, homes, and property... especially when many of the security measures are far less expensive and safer / much easier to use than firearms. I would expect a significant percentage of the uneducated public to be slightly resistant or at least indifferent to the idea of owning, carrying, and using firearms for personal defense, and I can see how these same folks might scoff at some security measures with the same argument: "why on earth would you possibly need that?"... "if something happens I would just call the police"... "anyone with a lot of guns is probably a Rambo / wacko type"... "we don't need security systems because we live in a nice neighborhood with great neighbors"... "we have a dog who will protect us"... etc. etc. We have all heard these arguments before. What surprised me, however, is those here on TGO that are presumably very serious about their firearms ownership and self defense, yet they scoff at the basic and intermediate security measures as though those are completely unnecessary or overkill. To me the logical argument is the same across the board, and is similar to the reason why we all have car insurance, home owners insurance, spare tires, and locks on our doors. We don't expect something bad to happen, and we believe that the odds are against anything serious going wrong on any given day, yet we still see the value in being prepared to protect and help ourselves should the need arise. Upgraded locks, exterior lights, decent home security systems, basic to intermediate cameras, and perimeter motion detection sensors are actually pretty cheap and easy to install, with most of this stuff combined costing less than 1-2 good firearms. And basic things like trespassing signs, property line markers, and bait items can be free or cost less than a single box of ammo. So my argument would be that it is foolish not to invest in a complete security plan, especially because it can give you that early warning which may allow you to avoid a bad situation where you might otherwise need to use firearms. If I hear a perimeter property alarm I can easily move to a safe location and check what is happening via a remote camera rather than confronting an unknown situation in person, so why not do that? if I see it is my neighbor Fred chasing his loose dog, or a pair of young kids walking through the creek then I can just as easily decide to go say hello, or leave them alone and do nothing. But if I see something unusual then I don't have to take any risk at all, and should something bad happen it will surely be helpful to have the security systems in place, and video recordings to help with the aftermath. And there are many unrelated benefits of good security systems. Modern systems allow you to monitor your home and property while traveling, which is great on vacation or extended trips, and also allows you to keep an eye on any service personnel that might be making deliveries, cutting the grass, etc. On stressful days at the office it can be quite relaxing to take a few minutes to login and watch a flock of turkeys grazing in the back pasture, or watch a sunrise or sunset over my scenic land. And if you have kids it can be pretty nice to know when they are coming and going from home, especially if they are late or otherwise not reporting in or answering their phones. For those who might still scoff at some of these security measures, I suggest you try it and see what you think. Many of my family members and close friends have been converted once they have seen how cheap it is to get this stuff, and how cool it is to use for many reasons.[/quote] Yeah, but if you're just polite to neighbors and strangers who trespass on your property then you are 100% safe from harm. Just like if someone is trying to kill you then you need to call the police, not take the matter into your own hands. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote name="Ol BW" post="1129753" timestamp="1395772975"]We lost poor Holly Bobo to a person that came thru the woods into her back yard and took her.[/quote] Clearly that was because she wasnt being a good neighbor. If she'd just smiled and waved at every seedy character she came across then they never would have had the inclination to do her harm. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk