Oh Shoot

They also have a stainless model config for around $125 that to my knowledge is exclusive to Wally. - OS

Another "prove an absurd premise" argument. I can't prove there aren't elephants on Jupiter, either. NASA plot to hide them and all. If you believe that Wally World is big enough to blatantly break both federal labeling statutes AND importation ban of Chinese ammunition, you really do need to reconsider the thickness of your tinfoil beanie. - OS

Yeah, my simple take is that junk science sells things and real science is generally quite a bit duller. There seem to be more credible "experts" in the pertinent fields who simply poo poo the entire thing. I liken it to the junk science of Erich von Däniken and Zecharia Sitchin; while I do feel that each had partial truths within their premises, both were more shtick than science overall. We can laugh now, and it certainly rose to the level of junk science with its EOTWAWKI scenarios, but Y2K did have potential for big time disruption of things; it was a "real unknown" as opposed to a "made up unknown". Thing is, it was fixable before it happened, and fixed it was. I'll just repeat that picture that Brandon found -- love it, and it is more truth than joke methinks. - OS

Well, 7 billion of us. Something will have to give because of our sheer numbers alone, simple as that. It's THE gorilla in every think tank that nobody much seriously talks about because there's really nothing that can be done about it, and I'd posit that the course is now set without any more increase in population at all. Perhaps even 5 billion was the threshold. Or 4. Whatever. It's really at heart an enormous environmental upside down pyramid of supply and demand. We've been over-driving the resources for a long time, but like most all things now is translated into economics. You're already seeing it. It really is possible for most of the world to go broke at the same time. Here, an American where half or less of the population must support the rest can go only one direction -- into decline. Having a corrupt and wasteful ruling political class only accelerates that decline. Science could have been our salvation, but we've squandered most of it for bucks, science that the masses soon will no longer be able to afford because individual worth is less all the time due to another of the many edges of science -- machines (most significantly the computer), automation, etc -- each year it takes fewer of us to make the goods for the rest of us yet fewer of us can afford those goods, viscous circle once you hit a certain population density of unneeded worker bees. One of science's most noble causes, extending human life, has ironically only compounded the problem with the supply/demand math. Another of its most noble causes, the spreading of the human seed into the cosmos, has been put on the back burner -- we can't afford it. Species in the wild which over-populate their turf (or have their turf limited by us) don't just die back to environmental sustainability -- they really crash way below that level. I expect the same with the homo sapiens correction. When is the only real question in my mind, and whether it will be sudden snap or a more gradual slide. If the latter only, I suspect it has already begun -- and the slide may just be prelude to the snap. "Civilization" is a quite thin veneer in the developed countries, totally dependent on JIT delivery of fuel, food, medical supplies, everything. When, not if, that breaks down due to economic crash, and consequently followed by failing public utilities (the most immediately important ones being water and sanitation), the Biblical plagues may commence. Not to mention the beasts inside us all. And that's the good news from Lake Wobegon. Happy New Year, folks! - OS

Dude, you're way off base. It's 12/21/12. How ya gonna prepare if you don't even know which day it is? But it'll probably involve zombies. - OS

Too late! (but thanks for mentioning them). And btw folks, as I see this thread going south of where a thread is allowed to go here, I didn't mean to abet its traveling off track into a debate about Christianity or Judaism in and of themselves as faiths (either side of which is verboten). Now aliens, I understand, are totally fair game. But we need to settle that debate with some speed, as 12/21/12 hurries our way. Which may involve aliens, too. - OS

Only in America would some Americans diss an American success story, pay more for American ammo -- and buy their Chinese stuff for more from smaller stores.

Well, by golly I'll look into that up hither; I can certainly look hapless easily enough, Lawd knows! Btw, here's the new WWB design, at least for 9mm: Have only two full boxes left, both same lot numbers. One has regular "WIN" and "9mm Luger" headstamps seems to be on every one, but one has "WWC" "11" and NATO head stamp on looks like every one. Garufa didn't believe me when I showed him the last of a previous box, but I swear it's so. Either they got their military contract stuff mixed into line (although it's definitely 115 grain not 124) or they scored a bunch of unused NATO stamped brass or something. From China, doubtless. - OS

Hot news flash: an America where half the population or less supports the rest can only go one way -- into decline. Waste and corruption accelerate that inevitability. I'd say we should be grateful for the illegal underground economy; probably the only thing keeping things from total breakdown so far. - OS

Nope, made in Beijing. Even though all boxes say made in USA and none say made in China. Even though mine has NATO headstamp. Even though Chinese ammo importation is banned on federal level. It's true because so many say so. They say it on every gun forum. And because Smith works in a gun store, too. - OS

Do you base the veracity of mathematics and the physical sciences on your faith also, or just history? First valid thing you've posited. Na, na na, na, na seems as sophisticated a response as you deserve there. Well, that makes one of us. Ta ta. - OS

Prophecy and divine authority. Okay, you convinced me, here's your PhD in history -- I concede that your arrogance is indeed justified. - OS

There are precious few, if ANY, historically verified historical people or events in the approximately 3500 year span recounted in the Old Testament to corroborate that compilation of folklore and ethos of Jewish culture. While there are some relatively accurate historical references to Roman and Greek history in the tacked on New Testament, there is no, absolutely NO historical record of Jesus himself by any contemporary historical source -- indeed, no part of the New Testament itself was written during his purported lifetime. Since the principal thesis of the entire NT cannot be verified, it certainly casts doubts on any other part that cannot be verified through other sources of the same time period. But these minor obstacles of course would obviously not give a scholar of your caliber much pause in citing the Bible as an overall reliable secular source. And how what little verifiable history is does contain relates to your prognosis about America is clearly well beyond my grasp. - OS

I'll withhold an opinion on your erudition as a historian (except to mention that including the Bible as a valid source of world history greatly impugns it), but will confidently assert that your arrogance is within the top percentile. - OS

Nobody wants to admit it. Good post by Slasher in another thread has link to great article regarding that topic. http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/handgun-carry-self-defense/67177-speaking-gangs.html#post839793 - OS

Just a note, the bill did not specify handguns only "firearms", so rifles aren't illegal in national park anymore than handguns. Each park is simply now in line with the firearm laws of the state in which it resides. So there are any number of states where you may possess loaded rifles in a Park either with or without a carry permit (including TN). I have read that some western states allow loaded rifle possession on one's person, too, not just in vehicle. - OS

Was commenting mainly on the section from the Brainerd tunnel TO downtown. I know you don't toddle around in the area roughly squared by Dodds, E. 3rd, and E. 23rd. - that area has some of the worst crime stats in the nation. Indeed, if you wanted to troll ala Death Wish, this is best fishing grounds I know. - OS

Well I'll be, thought it was sort of a statement of independence, silly me. Thanks for the info. - OS

"There's no way to rule innocent men. The only power government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws." - Ayn Rand

River in Italy. "Crossing the Rubicon" I'm sure, "point of no return". Rubicon - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - OS

Yeah, but we're not all criminals yet. Working on it daily, though. - OS

In many ways, the Dems are more "Christian" than the GOP or the Founding Fathers. The sense of collectivism, even socialism or communism, is quite a bit more in tune with Christian teaching that the "each man according to his merit" pretense of the GOP. But of course both parties are fraught with hypocrisy compared to any standard at all which they may currently espouse, so let's not even go there. America (and the world) would be much better off without the guise of religion at all. The Deist bents of many of The Founders is amply deep enough into mysticism, and it seems obvious that many of the other early pols were merely the first to publicly embrace the opiate of the masses for votes, a tradition which became de rigueur. "Morality" and hence the laws that reflect it naturally come about as a shared ethos of the best practical way for groups of people to survive together peacefully, and fairy tale "only we are right and you're going to hell" overlays (Christianity and Islam being the predominant examples) do little to further the logical betterment of the species, and one could argue actually retard it. After all, it's only in the last 400 years or so that Christianity has ceased to be a weapon of political control and mass destruction, and Islam, being about that 400 years younger, remains that still. (Not to mention that the average Muslim worldwide doesn't have a pot to piss in and little hope of getting one, so that may well slow Islam's progression some). Until pols don't have to fake being Christian in this country to be elected, and some few that truly do believe it being elected mainly because of that, we'll sadly continue to see our collective fate influenced as much by magical thinking as logic. That logic being the only possible "God given" hope of a so far quite short-lived species. - OS

Title on top of video, Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean. Great flick. "Justice, you sons o' bitches!" - OS

Aquarium is protected and safe enough. If it falls, downtown falls. - OS

That usually only happens to me if I've fed on a lush in the wee hours.