btq96r

  I would never want to use a carbine or rifle for home defense without a red dot sight.  Yeah, maybe you should be able to hit a plate sized target at 25' with a rifle just by pointing (since I never tried it, I won't even say I can)...but in an adrenaline filled, live speed situation like a home defense scenario, I want the red dot.   Also, x2 on what Mike said about opening the other eye.  With enough practice and walking around with the rifle up, it becomes natural.  Like having a HUD in your brain.

  There is going to be level of rioting no matter what the verdict is, I think we all know that's going to happen.  But yeah, acquittals would make it worse than convictions.   Only one officer (the driver) is charged with 2nd degree murder, which I doubt results in a conviction.  All the manslaughter charges (4 of the 6, including the driver) are involuntary.  I think those four have the highest chance of getting a conviction, especially since it seems the department has an SOP these officers didn't follow when securing Gray in the van, and there are officials from the BPD on public record about it.   Misconduct in office, (which I want to see a lot more of when it fits) seems another one that can be made to a jury if they can prove the arrest wasn't valid or procedure wasn't followed.  2nd degree assault will stick or not depending if they can show the arrest was valid or not, but you bring up a valid point about the good faith issue.

WWJC...What Would Jesus Carry?

  That's why I don't think, aside from the murder 2 charge for the driver, the list of charges are as much of a reach as some here do.    If the prosecution can prove the arrest wasn't valid and the police abused their authority, the jury will be a lot more sympathetic to viewing every subsequent action without the legal actions/immunities a police officer has in the performance of their duties.

The VA is going to be stringent for their benefit as much as the buyers.  If the buyer defaults on the mortgage, the VA has to pay the loan, and deal with the re-sale of the house.  They are going to do everything they can to minimize their re-sale costs up front by making you pay for repairs.    Unless the money between the two offers you mention is enough to cover more repairs and still be worth the pain, I'd say go with the non-VA source.  At the end of the day, I'm guessing you're ready to be done dealing with a home you aren't living in or getting a rent check from.

There really is nothing new under the sun.    Civil unrest has gone through evolutions in tactics and techniques, but from the first Jewish-Roman war, to the American Revolution, to the events we've seen in our country in '65 and today, history teaches us civil unrest is usually derived from a population that feels oppressed, and finally reaches the breaking point.   For my money, a major part of all this is directly tied to the economy, employment and opportunity.    A lot of jobs have been lost to free trade and globalization over the last generation.  Those jobs were low skill, yet economically stable enough to provide a home if someone put in an honest days work.  Replacing a good paying factory job with minimum wage shifts at McDonald's has to put in a healthy amount of discontent.   Employed people don't riot without damn good cause.  When there are only so many ways out of the bad situations a lot of our citizens find themselves in...taking to the streets doesn't seem like a bad option.  We've shipped away jobs to the 3rd world, and replaced it with expanded welfare to try and make up the difference.  How's that working out for us?       There are plenty of us don't need a God to hold ourselves to standards, morals, principles, scruples and ethics.

  I don't think the public record requirement should be taken away, but it should only apply to government agencies.  Personal Identifiable Information of non-governmental actors in reports should be redacted for privacy and safety concerns.

I'm jealous of everything besides the actual fishing...that's not so much something I enjoy.  That looks like some beautiful country to hike around, and I'd for sure want to camp out for at least a night there.

  I think they're both connected through the issue of culpability, but I wasn't trying to bounce back and forth, just saying what comes out of the one (guilty or not) will set up the other.       After the perfectly timed story from the Washington Post, I'm not trusting anything until a medical examiners report comes out.  That's what they will use at trial, I'd imagine.   The media is in their usual game of trying to scoop each other, and I'm actually a bit disappointed that the Post would use that uncorroborated story like they did.

  I think the whole cause of arrest thing is being overlooked by the injury and death, but it's just as important.  If it can be proven that the police had no cause to approach him, and no reason to arrest him, then everything after that can be related to their misconduct in that, and laid at their feet.    The criminal burden of that is hard to make, but if it's found out that the cops were wrong to arrest him in the first place, that's a slam dunk for a civil trial.

  Anything medical is probably going to be kept at close hold until at least jury selection is done.  Put the information out now and finding enough people to serve as jurors and alternates becomes a miserable chore.

Here's a link with the charges the officers are facing. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-freddie-gray-mosby-presser-0502-20150501-story.html#page=1

  It's a weak draft class by comparison, but every team is dealing with that, so it isn't a problem unique to the Titans.    Offense or defense, a tackle in the first round isn't bad at all provided he is ready to play in the NFL and isn't injury prone.  Draft the right one, lock in a contract extension early enough, and you can have him as a steady presence for a long time to build around.

My SPR type build is going to be a bit behind you in the pipeline.  Once I got that scope we all went crazy for, it was a matter of setting aside some money here and there for it.   I'm working on getting the right rail for it now.  My barrel is only 16", but since I'm like you and only want to reach out to 300 yds or so, I'm fine with that.  I also need to flip a coin and decide if I want a standard collapsible stock, or to put an A2 stock on there, and decide on what muzzle brake/compensator I want.  Finally, I'm deciding if I want an adjustable gas block or not.   Decisions, decisions...all good ones to have to make I suppose. :D

So, I'm far from a Titans fan, but I do like to see them do well since it's a positive for the community.   But drafting Mariota?  I really don't see any large benefit over Mettenberger that justify using the #2 pick on him.  I think the Titans front office were hoping for the kings ransom for that pick, and seriously misjudged their environment.   Here's hoping they draft some good offensive lineman...otherwise no matter if it's Mariota or Mettenberger taking snaps, Titans QB is still going to be the most dangerous job in Tennessee.

  They do when they go in looking for something to find.  And coming from suburbia, I know that it isn't all white.      I am looking at percentages as compared to the population.    Not a cop, and not sure what quantifies as "working around them."  But I know from casual conversation, social media, and good old fashioned common sense that there is a sentiment brewing deep in minority communities at how they have been targeted by law enforcement.  Coupled with unemployment or underemployment and it's a powder keg waiting for a spark.   Ferguson, Baltimore...these are harbingers of the future, IMO.  I think we're going to see more of it every time there is the least bit of suspicion involving a minority and an LEO, especially as the minority-majority factor continues to grow.

  When it comes to colleges, that would only be a benefit for the occasional visitor to campus, not the employees or students who have an HCP, but could still be caught up in discipline measures by the school.

  I really think the Tacoma is the best "all purpose" truck out there.  Not too small, and not too big, with a great longevity to them.  The only thing stopping me from owning one is that my current truck (a Ford Ranger) just won't die, and I refuse to buy a new vehicle without a need to.

  I'm the same way.  When I see a perfectly painted AR, my mind associates that with it being a safe queen.

  This being California, I never said they were going to be smart about it.  :)   Honestly, I'd like to see California split into three.  Roughly everything above Sacramento would be one state, then divide the rest into two states with a border somewhere around Bakersfield.  That way there is no disruption to the balance of political power nationally (such as when AK and HI were admitted to the union) and all the nice land in NorCal can be kept for good use.  Let San Fran, LA, and the rest deal with the consequences of their actions.

      I think there is a marked difference between committing and convicted when we talk about crimes, with targeting minorities leading to the large discrepancy in the latter.  With all the laws on the books, a heavy enough police presence could turn white suburbia into a heavy crime zone given enough time and a robust enough DA office willing to prosecute.  The "war on drugs" related crimes/convictions are bringing in a lot of the statistics here.  In my mind, it's time for a hard look at those laws...but that's  side subject, probably.   I also never said that the rioting was a form of protesting.  I would like to think I'm clear enough on only supporting protesting against the government and the actions of the police, not random looting and destruction in the community.  I think blocking streets, defying a curfew, disobeying orders to disperse, etc..are legitimate methods of protest, but destroying whatever business you run across is not.

  It's a fact that minorities are engaged (I’m speaking non-lethal engagements here, ie: police stops, arrests) more than non-minorities by law enforcement, largely as a result of profiling.  From Boston, to New York, to DC...this is a problem up and down the densely populated northeast corridor.  Throw in Chicago, and Los Angeles for good measure, and we have a national problem.    I'd be ready to take to the streets if I was in that demographic and can't fault their emotions.  When they march on City Hall and the Police stations they have my full support.  That support is non-existent for the folks looting CVS and other places of business.  It's a shame the rioters are taking away the attention from the legitimate protests.       So?

  If you wanted to get the police in trouble, and yourself off the hook, how would you go about it?    Me, I'd bash my face against the side of the van so there are gashes, bumps, or even a broken nose for my booking photo.  I certainly wouldn't try to give myself a severed spine, which could kill me, and I wouldn't even know how to go about it if I wanted that option.       Or they are dangeling a plea bargain or dismissial of the charges in his face for saying he thinks Gray intentionally was trying to injure himself.  I'm just not trusting a leaked story by the BPD that tries to move the spotlight from their investigation.

  Aside from the not so casual reminder to the government that people can and will rise up, the riots serve no purpose.  I'm not supporting them, but I am supporting those people who took to the streets in legitimite protest.   If I was living under the heavy handed thumb of the police state like minorities in big cities are, I wouldn't be standing by quietly for the same old "sweep it under the rug" once the media attention dies down treatement either.  Government needs to know people are watching.

  Hmm...let's give the "he may have tried to hurt himself" story an old fashioned smell test.   The prisoner, who is currently in jail, was separated from Gray by a metal partition and could not see him. His statement is contained in an application for a search warrant, which is sealed by the court. The Post was given the document under the condition that the prisoner not be named because the person who provided it feared for the inmate’s safety.   The document, written by a Baltimore police investigator, offers the first glimpse of what might have happened inside the van. It is not clear whether any additional evidence backs up the prisoner’s version, which is just one piece of a much larger probe.     The prisoner, who is in jail, could not be reached for comment. No one answered the phone at his house, and an attorney was not listed in court records.     So...this is a leaked story, to a major newspaper- which guarantees the story will be re-posted/linked/shared by the traditional media and blogosphere alike.  It was written by the police and can't be confirmed by the "witness" or anybody who might have had contact with him since then...   ...call me skeptical.       He was in police custody when he died.  The Baltimore Police Commissioner already admitted to flaws in the way he was handled.   I don't care how long is rap sheet was, they were responsible for his safety.  If we can't get it in us to be upset when someone dies in police custody because of intentional or incompetent conduct, we have a problem.