Swamp ash

When did the protesters start flying helicopters

I don't know if vids will post, but this was interesting. The crew was doing training at the bald I was hiking on. The rotor wash was fun and surprisingly, both dogs really seemed OK with this!

Here is the prop to a P-51 Mustang, I believe

That's cool! Here's another:

I can tell you put much into it. _____ Edit: @deerslayerSorry I had to post and run last night, but so it goes. Here's my post-lunch missive Please understand, to carte blanche denigrate Sociologists and their contributions towards resolving such issues is extremely unwise. As @Chucktshoesnotes, this is a socio-economic issue and it must be resolved with socio-economic solutions. Sociologists are indeed part of the cadre of folks precisely qualified to study such matters. You seem very concerned with first and foremost, discounting the view of others you disagree with, in spite of specifically requesting it for discussion. This indicates a clear lack of sincerity on your part to engage in the conversation. However you did make some points and I wish to respond. To your points: 1) This has nothing to do with cost of living differentials and your "guess" as to what or what may happen is just that - a guess. If you read their literature review, there are some studies in urban areas that also reach similar conclusions. However, the MINCOME experiment was unique in that it targeted complete towns rather than certain segments of the population. But there are plenty of other studies that allow us to aggregate data. Your idea about cost-of living disparities would need to be followed by research and data analysis! 2) This isn't true. Two to three years is often the extent of funding for any research be it hard science or social science. Further two years was just the MINCOME period, the study actually looks at a longer temporal period to include the prior years' Crime statistics as well as the years following the study. Thus, the research period is much broader. Further, the rapidity that the drop in crime rate accompanies MINCOME and the quick rebound to pre-MINCOME crime levels after the experiment ends is rather profound and suggests an interesting relationship that was statistically important. 3) Same as above. Do you hold any qualifications to make the proclamation about how to design a study? And if you had a point that was meaningful, it wouldn't be made twice because this is the same one you made above.The fact is, they examined trends, before, after and during the Experiment. In terms of social, open-systems, this MINCOME study seems to be rather unique and more broad because, as stated above, it included entire townships not small segments of the population. 4) You are simply guessing and trying to reinforce your own viewpoint. Your suspicions have nothing to do with this study, but rather, highlight your own personal biases. It is clear that violent crime and property crime dropped and these were statistically significant. There was another recent study that gave folks extra unemployment funds (In Stockton, CA, I believe) and the results showed that instead of people being lazy and not look for work, it actually allowed more folks to be better prepared for job searches and thus, that group had higher re-employment rates! Similarly, the authors in the study I posted also showed that in Cherokee, NC, after the Casino and per capita profit sharing was given to every member in the tribe, children who were already being observed in another social study committed less petty crimes after casino payments began flowing to tribal member. There is also some other good stuff in the literature review that may be worth following more closely, but, this is not my area. I just made the suggestion that as a matter of practicality and economics, UBI may be a better direction for us to address issues of crime. In totality, the plethora of studies do bring out a clear point that increases per capita wealth allow folks to improve their own personal lives and this is also related to a decrease in crime. This is simply because folks do indeed build wealth with additional money. In turn, I think such ideas incorporate well with capitalism and I think providing mechanisms to grow wealth in the US (i.e. towards more wealthy individuals) would improve many aspects of our economy as well as social issues. For full disclosure, I am not a sociologist nor have I participated in any of this research. BUT, I have been associated with other types of research in my career and researchers (I'm married to one, for example). Thus, I have keen understanding of experimental design, testing, peer review, etc. The study seems quite solid and it brings out a lot of good questions we should ask ourselves. The point being, we, in the gun community need to be better adapted at finding solutions otherwise our voices/concerns will be side-lined. If folks can't do anything else other than being negative towards new ideas and staid in our position then we are failing to evolve in the changing world around us. Thanks!

I can walk long distances all day but can't imagine running! That would kill me. Have you heard of the Barkely Marathon here in TN? It's a crazy mix of both. https://www.runnersworld.com/races-places/a26750827/barkley-marathons-faq/

That's awesome! Yes, my old girl is getting a bit slower and we go occasionally without her, which is really sad. 8 nights in GC. That's pretty darn good. Multi-day treks are another level.

It really depends on the season/weather. In general, I hit the plateau (Big South Fork, Cumberland Trail Sections; Cumberland Gap) in the shorter winter days and up to Blue Ridge in the Summer. I mostly prefer quiet trails in the National Forest for the solitude and I like the wilderness areas! There are parts of AT that are fantastic, if you avoid the peak times. In the Smokies, try scampering up Snake Den and over to Mt. Guyot. There is an F-4 crash site up there.

This is the first thing I pulled from a google search. It's a recent submission, apparently.

I understand what you are saying but I'm not suggesting welfare at all. I'm suggesting Universal Basic Income, for everyone. Along with adequate mental and physical healthcare. This isn't about my concern for fellow people, either. I actually think it is the most cost-effective path. It streamlines and simplifies matters. All the other "programs" become obsolete. UBI is a particular consideration for the near-future, as well, when quite simply, automation and AI will render many human activities obsolete. Please consider, if the gun problem is a social problem, then it needs to be addressed by social solutions. What we have now is NOT working and jeopardizes 2nd Amendment guarantees. Sometimes we need to challenge ourselves and think outside of the box. And if it produces liberal allies, then that is great, too ;)

Yeah, I love being outside and moving through the forest and Tennessee is the best place to be! It may seem pointless (and painful), but there are so many benefits. My dog in the avatar climbed over 3000 feet and went 17 miles yesterday and she is just about to turn 13.

That's real neat; it's nice to get folks normalized to moving around! Good for you!

Research suggests otherwise.

Boots on the ground; 22-25 lb pack on the back. I hike at least once a week in mountainous terrain. Average hike is 15-20 miles. Being in shape, able to carry weight and navigate keeps me feeling "prepped". Up to 422 miles in 2021; had over 1300 miles last year. Keeping a new stat: we've climbed over 65,000 feet this year.

Of course Federal, Speer/CCI, Hornady, Winchester; Remington, but there are some other top shelf ammo. I'd add these: Sellier and Bellot Aguila Fiocchi I don't use steel-cased ammo.

Yes, it is related to socio-economic issues and thus Universal Basic Income and Healthcare (physical and mental) need to be more fully discussed, then. It's just like with the drug problem, where it turns out that offering treatment options rather than punitive measures result in major savings. It's actually cheaper to offer proactive measures than reactive ones!

Geez, the kids on the bus did not need to experience that.

Thanks for sharing; I appreciate the link. Scott Altlas doesn't offer supporting evidence on masks being ineffective and is mainly grinding an axe because he was panned so being far out side the rest of the medical community. Maybe that is because he isn't a disease expert and he seems more focused on on social issues, which is not his training/specialty, either. I don't know why he claims to have no freedom to exercise his thoughts, etc, because he seems to have ample ability and platforms at his disposal, but I suppose some folks feel that way when their ideas are not accepted. One of his ideas was to simply let the disease spread through the population in order to develop "herd immunity". Could matters have been handled differently? Certainly. Did Scott Atlas have the answers? Certainly not. Is he allowed to speak freely an offer his opinion? Yes, contrary to his statements, he has been able to be in a position to promote ideas as a special advisor the the ex-president. And, in spite of his advice, the pandemic worsened and he later resigned. There may be some real debate about the efficacy of masks in some situations, however, social distancing, limiting gatherings and reducing crowd-sizes play a huge role in reducing transmission because you can't spread air-borne pathogens very effectively if you remove the people. On the bright side: the end of the tunnel is getting closer and it will soon be football time in Tennessee!

I agree, it seems he's pretty lucky with the outcome. It's baseball season, get your dad a nice bat!

The investments we make towards society result in healthy dividends.

Why do medical personnel wear masks during surgery? A) Wishing thinking? B) Style points? C) To hide pimples?

Bummer to hear this. We really need much better mental healthcare options for folks.

Perhaps this indicates that limiting crowds, wearing masks and social distancing works to reduce the spread of communicable disease?

"Bathroom brawl" sounds much better!

S&W has the Performance Center version, too: https://www.smith-wesson.com/product/mp-shield-plus-performance-center?sku=13254