Darrell

I wonder if that would include people convicted of selling drugs, or of committing fraud, or perhaps of gun trafficking? I think a lot of clarification is going to be required.

I voted to legalize pot in Washington, thinking that doing so would remove the criminal element from the trade. It didn't work that way, though, as illegal pot became easier to get and less risky for the sellers. The legal pot is available EVERYWHERE. There are stores in every small town, so if a person wants to be legal they can go and get their dope there. But that dope is taxed, and the business have overhead that makes the legal stuff considerably more expensive than the illegal stuff. So the illegal stuff is still there, and arguably more popular than ever. You can safely carry black market dope without fear of arrest since it's indistinguishable from the legal stuff. The instances of driving under the influence increased significantly in Washington, too, after marijuana was legalized. If I had it to vote on again I would vote against legalization. That law of unintended consequences is a big one.

I'm retired from federal service. After the state of Washington legalized marijuana one of the guys in my division was seen smoking on a golf course. He lost his security clearance immediately, and since he had no security clearance I had to fire him. I sure hope that was worth it to him.

I just got an email from Hodgdon, and they're offering free Hazmat shipping this weekend. The powder I want isn't in stock, but maybe there's some you need,. From May 26-29, order at least $100 of your favorite Hodgdon, IMR, Accurate, Ramshot or Winchester powder and receive free Hazmat, courtesy of Hodgdon. Simply use promo code, FREEHAZMAT at checkout and hazardous material costs are on us. It’s our way of showing our appreciation for your support. Offer good this weekend only.

There's a Ducati 749 semi-basket case for sale in Montgomery, AL that's tempting me sorely. Something of a pig in a poke, but I'm a sucker for projects that might be a good deal. That five hour drive may be saving me, though.

I think everyone hates those "is this still available" messages. FB should just remove that as a auto-response. Keep your chin up, the right bike will come along. Another option would be to sell your bike and then buy with cash. You might have better luck.

A fairly large proportion of used dirt bikes are going to have issues. Most dirt-bike riders wring their little necks. I would pay attention to WHO is selling it. If it's a young guy the bike may have been thrashed harder than if an older guy is selling it. But I agree with Greg above that overall condition is going to be a good indicator. You can generally tell if a dirt bike has been kept clean and maintained. One that's been used the way it was meant to be used will show the signs.

I got a call from Costco for their Visa card a few weeks ago. They immediately caught an attempted transaction at Best Buy, refused it, and called me. I don't have a clue how the flagged it immediately, but I'm glad they did. They cancelled that card and sent me a new one within several days. That's the first time anything like that has ever happened to me.

My first hard drive was so stinking big that I knew I would never fill it. 6, yes, SIX, megabytes in a full-height drive. I had 8" floppy drives in that computer, too.

There have always been migrants working the fields. There's a specific immigration status (not Green Card, I don't think, but something special for agriculture) that allows for those workers. I don't think the hoards coming in now are looking for farm work, but those jobs are available to work legally. One of the many problems is that any child born in the US is a US citizen, and those born to illegal immigrants (and I suppose to legal immigrants, too) are "anchor babies", meaning their parents can't be deported. And hospitals in Texas and California are going broke providing required care for those poor folks. Lots of US companies love immigrant workers, but many of those jobs go to legal immigrants from India; people with in-demand skills. We have a system for immigration, and it doesn't include coming here illegally. I'm all for immigration, some of my forebears came from Ireland during the potato famines. But it has to be controlled and the executive branch is constitutionally tasked with enforcing the law,

Man! I've never heard that one before.....

Take a guess

Unfortunately, the only way that would work would be if you also made it impossible for those people to get any kind of aid, essentially starving them, which would sure increase crime. I think the solution is obvious: seal the borders, and deport anyone who's here illegally. Previous posters have mentioned that the door is open, and I think it should be closed. But I sure don't blame poor people for wanting to come here where they can get lots of help and probably find work. I DO blame our government for letting illegal immigration get out of hand.

My wife made me stop at the one in Crossville a few months after they opened. That'll be my last visit.

I'm loving the sunshine, but unlike you, Erik, it'll be a while before I'm wearing shorts. The wind this morning wasn't "almost chilly", it was downright chilly. Very nice this afternoon, though, and I just came in from rocking on the porch for a spell.

Hi. Did "Me" take the scope? If not, and if you'd be willing to meet me in the Harriman / Rockwood area, I'll go $350 for it. I don't need the rings. Thanks! Darrell

I'm sorry I failed to communicate my thoughts clearly enough. The distinction I intended to make was between service-connected injury and non-service-connected.

It's a terrible thing that servicemen were blamed for poor political decisions during the Vietnam war. Besides our thanks you probably also deserve an apology for being sent into a no-win situation by politicians who were unwilling to do what was necessary to win.

Hmmm, I've seen VA benefits increase quite a bit since I got out of the Corps, and with the budget crisis I think that it makes sense for every part of government to accept some cuts. 22% seems a lot, though. Doesn't it seem strange that a government agency, the VA, would publish a press release like that? It does to me. I would think that government agencies would follow guidance from congress without taking their individual cases to the people. That release seems calculated to stir up the vets, doesn't it? The VA, the Army, the IRS, the DNR etc. are not supposed to try to influence policy, they should follow it. (I know that's complicated.) But the fact is, somebody is going to have to make some tough budgetary decisions. We simply cannot keep on spending ourselves into a deeper and deeper hole. But, man!, it isn't easy to do. I ran a group of about 100 people as a Navy civilian before I retired. I can't begin to write an account here of how hard it was to try to reign in spending. People wanted their overtime, and would go to great lengths to assure themselves of it. There's a LOT of fat that could be trimmed from the federal budget. And by the way, I am always embarrassed when someone thanks me for my service. I think I got by far the best of the trade for my time in the Corps. I learned a trade that carried me throughout my entire career, got GI bill benefits, and got preferential hiring for my civilian Navy job. I've been thanked enough. The nation absolutely owes a lot to vets who were wounded in combat, and I'm glad they get the benefits they do. But I do have a bit of an issue with paying lifetime benefits to someone who was injured playing basketball during their off-duty hours.

I have an R1200RT and I love it. It's not too expensive to own if you do your own maintenance, as I do. Parts are readily available and maintenance intervals are reasonable. I've not had to adjust the valves on mine at all (2017) I keep checking, though. I've also got an S1000RR and it's been very reliable so far. BMW's cost quite a bit up-front, but they're reliable and well-built.

I carry rain gear when there's a legitimate threat. My Frogg Toggs have been with me for many years, and they work great. EXCEPT that if it's warm you may as well save the effort, as you'll be in a sauna. My main complaint with riding in the rain is having to clean the bike afterward.

I think that part of the problem is that our judicial system is WAY too easy on people who break gun laws. If the penalties for illegal use of a firearm were enforced to the full extent of the law I think there would be less of this kind of thing. Right now one can get away with lying on a 4470 (Hunter Biden springs to mind!), and criminals get away with very minor punishments. Perhaps if being caught with an illegal firearm landed the criminal in jail for a significant amount of time there would be fewer people engaging in illegal carry. (I'm thinking of those who are prohibited from possessing a firearm, either under-age or those with criminal records.) The penalty for having a firearm during the commission of a crime should require serious time in prison, and for actually using one in a criminal manner should send the criminal away for many years. Maybe the Alabama BD party shooter will fall into none of the categories I just mentioned, but I'm for taking drastic measures against CRIMINALS (not law-abiding gun owners) when they use a gun wrongly.

One of the variations of that argument that makes me nuts is, "I hunt with a [bolt action, muzzle-loader, knife, whatever] and no one needs a more efficient weapon than I choose to use." People STILL want to approach the 2A discussion as if it's about hunting, and a lot of gun owners are willing to accept some restrictions, so long as those restrictions don't include their personal favorite activity. I get why some people would advocate for so-called "red flag" laws, but the lack of due process requirements could lead to the kind of consequences that hipower mentions above.

I won't.