analog_kidd

Man, if I saw one of those Roll Clouds or one of the Space Ship Clouds, I would be certain the world was ending. Those things are unreal. Awesome pics, thanks for sharing.

By most accounts, Holmes seemed reasonably normal up until the shooting. So, lets say Bill's law was in place, and Holmes bought a "Heavy" gun, and the ATF went and investigated. Holmes seems normal enough and has the right paperwork, so the ATF moves on to the next guy. A month later Holmes loses it and goes nuts. Where's the ATF at that point? Long gone. You can't follow every person with a gun every day, it's just not possible. And about ammo, where do you set the limit? Where ever it is, everyone will know what that is and just buy under the limit, wait a month and buy another shipment. And where is that number placed? 60,000, 10,000, 1,000? eventually it will get down to 10 or 1. Then the ATF will be so overloaded they can never keep track of it all. At least without taxing the heck out of the ammo just to pay for administration. Maybe that's the goal anyway. Besides, if Holmes only shot 200 rounds, how hard is that really to collect?

NashvegasMatt, thanks for your post. You make the Ridgid's sound pretty good. I swung by my local HD this evening to take another look at them.What I did notice was the extra batteries that you buy separately from the tool say they have only a three year warranty, not lifetime like when you buy the battery with the tool. The kit does come with two batteries and that may be enough, but I would probably end up buying more anyway just because I dislike swapping batteries between tools when I'm using several at a time. I did notice the Milwaukee tools while I was there, and remembered that they get pretty good reviews. I also noticed they had a set similar to the Ridgid two piece for just $20 more ($199), but the drill was a hammer drill, which should be a better deal. Looks like they are the M18 RedLithium and not the newer Fuel style. Do you know if the two styles of tools use the same battery? The Milwaukee's have only a 5 year warranty, instead of the lifetime like Ridgid, that's the negative. But Milwaukee has an impressive collection of different tools (I think I read 30 tools) that use the same style battery. Thanks

RIdgid is offering a lifetime warranty on their batteries right now (for a limited time) but that is only on the battery that comes with the tool. If you buy a spare, that battery is not covered. From some reviews I've read, most people have to use that warranty because their batteries have a high failure rate. Plus their selection of tools is limited, whereas others have an amazing array of different tools. I didn't realize how many different tools Milwaukee had until I just started looking at them. Ryobi too, they've got all kinds of things that run off their batteries, even yard tools. The best bang for my buck would be to just upgrade my Ryobi batteries and continue using the tools I have. They have held up now for probably 6 or 7 years. If I do that, I'll probably buy a kit with a new drill, since they really aren't that much more expensive than buying a set of batteries and a charger. I just thought that if I was going to get a new kit, I'd spend a $100 more and get contractor grade tools. I could upgrade the rest of my tool collection over time and sell my old tools. I do have two fairly new Ryobi batteries to keep things working for now. The drill is probably what I use the most, the rest of my tools can probably last on those two batteries. Plus the color of the new Ryobi tools is awful. I know that's a stupid reason to not buy a tool, but ugh!

I have quite a large collection of older Ryobi 18v tools. I'm thinking of upgrading my tools to something a little more professional grade. I'm happy with my Ryobi drill, but the rest of the tool collection always seems a little cheap. Plus the older NiCad batteries are all shot. That's the real driver for me. I need to buy new batteries, but is seems like most tool makers practically give away the tools free with the batteries. They are so expensive. So, if I'm going to invest in new batteries, I don't mind paying a little extra to upgrade the tools too. I'm thinking of one of the kits they all make with two or three tools. I was originally thinking about Ridgid. I like their corded tools, but I have seen some bad reviews about their batteries. Plus you can only get them at Home Depot. Ryobi is the same deal, only available at HD and that hasn't hurt me with the Ryobi's, but it might be nice to get something that is sold at more places and maybe get a better deal by shopping around. I don't use my tools for work, but I do use them a lot. I own two rental houses, and am hopeful to buy another one very soon. The one I want needs extensive remodeling, so a new set of tools will come in very handy. I was hoping that some members on the board may have more experience with some of the tools on the market and have a recommendation. I just got $100 in Home Depot gift cards, so whatever I get has to be sold by them. At the moment I'm leaning toward the Dewalt 20v tools (which are really just 18v.). HD is offering a free battery with certain sets through July. What do you all think?

Well, I may not be as smart as Esquire, but I don't go around making threats and insults.Did the incident go down exactly as my friend describe it to me? I don't, know. I'm just relaying what I was told from a first hand witness who saw the whole thing and made the report to CCA employees. The local online news agencies had very little details to report on the incident, and it sounded to me like maybe there was a little bit more to the story. If I remember correctly, he told me that CCA has video running of the range and the whole thing was caught on tape. I know (and hope for the family's sake) that the video would never be made public, but I'm sure someone has seen it and knows the details. I'm pretty sure he told me the police reviewed it with him and discussed the timing of events. I know the whole "My friend told me so" thing is not very believable to a lot of people, and if anyone wants to call BS then it is their right. However, I consider him a reliable source. If it's not true, then my friend is a dirty, scum sucking liar. But if it is true, then this incident should be a recruiting tool for how NOT to run a gun/range business.. Esquire, if you have information that conflicts what I said, then by all means share it and set the record straight. All your post did was to make it seem like you are a CCA associate, that wants someone to just shut up by hurling insults and threats at them. While I've never personally experienced it (until now), I have heard that is similar behavior from some of the CCA staff. The fact of the matter is, this really is an unfortunate event. This young man's life will forever be changed and will be difficult to say the least. I'm sorry if I caused hard feelings among any members here on TGO, that was certainly not my intention.

I kind of thought that too. It seemed weird the two ladies standing in the middle of the bridge like they were.

I might just re-occupy my own home, then exercise the Castle Doctrine.

Just saw a preview for the new season of SOA. It showed the crew riding across a very tall bridge, and Jax losing control and going over the rail and falling. Has anyone heard about this season? I think I saw that it said it was starting in September.

French Fries; a very deadly A-Salt Weapon!

The next time they call, tell them to put you on the do not call list. I say this every time. By law they are supposed to honor your request. Does not always happen, but sometime it does. Also, get a free Google Voice number of your own. Then to everyone but family and friends give out the Google Voice number. You set up the GV # to forward to your real phone #, but you can set up a ton of options. You can set up groups of numbers and some groups ring your phone (family/friends) some groups go to voice mail (that guy you don't really want to talk to, but sometimes has free tickets), some groups get blocked (those annoying people that wont stop calling you). You can also have unknown numbers get a message that says "say your name" when they do, you get a message with their name and you can decide to take the call or not.

I saw on a different web site today another detail that was released is that our guys were shooting bean bags at the bad guys, while the bad guys were shooting at us with AK's! It infuriates me that our current government ties our hands like that. You put good men in harms way, you better give them the tools to protect themselves and put up a good fight.

I was talking to a friend of mine today, and it turns out he was in the lane right next to this guy when he shot himself. My friend noticed the guy was acting strangely, only shooting a round every five minutes or so. My friend stepped out of his lane to use the trash can and noticed the shooter standing there with his pants around his ankles . Not sure what that was about. My friend went back and gathered up his belongings to get away from the guy and go report it when he heard the gun go off. He looked over an the guy was on the ground looking up and gurgling, but conscious. At first my friend thought maybe the gun blew back and hit him in the face, but then he saw the hole in his face. He ran out to the store area to get help and told the guy at the counter, "Hey, the man on lane 1 just shot himself in the head", and the counter guy said, "We don't have anyone on lane 1" and kept on ringing up the customer. Apparently the guy was on the wrong lane. He kept saying "he shot himself, someone is shot" and they acted like they didn't believe him. He finally got someone else to show some interest, and they rounded up some latex gloves, put them on and went out to the range. Said it took maybe 5 minutes for someone to actually get out to the range floor. Reports from the officers said he was in the middle of an argument with his wife and mother-in-law. I guess he showed them.

Not sure what channel it was (I'm certain it wasn't BBC) but I saw the full version last week. It was probably FOX News,one of the DIY's, Science or History, which is what I usually watch.

Yeah, some of the framing looked a little sketchy to me. In fact if you look at the 2nd picture I posted, look at the 2x4 that is holding up the landing on the stairs. It looks like an "S" due to the buckling. He does have it shored up just outside the picture and It looks pretty stable to me. I overheard the owner talking to a visitor and saying that an engineer had visited one day and gave him all kinds of advice on where to improve some structure. I figured thousands of people have visited and nobody has got hurt yet, so It's probably OK. We climbed all the way to the bell tower, and could feel it swaying. We didn't stay up there very long

Perfectly said. I think this will be Microsoft's biggest blunder. They are not saying anything about it yet, but I predict it will be an epic fail once released.

I had seen this in a travel guide a few years ago, and wanted to go ever since. This past week I've been on vacation from work, so my wife and I took a motorcycle ride out to see it. This place is pretty cool. This minister started building a treehouse on his property years ago and just kept going with it. I think he is still adding on all the time. Now the thing is HUGE. It's got to have 5 or 6 stories, and I don't know how many thousands of square feet. It's free to visit, but they do have a donations box if you feel like helping them out. It's is located in Crossville, TN. Get off I-40 at exit 320. There is a road that parallels the north side of the interstate called Cook Road. Head east on Cook until it takes a hard right turn. Instead of following the curve, turn left on Beehive Rd and go to the end of that road. Beehive ends at the parking area.

I'm a MIcrosoft guy all the way. I make my living working with MS servers. I loved the Windows interface ever since Win95. Didn't care too much for Vista, but that was due to stability issues mostly. I think Win 7 is the best O/S they have ever come out with. I loaded up Win8 as a Virtual Machine, and absolutely hate it! There is no way that I can use this O/S. For a power user, the interface is intolerable. I like to have multiple windows open all the time. Win 8 forces everything to run as a full screen. There is no way this O/S will work in a business environment. It may be OK for home use, but it just is not geared toward businesses. Removing the Start button is just crazy. For nearly two decades now people have been used to the way Windows works. Now they change it so drastically that it just frustrates you to try and do anything that you are used to. The tiled interface may be the evolution of the user interface, but I think they should have eased people into it. It's just too much all at once. I personally won't use it, and I will be recommending that we stay away from it at work.

We just visited the Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg, TN and I picked this guy up while I was there:

I guess freedom of information is all good if you're an oppressed Chinese citizen, but if you're a second amendment loving, free and proud American, well.....

If you haven't been camping in a while, you're going to want to keep it simple. A bad experience just means you'll never do it again. Camping is a great activity, you don't want to spoil it with a bad first experience. Cook out, but use matchlight charcoal. Cook easy stuff you already know how to cook: Burgers, chicken, etc. Pancakes and bacon are great for breakfast. Nothing smells better than bacon cooked outside. Have a really good campfire at night. Bring lots of dry wood. Don't try to find stuff out in the woods while you are there. Bring dry, seasoned wood. A fire is your TV set at night. You'll sit around it, mesmerized for hours while you talk. If you spend the night blowing on it and throwing gas on it, you'll just end up frustrated. Bring marshmellows to cook, or cookies. My favorite camp cookies are Pecan Sandies, or something homemade. Practice setting up your tend in the back yard. Setting one up for the first time can be frustrating. Look like you know what you are doing when you get to the camp site. HIking is a great thing to do during the day, but don't make it a death march. Find a nice, reasonable hike, maybe three or so miles long, and bring a lunch and water. Be a hero and pull out a couple of Snickers Bars at the halfway point. If you both like it, bring a frisbee, football, horseshoes, etc. Cards are good too, if you know any games. Or bring a board game. Its fun to play a game at a camp table outside. Makes it an all new experience. If you have a GPS, or a phone with a GPS in it, go to Geocaching.com and find a few caches in the area. Trust me, you'll love it. Look for actual caches, and stay away from virtual, or micro caches. The cache pages usually say what kind of cache they are. Above all, enjoy the trip, relax and have a good time.

I had the perfect day. I started it off with a visit to my favorite restaurant, Waffle House, with my wife and son.Then he and I spent the day kayaking the Ocoee River. Came home to a fantastic meal prepared by my other son's wife. Finished off the evening with a beer near the pool watching the grandkids swim. Doesn't get any better than that!

I say that's what they get for living there. It's part of the deal. Just one of the costs for living in "paradise"

You can get a membership without a sponsor, I think they just have to read your name at two consecutive meetings, instead of just one. I've never been to one of the meetings, but I think they ask if anyone knows why an individual should not be a member.

This is from one of my favorite websites: http://artofmanliness.com/2012/06/05/survival-tampon/ Sounded a little strange at first, but it has some pretty good points.