Boomershoot Private Party

Sorry for the light blogging lately, I’ve been taking care of another project for some friends. Joe asked last week if we could help out with a private party. More specifically he said he should be able to handle it on his own, however I know the help makes it much easier. Here’s a video of the day’s events followed by a detailed description and pictures.

So we showed up at the Breakfast Club Saturday morning and carpooled out to the Boomershoot site.

The site looks completely different when there is tall grass growing everywhere.

This is from on top of the berm at the 700 yard line. You can see the trees for the 380 yard line are in the middle on the left.

Joe gave a site tour to his guests, providing the history of Boomershoot and how it has grown over the years. From there we moved on to the Taj, and proceeded to provide them with another important life skill.

We had numerous long discussions about different things that have happened at Boomershoot, interesting occurrences, as well as the endless entertainment that is known as Ry. After mixing up the explosives (staff), guests only measured due to their lack of proper documentation, we ate lunch and continued the story telling.

After lunch came the setup for the main attraction.

We had some special setup due to some “Idaho Stress Tests” that were going to be conducted.

We sandwiched the drive between 2, 7 inch targets giving a total yield of around 4 lbs of Boomerite. The catch however was that the second target used was actually a left over from Boomershoot in April. The targets lose their sensitivity over time, most would complain, however like Joe, I prefer that to becoming more sensitive!

Note the circular object flying out to the Left, that’s a platter. Here’s what it looks like up close. Normally they are perfectly smooth and mirror quality. The blast changed that irreversibly.

The second stress test was a little more unusual; at first I thought it was a lie!

However it was obliterated into a cloud of dust to never be seen again.

As Tim seemed to escape from everyone’s camera… but MINE! Muwhahaha, I have your soul Tim and I’ll give it back for a cup of coffee.

Lastly, here are some different stills of everyone having a blast.

TMW

Joe and Priyanka

Tim

Joe and Hiep.

Joe and Sharath.

Lastly at the end of the day, Joe and I finished off the last two Boomers. For some reason I was off my game and missed, first time in a LONG time. I must say though, it was much better to happen then instead of during Boomershoot with a TV crew behind me.

This one time at band camp…

So, this past Saturday the husband and I went out to the Boomershoot site to help Joe Huffman with a private party. Joe got a quote of the day from me as he was giving a tour of the site. Here is the back story of that quote:

In high school I was a member of the marching band and at band camp the band moms held a belching contest for anyone in the band who wanted to participate. To say the least, I won, beating out the guys in the process. During an awards ceremony of sorts at the end of camp, I was awarded the best tone quality award for the belching contest. My mom was not enthused when I got home, but my dad thought it was a hoot. It was proud moment.

Back to Saturday, I belched while out at the site and I was congratulated for it. The husband made sure to mention that it was an okay belch and that I can do much better, hence the quote.

~TMW~

Independence Day 2010

This year we celebrate Independence Day on the heels of another win for gun rights. The historical road for this country is full of lessons that we should remember, cherish, and endeavor to never forget. Independence Day is a day devoted to one of the most monumental and important events in our history. This event is so important and monumental that previously nothing like it had ever been seen throughout the history of the world. This event is marked by one day with one particular document. On July 2, 1776 the Continental Congress voted on the Lee Resolution which actually declared the colonies to be free and independent states. It was then that the Continental Congress turned its attention to the Declaration of Independence, as the document to formally notify fat George we were no longer accepting his bull "crap".

If you have never read the entire Declaration of Independence I highly suggest you do. If you have read it, read it again, it’s never too early for another refresher.

The Declaration of Independence

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

We must never forget the road that took us down this path. We must also remain ever vigilant to maintain freedom and liberty by watching for tyrants and stopping them from abusing our form of government for their own gain and acquisition of power.

Quote Of The Day, John Adams – 07042010

Objects of the most stupendous magnitude, and measure in which the lives and liberties of millions yet unborn are intimately interested, are now before us. We are in the very midst of a revolution the most complete, unexpected and remarkable of any in the history of nations. –John Adams, June 9, 1776

On this day 234 years ago, one of the most memorable parts of that revolution occurred. Cherish the freedoms and liberties gained by those men who risked everything in creating that document.

-B

SWEET! A journalist has nailed it on the head.

The ferry system union has been uncovered as being dirty rotten scoundrels and wasting tax payer money and Gregoire is not interested.

Gregoire dismissed it all by saying she’s too busy to watch TV and hadn’t even seen any of the reports.

She then turned around and talked about how she has absolute faith in ferry system officials.

What?! How is that possible? She is the Governor and therefore should know and care about mismanagement of taxpayers’ dollars.

I find the governor’s arrogance incredible.

I find her lack of regard and respect for taxpayers offensive.

Why did she get voted in again? Oh, right, the Republic of Pugit Sound wanted her, no one else really had a say. Though I think the winds may change when the Governor seat is back on the chopping block.

By kissing off the work of a respected journalist the governor has kissed off the people of this state, who deserved answers to the questions of how their money is being wasted by ferry officials.

The governor doesn’t have time to keep up with the news?

Maybe the voters of this state don’t have time for her condescending attitude anymore.

This hits home for the husband as his dad was at ground zero working for the state on the Washington State Ferry scandal back in the 1980s against Marine Power and Electric. His dad served as a consultant for the counter suit after he quit Marine Power and Electric.  He quit MP&E when two supervisors approached him one night and requested him to place his Professional Engineering Seal on a design that not only did he not draw, but took no part in.  When he first refused, stating why he could not seal the documents, they threatened to fire him, at which point he quit.  The next morning he was in Olympia at the A.G.’s office.

Under orders from the Legislature, the Transportation Commission signed a $105.8 million state contract for six new ferries with a local company in 1977 while William Bulley headed the department. The new ferries delivered by Marine Power and Equipment Company, named the “Issaquah class,” had computer-operated steering and stopping mechanisms that failed repeatedly, causing many dock rammings and thousands of dollars in ferry and dock damages and repairs to the ferries’ operating systems. In 1981, Marine Power filed a $32 million lawsuit against the state, claiming that the State had required extra work, delayed or refused payments, and had meddled in the contract. Shortly afterward, the State filed a $28 million counter-suit, claiming the ferries were riddled with design faults and safety problems, which would cost $28 million to repair.

The State settled with Marine Power in 1985 for $8.4 million, but only after paying $6.4 million in legal fees. Marine Power declared bankruptcy in 1986, but the state received its settlement because the payments were covered by a bonding company. All the trouble with the new ferries and legal issues kept Berentson embroiled in WSF scandal from day one through his tenure as WDSOT department head. Marine Power was criticized for taking a $29.28 million profit, or 27 percent, when the going profit margin on other ship building companies was 2 to 4 percent, and WSDOT was criticized as mismanaging the contract and bowing to political pressure, allowing Marine Power to skirt contract specifications. Berentson said in 2005, “There were several incidents, but it all worked out — there was court action and settlements, but we came out all right. The boats delivered still function today” (Interview).

Note: Three of the ferry names the husband remembers his dad using.
Cathlamet: Can’t Land It
Skagit: Smash It,
Issaquah: It’s a crash

{H/T Mad Rocket Scientist at RNS}

The Saga Continues

Mayor Daley unveiled his new set of laws to infringe and deny a specifically enumerated right today. Let’s break down the bullets one by one.

The measure, which draws from ordinances around the country, would ban gun shops in Chicago and prohibit gun owners from stepping outside their homes, even onto their porches or garages, with a handgun.

How does one move the weapon to and from the firing range? Furthermore why can a homeowner not carry a firearm on his own property? How does one even bring the weapon home after purchase if it is not allowed outside the house? There may be exemptions in his ordinance, however knowing Daley and his previous history I doubt it. Also, with the lack of gun shops in the area, one will have a difficult time obtaining a weapon.

Limit the number of handguns residents can register to one per month and prohibit residents from having more than one handgun in operating order at any given time.

The one gun per month limit is totally arbitrary and without basis. If you limit people to one gun per month, why not one book per month or one vehicle per month? Limiting law abiding persons from buying something makes absolutely no sense. Criminals have already gotten a large supply of firearms into a city where they were previously totally outlawed; limiting purchases changes nothing for the criminals. Even more than that, what qualifies the weapon as having been disabled? Is it just simply removing the firing pin, fully disassembling the weapon, or permanently doing damage to the weapon? A homeowner should be able to have as many weapons as they desire at their disposal. They might want to keep one in their bed room and another hidden in their living room where they spend most of their time. What does the limit of one firearm do other than harm the law abiding because criminals ignore it anyway?

Require residents in homes with children to keep them in lock boxes or equipped with trigger locks.

So you can be killed while trying to get to your weapon in an emergency. Defensive weapons need to be kept at the ready. If you’re leaving your property, then yes properly store them, the same goes if you have small children. However there are other methods that can keep a weapon at the ready and out of the hands of a small child.

If you say BS and that is merely just endangering the child because they will get curious and do something stupid here is my personalized response. I grew up in a house with a rifle on the wall, I remember it distinctly and cannot think of a time I looked at the wall and didn’t see it there. I still have that rifle today and it is kept in my safe because I have a different ready rifle for serving the same purpose. The magazine was always loaded and a round in the chamber. My parents were never concerned because they raised me around firearms, taught me proper handling, and made sure that my curiosity was always satisfied in a proper and safe manner. Kids do stupid things because their parents attempt to hide and shield them from it. All this does is prevent the child from knowing, understanding, and learning proper and safe gun handling. Education is the best solution to any problem. If you disagree, look at sexual education. Abstinence only education obviously doesn’t work, a proper rounded education works. That includes touching the subject everyone would much rather avoid. Furthermore, it was that training and education that probably saved my life when I was at a friend’s house in 4th grade and he pulled out his dads rifle. After slapping the muzzle away he said, “Don’t worry it’s unloaded.” I asked, “How is anyone supposed to know that,” and then racked the bolt. At which point I left immediately and walked home. I never went over to his house again. Later in class he asked why I left, I told him, and low and behold during the conversation it was discovered he knew where dad’s rifle was, but not how to handle it. He was curious about it and thought I would be curious too. His lack of education from his parents, coupled with unsatisfied curiosity became the classic story book of disaster that is used by the gun control crowd to say we need to keep guns away from kids. How does prohibition of something stop curiosity? That’s right it doesn’t, that action actually makes it worse.

Require prospective gun owners to take a four-hour class and one-hour training at a gun range. They would have to leave the city for training because Chicago prohibits new gun ranges and limits the use of existing ranges to police officers. Those restrictions were similar to those in an ordinance passed in Washington, D.C., after the high court struck down its ban two years ago.

There is nothing wrong with training but the truth of this measure is to prevent people from getting licensed to have a firearm. If no new ranges can be built, and existing ranges are limited to police officers, where are prospective citizens to go to satisfy your bureaucracy? Oh that’s right out of the city costing them more money and time, and also requiring the probable precursor of private transportation. If you want this restriction, you need to provide the means for it to be readily obtainable. Saying you can have a firearm if you do X, Y, and Z and then outlaw W which is required by X isn’t really lifting the ban now is it? It is shielding the idea of the ban behind bureaucracy.

Prohibit people from owning a gun if they were convicted of a violent crime, domestic violence or two or more convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Residents convicted of a gun offense would have to register with the police department.

Is there a method of having this right restored? This section is a sympathy token to make people against this law look bad. However most of those same prohibitions are actually already on the books. So why add them again? Instead enforce the laws you already have on the books. The more serious problem with this is that often the legal system is abused and people’s rights are affected unjustly.

Calls for the police department to maintain a registry of every handgun owner in the city, with the names and addresses to be made available to police officers, firefighters and other emergency responders.

No, no, and HELL NO. This is a presumption that all gun owners are going to be criminals. Canada has already discovered that their registration is a huge waste of resources and is totally unsuccessful. Even more than that though, this is the primary reason why the Jew’s in the Attic test was invented! All that does is provide a list of who to disarm prior to the roundup for the concentration camp. With what happened after Katrina, that idea requires a serious go to hell message to be sent. Daley would in no way shape or form miss an opportunity to abuse his citizens like the way New Orleans did.

Still, the mayor, whose office is trying to craft an ordinance that will withstand legal challenges, had to back off some provisions he’d hoped to include, including requiring gun owners to insure their weapons and restricting each resident to one handgun.

No he’s not. What he’s doing is crafting a piece of legislation which is still violating people’s rights and doing it in such a way that it will take years to get through the courts. Mayor Daley and crew receive no punishment when they pass a law that violates someone’s rights. They do it because they can and there are no repercussions to those involved. Someone needs to be charged and thrown in prison over that last piece of legislative crap as well as this one. It is a lack of accountability that is allowing these atrocities to continue. It’s high time we find a way to add serious accountability to those who pass illegal laws.

Unemployment benefits create jobs?

On what planet is Pelosi living on? Certainly not this one.

In her world, unemployment benefits given to the unemployed from taxpayers’ money are actually creating jobs.

“It injects demand into the economy,” Pelosi said, arguing that when families have money to spend it keeps the economy churning. “It creates jobs faster than almost any other initiative you can name.” 

Pelosi said the aid has the “double benefit” of helping those who lost their jobs and acting as a “job creator” on the side.

So once again, the democrats believe that more federal spending will magically turn the economy around. Rewarding the unemployed with a check for doing nothing will not bolster their need to seek employment and actually EARN a living. I am currently unemployed and it is driving me mad to not be earning anything. I am not able to contribute monetarily to my responsibilities and the price of everything is continuing to increase. The unemployment rate is still hovering around 10% and at the rate the government is going, it is not going to get any better.

The government claims the jobless rate is 10%, but the suspicion is that it is more like 20 – 25%. John Williams is an economist that feels the jobless rate is about 10% higher than what the government claims.