Author Archives: TMM

About TMM

TMM is the owner, editor, and principal author at The Minuteman, a competitive shooter, and staff member for Boomershoot. Even in his free time he’s merging his love and knowledge of computers and technology with his love of firearms. Many know his private name and information however due to the current political climate, many are distancing themselves due to the abandonment of Due Process.

Please Be Careful if You Do This…

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So a coworker just bumped me this little incident through IM.

He drove upriver, investigated and with the help of Asotin County deputies and area landowners found the fire was started by someone shooting at an exploding target. The alleged fire-starter apparently fled the scene in such haste that he/she left behind an AK-47.

First up, we all know the identification abilities of both the press and law enforcement are how shall we say, lacking.  So I have a feeling it probably was not an AK-47.

Next up is why I’m writing this post.  If you’re going to play around with reactive targets, please be aware, be careful, and do it right.  Doing stupid stuff can cause the powers that be to outlaw things in an effort to stop stupidity.  They seem to think that laws will actually stop stupidity while those of us with functional brains know it just stops the smart and law abiding from enjoying freedom while making it a little more difficult for Darwin to do his job.

I’m not sure exactly why this fire started, there’s a couple different options.  First is that the bullet itself struck something and caused a spark resulting in a fire.  Not impossible, but not very likely unless they were shooting steel core surplus ammo.  I find this a possibility given the expeditious fleeing.

Laughably is the idea that the explosion itself set something on fire.  Combustion, and the heat that accompanies it, dissipates in milliseconds at most.  For the fireballs we create at Boomershoot we actually have to have road flares to cause the fuel to ignite because there is no heat remaining as the vapor cloud expands.  We have added things such as magnesium and other materials and this does help.  Assuming this was Tannerite, it is possible that some of the elements were still combusting when it hit the ground, I just am a bit skeptical.

Lastly they were attempting to be Ry and recreate the following.

DSC_6822

It is well known that creating a fireball like that can land you in an interesting position.  The heat radiated after combustion begins can easily cause surrounding plant life to ignite.  We do it prior to the fire season beginning as well for numerous reasons.  Trying to put out a fire as it rages across the field wouldn’t exactly be fun.  Think of the exploding toilet in 2008.

There is a second reason and that is Boomerite that is spread on the ground can actually cause a fire.  The KClO3 breaks down exothermically under UV and can ignite surrounding material.

But seriously, if you’re going to go out into the woods and create a fireball.  Be ready for some stuff to be lit on fire.  It is going to happen and you better be ready to fight it.  So if you’re going to do it please do the following:

  • Have fire extinguishers at the ready
  • Bring numerous friends to help extinguish the fire
  • Soak the surrounding area with water if it’s been dry over the previous couple days
  • Be ready with dirt buckets too
  • Have a plan to deal with fire

Seriously, it only takes one person to screw it up for the rest of us.  Please, don’t be that guy.

Pardon the Nuclear Fallout

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So I spent yesterday and today migrating my blog to WordPress.  This while mostly successful has had a few minor hiccups.

First up, clean URLs is currently broken.  For some reason I have to manually touch every blog post *merely clicking update* for the clean URL to work properly.  I haven’t found the PFM in the database that is changing to allow it to work.

While doing that would be an inconvenience there is another issue which makes me want to touch every post.  None of the categories imported correctly.  The database and content nodes appear to line up correctly but alas the rendering fails for some reason.  Updating the content by hand again fixes the problem.

So the wife and I are going to work on going through all 1171 posts updating their categories and getting the clean URLs straightened out.  I did spend a decent amount of time creating a list of 301 redirects for all my previous posts.  Any and all previous incoming links should still be going to their respective content.  They will just have the ugly ?p=xxxx at the end instead of the nice clear /2012/05/23/This-Post-Is-So-Awesome/ url.

The last problem was brought on by my use of Disqus.  I wanted to get an export of my comments so I could reimport them into Drupal and then import those comments into WordPress.  Disqus would be used on all future content.  Well I didn’t get an export of the comments this weekend and I got tired of waiting.  If and when they come in, I will work on getting a snap shot of the database and migrating those into the system.

I was going to leave a domain up with the Drupal blog intact, alas for some reason I have not been able to make a subdomain.  Why I do not know other than Murphy hates me with a passion.

So yeah, if you notice other stuff that’s broken let me know.  I’m working on cleaning up the mess.  On the upshot I can blog from my phone now.

If you’re feed broke, let me know.  The feedburner feed should have continued uninterrupted.  I am working on getting the contact forms back up tonight.  Any of you who have my contact info in your address book, bump me a line if you notice anything grossly out of place.

SSCC #349&#350 – Fayette

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Surveillance video shows the dog looking for his handler. When the dog did not see the deputy, it attacks the worker, biting him in the arm and groin.

The worker dragged the dog into the Walmart where the deputy managed to get the dog off of him.

If that had been your dog or mine, it would be destroyed as a dangerous animal and we would carry personal liability for the action of the animal.  The handler here is at fault as well for not maintaining positive control of his animal.

Interestingly, I wonder what would happen if the the store employee killed the dog.  If you assault a police dog it is considered assaulting a police officer.  The courts when involved with a human officer tend to look down on you defending yourself against a corrupt cop unless there is some serious evidence.  Heck, Indiana for a while even forbade it, stating you can seek redress in the courts.

I suspect you would not end up in jail, but I’m sure that you would still end up in front of a jury.  I can guarantee you this officer is not even going to be suspended, and the dog will continue on duty as normal.

State Sponsored Criminal #349: Jayne Dog

#350: John Doe, Jayne Dog’s Handler

Because when a police K-9 goes berserk in a public place it’s excusable.  When you’re dog bites someone in your yard that shouldn’t be there, they put it down.  If it just looks at a cop they kill it.

Quote of the Day – Ken (06/15/2012)

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The lesson, preached often here, is this: the government is not your
friend. The people in it are not your friends. They smile. But they
are there because they are the sort of people who like telling other
people what to do, people they do not know, people over whom they have
no moral claim, regarding things that are not justly any business of
theirs. That is what they do. That is who they are.

Ken
– Argyll and Bute Council Afraid of Mild and Polite Criticism, Little Girls, Pictures of Tater Tots

June 14th, 2012

[I have written about this before when our American federales were claiming to be our extended family and friends.  Go read the story of Martha and her blog, I’ll wait.

Ken stated what I have already known but given the current tyranny being pushed by Fat Fuck George* it obviously bears repeating.  There evidently is a large number of people who seem to think that this government intrusion is acceptable, most likely because they aren’t directly affected.  Well what happens Mr. Tory when all the sudden government sets it’s sights on something you are affected by.  You’ve already given them permission to intrude in your life, you found it acceptable for them to do it to someone else.

There is some good news about Martha’s story.  The council has retreated and Martha’s charity is surging.  That is positive however that outcome is only because of the amount of attention this particular story got.  How many other similar stories slip under the waves to never been seen or heard about?  How many others are crushed under the weight and threat of force from government before anyone knows what happened?

Government is force, and they have a monopoly on the use of it and can self justify it.  While we do have some protections thanks to the First Amendment, that doesn’t prevent tyrants from trying to run over it.  Remember, there are many who would not mind seeing your First Amendment rights trampled because they disagree with your opinion.  Doubly so with the effectiveness of putting the truth on the internet.

Remember, the government is not your friend, it is not your family, its is force and nothing more.  It will crush you if given the chance.  Government is a necessary evil that should be limited and restrained to the greatest extent possible.  For trying to reign back in that beast after it gains the additional power and authority is difficult if not impossible.  -B]

*Who is Fat Fuck George, read this.

SSCC #348–Hopewell

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A former Hopewell police officer was convicted Wednesday of sexually abusing three women he had been investigating for drunken driving or shoplifting offenses.

Now while he was convicted, the following must also be noted:

Mark D. Baggett, 34, of the 500 block of MacArthur Avenue in Colonial Heights entered Alford pleas in Hopewell Circuit Court to three counts of aggravated sexual battery. Under an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit guilt but acknowledges there is sufficient evidence for a judge or jury to find him guilty.

He certainly could get pegged for 20 years, and that would be a good start.  He is a Sponsored Criminal for the following reason though:

… Baggett used his position and authority as a police officer to elicit sex, or attempt to elicit sex, from three women in the their 20s and 30s in September and October.

This is by no means anything new, and it has come up plenty of times before in the count.  The department even upon discovering the information didn’t fire him, instead they allowed him to resign.  Maybe if the department wants a positive public image they should grow some balls and discipline their officers themselves and not just rely on the law.  There is this thing called morals and ethics that exist outside the law and you should make your officers exercise good judgment in both regions.

State Sponsored Criminal #348: Mark D. Baggett

Because the biggest mistake he made wasn’t doing what he did, it was getting caught.  That’s why we didn’t fire him, we just were going to suspend him without pay while he rotted in jail.

Why I carry a gun…

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I have had many people ask why I carry a gun, especially living out here where many actually leave their doors unlocked.  The thing is where I live isn’t special.  Carrying a cop around just isn’t an option.  And when things go down the whole event happens in seconds, not minutes or hours.

Why would I bring this up?


Pullman police responded twice Wednesday evening to reports of armed robbery.

The first call came in at 10:44
p.m. in the 400 block of South Grand Avenue, where one victim reported
that he and his co-worker had been robbed at gunpoint in a parking lot.

The attacker only made off with 37 dollars however it appears that he has probably escaped, especially if he’s from outside the area.  The second incident also serves as an extra reminder that your vehicle presents a method of defense, even if the attacker is more suitably armed.

The second incident occurred at about 12:34 a.m. Thursday in the 1200
block of Southeast Johnson Avenue. Tennant said the 35-year-old victim
from Oregon was driving in the area completing work on a cell phone
tower when he was confronted by a man with a crowbar who reportedly
tried to steal his vehicle.

Always attempt to drive off.  It is the reaction the criminal isn’t expecting and even then shooting at you isn’t going to accomplish anything.  In my case it may get me to go into reverse and run you over since you have proven your intent.  You vehicle though provides more protection than nothing, use it to your advantage.

Most of all though, be alert, stay calm, and carry your damn guns.  Bad things happen even to good people, I carry a gun because I know that fact and I prefer to be prepared for the unexpected.  Don’t expect for someone to be able to magically save  you either if the goblin shows up either.  You are the help. You are the rescue. You are the extraction team.

Quote of the Day – rstoddart(06/14/2012)

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I am an Engineer,
My job is to make things work.
To save lives, increase productivity, and make the future.
I deal with facts, numbers, and calculations.
My work is to avoid the impossible, and find the loophole in the limits of materials and systems.
Anything you want that interferes with above, I cannot abide.

I am not here to be your friend.

rstoddart – Comment to this comic.

161954.strip

[Seriously all I can think with that is truth. 

On more than one occasion I have said something that has hurt someone’s feelings because well, if I didn’t it would violate the above.  If I’m curt or think that what I said was unbelievably mean, read the above and understand it’s not necessarily you, it’s just your brain and the ideas it creates. -B]