Crazy Guy With Gun: If you don’t have your own pistol, you may have to wait the rest of your life for the police to bring theirs.

Tam – Tab Clearing…

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[In the words of PDB, carry your damn guns people.  To steel from Breda, it’s a lighter burden than regret.  It’s like a trauma kit, it does you absolutely 0 good if it’s not with you when you need it.  You’re still bleeding out while waiting for someone else to arrive with theirs. -B]

Police said three Mercedes Benz cars and a Lamborghini Diablo were also involved in the massive crash at the weekend on the Chugoku Expressway, in the country’s south-west.

…

While the majority of the 14 vehicles – which also included a Japanese supercar Nissan GT-R Skyline and a Toyota Prius – were travelling along the Osaka Prefecture-bound bended lane at least one Mercedes CL600 was driving in the opposite direction.

I have the strangest feeling that the odd ball in that listing was one of two things. Either he was the poor guy that got caught up in the middle, or he was unintentionally the cause.

Unsurprisingly all the high end cars were speeding and I have a feeling they all ended up on top of the little Prius that was at the equivalent of a full stop.

Sucks to be that insurance adjuster because that is going to be one expensive wreck.

via GunFreeZone

It’s becoming increasingly difficult for the law abiding to seek simple over the counter treatment for the common cold.

The state will soon keep tabs on everyone who buys over-the-counter cold medicine.

Consumers’ personal information will be stored in an electronic database that will also send real-time alerts to police.

Without question this violates the Jews in the Attic test and it does absolutely nothing to catch those cooking meth. 

Cooking meth has been a crime.  In an effort to stop the crime they created a new crime, purchasing too much, or having too much in your household.  The intent of the purchase though no longer matters.  Have a house full of sick kids, too bad you’re going to jail after your door is kicked in by the SWAT team.  The worst part is, if your jury has no clue about Jury Nullification your ass is going to prison.  Obviously you broke the law as written because you bought or had too much in your household.  Without nullification they would disregard for the fact though that you were using it lawfully and for it’s intended purpose.  If you think that type of charge is impossible, think again.

The icing on the cake though was at the end of the article:

The American Civil Liberties Union said it does not plan to challenge the move based on privacy concerns.

As usual, the ACLU ignores any attack on civil liberties that doesn’t fit their political agenda.  Anyone who puts Union in their name couldn’t possibly understand the idea of personal liberty.  Sometimes law enforcement shouldn’t be made easier, especially when law abiding citizens get caught in the crossfire.  When that happens, it should become so damn difficult the cops want to do something else instead.

h/t Ry.

There is no such thing as winning a lawsuit.  At a minimum it costs you time and money even if you’re the prevailing party.  So when I saw this I though it another prime example of why you do not cower or negotiate.

A man who held a Kansas couple hostage in their home while fleeing from
authorities is suing them, claiming that they broke an oral contract
made when he promised them money in exchange for hiding him from police.
The couple has asked a judge to dismiss the suit.

Obviously the idiot has never heard of duress and it’s effects on the nullifying the terms of a contract.  What is most interesting though is the following:

Keeshan said the contract also would have been invalid because the
couple agreed to let Dimmick in the home only because they knew he had a
knife and suspected he might have a gun.

The armed individual intimidated the home owners into allowing his entrance and into hiding him.  When they escape he sues for breach of contract!?  Given the evidence provided by the Tuller Drill at that range lethal force is justified.  It is also another lesson in not opening the door for stangers, talk through side glass or a peep hole.  At minimum put a safety chain on the door.  It may seem paranoid but it is nothing more than safety and preparedness.

Even if someone really wants in your house the safety chain isn’t going to stop them.  It will buy you time though to create a safe engagement distance.

Some might expect this law suit to go nowhere, but there is no correlation between the law and justice.  So I don’t hold my breath.  Besides even if it’s thrown out, I doubt the defendants will ever actually recover their legal bills from the plaintiff.

*h/t to Unc on the Tuller Drill video

H/t To Tam who linked to Merlin’s Musings on this one.

Triggs escaped time behind bars – he faced a maximum of six months in
jail – after losing his 13-year police career earlier this year when he
was charged with several felonies.

Now it would have been icing on the cake to see him actually serve jail time and he still might.  Any violation of his sentencing will result in 6 months in jail.  The fact he can never work in law enforcement again in the state of Ohio though puts a serious smile on my face.  While he may be able to go and apply for a LEO certificate outside the state, his odds of receiving one given his criminal record is diminished.

I understand exactly what Tam was saying in her comment, that’s how the prosecutor in my case got me to plea out.  Charge felonies and then offer a sweet deal.  In this case it seems like they really had him.  Even though it seemed like a slam dunk thought there’s always a risk with the jury.  The plea deal guaranteed a hit and given the particular crime it should kill any future prospects.

Alvin Triggs – That’s why you don’t run plate numbers for your drug dealer buddies.  You might actually be held accountable.

*It could have been better, but this out come is far better that what would have happened in many cases.

I pretty much have written them off as nothing more than another reason to invest in metals such as Lead, Copper, and Brass.  At least this movement has the benefit of gathering all those NUBs* together into one common location to make them more easily identifiable.

Surfing through my news blotters today I stumbled across an article in the Huffpost that made me start laughing uncontrollably.

There’s no shortage of talking, and you never know who will take hold
of the People’s Mic. Persuasive speakers on all sides can give General
Assembly meetings a roller-coaster feel. Someone always seems to oppose a
budget proposal, or have a strong dissenting opinion on something that
seems on its way to sure passage. Just one voice joining the debate at
the last minute has the power to sway the entire discussion.

With every proposal, there are questions and there are concerns, and
the process continues and continues. The facilitators say numerous times
the group has strayed off process. Questions are sometimes ignored for
being “off-topic” even when they aren’t, time constraints are cited and
frustrations boil over. Occupiers curse, speak out of turn and sometimes
they just keep on talking, despite “Mic Check” calls over them. Those
on all sides alienate each other.

It is often said that Democracy is nothing more than two wolves and a sheep getting together to decide what’s for dinner.  It appears that the Occupy movement is finally getting a solid lesson in what Democracy is, mob rule, where to win a debate you just need to sway the ignorant.

Earlier last week it came out that the leadership and operation of the movement was doing many of the very things they were protesting against Wallstreet for.  Including having a tax man taking from part of the group.  The group that was taxed was ignored by the remaining part of the Occupy group and is not given the support they require.

The drummers claim that the finance working group even levied a percussion tax of sorts, taking up to half of the $150-300 a day that the drum circle was receiving in tips. “Now they have over $500,000 from all sorts of places,” said Engelerdt. “We’re like, what’s going on here? They’re like the banks we’re protesting.”

Not to mention that a bunch of the protesters learned what it was like to have people come and claim their personal property as belonging to the public [commune].

Another argument broke out next to the pile of appropriated belongings, growing taller by the minute. A man named Sage Roberts desperately rifled through the pile, looking for a sleeping bag. “They’ve taken my stuff,” he muttered. Lauren Digion, the sanitation group leader, broke in: “This isn’t your stuff. You got all this stuff from comfort [the working group]. It belongs to comfort.”

The article then goes on to point out how they have people freeloading within their borders and there’s nothing they can do about it other than just deal with it.  That all sounds really freaking familiar you know that?  The only support they get from me is that I support their right to speak and peaceably assemble.  That said, I have serious problems with the property damage and costs these individuals are inflicting on those who do not support them or their cause.  It is not the job of the public to pay for their protest.  It is for those latter reasons I do not consider it a peaceably assembly and while it is certainly possible that the police have used excessive force I’m disappointed it’s taken them this long to start throwing the bums out.

So when I saw this at the end of the first article:

They’re planning to “Occupy Central Park” next month — on 11-11-11 — and hope the move will bring the protesters together again and unite them with their counterparts across the world.

I immediately started wondering what could be done as a response this time around.  Last year for the 10/10/10 green BS we went and made Mother Gaia our bitch.  Some of you might not be in the area, feel free to come up with your own methods of flipping the bird to the Occupy whatever movement.  Looks like I need to email some people to see what we can come up with.

*For those unfamiliar with the term, it’s Non Usable Body.  It’s also used in video games for players that just can’t seem to learn, but I’m channeling Disgruntled Sailor here.

So yesterday I got an email about an emergency exercise this weekend asking for help.  Local coordinator needs some help at Whitman County dispatch.

Unsurprisingly they wanted my information in advance to clear me into the building.  I just got an email from the coordinator.  Included in it was the response to him from the dispatch center. 

Subject:	RE: ARES Quarterly Exercise 10/29
Date:	Tue, 25 Oct 2011 18:26:49 +0000

Ok but I want to emphasize, there is absolutely no weapons allowed in or near the
dispatch center. That being said, I will make sure the dispatch center knows you will
be allowed into the building.

Now I know someone probably noted that I have a CPL on my background check.  Now for those of you from outside the area, here’s why this is a facepalmable moment.

Police said the gunman started shooting from a parking lot across from the Latah County Courthouse shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday. A hail of more than 30 bullets ripped through the county’s emergency dispatch center, Duke said. Dispatchers were moved to a room in the jail area of the courthouse. Officers rushed out of the building.

This incident occurred in May 2007, and the whole incident took place less just over 10 miles by road from where the dispatch is.  In this incident officer Lee Newbill was killed as well as a civilian who responded to aid the officer.  During the incident Whitcom actually took over emergency communications for Latah county.

There is first hand experience for the area, even this dispatch center, that the disarmament does nothing to actually make anyone safer.  Yet instead of learning from that lesson and how ineffective it was at protecting people they continue the illusion.  Not only do they continue the illusion, but ignore the fact that the person they’re admitting is statistically more likely to be law abiding than the general population.

So I will bite my tongue and leave it locked up.  I will have the most important tool still with me, I just hate leaving the most effective accessory for use with the most important tool.

*As a random thought, I doubt they saw my ATF paperwork for explosives.  I don’t see why the state records would indicate it, but I can’t help but laugh at what the response would have been if they had.

All I have to say is that this is by far the most awesome cat in the world.  If I was the owner, it would get a steak dinner.

Police in Upper Darby, Penn. (where the crimes took place) have not confirmed the existence of the lion, which our stars—Harley Rose Gifford (left) and Britney Singleton (right)—claim to have encountered in one of the homes they broke into, prompting a very quick turnaround. What has been confirmed, by Gifford and Singleton, is that the women burglarized 29 homes, and stole an impressive variety of stuff:

Given we currently have three cats, and a variety of fish I am not getting any new pets any time soon.  However the wife has informed me that she wants one of these.

There is a breed that has been mixed with a domestic cat.  They stand about 24 inches at the shoulder.  It’s big enough I could let it outside and teach it to chase yotes.  Considering the Serval can move at about 50 MPH that little shit doesn’t have a prayer.  Currently the have at least one hail Mary because of backstop concerns.