Range 4 June

Failure!

To eject.

First round of the second magazine, #11, the rim escaped the extractor, and it was left in the chamber, only a quarter withdrawn.  Round twelve then got hung up trying to enter where eleven was obstructing.  Correction necessitate stripping the mag out, letting #12 fall free, and cycling the slide.  This was difficult until the slide was locked back.  The gun was hung up for 20 seconds, maybe?

Saved #11 spend case and a control case to inspect.

Possible caused.  Extractor issue.  Round 12 got loose and wedged under 11 early, holding 11 in place even if the extractor is ideal in function.  Extractor type is S&W external style and has given me a problem in the past.

Anyway, back to the rest of the session.

Ok, I am noticing a pattern.  Go to the range every week and the accuracy levels off at 'pretty good'.  Skip a couple week and it is still good, for some reason, the next time back.  But the accuracy falls off dramatically in subsequent sessions until it slowly build to the 'pretty good' plateau level.

Also, the front sight is too high.  I'd rather have hold under than hold over.  Nothe the yellow circles.

50 rounds of American Eagle, 492 since I got the gun.

Hey! The ONE thing I was good at in the Navy.

I was the only Navy guy, and officer, in my dunker runs.  The rest was enlisted Marine aircrew.  In one of the dunks you wear goggles that are blacked out to simulate darkness, but it's all in a well lit (indoor, for me) pool with safety divers, as you see.

There is a trick to staying oriented, and I am comfortable and calm in the water.  Even blind and upside down, with my sinuses and ears full of water.  (It's top heavy, the UH-46 is, so it flips) The Marines?  Some of them, not so much.  If I didn't want to get a panicky kick in the face leaving I had to wait them out.  So I was fine.

You wear, well we wore, flight gear, boots, helmet, gloves. Not bike helmets or what have you. Well, these aren't really aircrew types, I don't think. It is disorienting.

Their fake helicopter has much bigger hatches than mine did.

I had to have shared this before...

Trigger Happy Harry



Just oodles of cringworthy safety gaffes from a time when even SAFE folks were a lot more tolerant of stuff you'd clinch up over today.

21 minutes of this? Yikes. Dang NRA.

4:00. Why did that simpleton choose an Auto-5 shotgun? Dunnine Kreuger, I guess. He doesn't know how dumb he is. Break action for him is wiser. At least people can see at a glance he isn't an immediate hazard.

5:00. Lady shooters. Doing coed outreach even back 75 years ago. I love the look of that gun range, too.

I love the wallpaper(8:35) and paneling (6:15). And that wool hunting coat! (11:45)

Here is the hapless protagonist about to do some home gunsmithing on his revolver. Unwise, in his case, surely, but what's this?



Does Harry have a grenade in his workshop?

Wear Orange

"Against Gun Violence!"

Well, which violence?

Because some violence is bad bad.

And some violence is very very good. 

I figure Everytown is against both until they get their way.  After that it doesn't matter and SHUT UP PEASANT!  Don't make me sick our goon squad on you!

Symbiotes

Gun Rights and Pro Lifers.

We have a symbiotic realtionship while both issues are hashed out in the courts.

Pro choice gunnies would call it parasitic.  So would gun banning pro lifers.

We are symbiotic in that judges that rule according to rights of man tend to, right now, lean both to protecting human life by protecting self-defense rights and the right to live for at least some fetal stage level.   Its just how it has worked out.  It's hard to find a liberal-liberty activist judge all for abortion and all for armed self defense.  More likely to find a anti abortion judge that also doesn't like guns, but those are rare too because of ways American judicial philosophy has evolved.

So when one single-issue faction gets a judge on the court, the other side is generally happy.  Both sides win.

If abortion shifts to legislatures then that relationship is broken.  If SCOTUS sends the abortion debate back to the lawmakers then abortion activists on both sides will concentrate on swaying Congress critters and Assembly whoseywhatsits. 

Gunnies will no longer have allies fighting for judges.  Our enemies the gun banners will no longer have pro-lifers as allies.  But the net loss of enthusiasm getting 'right thinking' judges is more detrimental to the Conservative Constitutional side of the spectrum than it is to the Leftist Activist side, if Roe is set aside.  Methinks.  The other side, minus abortion types, still has much deeper pockets. 

I hope Gun Rights and Pro Lifers, if they get issue-settling rulings, both get those ruling at about the same time.  Or both recognize you can't let up the judicial pressure as the other side will come back if you let off any.

Knew this guy

Had to.  Forced to memorize all the names on the Cenotaph under pain of extra PT.  All the names.  But this name is important today.

Jimmie Monteith.

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on 6 June 1944, while serving with 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, in action near Colleville-sur-Mer, France. First Lieutenant Monteith landed with the initial assault waves on the coast of France under heavy enemy fire. Without regard to his own personal safety he continually moved up and down the beach reorganizing men for further assault. He then led the assault over a narrow protective ledge and across the flat, exposed terrain to the comparative safety of a cliff. Retracing his steps across the field to the beach, he moved over to where two tanks were buttoned up and blind under violent enemy artillery and machinegun fire. Completely exposed to the intense fire, First Lieutenant Monteith led the tanks on foot through a minefield and into firing positions. Under his direction several enemy positions were destroyed. He then rejoined his company and under his leadership his men captured an advantageous position on the hill. Supervising the defense of his newly won position against repeated vicious counterattacks, he continued to ignore his own personal safety, repeatedly crossing the 200 or 300 yards of open terrain under heavy fire to strengthen links in his defensive chain. When the enemy succeeded in completely surrounding First Lieutenant Monteith and his unit and while leading the fight out of the situation, First Lieutenant Monteith was killed by enemy fire. The courage, gallantry, and intrepid leadership displayed by First Lieutenant Monteith is worthy of emulation.

They also named a dormitory after.  All girls, I believe, when I was going there.  He never lived there, naturally.

This is where he died

 This is where he lives, now.

2 million?

If Trump keeps talking banning suppressors, ESPECIALLY without getting anything in return, he'll lost, what?  maybe 2 million gunnies?  I'd say more, but plenty of gun folks aren't single issue voters and are pleased with other performances.

I mean, if he banned cans, but made it legal to open carry AR15s through the line at the post office on the way down to DC to walk around armed inside Smithsonian museums, some gunning might forgive his betrayal.

Or maybe on this we are taking him literally instead of seriously, what his foes do all the time?

Can he afford to possibly lose 2,000,000 votes because shennanigans?

75 years ago

Diamond anniversary.

Won't be many around at the next round number anniversary.  80.  The soldiers, sailors, and airmen that were there.  The absolute youngest will be pushing 100 by then.

WWII was always a big portion of my life.  And now it will fade away.  And I wasn't even around til 25 years after it was wall over.

Yesterday they upgrades my phone.  Plain Old Telephone Service is no more.  If the power goes out the phone will no longer work.  Just like your smartphones.  In an emergency no way to summon an ambulance to help someone or tell relatives that despite the emergency, I am fine.  That's fine, I guess.  I'm just feeling a little old.

Lots of folks at Normandy never got that chance, 75 years ago, to feel old.  So I got that going for me.  

Huh, NYC

I would not have thought all crime was down that much in NYC based on news reports of deterioration of quality of public life.  I mean I can see murder rates continue to creep down, but I'd have guess nuisance crimes are up.  And hate crimes in the city are spotlit recently.

There is also a possibility that the data collection has been tampered with, and purposely under reported for political reasons.  Or if not data tampering, purposeful enforcement slow downs.

Or I could have been hoodwinked by inflated reports of rapid decay in the media.

Eric and Junior

I wish they'd have a chat with their pop about guns. 

Oh wow, man

Stumbled across an image I hadn't thought of in a long time.

1970s era flower decals.  Like you might see on Laugh-In.  Painted on Goldie Hawn.

True story.  She is from this era and my parents lived in the same apartment as her sister, so they saw her a bit.  Both before and after she bacame famous.

Anyway, went down an image search rabbit hole.

Ugh.  There were on everything.  The non skid in our bathtub, the glass on the sliding glass door so you wouldn't walk right into it.  Parts of the 70s were really dumb.

Governor of Virginians

Ralphie 'Coonman' Gosnell Northam, Democrat, and Governor of Virginia needs to not let any crisis go to waste.  Mainly to distract from his position on infanticide, bedsheets, and shoe polish.  So he is flagging the gun ban stuff in Virginia.  He wants the 'common' sense measures of:

1.  Universal background checks 
2. Child access prevention 
3. One gun a month limits 
4. Banning assault weapons, including bump stocks 
5. Requirement to report lost or stolen guns 
6. Allowing localities to ban guns from municipal buildings 
7. Red flag laws

NONE of which would have slowed down the killings in Virginia Beach.  They'd only make Virginia more like Maryland.  It wouldn't stop the next tragedy either.  The killer's kids didn't get into his guns, he got them legally, he only had two and has had them for months, no gun was stolen, I bet they were plain Jane common as dirty Glock 21s, and he doesn't seem to be on any psychiatrist's radar.

Wait there is ONE measure that might have made a difference here.  It might have made a 12 count victim list only two or three.  Not ideal, but ask the family of victim number four or nine how they feel about.  And that important measure is Item #6 on this list.

Well, the exact opposite of item #6.

• Encourage localities to permit guns in municipal buildings, and other locales. 

If one of his victims was carrying he might have been able to shoot back.  Guns were already forbidden in that gov't building by local policy and not state law.  There really was nothing preventing someone one scene being able to fight back effectively.

Like Tam says:  "Anybody who mandates you be disarmed in a country full of guns does not have your best interests at heart."

This Day 30 Years Ago

Remember Tiananmen Square.

Why?  Because people want you to forget it.  People in THIS country are censoring references to it. 

More VB News, for here

So the dude was 40.  First Generation X shooter in a while.  Not many GenX in history.  Mass shooters are more a Boomer/Millennial thing.  Maybe Luby's diner and McDonalds massacre shooed off GenX potential shooters.

Shooter reported to have anger issue.  And 9 kids.

Good at math.  Had to be to get past engineering calculus.

And F-ing Trump through gunnies under the bus, again, disparaging cans, out loud.   He better nominate REALLY good judges.  He's a metrocon, otherwise, when it comes to guns.  I wish his son would help straighten him out.

This day, 45 years ago

I wish I could have witnessed this.



I like Cleveland almost as much as I am comforted by my hometown.  Why?  It's neat!  It's got that great river valley through it, it's a food town, I love metal industry, it has a water horizon. It was in Christmas Story.

There is a city I dream about.  A recurring dream. It doesn't match DC or Cleveland, it is more of a combination of both.  Maybe with a touch of New York thrown in, thanks to Sesame Street.  And it comes accidentally.  I have dreamed of this city long before I ever visited Cleveland.  But it matches more than most real towns, this fake town in my head.  That is stuck in 1955, with cars from 1970.

Which is why witnessing the 10 Cent Beer Night Baseball Riot would have been a hoot.  Hey, I like Stroh's...

Cleveland is a small big city. You can get around it. Not like LA or Texas big towns. Chicago. And you can move while in it. Not like New York or DC or Philly with their traffic headaches.

"You like it because of a riot? You know the river burned there, T-Bolt?"

Yes, I know. I like the town, warts and all. Sometimes BECAUSE of the warts.

His Own Film Genre

Monday Bupkis, part 94

Yeah, yeah, you are used to this by now.  And my usual Monday post ends up being me doing stream of consciousness.

Ummm.  Lots of folks have been telling me, in the news, that they don't want to take my guns.  And like all of you that makes me want to go buy more guns.

But not enough 'want' to get the juices flowing.  So that means... what?  Bog standard black plastic commodity 9mm pistols.  A pair.  Because I am like that. 

Huh.  I still have no hunting rifle and no bog standard 9.  Why I gotta be so contrary?

That's pretty much the only impulse purchase for me, of anything I want.

More Not Much

An actual fair article in WTOP about the use of a suppressed .45 in Virginia Beach.  It's not stupid and tries to give the slant from both side of the political spectrum, favoring neither.

Which is a damn sight better than the word vomit from the lesser news organization across town.  The Washington Post.

Gun violence in America is unique not simply because of our culture but also because we have lawful weaponry that can kill many people very quickly. In terms of death-to-time ratio, single-shot weapons are preferable to multi-round handguns and handguns are preferable to the semiautomatic, and the favorite of mass shooters, the AR-15. It’s a simple calculation of time.

The actual hell does any of that mean, person that uses words for a living?  If you paid for any of your education you need a refund.  The piece is behind a paywall.  Thank God.  Not paying to see more of that nonsense.

People like her think she should write gun control laws and regulations, too.  The unmitigated gall of her presumption.  Like the thoughts of a child.  You got enough room in the toes, there?  Now hush.

Not much news

Out of Virginia Beach.  At least not by reading stuff online.  Tam seems exasperated watching the newsreaders on TV.  But that's her hobby.  Back when blogs were a thing there'd be a lot more people combing for details.  Sure, it got echo chambery, and you quickly learned not to trust as gospel just about everything you heard in the first 48 hours.  But that's as true with PJ wearing bloggers as it is with Network anchors.

I'm sure much more information will be forthcoming over time.

Rumors and unconfirmed details I have heard.  It was a .45.  It had a 'silencer.'  People heard gunshots.  Disgruntled employee.  Gov't municipal building.  Cop armor kept one cop from being seriously injured.  11, 12, or 13 dead, half that injured.  Probably 12, plus gunman.  The gunman is a registered Democrat.  His name may be DeWayne Craddock.

Dunno if you can carry in that kind of state government building in Virginia.  So, don't know if the vicitims were disarmed.  If it was prohibited it would be posted.

Seemed to have been some police presence on site or nearby.  Sailor Curt might know better.  It's his neck of the woods.

Got nuffin

More later?

Hey, how bout that Obama guy lying about how folks in America get guns?  Idjit.

He should wear a disguise and try to buy a gun.  Hell DON'T wear a disguise and do it and insist it is by the book.  Record yourself, buddy.