Friday Funny

MythBusters

Kari from MythBusters + Minigun = Bunk

Buh-Bye!

Thursday War PrOn

Nothing more to say...

"If you're going to San Francisco
Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair..."


H/T: ROFASix

Million Dollar Man...

Lucky Soldier Wins $1 Million
Though He Hit the Jackpot, Sergeant Plans to Return to Iraq for a 3rd Tour

After completing two tours in Iraq, Sgt. Wayne Leyde won $1 million from a scratch-and-win lotto ticket on Tuesday.

Now that he's won, Leyde, a 26-year-old member of the Washington National Guard, says he's still going to volunteer to go back to Iraq for a third tour and won't spend any of the money in the meantime.

Leyde was driving near his home in Mead, Washington when he stopped at a store on the side of the road and bought a ticket.

"I decided to walk into a local Zip Trip. I got a Coke and beef jerky and walked up to the counter and thought I'd pick up a few scratch tickets and try my luck. I was on my way out when the lady said, 'Do you have a lucky scratch coin?'

"I said 'no, you gave me a dime and nickel back.'"

"She said 'no, try this,'" handing Leyde a penny. "On my way home I started scratching tickets. They were losers. I'm thinking, boy, that lady didn't know what she was talking about."

Leyde couldn't believe it when he scratched a winning ticket, but he still plans to return to Iraq.

"It was a commitment I made about three months ago. I'm going to stick to it," Leyde said about his decision.

The sergeant says rents have gone sky high where he and his parents live in the Mount Spokane area of Washington and that, for now, he's not going to spend any of the money.

"For right now, I'm going to hold off [spending] and let reality sink back to earth. This is a true blessing. I'm going to turn it around and see if I can bless other people with this," Leyde said.

At first, I thought 'what a dumbass!', but after reading the whole thing, SGT Leyde sounds like a pretty good Joe.

Best of luck and a safe return, Wayne.
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Law of unintended consequences

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs

The Boston Globe has a piece saying that environmentalists love these compact fluorescent bulbs and that you just need a few minor commonsense approaches to dealing with them:

The Maine study, which shattered 65 bulbs to test air quality and clean-up methods made these recommendations: If a bulb breaks, get children and pets out of the room. Ventilate the room. Never use a vacuum -- even on a rug -- to clean up a compact fluorescent light. Instead, while wearing rubber gloves, use stiff paper such as index cards and tape to pick up pieces, then wipe the area with a wet wipe or damp paper towel. If there are young children or pregnant woman in the house, consider cutting out the piece of carpet where the bulb broke. Use a glass jar with a screw top to contain the shards and clean-up debris.

“We found some very high levels (of mercury), even after we tried a number of clean-up techniques," said Mark Hyland, Maine director of the Bureau of Remediation and Waste Management. During several of the experiments, for example, he said mercury in the air was more than 100 times levels considered safe even after a floor was cleaned. He said such levels would quickly decline if the room were ventilated and people followed their tips.

This is one of the parts of the story that I love:

They said most danger could be avoided if people exercised common-sense caution, such as not using the bulbs in table lamps that could be knocked over by children or pets and properly cleaning up broken bulbs.

Here are a couple of questions: How do the pennies that you save with these bulbs compare to the time and health costs of dealing with them? Remember you have to keep these bulbs on for at least 15 minutes once you turn them on (rather inconvenient if you ask me). So what bulbs are we supposed to use in table lamps or those lamps that can be knocked over?

From John Lott
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I had no idea...

Wow! It's been 15 years since the first WTC bombing.

I lost track of time until I saw the post from Michelle Malkin.

Did you remember? It has been 15 years since the first World Trade Center bombing. So many were snoozing then. So many are still snoozing now.

Touche.
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Update: Nubs comes home.

Friends will care for mutt until Marine buddy returns
By Michael Stetz
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

February 23, 2008

EARNIE GRAFTON / Union-Tribune
Marine Capt. Eric Sjoberg and his wife, Chrissy, greeted Nubs at Lindberg Field. They will be looking after the German shepherd/border collie mix for Maj. Brian Dennis.
Nubs wasted no time melting hearts.

Big, tough Marines said things like, “Oooohhh,” and gently stroked his fur as they cradled him. Reporters and camera crews swarmed around him.

The German shepherd/border collie mix was sweet, gentle and a little on the scrawny side when he arrived at Lindbergh Field in San Diego yesterday evening. But he should gain a few pounds now that he'll be fed regularly.

Life in Iraq can be tough on a dog. Count Nubs among the luckiest. He got out thanks to a San Diego-based Marine, Maj. Brian Dennis, who befriended him and then had him flown home.

War brings horror, tragedy, the most heart-wrenching of moments. At least, sometimes, along comes something like this.

“It's amazing, he's finally home,” said Capt. Eric Sjoberg, who's going to care for Nubs with his wife Chrissy until Dennis, a Marine buddy, returns from Iraq in the spring.

Nubs licked Sjoberg's face. He panted patiently as cameras filmed and snapped pictures. “You're seeing first-hand why the guys over there fell in love with him,” Sjoberg said.

Nubs is about 2. When young, his ears were slashed off because an Iraqi thought that would make him tough and alert.

That's why Dennis named him Nubs. That's all he had left of his ears.

And that was hardly Nubs' worst moment. Once, he was stabbed with a screwdriver. Dennis patched him up as best he could, but didn't think Nubs would make it. The wound was deep. He slept with him that night to keep him warm as temperatures dipped to 18 degrees.

Dennis fell for the dog hard. The e-mails he sent to friends spoke of his life in Iraq and they always seemed to mention this tough little dog, said Maj. Chris Collins, his roommate in San Diego.

“It seemed that something bad would always happen,” Collins said. “He'd get into a fight or something. Nubs was always in bad shape.”

Dennis, who is based at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, is serving along the border between Iraq and Syria, where he is helping to train Iraqis. It's rough terrain. Nubs and other dogs lived in an old Iraqi fort and survived on food scraps.

Nubs ran wild. He had no owner, no home, no collar, nobody to play fetch with, no one to bring a slipper to, no Alpo, nobody to scratch behind his ear. No name, even, until Dennis came along.

But even Dennis didn't think the relationship would last. He's in a war zone, after all. When Dennis and his team were ordered to move 70 miles away, he figured life with Nubs was over.

It wasn't. Nubs somehow tracked the Marines to their new location, showing up two days after they did. Dennis was amazed. How'd he do it? He was convinced then that he couldn't leave this dog behind.

He couldn't keep him in Iraq, of course. It's against the rules. So he wrote home, saying he wanted to take Nubs back to the U.S.

“We thought he was crazy. We didn't think it was possible,” Sjoberg said.

Friends rallied, raising more than $3,500, and the wheels were put in motion.

Yesterday, after a couple stops along the way, Nubs came home.

And soon he'll be frolicking in the sands of a local dog beach, far away from the stark desert sands of Iraq.

Welcome home, Nubs!

Video here.
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Ze end of ze world...

This came up during coffee this morning.

Oldie, but goody.



"WTF, mate?"

Funny shizzle!

She could be my daughter...

...if I had one, that is.



Are you watching this, Shane?

Man's best friend.

Semper Fi Maj. Dennis.

Dog Saved by Marine Coming to Calif.

By CHELSEA J. CARTER – 2 days ago

SAN DIEGO (AP) — It began with a simple act of kindness to save an abused, injured dog from becoming one more victim in the Iraq war.

But what followed for Marine Maj. Brian Dennis and the mutt was a tale of friendship and loyalty that spanned miles and overcame long odds — one set to take a turn Friday with the anticipated arrival here of the Marine's best friend.

"This dog who had been through a lifetime of fighting, war, abuse ... is going to live the good life," Dennis told his family in an e-mail from Iraq.

The tale unfolded in October, a few months after Dennis deployed to Iraq from San Diego to work as part of the military team building infrastructure along the Syria-Iraq border and training Iraqi forces to take over.

Dennis, 36, of St. Pete Beach, Fla., had volunteered for the assignment. It was a departure from his role as a fighter pilot. He had seen the country from the air, but it was different on the ground.

Dennis wrote stories home about the reciprocal relationship that desert dogs, strays wandering outside border towns, had with Iraqis.

"The dogs get to eat the Iraqi scraps and have a home in the middle of the desert," he wrote in an e-mail. "The Iraqis get an incredible early warning system; these dogs hear anything approaching from miles away and go nuts and scramble to defend their territory."

While on patrol in the Anbar province, Dennis spotted what appeared to be a gray and white, male German shepherd-border collie mix. He named the dog Nubs after learning someone cut the ears off believing it would make the dog more aggressive and alert.

Within weeks, Nubs was greeting Dennis during routine patrol stops along border communities. The Marines fed him bits of their food and by November, the Marine and his unit were keeping an eye out for the dog, which routinely chased their Humvees when they departed.

Life on the run, however, was taking a toll on the dog. He had lost a tooth and been bitten in the neck. In late December, Dennis found Nubs near death in freezing temperatures. The dog had been stabbed with a screwdriver.

Dennis rubbed antibiotic creme on the wound and slept with Nubs to keep him warm.

"I really expected when I woke up for watch he would be dead," Dennis wrote. "Somehow he made it through the night."

Dennis thought he had seen the last of the dog days later when his squad headed back to its command post some 65 miles away. He couldn't take the dog with him and watched as it tried to follow the Humvees away from the border.

Two days later, while Dennis and a comrade were working on a Humvee, he looked up and saw the dog staring at him.

"Somehow that crazy damned dog tracked us," he wrote Jan. 9.

But the reunion was short lived. Military policy prohibits having pets in war zones, and Dennis was given four days to get the dog off the base or kill him.

The decision was easy: Nubs was going to San Diego. The logistics, though, were anything but easy.

With help from his Iraqi interpreter, Dennis managed to find a Jordanian veterinarian to get the care and paperwork needed to get the dog to the states. He also negotiated the red tape to get Nubs across the border into Jordan.

His family and close friends helped raise the $3,500 needed to get the dog from Amman, Jordan, to San Diego, said his mother, Marsha Cargo.

"I just can't believe it. Out there in the middle of nowhere these two find each other," Cargo said.

A colleague in San Diego agreed to care for the dog and have it trained until Dennis returns in March from Iraq.

"We anticipate a real steep learning curve for Nubs," Capt. Eric Sjoberg said. "We want him to learn to just be a dog."

For now, though, Dennis will settle for the knowledge that Nubs is finally safe — and waiting for his master to follow him.

H/T: Ace

In Memorium: Randal "Deacon" Simmons

By all accounts, a truly great man.
The world is a worse place without him.





Jack Dunphy reports on his funeral. Go read it.

H/T: Curt

Bob Lutz - Hero of the Day

"Global Warming is a total crock of shit!"

GM exec stands by calling global warming a "crock"

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp Vice Chairman Bob Lutz has defended remarks he made dismissing global warming as a "total crock of s---," saying his views had no bearing on GM's commitment to build environmentally friendly vehicles.

Lutz, GM's outspoken product development chief, has been under fire from Internet bloggers since last month when he was quoted as making the remark to reporters in Texas.

In a posting on his GM blog on Thursday, Lutz said those "spewing virtual vitriol" at him for minimizing the threat of climate change were "missing the big picture."

"What they should be doing in earnest is forming opinions, not about me but about GM and what this company is doing that is ... hugely beneficial to the causes they so enthusiastically claim to support," he said in a posting titled, "Talk About a Crock."

GM, the largest U.S. automaker by sales and market share, has been trying to change its image after taking years of heat for relying too much on sales of large sport-utility vehicles like the Hummer and not moving faster on fuel-saving hybrid technology.

"My thoughts on what has or hasn't been the cause of climate change have nothing to do with the decisions I make to advance the cause of General Motors," he wrote.

Lutz said GM was continuing development of the battery-powered, plug-in Chevy Volt and other alternatives to traditional internal combustion engines.

GM is racing against Toyota Motor Corp to be first to market a plug-in hybrid car that can be recharged at a standard electric outlet.

Lutz has previously said GM made a mistake by allowing Toyota to seize "the mantle of green respectability and technology leadership" with its market-leading Prius hybrid.

A 40-year auto industry veteran who joined GM earlier in the decade with a mandate to shake up its vehicle line-up, Lutz is no stranger to controversy.

As part of a campaign against higher fuel economy standards, Lutz wrote in a 2006 blog posting that forcing automakers to sell smaller cars would be "like trying to address the obesity problem in this country by forcing clothing manufacturers to sell smaller, tighter sizes."

Automakers ended their opposition to higher fuel standards in 2007 when it became clear that proposed changes would become law with or without their support.

In December, President George W. Bush signed a law mandating a 40 percent increase in fleetwide fuel economy by 2020, the first substantial change in three decades.

(Reporting by Kevin Krolicki, editing by Toni Reinhold)

Officer down...

Senior Corporal Victor Lozada-Tirado
Dallas Police Department
Texas
End of Watch: Friday, February 22, 2008

Biographical Info
Age: Not available
Tour of Duty: 20 years
Badge Number: 5761

Incident Details
Cause of Death: Motorcycle accident
Date of Incident: Friday, February 22, 2008
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available

Senior Corporal Victor Lozada-Tirado was killed in a motorcycle accident while providing a dignitary escort for a United States Senator who was a candidate for President.

The motorcade was traveling on Houston Street when Corporal Lozada-Tirado's motorcycle struck a curb and crashed. He was transported to Methodist Central Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Corporal Lozada-Tirado had served with the Dallas Police Department for 19 years. He is survived by his wife and four children.

It's too bad that Cpl. Lozada-Tirado had to lose his life while protecting such a morally-bankrupt POS like Hillary Clinton, someone who has shown obvious disdain for LE and the military. He was a far better person than she is.
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Olivia Newton-John

One of the many great things Australia has put out (so to speak).



How hot was she, back in the day?

Dayum!



And please, don't ask me where I come up with this stuff...

What an idjit!

If you're going to do this in that type of venue, you'd better be sure she's going to say yes.

Moron.

Must have one of these...

Democrats are TRAITORS.

H/T: Flopping Aces

CMS

Chronic Marine Syndrome by BGen Mike Mulqueen USMC (Ret)

Symptoms to look for are:
1. Pride in oneself and the organization they represent.
2. A strong willingness to put in extra attention to detail to get the job done. 3. May wear articles of Marine clothing; T-shirts, jackets, watches, well into their 80's.
4. Will not hesitate to stand up or put their hand over their heart, or even salute when the National Anthem is played.
5. Does not succumb easily to political correctness.
6. Is sure of who they are.
7. Is often either respected or hated by others, due to their abilities and talents.
8. May donate toys to needy kids at Christmas.
9. Some have been known to wear their hair in a high and tight well into their 90's.
10. Will look you in the eye when talking to you.
11. Will give you a firm handshake.
12. Knows what honor, courage and commitment mean.
13. Can usually be found in some type of leadership position in whatever organization they work for.
14. Will often regard their drill instructors with the same respect as their parents.
15. Often found in either law enforcement or various professions.
16. Is extremely thorough at what they do.
17. Does not wear a bunch of patches to adorn their uniform. Their title of Marine is often sufficient.
18. Often arrives at work earlier than expected. If they wear a shirt and tie in their job, you might see the tie clip. between the third and fourth button centered.
19. Had spent time training at one of two places; Parris Island or San Diego. 20. May be able to field strip their rifle, up to 60 years after leaving active duty.
21. Can recite the nomenclature of the M1, M14 or M16.
22. May often have his pencils sharpened to a perfect precision point.
23. Will not back down from a fight. Other symptoms include willingness to take on a challenge and maintaining a positive attitude in the face of adversity.

Yes, CMS is real, and very hard to treat. The person with this condition often utters phrases such as Once a Marine always a Marine, or OooooRah. Some may even say Semper Fi on many occasions. It is best if you know someone with this condition to just leave them be. These people tend to be fiercely loyal to the Marine Corps. Folks, this condition, although not curable can be treated.

Some successful treatments have included;
1. Frequent visits to the base where they last served or looking at their Marine memorabilia
2. Get them around other Marines to help them flourish. They need other Marines who have shared the same experiences
3. Have them get memberships in organizations such as the Marine Corps League, The Marine Corps Association, Together We Served or have them join http://www.leatherneck.com/
4. Some may require extra special attention such as buying items from grunt.com or watching movies about the Marine Corps, this is only natural and nothing to be afraid of. Whatever you do, remember that Chronic Marine Syndrome must be managed carefully. For example: In Michigan, a young man attempted to mug a Marine Korean War veteran who had advanced stages of chronic Marine Syndrome. It wasn't pretty! The mugger was severely beaten and required multiple stitches. Remember folks, Chronic Marine Syndrome is real, while there may not be a cure, we can live with it. Any questions, please see your local Marine. or go to 1-800-IMA-Marine for more information. Thank you for your time.

Warning: Risks of Chronic Marine Syndrome may include a severe ass whippin' to those who attempt to start a fight with Marines.

Remember not everyone gets this condition; onset often occurs after being given the title Marine, since a select few earn this title, not everyone will develop CMS.

H/T: Theo Spark

Idiot...

H/T: Sniper

To the love of my life...

This made my whole month!

Kristina Ripatti gives birth to son

By Brent Hopkins Staff Writer

The doctors and nurses gathered around Kristina Ripatti, waiting and hoping for a miracle.

The retired Los Angeles police officer had spent plenty of time in hospitals in the past year and a half, recovering from a bullet to the spine suffered in the line of duty.

But this was different. She could feel nothing below her chest, and her once powerful body was limp.

“Push!” the doctor growled.

He had a scalpel and a suction machine at the ready in case something went wrong.

Ripatti bore down with all the force she could in her abdomen. Long dormant muscles began to work. A tiny head appeared.

At 4:37 p.m. Wednesday, the paralyzed ex-cop from Redondo Beach gave birth to a blue-eyed, black-haired, 5-pound, 8-ounce, 19-inch, healthy baby boy. Nurses swabbed and swaddled him, and the family went back up to her private room at the Little Company of Mary Hospital in Torrance.

“What’s his name?” grandmother Jean Pearce asked.

“Lucas Braeden,” Ripatti breathed.

“A baby!” cheered 2-year-old Jordan Pearce, a big sister for the first time.

Nearly 10 hours earlier, a red pickup slid into the handicapped space in front of the hospital with Ripatti in the passenger seat.

LAPD Officer Tim Pearce stepped from the cab, strode around to the other side of the truck and lifted out his wife. She settled into her wheelchair and readied herself.

She’d faced down gangsters, gave chase into crack houses and felt bullets chew into her skin. She’d lost her career, struggled to adjust to life in a wheelchair and life in the public eye. But now Ripatti was nervous.”He keeps saying, `Just relax,”‘ she said. “Oh yeah, I’m not doing anything here. Just having a baby.”

She cranked her arms and rolled into the hospital under her own power. Eight months pregnant, due to give birth in a few hours, she wanted no help as she checked herself into the maternity ward.

“Wow, is she that cop from `Extreme (Home) Makeover?”‘ a cleaning woman asked as Ripatti rolled past, referring to the reality show that featured the Redondo Beach home of Ripatti and her husband in the fall of 2006. “I love her.”

Sgt. Deana Stark, her best friend, and Detective Joe Meyer, her partner, and her family accompanied her inside. With assistance out of the chair, she settled into bed and a nurse hooked her up to monitors.

The baby’s heart began thumping softly, the beat filling the room.

Ripatti nervously chewed a fingernail.

“Even though we already had one, it’s like starting all over again,” she said, eyeing the monitor. “Looks like I just had a contraction.”

The long wait began. The hours ticked by. A doctor administered an epidural and Ripatti settled in, unfeeling but still uncomfortable.

She talked sports, police work and baby names.

“We had all this time to think about it, and what does Tim do?” she said. “At 1 a.m., he asks me, `What do you think of this one?”‘

They cycled through the options, male and female. Still nothing final. Jaden for a girl? Braeden for a boy? The crowd tossed out middle names. The conversation shifted to what point it will be OK for everyone to cry as her friends rubbed her feet and offered encouragement.

Speculation ran 10-to-1 it would be a boy.

Midafternoon, her water broke. By 4:15 p.m., she was ready to go. The family suited up in scrubs and wheeled her to the operating room.

“We’re having a baby,” she hummed on her way out the door.

And, half an hour later, she did. The family rejoiced as nurses wheeled her back into her room. Siblings, parents, grandparents and friends leaned in to see the latest addition to the huge extended family.

“Look, it’s your brother, Lucas,” Ripatti told Jordan, her eyes filled with tears as her daughter stroked the baby’s face.

Then her fellow cops leaned in, one by one, quietly offering congratulations and kisses. The baby had fine hands for a future police officer, they agreed, or perhaps a football player.

“Now I can say it,” she said, softly. “I wanted a boy.”

Pearce stood proudly at her side, beaming as he looked down at his newborn son. He leaned down and kissed his wife’s forehead, then stepped aside to let the nurses go back to work.

“I could see it in her eyes,” he said. “This made her whole again.

“When she had this baby, she took back her life.”

H/T: Positive LEO
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Pretty Cool!

Ofc. Randal Simmons laid to rest.

A police officer salutes while "Amazing Grace" is played on bagpipes at the burial service for LAPD Officer Randal Simmons at Holy Cross Cemetery.

The motorcade for Simmons' funeral makes its way along Slauson Avenue to the cemetery.

Funeral for LAPD SWAT Officer Randy Simmons

LAPD SWAT Officer Randall "Randy" Simmons, killed last week when his team stormed the house of a suspect that had just killed his family, was laid to rest in Los Angeles this afternoon (2-15-08).

Some ten thousand people attended his funeral, including law enforcement officers and SWAT Team members from as far away as Canada and Israel. Also in attendance were former Chief Daryl Gates, who founded the team, and Simmons' partner, Officer Michael Veenstra, who was wounded in the shooting. The funeral was shown live on local television and was the largest in LAPD history.

After the church service, a procession several miles long, lead by several hundred Motor officers and followed by miles of police cruisers of every possible color and paint scheme, wound its way to Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City. The route was lined with Los Angelos, many of whom held hand to heart or saluted Officer Simmons' as he was escorted past, and many more who applauded and waved to his family, who rolled down their windows and waved back.

Throughout the day, Randy Simmons was remembered as a loving family man, a dedicated police officer and team member, a mentor for at-risk children and a devoted man of God. Judging by the size of his funeral, he was an exceptional man, indeed.

Godspeed, brother.

R-41 David, End of watch.

If you would like to donate to Officer Simmon's Memorial Fund, you can contact the Los Angeles Police Federal Credit Union.

LA Times article here.

H/T: CTT

Amazing Feats...

This happened about five months after the first time (of many) that I flew into Baghdad Int'l. I remember it very well. I got the powerpoint pics in the email afterwards. All I could think was "holy s***!".

Those guys showed some remarkable airmanship that day.

If they'd been military guys, they'd surely have gotten the DFC.

Well done, boys.

Obama

'Nuff said...
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H/T: CTT

LLOTD*

*Low Level Of The Day

Taking a dirt nap...

Being Armed Off-Duty Saved This Atlanta Police Recruit’s Life
February 11th, 2008

An Atlanta Police Department recruit officer was sitting in his personal car when he was approached by a teenager armed with a shotgun. The off-duty recruit officer had been sitting in his car in the parking lot of his apartment complex using the free community wireless Internet on his laptop when the criminal approached him and ordered the officer out of the car. The quick-thinking Atlanta officer used his laptop computer to conceal his hand as he brought his pistol to bear on the offender. The criminal, looking at the computer instead of his victim, never saw the officer’s gun that ended his criminal activity.

While someone, I’m sure, mourns the loss of the criminal teen, society should not. Robbing people at gunpoint suggests this criminal would have been a parasite on the Atlanta community, causing much pain and grief for innocent, law-abiding people in his community.

The lessons of this story for officers should be the following:

1. Always carry a firearm off-duty. You may never need it, but if you do, nothing else is an adequate substitute.
2. Do not hesitate to act. When your life is in danger, decisive action with overwhelming force is your best chance for survival. Hesitation betrays your intentions. The moment when you can act will pass quickly, and you may not get a second chance.
3. Be careful where you sit. Although this officer was off-duty in his personal car, the lesson is applicable to on-duty status as well. Most of us sit in our car to do our paperwork. Make sure you choose a relatively safe location to do so. A place where you can see who is approaching and where you have an escape route is good. Sitting with another officer so he or she can watch while you write (or type) is best.
4. Continue shooting until the threat is neutralized. Early reports indicate that the Atlanta police recruit shot the criminal multiple times and the perp did not return fire. If a threat is worth shooting once, it is worth shooting twice…or 15 times. As long as someone is a threat, continue perforating them with bullets. Cease fire only when the threat is no longer a threat.
5. Always watch the suspect’s hands. This officer concealed the movement of his hands until he had brought his firearm to bear on the perp. Reverse the situation, and you are the cop on a traffic stop ordering the driver out of the car. Do not be distracted…watch the hands!

The following article is the “news” that was published by the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Notice how they downplay the fact that the officer had a gun pointed at him. Also note that the writer failed to mention the gun pointed at the officer was a shotgun. So much for fair journalism.

Stay safe!

Teen shot by police recruit identified
No charges filed against ex-Marine

No charges have been filed against an Atlanta Police recruit who shot and killed a teenage boy who allegedly tried to rob him of a laptop computer, authorities said.

Forest Park Police continued their search Sunday for a second person who may have acted as a lookout in the alleged robbery attempt.

DeMario Jackson, 14, of Atlanta, was killed outside the Parkside Crossing apartments by the unidentified Atlanta Police recruit, who told police the teen tried to rob him about 12:15 a.m. Saturday.

Forest Park police Lt. Amy Wright said Jackson suffered more than one gunshot wound.

According to the recruit, Jackson “was definitely not alone,” Wright said.

The recruit told police that Jackson pulled a gun on him as he sat in his vehicle in the parking lot of the apartment complex. He was logged on because the complex offers free wireless Internet service, Wright said.

The recruit said he heard a tap on the driver’s side window and looked up to see Jackson standing next to the car. Wright said the recruit believed Jackson wanted his laptop. The recruit could not roll down his window because it was broken, so he began to open the door, Wright said.

As the recruit stood up, she said, he grabbed a handgun that he had at his side and hid it with the laptop. Then the recruit fired at Jackson, killing him.

The recruit, who police said they would probably not identify until Monday, had been in the Marine Corps and lives at Parkside Crossing. She said he is attending the Atlanta police academy.

Wright said the department’s investigation continues but that the shooting appears to be self-defense.

From Blue Sheepdog

Driving to work this morning...

...there was nothing worth worth listening to on the radio, so I decided to listen to a CD. I happen to have the "Best of" CD of Depeche Mode. I popped it in and started listening. Man they had some good songs. I didn't necessarily like them that well when they were big (in the early 90's), but it's a nice walk down memory lane...

This is one of my favs:



To add: the chicks in this video are/were totally hot!

21 WAYS TO TELL YOU ARE A GOOD LIBERAL

1. You are against capital punishment, but support abortion on demand.

2. You believe that businesses create depressions and governments create prosperity.

3. You believe that guns in the hands of law-abiding Americans are more of a threat than Nuclear weapons technology in the hands of Iranians and North Korean communists.

4. You believe that there was no art before Federal funding.

5. You believe that global temperatures are less affected by cyclical documented changes in the earth's climate and more affected by soccer moms driving SUV's.

6. You believe that gender roles are artificial but being homosexual is natural.

7. You believe that the AIDS virus is spread by a lack of federal funding.

8. You believe that the same teacher who can't teach fourth graders how to read is somehow qualified to teach those same kids about sex--in the face of all the cases of teacher sex abuse of children in the news.

9. You believe that hunters don't care about nature, but loony activists who have never been outside of New York, Boston, San Francisco, or Portland do.

10. You believe that self-esteem is more important than actually doing something to earn esteem.

11. You believe that Mel Gibson spent $25 million of his own money to make "The Passion of the Christ" for financial gain only.

12. You believe the NRA is bad because it supports certain parts of the Constitution, while the ACLU is good because it supports certain parts of the Constitution.

13. You believe that taxes are too low, but ATM fees are too high.

14. You believe that Margaret Sanger and Gloria Steinem are more important to American history than Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Edison, and Alexander G. Bell.

15. You believe that standardized tests are racist, but racial quotas and set-asides are not.

16. You believe that the only reason socialism hasn't worked anywhere it's been tried is because the right people haven't been in charge and not enough money was spent on its programs.

17. You believe that Hillary Clinton is in a normal marriage.

18. You believe that homosexual parades displaying transvestites in drag should be constitutionally protected, and manger scenes at Christmas should be illegal.

19. You believe that illegal Democrat Party funding by the Chinese Government is somehow in the best interest to the United States.

20. You believe that this message is a part of a vast, right-wing conspiracy.

21. You believe that it's OK to give Federal workers the day off on Christmas Day but it's not OK to say "Merry Christmas."

Instructional video

An oldie but goody. All true.

Just remember...

When seconds count, the Police are only minutes away.

7 Dead In N. Illinois University Massacre
Gunman Killed Six, Then Himself On Stage In Front Of Panicked Students

DE KALB, Ill (CBS) ― A gunman opened fire on a geology class at Northern Illinois University Thursday afternoon, killing six people before taking his own life on stage as panicked students ran and ducked for cover.

NIU President John Peters said a total of 22 people were shot, including the gunman. Four people, including the gunman, died at the scene; three others died later at area hospitals.

Four of the victims have been identified. They were: Ryanne Mace, 19, of Carpentersville; and Julianna Gehant, 32, of downstate Meridian, according to the DeKalb County coroner's office.

All of the gunman's victims were students.

Do you need yet another reason to carry a gun?

How many more of these will occur before people wake up and take responsibility for their personal safety?



Update:

This is from this ABC News story: "Police arrived on the scene within two minutes of the first reports, but it was too late to stop the gunman."

Did you just read that?

Read it again.

It took ONLY two minutes for the Police to get there, but that WASN'T SOON ENOUGH. When this type of thing happens again, it'll be quick and you'd best be ready.

Are you?

Speed, surprise and violence of action.

That's what its all about.
.

Well done Canucks...

Cunning Stunts...

WTF...

The Clinton's support Terrorists.

Read the whole thing, it's pretty damning.

On Aug. 7, 1999, the one-year anniversary of the U.S. African embassy bombings that killed 257 people and injured 5,000, President Bill Clinton reaffirmed his commitment to the victims of terrorism, vowing that he "will not rest until justice is done." Four days later, while Congress was on summer recess, the White House quietly issued a press release announcing that the president was granting clemency to 16 imprisoned members of FALN. What began as a simple paragraph on the AP wire exploded into a major controversy.

Mr. Clinton justified the clemencies by asserting that the sentences were disproportionate to the crimes. None of the petitioners, he stated, had been directly involved in crimes that caused bodily harm to anyone. "For me," the president concluded, "the question, therefore, was whether their continuing incarceration served any meaningful purpose."

His comments, including the astonishing claim that the FALN prisoners were being unfairly punished because of "guilt by association," were widely condemned as a concession to terrorists. Further, they were seen as an outrageous slap in the face of the victims and a bitter betrayal of the cops and federal law enforcement officers who had put their lives on the line to protect the public and who had invested years of their careers to put these people behind bars. The U.S. Sentencing Commission affirmed a pre-existing Justice Department assessment that the sentences, ranging from 30 to 90 years, were "in line with sentences imposed in other cases for similar terrorist activity."

I wonder what the MSM will do with this?

Read it here.

Idiot of the day

If not the Century...

"Terrorists kill people. Weapons of mass destruction have the potential to kill an enormous amount of people," Mr. Bloomberg told reporters after addressing the U.N. General Assembly, but "global warming in the long term has the potential to kill everybody."

What a f*cking buffoon.

Drudge Link

One of my favorite Cop shows ever!

This is the opening to the very first show:


I miss that show...

No Comment...

It should say "If you have one, you'll see it", but whatev...

Shamelessly stolen from: The Sniper

I have a plan to destroy America

I have a plan to destroy America
by Richard D. Lamm

I have a secret plan to destroy America. If you believe, as many do, that America is too smug, too white bread, too self-satisfied, too rich, let’s destroy America. It is not that hard to do. History shows that nations are more fragile than their citizens think. No nation in history has survived the ravages of time. Arnold Toynbee observed that all great civilizations rise and they all fall, and that “an autopsy of history would show that all great nations commit suicide.” Here is my plan:

1. We must first make America a bilingual-bicultural country. History shows, in my opinion, that no nation can survive the tension, conflict and antagonism of two competing languages and cultures. It is a blessing for an individual to be bilingual; it is a curse for a society to be bilingual. One scholar, Seymour Martin Lipset, put it this way: “The histories of bilingual and bicultural societies that do not assimilate are histories of turmoil, tension and tragedy. Canada, Belgium, Malaysia, Lebanon all face crises of national existence in which minorities press for autonomy, if not independence. Pakistan and Cyprus have divided. Nigeria suppressed an ethnic rebellion. France faces difficulties with its Basques, Bretons and Corsicans.”

2. I would then invent “multiculturalism” and encourage immigrants to maintain their own culture. I would make it an article of belief that all cultures are equal: that there are no cultural differences that are important. I would declare it an article of faith that the black and Hispanic dropout rate is only due to prejudice and discrimination by the majority. Every other explanation is out-of-bounds.

3. We can make the United States a “Hispanic Quebec” without much effort. The key is to celebrate diversity rather than unity. As Benjamin Schwarz said in the Atlantic Monthly recently, “The apparent success of our own multiethnic and multicultural experiment might have been achieved, not by tolerance, but by hegemony. Without the dominance that once dictated ethnocentrically, and what it meant to be an American, we are left with only tolerance and pluralism to hold us together.” I would encourage all immigrants to keep their own language and culture. I would replace the melting pot metaphor with a salad bowl metaphor. It is important to insure that we have various cultural sub-groups living in America reinforcing their differences, rather than Americans emphasizing their similarities.

4. Having done all this, I would make our fastest-growing demographic group the least educated. I would add a second underclass, unassimilated, undereducated and antagonistic to our population. I would have this second underclass have a 50 percent dropout rate from school.

5. I would then get the big foundations and big business to give these efforts lots of money. I would invest in ethnic identity, and I would establish the cult of victimology. I would get all minorities to think their lack of success was all the fault of the majority. I would start a grievance industry blaming all minority failure on the majority population.

6. I would establish dual citizenship and promote divided loyalties. I would “celebrate diversity.” “Diversity” is a wonderfully seductive word. It stresses differences rather than commonalities. Diverse people worldwide are mostly engaged in hating each other–that is, when they are not killing each other. A “diverse,” peaceful or stable society is against most historical precedent. People undervalue the unity it takes to keep a nation together, and we can take advantage of this myopia.

Look at the ancient Greeks. Dorf’s “World History” tells us: “The Greeks believed that they belonged to the same race; they possessed a common language and literature; and they worshiped the same gods. All Greece took part in the Olympic Games in honor of Zeus, and all Greeks venerated the shrine of Apollo at Delphi. A common enemy, Persia, threatened their liberty. Yet, all of these bonds together were not strong enough to overcome two factors … (local patriotism and geographical conditions that nurtured political divisions …)” If we can put the emphasis on the “pluribus,” instead of the “unum,” we can balkanize America as surely as Kosovo.

7. Then I would place all these subjects off-limits–make it taboo to talk about. I would find a word similar to “heretic” in the 16th century that stopped discussion and paralyzed thinking. Words like “racist”, “xenophobe” halt argument and conversation. Having made America a bilingual-bicultural country, having established multiculturalism, having the large foundations fund the doctrine of “victimology,” I would next make it impossible to enforce our immigration laws. I would develop a mantra –”because immigration has been good for America, it must always be good.” I would make every individual immigrant sympatric and ignore the cumulative impact.

8. Lastly, I would censor Victor Davis Hanson’s book “Mexifornia” –this book is dangerous; it exposes my plan to destroy America. So please, please–if you feel that America deserves to be destroyed–please, please–don’t buy this book! This guy is on to my plan.

“The smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum.” –Noam Chomsky, American linguist and U.S. media and foreign policy critic.

Sounds good to me.

H/T: Michelle Malkin

While you were watching the Super Bowl...

Two Navy SEALs were killed in Iraq, during an operation to find/kill the terrorists that used two Downes girls as suicide bombers.

The two were Chief Petty Officers Nathan H. Hardy and Michael E. Koch. They were only 29 yrs old.


Remember them.

H/T: B5 and Flopping Aces

Berkeley Redux

This time in Toledo, OH.

And it's also time to play "Guess the party"!

Hint: It doesn't start w/ "R".

Mayor to Marines: Leave downtown
He says urban exercises scare people

By JC REINDL
BLADE STAFF WRITER

A company of Marine Corps Reservists received a cold send-off from downtown Toledo yesterday by order of Mayor Carty Finkbeiner.

The 200 members of Company A, 1st Battalion, 24th Marines, based in Grand Rapids, Mich., planned to spend their weekend engaged in urban patrol exercises on the streets of downtown as well as inside the mostly vacant Madison Building, 607 Madison Ave.

Toledo police knew days in advance about their plans for a three-day exercise. Yet somehow the memo never made it to Mayor Finkbeiner, who ordered the Marines out yesterday afternoon just minutes before their buses were to arrive.

"The mayor asked them to leave because they frighten people," said Brian Schwartz, the mayor's spokesman.

"He did not want them practicing and drilling in a highly visible area."

So after a brief stop at a friendly base in Perrysburg Township, the Marines by early evening were back on their way home to Grand Rapids.

"I wish they would have told us this four hours ago," Staff Sgt. Andre Davis said.

Sergeant Davis, who traveled ahead of the five-bus convoy, stepped from his vehicle into downtown about 3:20 p.m. and was told by a city employee that the mayor wanted him and his soldiers packed up and out by 6 p.m.

Members of the 1st Battalion, 24th Marines have trained periodically in downtown Toledo since at least 2004 and most recently in May, 2006.

Past exercises have involved mock gun fights, ambushes, and the firing of blank ammunition.

The Marines' buses set a course for their battalion's Weapons Company headquarters in Perrysburg Township as soon as they heard of the mayor's decision.

The Reservists' visit was no surprise to Toledo police, who Tuesday issued a news release to media outlets on behalf of the Marines that asked Toledoans not to be startled by the sight of camouflaged soldiers toting M16 rifles.

Police officers were awaiting the Marines' arrival yesterday afternoon and had set up a roadblock at Madison Avenue and Huron Street.

"There was apparently a break in communication somewhere between the mayor and the police department," Mr. Schwartz said.

"Where that break was, we don't know yet."

Maj. Jeffrey O'Neill, the company's commanding officer, said he was disappointed by how events played out yesterday, especially because Toledo had been a gracious host for Marine exercises in the past.

"You can go to military ranges for live fire [exercises], but there's no way to duplicate the urban jungle unless you actually train inside a city," Major O'Neill said.

Mr. Schwartz said the Marines declined Mayor Finkbeiner's alternative offer for them to practice their urban patrol tactics inside the former Jones Junior High School, 550 Walbridge Ave.

Major O'Neill said he was not aware of such an offer.

A pair of Marines spent the better part of yesterday setting up the Madison Building with generators, heaters, radios, and food to become the unit's overnight headquarters.

After receiving the mayor's request to leave, they began the task of moving the equipment back into an armored Humvee.

Lance Cpl. Brandon Bukrey-McCarty, 22, recalled taking part in the company's 2006 urban patrol exercise in downtown Toledo.

He said he learned skills during that exercise that proved useful during the unit's deployment to Fallujah, Iraq, in 2006-2007.

"It was extremely helpful," Corporal Bukrey-McCarty said.

The training "got me used to looking up on rooftops, looking around every alley, every open door."

Sergeant Davis and other company leaders estimated the total cost of the aborted training exercise, including travel, at roughly $10,000.

Before he left downtown for Perrysburg Township, Major O'Neill said he was not sure what type of training, if any, his unit could undertake without access to downtown Toledo.

"But we're Marines," Major O'Neill said. "We'll adapt and overcome."

Carty Finkbeiner is a disloyal faggot.
.

Watch Moonbats in action!

Berkeley update.



These people are complete loons!

They're so completely crazy, it's funny.

The stupidity of the US gov't knows no bounds.

YGBFSM!

Looking Under a Rock: FBI and CIA Hit New Low in Recruitment Drive

by Steven Emerson
IPT News
February 8, 2008

In a frightening and bizarre turn, the two chief agencies tapped with safeguarding America's national security have started advertising in a publication that can only be described as objectively pro-terrorism.

The online edition of the Washington Report for Middle East Affairs (WRMEA), a publication linked to former Congressman Paul Findley, who once described himself as "Yasir Arafat's best friend in Congress," features recruiting advertisements seeking new agents for both the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency.

WRMEA's history of support for Hamas, other terrorist groups and individual terrorists is well known. Currently on the front page of its website, right in the center, is an homage, constituting of a collection of articles and hagiographies, to convicted Palestinian Islamic Jihad operative Sami Al-Arian. (see the ad at right)

Al-Arian was investigated by the FBI for a decade and finally brought to trial in 2005, prosecuted by the Department of Justice in Tampa. In April 2006, Al-Arian pled guilty to one count of "Conspiracy to make or receive contributions of funds, goods or services to or for the benefit of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a Specially Designated Terrorist."

This is the same Al-Arian who once told an audience of Muslims, "Let us damn America. Let us damn Israel. Let us damn their allies until death. Why do we stop?" (emphasis added)

And yet, the same FBI that sought to convict him as a terrorist is now advertising for recruits on a pro-Al-Arian (and pro-terrorist in general) website. The pro Al-Arian orientation is part of a long and documented history of pro-Islamic terrorist features published by WRMEA during the past 15 years. Reviewing just about any issue of this Saudi-financed magazine would clearly determine its pro terrorist bias.

It is the same lack of judgment that led the Department of Justice to set up a recruitment booth and serve as a co-host for the annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) convention in September. Four months earlier, the same Justice Department designated ISNA as an unindicted co-conspirator in Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF) case as part of the Hamas-Muslim Brotherhood conspiracy in the United States. U.S. Reps. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., and Sue Myrick, R-NC, protested the Justice Department's recruitment effort with ISNA in a letter to then-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales asserting that ISNA is a Jihadi organization.

The Justice Department blithely dismissed the concerns, saying other organizations did it, too. That was true. That willful blindness was evident in the fact that, in 2006, the Department of Defense dispatched Deputy Secretary Gordon England to an ISNA conference and sent another representative to the annual conference in 2007. The Department of Homeland Security was there, too, with its recruitment booth adjacent to the Hizb ut-Tahrir, a radical movement which endorses the use of violence and is devoted to establishing a global Islamic state governed by Shariah law.

After that embarrassment, the FBI placed a full-page recruiting ad in the November 2007 issue of ISNA's magazine Islamic Horizons. "Help us light the way to a new era of understanding," the ad reads.

Just what types of recruits are the FBI and CIA looking for? Apparently, these agencies do not learn from experience, even recent experiences. Just last November, former FBI and CIA agent Nadia Nadim Prouty was arrested and pled guilty to fraudulently obtaining American citizenship through a sham marriage, and using her illegally acquired status to attain employment with both the FBI and CIA. Prouty is the sister of Elfat Al Aouar, who is the wife of Talal Chahine – the Detroit-based restaurateur linked to Hizballah.

While it is too soon to determine where the breakdown occurred in allowing a Hizballah operative to infiltrate the FBI and the CIA, it is clear that these ads fall into the disturbing pattern where background checks of Islamic militants are not being pursued properly.

Prouty used her security clearance, in violation of the law and her job responsibilities (for which she also pled guilty), to do background searches into the FBI investigation of her sister and brother-in-law. But that hasn't stopped the FBI – or the CIA for that matter – from reaching out to a pro-terrorist crowd for its next batch of recruits. And it is Americans who will likely pay dearly for the fact that the FBI and CIA have failed to learn the obvious lesson from the Prouty case. And Prouty aside, the fact that the CIA and FBI are advertising for employment on a site that lionizes an Islamic Jihad kingpin and other terrorist groups should frighten everyone.

Congress should immediately investigate.

WTF?

Let's see, advertise in a pro-terrorist publication. Because no one with nefarious intentions would ever think of applying.

Makes sense to me.

H/T: LGF

One more reason to hate McCain

What is he hiding?




More here.

To add: I'm not saying he's hiding anything about his time as a POW. What he did or didn't do as a POW will get no recrimination from me.

What I have a problem with is the fact that he shut down any attempts to try to find POW's or any information about them. I've heard this about him for years.
That stinks to high Hell.

In Memory Of...

Ofc. Randal (Randy) Simmons

Los Angeles Police Department

EOW: Thursday, February 7, 2008

Age: 51
Tour of Duty: 27 years
Badge Number: 22885
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Thursday, February 7, 2008
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Dead at scene

Officer Randy Simmons was shot and killed as he and other members of the Los Angeles SWAT Team made entry into a home at approximately 12:30 am. The team had been deployed to the home after a suspect inside called 911 and claimed to have murdered three family members.

As the team entered, the suspect opened fire, striking Officer Simmons and a second officer. Both officers were immediately transported to Northridge Medical Center, where Officer Simmons succumbed to his wounds approximately 30 minutes later.

Officer Simmons had served with the Los Angeles Police Department for 27 years. He is survived by his wife, two children, parents, and three sisters.

Officer Simmons is the first LAPD SWAT officer to be killed in the line of duty.

It's my Godson's birthday today!

He's three and he's pretty awesome, not to mention cute.

Like his Godfather...

Happy Birthday, Shane!

Raise a toast to a Hero!

Cpl. Sean A. Stokes USMC, from Auburn California, was Killed In Action in Iraq on 30 July, 2007.

Today would've been his 25th birthday.

As his birthday present, the Commandant of the Marine Corps awarded him the Silver Star in a ceremony at Camp Pendleton, for his heroic actions in Fallujah in November, 2004. The medal was presented to his parents and brother.

Cpl. Stokes served in my old Infantry unit - 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment. (Rein), twenty years after I served in it.

On the day of his birth, I wish Cpl. Sean Stokes a posthumous Happy Birthday and a heartfelt thank-you for giving the last full measure of devotion to his Country and Corps.

Semper Fidelis Sean!


If you do nothing else today, read the links below. You owe him that much.

Blackfive
The Adventures of Moose (Sean's Platoon Commander)
A Marine who held up his end of the bargain


P.S. I had the privilege of recently meeting Sean's fiancee, Nicole Bessier (SSgt., USMC) and she's a great person and I'm sure, a great Marine. She's friends with a good friend's son, Ryan, who's in Iraq right now. On his third combat tour.

S/F Ryan!

Hillary's Monica impression

LOL!

wAR pRON

DON'T F*CK WITH THE USA.


EVER.






H/T: Sniper
.

Election Day

I endorse Mitt Romney for the Republican nominee.

Yeah, so?

Just thought I'd throw that out there.

I can't vote for Romney today, though. I renounced my Republican voter affiliation the last time they pissed me off, so no I'm an Independent Voter.

Voting for McCain is only SLIGHTLY better than voting for
Shillary or Osama.

McCain will get creamed by whomever the DemocRats put up in Nov.
At least Romney has a chance to beat them. McCain doesn't.



I'm thebronze and I approved this message!

And all the girlies say "I'm pretty fly for a white guy!"

What a 'tard...



Can he be ANY whiter?

Sweet lowlevel!

Nuther one...

Berkeley PD: Worthless

YGBFSM!!!!

http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=41464

How not to drive a HMMWV!

Cost - $10,000 damage to HMMWV.
2 NCO's held financially liable.
4 Article 15s.
Letters of reprimand.

I'm with Ann!

Although it'd be a cold-day-in-Hell when I vote for a DemocRAT, I agree with her assessment of McCain the liar.

I forgot to post this earlier in the week...

LawDog posted an excellent treatise about self-defense. Read it!

Meditations on Self Defence

Lot of folks consider self-defence -- the act of defending yourself against immediate unlawful force -- to be a right.

If pressed, they will state that self-defence is a right granted to them either from their Deity, or from Nature, depending on their personal faith.

In this -- to my way of thinking -- they are correct.

However, I put it to you that self-defence is not only a right, but it is a duty. Indeed, it is my opinion that a citizen of a community or society is obliged to defend themselves from unlawful immediate uses of force against their persons.

I see that I have lost some of my Gentle Readers. Allow me to elaborate.

All creatures on this little green dirtball operate on a Reward/Risk system: is the potential reward of this action worth the risk of this action? If so, you do the thing -- if not, you do something else.

In this, humans are no different than animals -- except that we can calculate delayed risks for immediate rewards. We understand that an act we do today, may have dire consequences next week.

One of the things I have noticed about critters during my law enforcement career is that they lack this ability. The possibility of getting caught by the police next week, or next month, has very little influence on the average critters Risk/Reward calculations.

Getting caught, injured or killed during the crime? Yes. Getting caught, injured or killed after committing the crime? Not so much.

Now, let us ponder two more things.

The first is that police can not and should not be everywhere at all times. Omnipresent police activity is physically impossible and morally repugnant -- it is the hallmark of an Orwellian dystopia.

Second is that a critter is not just the sum of his attack on one victim. A professional critter will victimize tens, scores -- or even hundreds -- of innocents during his career.

A community -- a society -- can not tolerate, nor can it bear the cost, of ten, twenty or a hundred victims of one human predator. Dealing with human predators -- critters -- is such a moral imperative that societies will go to great lengths -- taxation; awarding of powers of arrest, search and seizure; prisons -- to mitigate the damage done by critters.

The only problem is, is that critters don't factor getting arrested after the fact, or going to prison, in their Risk/Reward calculations. If they did, they'd be citizens instead of critters.

Which brings us to the obligation of self-defence.

For a critter, each successful attack upon a citizen -- "successful attack" being any attack during which the critter is neither injured, nor presented with the possibility of being injured -- lowers the Risk part of his calculations.

As an example, Joe Critter does his first mugging. He is probably almost as scared as his victim, he's not sure he wants to do this -- but ... hey! He got ten dollars (or sex, or a feeling of power, or whatever) but more importantly: he didn't get hurt.

The next time, he's a little less scared. He's a little more sure. He gets five dollars (or sex, power, whatever) -- and he's not hurt. He feels his activities present less risk to him each time he has a successful (he didn't get hurt) attack.

Twenty or a hundred victims later, Joe Critter not only doesn't think mugging is risky, but the lack of risk has caused him to consider other, more violent actions. Because these actions don't get him hurt.

On the other paw, suppose Joe Critter is in a place where self-defence is expected and encouraged. He figures the reward of wallet money is worth the risk of Rehabilitation Through Reincarnation, or Bodily Injury and attempts a mugging. The victim defends him or her self, and let us postulate that Joe scrambles away with powder burns and a bloody furrow along the ribs.

In contrast to the above example, for mugging number 2, the Risk part of Joe's Risk/Reward assessment climbs, rather than lowers. Death -- instead of being a philosophical possibility of his actions, is now a very real, concrete fact. But, Joe is young and stupid, so he has at it.

This time -- self-defence being expected and encouraged by this society -- Joe crawls to the nearest trauma centre with a .38-calibre lead slug in his belly. Pretty sodding quickly, the Risk (Death or Serious Bodily Injury) is going to outweigh the Reward (wallet funds), and Joe is going to turn to an activity with a lower Risk variable.

Not only does society as a whole indirectly benefit from the latter self-defence scenario, but the future ten, twenty or a hundred victims of Joe's predation benefit directly from his change of vocation.

And this example, Gentle Readers, is the exact reason why I throw things at the TeeVee every time some talking head in a uniform, or some Brady idiot, steps up to the microphone and solemnly parrots, "We don't recommend that people fight back" or "The best thing is to cooperate and let the criminal have what he wants."

Bushwa. Codswallop. Horse-puckey.

Every-stinking-time this variety of oral spew is uttered, it goes into critter Risk/Reward assessments and encourages them. Hells bloody bells, these sorts of statements encouraging -- rewarding -- critters should be grounds for arresting the idiots uttering them.

Evil is not defeated by submitting to it. Evil is not defeated by running away from it; nor is evil defeated by ignoring it.

Evil is only defeated by fighting back.

You may, or may not, think you have the right to self-defence -- and that is between you and your conscience. As a member of society -- as a member of a community -- you have the duty, the obligation, and the responsibility of self-defence.

LawDog

Bravo.
.

Heh!

That was okay. But this is REALLY funny!

We're fighting for this little girl...

This is a terrible story, but also a great story.

We're there because of this little girl.

Nazia Hookum Darr, 16, was brutally attacked here by her 40-year-old husband of three months on Christmas day. The man - who is still on the run from police - broke 16 of his wife's teeth, shaved her head, cut off her nose and ears and poured scalding water on her hands and feet. The young woman is set to receive plastic surgery in Kabul following close coordination between the Afghan government and Provincial Reconstruction Team Qalat, a joint U.S. Air Force and Army unit stationed here. (U.S. Air Force photo/Lt. Col. Michael Gauron. Date Taken: January 29th, 2008. Location: Qalat, AF.)

Abused Afghan Woman to Receive Plastic Surgery
By Air Force Capt. Bob Everdeen
Provincial Reconstruction Team Qalat

QALAT, Afghanistan — A 16-year-old woman brutally attacked by her husband in December is set to receive plastic surgery in Kabul following close coordination between the Afghan government and Provincial Reconstruction Team Qalat, a joint U.S. Air Force and Army unit stationed here.

Nazia Hookum Darr was beaten and disfigured by her 40-year-old husband of three months on Christmas Day. The man—who is still on the run from police—broke 16 of his wife’s teeth, shaved her head, cut off her nose and ears and poured scalding water on her hands and feet. The abuse started shortly after their wedding and escalated until the attack on Dec. 25.

PRT Commander Army Lt. Col. James Bramble found out about the attack the day after it happened. “The story was so compelling that we immediately contacted the provincial governor and arranged a trip to the local hospital to visit the doctors taking care of the girl,” he said.

The following day representatives from the PRT met with Zabul province Chief of Staff Gulab Shah and the local Director of the Interior, and then traveled to Zabul Provincial Hospital to meet with Darr in the women’s ward. Due to Afghan sensitivities, only a female translator and chief physician were allowed to meet with the abused woman.

“Nazia’s wounds were healing well and she was well taken care of by the Afghan physicians,” said Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Gauron, PRT chief medical officer. “The hospital staff, especially the female nurses, really rallied around Nazia. We made frequent visits, bringing soft foods and paying for some of her meals. Some of the time she was in excellent spirits and other times you could see the fear in her eyes.”

The hospital staff relayed Nazia’s fears of retribution from her husband or his family members as part of Pashtunwali, a pre-Islamic-era honor code that is still practiced by the majority of Afghans in this rural province of the country.

My husband “was an older man with gray hair and he was mean to me from the time we met,” Darr said. “I had no choice; my mother died when I was young and my stepmother arranged the marriage. I’m afraid of him. He’s a former Talib. In Qalat my husband was jobless and was always complaining about economic problems. Two weeks after we moved into our new home he beat me for no obvious reason.”

According to Afghan national police, the man’s first wife died about a year earlier under suspicious circumstances. His anger at his current wife comes from suspicions of infidelity, accusations his wife adamantly denies.

“There was an outpouring of sympathy,” Gauron said. “We had American military surgeons, two international nongovernmental organizations and the Afghan National Military Hospital all volunteering to help. After discussing the options, we elected to facilitate Nazia’s transport to Kabul and have Afghans take care of her.”

Gauron worked medical issues through Dr. Gary Davis, an American surgeon working with the NMH in Kabul. Davis obtained consent from plastic surgeon Gen. (Dr.) Mohammad to accept the patient transfer. Meanwhile, Bramble worked the political side, obtaining permission of Zabul province Gov. Delbar Jan Arman to allow military transport of Nazia to the hospital in Kabul. Arman coordinated with the Minister of Women’s Affairs in Kabul to take care of Nazia while she is in the capital city.

In mid-January, Nazia was flown by military airlift to Kabul.

“Once we were in Kabul, I immediately called Dr. Davis and the Minister of Women’s Affairs,” Gauron said. “The doctor immediately arranged a bed for Nazia, and the Director of Women’s Affairs sent a male and female escort to bring Nazia to the hospital.”

“When we made the transfer with the representatives at the gate, Nazia cried,” said PRT Interpreter Spozhmae Karzai. “We will miss her, but we’re so happy she is getting to the plastic surgeons. She deserves it.”

The tragic event provided living proof that governance is making progress and is being accepted by the people of Afghanistan. Thanks to the diligent work from numerous Afghan agencies the young girl will get the surgery she requires to regain her dignity and have an opportunity of living a normal life.

God Bless the USA!

ABM*

*Anybody But McCain

Thomas Sowell says it best, as usual...

McCain’s Crooked Talk
He lies about Romney’s record.

By Thomas Sowell

We have been hearing for years that Senator John McCain gives “straight talk” and his bus has been endlessly referred to as the “Straight Talk Express.” But endless repetition does not make something true.

The fact that McCain makes short, blunt statements does not make him a straight-talker.

There are short, blunt lies — and he told a big one on the eve of the Florida primary, when he claimed that Mitt Romney had advocated a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq.

Even the Washington Post, which supports McCain, said that the senator “has distorted the meaning” of what Governor Romney said, that Romney “has never proposed setting ‘a date for withdrawal.’ ”

During Mitt Romney’s ABC News interview that Senator McCain twisted, Governor Romney was asked by the interviewer whether he agreed with President Bush’s veto of congressional legislation setting a timetable for withdrawal, and whether Romney as President would veto similar legislation.

“Of course,” was Romney’s reply. There was no ambiguity.

Confronted with his lie on Wednesday night’s debate, McCain blustered and filibustered in a manner reminiscent of Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny, when he was caught in a lie during a navy inquiry.

When confronted with any of his misdeeds, Senator McCain tends to fall back on his record as a war hero in Vietnam.

Let’s talk sense. Benedict Arnold was a war hero but that did not exempt him from condemnation for his later betrayal.

Being a war hero is not a lifetime get-out-of-jail-free card. And becoming president of the United States is not a matter of rewarding an individual for past services.

The presidency is a heavy responsibility for the future of the nation, including generations yet unborn. Character and integrity are major qualifications.

The passing years and a friendly media have allowed Senator McCain’s shortcomings in the character and integrity department to fade into the background.

McCain was one of “the Keating Five” — senators who used their influence to try to protect a failing savings & loan company, which also became the subject of a corruption investigation.

During the 2000 primaries, the Associated Press reported Senator McCain’s joking about people with Alzheimer’s.

This went beyond bad taste because (1) it was known at the time that Ronald Reagan was suffering from Alzheimer’s and (2) the media to whom McCain was pandering hated Ronald Reagan.

It is especially ironic now to see McCain wrapping himself in the mantle of President Reagan.

With the momentum of his Florida primary win behind him, going into the “Super Tuesday” primaries, John McCain has now been restored to the position of front runner that the media gave him at the outset.

Other Republicans are jumping on his bandwagon. This may have less to do with McCain’s own qualities than with the prospect of getting Cabinet posts or Supreme Court appointments as rewards for their political support.

It may all look like a done deal. But the McCain-Kennedy bill giving amnesty to illegal aliens looked like a done deal two years ago — until the public realized the truth behind the spin and brought that sell-out to a screeching halt.

Super Tuesday may be the voters’ last chance to bring the so-called “straight talk express” to a screeching halt.

It should be called the “sell-out express” because McCain has sold out not only with amnesty for illegal aliens but also sold out the First Amendment with the McCain-Feingold “campaign finance reform” bill that was supposed to take big money out of political campaigns, but blatantly has not.

McCain also sold out on judicial nominations by making his own side deal with the Democrats, undercutting Republican attempts to stop Democrats from filibustering judicial nominees instead of voting them up or down.

This is quite a record for someone running as a straight talker.

— Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution.