Welcome to our 41st Carnival of Cordite! This will be the last issue of 2005: next week is the end of final exams, the week after is Christmas, and the week after that is New Year's, and some of us have other obligations. We'll be back the first full week of 2006.
Also, you may have noticed that we are a day late this week. Sorry about that, but my hosting service was temporarily down. But I'm not complaining, because they were busy adding some great new features to help combat spam. Spam is the enemy! So hopefully, this week's Carnival of Cordite will be worth the wait.
And so, without further ado...
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Military matters:
This week, of course, is the 64th Anniversary of the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Never Forget.
Here's a great video of actual air combat footage from World War II!
I usually link to posts, not comments, but this one bears linking!
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Personal protection:
Hell in a Handbasket reviews some less-than-lethal self-defense gloves. Maybe off-duty cops need these, since more and more police departments no longer allow off-duty carry. Publicola has more. Countertop wants to know if this is racist.
Speaking of less-than-lethal, AnarchAngel has his own must-read views on the matter.
In light of Florida's revised self-defense laws, other states are considering revising their own. ROFASix has questions about the language of this one. Any of our crack lawyers want to address it?
Sophistpundit thinks that we should have simple laws for owning guns, along with harsh sentences for committing crimes with them. Speaking of which, Countertop has some ideas of his own. Meanwhile, TFS Magnum looks into root causes of gun crime.
Thirty Second Thoughts has lessons learned from a recent shooting at the mall.
The Revolutionary War Veterans Association is concerned about a possible worst-case scenario.
Confederate Yankee doesn't think we need to protect ourselves against pen guns, but against stupidity:
When you put the barrel of a loaded gun to your head and pull the trigger three times... well, it isn't an accident. It is stupid. It is a tragic waste of a promising life. But it is no accident when a product works as designed.
More from Ronocracy.
I can see the warning labels now... And, speaking of stupidity...
Uncle thinks maybe we all need protection against the VPC... More... Even more from Jerry the Geek.
Of Arms and the Law reminds us why we ALL need protection against Janet Reno and the ATF. But, apparently, the Department of the Interior doesn't think anybody needs protection against lions and tigers and bears (oh my). And it appears that some Canadian politicians think they need protection against the NRA.
No Speed Bumps has more on the Canada situation.
Still more.
All of this makes Toys in the Attic fear we are losing the war.
Mr. Completely has a different take, inviting pro-gun Canadians to move South. I actually like this idea, as such people will probably not want to vote for socialist democRats, and as Washington State has been a "too close to call without cheating" voting bloc for some time now, an influx of hard-core pro-gun voters could be a tipping point!
Blogonomicon addresses the question "why carry?"
I carry it for them. As a father, and as a more or less decent human being with a fairly well-honed conscience, I would be failing them if I didn't do what I had to to provide them with food, clothing, shelter, and protection.
Amen. This story from the Civilian Gun Self Defense Blog is in line with that way of thinking.
It Comes in Pints? analyzes the language of an anti-gun e-mailer.
The Ten Ring reports on grumblings from unusual opponents of the San Fran Ban:
San Francisco’s “turn ‘em in” law is scaring at least two lesbians who seem to be politically liberal. Marilyn Hurst and her partner B.C. like to shoot guns and know that their guns and their gun skills could save their lives. They have a couple of handguns and a long-gun or two secreted in their home. They’ve thought through a number of scenarios in which getting to a gun may be the difference between life and death. The two women practice regularly and they’ve become responsible for their own safety.
They describe themselves as, “…exactly the kind of people that should have weapons.” Such a description is especially true in gay-friendly San Francisco. However, Hurst and B.C. joined the National Rifle Association because they like its literature and possibly because they hope NRA will help protect their gun rights.
Are there people who shouldn't have the right to carry a concealed weapon? Ah, Shoot has a bizarre story out of North Dakota where the blind lead the stupid.
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Unlike certain political hacks, we of the Carnival of Cordite believe that hunting, while cool and all, comes in second to personal and civil defense. Therefore, we put the hunting stuff beneath them:
It looks like Cowboy Blob might be sharing a good family meal! Usually, I have to unload the groceries from the trunk, in the cold Oregon rain. I grumble. But with a trunk-load like this, I wouldn't complain!
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Miscellaneous cool stuff:
Lest Darkness Fall shares videos of bullets hitting things. Sweet! And Blogonomicon tests .50 BMG rounds for penetration. And don't take a katana to a machine-gun fight!
Leah Guildenstern demonstrates perfection:
By the way, here is a shameless bleg: scroll back up to the top of the page and click on the first ad on the left, where you can buy your own shirt just like Leah's!
What's better than a Gold Cup 1911? How about TWO Gold Cup 1911's?
Speaking of... LoboWalk has a very informative post on step-by-step complete dis-assembly of the Springfield 1911, including many fine photos like this:
Speaking of the 1911, Michael Bane is anxious to test fire what looks like one of the best custom 1911 pistols I have ever seen...
...and his new little SIG looks fun, too!
AnarchAngel is sportin' some wood:
If you can't afford a nice new gun of your own, maybe you can get a virtual gun. Hell in a Handbasket has a review of a new video game for gun enthusiasts. Hey, it takes all types...
Mr. Completely has a follow up on his previous posts about his C-More sight. Speaking of Mr. Completely, see if you can find him in this picture...
Speaking of pictures, Jerry the Geek has a lot of them! And if you are a reloader, he thinks you need one of these:
While we are talking reloading, Anthroblogogy is talking tumblers!
View From the Porch asks the eternal question:
What's more important: Food and beer? Or a Siamese Mauser? Any good gun junkie knows the answer to that one.
Meanwhile, SondraK has sent along a handy "how to" guide for the proper techniques for hip-hop-gangsta-rappa machine gun shooting.
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The Holy Day (what do you think holiday means?) Season approaches. That's CHRISTMAS, for those of you in Palm County:
Cowboy Blob is putting together a Christmas-themed shooting gallery.
Countertop is continuing the Gun-a-Day Advent Calender... just scroll through his blog and click on the Advent pictures! And Christmas came early at the Countertop household:
'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a Kel-Tec P3AT:
Chris Muir of Day by Day fame once again demonstrates why Sam is the hottest chick in the comics world:
And all this leads us to our discussion question of the week:
I want you to write... A THEME! Write a theme on "what I want for Christmas."
(first one to name that movie wins... uh... a hearty smile!)
Dear Santa,
Forget the Red Ryder. I want one of THESE!
Ho ho ho!
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Blog of the week award goes to... The Countertop Chronicles! The Gun-a-Day Advent Calendar idea guarantees 25 days of gunny goodness for the Holy Days! And that's IN ADDITION to all those other great posts. Good job!
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That wraps up this week's (er, this YEAR'S) Carnival of Cordite. We'll see y'all back here in 2006! Until then, you can catch up on any previous issues you may have missed. And see what else is going on in the world thanks to the power of the ubercarnival.
Merry Christmas!
Happy New Year!
KEEP YOUR POWDER DRY!
Excellent! Go well with the exams!
Posted by: -keith in mtn. view | Saturday, 10 December 2005 at 09:36 PM
Tried to trackback to this and got this error message:
Pinging http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/3831095...
Problem: Server said 'In an effort to combat malicious comment posting by scripts, I've enabled a feature that requires a weblog commenter to wait a short amount of time before being able to post again. Please try to post your comment again in a short while. Thanks for your patience.'
WTF, over?
Posted by: NOTR | Sunday, 11 December 2005 at 10:07 AM
12 12 05
Hey there: I found you via Dirtcrshr! Cool blog with wondrous advice. I just went shooting for the first time a couple of weeks ago and am already hooked! I will review some of the pics and suggestions you have given. Best wishes with you exam (I finish tonight) and Have a Happy Holiday Season. I cannot wait for your next edition!!!
Posted by: Mahndisa | Monday, 12 December 2005 at 01:41 PM