Big Brother is here

The UK is fast forwarding to becoming a police state. The latest installment of this sorry tale is the news that we're to get a system whereby the movements of all vehicles will be tracked and the data maintained in a national database for a minimum of two years.

There are already plans afoot to extend the storage period to five years. The police are also in talks with supermarkets and petrol stations to incorporate their feeds into the system. The police say that this will be a boon for "crime prevention".

How long before they add facial recognition to the system and feed in CCTV from all public places and private businesses? For the greater good of course.

Hat tip to Survival Blog.

Spare A Moment

My household is in full swing gearing up for Christmas Day tomorrow- my eldest daughter is particularly impressed by NORAD's Santa tracker which you can access here. I'm hoping that you're all having a good Christmas too. Take a moment though to think about the servicemen of the Coalition currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan- indeed, everywhere in the world- placing themselves in harm's way far from home for us. Think too of those who have fallen in the fight against terrorism and whose families will be spending Christmas without their loved ones.

I'm proud and thankful for the service they are giving to their respective countries.

Why not head on over to Soldier's Angels and give them a little Christmas present?

Upcoming Movies in 2006

Not a complete list by any means but it's a good indication of the movies coming to cinemas next year.

Happy Christmas everyone.

BDS- Hollywood Style

Another actor suffering from Bush Derangement Syndrome opens their mouth. This time it's Viggo Mortensen-

"I'm not anti-Bush; I'm anti-Bush behavior. In other words, I'm against cheating, greed, cruelty, racism, imperialism, religious fundamentalism, treason, and the seemingly limitless capacity for hypocrisy shown by Bush and his administration. Cindy Sheehan and how badly Katrina was bungled are two shots to the heart. I hope the beast does fall down soon."

Maybe he should give the politics a miss and stick to acting.

Kerry The Jerk

I've been taking a little break from blogging and staying abreast with current affairs- the news is just too damn depressing sometimes. Well, today I dipped my toe back into the blogosphere and practically the first thing I read is that John Kerry thinks it's US troops doing the terrorising in Iraq. I'm dumbfounded. Is this guy for real? Is this what the Democrat Party has sunk to in their hatred of Bush and his policies?

"And there is no reason, Bob, that young American soldiers need to be going into the homes of Iraqis in the dead of night, terrorizing kids and children, you know, women, breaking sort of the customs of the--of--the historical customs, religious customs."

I think I got back in the water too soon. Thank goodness this jerk didn't win the election.

Be Careful

This has to be one of the most terrifying stories I've ever read-

"It turns out that someone went through an unlocked gate, and through the unlocked door from the back yard in to the garage. (Both of these security holes have now been fixed.) The dachshunds apparently made a serious effort to stop the intruder, but this guy was very intent on getting in.

He went to the room of Brett's daughter who was visiting from college (Brigham Young University), and actually entered her room--but by this point, Brett was up, and beginning to try and figure out why the dogs were making such an extraordinary racket. His wife then told Brett that there was an intruder. Brett grabbed a gun, and started searching the house. The intruder apparently hid in a bathroom until Brett got past him, and then ran down the stairs and out the front door."

This was the second night that the intruder was at the house- and he entered it despite the two dogs, passed a snoozing son crashing on the couch and went upstairs in a fully occupied home to the daughter's bedroom. And it wasn't an isolated dwelling either. Luckily nothing happened but it's a stark reminder that your home security always has to be as tight as it can be. Don't take any chances folks. And if you live somewhere where you can own a firearm, go buy one and learn how to use it. Now.

The End Days of Great Britain

While Kevin of Smallest Minority muses on the future America faces in March of the Lemmings

A couple of important events happened in the past few days. First of all there was a bit of a fuss about the EU flag being flown over British council offices. As the laws stand it is unlawful to fly anything but the national flag unless prior permission has been approved. Of course citizens of Northern Ireland have been subjected to the Irish tricolour being flown for years.

In the case mentioned the council approved their own decision to fly the EU flag. What this story doesn't mention is that Labour plans to change the law next year so that the EU flag does not require special permission to be flown- in essence granting it the same status as our national flag.

The second event which occurred is the EU decision to create pan-European law- seven offences have been listed which it will force member states to enforce. For the first time in British history law-making will not be done by our duly elected representatives. The EU has more crimes in mind to add to the list at a later date.

" (and it's a bleak outlook, one that worryingly seems to becoming more common), I'm actually watching in real time as Great Britain self-destructs, actually voluntarily handing over our sovereignty to the montrous European Union. The announcement is strongly opposed by Britain and many other member states. The Commission is using powers granted by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, the EU’s supreme court, and governments fear that there is little they can do to prevent it. The court ruled that the EU had the right to require member states to create criminal offences, and could dictate the length of prison sentences."

The European Superstate moves another few steps closer.

Outrageously Petty Behaviour

From The War on Guns-

"A Gary, IN woman was robbed at knifepoint at a CITGO station--and the clerk refused to dial 911! If you have a blog, please consider telling your visitors about this, along with CITGO's contact information."

Unbelieveable. What's worse is that this seems to be standard practice, not an isolated incident.

The word "boycott" springs to mind.

Jacko's Anti-Semitism

My second Michael Jackson post- who'd have thought it?

The "singer" was recorded on voice mail blaming his financial troubles on a Jewish conspiracy-

"They suck ... they're like leeches ... I'm so tired of it," Jackson told former adviser Dieter Wiesner in one of the messages. "The Jews do it on purpose."

Nothing to do with his spending money like it's going out of fashion then?

The Great Betrayal

A bill went before Parliament which would allow 150 terrorists on the run from justice to return to Northern Ireland-

"paramilitary fugitives would have their cases heard by a special tribunal, but, if found guilty, would be freed on licence without having to go to jail."

The bill by passed by 310 votes to 262.

Secretary of State Peter Hain bizarrely "denied the fugitives were getting an easy option."

"It's part of bringing closure to NI's past, just as after the Agreement over 400 paramilitary prisoners were released on licence."

Yes, and it was bad enough seeing convicted murderers released from prison and back onto the streets where they had committed their crimes in an effort to appease an active terrorist organisation. Blair has sent a loud and clear message to all terrorists that Britain is not strong in the face of terrorism- rather, if the terrorists keep up their activities long enough, the British will buckle under the pressure and give in to any demands they make simply to secure "peace". Blair's Britain is a nation I no longer know- never before have we grovelled before aggressors like this, never before has this nation surrended to a band of ruthless bullying murderers for the sake of a quiet life. It is a contemptible, spineless reaction in the face of terrorism. An insult to all of those who were murdered in the long war against the IRA. A final full-stop in the victory of terrorism over a free government.

"Ulster Unionist MP Lady Sylvia Hermon said the bill was "so morally wrong and so morally bankrupt" she could never vote for it."

If only a few more MPs had the sense of this woman.

Quote of the Day

Alcohol

Tobacco

Firearms

Should be a convenience store, not a government agency.

With thanks to Collegiate Warrior.

Border Problems At Crisis Level

There are already serious issues concerning border control along the US-Mexico frontier. Perhaps it's worse than we all thought though.

Murdoc highlights the story of, wait for it, an illegal immigrant in the business of smuggling people across the border, working for the Border Patrol. Bad enough that they didn't discover that he was an illegal immigrant when they hired him but he also had been arrested for trying to smuggle people into the country.

As if that wasn't bad enough, War on Guns has the sort of story I didn't think I'd ever hear-

U.S. Border Patrol agents were backed down this week by armed men, dressed in what appeared to be Mexican military uniforms and carrying military weapons, who seized a captured dump truck filled with marijuana from the U.S. agents and dragged it across the border into Mexico with a bulldozer.

So in essence the United States was invaded by a foreign enemy armed with military weapons. What was the local law enforcement response to this affront to American sovereignty? Well, I'll let Hudspeth County Chief Deputy Mike Doyal tell you that-

"We are very fortunate ... no one got hurt. Everyone had the presence of mind not to cause an international incident, or start shooting."

Isn't that fabulous? Doesn't it make you sleep easier in your bed at night knowing that men like this are all that stand between you and foreign drug dealers, terrorists and invaders? Isn't it fortunate that foreigners were able to reclaim their illegal drugs from law enforcement agents?

Time to sort this mess out once and for all- I'm not sure anyone wants to see what it looks like when it gets worse than it already is.

BTW, this clown Doyal also says that the bulldozer used "is believed to be used regularly to make makeshift crossings over the Rio Grande." If that's the damn case why don't they take it out of operation? Seriously, what's going on down there?

Galloway's A Traitor

I don't know what else this man has to say to be charged with treason-

"So I say to you, citizens of the last Arab country, this is a time for courage, for unity, for wisdom, for determination, to face these enemies with the dignity your president has shown, and I believe, God willing, we will prevail and triumph"

He might be speaking about America but America is Britain's ally in this fight- he had chosen his side and it's not the side the British people are on.

Why the hell haven't charges been pressed against him for lying to the Senate?

The Punishers

I'm sure that by now you'll have read Michael Yon's latest dispatch, The Punisher's Ball. As always it's a wonderfully written tribute to the men of Deuce Four and I just wanted to take the time to highlight this piece. And to take a moment to thank Bruce Willis for attending the ball-

"Bruce had taken the time to fly in as a guest speaker to thank the members of the Deuce Four. He gave the most impassioned speech I can remember, using clear terms—including some well-selected profanities to describe terrorists—to express his admiration and support for the troops. Bruce’s speech was so accurate in his description of the war, and so charged with emotion, that he seemed ready to lead the troops himself back to Iraq; and they were ready to go."

It was damned decent of him to take the time to meet with the men of Deuce Four. However there is another part of the post I want to take a moment to focus on-

"The ghosts of the fallen took their places alongside widows and family of the fallen comrades. One young wife, overtaken by despair, had taken her own life shortly after her husband died in Mosul. The widow of another soldier killed in an attack that I witnessed was left alone to parent four children. A mournful fog skirted the edge of the dance floor all night."

I try to give a few dollars to Soldiers Angels whenever I can but I'd also like to do something for the widows of those men who have fallen in Iraq. I can't begin to imagine what suffering they're going through right now and in a few weeks some of these kids are going to have their first Christmas without their father. If ANYONE can suggest a way to aid them please leave a comment here. Is there a charity set up already to help provide for these women and children?

I'll look into it and see what's around but if you know of something drop me a line here.

UN At Work

We all heard of the single UN employee sacked over the Oil-for-Food scandal-

"Joseph Stephanides, fired May 31...violated staff rules by showing preference to one bidder for an oil-for-food contract."

Of course this being the UN, that bastion of ethics, this isn't quite the end of the story- they've hired him back.

Yep, that's right, he broke the rules in a scandal that benefited a homicidal dictator but the UN has decided that his punishment for doing so was, "too harsh."

Too harsh? No mention of the untold suffering caused to the Iraqi people by the UN's corrupt and simply inept management of the program. Stephanides was sent a letter, signed on behalf of Kofi Annan, stating that-

"the sanction that was imposed on you has been reconsidered in light of all the circumstances in the case and the principle of proportionality."

I'm nit sure what circumstances have been revealed which make this man's crimes less serious, but a UN appeals board has not only reinstated him, they've also,

"issued a written apology and paid about $200,000 — about two years' back pay — for the emotional suffering and damage to his reputation caused by Annan's handling of his case."

If this is UN justice as work they can keep it.

Retraction

It seems that I may have been a bit hasty in providing the link published on Clayton Cramer's blog on the weapons/tactics report from Iraq. The article has also appeared elsewhere on the internet (Survival Blog and Nation of Riflemen forum to name but two) and its provenance has been called into question for several inaccuracies in the piece. Most recently it has appeared on Frontpage. I have contacted them to see if they can shed further light on the author of the article.

The inaccuracies are minor and it could just be that they are a matter of the father of the Marine making simple errors in reporting what his son has told him. They are as follows-

Interceptor body armour weighs 16lbs, not 6lbs.
The M24 rifle is issued to Army, not Marine units and although the action was designed to handle the .300 Win Mag cartridge, it has apparently not been issued in that calibre.
There has been no mass re-issue of the .45ACP pistol or the M14 rifle. According to mil-blogger Collegiate Warrior (currently serving in Iraq) the only units using the .45ACP sidearm are the MEU SOC and SF.
The AK-47 is not chambered for .308 Russian (although as 7.62mm NATO and .308 are generally considered interchangeable this may explain that rare terminology).

It is fairly minor stuff but it has been enough to make some people question the veracity of the whole piece. My advice is to not take it as gospel- and instead read the Collegiate Warrior's take on the piece.

Of course this shows the power of the blogosphere- factual inaccuracies are quickly called into question. I'll keep updating the story as and when more information becomes available.

Bush Gets It!

Maybe George Bush understood it all along but couldn't say it for some reason or another, but now that time is past- and he's (finally!) come out and said it-

"These militants believe that controlling one country will rally the Muslim masses, enabling them to overthrow moderate governments in the region, and establish a radical Islamic empire that reaches from Indonesia to Spain. If they are not stopped, the terrorists will be able to advance their agenda to develop weapons of mass destruction, to destroy Israel, to intimidate Europe, to break our will and blackmail our government into isolation. I make you this solemn commitment: That's not going to happen so long as I'm the President of the United States."

And he doesn't stop there either, he pounds those Democrats who were pro-war at a time when it suited them to be and are now anti's-

"Some of our elected leaders have opposed this war all along. I disagreed with them, but I respect their willingness to take a consistent stand. Yet some Democrats who voted to authorize the use of force are now rewriting the past. They are playing politics with this issue and they are sending mixed signals to our troops and the enemy. And that's irresponsible.

As our troops fight a ruthless enemy determined to destroy our way of life, they deserve to know that their elected leaders who voted to send them into war continue to stand behind them. Our troops deserve to know that this support will remain firm when the going gets tough. And our troops deserve to know that whatever our differences in Washington, our will is strong, our nation is united, and we will settle for nothing less than victory."

As I'm sure others have already said- Bush needs to give speeches just like this from now on. He has to get this message out- and should have been doing so for about a year now.

Liberal Dubai

It looks like Michael Jackson is settling in Dubai quite nicely. He "accidentally" used the ladies bathroom at the Ibn Battuta Mall to adjust his make-up. He just happened to be wearing a ladies' headscarf at the time. When he "mistakenly" was in the ladies' room he was spotted by a woman teacher, who began to take photos of him on her mobile.

"He then reportedly chased after her and a mall security guard attempted to take her phone. She refused to hand it over without compensation and called the police."

Unfortunately for her the police told her she wasn't entitled to any compensation and they took the phone anyway. It looks like the Dubai police are quite happy for Michael to pop into the ladies' whenever he wants. Who'd have thought that they would be so open and liberal about men using the ladies' facilities?

Sadly Celebrity Nooz doesn't have direct links, but the blog can be found here.

Senate Delays Affected War on Terror

"The Defense Department's top spokesman expressed frustration last week over a slow Senate confirmation process that he said is causing challenges within the department."

This is not good- politicians are playing games while the DOD is trying to fight a war. The problem is that Gordon England, the current Secretary of the Navy, has been nominated for the post of Deputy Defense Secretary, but due to Senate foolishness, he has not been able to take over that position. In the meantime, his replacement as Secretary of the Navy has been confirmed- so two men are not stuck in the same post.

"It is unfortunate, and it isn't necessary," Di Rita [the Army spokeman] said of the delays. "The people nominated are eminently qualified people. Nobody has addressed their qualifications. It all has to do with other, unrelated issues, and it's unfortunate."

Politics and point-scoring is one thing, but when the Army's top PR guy has to come out and says that they are having problems because of the Senate's refusal to make an appointment enough is enough- time for the politicians to do what they're getting paid for and stop degrading their own country's ability to conduct a war.

Blair won't back down

It looks like Tony Blair's need to have a 90 day detention period hasn't gone away- despite his embarrassing defeat in the Commons. He intends to re-introduce the legislation with a single caveat, a one year sunset period. If the security services cannot show that it has been used repsonsibly and without curtailing civil liberties then Parliament will be able to get rid of the measure in a year's time. Of course, the chances of Parliament removing a piece of legislation that the police will then claim is "essential" are slim. Just in case this new measure is defeated the government also has another fall-back position- a 60 day internment period.

The compromise measure floated when Blair first introduced this measure was 28 days. In the space of a week, we've doubled the "compromise". The current period is 16 days. I suppose when 90 days is the choice, 60 seems a tad more reasonable.

And amid worries that the step is the first along the line towards a police state, the Labour Party mobilised senior police officers across the country to lobby for the new 90-day legislation. Former Conservative minister Stephen Dorrell has this to say-

“We need to ensure that the distinction is maintained between the process of policymaking, which is properly for the Government, and the enforcement of law, which is properly for police.”

Of course in Tony Blair's brave new world, the police can demand measures and those measures are then proposed as law. This is the same Blair who has done more to transform the British tradition of government than anyone in hundreds of years- and its not a coincidence that he's been stacking the House of Lords with Labour cronies during his time in power. They serve as less of a counter-balance to the excesses of the Commons now and more of a rubber-stamp for Blair policy.

Democrats Need New Hats

In a blow to the right wing uber-conspiracy to take over the world, students at MIT have uncovered one of the most ingenious pieces of propaganda of the VRWC- tin-foil hats don't protect your brain from mind-control signals, they actually serve to amplify them.

Now that the secret is out, the DNC and associated moonbats are expected to rush to alter their preferred headgear for something more effective.

Karl Rove is said to be in the final stages of drafting a contingency plan now that the secret is out. His top-rated mole in the moonbat movement, codenamed "the Deaniac", is due to release the new "information" to the masses this weekend.

In totally unrelated news, there are still NO plans for a draft. The VRWC timetable for the creation of a radio controlled zombie army has not been affected by the MIT leak.

Essential Read

This is a MUST READ for anyone interested in the military or Iraq- Clayton Cramer's awesome blog has a post detailing the opinions of a Marine serving in Iraq on the weapons used in that fight.

Here's a sample-

The M-16 rifle : Thumbs down. Chronic jamming problems with the talcum powder like sand over there. The sand is everywhere. Jordan says you feel filthy 2 minutes after coming out of the shower. The M-4 carbine version is more popular because it's lighter and shorter, but it has jamming problems also. They like the ability to mount the various optical gunsights and weapons lights on the picattiny rails, but the weapon itself is not great in a desert environment. They all hate the 5.56mm (.223) round. Poor penetration on the cinderblock structure common over there and even torso hits can't be reliably counted on to put the enemy down. Fun fact: Random autopsies on dead insurgents shows a high level of opiate use.

I'll say it again, time for the M16 weapon system to be replaced with something more reliable.

UPDATE- It seems that this article may not be 100% accurate. Please read here for more information.

Damn

It's Remembrance Day today- spare a thought for Sergeant First Class Alwyn Cashe and the other men of his squad-

He was commanding a Bradley fighting vehicle that was struck with a roadside bomb, catching fire. The loading ramp jammed, trapping eight inside. The crew was forced to escape through a much smaller hatch in the top of the vehicle. All but one made it out. The medic was left behind, apparently unable to get out. Without concern for his own life, my hero went back in to the burning vehicle to retrieve his friend.

As BlackFive reports, SFC Cashe died of the wounds he suffered that day. In addition-

Staff Sergeant Alexander died of his wounds on October 22nd, Sergeant Robertson died of his wounds on October 25th, Specialist Howe, who was going to try out for Special Forces after his tour in Iraq was over, died of his wounds on November 3rd.

SFC Cashe was, at least, surrounded by his family when he died. Take the time and read about this courageous man and keep him and others like him in your thoughts today.

Now this is frightening

The threat of a terrorist bio attack has always been a huge fear- well it seems that it might be much easier for terrorists to get their hands on the materials required than previously thought. A New Scientist investigation has discovered that-

Armed with a fake email address, a would-be bioterrorist could probably order the building blocks of a deadly biological weapon online, and receive them by post within weeks.

They contacted a number of companies involved in gene sequencing and found that they carry out virtually no security checks whatsoever- including screening the material they're asked to work on for their bioterror threat. Only five out of the sixteen companies, found via Google, screened every gene sequence they were asked to work on.

some firms freely admit that they run no sequence screens. "That's not our business," says Bob Xue, a director of Genemed Synthesis in South San Francisco.

Given San Fran's recent record this "nothing to do with me" attitude is hardly surprising. And it's despite the fact that open source "Blackwatch" software is available to scan for threats. The problem is that terrorists could,

order genes that confer virulence to dangerous pathogens such as the Ebola virus, and engineer them into another virus or bacterium. They could also order genes for a hazardous bacterial toxin - although many of these are also available by isolating the microorganisms from the environment.

So in effect a terrorist could create a super-Ebola-like virus to be used as a weapon. As terrifying as this possibility is, the response is utterly ineffectual-

The US National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity, set up last year to advise the US government on which advances in biology could be exploited by terrorists, is also considering the issue.

Avian flu is a threat which may or may not occur and yet governments are spending billions of dollars on the possibility of a pandemic- terrorists are a very real clear and present danger and yet there's no security set up with these firms to prevent highly virulent disease strains being "weaponised".

Must be a slow news day

The BBC has a story about how the president of Brazil watched a pirated DVD- just like hundreds of thousands of other people.

I cannot believe that this is a news-worthy item in any way.

Someone got paid to write that story. British TV licence-payers money in action.

American Citzens Pay for Palestinian Ammo

I've written before about the bad deal the United States is involved in- giving money to the Middle East hand over fist and receiving nothing in return but hatred. Seems that it's not just money that the Palestinians are getting from America now-

The Palestinian Authority security forces, many of whom either moonlight as members of various terror organizations or were hired directly from their ranks as part of negotiations between the groups and the ruling Fatah militia, will be receiving new ammunition over the next few days, including rifle bullets – paid for by the United States and delivered from Egypt with the approval of PM Sharon's cabinet.

Maybe it's time the US re-evealuated what exactly its taxpayers money is being used for.

What Hero Are You?

You scored as Indiana Jones. Indiana Jones is an archaeologist/adventurer with an unquenchable love for danger and excitement. He travels the globe in search of historical relics. He loves travel, excitement, and a good archaeological discovery. He hates Nazis and snakes, perhaps to the same degree. He always brings along his trusty whip and fedora. He's tough, cool, and dedicated. He relies on both brains and brawn to get him out of trouble and into it. Lara Croft 75% Indiana Jones 75% Neo, the "One" 71% Maximus 67% The Terminator 63% Batman, the Dark Knight 63% William Wallace 58% James Bond, Agent 007 58% Captain Jack Sparrow 54% The Amazing Spider-Man 42% El Zorro 13% Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

Thanks to Cowboy Blog for the link!

Betrayal

The British government likes to portray itself tough on terrorism, but closer to home things are much, much different.

The government has announced an "historic" review of 2,000 unsolved deaths in Northern Ireland- and British soldiers, some of whom served in SAS operations, could be facing criminal proceedings. The inquiry involves 160 police officers and is expected to last up to a decade. The cost will most likely exceed the Blody Sunday inquiry which cost £150 million.

Patrick Mercer, the shadow homeland defence minister and a former infantry commanding officer, said: "This is the most appalling betrayal of every British soldier who did his duty during the Troubles against a very treacherous enemy."

Bad enough that troops are to be put on trial for fighting terrorist killers- and that there are NO similar plans to investigate the terrorist atrocities carried out which remain unsolved- but it gets worse-

The disclosure [of the Army investigation] comes days after ministers admitted that dozens of IRA and Loyalist terrorists who are "on the run" will in effect be pardoned for their crimes, which will also form part of the review. Many of them are multiple murderers.

Peter Hain, the Northern Ireland Secretary, told MPs that terrorists on the run would be prosecuted, but a letter from David Hanson, the Minister of State for Northern Ireland, reveals that the terrorists will not be required to attend court and will be released on licence immediately.

Microsoft isn't ALL bad

They're certainly not the evil corporation that people paint them to be- they've made a deal with the British Library to scan 100,000 out of copyright books and to make them available online. That's about 25 million pages available for free.

MS has plans to expand the project to more titles in the future and they are paying an initial $2.5 million on the project.

Windows might not be perfect software but I'm much more fond of the company since they brought out XP- it's a bit clunky on old machines but it's a heck of a lot better than 98 and Millennium.

Sheehan is a Traitor

I hadn't thought that I'd ever want to post about Cindy Sheehan again but her speech at the San Francisco World Can't Wait event warrants close attention. Remember, this is the woman described as "the mother of the peace movement"-

"The people that are being killed in Iraq are not terrorists. They're citizens of Iraq, they're members of the human race. They're our brothers and sisters."

Got that? The people responsible for the death of her son are NOT terrorists.

These people have officially sided with the enemy in my opinion.

Thanks to zombie for covering the event. I honestly don't know how he could stomach it.

Sony the Hacker

Maybe this is widely known, but it's news to me. Sony has copyright protected its discs in a most underhand manner-

The software, called Extended Copy Protection or XCP, hides itself on your hard drive using techniques normally reserved for viruses, worms and trojans, which use similar "rootkits" to evade detection.

And if you notice it is there and try to remove it you may stop your computer recognising its CD drive.

The discs prevent the user from using any other player than the one on the disc to listen to the music on your PC.

Fair enough they want to stop music piracy but screwing around with someone's computer like this is beyond the pale. And what if I want to listen to an album I've just bought on my MP3 player- do I have to go out and buy it again?

I for one will not be buying any Sony releases in future.

BTW, when you're buying music make sure it has a proper "Compact Disc" symbol- if it doesn't then chances are it's a copyrighted disc that won't play on your PC.

Better Than Nothing

After the Supreme Court liberals (the conservatives dissented) decided that no one's property in America was safe from property developers under eminent domain, it's fallen to the House to protect one of the most basic, fundamental rights in the US.

Contending that the Supreme Court has undermined a pillar of American society, the sanctity of the home, the House overwhelmingly approved a bill Thursday to block the court-approved seizure of private property for use by developers.
The bill, passed 376-38, would withhold federal money from state and local governments that use powers of eminent domain to force businesses and homeowners to give up their property for commercial uses.

Another good reason for Alito's nomination to be successful.

Time Out

No posting today so far- I've been trying to get some writing done. I've got the first two chapters of a zombie story up over at my Cryptic Fiction page. My intention is to write and then post it chapter by chapter. If you're into survival horror or zombies then hopefully it'll be right up your street.

Because I'm writing and posting straight away there may be a few spelling/grammar errors there. Apologies for that but I'll be re-reading it later. Right now the plan is to write as much as possible, just to get it done. Hopefully I'll be able to slip the odd blog in here or there along the way but if there doesn't seem to be too much here, this is why.

If you're looking for a good blog to read then check out my links- and pay particular attention to the superb War on Guns.

Disturbing Trend

First it was the riots in Birmingham, England (involving black and Asian [read Muslim] gangs), there there's the ongoing violence in France and now it's started in Denmark too.

Are we looking at the beginning of a trend?

Machine Gun Sammy

Yep, that what the Brady Bunch, sorry- Campaign, is calling Supreme Court nominee Samual Alito. You see he believed that a ruling preventing the continued sale of fully automatic weapons was unconstitutional.

Machine Gun Sammy. Savour it for a moment and imagine that a man with such a moniker might be sitting on the Supreme Court for the next 20 or 30 years.

Cool.

Hat tip to Smallest Minority.

Gaya Update

It looks like Walter Gaya's citizenship problems are under control. Michael Yon informs SondraK-

"I spoke with Walt today, and the citizenship matter is under control. I will speak with him tomorrow and ask him about his camera. I can tell you now that he will be very heartened to hear that so many people actually care so much. Walt is a really great guy, and I am very happy to be a part of helping."

BlackFive and LGF have also just posted on Gaya's situation. Good to see the right side of the blogosphere mobilise to support him.

SondraK is apparently trying to contact someone at Fort Lewis, where Gaya is stationed, and will be letting us know what camera equipment, etc. Sgt. Gaya needs. I'll be sure to post here on any fund that is set up.

Walter Gaya

It looks like Walter Gaya, famous from Kim du Toit's Walter and Adam fund and Michael Yon's Dispatches, is having some problems. Walt was an Army sniper and he was injured in an IED attack on a Stryker he was travelling in. He was eight days away from being sworn in as an American citizen-

The Argentina-born immigrant, who moved to the United States as a child, was injured just eight days before he was to be sworn in as a U.S. citizen in a ceremony in Iraq.

Now, he's in a bureaucratic black hole: Federal immigration officials wouldn't renew his permanent resident card or tell him when he could reschedule the swearing-in ceremony. No one at the local U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office could tell him what to do next to get his citizenship papers, or even how to renew his immigration documents.

Gaya's commander, Lt. Colonel Erik Kurilla described Gaya as a-

"quiet professional. He's the type of soldier that every commander wished he had a hundred of."

The blogosphere is rallying around this brave man however- SondraK is highlighting Gaya's plight on her blog and is encouraging readers to contact their representatives so that Gaya's citizenship issues can be sorted out and so that a fund can be started to buy Walt the camera equipment he needs- he hopes to become a photographer after leaving the Army next spring.. Stop the ACLU is also posting on the story. Contact has been made with Michael Yon who is going to contact Walt and see just what he needs.

This is exactly why the blogosphere is so much better than the MSM- it's not just a source of information, it's a community- even for people who have never had any contact with each other.

I'll be keeping track of Gaya's progress- in the meantime, make sure to check out SondraK for more updates- she's doing fine work indeed.

UPDATE- Okay, folks, it looks like Walt's story is beginning to filter around the blogosphere. In addition to the sites already mentioned, The Smallest Minority, War on Guns, Ravenwood's Universe, Mindless Bit Spew and Thus Spracht Me have all picked up the story. If you're a US citizen please do take the time to contact your representative. Walter Gaya deserves better than this.

UPDATE II- Add more bloggers to the list- The View From North Central Idaho and gun blogger Mr. Completely, who will be writing to Congressman Adam Smith. Blogger Rivrdog comments that he has already taken that step.

And just a quick observation- Looks like there are NO left wing/liberal blogs working to aid this veteran/immigrant. Aren't they the ones who "support the troops"? The same people who always tarnish conservatives as being racist? Where are they now?

Adam Plumondore

I've blogged on the outrageous predicament in which Walt Gaya finds himself in, but I wanted to take a moment to remember the other half of the "Walter and Adam Fund", Adam Plumondore. According to Michael Yon, Walt kept a little shrine to Adam, or Plum as he was known, in his quarters while he was in Mosul.

When Gaya was injured in Mosul it was by an IED-

"The heavy Stryker flew into the air, blasting tires asunder, one tire flying more than a hundred yards. The explosion was so hard that it traumatized the tailbones of the men. The blast ripped through the bottom of the Strkyer and straight into an AT-4 missile, cutting the missile in half, but neither the missile nor the propellant exploded."

Of all the men on board, only Gaya was injured badly enough that his war was over- the rest received only minor injuries. The Stryker was so badly damaged that Michael Yon reported that he was unable to imagine how those men survived. He asked the driver of the Stryker about it and was told

"We had angels watching us."

The driver explained his reasoning to a sceptical Yon-

"Well, there is no other way to explain how we survived, except that Plum and Rat [another of the unit's snipers who was killed in Mosul] were there, and they stopped the blast. I know they were there. Plum and Rat held up their hands to save us. They stopped the blast. They were there."

Strangely enough at the memorial service for Adam, LTC. Kurilla said,

"We will miss them both terribly, but I know that our Deuce Four snipers, Gerty [SPC Clint Gertson] and Plum, are looking down from Heaven continuing to look out for us – that voice you hear in your head is Gerty calling the winds, Plum ensuring you have the correct distance, and both always reminding you to always look for the positive in life."

The men of Recon Platoon had this to say about Adam-

"Sergeant Plumondore was a tremendous soldier, a respected leader, and a great friend. He was a man of great strength, unending talent, and deep compassion. His spirit will live on forever with the men here who loved him and served with him. We want his family to know that our thoughts and prayers are with them in this time of need and that he will always be in our hearts, and we will never forget him."

Rivrdog wrote this about "Plum"-

"Sgt. Plumondore had volunteered for his final patrol in place of a comrade. As an NCO, he probably could have taken a safer position within the vehicle, but instead, served the roof-ring mounted heavy weapon on the open top of his vehicle, where he was more effective with his shooting skills."

He was 22 years old when he was killed in Iraq. I regret to say that I never knew the man- but I would have been honoured to have met with him.

Thoughts on S.397

This was the legislation passed which "grants legal immunity to firearm dealers and manufacturers in the event of wrongful misuse of their products by a third party." However, there was some anti-gun legislation slipped into the bill. As Liberty Belles point out there was also a ban on unspecified armour piercing ammunition. Now, maybe I'm being pedantic but I'd expect lawmakers to actually define terms when passing legislation- not leaving it so vague as to mean whatever anyone wants. Don't they get paid to do what they do?

Maybe it doesn't seem like such a big issue but the law seems to be so vague that the question has to be asked, ammunition that pierces what sort of armour? As you probably know there are different types of body armour providing different lever of protection. There's a good description of the various levels here at Wikipedia. The range is from Type I, which protects from the lowly .22LR right up to Type IV, which protects against .30 calibre armour piercing ammunition (as defined by those who deal with AP). Given the loose language of the legislation however, it seems plausible to assume that some hoplophobe could argue that all ammunition more powerful than .22LR is technically armour piercing- i.e. it will pierce Type I body armour. In other words, it is conceivable that this bill could be used to ban virtually all ammunition.

While the bill does not specify what armour piercing ammunition is, or attempt to, it does seem to leave that power entirely in the hands of the Attorney General:

"The Attorney General shall conduct a study to determine whether a uniform standard for the testing of projectiles against Body Armor is feasible."

It's also pertinent to note that while the bill bans "armour piercing ammunition" it leaves an exemption not only for the military- (which I assmue is what is meant by "use of the United States"- couldn't it also be argued that the United States is nothing more than the citizens which make up that fine country, meaning that the ban is essentially meaningless?)- but also "any department or agency of the United States, any State, or any department, agency, or political subdivision of a State."

Okay for the government but not for citizens.

Hollywood and Guns

The excellent Gun Watch blog has a post about the hypocrisy of Hollywood- of how many are happy gun owners in private, but anti-gun in public. One of the most telling quotes comes from Lethal Weapon director Richard Donner who also happens to have a concealed carry permit, he

"was reluctant to talk [to Fade In magazine]. "I am anything but a gun enthusiast," he said in a terse statement. "The only reason I would ever own a gun is for the protection of my home, my environment or my family under the circumstances in which I am forced to live."

Just the same as normal, everyday people then? Many people would like the right to defend themselves and their families too, the exact same right that anti-gun types want to deny them. Out of a population of 9.8 million people in Los Angeles County, only 500 are licenced to carry.

This David Codrea post should also be read.

"In Los Angeles, only the police, politicians and the politically-connected get to carry concealed guns without fear of having their lives destroyed if caught."

Royal British Legion

Please give whatever you can.

Poppy Appeal

I just had an old ex-serviceman come to my door collecting for the Poppy Appeal- it's raining hard and blowing a gale and yet he's still out doing his bit.

I'm not sure if there's an equivalent in the US (do let me know) but here every year coming up to Remembrance Sunday, the Poppy Appeal kicks off, collecting money in exhange for a little paper and plastic poppy. The money goes to the Royal British Legion and is used to pay for care for ex-servicemen and women and their families. As their website says,

"The Poppy has become a symbol of remembrance for the nation."

The Royal British Legion is a fantastic group- without them an awful of of ex-servicemen and women would find life a lot tougher.

If you'd like to make a donation to the Poppy Appeal you can do so here.

Wear your poppy with pride, and remember those who have fallen in defence of our freedom.

Why the Internet MUST remain in American hands

From Dhimmi Watch-

I run one of the very rare german language
anti-islamist blogs in Austria under http://iblis.twoday.net.

Well, I did so until this morning.

In Austria there is no such thing like the first amendment - so my blog was shut down by my internet provider in order to keep up with their perverted idea of "political correctnes".

That's all- this is the argument for why control of the internet must NEVER be passed into the hands of the UN or anyone else for that matter.

Flight of Fancy

Regular readers will know that I'm a huge fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs and his Martian tales in particular. Here's a wonderful picture of the Princess of Mars, Dejah Thoris by artist Ty Romsa. I'm fairly new to his work but this one just blew me away. He's an incredibly talented comic artist.

Bush Gets the Message Right

I'm signed up for email alerts with DefenseLink and just recently this has been the message that Bush has been delivering. It's one that he needs to keep reinforcing- and he finally does seem to be doing that- the message just isn't get out. Maybe it's time for the blogs to begin disseminating these speeches?

All we need now is for the MSM to start picking up the message that Bush is delivering in these speeches (as if)-

"We will never back down, we will never give in, and we will never accept less than complete victory," Bush told servicemembers, veterans and business leaders in Norfolk, Va.

The president emphasized that the United States is not to blame for the violence it has suffered at the hands of terrorists. "No act of ours invited the rage of killers, and no consequence, bribe or act of appeasement would change or limit their plans of murder," he said.

Acquiescing to the terrorists would only encourage them and advance their efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction, destroy Israel, intimidate Europe, assault the American people, and blackmail the U. S. government into isolation, he said.

"The stakes could not be higher," Bush told the group, noting that terrorists won't hesitate to strike the United States and its friends and allies around the world again if permitted.

"We did not ask for this global struggle, but we are answering history's call with confidence and a comprehensive strategy," he said.

Bird-flu in Africa?

The UN is reporting that cases of bird-flu appearing in Africa are "imminent". This could be really bad news as I'm sure that a lot of Africa nations simply do not have the resources to contain it- oddly enough, the flu could be carried there by European birds, currently nesting in Russia and preparing to migrate to Africa. That's if the European birds are infected of course. Because of the migratory habits of the birds, the areas most likely to be infected are N. Africa and "maybe the western border of the Red Sea [in] Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia." So we could also be looking at infections in the Middle East if the disease mutates into a human-to-human form.

Europe seems to be doing its best to prepare for a pandemic (by buying a medication which may not be effective at all) but I wonder what can be said about similar preparations in the Middle East?

Nano-Walker

The pace of progress does indeed seem to be moving more rapidly. First nano-trucks and now nanowalkers. An obvious application for this research didn't strike me but the researchers had this to say-

“This offers an easy realization of a concept for molecular computing proposed by IBM in the 1990s, in which every number is encoded by the position of molecules along a line similar to an abacus, but about 10 million times smaller. IBM abandoned this concept, partly because there was no way to manufacture the bars of the abacus at molecule-sized spacing.

“DTA does not need any bars to move in a straight line and, hence, would allow a much simpler way of creating such molecular memory, which would be more than 1000 times more compact than current devices.”

Just goes to show what I know!

A great primer on nanotechnology, with a great deal of specualtion on the benefits this sciene could bring us, can be found in Eric Drexler's book Engines of Creation. Well worth reading for an insight into the utterly astounding changes that nanotech will make.

Better Law for Homeowners

This is certainly a step in the right direction- a Tory MP is to launch a private bill to the House of Commons which will change the law so that homeowners who protect their homes and families will only be prosecuted if they use "grossly disproportionate force". As the law currently stands, homeowners are permitted the vague "reasonable force". Now, if someone broke into my home I'd think it quite reasonable to take my tomahawk to him- I really don't think the police would see it the same way.

Of course, even if the measure is accepted into law it still leaves the vast majority of people unable to defend themselves. How is a single woman living alone expected to protect herself or her home from a group of male thugs who break in? The people of the United Kingdom have been disarmed by the government- we do not have access to firearms which level the playing field. It's all very well to change the law to provide homeowners more peace of mind, but the simple fact remains that the government forbids its citizens from owning the means with which to defend themselves.

Home Office Minister Fiona MacTaggart is aghast at the idea of a change to the law-

People might set traps for burglars if they were allowed to use more force rather than informing the police, she suggested.

That could make it more likely that burglars would carry weapons, she added.

In her world, she'd rather people called the police after they had been burgled or attacked, rather than defend themselves in the first place. And as for burglars carrying weapons? Well, why shouldn't homeowners have the right to arm themselves too? Nothing stands in the way of someone breaking into a home armed with a gun as it is (gun crime has increased dramatically since the handgun ban was passed)- the only option the victim has here is to submit to the criminal's will and then wait for the police to turn up...after the crime has been committed and the criminal fled.

If these MPs were serious about allowing homeowners the right to defend themselves, they would now be campaigning to overturn the current firearms legislation.

Plan Ahead

There's an AP news article up which discusses the sometimes ineffectual plans that some people have made should they be faced with a crisis like a terrorist attack. The main thrust of the argument is research that indicates that having a plan for a diaster- any plan at all- enables the person to function more effectively, to overcome their fear- even though they may never actually follow the plan they came up with in the first place. Simply having a plan seems to be enough to be able to cope with the fear that a crisis situation causes.

That's all well and good but I take exception to the opening paragraph-

"In Alaska, just about everyone has a plan for how - should the need arise - he would fight a bear. And while elements of these plans make sense, they don't alter the fact that in hand-to-hand combat, a grizzly would savage a human."

Which is surely why most people in Alaska plan on being armed in the event of such an encounter?

Heroic Teenager

This is a tragic tale- a 15 year old girl saved the life of a ten year old boy when she pushed him out of the way of a truck doing nearly twice the speed-limit. She was killed. Though she was so young, she was also seven months pregnant.

The driver of the truck, who was 18, has been arrested on suspicion of felony reckless driving causing death and misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. The latter charge is a new law, only just gone into effect, in which the death will be entered into the driver's record and under which he could lose his licence for a year. It was introduced for those cases where criminal negligence could not be proven. As it stands, the punishment fo the felony charge is a paltry one to six years in prison, a fine up to $5,000, or both together. I would have thought that the fact the driver was doing twice the speed limit would be enough to have the more serious charge used against him.

Six years for killing a girl because of speeding? Not nearly enough.

WOW

A Japanese firm has recorded the world's fastest transmission over fibre-optic cable. The technology is expected to be available by around 2010. Get ready to upgrade your modem!

They sent a two hour movie down the line and it took 0.5 seconds. That works out at an incredible 1 terabyte per second.

Sign me up.

Merry Christmas ACLU

Yeah, it's only Halloween, a little early to be talking about Christmas but I've decided to add the "Merry Christmas ACLU" image to my sidebar anyway. I'm not a Christian but I cannot abide these ridiculous and petty attempts to transform Christmas into "winter holiday". It's Christmas pure and simple. Everyone knows what the holiday is all about so why pretend otherwise? Granted the situation is not quite so bad here in the UK as it is in the US- Christmas is pretty much wholeheartedly welcomed- it's a BIG deal here and the shops are already filling up with Christmas gifts, decorations and foodstuffs. I for one love Christmas- what could be better than seeing your childrens' faces light up on Christmas morning?

I find it strange in a country with such a low church attendance, compared to the US, that we embrace Christmas so well. It's the family holiday, a grand tradition. Of course, for many the holiday is typified by Father Christmas rather than nativity scenes, but schools here will almost all be having Christmas plays, with pupils acting out the nativity.

Our schools also have compulsory Religious Education classes. Things may have changed drastically in the last few years but I doubt it- while you'll get a bit of lip-service to other religions, these classes are predominantly teaching students about Christianity. Does it make the kids into Christians? No, it does not, but it does teach them about the foundations of our modern Judeo-Christian culture.

I find is staggering that the affirmation that the US government should "make no law respecting an establishment of religion" has been twisted to conclude that Christianity should be practically outlawed. And the war against Christianity will be fought again this Christmas as groups like the ACLU try to wipe out all traces of our Western heritage. Christmas is Christmas- calling it "winter holiday" or somesuch nonesense isn't going to change what December 25th stands for. Maybe the ACLU needs to read a little further along the 1st Amendment and realise that it also states no law shall be made "prohibiting the free exercise" of religion- which seems to me to be exactly what they are doing with their perpetual attacks on the symbols of Christianity.

If you'd like to add some festive touches to your blog, head on over to Stop the ACLU and pick up the code.

More on Iran's Position

As you're aware the Middle East has been almost entirely silent on the comments of Ahmadinejad calling for the destruction of Israel (and America). The Egyptian Foreign Ministry and Cabinet have refused to comment.

Tell me again why the US is providing Egypt with all that foreign aid again?

Iran States Its Aim

Wow. While world leaders complain about Iranian leader Ahmadinejad's comments calling for destruction of Israel, they seem to be pretty quiet on his calls for an end to America.

"To those who doubt, to those who ask is it possible, or those who do not believe, I say accomplishment of a world without America and Israel is both possible and feasible."

His statement was greeted by chants of "death to Israel, death to America, death to England".

Nice guy- like I said, what could possibly be wrong with him having nukes?

BTW, where's the world leader outrage over the America statement? Tony?

Worth Reading

This is a suggestion of how to counter jihad recruitment in preisons but I think it's worth everyone's time to read it.

"That is what Islam is really like. It asks the new convert to strip himself of his identity. It asks him to take a new name. It asks him to give up art -- no sculpture, and no paintings of people or other living things. It asks him to give up music -- no gospel music, no jazz, no nothing. In some Arab countries, this ban is violated -- but the ban is part of Islam."

Dhimmitude in Oz

Police in Australia have been told to treat Muslim incidences of domestic abuse differently from others out of "respect" for their traditions. The advice, contained in a religious diversity handbook, tells police to consult with local Muslim religious leaders who will attempt to prevent the "fragmentation" of the family unit- which sounds to me like it means "prevent the abused woman from leaving her abusive husband".

Whatever happened to equal protection under the law? Are Australian police really going to treat one wife beater differently from other because of his religion?

This is absolutely despicable.

Where are the women's rights groups on this?

Headscarves Must Worn

A university in Malaysia is forcing all female students to wear the headscarf, not just the Islamic ones. And the government is backing them. The argument is that it's not a religious issue at all (of course not), merely a matter of enforcing a university uniform policy.

US university students- this is what a theocracy looks like.

The somewhat ominous sounding Minsiter of National Unity stated that, "In a multi-racial country each community must respect one another. But at the same time we must respect the laws of the country, institutions and organisations to ensure there is no disturbance to the community."

Sounds an awful lot to me that the message is "do as we tell you or else there will be 'disturbances'". After all, Christian or atheist students aren't going to cause any disturbances over not wearing a headscarf, are they?

The NHS at work

The problem with this story is that I'm not suprised at all by it- the mother of a six month old baby was kept waiting at a hospital for two hours before the child was seen. As she waited a unicyclist rode up and down, entertaining the patients. Lo and behold, when the sick child was finally seen to the doctor was the unicyclist.

The hospital has issued an apology, though it's the sort of apology that isn't really one at all:

"The child in question was not neglected and his care was not compromised in any way. Of course we are sorry if distress was inadvertently caused to his mother and we have offered her our apologies. But let’s also remember that we should try to make hospital wards less intimidating places for patients, particularly children and not apologise for making a stay in hospital as happy a time as possible. We regularly provide diversions that are not directly related to medical care."

In other words, we're NOT apologising for having a doctor entertain patients instead of treat them. Perhaps it hasn't occurred to the hospital that patients might be happier being treated promptly instead of kept waiting while some doctor plays the fool. After all, if they're that serious about making it a "happy" environment counldn't they find someone more qualified than a doctor to ride a unicycle, freeing up the doctor to, oh I don't know, treat patients?

Welcome to what passes for logical thought and appropriate use of staff in the modern NHS.

Miers Withdraws

This seems like good news- though she may very well have turned out to be a supremely conservative judge the doubt that she represented was just too much. How were Republicans supposed to fight for a nominee they knew nothing about?

Lets hope that the new pick will be one that all Republicans can really get behind and fight for.

Anti-Weapon Law

If you live in Scotland and have ever wanted to own a sword, now is the time to go and buy one- MSPs (Members of Scottish Parliament) are apparently discussing legislation which will outlaw their sale (and the many legitimate uses of swords- e.g. martial arts- won't get in the way- just look at how the government treated shooting sports here).

Never mind that swords are only used in about 1% of all "knife crimes".

How long until pointy sticks are banned?

Scotland the brave? Not any more.

Dept. Of Really Bad Ideas

Sure, let's stand aside and allow these guys to develop nuclear weapons. What could possibly go wrong?

Iran’s hard-line president called for Israel to be “wiped off the map”...President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also denounced attempts to recognize Israel or normalize relations with it.

Quote of the Day

"Right after 9/11, some of us thought it was impossible for leftist critics to undermine a war against fascists who were sexist, fundamentalist, homophobic, racist, ethnocentric, intolerant of diversity, mass murderers of Kurds and Arabs, and who had the blood of 3,000 Americans (and other nationalities) on their hands. We were dead wrong. In fact, they did just that."

I've had this quote in a note on my PC for a long time. I seem to recall that it originated from Bill Hobbs. Nothing's changed.

Geek Help

Just in the past day or two Firefox has stopped playing embedded quicktime movies- trailers and the like. Anyone know of a quick fix/likely cause?

I don't have time to take a good look at the problem right now but I am itching to watch the next installment of The Cursed Chest by Adam Hughes, a little movie staring one sixth scale action figures. And it's very well done.

Help!

Colt Diamondback

I was having a browse through Collectors' selection and came across this- a fine example of a Colt Diamondback in .38 Special. While it's big brother, the Python, usually gets all the attention, I've always liked the scaled-down Diamondback. It looks a little more elegant than the beefy .357 Magnum but still retains that classic ribbed barrel profile. Kitted out with a set of Hogue grips, this is a very nice package indeed.

Home Security

Stumbled upon this article on simple things you can do to make your home more secure. There are a few good suggestions and it's worth having a look at but there's one huge, glaring omission for the target American audience- buy a gun and learn how to use it.

I'd rather have a gun in my hand than lock myself in a wardrobe and hope the criminal goes away.

Cremated Bodies in Afghanistan

I blogged on this incident a few days ago and I came to the conclusion that the Lt. in question really did the only thing he could do- to safeguard the health of his own troops. BlackFive- has an update on the story with links- it now turns out that the PsyOps actions took place AFTER the bodies had been burned. Jason Coleman has a good post on his blog about this, pointing out the simple fact that the PsyOps people were there to try and goad the Taliban forces out of the village- it's their job. Countercolumn also notes that the actions of the Lt. did NOT contravene the Geneva Convention.

Yet again it's up to the blogs to do the work.

Traitor Galloway in Trouble!

Looks like Galloway's past is catching up with him- a Congressional report shows that he lied about receiving Iraqi oil payments. The money was going into his wife's account. Senator Coleman said, "We have what we call the smoking gun."

Galloway could be facing jail time.

Let's hope so.

Iraqi constitution passed!

News just in from CNN.

Democracy is taking hold in the Middle East.

Maybe it'll not be long before Israel isn't the only, fully functioning democracy there.

B.A.B.

I like checking out my SiteMeter world map to see where my visitors are coming from- and I've been getting a good few from Iran, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia lately- all of them coming here to see an image of Carmen Electra I posted some time ago. That one image has been boosting my numbers considerably so here's another one.

Free Piglet Part 2

As if the ban on anything pig related in an office wasn't bad enough, two major UK banks (the Halifax and NatWest) are now moving to ban the tradition of the child's piggy bank, usually given away when the child's account is opened. The move is intended to avoid offending Muslims. There is no mention of any complaint having been made- this is a pre-emptive dhimmi move.

As the Dean of Blackburn, Reverend Christopher Armstrong, notes it's only a short hop, skip and a jump away from banning Christmas trees and cribs. Not to mention pork, alcohol and all overt signs of Christianity or Judaism.

Oddly enough the commonsense statement about the whole affair emerged from Khalid Mahmoud, one of four Muslim MPs in the UK-

"We live in a multicultural society and the traditions and symbols of one community should not be obliterated just to accommodate another."

Perhaps there will be enough public outrage to reverse the decision. How hard would it be to offer a non-pig "piggy bank" to Muslim customers alongside the traditional pig?

Handguns in the UK

I'd intended to post about this when the story first broke here but forgot. Here it is, better late than never.

As you are aware London has been chosen to host the 2012 Olympic Games. To do so the law has "been relaxed" by the Home Secretary to allow for the handgun events to take place. All handguns- save for blackpowder- are totally bannned in England. Of course this is an event of international prestige so the laws are being "bent" to permit guns.

The British Olympic shooting team has also asked for the laws to be changed- as it stands the British handgunners have to practice elsewhere-

Team members currently spend about 20 to 30 days a year training in Switzerland, and receive no funding because their events are illegal in the UK.

Japan, which has similarly draconian gun laws, permits its elite shooters a special exemption. Britaion however, will not.

A Home Office spokesperson said the laws had been voted in by an "overwhelming majority" of MPs.

"The banning of handguns wasn't a matter of eroding personal freedoms, it was a matter of ensuring that what had been shown to be a terrible, if statistically small, risk was removed," she said.

So Britain will allow handgun shooting in the UK when it suits them (i.e. when foreign nationals are present) but it will NOT allow its own citizens the same rights. In the world of the Home Office spokesperson a law has never been overturned and laws cannot be "relaxed" for the sake of the sport in the UK. Not for British citizens anyway.

Where's the outrage?

While the Muslim world apparently seethes over the burning of corpses in Afghanistan, a much more shocking story has emerged- one which is actually worthy of serious outrage. Four US contractors were murdered in Iraq last month. Two were killed in the initial attack on their convoy while the remaining two were dragged from their vehicles. One of these men was murdered by a rifle shot to the head- the last survivor was doused with petrol and burned alive. Children yelped in delight at the sight and piled straw around him to aid the fire. The bodies were then dragged through the streets.

This is desecration. Where's the outrage about this? The BBC news website makes no mention of the story, but they do cover the burning of corpses in Afghanistan.

I cannot believe that this story is not getting more coverage. Can you imagine what the MSM would be doing if it had been Islamist terrorists' bodies dragged through the streets?

Hat tip to LGF

Vanished?

Or been removed?

On 27 September, they finally got a good look at the site, but the features that could have been the remains of the MPL [Mars Polar Lander] had vanished. “We conclude that our interpretation of these features was in error,” Malin researchers wrote on their web site. “This is NOT the location of the Mars Polar Lander.”

Or is it? Maybe they need to look...underground.

What was thought to be the lander’s parachute is actually the sunlit slope of a hill [Ed-of course it is, no Martians here]. The candidate rocket blast zone has faded and the spot that was thought to be the lander itself has completely disappeared.

Just...disappeared. Mmm.

American Super-soldier

The original super-soldier, Captain America.

Supersoldier Project

Science fiction needs to do some work- the US military is catching up fast.

The latest is to implant a microchip in the brains of soldiers which will vastly improve their memory and allow them to recall every facet of their training and thus make them more efficient.

The research is currently being carried out on dead rats so there's obviously some way to go until human trials take place.

The next step? Enabling troops to download skill sets directly onto the chips.

As Neo said, "I know kung fu."

Bush's Biggest Mistake?

American Dinosaur pointed this story out- 85% of captured child predators are illegal immigrants. Operation Predator is a program to apprehend foreign nationals preying on children- and it seems to be a success, resulting in about 8 arrests per day. But one has to ask, how many more are out there?

The scary thing is that the United States' borders are still not secure- and child predators are only one of the threats posed by this gigantic mess. One of the key statements in the article about Op Predator is this- "in enforcing the nation's immigration laws, ICE is systematically targeting those who pose the greatest threats, including criminal aliens who prey on our children."

In other words, the nation's immigration laws are NOT usually enforced like this.

Yet again it has to be said- something needs to be done urgently about illegal immigration.

CQC-T

This is the American Tomahawk Company's new model, the CQC-T. Intended purely as a close combat 'hawk, it's not recommended for throwing. At only 16 oz. it's very light (aiding in making fast cuts and changing direction rapidly), with the shaft designed to aid retention and a 2 7/8ths" cutting edge. This is NOT a camp tool.

Yet another great design from ATC.

Transparisteel

It seems every day now that science fact is catching up with science fiction- and here's the latest from the USAF and Army: engineers are testing aluminium oxynitride (ALONtm) as a replacement for the usual layered glass transparanice used currently in air and ground vehicles. It not only offers increased performance over glass but is also lighter.

"ALONtm is virtually scratch resistant, offers substantial impact resistance, and provides better durability and protection against armor piercing threats, at roughly half the weight and half the thickness of traditional glass transparent armor."

In tests the ALONtm stood up to hits from .50 BMG armour piercing rounds.

HK417

First look at the HK417- a 7.62mm AR. According to info on the Lightfighter Tactical forum, the weapon will be available in three barrel lengths- 12", 18" and 20". Looks like it takes G3 magazines. This is the first solid info I've come across on this particular weapon. Interesting to see how it will turn out as this seems to be a fairly early prototype version.

UPDATE- There's now an HK417 page over at HK Pro. Miltary Photos also has a thread about the weapon, including pictures. As mentioned in the comments here, the G3 magazine is no more- replaced by a modern polymer design. The mags are not interchangeable.

Playing Catch Up

Paintball guns just got an upgrade- they are now being made to take propane instead of CO2. The advantage is it's cheaper ($8 compared to $250) and gives many more shots (50,000 compared to 1,000).

The Greenland icecap is thickening. This is considered a bad thing.

Now this is cool- the world's smallest car- 4 nanometers across with buckyball wheels of only 60 atoms each. To give an idea of scale, that's only slightly wider than a strand of DNA. And it;s not just for show either, it has a chassis, an axle and fully funtcioning suspension. Nanotech is really starting to get going.

Don Young and Ted Stevens need a swift kick in the ass- they're opposing moving money from two bridges in Alaska (one of them is the Bridge to Nowhere) to rebuilding in Louisiana.

Looks like there's going to be a bit of a fight over surrendering control of the internet from the US. to be honest, I'd almost expected them to roll over and hand the keys to the UN. Let's hope the US wins this one too. What the hell kind of claim does Brazil or Iran have of the net anyway?

Cowboy Blob has posted another fantastic creation of his- a vampires, werewolves and zombies3-gun match. Looks like it would be a heck of a lot of fun. Make sure to check it out- it's a great, inventive layout.

Thw wife of a Palestinian terrorist hid a live grenade beneath her toddler. Motherly love?

The link between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda- why, it's the UN of course. What a suprise.