I have a bit of personal perspective on this. My sister and her husband teach at the American University in Cairo. They were with me for the holidays, and they returned last Tuesday.
The day they left, we had been hearing about a few student protests. That was the extent of it. We were heartened by the departure of the Ali government in Tunisia, and while we suspected this to be the spark of the rallies in Cairo, nobody expected the situation to erupt with such swiftness or power.
By Thursday, the internet was shut down, as were the cellular phone networks. We had communicated by VoIP, and that link was now severed. I was left to wonder and worry as activism turned to unrest, then to violence. Historical patterns like this never bode well.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
The Usual Suspects
None of this is anything new, novel, or unexpected.
Carolyn McCarthy will be presenting a bill [pdf] on Tuesday, as yet un-numbered, to "prohibit the transfer or possession of large capacity ammunition feeding devices, and for other purposes." Yes, she's capitalizing on Saturday's tragedy in Tuscon. Yes, it's revolting. No, I really don't expect any better out of her.
Before anyone panics, let's remember that Ms. McCarthy has attempted to reintroduce the Assault Weapons Ban every single session since 2003. It has never made it out of committee. Tuesday's bill will be met with the same crushing apathy. It will not pass.
Next, consider Peter King's proposed bill to ban the carry of firearms within 1000 feet of a federal official. Such a thing is utterly unfeasible to implement. Would police have to pat down every WalMart customer when a local politician goes shopping? What happens when your Senator wants to go to the range? Must everyone else clear out? That seems pretty lonely for the guy.
It's silly, it's unworkable, and our new Speaker of the House is hearing none of it, so take a deep breath and go do something interesting with the rest of your day.
Carolyn McCarthy will be presenting a bill [pdf] on Tuesday, as yet un-numbered, to "prohibit the transfer or possession of large capacity ammunition feeding devices, and for other purposes." Yes, she's capitalizing on Saturday's tragedy in Tuscon. Yes, it's revolting. No, I really don't expect any better out of her.
Before anyone panics, let's remember that Ms. McCarthy has attempted to reintroduce the Assault Weapons Ban every single session since 2003. It has never made it out of committee. Tuesday's bill will be met with the same crushing apathy. It will not pass.
Next, consider Peter King's proposed bill to ban the carry of firearms within 1000 feet of a federal official. Such a thing is utterly unfeasible to implement. Would police have to pat down every WalMart customer when a local politician goes shopping? What happens when your Senator wants to go to the range? Must everyone else clear out? That seems pretty lonely for the guy.
It's silly, it's unworkable, and our new Speaker of the House is hearing none of it, so take a deep breath and go do something interesting with the rest of your day.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Rhetoric Has Consequences
As the news came in about the shootings of Gabrielle Giffords and Judge John Roll, I was sadly reminded that her office was one of those targeted by the so-called window war following her vote in favor of the health-care bill. I'm not saying that any group or political stripe bears the sole blame, but we all need to step back and take a look at the rhetoric we're tolerating from elected officials, the media, and from some in our own ranks.
In the months following the 2008 election, I lost count of how many times I heard some seemingly normal person blurt something like, "I wouldn't pull the trigger, but I wouldn't cry over ______'s grave, either." There was talk from armchair revolutionaries about it being "time to vote from the rooftops."
There was more of it after the health-care vote. In the 2010 mid-terms, we were treated to Sharron Angle's drivel about "2nd Amendment remedies," and Sarah Palin's PAC ran an advertisement (now removed) portraying literal targets on the names of Democrats they hoped to unseat.
Words often have unpredictable effects. Tact and diplomacy have been thrown to the wind the last few years, and the whole landscape has gone from uncivil to bewildering and disturbing. I'm well aware that nobody put the gun in this guy's hand and forced him to do this, but at some point, the atmosphere has an effect on the suggestible and unbalanced.
Politicians and commentators on both sides of the aisle will no doubt use today's tragedy to claim that it justifies their respective agendas. If it must be used for anything, it should be as a call to reason and civility.
(It should also be mentioned that Giffords was a supporter of the 2nd Amendment, and that she signed on to the congressional brief in support of the Heller case.)
In the months following the 2008 election, I lost count of how many times I heard some seemingly normal person blurt something like, "I wouldn't pull the trigger, but I wouldn't cry over ______'s grave, either." There was talk from armchair revolutionaries about it being "time to vote from the rooftops."
There was more of it after the health-care vote. In the 2010 mid-terms, we were treated to Sharron Angle's drivel about "2nd Amendment remedies," and Sarah Palin's PAC ran an advertisement (now removed) portraying literal targets on the names of Democrats they hoped to unseat.
Words often have unpredictable effects. Tact and diplomacy have been thrown to the wind the last few years, and the whole landscape has gone from uncivil to bewildering and disturbing. I'm well aware that nobody put the gun in this guy's hand and forced him to do this, but at some point, the atmosphere has an effect on the suggestible and unbalanced.
Politicians and commentators on both sides of the aisle will no doubt use today's tragedy to claim that it justifies their respective agendas. If it must be used for anything, it should be as a call to reason and civility.
(It should also be mentioned that Giffords was a supporter of the 2nd Amendment, and that she signed on to the congressional brief in support of the Heller case.)
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Sig Sauer 1911 XO
To this day, the steel-frame Government model remains the apotheosis of the 1911 platform. Everyone has their own take on the design, some successful, some not so much.
After a few false starts, Sig has gotten it right.
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