LIHS 20th Annual Reptile & Amphibian Show

Just a reminder, if you are in this neck of the woods, the LIHS will hold its 20th Annual Reptile & Amphibian Expo this Saturday, October 17, at SUNY Farmingdale (Farmingdale, NY off route 110) from 10-4. We will have a judged show - open to the public for reptile and amphibian entries and with ribbons and trophies awarded to the winners.

The expo is a great place to shop for reptiles & amphibians and for hobbyist/keeper accessories, etc...

Even if you do not want to keep a reptile or amphibian, this is a good show to come to in order to see a large variety of reptiles and amphibians. Besides those on sale, there should be at least a few non-sale displays of reptiles and amphibians. There is usually at least one or two exhibits geared toward educating folks about reptiles & amphibians - sometimes more. Also a great show for the kids. Hope to see you there.

More info here: http://lihs.org/files/events.htm

and here: http://lihs.org/files/2009flyer.pdf

Please note that the LIHS supports itself by way of this show. It helps make sure we can continue to educate the public with regard to reptile and amphibian natural history, conservation, captive care and so on, as we have been doing for many years.

All the best,
GB

Ballseye's Gun Shots 25 - Old Bullets

I store my ammunition in various places but the most used storage place is my basement. I have had some ammo for over 20 years now and I am confident that it would shoot as well as it would have on the day it was manufactured. Why? Well, I keep it dry and keep it away from sources of high heat and fire (this more to avoid a fire hazard than anything else). When you keep ammo dry - it can be stored for a long time and still be usable. How long? I would imagine, and this is just a guess on my part, that modern ammunition using smokeless powder and non-corrosive primers would last at least fifty to one hundred years, maybe more with no discernible problems if stored properly.

If you do not keep ammunition dry you will know it in a short amount of time. The accompanying picture of the ammo in this post shows you some light corrosion of ammunition caused only by the ambient humidity in my basement and my basement is one of the driest in which I have ever been. Can you shoot ammo like the stuff in my picture - sure you can if you are a risk taker. I do not shoot ammunition in that condition and I strongly recommend that you do not either. (By the way the two blanks would be okay to shoot they are basically only tarnished. Of course I would have to know the caliber first.) When shell casings are corroded there is always a chance of the casing cracking or coming apart when fired. When bullets are corroded there is a chance of one being stuck in the barrel. Ammunition in the condition shown could easily be cleaned of most of the corrosion, but why chance something going wrong with it when shooting it. I only recommend shooting ammunition that is in excellent condition. Yeah, I know, you know a guy at the range who shoots stuff like that all the time because he gets it for free from other people and he never has an accident. Well someday when you see him with a blown up barrel on his gun you may be able to figure out why. All it takes is one to go off badly to ruin your day, or if it results in your getting hurt maybe to ruin your life. Why take chances!

Of course if you insisted on shooting that ammo, I would insist that you did not shoot at least one of those rounds. That would be the one marked CLEM. Some wise guy in my office, about 10-12 years ago, decided to be a clown and left that one on my desk. No my name is not Clem, it is Glenn, but Clem was a goofy name that one joker sometimes called me. I imagine it was he who left it there for me, I have kept it as evidence treasured it since.

All the best,

Glenn B

An Old Friend Is Visiting Me Today

A friend is visiting me today - he is an old friend of mine. I know him well, all too well, I think, at times like these. I know his friendship to be rather spurious but I cannot shake him despite, or maybe because of, his antagonistic sort of a nature. It seems he visits most of the people he knows on damp, cold days, ones when the weather changes to the worse and rain or snow are almost promised to us. You would think that with the sun shining he would have other places to be rather than pestering me but truth be told he usually prefers my company on sunny days, especially those after the weather has changed from bad to good, or from a warmish/humid sunny day to a cold one. Yesterday was a nice day of sorts - not too cold, not too sunny, but on the humid side for fall with a fair amount of clouds and it actually felt quite warm by late morning. Today is a nice day too - a day that exemplifies mid Fall weather almost to the hilt. It is one of those days I loved so much as a kid. The air has a chill about it today that can only be described as crisp, this morning the sun was out, but now, the skies while not blue have only a light cloud covering and it surely has turned much cooler than yesterday. I was just outside and I ventured a guess that the temperature was in the mid-forties. When I sat at my desk I checked the forecast online and saw I had been correct in my guess - it is 46 degrees Fahrenheit as I type.

It is a bit of a wonder that my friend Arthur came to visit me last night and has stayed through the current moment promising to stay for at least the day. Why is it a bit of a wonder? Well, I suppose because the sun is not shining brightly today. He usually visits me on sunny days I suppose to steal the joy they bring with them. Yet, I imagine that a cold front of sorts has moved in because it certainly seems much cooler than yesterday and he loves to visit on days when the weather has changed. It has changed so much temperature wise from yesterday that I was almost convinced to turn on the heat when I awakened this morning, not only because of the chill in the air this fine morning but because I could have used an extra blanket last night too and that resulted with me chilled to the bones. That is exactly how Arthur likes me when he comes to visit. Perhaps he likes me to be susceptible to his grating personality and I suppose that my being chilled is just about enough for him to work his nasty magic on me to make me feel miserable. Misery indeed - I did not fail to mention somewhere above that he is the antagonistic sort - our whole friendship is based on such. Over the years, I gave as good as I received from him in our decades long duel but as of late I have given in to him all to often and have not tried to shorten his visits to just an hour or two. Instead I sometimes, out of apathy, allow him to stay with me for days even weeks at a time.

I am in no mood for another visit from him since the effects of his last visit are still lingering. I swear he harangues me so much, day in and day out, on each of our sojourns with one another as to get me aching within my bones. He is an antagonist almost without equal in my life. His bothersome ability is not so much that he irritates me on each of his stays with me than it is his habit to show up over and over again and make me as wretched on each visit as the last - that is if not even slightly more so on each successive stay. Today though - the story will be different - at least that is my hope. I have, before, had my hopes dashed to the rocks below by this wily opponents wit, tenacious personality, stamina and strength before but today I truly am hopeful that I can begin to overcome him. Maybe I can even force him to leave me in peace for awhile, that would be nice. I am not sure I can do it, but I have hope because another friend, well a new acquaintance anyway, has come to visit too. He seems to be the soothing type, but only time will tell if the stories I have heard about him are true or not about his powers and abilities regarding types like Arthur. It is difficult to believe, nay almost impossible to believe, that anyone out there has the will, the tenacity, the stamina, the strength to overcome Arthur I. Tis.

I can only hope - so please: Mr. Mobic - do you stuff.

All the best,
Glenn B

Today In History - And So Began The Weaving Of The 'Worst' Lie Ever

...it began with the birth of Mason Locke Weems on October 11, 1756 (or 1759 depending upon source). The lie did not begin on the day of Weems birth, but I suppose the wheels that eventually put it into motion started rolling that day because he was the author of it. The lie would not have been so bad had it never attained the popularity it achieved over all the years it was told and held as being virtually gospel truth. It was first spun in a biography that celebrated the life of one of our Founding Fathers, a man considered by many in his time as the greatest man who ever lived. The biography was written by Parson Mason Lock Weems. It was then read by thousands, hundreds of thousands, probably millions by the time I was a boy - yet it was written either in the latter part of the 18 century. How is it then that it held power over us even into the late 20th century and maybe even through today in the early 21st. It held that power not only because the person about whom it told wound up helping to create a new nation based upon the rights of the People (as in the rights of each individual), and not only because he was a person whom we were all brought up to respect (well we used to be brought up to respect him - Heavens only know whom teacher today think of as heroes but scum like Castro come to mind as being one of their choices) but also because it seemingly was based upon a tenet of morality - the one that teaches us we should not lie.

Lying is part of our nature, no matter how much we are taught to avoid lying, I think the truth is that we all, by the time we are a few years able to speak, have done so. Yet teaching us not to do so is something to be desired because we don't want children growing into adulthood thinking that lying is a good means to use with frequency toward any good end in the normal course of a well led life. In other words, lying may be necessary sometimes, at least as I see it, to achieve a good end - but we do not want to become wind up lost adrift in a sea of lies with no way to reach the truth because no good end will ever come of that.

So what lie is it that I believe was put into motion all those years ago with the birth of Weems. It was a lie that was not meant so much to be a lie but rather to be a literary device used to convey a moral which would emphasize the good character of the man being written about. That man was George Washington and of course the lie was the one in the tale about the chopping down of the cherry tree and George being questioned by his father about it, it went like this:

"When George," said she, "was about six years old, he was made the wealthy master of a hatchet! of which, like most little boys, he was immoderately fond, and was constantly going about chopping everything that came in his way. One day, in the garden, where he often amused himself hacking his mother's pea-sticks, he unluckily tried the edge of his hatchet on the body of a beautiful young English cherry-tree, which he barked so terribly, that I don't believe the tree ever got the better of it. The next morning the old gentleman, finding out what had befallen his tree, which, by the by, was a great favourite, came into the house; and with much warmth asked for the mischievous author, declaring at the same time, that he would not have taken five guineas for his tree. Nobody could tell him anything about it. Presently George and his hatchet made their appearance. "George," said his father, "do you know who killed that beautiful little cherry tree yonder in the garden? " This was a tough question; and George staggered under it for a moment; but quickly recovered himself: and looking at his father, with the sweet face of youth brightened with the inexpressible charm of all-conquering truth, he bravely cried out, "I can't tell a lie, Pa; you know I can't tell a lie. I did cut it with my hatchet." "Run to my arms, you dearest boy," cried his father in transports, "run to my arms; glad am I, George, that you killed my tree; for you have paid me for it a thousand fold. Such an act of heroism in my son is more worth than a thousand trees, though blossomed with silver, and their fruits of purest gold."

I grew up with it told to me, and I probably told it to my kids though by that time I think I had found out it was pure bunk. Supposedly Washington never said any such thing. It was a tale told by Weems to establish the character of the man in his biography and little more. Yet, it became one of the best known moralistic stories of the late 18th, complete 19th and most of the 20th centuries and it taught children a lesson about it being best to tell the truth regardless of the fact that it was a sort of a lie itself. Was it really the worst lie? It was in all likelihood the greatest lie ever told in American history and when you think of it in retrospect it was not such a bad one, maybe even a good one at that!

All the best,
Glenn B

Barack Obama Closing Down Comedy

I could not say it better than did whoever wrote this article: Prize fools that appeared online in TimesOnLine.

The committee has put hope above results, promise above achievement. The prize undermines the selfless triumphs of earlier winners. Indeed, the award’s obvious political intent looks partisan, a signal of European relief at the end of the Bush presidency.

I never gave much credence to the awarding of the Nobel peace Prize, not with terrorists like Yasser Arafat having won it, so I can readily agree with the author of the article that this is little more than politics at work. It is a well known fact that the Norwegian government selects the Nobel committee and that both the Norwegian government and the committee are leaning far to the left.

Whether or not it will put comedians out of business is another point. I think this is going to give them lots of ammo to shoot toward the White House. Of course there are 'so called' comedians out there like the jerk on HBO whose name I will not even mention because just hearing it makes me want to vomit. He claims to be a comedian, but truth be told he is not funny at all as I see him. Of course he will only praise the Obama as wonderful in his false accomplishment with regard to the Nobel Peace Prize instead of doing what he would have done had it been GWB about whom he was talking.

In all this it once again truly amazes me at how childish are those who lean far to the left.This kind of thing really floats their boat so to speak, they take absolute glee in pumping up their own who do not deserve it while at the same time finding joy in stomping upon they who have actually done something to truly make the world a better place.

All the best,
Glenn B

A Picture of a Pig Is Worth At Least 80 Words

Okay so somebody sent me a link to the Draw A Pig Personality Test and I drew the pig! I thought it was a gimmick for a joke and that some screaming head would appear on my screen instead of results but I was wrong. It actually gave personality results for how I interpreted my drawing. What kind of a pig did I draw. I drew one in profile in the middle of the frame facing left, it had medium ears for a pig (I put down medium for the test), black spots, an open mouth showing tongue and teeth, one eye showing, eyelashes, round flat nose at end of longish snout with whiskers, curly medium sized tail, all four legs showing each with cloven black hoof. I figured it was pretty detailed for an online scribble using my mouse.

Here are the results I received for my drawing:

Toward the middle of the frame, you are a realist.

Facing left, you believe in tradition, are friendly, and remember dates (birthdays, etc.)

With many details, you are analytical, cautious, and distrustful.

With 4 legs showing, you are secure, stubborn, and stick to your ideals.

The size of the ears indicates how good a listener you are. You are a good listener.

The length of the tail indicates the quality of your sex life. You have a good sex life.

I try to be a realist most times but can also be an idealist. My being an idealist though is solely based of the realism of any particular ideal I may hold forth.

I am a believer in tradition. I try to be friendly and am so until you prove to be an asshole toward me or mine. I found it funny that it says I remember dates, I am not great at that but fit the other qualities attributed to my having drawn it facing left. I must admit though, I do remember my anniversary every year as I do my wife’s and childrens’ birthdays. Lately I have even remembered around when are my siblings’ and my wife’s siblings’ birthdays (so it was not that far off).

I am definitely cautious and analytical especially when considering offers of any sort made to me, and when considering the motives of others, and I can be distrustful (especially when anything seems to good to be true).

I am secure at this stage in my life at least with regard to myself – and how else can one feel secure except in and of himself. I certainly can be stubborn and guess that is in part due to my feeling of being self secure, and it probably also adds to that feeling. Of course I can also give in to others when I realize, usually after quite the discussion or argument, that they are right and I am wrong but I give my side my best effort before giving it up – sometimes to excess (stubbornness indeed). I stick to my ideals but as I said above they are realistic ones, at least they seem to be until someone proves them wrong. I suppose one of my ideals is being a realist, yet like anyone I can fantasize about lots of things – but I prefer to live in reality and not in some fog like mist of Utopian hope.

I am a good talker and some think not a good listener. Yet I listen intently to those around me, especially they who have something worthwhile to say. I will however tune you out if you are BS’ing me and I realize it. I will gladly listen to my wife and children when they say anything because whatever they say is worth my while. After all they are my family and who could be more worth lending an ear. If they or a friend needs a shoulder on which to cry, mine is always available.

Sex life – I guess it could be better but is certainly not the worst. As a matter of fact it will be getting better soon, I am certain of that. I just hope my wife realizes it.

It was petty good on most counts at describing me although I am, of course, as would be anyone else, more complex that the simple personality description given for me.

Now I will admit I took the test more than once, I did it twice. Not at all to skew the results – I just decided to do it again today after having my first try yesterday since trying to draw a pig was actually kind of nonsensical but harmless fun. The pig I drew today did not look like the pig I drew yesterday in that I drew this one facing forward. It was just the pose that struck me at the moment. So the only different result was this:

Facing front, you are direct, enjoy playing devil's advocate and neither fear nor avoid discussions.

Well I have to admit I am surprised I did not draw it that way first because if that line, in combination with the others above, does not describe me, then nothing does.

Now you may have noticed the web address for the draw a pig thing. That does not describe me at all but it sure made me laugh when I read it.

All the best,
GB

Ballseye's Gun Shots 24 - Mossberg 535 ATS

When it comes to guns, I like them to be well made, durable, accurate and fairly simple at least to operate. I also like decent bargains. I don' t own any really expensive firearms yet most of the ones I own meet the standards I just mentioned above. So when I see Mossberg shotguns in gun shops or at gun shows I give them a good long look. My son has been wanting a Mossberg for awhile now even though I keep recommending a Remington 870 to him. I think he likes the fact that the Mossbergs are usually a bit lower in price and some come with a lot of extra doo-dads. Now, my definition of doo-dads for this piece is that they are unwanted and unnecessary accessories or glitz like parts - but remember that is just my opinion. I can quite understand though why a younger, less experienced shooter, would be taken in by doo-dads. Add to that the fact that Mossberg, like many other gun makers, advertises their wares in catchy ways so as to make them more alluring to certain types of shooters and you can understand why a younger shooter might be drawn to them while having no experience with their products.

For example the gun I am about to review is called the Mossberg535 ATS. Well, the ATS stands for ALL TERRAIN SHOTGUN. isn't that catchy in this day and age of all terrain vehicles, all terrain running shoes, and of young men who like to think they can tackle all types of terrain. Another example of glitz, though somewhat less glitzy and more practical is that Mossberg offers many of their guns in multiple finishes. So they appeal to guys who like black guns, guys who like camo guns, guys who like SS guns and guns who like more conventional wood/steel guns. The glitz just does not do it for me but as I said finish differences can also be practical. As I said, I prefer guns that are well made, durable, accurate and fairly simple at least to operate. Still though, the youngster keeps looking at those Mossbergs every chance he gets so I figured I would do a write up on at least one of them.

The Mossberg 535 ATS is currently offered as a combination gun or as a single style gun. As a combo gun it comes as either a turkey/deer gun, field/deer gun, or a waterfowl/turkey gun. Otherwise you can get it in the Slugster Version or the Field Gun version. It is available in a few finishes to include: classic wood/blued steel, matted blue/black synthetic stock, or Mossy Oak Break Up camo pattern. The 535 has an impressive set of features for a fairly low cost shotgun. According to the Mossberg site, here are the features:

XX-Full turkey tube models
Fully-rifled deer barrel models
Interchangeable Accu-Choke™ tubes
Wood, synthetic and camo patterns available
Receivers drilled and tapped for scope bases
Thumb-operated safety atop the rear of the receiver
Comes in a variety of barrel lengths: 22", 24" and 28
Accepts 2 3/4", 3" and 3 1/2" shells (they specify factory loaded)
Windage and elevation adjustable fiber optic sights on certain models

There are more features listed at:

http://www.mossberg.com/products/default.asp?id=11&display=feat

If you want more information about the 535 you can look to the specs provided by Mossberg. There are just too many different configurations for me to include all that info here, so I'll just give you a link to their specs page for this model:

http://www.mossberg.com/products/default.asp?id=11&display=specs

I took a fair look at the specs page and what I saw was that the Mossberg 535 ATS is offered at a wide variety of MSRPs from $375 up to $552, with the average MSRP for them being about $439. I had to wonder though - why the big difference in price for different versions of the same model gun. The lowest price was offered for both the All Purpose Field version (wood and blue finish) and the 535 ATS Waterfowl (with matte blue and black synthetic stock). Higher prices were shown for those with Mossy Oak Break Up finish, for those with a thumbhole stock and so on. Still that did not explain the price jump from a gun at $375 to another at $552. I took a closer look.

There it was right in the name of the more expensive model - was it that glitz thing again! The most expensive version of the Mossberg 525 ATS is the Tactical Turkey Series. Get that - a tactical shotgun for shooting turkeys! I suppose you never know when a turkey is going to jump out from behind a tree wearing a black ninja outfit while pointing a black AR15 (or some other heinous assault rifle) at you as you stroll through the fall or springtime woods, thus the need for a tacticool tactical 'turkey' gun. A warning was being screamed in my head in a robotic voice of yesteryear: DANGER - DANGER - WIL ROBINSON - proceed with caution. Yep, I just get turned off by what I feel is nothing more than glitz and if a tactical turkey gun is not glitz then nothing is in my opinion.

Of course, you may be wondering just exactly what is it that makes a gun a tactical turkey gun. I was wondering just that myself and I had a look. It appears that the tactical version comes with some really tactical doo-dads! (Remember them - dod-dads. If not see above for my definition.) Those doo-dads consist of a telescoping buttstock, with integral or add on shell holder, what amounts to a hand sling/strap on the foregrip, and a pistol grip; all the things that I would certainly think were necessary to combat hunt tactical turkeys. Please pardon me while I get a good belly laugh, not so much at the expense of Mossberg but at the expense of some putz who would buy a turkey gun thinking he needed to be tactical while hunting turkeys. Folks, I can fully understand the want or even the need for a turkey gun to come in good camouflage but to have one that is a tactical version is a bit much for me. Sure you can hunt with whatever you want as long as it is legal as far as I am concerned, but then again this is my blog and I am telling you about what I think and I think that tactical for turkey is Glitz to the nth degree. I suppose though if you have the money it is yours to spend as you see fit. Anyway, I don't see how being tactical would effect the quality of the workmanship on these guns and they do come with a fairly impressive feature set for the price. Those features include that the receivers are drilled and tapped for scope mounts, they use interchangeable chokes, the deer models have rifled barrels, some have adjustable sights, and all utilize the famed Mossberg safety lever on the upper rear of the receiver.

Still though, features are not the bottom line, nor is glitz. The bottom line is performance, reliable performance at that. So how do the Mossbergs stand up in those regards. I have fired a few of them up at the NYPD Range at Rodman's Neck over the years, and maybe once or twice at the FLETC. I have also gotten to examine a couple belonging to friends of mine. So, all in all, while I have some experience, I do not have lots of firsthand experience with them. I liked the way they handled and felt. They also shot where I aimed. They seemed simple enough to take down for cleaning and minor repairs if needed. That is about it for my limited firsthand experience. Based on what I have heard from others who have shot Mossbergs over the long haul, I can say that they get a mixed review. Some people love them because of their low prices, others hate them because of what they said was their low quality, and again others praise them as always reliable and durable. As I said it is a mixed review. For the price they may be okay, but I might want to pay a bit of a higher price and get something I thought would be more reliable - but that is just me. Back to the reviews.

There was even a mixed review among the pros, at least in online reviews. For example, Guns&Ammo had this to say about the Mossberg 535 ATS Slugster version: "This dedicated, sabot-friendly slug gun is built to pump 'em out in the toughest conditions.". (1) The article in which that quote appeared went on to say that the test gun failed to extract four times during testing. So while it pumped em out, I guess it just could not get the empty cases out of the chamber with reliability. While I would like to think the author of that article was non-biased, objective and very smart regarding guns, and what with his use of words like 'affectation', I was somewhat taken aback at his praise for the 535 in spite of it failing to extract 4 times while he tested it. It could have been a broken extractor as he suggested, then again why did Mossberg ship a gun like that, and why did the tester not fault them for it - or at least try another gun from them to see if it too had the same problem?

On the other hand, Gun Tests Magazine did a review of the 535 ATS with thumbhole stock and compared it to the Remington 870 and the Benelli SuperNova. They did not rate it highly and while they thought it was a "...solid little unit fitted with several of the features that the innovative Mossberg line is known for." (2) they also said it "...wasn't in the same league..."as were either of the other two guns (3). When it came right down to their recommendation they picked the 870.

Maybe I should show that recommendation to the youngster before we next go to a gun show or gun shop. Heck, he is old enough to go on his own now, so maybe I had just best show it to him ASAP. (BBB - let me know if you read this.) As for me, I do not think the Mossbergs are bad guns, I just think that there are better values out there especially with reliability and function in mind. If you cannot affored a higher priced gun they are possibly a good choise. Then again, there is my doo-dad/glitz factor to consider and when I see things like a tactical turkey version, I can say without a doubt, it seems to me to be a bit of an affectation indeed!

All the best,
Glenn B

References:
1. http://gunsandammomag.com/cs/Satellite/IMO_GA/Story_
C/Mossberg+535+ATS+Slugster
2. http://www.gun-tests.com/issues/19_6/features/12-Gauge-Hunting-Shotguns_5425-1.html
3. http://www.gun-tests.com/issues/19_6/features/12-Gauge-Hunting-Shotguns_5425-1.html

October 5th - A Note

I was remiss in blogging on Monday, I had my reasons. One of those reasons was that I was pooped, another is that it was an important day for me personally and I had planned to take of blogging anyway. I'll not go into why it is important personally but I will say that I am always pleased to be reminded that October 5th is also the anniversary of the first broadcast on the BBC of Monty Python's Flying Circus in 1969. I was 14 at the time. That show was a big hit here in the USA; it was an absolute blast of craziness and goofiness sure to make even the stodgiest among us laugh out loud.

Watch the attached, and bear in mind it sort of reminds me of how politics work today:



All the best,
GB

Lack Of Blogging

No blogging last night because I had to going to a funeral parlor, a dear friend passed away.

No blogging on Monday simply because I passed out by about 8:30 shortly after I got home from work.

Maybe some blogging today, but I am not sure because I am sure I'll be busy. I'll be stopping at the hospital to visit a friend this morning, then work, then this evening back at the funeral parlor. The old gang is getting smaller.

All the best,
GB

I'm Not Stumped

Recently, Rita over at The Jungle Hut, had a blog post titled: I'm Stumped. That was followed by the header - What Has Been Your Scariest Travel Experience. I took that as a chance to tell her about mine because, if anything, I Was Not Stumped. I knew the answer as soon as I had read the question. The thing was, as usual, I can be long worded in my answers to such question, and it did not fit in the comments section. Heck this comment - even for me - was more detailed than most. I suppose my answer was so long because the question hit what little bit of raw nerve was exposed within my soul and I finally listened to my Psyche crying out and begging for help and sanctuary. I suppose self revelation is often the best way to help and comfort oneself.

Rita wrote to me saying that she saved my comment. She also hoped I had done likewise so that I could eventually post it. So, I am going to post it here. What I am posting is an edited version. I changed a few things as I have thought about them more and remember them a little differently or because I feel a bit differently about what it all means after some few days further reflection and I added some things for effect (for the effect that self revelation and remembering of them has for me). Please note that I am not posting it to boast, nor to look like a hero, nor to talk about my adventures. I am posting it because for me, at least, it is a sort of a self revelation and it is sort of therapy for me to let it out. Some of the things I am about to tell you have been hidden inside of me (hidden even from myself) for the last eight years and have been hurting me along the way. I don't expect that telling you about them will end my pain. What it may do is to at least bring mine to light and the warmth of that light may ease the aching I feel deep within my soul. Hopefully it also may help you to realize your own torment if indeed you have unconquered fears like mine hidden within your heart and it will help you bring them to the light of a new and better day. You see, I am not just going to write about My Scariest Travel Experience, I am going to tell you about The Scariest Time Of My Life:

I guess my scariest travel experience came in about the 2nd or 3rd week of October 2001. I was scheduled to fly for work, I was flying from NY's LaGuardia Airport to Miami. I had been up most of the night before because I was afraid. Heck I had been doubting, over a period of several days, if I could even get on that plane and wondering why in Hades I had decided to volunteer again. Yet, when I boarded the flight it was okay, sort of. Sure I was still scared. Then it was not okay. When other passengers started boarding, it got scarier. I gave them all the once over, some two or three. I was sitting right up front near the flight cabin and entry door. I saw every passenger who boarded the flight and imagined everyone of them from 9 to ninety could have been a terrorist. I know, it sounds ridiculous but that is just what I did. Then when the door of the plane closed right after boarding was completed, fear rolled over me in waves unimaginable. I just about wet myself. As we rolled down the taxi-way I was trembling with fear almost crying. As the plane started to accelerate down the runway for takeoff, I almost started to bawl – as I remember a tear or two started to run down my cheek but I wiped em away fast but I could not stop trembling, not stop being afraid. I mean all that literally. I was terrified, I wanted off of that plane right then and there. Those bastards on 9/11 had sure gotten to me.

Still though, I was flying. I had made an oath that I would do what I could do to either get them or prevent them from doing it again or just live life normally in the face of their terror. So there I was trying to do my part to help prevent another catastrophe despite the fear. I was flying in a temporary assignment for which I had volunteered as an Air Marshal. Those feelings of fear recurred, just about as badly as on that first day, each time I flew for the next two to three weeks. Yeah they lessened and eventually faded to just me remaining in a state of fairly high alert - but that first flight as an Air Marshal - that was the scariest thing I ever did while traveling, heck it was the scariest thing I ever did in my whole life. I have been involved in hand to hand combat twice where people have grabbed my service pistol and tried to kill me - and another time I was beaten with my own night stick by 4 assailants – another time I had two guys try to rob me and I shot one of them - I even climbed over then down a smoldering 25 foot high mound of rubble to retrieve evidence from the Customs evidence vault amid all the destruction of the WTC - I also helped to search for survivors of that attack - and I can tell you - without a doubt - as scary as they were - those incidents were nowhere near as scary as flying that first flight (nor as scary as were at least the next week's worth of flights, maybe not even as scary as the 2nd week's worth) as a temporary Air Marshal.

It’s amazing how it all affected me, tears are running down my cheeks right now. I am not sure why. It is not because I was scared, not because I am all that emotional about talking or writing about it, more I suppose to do with the fact that I was virtually helpless as were we all feeling (most of us without even realizing it) right after 9/11. I would not have been helpless on that plane though, and I guess that is what was so scary. I know that had a flight on which I had been flying had a hijacking attempt the hijacking would not have reached its ultimate goal. There either would have been a lot of dead terrorists or there would have been a downed flight that was not successfully used as a missile against people on the ground, or there would have been a couple of dead Air Marshals. We knew what had to be done, those few hundred of us who volunteered, and I think we all were prepared to do it. Being prepared to do it though, that did not make it less scary, nor any easier, at least for me. I knew as did every flight attendant, every pilot and co-pilot, every passenger on all those planes once the airports reopened that if it happened again - people were going to die but the terrorists would not succeed in their overall mission. I think every American had been emboldened not only by the destruction on 9/11 but also by the words of the one passenger over PA who had organized the others to retake the cockpit. Well, I think they knew they would never live through it, that was a wild hope, they knew they would be killed but they did it anyway. I really have no idea why I volunteered to be a FAM and certainly will never quite fully understand how I got on that plane that first day. I was not prepared for it after a week of training, I knew that. I had never been in the military and never seen war. Sure I had my experience as a law enforcement officer but I was already 43 years old when this came around and I was scared to death.

I have to say I would never have flown, I would have called in sick, or just quit, had it not been for a friend in whom I confided about my fears. He reassured me time and time again, almost all to no avail, that is until he sent me these words:

"THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated." (Thomas Paine the introduction to The American Crisis 1776) (Thanks Pete K. - we have drunk from the same canteen indeed!)

I flew for 5 months. I had some really boring flights, hundreds of them. I also great times, met some swell people, and it was a good experience over all except maybe for how the real Air Marshals treated those of us who volunteered for this temporary assignment. They thought they were elite, I thought they were a-holes - not all of them but certainly the ones who thought they were superior. I never got involved in even one real conflict though this was the same period I think in which the shoe bomber guy was tackled by passengers and flight crew on a flight from London and was the time when a flight went down near JFK and all aboard perished. It was scary for all of us, and I think more so for those who flew anywhere.

I remember one flight attendant though on a really tough day. Though I recall the event vividly, I am not certain of exactly when this happened but seem to remember it was on or just after a day when my partner and I were waiting on a plane at LaGuardia Airport. On that day the captain came on and announced that a flight had gone down at Kennedy Airport and it was believed all aboard were lost. We had no other communication. The television service at the airport was shut down (by airport officials so as to not cause a panic when the news was broadcast - what jerks). We sat and waited for hours before we were told all flights had been cancelled. (This was the flight that crashed in the Rockaways killing all aboard and many on the ground- it turned out it was due to mechanical/structural failure not terrorism but we had no clue at the time.)

I don't remember for sure if it was on that same day, or within the following days once we were flying again, that a stewardess (forgive me my use of that word that flight attendants hate so much but I am old fashioned and it conveys a better time for me) was trembling and crying. She was just about hysterical. I did my best to console her and she ultimately gave me one of the warmest smiles of anyone with whom I flew in those 5 months. Believe me there were plenty of smiles and winks, especially on the shuttle flights to and from DC, especially right after some jerk of a congressman told the news media in which seats the air marshals had to sit. Yep, we were made, would have been anyway doing 4 to 6 flights a day back and forth to DC. Many of the passengers winked at us, smiled at us, patted us on our backs, shook our hands - all the while as we denied being who we were. Well back to that stewardess - she was pregnant - she was sure she was doing something wrong by flying – sure she was doing something wrong just by being pregnant ready to bring a baby into the post 9/11 world - worried about her baby – worried about flying – scared for herself – scared for the passengers - scared for America - almost scared to death. I sure knew the feeling. I had to do something, maybe it was not the right thing but I swore to her that as long as there was one breath of life left in my body - there would be no successful hijacking of any plane on which I was on. I swore that she was safe with me. She stopped sobbing, looked me in my eyes with one of the absolute most piercing stares I have ever seen and asked me if I really meant that.

Before I had said that to her, I already had figured that if we were hijacked we would all be dying, I was convinced stopping a hijacking must have surely meant going down in flames or whatever. Yet, that day, as I spoke to her, I meant each and every word I said to her. I guess I had meant it along that is why I had volunteered for the assignment. As for the hope within my words to her: it may have been a false hope, or maybe it was more - maybe it was a real hope - granted only with a tiny chance of success - one really with almost no chance of working out - but I meant every word of what I told her and I meant it down to my very last breath. She knew I meant it too because that is when she gave me that smile. She wasn't so scared after that - neither was I. I don't even remember her name but I will never, not ever so long as I breathe, forget her smile or what it meant to me at that moment. It truly instilled steely determination within me.

That friend of mine – the one who sent me those words from Thomas Paine – well he sent me some others – also of Thomas Paine that fit at that moment:

"I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death." --Thomas Paine

That surely fit the stewardess - she was smiling in trouble the type of which Thomas Paine was speaking. I guess too that is sort of what that stewardess was thinking about me in her own way. Maybe she thought I looked like a fat and old John Wayne but I suppose, right then and there, I was her hero ready to die for America if need be and she would have been okay with flying with me through hell. Whatever she may have been thinking though – her smile made it worth it. It made 5 months of gut wrenching fear easier to take, and I was sure if called upon I would do it all again because of that. The that to which I am making reference is not merely her smile, nor that maybe she saw me as a hero or protector. Heck, I am sure many of the passengers and flight crews felt likewise – that we were their protectors. The that to which I refer though is not even so much that people were ready to fly because we had helped put them at ease. Nor is it that because we were able as a team - as a nation - as one people to keep on living even in the face of our worst fears and that we were all prepared to die for our principles. I had thought that was it but no – the that to which I am referring is none of them and yet is all of them.

I have never in my life been as scared as back then, nor have I ever in my life been as proud of my country as I was when we all came together to face a common enemy, nor had I ever felt a feeling better than I did than when that stewardess smiled at me and I knew she would be alright bringing her child into the world as my wife had brought our children into the pre 9/11 world. You see, to me at least, the that to which I am referring was something that her smile revealed. Her smile at that moment, amidst all the fear, the uncertainty, the crisis meant one thing - it meant that she knew - as a fear stricken flight attendant - as a soon to be mom - as an American - that America would be alright. As surely as she knew it, I knew it too. That made it so much the easier to overcome, or live with, my fear - and it made it all worth the effort.

All the best,
Glenn B

Ballseye's Gun Shots 23 - Dear Ballseye On Gun Care Accessories

I am not all that big of a gun guy and I am not referring to my size but rather to my interest in guns. Sure I like my guns, a lot at that, but I suppose I have only an average to somewhat slightly higher interest in guns overall among shooters, hunters, collectors and so on. I know about firearms safety, know how to shoot fairly well, can instruct others how to shoot fairly well, know a fair mount about defensive tactics with firearms, know how to properly care for the firearms I own as far as regular maintenance goes, know how to refinish a wooden gun stock (born more of a woodworking thing than a gun thing there but it applies to wooden stocks nonetheless), and know how to tinker with some parts if something breaks or wears out. My abilities in the last thing - tinkering with the works of guns - is very limited indeed.

Still, I can give you some of what I think is god advice with regards to things like gun cleaning accessories, basic tools for firearms maintenance and repair, and so on. Along those lines I can also tell you about some of the things to avoid. That is what this post will be about - some helpful hints on gun care accessories that are both those worth having and those worth avoiding. I guess in essence this will be something of a Dear Heloise kind of a write-up albeit a Dear Ballseye one at that. Dear Ballseye, imagine that - a blog called Dear Ballseye in which readers send me letters asking about shooting, tactics, self defense issues, and firearms care, cleaning, repairs and so on. That would be a blast but alas I do not see it in my future. Of course one never knows just what will show up over on the right side of my page as a new addition to Ballseye's Boomers. For now, let's just imagine that I have received letters from my readers asking me about this or that relative to firearms care.

*******

Dear Ballseye,

Recently I decided to clean all of my firearms - rifles, shotguns and pistols. I need a large work area so I decided to use the dining room table. Whoops - that was a big mistake. I spilled some Hoppes #9 on the Irish Linen tablecloth and it left a stain. Now the wife wants to kill me even though our dining room smells great! What can I do?

Signed,

A Worried Husband

*******

Dear Worried,

I wouldn't worry too much if it was my wife's tablecloth; instead I would start running far and fast - faster than a speeding bullet. If your wife has not shot you already maybe you do not need to run except to a lawyer. After your divorce is final, if you ever decide to remarry, you may want to try this tip when cleaning your guns. Don't use the dining room table if at all avoidable, not the kitchen table either. As much as I love Hoppes and other gun cleaning solvents they do not belong at a tale from which we will later take sustenance, drink beer, or play poker (that stuff is great for cleaning guns it can ruin a good deck of playing cards in no time).

If you do find some way to make up with your wife (I recommend a dozen long stem roses, a nice dinner at the most expensive restaurant you can find, and a professional cleaning of the linen tablecloth) there are some things I recommend to avoid this problem in the future. Go to a place like your local giant handyman's store, you know like the one with the big orange letters - Home Something or other, and get yourself a 4 foot long folding table just for gun cleaning and tinkering. You would be amazed at how readily your wife (that is if you still have one) will be willing to accept the expense of such an item. If you want to be comfortable get a nice folding chair too. If you want to keep the wife even happier, show her you learned your lesson by buying a vinyl tablecloth to cover it when you work on your guns. Make sure you already replaced that Irish Linen or had it professionally cleaned though before you show her your new tablecloth for the gun worktable. Otherwise the whole plan may backfire and she may just shoot you. Of course you can also buy her a table - for things like gardening, or whatever hobby she may enjoy that requires a medium sized work area. If all that does not make up for your mess - well follow my first advice and run far and faster than a speeding bullet because she may already be aiming at getting you and your guns out of the house.

Hope this was helpful,

Ballseye

********

Dear Ballseye,

I followed your advice and got the table. I also decided to sort of follow your advice about getting one for my wife and decided I could save money and let her use my table when she needed it. I also bought one of those green felt/rubber backed roll up gun cleaning mats at my local guns tore for $14. They said it was well worth every penny. Now I wish I had listened to you and bought the wife a separate table, and that I had gotten myself a vinyl tablecloth instead. That green roll up mat is a piece of junk. Dirt of all sorts sticks to it, oil and gun cleaning solvents soak into it, and the stringy felt like fibers that cover the work side of it get all caught up in my bore brushes. I have even found the stuff in the actions of some of my guns. As for the table, my wife started to use it to make Halloween decorations and plans likewise for Thanksgiving and Christmas. What is a guy to do to get his table back and keep the wife happy - I need to clean and check my guns before the hunting season and I am not about to do it on the dining room table again. By the way, cleaning the linen tablecloth cost me $350 - so no new hunting rifle this year.

Signed,

Worried Husband Again

********

Dear Worried Again,

You are getting there but sure could have done it better. Just break down and spend the extra money on another folding table, this one just for your guns, and go to a kitchen supply store and pick up a heavy duty vinyl tablecloth (with cloth backing optional) for it. You may want to write on it in large letters GUN CLEANING ONLY with indelible magic marker. That way your wife never mistakenly uses it for the family BBQ and then blames you because all the food tasted like gun oil. Of course, if you clean it each time you are done using it on the gun table, then it will smell nice and fresh should your wife ever mistakenly use it on the patio table. As for not having enough money for a new hunting rifle, you can now use the dining room table for poker games. Remember though poker is a hit or miss proposition. By the way, I too find those green gun cleaning mats to be just about absolutely worthless. All the things you say happens with them and more. I rolled mine up after the first time I used it thinking that rolling it so the rubber backing wound up on the outside of the roll was a good idea. All that did was to assure that the a good portion of the rubber backing rolled up against the oil and gun solvent soaked felt like material. You guessed it - the next time I used the mat, the now oily and gun solvent wet underside of the mat was in contact with my work table. Lucky for me I had already learned my lesson about using linen covered dining room tables - so I was already using a relatively inexpensive folding table. All that needed was a good cleaning with warm sudsy water and then a rinse and pat down with paper towels to dry it off. The $14 or so that I spent on that cleaning mat is probably one of the worst expenditures value wise I have ever made.

Hope this was helpful,

Heloise Ballseye

********

Dear Ballseye,

Recently I decided to disassemble my Remington 870 Shotgun for a really good cleaning and to check the parts for wear and tear. Not having any the instructions, or gunsmith training or tools I searched the Internet for advice. I came upon a site:

http://www.bubbaspoorfellasgunschmidding.gun.nut/

I found a wonderful article there about how to accomplish my goal. Yeah it was a little hard to read what with no capital letters, run on sentences, poor punctuation, misspellings and lots of slang but I got through it okay. I figured this was truly the site for guys like me who have a few guns that we want to maintain, clean or repair now and then but who do not have a lot of money for a gunsmith to do the work or to buy professional tools made for guns. It gave what seemed like really great advice on how to use regular tools found in the tool box on my guns. So I tried it out and I grabbed my trusty 870, the one my grand-dad left to me, a claw hammer, a center punch, a screwdriver, and a toothbrush and went at it.

Everything was going okay. I took off the rear rifle sight assembly (mine has rifle sights) with the screwdriver and only stripped the screw head a little bit because the screwdriver was apparently not just the right size and that screw was in their tightly. I got the barrel off, took out the magazine spring retaining cap (again with the screwdriver and only bent it a little), had the magazine spring shoot across the room and knock one of my wife's precious little knick-knacks off the shelf breaking it into only a few pieces that I think I can glue together again.

I continued onwards and followed Bubba's instructions to the letter and I used a center punch and the claw hammer to knock out the pins holding the trigger assembly in the receiver. At first I just tried pushing them out while holding the punch in my hand. They were all in there tightly just like Bubba said it might be so I tried what he said was a sure way to get them loose. I put the tip of the center punch into the small indent at the end of the pins and I slammed the other end of the punch with the claw hammer as hard as I could for each pin. Well that first little pin sure came out. It too, like the mag spring, shot across the room but this time it didn't break anything - lucky for me. Then I pried the center punch out of the hole in the frame with the claw end of the hammer. I followed Bubba's instructions and grabbed hold of the punch with the claw, then twisted and turned it as hard as I could to free the punch. Yep that Bubba sure seemed to know his stuff because he warned that the punch, what with its tapered shape, might get stuck in the holes for the pins and he sure knew how to get the stuck punch unstuck with that claw hammer. I got out all of the pins the same way.

Then once it was all apart (except for the actual trigger assembly but only because I did not have time) and cleaned, I tried to put it back together again. This is where the trouble started. I knew I was in trouble when the pins kept falling out of the holes and Bubba's website did not say anything about it. I must have done something wrong but I would swear I followed Bubba's instructions exactly as he gave them. All those pins that fit so snuggly before just wobbled right through the holes and to tell you the truth the holes now looked kind of ragged and out of round to me. Bubba's website does not explain why this would happen and I am at a loss to figure it out. Please HELP.

Signed,
Frustrated Tinkering Gun Owner

PS: Any suggestions on a glue for my wife's knick-knacks.

********

Dear Tinkering Fool Gun Owner,

Try buying a new receiver from Remington or maybe a whole new 870. Of course, you can keep some of the old gun for parts, or maybe just slap it back together as best you can using chewing gum to keep the pins in place. Then hang it on your wall forever, don't try shooting it again.

The next time you want to disassemble a gun for cleaning or maintenance contact the manufacturer if possible and get instructions from them on how to disassemble and reassemble your firearm. Luckily for you the monetary value of an 870 is not that high when it comes to replacement but the loss of sentimental value, since it was your grand-dads, must be high. Other than keeping it as a wall hanger and getting a replacement I have no other advice about it.

Oh - I do have one more piece of advice for you - forget about Bubba's website, remove the link from your link list and avoid all other similar websites in the future.

Sorry I am not a miracle worker,
Ballseye

PS: Buy your wife a new knick-knack or three to replace the broken one. Try to get one of the same as was the broken one, and two other even nicer and more expensive ones.

*******

Dear Ballseye,

I recently decided to place some of my less used rifles into long term storage. I used a space aged version of gun metal protectant that I bought at my local gun shop. it is called Cosmoline. The gun store clerk told me it is the most advanced space age metal protectant there is on the market and I was happy to pay $58.99 for a one gallon can of it. All went well and I followed the instructions that came with the product. My guns are absolutely slathered with this stuff inside and out and I have at least a half a gallon of the stuff left over. A great value if you ask me. Now half of my 8 gun collection is well protected and in storage for TEOTWAWKI. If you have never heard of this product I highly recommend it. It is supposed to prevent rust and other types of corrosion on metal and also protects wooden stocks from mold and other such nasties. It is easy to apply by hand using an old rag.

The only problem I had with it, and this is why I have written to you oh great gun master, is that while working this stuff into my guns I dropped some onto the floor and it got into the carpet. I was watching the big league playoffs and wasn't paying as much attention as I should have and I now have that mess on the floor. I also had a mess on my hands and I got some of this stuff into the cable company's remote control for my TV. The keys are now kind of sluggish, well the ones that still work anyway, the other ones are just right out stuck from all the goop around and under them. The other thing is that when I was done, I wiped off my hands then went upstairs and gave the wife a hug and kiss, as I often do when feeling good about having cared well for my firearms, and I sort of got some of this stuff on her favorite blouse. Can you get me out of this mess.

Signed,
Mess Making Man

********

Dear Mess Maker,

First let me say it is nice to see people who want to care properly for their guns even when they plan to store them for the end of the world as we know it. It was also nice to see you followed application instructions for the product. Now allow me to suggest that if you ever do this again you read my first response above and get yourself a good folding table on which you can work on your guns. Also keep the TV off and do not handle the remote.

Before starting again, get yourself a good vinyl or other protective and grease/oil proof apron to wear while working on your guns with cleaners or protectants. You may also consider wearing a good pair of latex gloves (if not allergic to latex) or some other household rubber type glove while doing this kind of messy work. Take off the gloves and apron before hugging your wife. You may even want to clean up with some soap and water to get any mess off of yourself if you forgot to use the gloves. Dawn dishwashing detergent works well for me. I also use Go-Jo hand cleaner. I use it first to get off the gunk, then rinse, then I wash using the Dawn dishwashing detergent. Then I dry off. Then, and only then, would I even consider hugging she who must be adored. (No I am not about to hug your wife, I meant mine and you keep your hands off of her.) Oh yeah, remember to take of any jewelry that might get scratched by the grit in the Go-Jo - I sort of dulled the finish on my wedding ring in the first year of my marriage using that stuff and someone was really mad at me after that.

As for the rug and the blouse, you may want to try to absorb as much of the greasy mess that the Cosmoline left behind with paper towels. Then try washing each with a mild detergent - one that fights grease and oil - like dawn. (No this is not a dawn commercial and they are not paying me - but yes the stuff works pretty good).

As for the remote - I again have to say - I am no miracle worker. Maybe the cable guy will feel pity for you if he too is a gun guy and he can replace it for you for free. Of course if he is anti-gun he may report you to the authorities as a menace to society.

When you take your guns out of storage and want to clean off the Cosmoline don't go to the guy who sold it to you for $58.99 for advice; he might just try to sell you some other space age stuff to remove it, and you really don't need to get ripped off again. Oh, didn't i mention that the Cosmoline should ahve cost about $15 - if that much. There are lots of good gun forums such as TheGunCounter.com or the AmmoLocker.com where you can get free advice on how to remove it later without spending a fortune. Just make sure the forum/thread has plenty of posts in it with good grammar and that no post is signed by Bubba.

Hope I helped to
clean up your mess,
Ballseye

********

Well dear readers, that is it for now. I hope I have imparted to you some of the littler bits of gun care wisdom that will make caring for your firearms just a bit easier on you and your pocketbook.

All the best,

Glenn B

Toyota About To Blunder...

...or have they done so already with their advice to motorists about what to do if their accelerator pedal sticks after they have removed their foot from it.

Disclaimer Break: THE FOLLOWING, AT LEAST WITH REGARD TO ANY ADVICE I GIVE, IS BASED UPON MY OPINION ALONE. IF YOU TAKE, USE, PASS ON ANY ADVICE I GIVE, YOU AGREE TO HOLD ME HARMLESS AND TO INDEMNIFY ME.

Toyota essentially tells you, among other things, that the very first thing you should do is to reach down to pull back the floor mat because it may be depressing the pedal causing the car to accelerate, then pull over and stop the vehicle. (1) Of course they also give other advice such as applying the brakes steadily or applying the brakes steadily and either shutting off the car or putting the key into the accessory position (you sure do not want to lock your steering if you have the type car in which the steering wheel locks in place once the car is shut off), or applying the brakes and placing the car into neutral.

Of course their advice is based on the fact that they are recalling 3.8 million vehicles to replace floor mats or otherwise fix a problem whereby the accelerator can get stuck due to a floor mat sliding forward. The advice they give, is in my opinion, bad advice. The first thing you should do to control your car is to step on the brake and at the same time place the car into neutral. Why do I say this? I say so because if the accelerator is stuck due to a mechanical problem other than anything to do with a floor mat then bending over to pull the floor mat back wastes precious time and allows the car to continue to accelerate. Therefore the first thing you would want to do is to cease accelerating no matter what could be the cause. Placing the car in neutral while applying the brakes will cause a vehicle with a stuck accelerator to cease accelerating and to stop if the brakes and shifter are working properly. Even if the floor mat is the cause and may also be preventing the brake pedal from being depressed fully, by putting the car into neutral you make the prevent the car from causing itself to accelerate. Once that is done you can check to pull the floor mat back or the gas pedal up or clear the brake pedal. When doing so, do it by feel if possible so you can keep your eyes on the road.

Last month, a family of 4 was killed in California due to a floor mat pressing down their accelerator or so are the findings of the accident investigators as reported on by several news outlets. One of the 4 people in the car was a California Highway Patrol Officer. For some reason it seems he did not think of either shutting off the car or putting the car into neutral at least until too late if they did it at all. Heck that is something I learned in my first government defensive driving course given in my academy training. Why the CHP did not teach this officer likewise, if such is the case, is a mystery to me. I am not blaming anyone, just pointing out that I would have thought a police officer would have known how to deal with the situation, in fact I guess I would have thought everyone would have known how to deal with it. The car was going over 100 mph when it collided with another vehicle in an intersection. One of the 4 people in the car called 911. One of the first things the 911 operator ask is if they can brake or shut off the vehicle. Even he did not ask if they had it in neutral. I asked my son and daughter today, what would you do if your accelerator stuck. My daughter's answer was to step on the brake. When I prodded her for more she had no clue. My son said he would shut the car off. When I asked him for more he said put on the brakes. Neither one thought of putting the car into neutral and applying the brakes. Now they know about that option. Folks it seems that such simple things as putting the car in neutral or turning it off (remembering you do not want to lock your steering wheel if you have that type of locking steering wheel) along with properly braking are things that people apparently do not realize are just the things that could save them in such a situation. Calling 911 maybe too late - you as the driver or passenger in a car need to know these things before you get going in a car again and you must be ready to take action as appropriate.

The second of the following two videos contain parts of the 911 call made from the out of control vehicle. You can hear more if you can find other copies - the call continues as the car speeds into the crash and actually crashes on some other copies. I figured if you want to hear that you can find it on your own.





All the best,
GB

Footnote:

1. http://pressroom.toyota.com/pr/tms/toyota/toyota-consumer-safety-advisory-102572.aspx

GM Failing Again...

...this time it says it will be shutting down its Saturn plants because a deal to sell them fell through! I know this is a major problem in that many will lose jobs but I also know a foolproof solution. Let's get the government to print up a lot of dollar bills and have the government buy them out and take control with the newly printed cash. Yeah that will work.

JUST FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE NOT FIGURED IT OUT YET - THE SOLUTION I JUST GAVE WAS ME BEING SARCASTIC!

I sure seem to remember someone in Washington saying that we needed just such a solution not too long ago. Now was it George W. Bush and his cronies or Barack H. Obama and his cronies? May have been both of them but the important thing is that when they said they had to do it they also said it had to be done immediately to save the nation from financial ruin (remember all the urgency - it had to absolutely - positively - be done - without fail - within 24 hours). Well they did it and I guess we delayed them too long and they failed after all - I mean just look at the mess we are still in - look at this mess in particular.

So some politicians may actually use their recollections of just how long money for GM was delayed when they said they needed it by tomorrow, when they try to find blame for this latest downturn in our economy. They will not blame GM, nor Saturn nor Penske (the company that decided not to buy Saturn), what they probably will do is the totally political, unethical, reprehensible, finger wagging sort of thing they always do - they will blame their opposition and try to gain political points for themselves. The truth be told, well at least my opinion of it anyhow, GM sucks as a car maker. Their products for the most part were and remain absolute crap. Why we bailed out a junk maker like them in the first place befuddles me. It seems a crime to me that such was done with our money. It also seems a crime to me that GM is being allowed to make this current decision while still in possession of our money - they have not paid it all back yet - have they! GM, to me, appears to b nothing more than an irresponsible money grubbing concern that cannot currently and probably will not in the future hold itself together and make itself successful and profitable. Why is it that the folks in DC cannot realize this.

Of course there is hope for our economy that maybe you have not yet realized because all of this mess has obstructed your vision. There are companies like Penske that refuse to make what they believe would be bad deals that are not in their company's best interest.

"...the company has determined that the risks and uncertainties related to the availability of future products prohibit the company from moving forward with this transaction" (1)

I do not know the current financial status of Penske it could be excellent or could be very poor, but my hat goes off to them for avoiding a mistake that could have cost them dearly regardless of the current situation. They seem to be using some foresight, some planning, some figuring, some logic - as opposed to the politicians in Washington who thought it a good idea to shovel out good money after bad in trying to rescue failing U.S. automakers and financial institutions. Let them fail. Why do I say that when I know it will cause massive financial hardship for us. Well the other option of bailing them out has already created decades of debt for us, our children and possibly our grandchildren. We are making our nation one made up of all paupers instead of paupers. I say let these companies fail and do not socialize them because when they fail under a capitalist system they will either bring themselves back up or someone else will take their place and fill the niche. Having the government save them is bound to fail just like it is already doing. Who wills step in then once the government controls everything to do with them? No one - because socialized economies have been failures over and over again throughout history where truly capitalist nations have always been able to rebuild and reclaim much if not all of the wealth they may have lost through earlier failures.

All the best,
Glenn B

Footnotes:
1. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,558180,00.html?test=latestnews

Chicago Students Are out of Control Despite Gun Control

How many times does it need to be shown that strict gun control measures do little maybe even nothing to stem violent crime and homicide. As a matter of fact, if you look to find an example of one of the strictest jurisdictions in this country when it comes to bans of guns, gun licensing, gun control and the like, you invariably think of Chicago. Yet, Chicago has one of the most terrible records in our nation when it comes to firearms being used in the commission of violent crimes especially as related to school violence. This from FoxNews.com:

"Before 2006, an average of 10-15 students were fatally shot each year. That climbed to 24 fatal shootings in the 2006-07 school year, 23 deaths and 211 shootings in the 2007-08 school year and 34 deaths and 290 shootings last school year." (1)

Why is it that this is happening? Bear in mind the above quote is only talking about gun violence in particular. There are plenty of other forms of violence taking place in the school system in Chicago and much more violence taking place in general in Chicago. Chicago is one of the most crime ridden areas of all sorts in our nation:

"With a crime rate of 61 per one thousand residents, Chicago has one of the highest crime rates in America compared to all communities of all sizes - from the smallest towns to the very largest cities. One's chance of becoming a victim of either violent or property crime here is one in 16. Within Illinois, more than 90% of the communities have a lower crime rate than Chicago." (2)

I again ask: Why is this happening?

It is not happening because there are guns in Chicago. Guns are not the cause of the violence only a tool being misused in order to achieve a criminal goal. In the most recent episode of school violence resulting in death in Chicago, a student apparently was beaten to death with wood beams. It is not the weapon that matters, it is the reason that these heinous crimes are being committed that matters and no matter how hard leftists want to say that guns are the reason they are plain out wrong. The truth be told there is and has been a breakdown of the moral fiber of this country going on for many decades. The breakdown has been fostered by the left time and time again. Those on the right are also responsible but nowhere near as much as they who keep insisting: that crimes not be punished with long prison sentences or the death penalty, that victims of crimes often asked for the crime (such as a rape victim having worn a mini-skirt being an invitation to a rapist), that religion and spiritualism need to be pushed out of society, that everyone should pass in school whether or not they actually did the work to accomplish a passing grade, that everyone is entitled to health care, that everyone is entitled to a good paying job, that everyone is entitled to have someone else pay their way if they do not want to become educated - work - get a job and be a supportive member of our nation, that they are the victims of imaginary hatred, that we must all be more tolerant of they who are weird or abnormal, that we must be more responsible to take care of the world yet we must stop butting in, that we must pay for freedom of speech and freedom of expression in the form of government grants even if it means spreading actual excrement on a piece of canvas or a religious statue, that we must pass the buck with regard to blame for our societal failures, that it is always someone else at fault (don't believe this then just watch those TV advertisements for stumble and fall lawyers).

We glorify guns for illegal purposes in the movies, we glorify thrill killing in the movies. We glorify the actors and actresses (call me old fashioned) who perform and glorify raunch day in and day out. We glorify filth, and drugs, rape and killing in rap music. We glorify hatred in the media on a daily basis - just look at that guy with the blond hair at MSNBC. We have elected a president who had a terrorist for a friend, who now has selected a former drug users as school safety czar (and who also reportedly knowingly failed to report the rape of a student by an adult male), and who has put into other posts communists and racial activists. We have lost our moral fiber for sure.

Then we wonder why: We cower fearful of being arrested if we actually discipline our children because the police under our weak kneed legislators consider it a crime to spank our children to make sure they stay on the straight and narrow from a young age. We listen to politicians, psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors, nurses and teachers about how not to screw up the upbringing of our children and their upbringing only gets worse and worse as we listen to and try to use each new tidbit of advice from these so called professionals - many who have never raised a child. Then we wonder why our kids turn out like they have done - why they go into schools to shoot, stab and blow each other up. Why is it? It is because we, their parents have lost control because of they who claim to know better than we as to how to care for our children. This has not only happened with the upbringing of our children but has happened in almost every facet of our lives. We are becoming a nanny state or worse we are becoming socialized whereby someone else has to care for us, where they always know better than us, whereby we must obey them or we are criminals if we differ in how to live our own lives. Folks, it is an easily documented fact that such has been the persuasive power of the far left liberal over the years. The radical can only be radical in the first place because no one exercises any discipline over them in the first place and all they desire is to control and discipline everyone else.

It is about time that parents claim back their rightful role in parenting. How about the parent of the kids in the Chicago schools do something. I don't mean that they go out and protest how the schools are run either - this maybe in part due to the school administration and to ultra liberal teachers, but it is mostly due to some wise ass kid not getting a size 12 up his ass when he mouths off and calls his parent or teacher a motha-fucka, an asshole, or says chingate cabron to them, or whatever. It is about time that parents open their eyes to the problem and vote out the incumbents and vote in someone who actually has some moral fiber. It is about time that the legislators start enacting some parent friendly laws allowing parents to use discipline to correct their children, and it is about time that some kids come to school and find it hard to sit in their seats for the day.

We as citizens need to be in control not to be controlled by the government. We need to get them to take proper actions against criminals. So it is also about time that arrests start being made. Not just the 4 guys accused of killing the student last week in Chicago either, how about the whole friggin crowd - everyone that the police can identify. Charge them with rioting. Charge them with conspiracy to kill this kid. Charge them with any felony with which they can be charged and if convicted get them off of the streets. As opposed to what their badly misinformed and liberalized parents will say, they are not good kids at least in my opinion.

We also need to be exercising our rights and liberties as United States Citizens. This includes one of the most basic rights, that of armed self defense. Start letting people carry firearms in Chicago, heck all throughout the country. Allow them to shoot in self defense. Make it sure to prosecute actual criminals for violent crimes committed with firearms and receive long jail sentences if convicted - do not prosecute grandpa for shooting some thug who was about to rape grandma. Make sure the people can legally act in self defense. You will see the crime rate in Chicago (and the rest of the country) drop like a stone.

I know this won't happen anytime soon, but if it did, if the law abiding citizen populace was allowed to carry guns in the hellhole known as Chicago - crime would invariable drop. Then so too would it if parents could plant a size 12 up juniors ass, and if legislators legislated with morality instead of just having it their way in mind. Do these sound like oversimplified solutions to you. You can bet they are simple but you can also bet they would each work to a greater extent than the system under which we find ourselves now - at least that is what I think about it

All the best,
Glenn B

Footnotes:
1. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,557380,00.html?test=latestnews
2. http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/il/chicago/crime/