Norman Borlaug – RIP

For those who haven’t heard, here’s the Wikipedia entry…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Borlaug

Having saved the lives of millions due to his research, memorials should be built to honor him. And if there is a God, this man now walks in Heaven.

Just So You Know…

I’m working on why my beautiful scans/files are not openable in a new window to see them full-size.  Stay Tuned, anonymous reader…

Quick notes

A good weekend…went to the range and did some practice (no pics due to me needing to rush out the door to beat the rain), did some home repair, and even found some cheap(er) 7.62 NATO in bandoleers!

Also: I’m removing the Jihad Watch lik on the blog – I’ve been reading the coverage given to the owner by Little Green Footballs, and I’m convinced.  I’ll have nothing to do with racist idiots.

Appleseed Pt 9

Lookit that – there’s hope.

And while I’m at it – about a month back there was a discusion amongst some gun bloggers about the utility of an Appleseed for the absolute beginner – here’s one..

http://anarchangel.blogspot.com/2008/09/appleseed-and-gun-nuts.html

I have to say I agree with Byrne on this – I had believed that the problem was with me when I wasn’t hitting the target (hitting other people’s targets, actually) when my rifle hadn’t been zeroed, and I had shot maybe 200 rounds through it.  Someone who isn’t as determined as I am might have been discouraged and given up with the intensity of the training there.  I haven’t – I’m going to get that Rifleman patch someday! – and perhaps the “sink or swim” approach is the best way to cultivate Riflemen.  I just think that more clarity in exactly what’s going to happen might behoove the RWVA.

My crisis of conscience over

I had mulled this over for a long time. I had almost given in to temptation, and gone over to the Statist side.  Like NOMAD the logic seemed inescapable.

Pure libertarianism wasn’t working (via Paul and the Rally for the Republic), therefore I would have to run for office as Paul seemed to be urging freedom-loving Americans to do.

But it’s not that simple.  People who end up running, no matter how they feel in the beginning, get tainted by the office they run for.  They get attacked by their opponent, and (figuratively) rectally examined for hint of wrong thinking, improper action, or moral impropriety.  And after all that, even if they as a a candidate win, how do you make someone else follow you, without either becoming the political creature most of us hate, or using the power of the State to coerce obedience?

No, Paul’s message is fine as far as it goes, but I won’t submit myself to the cheapening of political office.  I can’t. 

Hopefully, more new content in a couple of days.

It’s worth that much?!

My blog is worth $2,822.70.
How much is your blog worth?

I wonder how they figure?

List – The 50 Most Dystopian Movies of All Time

Wally Conger of Out of Step ( http://www.wconger.blogspot.com/) wrote down what he’s got from this list at Snarkerati.com

http://snarkerati.com/movie-news/the-top-50-dystopian-movies-of-all-time/ 

Here’s what I have: (I’ve seen a few more on the list as well, but those don’t count.)

Metropolis (1927) 

Brazil (1985)

Blade Runner (1982)

The Matrix (1999)

The Road Warrior (1981)

Minority Report (2002)

Sleeper (1973)

Serenity (2005)

Ghost in The Shell (1995)

Robocop (1987)

Akira (1988)

Planet Of The Apes (1968)

V For Vendetta (2005)

Gattaca (1997)

Total Recall (1990)

They Live (1988)

THX-1138 (1971)

Escape From New York (1981)

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Idiocracy (2006)

Death Race 2000 (1975)

Starship Troopers (1997)

Equilibrium (2002)

Avalon (2001)

That’s 23 by my count.  So: to Conger - HA! and furthermore HA! (and some more on that list sounded intriguing, like No Blade of Grass…) Got a blog? Let’s see what you got!

Archive – Appleseed Pt. 1

 (First Posted May 8,2007)

 All week I’ve been preparing for the RWVA Appleseed shoot being held in Shiocton, WI this weekend. (Go here for a little more info) http://rwva.blogspot.com/

Don’t quite know if I’m ready – Last Saturday, I went to the local outdoor range to put a few bullets through my brand-new rifle, and ended up not shooting more than 24 rounds. Couldn’t tell whether it was the magazines or the ammo that was giving me a failure to feed. the upshot of which, I’ll have to bring another rifle (and hope not to embarass myself too badly- though I’m pretty much a newbie when it comes to rifle shooting to begin with).

Plus, I’ve had to purchase a lot of extra equipment I’ve never needed before, making the venture a little more expensive than I’d like. Still, I’m looking forward to it – any chance to get out of Dodge for a bit…

I’m sure that this will end well…

seeing as how shooty and steroidey (http://freedominourtime.blogspot.com/2007/09/state-on-steroids.html#links) our “law-enforcement” officers are these days.

http://www.local6.com/news/14224055/detail.html

Perhaps “Don’t machine gun me, Bro!” will become part of the vernacular as well…

Review – Son of Rambow

Gentle reader; thank you for being so patient while I both archive old stuff here and attempt to find time to put new stuff up. I’m working as fast as I can to get all the old stuff squared away so I can get back to ranting…

Anyway – saw this at the Milwaukee International Film Festival (hereafter known as MIFF).

Y’know, they tell you not to make a movie with kids in it, and they tell you not to make a movie about making movies. But damn if I wasn’t entertained by this…

Short plot synopsis – Will Proudfoot (Bill Milner), a kid with Technicolor dreams raised by a strict Christian sect in Britain, befriends a kid from the wrong side of the tracks at his school, Lee Carter (Will Poulter), through seeing a bootleg copy of Rambo: First Blood and trying to make a sequel with one of those 80s camcorders with the umbilical cord.

I really liked how the director, Garth Jennings, made Will’s thoughts cinematic (and prety much confirms that if you’re going to make a movie, you’re going to need visual effects at some point or another). Also hilarious is the subplot of a French exchange student at the school, Didier (Jules Sitruk), who through being French and dressing like one of the Thompson Twins, becomes the Big Man on Campus – even with a mustache that looks like he just ate a brown sugar doughnut.

The only real problem I had with the film is how it marginalized senior citizens (another filmgoer likened them to being the walking dead as far at the movie was concerned). It’s worth your time, if you get the chance…