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I realize this is a rather long read but I have read it in the past and a friend sent it to me again this morning and requested I forward it. I thought I would forward it here as I think it is a great reminder of truth.   Cemetery Watchmen .   My friend Kevin and I are volunteers at a National cemetery in Oklahoma and put in a few days a month in a 'slightly larger' uniform. Today had been a long, long day and I just wanted to get the day over with and go down to Smokey's and have a cold one. Sneaking a look at my watch, I saw the time, 16:55 . Five minutes to go before the cemetery gates are closed for the day. Full dress was hot in the August sun Oklahoma summertime was as bad as ever--the heat and humidity at the same level--both too high. I saw the car pull into the drive, '69 or '70 model Cadillac Deville, looked factory-new. It pulled into the parking lot at a snail's pace.. An old woman got out so slow I thought she was paralyzed; she had a cane and a sheaf of flowers--about four or five bunches as best I could tell. I couldn't help myself. The thought came unwanted, and left a slightly bitter taste: 'She's going to spend an hour, and for this old soldier, my hip hurts like hell and I'm ready to get out of here right now!' But for this day, my duty was to assist anyone coming in. Kevin would lock the 'In' gate and if I could hurry the old biddy along, we might make it to Smokey's in time. I broke post attention. My hip made gritty noises when I took the first step and the pain went up a notch. I must have made a real military sight: middle-aged man with a small pot gut and half a limp, in marine full-dress uniform, which had lost its razor crease about thirty minutes after I beganthe watch at the cemetery. I stopped in front of her, halfway up the walk. She looked up at me with an old woman's squint. 'Ma'am, may I assist you in any way?' She took long enough to answer. 'Yes, son. Can you carry these flowers? I seem to be moving a tad slow these days.' 'My pleasure, ma'am.' (Well, it wasn't too much of a lie.) She looked again. 'Marine, where were you stationed?' ' Vietnam , ma'am.. Ground-pounder. '69 to '71.' She looked at me closer. 'Wounded in action, I see. Well done, Marine. I'll be as quick as I can.' I lied a little bigger: 'No hurry, ma'am.' She smiled and winked at me. 'Son, I'm 85-years-old and I can tell a lie from a long way off.. Let's get this done. Might be the last time I can do this. My name's Joanne Wieserman, and I've a few Marines I'd like to see one more time..' 'Yes, ma 'am. At your service.' She headed for the World War I section, stopping at a stone. She picked one of the flower bunches out of my arm and laid it on top of the stone. She murmured something I couldn't quite make out.. The name on the marble was Donald S. Davidson, USMC: France 1918.  She turned away and made a straight line for the World War II section, stopping at one stone I saw a tear slowly tracking its way down her cheek. She put a bunch on a stone; the name was Stephen X.Davidson, USMC, 1943. She went up the row a ways and laid another bunch on a stone,Stanley J. Wieserman, USMC, 1944.. She paused for a second and more tears flowed. 'Two more, son, and we'll be done' I almost didn't say anything, but, 'Yes, ma'am. Take your time.' She looked confused.. 'Where's the Vietnam section, son? I seem to have lost my way.' I pointed with my chin. 'That way, ma'am.' 'Oh!' she chuckled quietly. 'Son, me and old age ain't too friendly.' She headed down the walk I'd pointed at. She stopped at a couple of stones before she found the ones she wanted. She placed a bunch onLarry Wieserman, USMC, 1968, and the laston Darrel Wieserman, USMC, 1970. She stood there and murmured a few words I still couldn't make out and more tears flowed. 'OK, son, I'm finished. Get me back to my car and you can go home.' Yes, ma'am. If I may ask, were those your kinfolk?' She paused. 'Yes, Donald Davidson was my father, Stephenwas my uncle, Stanleywas my husband,Larryand Darrelwere our sons. All killed in action, all Marines.' She stopped! Whether she had finished, or couldn't finish, I don't know. She made her way to her car, slowly and painfully. I waited for a polite distance to come between us and then double-timed it over to Kevin, waiting by the car. 'Get to the 'Out' gate quick.. I have something I've got to do.' Kevin started to say something, but saw the look I gave him. He broke the rules to get us down the service road fast. We beat her. She hadn't made it around the rotunda yet. 'Kevin, stand at attention next to the gatepost. Follow my lead.' I humped it across the drive to the other post. When the Cadillac came puttering around from the hedges and began the short straight traverse to the gate, I called in my best gunny's voice: 'TehenHut! Present Haaaarms!'   I have to hand it to Kevin; he never blinked an eye--full dress attention and a salute that would make his DI proud. She drove through that gate with two old worn-out soldiers giving her a send-off she deserved, for service rendered to her country, and for knowing duty, honor and sacrifice far beyond the realm of most. I am not sure, but I think I saw a salute returned from that Cadillac. Instead of 'The End,' just think of 'Taps.' As a final thought on my part, let me share a favorite prayer:  'Lord, keep our servicemen and women safe, whether they serve at home or overseas. Hold them in your loving hands and protect them as they protect us.' Let's all keep those currently serving and those who have gone before in our thoughts.  They are the reason for the many freedoms we enjoy. 'In God We Trust.' Sorry about your monitor; it made mine blurry too! If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under!

No, only one person can claim to be a game changer on an already existing 10-20 year old technology.

Queue up the Memphis bashing....3....2....1.

I lost all respect for him when he ćrapped on his wife (sandra bullock) with a sleazy trash bag with a fetish for nazis. Adulterous whore.

I am having trouble with the TheAffordableBoatAct.gov website.   I called Tech support and got Snowden.

I've always thought if their end goal was a single payer system, then the ACA was a brilliant opening move, as no private entity can compete with an organization that is willing to operate at a loss quarter after quarter. If you're really wanting a good conspiracy theory to chew on, maybe the "failed" rollout was actually planned to accelerate the transition... Personally, I don't buy that theory. I don't think they're smart enough to pull it off.

  Here's the way I look at it... if you want lots of great barbecue, you're just gonna have to put up with bullet holes in your pipes.

When .22 is available in Knoxville, TN and via on-line distributors with no restrictions then the famine has ended.   We are a long, long way away from that.   So enjoy and talk up the random sightings.  This is not going to end anytime soon.

    Sorry, no owner impression, here.  Honestly, when I first saw in one of the gun rags that Taurus was going to do a 9mm carbine, I kind of eagerly flipped over to read the article.  The wind was taken out of my sails by the '10 round proprietary mag' statement.  My thought was, "Well, then, it has zero benefit over my Hi Point 9mm carbine that has been 100% reliable and also uses 10 round, proprietary mags.  At least Hi Point carbine mags are, supposedly, compatible with their handguns (but not vice versa - the handgun mags don't work in the carbine.)"   Then I saw the projected price tag and thought, "Okay, so now the Hi Point has an obvious advantage over the Taurus.  Price."  I see nothing about the Taurus that would make its end user value worth any more than the Hi Point, to me, much less more than double the price.

I hope his firearms are better designed than his website, that hurt my eyes.

I'd be very hesitant about walking around with a long gun in the opening hours of a disaster, even a large scale one.  At the beginning there will probably still be some semblance of law and order, and I'd rather not draw that kind of attention to myself.  For me the most likely situation would be having to get from my office in an urban area to home in a rural one across 35 miles and a couple rivers or creeks.  Rather than the weight and attention of a long gun, better to have a concealable sidearm, water, CASH (sorry no one's going to be bartering copper rounds and fish hooks at this point), good shoes, and protection from the elements.    Another issue that I think about, probably best for a new thread, is communication.  Are your kids in school?  Spouse working on the other side of town?  What if the phones are down?  How do you link up?  This is something to which I've given some thought but haven't really come up with a plan.

That tenant is lucky it wasn't his wind pipe that was busted!

...or 1917 Smith and Wesson. [URL=http://s612.photobucket.com/user/gregintenn/media/IMG_0258.jpg.html][/URL]

This is insanity. Since when can the president just change laws? If he can change this one, he can change any law. He is now a dictator.

Even *if* you can get back your cancelled plans, he mentions NOTHING of retaining the former premium rates.

This is nothing but trying to give Democratic lawmakers cover to avoid voting for the House Republican plan being offered tomorrow.   It sounds like a delay, but pragmatically it exactly nothing.  Health Insurance companies have already acted in good faith, assuming the law would be implemented.  The plans have already been cancelled.  And none of them are going to jump through hoops to act against their own self interest (any more so than the ACA already requires) to renew a plan that's going to be constantly bad mouthed and cancelled again in a year anyway.   And yet...

Unfortunately, the business world is a bit more complicated than a grade school playground.  "Do-overs" don't really work in an adult environment.   And the 7 million or so whose plans have already been canceled?  Are those plans suddenly 'un-cancelled'?  If so, this is black Friday for the insurance industry.   The law was so bad it required massive bribery and massive lying to the people to pass it.  The law is so bad that to actually enforce it would cause devastation to the Democrat party (thus the delay of the employer mandate).  The law is so bad that the ratio of people who have so far lost their insurance to the number of people who have actually gotten insured is better than 50 to 1.   Hey, "It's the law of the land".  "Wanting to delay Obamacare means you're a bomb throwing terrorist".  "Only whacko-birds would try to stop this".  "I insist on full and immediate implementation of Obamacare  There will be no negotiation, and I will ensure the American people feel the greatest pain from any (microscopically partial) government shutdown".     You know what?  I insist on full and immediate implementation of Obamacare as well.  (It's the very best way to get it repealed).   I guess Obama has pivoted to jobs - the jobs of Democrats in Congress.

This has been an interestin thread; with lots of stuff to think about...   I tend to look at the historical and here's what i see....   The 1911 semiauto pistol wuz the replacement for that greatest of indian war killers the colt single action army...  It wuz birthed at a time when the good ole us army needed to upgrade it's handgun arsenal at a time when there were troopers in the army and marine corps who were genuine steely eyed grim reapers who well knew what a handgun wuz for and knew exactly how to use it; and those troopers were in both the officer and enlisted ranks...    The semiauto pistol wuz "the next new thing"; just as the machine gun wuz at that time; and the army wuz interested in exploring the practicability of a hard use handgun for calvary use (....remember, this wuz the time when the calvary wuz still the king of battle...)...   The military well remembered the poor performance of the 38 caliber pistols in the Philippine insurrection and many of the old time troopers would not give their beloved single action armies up in that best of old time killers, the 45 Colt....     It's no accident that the military ultimately adopted a semiauto pistol in a 45 caliber; simply because it was a shortened version of the old 45 Colt....  The pistol was a success with men who actually knew about killin (...unlike many of the "so called pistol experts" of today...)... The old timers liked the external hammer and the quick reload of the 1911... The rest, as they say, is history....   The fact is that the 1911 came along at exactly the right time in history... It wasn't a "God Inspired" genius thing; it was the next step in pistol design...  It wuz made in a caliber that wuz a proven killer in the right hands...Simply put, it wuz an updated 45 Colt ALA the old time single action army calvary model from 1873...   The 1911 has reigned supreme on the battlefields and in the hands of the "real steely eyed killers" for over 100 years now... Its only real challengers are the utilitarian plastic pistols made by the pesky Austrians at Glock and the lesser children that are copies of this ground-breaking design... The next classic will be the Glock in whatever flavor ya like.... I tend to think that the 45 ACP is a helluva idea in a Glock; along with the 10 mm; but that's just me...   I'll end this little musing by sayin that the 1911 is a great thing... We've got several of em... I used to carry one... But it's just a "thing" man; as the ole hippy would say.... My only problem with them now; is that they are just too expensive to carry...The next big thing is the Glock; and it's here now...   All this from an old time blue steel and walnut S & W and Colt snob who never saw an N frame smith, a colt single action, or a colt 1911 he didnt like....There aint none of 'em i aint carried... I like 'em all....   Havin said that, all of our blue steel and walnut guns are in honored retirement (...with the exception of a special 629 my 24 year old carries; he just wont give 'em up....), occasonally pulled out to look at an praise the greatness of on warm, sunny days, shown to dear friends and admirers on special occasions...   The "working and carryin" guns that protect the person and the house are the big and little glocks....The others are just collectors pieces from another, greater time and place....   leroy, the 1911 admirer and glock user....

  and here we are 12 years later and you can still download illegal music

  Rednecks with GUNS  :eek:   Where?

  That thing's a beast! I just can't justify spending that kind of money on Jeeps anymore since my discovery of the M35A2/A3, haha. ;)

Gut a deer... Now I didn't do it, but I was there when it was happening. (It was in a basement... but the smell didn't stay there)

  That sucks man. I got Peggy and he walked me thru it no sweat.

    Yep, exactly. Just commenting on how to to be invisible with one in vehicle or on person in normal times. Notice I didn't recommend anything but a normal full sized handgun and extra ammo in the case of getting home on foot. Still think low profile stealth mode a better bet than humongous firepower.   Then again, I dunno, real tennis nuts during SHTF? Hey, none of the courts would be be reserved! And for golf nuts, walk onto any course free! ;)   - OS

Evidently he was aiming this at Tom Cruise. Not that Marcus Luttrell needs ANYONE to take up for him and his fellow SEALS but, it's nice to see someone in Hollywood who understands. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/13/mark-wahlberg-lone-survivor_n_4267523.html

I played that game with the CMP. Back in September, I thought, I'll order an M1 Garand now because its a long wait. I thought, they won't charge my card for $645 until it ships, and it's a 120-180 wait. That way, I'll get through Christmas without explaining the "new" rifle on my doorstep to the wife. I figured I'd get charged in January - March. Nope! They processed it pretty quick, lol. My card got charged last week, and my rifle will be here before Thanksgiving! I'm happy to get it, but it caught me off guard. I cant take any more chances like that because I have a big dog, and his house ain't big enough for the both of us, lol.

Personally, I put these false news stories in with the guys who take pride and joy in screwing up our pc use all the time. Educated fools who delight in causing misery for others.

They've done their annual revision, so is now showing as 39-17-1313   http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/tncode/ ----------------   39-17-1313.  Transporting and storing a firearm or firearm ammunition in permit holder's privately owned motor vehicle.   (a) Notwithstanding § 39-17-1309, § 39-17-1311, or § 39-17-1359, unless expressly prohibited by federal law, the holder of a valid handgun carry permit recognized in Tennessee may transport and store a firearm or firearm ammunition in the permit holder's privately owned motor vehicle, as defined in § 55-1-103, while on or utilizing any public or private parking area if:    (1) The permit holder's vehicle is parked in a location where it is permitted to be; and    (2) The firearm or ammunition being transported or stored in the vehicle:       (A) Is kept from ordinary observation if the permit holder is in the motor vehicle; or       ( B ) Is kept from ordinary observation and locked within the trunk, glove box, or interior of the person's privately owned motor vehicle or a container securely affixed to such vehicle if the permit holder is not in the vehicle. ( b ) No business entity, public or private employer, or the owner, manager, or legal possessor of the property shall be held liable in any civil action for damages, injuries or death resulting from or arising out of another's actions involving a firearm or ammunition transported or stored by the holder of a valid handgun carry permit in the permit holder's privately owned motor vehicle unless the business entity, public or private employer, or the owner, manager, or legal possessor of the property commits an offense involving the use of the stored firearm or ammunition or intentionally solicits or procures the conduct resulting in the damage, injury or death. Nor shall a business entity, public or private employer, or the owner, manager, or legal possessor of the property be responsible for the theft of a firearm or ammunition stored by the holder of a valid handgun carry permit in the permit holder's privately owned motor vehicle. ( c ) For purposes of this section:    (1) "Parking area" means any property provided by a business entity, public or private employer, or the owner, manager, or legal possessor of the property for the purpose of permitting its invitees, customers, clients or employees to park privately owned motor vehicles; and    (2) "Parking area" does not include the grounds or property of an owner-occupied, single-family detached residence, or a tenant-occupied single-family detached residence. ------------   - OS

Actually a jackrabbit distress call can be very useful. I have called in coyotes with it when no other sound worked. It works good on weary or over called coyotes. There's a lot of calls I have used with some success that most would think useless.

This plumber likes to see his pipes lead free.   :pleased:

  Woah there.....who said anything about "tasteful"?         Mark my words.....Red Jacket vs. JJFU vs. Gunsmoke Guns in the Discovery Channel GREAT AMERICAN GUN BUILD-OFF!!!OMGWTFBBQTHISISGONNASUCKBIGDONKEYBALLS!!!!!!

Late to the party as usual, but was in VRC-30 "COD" squadron from '93 to '97 .  The farthest i got to see was Hawaii twice....lol......Then was in TNARG 278th R co...a crew chief on cobras from '97 to 01....But my proudest is my wife is an active captain in the TNARG.  She spent a year in afghanistan and is now the commander of G troop and is scheduled to go back soon....I am extremely proud of her.  

Nikon 2-7 P22. Great scope and it runs ~$170.   There are two versions, a BDC with 1/2" turrets and a duplex with BDC turrets.

Nope.  Just finished reading press releases from three insurance underwriter groups.  Direct quotes:   "This is a new insanity".  "Premiums have already been set for next year, based on assumptions of when consumers will be transitioning to the marketplaces."  "If now fewer younger and healthier people choose to purchase health coverage in the exchanges, premiums will increase, and there will be fewer choices for consumers".  "many states require a 60-day notice of a change in plan or a cancellation. It’s November 15! How can they comply with this new element of federal law, and with their state laws?"     So, your old plan is gone with the wind.  Your Obamacare plan is going to be even more expensive than you thought.  Obama is going to try very hard to pin the tail on the insurance companies, instead of the donkey. 

I like the .45acp as a concept.  As far as actually owning/carrying one, meh.  To be truthful, I have always been more of a revolver fan, anyhow and the older I get and the more I carry the more I prefer revolvers and the less I see a need for the high capacity/quick reloading capabilities of a semi-auto in my own, personal sphere.  I am also becoming more and more convinced that, when discussing 9mm vs. 40 S&W vs .45acp with modern, SD ammo getting shot is getting shot and a violent assailant ain't gonna know much difference.  IOW, if a 9mm (or, honestly, even a .380) doesn't convince Mr. Psycho Drug Addict to cease and desist then I doubt a .45 - or anything short of a 12 gauge - is going to do the trick, either.  Now, if I were limited to only old school ball ammo - as is our military - then sure, the larger, slower, heavier .45 round might have some pretty convincing arguments going for it.  As it stands, though, I am not so limited.  Further, even in the current nonsense 9mm ammo is a good bit cheaper.  Having 9mm pistols that function well along with carrying any semiauto less and less combine to make the idea of getting into a more expensive semiauto caliber not very attractive.  I could maybe see getting a .40 just because that is the direction most LEO agencies are going, meaning the ammo is (generally speaking) easier to find, not quite as expensive and possibly has more research going into developing even better ammo.  A .45, though?  Beyond the 'mystique' - which is mostly just legend at this point, IMO - nah.   I honestly think my little .38 +P S&W has plenty of power for my needs as well as plenty of capacity for most of the places I frequent (although I have a couple of higher capacity, semiauto options if I need to go somewhere that the perceived threat level is higher.)  If I feel the need for more power, I'll carry a .357 and if that doesn't bring comfort, I'll skip all those "low powered" rounds like 9mm, .40 S&W, .45acp and 10mm and pick up something I can comfortably carry in .44 Magnum.  Just my :2cents: .

I like it  man!!!  The problem is that it's "little brother" is in the driveway...  2000 wrangler sahara, 3 1/2 lift, 35 inch cepeks, american mags, hard top, 4.0 inline, 5 speed...  I love 'em......   leroy

    You expected the famous outlaw Jesse James to be a saint?     I still won't buy any guns from him. They will be the same over priced boutique crap "parts guns" that gets splashed around as "custom".

  You sure about that? Those kinda folks usually create their own reality, and know very little about anything else.

i ask for nothing, the tradition of extorting gifts from family should end when one becomes self sufficient.   If someone wants to give a heartfelt gift that is fine.  But I'd never ask, and always encourage nothing be given to me.     Christmas is about Santa and little kids.

Exactly! You have 45ACP, and then those other calibers for girlie men :rofl:

  Outlaw then...., load'em to capacity.  :woohoo:

Yeah, she was wrong, but at the same time his disrespectful behavior was uncalled for.  If he is going to represent himself as a vet he should be more mindful of his military bearing.

  Hmmmmm...., I wonder if 173rdABN will let me borrow his MP5?  :dirty:

At that distance a gun may not be your best initial defence. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Ah jeez, I could write a freakin encyclopedia. Hell I could write a book on things that apparently shouldn't even happen 100 yards from the house.

  I am trying to imagine this but I am not seeing it.  You are talking about enough recoil to rotate the gun 180 and then pull probably 5+ pounds of DA over an inch of springs and such.   Path of least resistance.... it should continue to rotate rather than suddenly move linearly.   Thinking on it, all I am coming up with is losing control and grabbing it, and in the process of trying to grab the gun, squeezing hard. 

  Yeah I think my yeast starter did pretty well. Blow off tube is rigged up now. I bought a 6.5 gal ale pale but I just used it for measuring and transferring between the brew kettle and mash tun.   I put in a solid 6 hours yesterday doing an all grain batch. I don't even know if this one will be good but I already want to do another.

Proud of my home state for having a castle doctrine. Maybe the unnamed citizen should not have demanded they wait for the police (?) but , I'll be dammed if someone draws on me and I don't return fire

  Great point! She clearly didn't see her little boy's robbery (assuming it was armed robbery) as such a bad thing. If she thinks carrying a gun/knife/etc. into a store and demanding money isn't something bad enough to be shot over, then I can see where he got his values from.     This is funny, dude. It reminds me of that Raylan Givens line from "Justified" where he smacks Dewey Crow in the mouth with a gun and tells him "Outlaw life is hard ain't it? You should have stuck with huntin gators it was much safer."