NRA-ILA :: Anti-Gun Deception On The Senate Floor

The NRA-ILA has an excellent post on anti-gun legislation being introduced in the Senate.  The full article has been reproduced below the video from the San Jose Police Department explaining "The Truth About Semi-Auto Firearms".  Enjoy.

 

 

Friday, January 30, 2009

Anti-Gun Deception On The Senate Floor

As we reported last week, legislation to require a federal license to possess any detachable-magazine semi-automatic rifle or shotgun, or any handgun, has been introduced in Congress. Bills to re-impose the federal "assault weapon" and "large" magazine ban, or to impose a much broader ban, have been introduced in Congress since 2003, and will likely be introduced in the current Congress soon. 

Already, the deliberate deceptions we heard from anti-gunners previously are resurfacing. Anti-gun Sen. Carl Levin, (D-Mich.), said Thursday on the floor of the Senate that "assault weapons" are "capable of firing up to 600 rounds per minute" and that they are "once again pervading our streets and neighborhoods." 

Did we mention that our opponents are deliberately deceptive? 

Many fully-automatic firearms can fire 10 rounds in a second, which theoretically would work out to 600 rounds per minute, but they cannot be reloaded fast enough to achieve anything near that rate in reality. But we are not talking about fully-automatic firearms—we're talking about semi-automatics, and the difference between them need not be explained here. 

"Pervading our streets?" Anti-gun lawmakers swore up and down that once the "assault weapon" ban expired, the murder rate would go through the roof. Well, the ban expired in 2004 and since then, the murder rate has gone down to a 43-year low. 

The anti-gunners think they can revive this bogus issue, and maybe they can; they will no doubt try. But Congress required a study of the 1994 ban, and the study concluded, "the banned weapons and magazines were never used in more than a small fraction of gun murders." Violent crime was going down before the ban, and it has continued to go down after the ban. If the issue is looked at objectively, it should be over, done with, water under the bridge. The ban should never have been imposed in the first place, let alone be imposed again or ever expanded. 

And certainly guns should not be banned on the basis of nonsense like Sen. Levin's speech, and other deliberate deception perpetuated by gun ban groups. 

Deliberate deception such as: 

• A folding stock makes a rifle concealable, as if it were a pocket knife. But anyone who knows anything about gun laws knows that federal law requires a rifle to be 26 inches long, regardless of its stock, and a 26-inch-long rifle is not concealable.
• A pistol grip is designed to allow a rifle to be fired "from the hip." But the 90 million pistols owned by the American people all have pistol grips, and they aren't designed to be fired "from the hip." Besides that, the fact that a rifle has a shoulder stock and sights mounted on the barrel proves that it is designed to be fired from the shoulder.
• Magazines designed to hold more than 10 rounds are not useful for self-defense. If they really believe that, let them propose to prohibit the military and police from having pistol magazines that hold 12, 15, and 17 rounds.
• These guns are "high-powered." Next time an anti-gunner calls a gun "high-powered," ask him to name one gun that is low-powered. They even call .22 rimfires "high-powered," when they want to brand a .22 as a so-called "assault weapon."

NRA members who own AR-15s and other so-called "assault weapons," you are not alone. There are nearly two million AR-15s in our country, the same number of M1s, the same number of M1 Carbines, and many more Mini-14s, semi-automatic shotguns, pump-action shotguns, and all the other guns the anti-gunner want to call "assault weapon." Countless millions of American own handguns that use magazines of over 10 rounds. 

Our challenge is to coalesce these Americans into a political force that will make anti-gun lawmakers' heads swim. When they repeat gun ban groups' deliberate deceptions, we must tell the truth; not some of the time, but all of the time! But we cannot wait for them to act, and then only respond in defense. We must be out front. When we carry our message, we must do so confident in the knowledge that we are doing so in a manner that respects our fellow citizens, and their right to disagree--a way of doing business that is alien to our opponents--and that our arguments are based in logic and fact, not deceit.

Copyright 2009, National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action.
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Google Searches Return Bogus Warnings - Science News | Science & Technology | Technology News

I was up early this morning searching for information on the Houston Auto Show. For a couple of minutes when I would navigate over to the official site I received a Google page stating that the page was malicious.

I just read on Fox News that this was an error caused by a daily update from a project that tracks malicious websites.

For more on the story: FOXNews.com - Google Searches Return Bogus Warnings - Science News | Science & Technology | Technology News

Greatest Craig's List Posting Ever

This is the greatest Craig's List posting ever:

NINJA HAULER: 2005 Nissan Xterra - $12900 (Ronan / Lake County ) Reply to: sale-945361858@craigslist.org [?] Date: 2008-12-04, 5:15PM MST  OK, let me start off by saying this Xterra is only available for purchase by the manliest of men (or women). My friend, if it was possible for a vehicle to sprout chest hair and a five o'clock shadow, this Nissan would look like Tom Selleck. It is just that manly.  It was never intended to drive to the mall so you can pick up that adorable shirt at Abercrombie & Fitch that you had your eye on. It wasn't meant to transport you to yoga class or Linens & Things. No, that's what your Prius is for. If that's the kind of car you're looking for, then just do us all a favor and stop reading right now. I mean it. Just stop.  This car was engineered by 3rd degree ninja super-warriors in the highest mountains of Japan to serve the needs of the man that cheats death on a daily basis. They didn't even consider superfluous nancy boy amenities like navigation systems (real men don't get lost), heated leather seats (a real man doesn't let anything warm his butt), or On Star (real men don't even know what the hell On Star is).  No, this brute comes with the things us testosterone-fueled super action junkies need. It has a 265 HP engine to outrun the cops. It's got special blood/gore resistant upholstery. It even has a first-aid kit in the back. You know what the first aid kit has in it? A pint of whiskey, a stitch-your-own-wound kit and a hunk of leather to bite down on when you're operating on yourself. The Xterra also has an automatic transmission so if you're being chased by Libyan terrorists, you'll still be able to shoot your machine gun out the window and drive at the same time. It's saved my bacon more than once.  It has room for you and the four hotties you picked up on the way to the gym to blast your pecs and hammer your glutes. There's a tow hitch to pull your 50 caliber anti-Taliban, self cooling machine gun. I also just put in a new windshield to replace the one that got shot out by The Man.  My price on this bad boy is an incredibly low $12,900, but I'll entertain reasonable offers. And by reasonable, I mean don't walk up and tell me you'll give me $5,000 for it. That's liable to earn you a Burmese-roundhouse-sphincter-kick with a follow up three fingered eye-jab. Would it hurt? Hell yeah. Let's just say you won't be the prettiest guy at the Coldplay concert anymore.  There's only 69,000 miles on this four-wheeled hellcat from Planet Kickass. Trust me, it will outlive you and the offspring that will carry your name. It will live on as a monument to your machismo.  Now, go look in the mirror and tell me what you see. If it's a rugged, no holds barred, super brute he-man macho Chuck Norris stunt double, then contact me. I might be out hang-gliding or BASE jumping or just chilling with my ladies, but I'll get back to you. And when I do, we'll talk about a price over a nice glass of Schmidt while we listen to Johnny Cash.  To sweeten the deal a little, I'm throwing in this pair of MC Hammer pants for the man with rippling quads that can't fit into regular pants. Yeah, you heard me. FREE MC Hammer pants.  Rock on.  depoconnor@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

Chavez Courts Western Oil Companies

An article today in the International Herald Tribune states that Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, is once again courting Western oil companies now that the price of oil is so low.  In order for him to realize his Bolivian Revolution, he needs the oil revenues to dole out in welfare programs and infrastructure projects.

CARACAS: President Hugo Chávez, buffeted by falling oil prices that threaten to damage his efforts to establish a Socialist-inspired state, is quietly courting Western oil companies once again.

Until recently, Chávez had pushed foreign oil companies here into a corner by nationalizing their oil fields, raiding their offices with tax authorities and imposing a series of royalties increases.

But faced with the plunge in prices and a decline in domestic production, senior officials here have begun soliciting bids from some of the largest Western oil companies in recent weeks — including Chevron, Royal Dutch/Shell and Total of France — promising them access to some of the world's largest petroleum reserves, according to energy executives and industry consultants here.

Their willingness to even consider investing in Venezuela reflects the scarcity of projects open to foreign companies in other top oil nations, particularly in the Middle East.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/01/15/america/15venez.php

The History of the Internet

Here's a fascinating video of the history of the Internet:

 

History of the Internet from PICOL on Vimeo.

WITS (NCT)

The Worldwide Incidents Tracking System (WITS) is a link on the NCTC calendar site.  It is a searchable site for terrorist incidents around the world.  You can drill down to region then country to get a report of all incidents going back to the beginning of the tracking system. 

Maybe it's because I'm a geek, but this is freaking cool: http://wits.nctc.gov/Main.do


Resources:
National Counter Terrorism Center Calendar: http://www.nctc.gov/site/index.html
Worldwide Incidents Tracking System: http://wits.nctc.gov/Main.do

NCTC 2009 Calendar

The National Counter Terrorism Center's 2009 calendar: http://www.nctc.gov/site/index.html

It has really good information pertaining to individuals, groups, methods and tactics.

Geek Flow Chart

Speaking of flow charts, while I was searching for the Air Force Blog Assessment flowchart I came across this.  It's pretty funny.

The Air Force Blog Assessment Flow Chart

Apparently the Air Force Public Affairs Agency (Emerging Technology Division) has come up with a flow chart to deal with bloggers: how to evaluate posts and decide whether or not to respond to them. 

 

YouTube - Collaborative Spreadsheet Art

This is a pretty cool video showing the more creative uses of a spreadsheet program.


There doesn't seem to be any embedded logic, though. ;)

Updated Professional Site

I've updated my professional site, http://www.colinbond.com today. The previous version looked a little too hokey. I hope this looks better.

More on ZAP

Apparently there's some controversy surrounding the ZAP company.  Specifically the issue deals with the hype versus delivery.  While the company does produce and sell electric vehicles, it only has two lines.  Many of the products they announce never materialize, although the company's board is quick to issue press releases and then capitalize on the stock gains.   Their consultants then ask for the press to tread lightly on the company since they operate in the "green sector".

It sounds like this company is nothing more than a sophisticated swindler, producing a couple of products and then hyping up relationships and products that don't or won't exist and cashing in on investors' money.

The ZAP Alias is the newest vehicle that they're hyping.  You can place a $99.00 deposit now for the $35,000 vehicle.  If you look at the brochure, though, it doesn't have any interior shots or design specs.   How can this be when the vehicle is due for delivery at the end of 2009?  Probably more hype.

The Alias, ZAP says, will be built and marketed by the venture jointly run by ZAP and Youngman Automotive Group. The name of this partnership is Detroit Electric, a brand originally created by the Anderson Electric Car company, which existed between 1907 and 1939. Detroit Electric (now located in California and run by Lam) says it will be bringing a whole range of electric vehicles to market in the next 14 months. "Our plan is to launch with a 12-meter pure electric transit bus, the ZAP Alias, and two family sedans as early as the summer of 2009," Lam said in a press release. Analysts familiar with the Alias say delivering even that car on this timeline is unlikely, given that ZAP is reportedly still looking for suppliers to design components to make the car feasible.

Wired Report: Hype Machine: Searching for ZAP's Fleet of No-Show Green Cars

 

Even dealers were swindled.  Here's one story:

Hype Machine: Searching for ZAP's Fleet of No-Show Green Cars

John Martin, a schoolteacher from Austin, Texas.

Martin says he met Schneider once, in spring 2006, when "I flew to California to sign the papers and write a check." He says he made it clear that he had limited funds — less than $160,000 from savings and a small inheritance. Company officials assured Martin that this would be enough to get "up and running."

After quitting his job, Martin leased a prime Austin location and spent much of his remaining cash remodeling and rewiring the building for his new dealership. He was thrilled by the publicity his October 2006 grand opening generated among the local media. Attracted by stories in the newspaper and on TV, dozens of potential customers showed up at the dealership that first week, though Martin could offer them little more than a ride in the Xebra sedan he had purchased as his personal car — ZAP had failed to deliver any vehicles for him to sell.

In December 2006, Martin laid off his staff and became a one-man operation. He received his first shipment of Xebras shortly before Christmas. But by then, Martin explains, he had realized how quickly the Xebras ran out of charge. "When I had to tell people about the range, I could see it in their eyes," Martin recalls. "This was the deal killer."

Martin sold one Xebra in January 2007, two in February, and three in March. "Then business just dried up completely," he says. Martin's first customer, an attorney, had to have his car hauled back to the dealership for warranty repairs four times in the first month. Martin managed to remain optimistic, he says, because he knew that the new Obvio model was supposed to begin arriving from ZAP sometime in the spring. "But of course the Obvio never came," Martin says, and he was forced to close the doors of his new business at the beginning of August. By then, his $160,000 was gone. The lawyer who bought that first Xebra from Martin sent a threatening letter to ZAP on Martin's behalf, and ZAP replied by promising to repay at least some of the money he had lost. Then Martin heard nothing for five months — ZAP didn't return his calls. Finally, in January, as Wired prepared this story for print, ZAP settled with Martin, giving him 50,000 shares of ZAP stock in exchange for his agreement not to sue and not to talk to the media.

Martin was able to get his teaching job back, but the school soon had to lay him off. Strapped for cash, he had to pull two of his three young daughters from the private school where they had been enrolled since kindergarten. (Parents, teachers, and friends took up a collection to pay the tuition of his oldest daughter.) As of January, Martin was supporting his family by working construction during the day and delivering pizzas in the evening.

"I wanted so much to believe," he says.

A Forbes article from the summer of 2007 lets ZAP have it because of the hype and failure to deliver:

Forbes: Shock Jocks

A small electric vehicle company stays alive by promising wonderful things--just around the corner.

The Zap-X is a marvel. It solves every problem that has foiled attempts to build electric vehicles. It can recharge in ten minutes and can travel 350 miles on that charge. This rocket produces 644hp and goes from zero to 60mph in 4.8 seconds, with a top speed of 155mph. It carries seven passengers. Oh, and the windows are made out of photovoltaic glass that turns sunlight into horsepower.

Resources:

• Wired: Hype Machine: Searching for ZAP's Fleet of No-Show Green Cars
• Forbes: Shock Jocks
• Wikipedia: ZAP (motor company)
• ZAP Alias Brochure

The Zap Car

Here's a company with some interesting vehicles:  Zap

 

 

Or if you want, you can check out Bajaj USA.  I actually have seen Bajajs on the streets of Houston.