Thursday, November 30, 2006

It has begun!

As of last night, the merchandise that manufacturing has in stock...or had, I suppose, since its all over in the website's inventory now...went online. This is the beginning of the introduction of 20-30 items that will comprise the ATS gear line.

The reason we decided not to do a Blackhawk or an Eagle is that we realize that some items are just not cost effective for us to produce. We took a hard look at how things happen for other companies, and came to the conclusion that its not the right way for us. Several companies make a huge number of products, for every possible need. They're also hamstrung by that same inventory. They get an order in for a few Reverse Faced Quad Widgets that haven't been cutting edge and in high demand for a couple of years, and they have to go back and make that thing. Since they can't do just the three, they do 25 to make it worth making the run. Then they have 22 of them collecting dust for several months to several years because nobody else wants them. Its not a good plan for us; we're too small to absorb an overstock like that.

Manufacturing is balancing the production of a line of goods with a limited amount of resources. You either have too little materials, too little time in the week, or too few employees or machinery. A balance to achieve the best results must occur, or you fail...and not just at teh Intrenets. This is true of every manufacturer. I can't think of a single one that has everything it needs in the quantity that they need at the time they need it. Some have become very good at it, with the Just In Time method of getting materials, but JIT is hard on vendors, too. Every time you're dependent on an outside vendor, even if its another wing of your organization, bad things can happen. Not that they always do, but it appears that business has a proclivity towards chaos.

At any rate, ATS Brand Equipment is now available, and we're damn proud of it. We've got some unique ideas and products that nobody else has done, so far as I know. Ya like that disclaimer? ;) I think we're going to find a large chunk of the industry because what we have is cool. It'll probably be knocked off soon enough, and versions of it will appear in a couple other company's lines, but then we'll know we've "made it". Then all we have to do is work harder to keep us on top.

Sunday, November 26, 2006

BCS must mean Big Crappy System

Up front: I'm a Michigan Wolverine fan, but I also follow USC. SC is pretty much the best team from SoCal. Even though I've been away from SoCal for a couple years and may never move back, I'm always gonna be from there. The only team at the top that I don't like is Ohio State. How can I be a fan of OSU when I'm a Wolverine fan? It just can't be.

That said, Ohio State is clearly the number one team in the country. They've beaten everyone they've faced, some by a huge margin, and deserve the top spot. The problem is what happens from #2 on down, and who gets to play for the national championship.

The USA Today Coaches Poll puts SC at #2 and Michigan at #3. The BCS...who knows what that thing is gonna come up with. The whole thing is a mess, because its not absolute. In the NFL, your record is what gets you where you're going: playoffs, or early vacation again. Either you win enough to move on, or you're making plans for visiting someplace exotic in the winter months. That's not how college foo'bah works...and the system sucks.

USC and Michigan have very similar records; both with one loss. The difference is that Michigan's only loss was by a field goal to the best team in football. USC got bushwhacked by an unranked Oregon State team. Losses to unranked teams should be the kiss of death for a national championship, but in this case, USC may have a chance to do it if they win next week against UCLA. How is that possible? They lost to an unranked team, but the "pundits", the sports reporters, have been saying retarded stuff like "Michigan already had their chance to beat Ohio State. Let someone else have a chance". Did you fools not watch that game? It was great! These are clearly the two best teams going, because Michigan and Ohio St. haven't lost to an unranked team.

USC gets ranked #2 because....why? They beat Noter Damn? Michigan beat ND worse. They had a tough schedule. In the NFL, that doesn't matter. If you win with a hard schedule, you win with a hard schedule. But if you're a better team, you'll beat whoever's in front of you...except that one unranked team that ambushed ya. Therein lies the proof that the BCS system is hopelessly, permanently flawed.

The BCS isn't going to change, because the people that decide these things have come to the conclusion that the money is the most important thing. This whole retarded system could be scrapped and a tournament could be installed in its place, keeping the bowl games in the process. The "Bandini Manure Bowl" might be able to be scrapped, but I'm dead certain that the low rent bowls don't cost as much to sponsor as the big ones do. That means you put the expensive bowls at the top, and the most expensive bowl (which would go up for bid to get some really sick money coming in) would be the champeenship game. Its rediculously simple and obvious, but there's too much shady dealing going on in the series. There has to be; if there weren't, there'd be a football tournament just like there is an incredibly successful hoops tourney. Funny how the best teams end up at the top in the NCAA tourney, even with 64 teams in the tournament. Its more like pro sports, which I would normally argue against as being the poster chiles for how things should work in athletics. In the end, though, their system works. The BCS is consistently screwed up and can't be fixed. C'mon, you knuckleheads: go to the playoff system you know the world wants. Until you do, I give the NCAA none of my money.

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Small Arms in the ZOS

The difficulty in discussing small arms in the ZOS (Zombie Outbreak Scenario) is that many things overlap in this topic. While such subjects enter in to this discussion, I will be limiting this to choosing a weapon and touching only briefly on caliber selection, insofar as it impacts terminal performance on the MUD.

Many have posited that the AK-47 series of rifles are the ultimate in MUD stoppers. While they can perform well, they are not a first choice. Obviously, the 7.62X39 round will drop the MUD if the shot is placed well. Therein lies the rub, though: the AK is not an accurate rifle. There are other choices that perform better.

The requirements of the projectile used against an MUD are different from those required to put down a human. Generally, death from gun shot occurs in humans due to loss of hydraulic pressure. This occurs through profuse bleeding. There's no significant bleeding going on with a zombie. Because the animation occurs in the brain because of the virus, blood flow no longer is an issue. This is why center mass shots are ineffective; no loss of hydraulic pressure there matters after infection. Shots to the hip area are still valid, although permanent stoppage will not be inflicted. Shots that break the pelvic bones may cause loss of mobility, but will not cause damage beyond that. Normally, shots to that region produce profuse bleeding because of the femoral arteries. Its a different situation altogether with MUD's.

Remove the head or destroy the brain. Working in the Zombie Hunter's (ZH) favor is the fact that once penetration of the skull bones has been achieved, destroying the brain with a high velocity projectile is not that difficult. Unlike muscular tissues, brain tissues do not have an elastic quality. If a bullet passes through them, kinetic energy becomes hydraulic energy, and the brain tissues become pulverised rather than blown out of the way in a temporary cavity. Muscular tissue can be repaired. Brain tissue cannot. This fact, coupled with the characteristic that blood flow or breathing disruption is no longer critical, means that as long as the round can penetrate the skull bones (assuming a frontal brain shot, because those are the hardest, thickest bones in the body) and reach the brain, it will serve to permanently disable the MUD.

That leaves the door wide open for what will stop the MUD, provided penetration and hydrostatic pressure are available. Consider what happens when a bullet enters a medium like a melon. Melons have high water content and hard outer skins. The bullets, especially rifle bullets, create massive inter-melon destruction. The same thing happens to a recently reanimated skull. The overpressure created by the rifle bullet's impact and subsequent path through the brain cause annihilative destruction. Such happy stuff to think about!

The parameters being what they are, what is needed is a rifle that is ergonomic and that has very good to excellent accuracy inherent in the design. The target is small, about the size of a 3X5 inch card. The area you're looking to be able to hit is a box that starts at about the eyebrow line and ends at the upper lip. Hitting that box will put the lights out permanently. Now the question becomes which tool is right to make that hit.

In general, there are many, many appropriate rifles and sub machine guns that will do the job. In order to make the hits count, accurate rifles are a must. There are some considerations to point out, which have an impact on the end user's choice.

Large caliber sub guns, like the .40 Short and Wide, .45 ACP, and 10mm guns from HK are awesome weapons. They have relatively large magazines, and have tremendous accuracy as a matter of design. They're short, handy, and fast to employ. The drawback is that the overall range is limited. A pistol-caliber subgun, unless in the hands of a master class shooter, is a 100 yard or less weapon.

HK UMP HK MP5 HK MP5/10mm

In order to increase reach, a round with better ballistics and more downrange retained velocity is needed. Several rifles fit into this bill, and the assault rifle is in its element here. Chambered in 5.56X45, 6.8 SPC, 5.56X39, or a similar round are Zombie Slayers. In order to take advantage of the rifle's greater long range accuracy, rifle length barrels shouldn't be overlooked in the SPR (Special Purpose Rifle) role. Barrels between 16 and 20 inches have increased velocity and better terminal ballistics at distance than does the 14.5 inch or shorter carbine, such as Colt's M4 . While the shorter barrels are handier in vehicles and in confined spaces, a higher price is exacted for their use, to include increased muzzle blast and temperamental operation.

Rifle length AR from Daniel Defense

10.5" full auto carbine

Of course, rifles like the AK variants and the SKS can be used in a pinch, and more exotic weaponry can be employed, but they have major drawbacks compared to the AR variants. Their lack of accuracy is a detriment at distance. Since head shots are a must, an accurate rifle is the difference between life and death...or undeath, as the case may be. The AR system is both accurate and easy to maintain, which makes it a prime candidate for this application. Easy availability of spare parts, magazines, and ammunition are all factors that must be considered when developing the ZOS kitlist. This puts the AR at the head of the pack. In addition, the 5.56X45 ammunition is much lighter and physically smaller than the 7.62X39 that the AK uses. a 30 round AR magazine is considerably smaller and lighter than its steel AK counterpart, which means you can carry more ammunition in a smaller area, and that the ZF (Zombie Fighter) can be lighter and more maneuverable.

Many people still hold to the erroneous idea that "the AR weapon system is inherently unreliable." After 30+ years of development, that simply isn't the case anymore. In addition, the AR platform has been recently updated with the introduction of reasonably priced piston driven uppers, such as those produced by Patriot Ordnance Factory. Excellent reliability has been updated with fantastic reliability and cooler operation. In terms of absolute reliability and easy maintenance, piston driven weapons are king.

There is another layer of defense that is covered by the large-caliber battle rifles. These are magazine fed, semi automatic rifles that generally fire the 7.62X51 (.308 Winchester) round. Magazine capacity is typically 20 rounds because of the size of both the ammunition and the magazine itself. It is also heavier than assault rifle ammunition is. While the .30 caliber round adds additional reach for longer range shots, a price must be paid in terms of carrying less ammunition, and having that load be heavier. If available, the ZF squad should appoint a DM (Designated Marksman) to use a 7.62 rifle for stopping a Zombie advance outside the envelope in which the 5.56 or 6.8 rifles are effective.

DMR's are typically semi automatic rifles, like the Knight's Armament Co SR-25 or AR-10 rifles from Armalite. In a pinch, and outside of the military application of this information, a bolt action rifle may be used. Another advantage of pressing a precision rifle or hunting rifle into this role is that even heavier rounds may be used. Because of the greater terminal ballistics at longer range, many militaries around the world are transitioning from the 7.62X51 to a variation of the .300 or .338 Magnum rounds. The advantage is very long range shooting ability. The drawback is that the weapon is far slower to reload and has a far smaller magazine capacity; typically three or four rounds. As a tool in the toolbox, they are a nice addition. If they're going to be the primary weapon, great care must be taken as to when to employ the rifle and from what position. While the rifle has great range, it also has substantial muzzle blast, and that much noise can draw other MUD to your position if the rifle is employed carelessly.

If given the choice, the ZDO (Zombie Defense Organization) that is operating in the affected area should arrange their weaponry so as to take advantage of different envelopes of engagement. Starting with the precision marksman's rifle, to the long range DMR, then to the middle range assault rifle or carbine, and finally to the sub machine gun for CQB or other close range encounters.

Care must be taken in selecting which weapon system will be used in a ZD situation. While encounters are not likely to be exceptionally long engagements, it is possible that a siege-type situation may be encountered. Balancing the lethality of the weapon against its portability and the capacity to carry large amounts of ammunition is a must. Now is the time to consider and decide these issues, before you find yourself trying to defend a home with copious amounts of windows with a small magazine, bolt action hunting rifle. Better than nothing, but perhaps considering saving one last round may be in order.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

The dreaded pursuit of education

Man, this has been a tough week. I've come to the conclusion that I need to break something loose and make significantly more money, because I'm tired of being poor and not owning a house. In order to do that, I have to finish my edumaction. I'm so stinkin' close to a Batchelor's in business management that I'd have been done a year ago if I was still in San Diego.

The problem is, I was almost bankrupt in San Diego. I was about to go under, and really needed to make something positive happen. A decent job offer came along that required a relocation to Kentucky, which I did. I've been with that company for two years now, and I'm just not getting ahead as I expected to. As a matter of fact, since I don't make commission anymore, I'm making less now than when I started here. I like what I do and I love working with soldiers. I think I want to stay in this industry, but I'm not willing to be the low man on the totem pole anymore. The chances of me making significantly more money here don't look all that great. So, I came to a decision: I'm going to finish my degree, which will take a little while. Probably a couple semesters to finish off what I needed for my core program and a couple of other requirements. Close, right? But therein lies the rub.

My previous college doesn't have a distance learning program yet. I think they need to test one by having me be the first one. I've looked into school around here at a couple of places (by no means an exhaustive search yet), and that's not looking very good right now. Turns out that my first choice, Austin Peay U, wants me to take at least half my core classes there. Ouch. One other place I looked since they were advertising on the radio here is Troy U, which appears to be similar to the U of Phoenix and schools of that sort. They don't have a business management option. Grrrr. How do you call yourself a school and not offer a business degree? USD didn't either. No wonder their sports teams aren't all that good. Maybe it was UCSD...I don't remember. Neither school's sports programs are nationally ranked with the real teams, so that tells ya something. What...I'm not sure.

I have a call in to the registrar at CHC. I'm hoping they have some options for me. Since I only need a couple of classes, I'm hoping that they'll let me pick 'em up here and submit transcripts to CHC. The waiting for the call is the part that's killin' me. I'm sure it's almost the end of the day there, two hours behind where I am, so I may not get that call today. Lord, give me strength, because this is just plain hard. I will finish this dang degree one way or another though. Mark my words.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Its Just Not Right

Well, its started already. Thanksgiving isn't even here yet and there's already ads for Christmas sales. That's just not right. Thanksgiving is getting short shrift, and its an important holiday, even outside of its spiritual ramifications.

Thanksgiving is really a fall holiday. Its the last holiday before winter starts into full swing, with its cold and snow here in KY. Its important because a poor single guy like me needs those leftovers to cut some costs on food. In addition, most of the year is gone, and its a good time to reflect on what went right for you this year. Even when one isn't blowing up the bank account, which is where I am, there's still a lot to be thankful for. I thank God nearly every day that, regardless of how little I'm making, I'm not going hungry. Despite how bad I might think I'm doing, there are a lot of people doing worse.

Now Christmas retailing is getting advertised during football games, and the last race of the NASCAR season (Yeah Jimmie Johnson!). What's the plan for this? Keep backing them up so that when the summer blockbusters come out, Wal Mart has a Santa in a Hawaiian shirt? Guys, you're ruining the mood. I shouldn't be able to get sick of hearing about Christmas until it gets here.

I wish I had some say in this, but I don't. Even when I was asked to decorate my stores by the owner of the company, I put it off until I got repremanded for it. I was able to stave it off until the day before Thanksgiving, where we'd throw the junk up before we left for a day off with the family. It was ready for the biggest shopping day of the season (biggest shopping day, not the biggest spending day. Why ya gotta use up so much time to not buy anything?), but not a minute earlier than we could get away with. When I win the Super Powerball Mega Gonzo Lottery, I'm gonna buy a whole bunch of stores that won't decorate for Christmas until December 15th. 'Course, they'll all be gun stores, so it won't matter much.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Fire the bum


I saw on ESPN this morning something that shouldn't ever happen in College sports, and from this individual it wasn't the first time.

Bobby Knight hit one of his players under the chin because the kid wasn't looking directly at him. Ol' Blobby hit him hard enough to knock his head back, and he was show sitting on the bench later, working his jaw around, clearly in some discomfort.

I played organized sports for a very long time. During that time, if the coach felt I wasn't paying attention to him, he could bench me. He could kick me off the team. He could do any number of things...but he knew better than to hit me. Everyone in a teaching or coaching role knows better. Even crazy gymnastics coaches, who are probably the most over the top bunch of all, don't ever strike one of their kids. Yet Blobby has done it repeatedly. How is it this hot head tub still has a job?

Indiana finally got tired of his actions and canned him several years ago. He even brought them bids to the NCAA tourney, and they won three national championships. He's enough of an ass that even winning couldn't keep his job at IU, and I applaud the school for that. Somehow he finds a job at some school in Texas that hasn't done much of anything since he's been there. No titles. No particular reason to keep him there, and yet they do...so far.

Tell ya what, Blobby: if that was my son that you hit, I'd have either your job or your ass. Either you'd no longer be coaching there, or you'd be doing it with a couple black eyes and a fat lip, not to mention walking with a limp. I don't know if parents letting their kids play under your tutelage don't know your track record, or don't care enough about their kids to put up with it, but at some point, somebody's dad is gonna get pissed and loosten some of your teeth.

Yeah, I'm tough behind my keyboard. I should come and say these things to your face. I would, if I cared enough to go to Texas to do it. Fact is, Blobby, you're a bully. You have very little else going for you. You have the same rage issues that Softball Guy does. You know Softball Guy. Hell Blobby, you probably are Softball Guy in the off season. For those that don't know, Softball Guy is the wannabe athlete that competes in the Park and Rec Department's D League. He treats games like he was in the World Series, screaming and yelling at his teammates and generally talkin' a lot of smack. He's a decent player most of the time...for the D League. But he's a bully too, just like Ol' Blobby.

But Texas Tech's (yeah, I went and did some quick research) AD said Blobby didn't hit his player. The player said Blobby didn't hit him. The kid's parent's said Blobby shouldn't be reprimanded. Maybe its a Texas thing. Because Blobby is close to passing Adolph Rupp in total wins, I guess TT thinks he needs to still be there, to bring that prestige to the school. Tell ya what, though: Adolph Rupp, nor Mike Krzyzewski, Dean Smith, John Thompson, Clarence Gaines, Jimmy Valvano, Jerry Tarkanian, Lute Olsen, John Wooden and a whole book's worth of other winning coaches ever had to strike a player to get his message across. Because of that, Blobby, you'll always have a big fat asterisk next to your name in sports fan's minds. I just hope you get fired before you get to 800 wins.

Saturday, November 11, 2006

The shotgun: asset or liability in the ZO scenario?

The venerable shotgun is probably the most misunderstood weapon in the self defense conundrum. There are still people out there that think the shotgun is like a horizontal howitzer, blasting adversaries through the air, over vehicles, and causing body parts to fly across the street and onto the roofs of tall buildings. In the movies, a bad guy (or a good guy, for that matter) is hit in the chest with a single round of 12 gauge shot, and he can be blown off his feet, being stopped only by a wall or other solid object. A single round to the chest can not only knock an adversary over the fender and onto the hood of the '80-something Ares K Car, but all the way over the hood and onto the ground on the other side, rolling across the street or sidewalk until they hit a solid object.

Sadly, none of this is true. Sure, shotguns hit hard, but they won't put a million ball bearing sized projectiles into everything in the entire living room. Here's a hard fact to believe, if your knowledge comes from the movies: shotguns, even with a cylinder bore (no constriction of the shot column at all), still keep their entire mass within a circle about the size of an adult fist up to about 20 yards. That's hardly a weapon that doesn't need to be aimed.

Shot spread is one factor that limits the shotgun. There are two others: effective range and ammunition capacity. Along with a limited magazine, there is also the exigency that is the reloading of the weapon.

As stated, shotguns have very limited range, especially compared to crew served weapons and rifles. They should be used in close quarters battle, where they are very effective, but where their glaring weakness is also brought to the fore: if the MUD's are of the high speed variety, the small magazine capacity and difficulty in reloading the shotgun really become liabilities. One of the combat shotgun's greatest features is its compact size, especially the "professional" models, like this Wilson Combat Professional Model from their Scattergun Technologies division:


However! if the advantage is a shorter barrel, the magazine tube must likewise be shortened to maintain that advantage. Since both motor skills and communication among the MUD are limited, the typical assault tends to be en masse; sort of a suicide charge...or at least it would be, if they were alive. If there are more than a few targets that need to be eliminated, then chances are good that the shotgun will be run dry, with little time to reload the weapon.

Clearly, the shotgun is a very effective weapon in this situation, but if the shooter hasn't mastered the combat reload, they're in very serious trouble. There are some in the world who could just about eliminate the ZO by themselves, given enough ammunition. If you don't train to that level, you won't perform at that level. That, however, is topic for another blog.

The other disadvantage of the shotgun is that the ammunition is large, cumbersome, and hard to carry. The shotshell is a type of ammo that is best suited to a static position or for the short assault scenario, especially if the gunner has mobile protection. Some will advocate heavy shot loads, some will advocate slugs. The fact is, they are both valid types of ammo. Its a fact that a slug will have very little trouble penetrating the brain pan of any MUD, much less an "older" one with any significant bone strength deterioration. In fact, the "double" is not an unheard of shot with slugs. The double happens when a shot that destroys the brain of one MUD travels on through the cranial cavity to exit the other side, and then penetrate another that happens to be in proximity. A slug can take out multiple targets, but its not something to be tried for. Just take credit for it if it happens, and chalk it up to luck. Its up to the shooter not to let it be known that it wasn't intentional.

Buckshot is definately a valid ammunition. At close range, its devestating. Buckshot tends to hold is pattern very well at close range, so a good shooter can use a headshot with buck to end an encounter. Which particular buck load to use is up to the shooter, or perhaps limited to what is available. #4 Buck is very popular in defensive situations, but anything between #4 and 00 is good to go. It is not recommended to go much lower than #4 in size, but in a ZO situation, one must do what one must do. A rule of thumb is, if you can't knock a tall Pepper Popper with the load at about 15 yards, then using it on an MUD is a bad idea.

Shotguns are one of the few defensive weapons in the world that benefit from a one point sling. Typically, the sling mounts on a pump action shotgun like an 870 or 500 (if you don't know what those are, you have a lot more research to do before using this article for anything) are on the bottom of the stock, and occasionally on the side of the barrel/mag tube clamp. Using a two point with this configuration will cause the top of the receiver to tip outwards, making for an unbalanced weapon that will have to be collected into a shooting position before it can be used. If the buttstock mount can be modified to mount to the side or top of the stock, it can be used, but it will generally be a less than ideal situation. If you must use a two point, then there is only one sling manufacturer to go to: Blue Force Gear. Three points are out of the question, in all cases. On shotguns, single point slings are the way to go. They are not ideal for extended missions outside the wire, but they are adequate. In a breaching or assaulting role, they work well, especially if the shotgun is the main weapon of the team member. One point slings have the disadvantage of being less secure than two points are, but they have the advantage of having nothing in the way of the pump or sidesaddle.

Its been shown that shotguns can be an effective weapon under the right circumstances, but they can also be a liability if used outside their design parameters. There are, of course, other issues to be explored in the use of the shotgun. This is meant only to promote thought and give some pointers in the use of the shotgun in the ZO scenario.

Friday, November 10, 2006

Birthday Wishes

I can't believe I almost failed to mention this. Good thing I still have a few minutes left in the day. Today is Mikhail Kalashnikov's birthday. If you don't know who he is, you haven't been paying much attention to world events for the past 40 or 50 years.

Mister Kalashnikov is the creative genius and designer of the AK series of rifles. If you need to know about the AK, hit up Wikipedia; I gotta tell ya, not knowing what an AK47 is reeks of lameness. His design changed everything for the Soviet Union. It allowed them to peddle their influence all over the world, essentially giving the AK away because it was so brilliantly designed. The rifle has had incredible influence on arms design ever since.

While his brilliance would have made him rich in the US of A, he was born and bred in Russia. He got a couple of medals for all his hard work (to include a Hero of the Soviet Union medal, IIRC), but didn't get the rewards he is so clearly due. Now that Russia is no longer a Command Economy (proof that liberal socialism doesn't work), they can't sell the rifles for a significant price; they're as cheap as $30 in some places in the world. Because they don't have a cash crop in the weapon anymore, Mikhail can't get the payday that he's so deserving of. He appears to be in amazingly good spirits about the whole thing, though. The gentleman truely has class.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Kalashnikov. God bless your genius. I'm gonna go get me another AK.

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

You should read this

Here's a link to my boy Josh's blog. You really should read this; its very instructive as to the mindset of the current voter, and the type of people you'll end up with because of this election.

A little back story: Josh was riding his brand new motorcycle home from his motorcycle safety class, on surface roads. This crazy woman decides to pass him from directly behind him. She moves to the left lane, passes him...and then for some reason we can't figger out, she brakes, after having cut him off. With nowhere to go, Josh goes OTB. Her insurance company pays out to the limit of her coverage...which was the minimum. He had to sue her to get the rest. Josh's account of it can be read here, and there are a couple other posts he's made about that situation, too. Go check it out.

Nice going, people.

America, what the hell is wrong with you? Doesn't anyone remember history anymore? You idiots have given control of the house and senate back to the Dumbocrats. Seriously; what were you thinking?

Did anyone stop to think that by giving the Dumbs control, we'd be stuck with that moron Nancy Pelosi as the Speaker? I'd give you a link to info about her, but if you didn't consider that, you need to start doing your own research now. Go Google ol' Nancy and see what you get. Oh, you didn't realize that the moderates you thought you were electing were going to have the HLW (Hella Left Wing) leadership? Boy, you sure thought that one through.

You voted based on wanting to be out of Iraq, didn't you? We can't right now; get used to it. The job isn't done there, and until it is, our troops have to stay. And by the way, if you think we'll ever have our troops completely out of Iraq, you're out of your simplistic mind. We have troops in Germany, Japan, Korea, Saudi Arabia, Kosovo, and South America. Most, if not all, of those are because Dumbocrat leaders put them there. Remember ol' Slick Willie, the Teflon President? Yeah, he said we'd be in Kosovo for a year. Oddly enough, two of my NG buddies recently returned from a deployment there. Yeah, leaving Iraq is in the cards. Especially when the situation there isn't stable. What, you want to cut and run on another fledgling government? We have to stick and stay, and we're going to. If we don't, someone you know will die at the hands of a terrorist. Here. In the States. Its not if. Its when.

Didn't 30 years of having these spacktards controlling congress teach you anything? What, are you too young to remember? I'll give you a hint: the reason your taxes are so high is because of what they did during that time. Nice job. I appreciate it. By the time they're done, I'll be lucky to afford to live in a large refrigerator box. I'll probably have to keep my AR in a much smaller box and live outside, though.

Here's what you voted for, America. This is the Liberal Dumbocrat way:
  1. higher taxes. Dumbs never met a tax they didn't like.
  2. more entitlement programs that you don't qualify for, but you have to pay for.
  3. higher taxes "on the wealthiest 1%". First, see how little that "wealthy" person makes to meet the standard. Then realize that you asked to increase taxes on the one who employs you. They don't have money to give you a raise anymore.
  4. Higher taxes and more spending
  5. Higher taxes and more spending
  6. Making it easier to get illegals into the US, to increase taxes and have more spending.
Yeah, you really thought this one through. With a little bit of luck, we won't be hit with a ton of anti-gun legislation again. Most of the biggest proponents of it have been voted out. However, the leadership still believes in it. I doubt they'll get anything passed, but just in case, you better stock up on high capacity magazines and lots and lots of ammo. They just might be stupid enough to forget what happened the last time gun owners had enough of being harrassed for being law abiding citizens. Wanna know how bad it can get? Take a good hard look at California.

Saturday, November 04, 2006

What a wierd trend

I am an admin on a few forums, and a moderator on a couple others. I'm a member of several others; some I'm a member of, I can't even remember. I think its safe to say that I'm a bit of SME on forums. I'm not calling that a good thing, either. I need to log off and go outside more often.

I'm seeing a wierd trend, though, on the slower forums I'm a member of. I've seen this happen to the comments section of various people's blogs as I'm doing research for various products, too: memberships created for the purpose of spamming. Clearly, heavy moderation keeps this from happening, but it seems to show up where the traffic level has dropped off. Somebody will make a post in a forum to sell junk that nobody wants, like medications, cleaning products, and other stuff. OK, maybe somebody wants it, but if a post like that is left up and members comment on it, they express their disgust with the practice.

The reason for it is that somehow they're making money on it. But how? Is it click throughs? Probably isn't from generating orders, but I guess that's a possibility. Spam in general doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I suppose its the online equivalent of the cold call during dinner. Somebody's placing orders, or they wouldn't be doing it. If it never paid off, the resources would be spent elsewhere.

All you people out there, listen up: quit clickin' on the spam. You're just making the Intarweb a harder place for the rest of us to get around on. Everybody complains about spam. Don't indulge them and we'll be able to get rid of it.

I know that comment falls on some deaf ears. These are the same people that believe the Minister of Interior Resources from Scamibia has randomly contacted them to help him get millions of ill gotten booty (or ill booten gotty*) out of the country. They think they need to update their security settings on their Paypal account. In fact, they're the very same people who are sure that Microsoft is going to pay them for every email they send. You people are the reason there is spam. Get off the Intarweb. You're screwing it up for those of us with some common sense.

*Name the reference.

Friday, November 03, 2006

I have been offended

Channel surfing this evening while waiting for the Lakers game to come on, I came across what may be the most offensive movie I've ever seen. Those that know me personally know that I'm not easily offended, but Hollywood has done it to me again. What's got mire ire up so much? One of the most retarded movies of all time: Drumline. What makes this so bad isn't the story. Its the same old same: ghetto kid goes to college, finds chick, grows up, blah, blah, blahbiddy blah. What is so damn horrible are the performance shots. Pathetic. Horrible. Disgraceful.

Now, bear in mind, they're slagging band geeks with their crap. That's a big deal. That takes a lot of doing. This movie could have easily gotten some great drumlines to play the parts. They didn't even bother to get a decent high school drumline. I don't know where they got the hacks they used, but they weren't good. If you watch the movie, watch how poorly coordinated they are. Watch how they don't step together, the drumline's sticks come to a whole slew of different heights. Their spacing is bad. The stuff they're doing isn't difficult for most drum and bugle corps.

Now check out how one of the all time great Corps, The Blue Devils, does it. That is the HEAT right there.

The Handgun in the ZO scenario

In our continuing look at the necessary tools for use in a ZOS (Zombie Outbreak Scenario), we've come to the handgun as a defensive tool in use against the MUD. In this area, Clint Smith is correct: a handgun is to fight your way to a rifle. However, if you're coming late to the party, unprepared and unaware without a long gun, you get to be the ZDU; Zombie Distraction Unit. While you're being devoured, your friends are either making "killing" shots with rifles or moving to a defensible position. You are part of the great unwashed cannon fodder. Since you don't want that to happen, read on and learn what you can do to defend yourself.

The factors involved in the use of the handgun versus the MUD are
  • speed is fine, accuracy is final (thanks to Larry Vickers for the use of that sage advice)
  • MUD's congregate towards each other. High capacity is paramount
  • this is not the scenario for your Hi Point, Jennings, Bryco or American Derringer
  • caliber matters
So you can shoot fast. Big deal; lots of the MUD could do that before they were bitten and turned into evil, ugly critters. Get used to this idea if you have to depend on the handgun to defend yourself: if you can't hit the brain box of your target, you might as well put the muzzle to your own head. Chances are you'd miss, though, because you were trying to shoot too fast to make a solid hit, and now you're a buffet for the undead. As we know from the training film SOTD, to stop a zombie, you must destroy the brain or remove the head. Regardless of what you've seen in the movies and heard in deh gangsta rap songs, handguns don't blow heads off. When you get right down to it, only explosives do that with certainty.

High capacity is crucial in the ZOS, because there will be a lot of them in a very short time. It doesn't take long to turn a victim regardless of which version of the story you subscribe to, and the MUD's can turn several victims in an hour. The chances of having to deal with only one zombie at a time are pretty remote. Scientists haven't determined with conclusivity what causes MUD's to cluster. Perhaps its a deep memory, such as the idea that "Poor people tend to cluster", as posited by the urban freestyle philosopher Eric Cartman. At any rate, high capacity is a necessity, and that will affect your choice of weapons. Bottom line: there's no such thing as too many rounds. Did you (assuming you're outside of California and Noo Yawk) think those 30 round magazines for the Glock 9mm pistols were silly? Do you think that right now? I didn't think so. Let's revise the first point: accuracy as many times as possible without reloading is final.

The third point should need no explanation. If you're not betting your life on a top of the line weapon, you deserve hands in your guts and teeth on your skull. Invest in a serious tool. There are many guns that I like, but 100% reliability is crucial. Some of you are going to hate to hear this, but Gaston Glock's product rules the roost. You don't like the way they look. They're not as large and angular as the Berettas and Smith and Wessons you've seen in the training films. All of that is ancilliary: Glocks always work. Get one, or at least something comparable, like a Springfield XD or an HK USP or P2000, or something else that doesn't rust. That means your Kimber II goes out the window. Besides, it doesn't hold enough rounds.

Here we go again: destroy the brain or remove the head. Memorize this. DTB, RTH. Simple to remember, and as true as America, mom and apple pie (can't include baseball; it sucks). Handguns don't do that. Here's another truth for you, while we're dispensing with the knowledge: handgun bullets poke holes. Rifle bullets tear stuff up. That being said, a zombie isn't a bear, elephant or heffalump. What we're up against is a former human, in a state of decomposition. The problem is, its a torpid putrefaction (slow as a herd of turtles in molasses crossing the road in a blizzard). That's why bunkering and outwaiting is a far more difficult proposition than it would appear at first blush.

Still, rotting will be happening, and zombie flesh will become easier to violate with projectiles as time passes. Whereas a very large caliber round would have been required if that were not the case, smaller, very fast rounds will work. The experts will agree that a compromise round like the .40 Short and Wide, going very fast, will do damage enough to incapacitate an MUD at close range. The 9mm, placed properly with a high quality projectile, will get the job done in a pinch, and you can fit a heck of a lot of them in a magazine. Here are the keys to choosing the round for you:
  • capacity is key. This is why relying on your .460 S&W will eventually get you killed (temporarily, at least, before you reanimate) if that's all you have.
  • hollow points with explosive expansion are your friend to blast as wide a channel as possible. You can quote Wyatt Earp from Tombstone to the Zombie Leader if you're feeling cocky "Your friends might get me in a rush, but not before I turn your head into a canoe". It won't help, but you can count it as your last act of defiance, assuming you're confronted by a ZL with a fire team with him.
  • Look for velocity. It can't hurt.
  • Big, as in "caliber beginning with .4" doesn't hurt.
  • If you rely on a revolver, we thank you for slowing the zombies down so we can get away and/or fortify our position.
Of course there's more, but get to thinkin' about this before I drop another bomb in your brain and give you information overload. More info on different weapons to follow.