The Eclectic Dragonfly

I just found out via Sam over at The Ten Ring what my Uncle was talking about the other day.  That being the destruction of the real estate industry.  Buried in the language of the cap and trade bill is the requirement that all houses being sold must pass an energy audit and if they fail the seller is required to upgrade the home.  To modern California standards.  So you’re selling a 1972 mobile home?  Not until you insulate it to 2009 standards and replace all of the perfectly functional appliances with the latest Energy Star rated equivalents.

The .gov is in effect legislating that We the People must spend our money on things we don’t need and that many of us simply can’t afford and in many cases don’t even want. 

What next?  Are they going to force me to get rid of my Vanagon and buy a SmartCar instead?  I don’t want one!

OK, so it’s 1:30 in the morning of the 5^th.  Well, I’m still in Independence Day mode and I think it’s long past time for as reminder:

 

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

 

At least the few seconds that are left of it...

Here’s a little something I got from my Aunt Sally (code for the local Salvation Army thrift store).  Made amid all the hoopla of the Bicentennial (33 years ago?!) by Litton Industries Advanced Circuitry Division and etched in copper laminated to black glass as though it were a pc board, is the Declaration of Independence.  I haven’t been able to get a really good picture of it, and given its history (this artifact’s that is…) it’s a little scruffy.  It must have been gorgeous when it was new!



And being The Fourth, I’ll close out with this:



Our flag.  At the HerrBGone Homestead V2.0 we are flying a Betsy Ross flag as a reminder to any who would care to look of Our Nations struggle to be free from the tyranny of an oppressive government.  May we not bring one down upon ourselves!

So who is proofreading Boston.com these days?







Wanna hear that list again?

… as I was in the tags of my previous post, here's my latest picture of our new home:

 

Click to enlarge

 

Although the image is rather soft, it’s much more dynamic and I think visually interesting than the rectilinear and aligned version I shot with my Canon EF-S 18~55mm f=3.5~5.6 zoom.

 

Camera: Canon EOS Rebel XT

Lens: Vintage Accura Fisheye (unspecified focal length) T-mount f=8

Exposure: 2.5sec. @ f16

Mode: Aperture Priority

Ambient room light (mostly compact fluorescent)

Tripod mounted

Tripped with self timer in lieu of a cable release or remote

Two multi-“!” posts in a row?  Well, I think they’re worthy…

This post’s “WooHoo!!!!” is in celebration of the arrival of Thunder at his new home.

Thunder, visiting Joey’s Diner in Amherst, NH:

Click to enlarge

Last night Thunder, my ’85 Vanagon Westy came home – via my AAA Plus card and a flatbed.  I already have the new stainless steel send and return coolant pipes.  In fact I’ve had them for over a year.  But at our old house there was simply no way I could get under him to do the install.  We now have the luxury of a paved driveway at our new home, and that will make a major difference in being able to work on him.

After giving his battery a good charging I was even able to turn him around and reposition him in the driveway under his own – well, “power” may not be the correct word, but I did in fact actually drive him out into the road, back up a couple of Thunder lengths and pull into the driveway head in.  Only stalled him twice after unhooking the booster box and he re-fired both times from his own battery.

With the cooling system crippled from the OEM galvanized pipes having finally rusted through I don’t dare run him any more than I did tonight.  Once the new stainless pipes are installed that particular cooling problem should be a thing of the past.

 

 

Seen at lolcat:

 

Before they invented global warming, the scourge that was going to kill us all was acid rain.  Haven’t heard too much about that lately.  I thought that by 2005 all of the north east from Pittsburg to Houlton was supposed to turn into an uninhabitable desert from the PH-imbalanced rain that was going to kill off all the plants – unless we completely change our way of life Right Now!!!1!one!

Bruce is looking to translate the initials ABC (American Broadcasting Company) into something more apropos given their planned broadcast from “the Blue Room” at the White House:

 

First thoughts on the subject last night:

 

Anything But Change

Apathetic By Choice

Attracted to Barry’s Charisma

 (the network, not me!)

Advertising Barrie’s Charisma

Affirming Barry’s Cronyism

Appalling Beyond Comment

A Bunch of Cretins

Another Bad Choice

Advertiser’s Big Chance

Attending Barrack’s Coattails

Another Bailout Candidate

Acronym’s ‘Bit Clumsy

Anchor’s Big Chance

Appropriate Be Cannot

Anything But Correct

Amazingly Bad Comedy

Amazing Blazing Cucka

 (where did that come from?!)

Another Blathering Crackpot

Acolytes and Believers in Change

Written in my notebook after shutting off the computer:

 

Arrogant Beyond Compare

Almost Believable Crap

Anything But Credible

Attempting to Buy Credibility

Anything But Camelot

Written this morning at work:

 

Apparently Barry’s Crazy

Afraid of Barry’s Charisma

 (compare BO to AH…)

Attempting to Brainwash the Citizens

Assisting in Brainwashing the Citizens

Affordable Brainwashing Contractor

Another Brainwashing Conspiracy

American Brainwashing Company

Anti-american Brainwashing Company

 (not capitalized intentionally)

Anti-american Brainwashing Conspiracy

 (not capitalized intentionally)

Avoiding Bureaucratic Conflicts

 (el presidente’ says “Do my bidding.” If not the FCC may have issues with your license renewal…)

Announcing Barry’s Coronation

 (Not on My watch!)

Anticipating Barry’s Coronation

 (Like I said…)

 
 

And remember kids: Don’t drink the Cool-Aid!

In a column about parenting the Boston Globe is raising the specter of the “shocking statistic” that “40% of homes that have kids also have guns.”

OMG!

<eyeroll>

The tenor of the article is obviously aimed at the PSH crowd, but it does raise a valid concern.  If there are guns in the home how are they stored?  And more importantly how well are the children in that home trained in firearm safety?

For younger kids the NRA has put together the Eddy Eagle program.  For older kids there are a variety of young shooter education programs available.  We* know how we’ve trained our kids and we’ve taken the mystery out of guns.  They are not treated as the taboo subject that anti’s make them out to be.  By eliminating the mystery we’ve eliminated most of the temptation and thus prevented most of the potential accidents that may be caused by that mystery and the ignorance that it stems from.

To counter the PSH that may be generated by articles such as this, when the subject comes up why not offer to educate the kids playmates parents in order to remove the mystery and misinformation they may be suffering from.  Then, with the parents’ permission, teach the kids too – with age appropriate information based on Eddy Eagle or any of the other programs.

Knowledge trumps ignorance and misinformation every time.


* In the interest of full disclosure: I don’t have kids myself.  By “We” I mean we as gunnies and especially thee, if you have kids.

CNN is reporting that the President, who has with the consent and aid of Congress spent more money than any other before him via his “economic stimulus package” – money that we do not have, is now sending a proposal to that very same Congress to make ‘pay-as-you-go spending’ the law.

 

I like the whole concept of pay-as-you-go. That’s what those of us not authorized by the Constitution to print money for ourselves do as a matter of course. 

 

Having the government adopt a similar pay-as-you-go conservative spending pattern would be a wonderful change. I would love to see that happen.

 

Except:

 

The article is describing this being accomplished by having to cut a dollar from another program for every dollar to be spent on any new program Congress wants to start up. If they would actually do that I think we would all rejoice.

 

But what I expect them to do in practice is to cut a program or two (popular ones that will cause a loud outcry (at least in the legacy media)) and then decide that it’s simply easier to look for additional sources or revenue instead.

 

“OK, we’ll pay for it as we go, “ says Congress “of course by ‘we’ we mean We the People as in you the taxpayers.”

 

Unless there is very specific wording in this proposed law to prevent it, expect your taxes and fees to skyrocket.

My buddy Roger just now sent me a link to this video.

I haven’t gone off and independently verified everything they say, but I thought I’d pass it along anyway.

 

John Avlon - CNN Contributor:   “KKK comparisons are just short of Nazi comparisons in the hierarchy of out-of-bounds political metaphors. The KKK is the KKK – full stop. Unless there are actual lynchings involved, it’s best to back off.” - Emphasis added.

But the legacy media isn’t trying to establish taboos or control the dialogue.  Are they?  Would they do that?  Nah!  Can't be!

Voice an opinion that diverges from the party line - be called names on CNN.

Reference my earlier post: On Political Correctness

… by the Google Street View car. We’ll see how long it takes for them to update the Street View database.

 

Here’s the picture they will soon be replacing:

 

 Click for larger view
 

If I think of it I may update this post after Google updates theirs.

NRA/ILA Alert - 4 June 2009

Fairfax, Va. - Today, the National Rifle Association filed a petition for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of NRA v. Chicago. The NRA strongly disagrees with yesterday's decision issued by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, holding that the Second Amendment does not apply to state and local governments.

"The Seventh Circuit got it wrong. As the Supreme Court said in last year's landmark Heller decision, the Second Amendment is an individual right that 'belongs to all Americans'. Therefore, we are taking our case to the highest court in the land," said Chris W. Cox, NRA chief lobbyist. "The Seventh Circuit claimed it was bound by precedent from previous decisions. However, it should have followed the lead of the recent Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Nordyke v. Alameda County, which found that those cases don't prevent the Second Amendment from applying to the states through the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment."

This Seventh Circuit opinion upholds current bans on the possession of handguns in Chicago and Oak Park, Illinois.

"It is wrong that the residents of Chicago and Oak Park continue to have their Second Amendment rights denied," Cox concluded. "It's time for the fundamental right of self-defense to be respected by every jurisdiction throughout our country."

How’s that for a nice change of pace? 

The Redmen Report is an independent school newspaper run students at Tewksbury High School.  The school is, according to the article in today’s Lowell Sun, making distribution of the student run paper far more difficult than it needs to be. Illegally so according to one quote from the article.  I particularly like this bit:

Principals often demand to review publications before they go to press and exercise censorship if the school is cast in a bad light.

"The administrators will always say that they want to teach good journalistic values," LoMonte [executive director of the Virginia-based Student Press Law Center] said. "But bias in favor of government is not a journalistic value." – emphasis added

I’m pleasantly surprised to see that in print in the Lowell Sun. But that’s more for another post…

Regardless of the school’s decision to restrict distribution to off campus outlets only, the kids are pushing ahead and getting the job done anyway. I think the key to their success is that they are an independent group and not actually a school sanctioned club. That independence gives them the freedom to run the paper their way without ‘editorial guidance’ [censorship] from school authorities. 

And that, my friends, is a good thing.

 

 

You don’t have to be an Aspie to see this pattern.

 

Bruce is reporting on a series of hit pieces in the legacy media this week trying to cast the Free State Project in the worst possible light before their otherwise uninformed (they hope) readers.

 

Then this morning the radio announced that the man accused of murdering the abortion doctor earlier this week “has ties to the right wing militia movement.”

 

Meanwhile GM and quite a few major financial institutions have been nationalized in an effort by the government to take control of the economy. An effort that would not look necessary had the legacy media not talked the nation (and accidentally the world) into believing a recession was coming.

* Post title based on a comment by wolfwalker over at No Looking Backwards.

UPDATE: Link fixed

In a recent post written by Kaveman over at the blog Days of our Trailers he relates the story of how a judge right here in the United States has ruled from the bench that, to quote a paragraph quoted from another source that sparked his post:

 

“Twelve religious activists pulled off a legal miracle yesterday: They convinced a judge - who once worked for the Philadelphia Police Department, of all places - that it's OK to break the law if the harm you cause is less than the harm you think you're preventing.” - source

 

In lambasting this absurd ruling Kaveman goes on to ask several purely rhetorical questions, including:

 

Is it OK to bomb an abortion clinic because you believe “the harm you cause is less than the harm you think you're preventing?”

 

Well, apparently someone out there thought it was:

 

Abortion doctor murdered in church

 

Someone else may have not liked the idea of our military recruiting new members and decided to take matters into his own hands as well:

 

Army officers shot outside recruiting office

 

Add the ruling that seems to say ‘the ends justify the means’ to the recent decision of the Justice Department not to prosecute members of the Black Panthers for blatant voter intimidation during last years Presidential election and you really have to wonder where the party in power wants to take this Republic.

Flag found offensive.

h/t to my buddy Roger

Wow!  Look it all them eeevil guns! 



Look at how carefully they've cropped out the revolver to only show the eeeeevil semi-Automatics!  Look at how that one has its action open…  Wait!  It’s a pellet gun?  OK, so why is there an Umarex Walther CP99 pellet gun illustrating this article that’s clearly designed to make the sheeple paranoid about those dangerous people who “gather weapons”?  Could it be that the anti’s have realized that they need to go back to square-one and retrain the lemmings to Be afraid.  Be very afraid!  So that maybe they can get Congress to not do things like pass pro-self defense laws?

While we’re at it, isn’t the idea of trying to make people afraid of the mentally ill rather bigoted and narrow minded?  Particularly given the overtly political intent of the author.

The people (I use the term loosely) who disseminate this garbage truly have no shame!

Derrick Z. Jackson has let fly with a diatribe of the ‘blood in the streets’ variety decrying, in his words:

“IN ITS INFINITE cowardice, Congress is extending the same national park protections to guns as it does wildlife.” 

 

In this latest issue of PSH Daily, the Globe is once again missing the point. It is not the guns that are being protected. It is We the People who are being trusted by our government to protect ourselves. Later in the article the author quotes a retired Park Ranger, Randall Kendrick, who actually makes my point for me:

 

“He is concerned that rangers will be more vulnerable to angry, armed visitors who know that backup for a ranger could be hours away instead of minutes for an urban cop.”

 

Exactly. If the Ranger’s back-up may be an hour or more away, how far away is help for an average park visitor if they should be attacked by a predator weather of the four legged variety or the kind with two legs and opposable thumbs? Law abiding concealed carry permit holders would more likely come to the aid of a Ranger who needs help rather than putting the Ranger in mortal peril themselves. 

 

It’s the whole concept that there are citizens who are law abiding and deemed to be trustworthy enough to be licensed by the government to carry a loaded gun that the Globe and others in the legacy media can’t (or won’t) wrap their brains around. Even most of the comments on this article that I read get it, though admittedly I did not read them all. 

 

You would think that if enough of the people who read the on-line edition of the Globe and care enough about what they read to take the time to write in some cases very well written and articulate comments on an article share a view that is the polar opposite of the message presented by the paper that eventually the editors would realize that maybe they should reevaluate their position and align themselves with the views or their readership. Maybe I’m missing something here, but that would seem to make business sense to me.