Teh Funny…

Bear shows up at outdoor commercial shoot…




Well, “I” thought it was pretty funny… so sue me… 😛

Ah… Friends…

Just got off the phone with a buddy out West-

F- Hey, you shoot M-1’s right?

Me- Yep, why?

F- Well I’m looking at 32 boxes of Lake City 63, all the same lot.

Me- (Cringing)  How much?

F- Dunno, standby… mumble, mumble, okay Ah, 10 dollars a box.

Me- Get it! (doing happy dance)

F- You sure?

Me- HELL YES! I’ll get a check out to you tomorrow! He got anything else good?

F- Nah, unless you want to pay $100 a brick for Eley.

Me- Nope!!!

F- K, talk to you later

Oh man, I am SO thankful for good friends that remember what I shoot and actually look out for me!!!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Veterans Suicide Rates…


This one is from the mil-email string… 

I would add that we have had a few discussions about this at work, and I agree with the comments below.  Another possible issue that I do not believe is being taken into account is the number of older veterans that have lost jobs in the past 5 years.  I think this is also a significant contributor to the rates.

Additionally, while not ‘suicides’ per se, I’ve had a couple of friends die in the last two years of natural causes who never sought treatment.  As a matter of fact, they didn’t even let folks know they were sick, and we only found out post mortem from letters left for the families.

From XXXXX-

Personal comments: 
1.       A vet giving his life in performance of service is unfortunately sometimes a part of that service, but his or her taking that life after performing service is more unfortunate in that it is a total loss, one without merit.

2.       Regarding the 5-year post-service period in the Vietnam War era versus now, the social environment in which returnee vets find themselves is totally different.  I find it interesting that the numbers of suicides are far higher now than then, “then” being a period of pure hostility and hatred toward vets on the part of a large segment of society.

XXXXXX

New VA Study Reveals Insights About Veteran Suicides
A new study published the Department of Veterans’ Affairs says that roughly 22 military veterans kill themselves every day. That rate that is about 20 percent higher than the VA estimated in 2007. More than two-thirds of the veterans who commit suicide are 50 or older, suggesting that the increase in veterans’ suicides is not primarily driven by those returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
However, the study does show that the overall veteran suicide rate is three times that of the civilian population as a whole. This is probably due to the fact that while women make up half of the civilian population, they are a very small percentage of the veteran population. Men tend to kill themselves at a much higher rate than women.
According to the Washington Post, the study’s author, Rober Bossarte, said “There is a perception that we have a veterans’ suicide epidemic on our hands. I don’t think that is true.” The VA epidemiologist went on to say that “The rate is going up in the country, and veterans are a part of it.” The number of suicides overall in the United States increased by nearly 11 percent between 2007 and 2010, the study says.
The study reached the conclusion that the percentage of veterans who die by suicide has decreased slightly since 1999, even though the total number of veterans who kill themselves has gone up.
Bossarte said much work remains to be done to understand the data. Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are a minority of the overall veteran population that includes Vietnam, Korea, and World War II vets, but recent studies have suggested that those who served in the more recent conflicts are 30 to 200 percent more likely to commit suicide than their ­non-veteran peers. According to the Washington Post, other studies have shown that Vietnam-era veterans were most likely to commit suicide within five years of getting out of the service. It remains to be seen if this is the case with newer veterans.
To calculate the veterans’ suicide rate, Bossarte and one assistant spent more than two years, starting in October 2010, asking state governments to turn over death certificates for the more than 400,000 Americans who have killed themselves since 1999. 42 states have provided data or agreed to do so; the study is based on information from 21 states that has been assembled into a database.
The numbers show that men in their 50s — a group that includes a large percentage of the veteran population— have been especially hard-hit by the national increase in suicide. The veterans’ suicide rate is about three times the overall national rate, but about the same percentage of male veterans in their 50s kill themselves as do non-veteran men of that age, according to the VA data.
Bossarte plans to include in death certificate data from all 50 states, Pentagon service records, VA hospital data and information from the VA’s crisis line in one database to help figure out the root causes of the suicide problem. Hopefully it will also be able to help the VA determine where it needs more mental healthcare workers and how best to train them.
The database is intended to show how many veterans served in combat, the year they left the military and the jobs they held in uniform. He will know how many of the deceased veterans called the crisis line for help and what kinds of treatment they were receiving from VA doctors before taking their lives.
Recently Bossarte noticed an interesting trend that followed the VA’s move to change the name of its call center from “suicide hotline” to “crisis line.” Overall call volume spiked in the months after the name change, and emergency rescues, which accounted for about 5 percent of all calls in 2010, dropped to less than 2 percent.
The figures suggest that more veterans are calling the line before their despair reaches suicidal levels. “We are getting them earlier, and that is a good thing,” Bossarte said.
Recently, national suicide rates have been shown to be highest in the rural Mountain West states. Epidemiologists have speculated that the availability of guns, the lack of mental health services and a rugged, independent mind-set that stigmatizes seeking help could all be driving up the rate. Bossarte’s database could help pinpoint the culprit and the cure.
TREA: The Enlisted Association is very supportive any effort to get at the root causes of suicide, since any loss of human life is a tragedy. Hopefully inquiries such as this will continue to show that military service does not increase the risk of suicide, and it will help our country deal with the real factors that drive suicides of both veterans and non-veterans.
If you or anybody you know needs help, call the Veterans Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255  and Press 1 or go on line at http://www.veteranscrisisline.net/

Bottom line, if you know a vet who’s in trouble, please talk to them and try to get them help.

h/t Les, Frito, Bubba

1, 2, 5 Round Clips…

For all you Garand owners that want ‘options’ to the 8 round clips…

Creedmore has 1, 2, 5 clips HERE.  These are good quality, and work well for competition shooting or if you’re taking your M-1 in the woods and there is a five round limit…

Or if you live in NY… Just sayin… 

In Memorium…

Ed “Ras” Rasimus has passed…  He will be missed.

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds – and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of – wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long delirious, burning blue,
I’ve topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew –
And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untresspassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

Pilot Officer Gillespie Magee
No 412 squadron, RCAF
Killed 11 December 1941

Fly it like you stole it Ras… Godspeed!

Hangar One at NAS Moffett…

For all those ‘old’ aviators out there, there ‘is’ a possibility that the iconic Hangar One at NAS Moffett Field ‘may’ be saved.  

Hangar One was originally built 79 years ago for the blimps back in WWII, and it is on the National Historic Register.  However, due to the age and asbestos construction, it was deemed a hazard.  We closed the ‘base’ in 1993 and moved the squadrons out to Hawaii and NAS Whidbey Island, but due to the EPA, nothing was done with the buildings. NASA Ames took over the facilities, and the hangar basically sat and deteriorated…  

A little bit of ‘history’, until the VAB was built at the Cape, Hangar One was the largest freestanding (no internal supports) building in the world.

Now they are finally stripping all the asbestos and taking the building back to parade rest…


From the Mercury News in San Jose.

Hangar One, once home to the Navy’s giant airships at Moffett Field, finally has a few willing benefactors: Google’s top three executives have offered to salvage the historic landmark.

Ambrose and supporters of Hangar One’s restoration are eager for a response because the Navy is in the process of removing the old, contaminated skin from the giant building. That work should be completed by next summer, said Lenny Siegel, chairman of the subcommittee.
Without a covering, the hangar’s frame and foundation will be exposed to the elements. That’s a problem because there are toxic materials in the soil underneath the hangar that could leach out because of rain exposure, Siegel said. Additionally, the Navy has set up some $12 million worth of scaffolding to remove the hangar’s skin. If supporters are able to put a new covering on the hangar right after that process ends, that scaffolding can be left in place. If not, it will have to be removed and then replaced later at a cost of some $1 million to $2 million more, Siegel said.


Full article and more pictures HERE

As one of the literally thousands of Sailors that went through there, I really hope it does get saved!

I can support this one!!!

There is a new petition up at the White House petition website…

WE PETITION THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO:
Name a US Naval Vessel in Honor of US Navy Seal Chris Kyle. USS Chris Kyle. Chris Kyle, a former Navy SEAL who wrote the best-selling book American Sniper about his service in Iraq, was shot and killed at a gun range in Texas.


In honor of his service. We should honor him by naming a US Naval Vessel After Him.

USS Chris Kyle.

As of this writing, the White House petition website has received just over 2,300 of the 100,000 signatures required to prompt an official response.

You can read the full article at the Examiner HERE

I actually did sign in for this one.

Some people just don’t get it…

I’ll see you the cute little poodle cut and the little bells, let’s see you and the dog do THIS!


And this one comes from the mil-email trail… Contrary to Wounded Warriors, its seems that our REAL wounded warriors DO enjoy shooting and if nothing else ARE innovative!


Yes, he really IS using his shoe as an improvised shooting rest!

NRA testimony at Senate hearing…

Passing along for your information-

TESTIMONY OF WAYNE LAPIERRE
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
BEFORE THE U.S. SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
HEARING ON “WHAT SHOULD AMERICA DO ABOUT GUN VIOLENCE?”
216 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
JANUARY 30, 2013
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:
It’s an honor to be here today on behalf of more than 4.5 million moms and dads and sons and daughters, in every state across our nation, who make up the National Rifle Association of America. Those 4.5 million active members are joined by tens of millions of NRA supporters.
And it’s on behalf of those millions of decent, hardworking, law-abiding citizens … to give voice to their concerns … that I’m here today.
The title of today’s hearing is “What should America do about gun violence?”
We believe the answer to that question is to be honest about what works – and what doesn’t work.
Teaching safe and responsible gun ownership works – and the NRA has a long and proud history of teaching it.
Our “Eddie Eagle” children’s safety program has taught over 25 million young children that if they see a gun, they should do four things: “Stop. Don’t touch. Leave the area. Tell an adult.” As a result of this and other private sector programs, fatal firearm accidents are at the lowest levels in more than 100 years.[1]
The NRA has over 80,000 certified instructors who teach our military personnel, law enforcement officers and hundreds of thousands of other American men and women how to safely use firearms. We do more – and spend more – than anyone else on teaching safe and responsible gun ownership.
We joined the nation in sorrow over the tragedy that occurred in Newtown, Connecticut.  There is nothing more precious than our children. We have no more sacred duty than to protect our children and keep them safe.  That’s why we asked former Congressman and Undersecretary of Homeland Security, Asa Hutchison, to bring in every expert available to develop a model School Shield Program – one that can be individually tailored to make our schools as safe as possible. 
It’s time to throw an immediate blanket of security around our children.  About a third of our schools have armed security already – because it works.[2]And that number is growing. Right now, state officials, local authorities and school districts in all 50 states are considering their own plans to protect children in their schools.
In addition, we need to enforce the thousands of gun laws that are currently on the books. Prosecuting criminals who misuse firearms works. Unfortunately, we’ve seen a dramatic collapse in federal gun prosecutions in recent years. Overall in 2011, federal weapons prosecutions per capita were down 35 percent from their peak in the previous administration.[3] That means violent felons, gang members and the mentally ill who possess firearms are not being prosecuted. And that’s unacceptable.
And out of more than 76,000 firearms purchases denied by the federal instant check system, only 62 were referred for prosecution and only 44 were actually prosecuted.[4] Proposing more gun control laws – while failing to enforce the thousands we already have – is not a serious solution to reducing crime.
I think we can also agree that our mental health system is broken. We need to look at the full range of mental health issues, from early detection and treatment, to civil commitment laws, to privacy laws that needlessly prevent mental health records from being included in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
While we’re ready to participate in a meaningful effort to solve these pressing problems, we must respectfully – but honestly and firmly – disagree with some members of this committee, many in the media, and all of the gun control groups on what will keep our kids and our streets safe.
Law-abiding gun owners will not accept blame for the acts of violent or deranged criminals. Nor do we believe the government should dictate what we can lawfully own and use to protect our families.
As I said earlier, we need to be honest about what works and what does not work. Proposals that would only serve to burden the law-abiding have failed in the past and will fail in the future.
Semi-automatic firearms have been around for over 100 years.  They are among the most popular guns made for hunting, target shooting and self-defense. Despite this fact, Congress banned the manufacture and sale of hundreds of semi-automatic firearms and magazines from 1994 to 2004. Independent studies, including a study from the Clinton Justice Department, proved that ban had no impact on lowering crime.[5]
And when it comes to the issue of background checks, let’s be honest – background checks will never be “universal” – because criminals will never submit to them.
But there are things that can be done and we ask you to join with us.  The NRA is made up of millions of Americans who support what works … the immediate protection for all – not just some – of our school children; swift, certain prosecution of criminals with guns; and fixing our broken mental health system.
We love our families and our country.  We believe in our freedom.  We’re the millions of Americans from all walks of life who take responsibility for our own safety and protection as a God-given, fundamental right. 
Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, I thank you for your time and consideration.

[1] Pre-1981 data from National Safety Council, Accident Facts (annual); 1981 forward from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, available athttp://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal_injury_reports.html.
[2] Gary Fields et al., NRA Calls for Arms in School, Wall Street Journal, Dec. 22, 2012, available at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324461604578193364201364432.html.
[3] Calculated from U.S. Department of Justice data available through Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, http://tracfed.syr.edu.
[4] Ronald J. Frandsen, Enforcement of the Brady Act, 2010: Federal and State Investigations and Prosecutions of Firearm Applicants Denied by a NICS Check in 2010 , available at https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/bjs/grants/239272.pdf.
[5] Jeffrey A. Roth & Christopher S. Koper, “Impact Evaluation of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act of 1994, (1997),available at http://www.sas.upenn.edu/jerrylee/research/aw_ban.htm.

If it’s Wednesday…

It MUST be California… sigh…

When you see THIS in the elevator, it’s a ‘reminder’… 


Little kid was asking his mom if he pushed it would he cause an earthquake…LOL

In other news, saw one of those funky Range Rovers in hot pink with a license plate surround that said Happiness is polished nails across the top and Shopping for new clothes across the bottom.  And the back window was FULL of Neiman Marcus bags…

Glad I’m not married to the blonde driving that thing, I’d be broke in ONE day…