Who cares ?

This case over George Zimmerman shooting some thug (or any similar case for that matter) doesn't bother me too much.
 I was always taught (and taught my kids) if you hang around with thugs and act like a thug sooner or later it would catch up with you. From all we know about Trayvon Martin he was a 'gangsta' or one in the making, so it appears to have caught up with him. His mother had sent him to his fathers because she was having trouble with him so it seems he was not as innocent as they make out now.
I just believe things tend to work some ways for a reason, who knows if he had lived he may have turned into a major drug dealer, killer or thief, if not already. I think of it as a retroactive or preventative justice. Bottom line is I believe you do bad things and sooner or later you pay the price.
 I don't know all facts in this case and it appears there was blame on both sides but one thing I have learned is life is not always fair and certain actions seem to accelerate the 'unfairness'

Those of you who have kids at home should use this as a teaching moment and explain to them the dangers of hanging around and acting like this. It may seem cool to them but leads to a dead end life or death. 
It would be better to explain to your kids the dangers rather than letting them wear hoodies to school to protest like some idiot principal in Delaware did. (and we scratch out heads and wonder why the school system is broke.)

I leave you with a John Wayne quote which sums this up perfectly.

Not Good # 28

Not a good thing to wake up and see in your tent flap.

Dueling, Maybe Time To Reintroduce

I am fascinated by old customs and I think some of them might be good to bring back. Dueling was accepted in  in Europe many years ago and was  practiced in the United States till the 1840's until it became frowned upon.
Usually when one party felt they had exhausted all other means to settle an issue they would challenge the other party in a public place. The other party had the option to drop the issue and apologize or pay restitution or accept the duel.
I think this is a  idea which we seriously need to revisit, think of all the money we could save. It would stop a lot of frivolous law suits, not many people would be willing to risk death or serious injury over a fake claim. It would certainly make most people want to do the right thing instead of trying to wrangle out through legal loopholes. For example, you have a minor auto accident, it is your fault and you or you insurance company pays for the damage however the other party claims they cant work or function due to back pain, nightmares, whiplash etc. You know it is a sham because it was a bump in a parking lot for instance so you challenge them to a duel. They now have a choice either back down and publicly admit they were lying or face a duel, my bet is 99.99 % of the time they would back down. Even if you had professional duelers which you could hire to represent you they would cost a fortune and regardless of which side won the issue would be settled and no further payment would be required so another reason most would back down before it went that far.
Or lets say for example someone owes you money and they fail to pay, if challenged to a public duel almost all offenders would pay up to end the issue, if not you would get the opportunity to extract your pound of flesh, win or loose the issue would be over.
Usually in any argument between two parties one of them knows in their heart they are lying so for this reason I think this would be a wonderful system, it would save a  ton of money in law fees, insurance payments, jail over crowding and would be a excellent way to keep people honest.

Random Thoughts, Update.

Things have been hectic lately, I seriously need to get back in a groove.
 I had another talk with Stephen his frustration level is high at the moment, the doctors are not sure when he can go home and what further treatment he should have. He is ready to check him self out and he kept saying how he hated being there. I made him laugh when I told him it could be worse because Obama could be in charge of his health care, he has too many guns and survival supplies and would be considered a unnecessary member of society to get treatment. We both agreed we needed to have a long vacation. It seems now-days we get so tangled in society and business that at some point you need to say enough.
 
Special welcome to new followers, Falcondawn and  Lamb , thanks. I always try and respond to comments and questions. Please check out their sites and say hello.

Blogger Down Update

I talked briefly with Stephen last night. He sounded good but is still in ICU. He has had 2 stints and hopes that any other issues can be corrected without surgery. He indicated that maybe they would let him go home in a few days. I passed along all the well-wishes from all of you and he said thank you very much, it meant a lot to him.
Thanks again, Duke.

Blogger Down

Just a quick note, I received a text message from Stephen's wife late last night, he was taken to the hospital with a heart attack. From what I could find out he is stable, he has had two stints and is in ICU.
 I will pass along more info when I can please keep him and his family in your prayers.
Thanks, Duke.

Welcome and Such

I would like to welcome three new followers, Comfortably Numb, Severs28 and Abbe.
Abbe has a blog called Chaos and coves a variety different subjects, please stop by and say hi.
I am sorry for no posting as much the last few days, things have been busy and I am trying to sort out a lot of things, I promise to do better.
You are all such a good group of people and I value your friendship, Thanks.

Not Good # 27

Not a good thing to see through your camera.

Welcome in Order

I would like to welcome bulls eye babe to our blog rolls, thanks for taking the time to click the follow button.
Please stop by her site and say hello.

I Was In Denial

I Did not really want spring to be here, not that I don't like spring, it is one of my favorite times of year but it is so short and I know summer is not far behind. I went outside and realized I might as well face it.

My citrus trees are blooming, the bees are hard at work. 

I picked the rest of my pink grapefruit, I guess we will put up a lot of juice in the freezer, they are so sweet this year.













The courtyard is so green, everything is sprouting.














The azaleas are in full bloom.

 Everything is getting so green, even had to mow some grass today.















My tomato plants are looking good.















Flowers are blooming everywhere.

My beans are sprouting in the garden.








My old Jeep looks a little sad. I need to get it back on the road. I had put a Chevrolet V8 engine it a few years ago (quite a job if you want to know) but my youngest son wanted the motor so he took it out, guess I need to find another engine, maybe a smaller one. It does make a good summer buggy and a good emergency bug out vehicle. Oh well one of my many projects. I guess summer will be here next week.

Not Good # 26

Not a good look even on Saint Patrick's Day

Silver And Gold, Worth Repeating

 I wrote this blog a few months ago when gas was cheaper but it is still true, The numbers have been updated, goes to show why gas costs so much. 

A lot has been said about Silver and Gold as an investment, I look at more as a hedge against inflation. I don't think silver and gold have risen in "value" as much as the price has gone up. Let me explain, Lets say you are riding around in your 1950 pickup in the year 1957. You have your girl sitting next to you because there is no seat belt law yet and you are jamming to Buddy Holly on your AM radio. You get low on gas so you pull into the local "filling" station and all you have is a quarter in your pocket.

Gas is normally around 24 cents a gallon but with a gas war going on it is maybe 18 cents, so you give the attendant a quarter and get over a  gallon of gas. (enough to get you to her house)
The reason the gas was this price was because our money was backed by silver. The paper money was backed by silver and coins were made out of silver (90%) so when the oil company sold you gas they only charged this because your money was "worth something"

 In 1964 the government had the bright idea to take out money off the "gold standard" and make our money worth ah..............well it's worth this much because we say so. I'm from the government "trust me" (sound familiar)
So here we are in 2012 and, well you know what gas costs. If you drove into a gas station today and tried to buy any gas with a quarter they would kick you to the curb, call 911 and report you for driving while being an idiot (actually now that I think about it maybe that should be a law) Anyway the reason for this is because your quarter is not worth anything so to speak. It has very little value because it is only worth what the government says it is worth. Now lets suppose you go home and dig one of those old pre-64 (90% silver) quarters out of your sock drawer and trot down to the local coin shop today, they would give you about $5.80 for it and guess what you could still buy a little over a gallon of gas. The reason the quarter would fetch this price is because the dollars you would get are worth a lot less than 1964, not that the silver had gone up in "value" because remember it bought the same thing it did back in 1957.
  My strategy is to buy silver a little at a time so you get dollar cost averaging. I have heard it said that all through history an ounce of gold would buy a man a fine suit of clothes, and today that is still true, not a Wal-Mart suit but a fine Taylor shop outfit.
This is the way I look at it, that gallon of gas in 1957 is not "worth" any more than it is today it's just that the money we use is worth a lot less so it takes more to buy it.

Not Good # 25

Not a good place to loose your brakes.

It Never Ceases To Amaze Me.

I always thought the the press would at least stand up for free speech but now I read Obama has signed HR 347 which makes it a felony to protest around secret service agents (translation, around the president or anyone with SS protection) There is other wordage about trespass and such but bottom line is you can be charged with a felony (not a misdemeanor) for protesting anywhere near the president.
Does this mean  Occupy Wall Street crowd can be arrested for protesting near candidate Romney, Hmmmm is he being set up for bad media stories? I am sure Obama would never abuse this to his benefit, I mean being such a protector on the Constitution and what not, surely this could not be expanded to include TEA party protests could it. At least I'm glad our gun laws are safe. 

I'm Going Out On A Limb

We all are a product of our training, upbringing and experiences. Gun people fall into many different categories as well. Some people were raised around guns and like many different styles, some just like to shoot, some like to collect and don't shoot much, some are newbies and wanting to learn, some don't really like guns much but realize they need one for protection and tolerate them, to some it's a fad and they may be into something else next year.
Myself, well.......I don't really fit a norm. I have always been around guns and enjoy shooting. I am very much a traditionalist though. I think there is NOTHING more American than a Colt Single Action Army. I even feel it's sacrilegious when they make clones without the hammer spur.

I also think any Winchester lever action is beautiful  and a true American masterpiece. I thought it was a horrible era when police departments changed from revolvers to automatics, I thought it was even worse they chose plastic foreign designed guns over 1911's.
I wish AR-15's and M-16's had wood stocks, hand oil rubbed and were chambered in 308. In fact I think all military weapons should be 30 caliber or larger. I think the M14 was the perfect military weapon. I think all guns should be wood and steel or metal alloy. I don't care too much about weight, if you can't handle it take up knitting. The bigger the bore the better I like it. I like double barrel shotguns,  I like 44 mag revolvers. I like 1911's. My 9mm's are Hi-Powers and S&W model 39, all metal guns. The only polymer pistol I own is a Kel-Tec 380.

I know there are a lot of fine, well made polymer guns out there, I know they are more high-tech than mine, I know they might shoot better and are easier to handle, I'm not against them but this is still one of my freedoms, to shoot what I enjoy.
I don't think SKS's and AK-47's are collector guns, I think they are beaters and deserve to be used and abused, if it makes you feel good to chop it up and modify it be my guest, this goes for any communist bloc weapon. I think a gun should be strong enough to be used as a club if you run out of ammo. I think guns are tools, if you are afraid to scratch it then put it away and get one you can 'drive like it's stolen.' I think the only safety a gun needs is your brain and trigger finger. I think every red blooded patriot needs to have guns (whatever kind) and know how to use them well.
Alright, I probably upset some but I feel a little better, I'm not trying to offend anyone. just tell you what I like. Aren't you glad I'm not in charge.  If you feel like it let me know where you fit in.