If you own or use firearms

There is a petition on the web against HR 1022, which is designed to erode the Second Amendment and the rights of the citizens of this country; please go and sign it. It may not mean anything to some people, but it will let our representatives know how we feel about it. If you know anyone who believes in the rights of the people to bear arms, let them know about it, and encourage them to sign it also.

Sign the petition!

Utahns quick to donate in crisis

Living here in Utah, I have noticed that most of the population, especially the ones with roots in this area, are very good about helping their neighbors, regardless of race or religion.

A daughter swept away in a tsunami. Another murdered by her husband. A husband killed in a plane crash. And sons injured or killed when a van rolls during a university outing.
When tragedy strikes, Utahns step forward with open hearts to offer support - and open wallets - to help ease the financial burden through accounts set up at Utah banks and credit unions.
In the days after the Feb. 12 Trolley Square Mall shootings, donations flowed into accounts created to help victims' families with medical, funeral and living expenses and honor those who were lost with memorial scholarships and other endeavors.

People here are friendly, as a rule, and glad to help. Most of the negative things heard are usually about newcomers to the area. Back in the 19th century there were some problems with some zealots ( The Mountain Meadow Massacre), but on the whole the natives of this area are a decent bunch. A little odd, sometimes, to those of us who are non-LDS, but they are good people.
Just my opinion.

Woman Accidentally Swallows Lover's False Teeth

A Romanian woman recently needed medical help after she accidentally swallowed her boyfriend's false teeth during a moment of passion.

You can't make up this sort of stuff...

Maybe I'm just jumping to conclusions...

Is it just me, or does anyone else get a creepy feeling when they see something like this? I was just looking over my sitemeter and ran across it.

Fast-thinking pilot drops hijacker

We need more people like these, who refused to be victims.

TENERIFE — A fast-thinking pilot with passengers in cahoots fooled a hijacker by braking hard upon landing, then accelerating to knock the man down. When he fell, flight attendants threw boiling water in his face, and about 10 people pounced on him, Spanish officials said Friday.

Interesting article; the pilot saw a way to enlist the passengers in taking down the hijacker, and went with it. It shows that thinking on your feet and making quick, on-the-spot decisions is important.

The only ones secure enough

These guys are partly responsible for national security?

The FBI lost 160 laptop computers in less than four years, including at least 10 that contained highly sensitive classified information and one that held "personal identifying information on FBI personnel," according to a new report released today.

The bureau, which has struggled for years to get a handle on sloppy inventory procedures, also reported 160 missing weapons during the same time period, from February 2002 to September 2005, according to the report by the Justice Department inspector general's office.

The report mirrors the results of a similar audit in 2002, which reported 354 weapons and 317 laptops lost or stolen at the FBI.

Idiots like Bloomberg are wondering how illegal weapons are getting on the street? And who knows what kind of sensitive information may fall into the wrong hands.
Sometimes I think the federal government's motto should be: "SNAFU is SOP".
Just my opinion.

Scientists develop portable generator that turns trash into electricity

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A group of scientists have created a portable refinery that efficiently converts food, paper and plastic trash into electricity. The machine, designed for the U.S. military, would allow soldiers in the field to convert waste into power and could have widespread civilian applications in the future.

Researchers tested the first tactical biorefinery prototype in November and found that it produced approximately 90 percent more energy than it consumed, said Jerry Warner, founder of Defense Life Sciences LLC, a private company working with Purdue researchers on the project. He said the results were better than expected.

This would seem to be a useful device for emergency situations in cities, for running hospital and other emergency equipment. If a reasonably priced model could be developed for civilian use, it would be good for small farms and ranches.

Just for fun

Anybody got some good captions to put on this picture of Giuliani?

Campus gun-rights duel erupts again

Legislation that could restrict guns on college campuses hadn't even been released to the public by late Monday, but already gun-rights advocates are lobbying to kill it.
An e-mail Gunowners of Utah (GOUtah) sent members calls on them to stop the "aging ex-hippies" at the University of Utah from restricting concealed weapons anywhere on campus.
"There's no reason why the University of Utah should be given any special perks with banning guns," said Charles Hardy, GOUtah's policy director. "There are no other state agencies that can ban guns without a legitimate, secure area."
The group's target is SB251, drafted as a compromise between pro-gun lawmakers and higher education officials. Sen. Greg Bell, R-Fruit Heights, the bill's sponsor, said it would allow faculty members to choose whether to allow guns in their offices, and it would regulate guns in dorms, requiring concealed-weapons permit holders to store their weapons in school-provided lockers.

I don't see why they need a solution to a problem that does not exist; can anyone tell me how many people have been threatened/injured/killed by legal gun owners on the campus?

But for many U. students, the bill doesn't go far enough.
Marko Mijic hopes the bill passes, but, ideally, the pre-pharmacy sophomore wishes guns could be banned.
"It would be nice to have guns prohibited on the entire campus," he said. "But I think this bill will help ensure the safety of faculty and the campus as a whole."
Jonah Petit, a junior in mechanical engineering, agrees.
"It could be harmful, even fatal to have guns on campus," he said.
Others, though, such as Marilee Larsen, a freshman, said she isn't worried about licensed gun-owners on campus. "If they're licensed, then they know how to handle a gun, and the U. is public property," she said.

Why is it harmful to have legal guns on campus, but no one seems to be worried about people who carry them illegally? It sounds more like a bunch of naive youngsters who have been well programmed by their parents/schools into knee-jerk reactions.
Just my opinion.

An important birthday 167 years ago

Feb 5 is the birthday of Hiram Maxim, inventor of the first true machine gun, as opposed to multi-barreled guns such as the Gatling gun. John Moses Browning would go on to improve the machine gun with the M2 and the BAR, but Maxim was the one who started it all. As a side note, he was also the inventor of the spring-loaded mousetrap that most of us have used at one time or another.