Angie’s Drama

Last night, the City Council voted in favor of an ordinance that will allow police to confiscate and impound cars for violating the noise ordinance. Obviously, I’m really not fond of giving the police department the right to confiscate property of any sort. I think I’m just at the point where I’m sick of new laws and ordinances. I can’t keep track of what we have now. I’m sure I’m violating some law somewhere but I definitely don’t have the photographic memory required to know exactly which one that would be. The waste department didn’t take our branches which were trimmed down and tied in bundles. Why? I don’t know, obviously we didn’t know the exact specifications. Today, the waste department didn’t take dump a garbage can. Why? The sticker said it was over 50 pounds. Never knew there was a limit. They take deer remains, as evidenced by Rob forgetting he doesn’t live in the sticks anymore, and dumping a carcas in the garbage can. (He will NEVER live that down. Not only did it freak the crap out of me but Johnny Bandle as well) I guess I’ll be poring over the by-laws this weekend. I can’t even remember if we can play basketball in the street anymore. Can we smoke outdoors still? I’m all about enforcing the laws (however lame and ridiculous) we have and not making more and more. The things that absolutely affect me, asshats crossing the street in front of me causing me to slam on my breaks, asshats riding their bicycles across all lanes of traffic without looking in either direction, causing me to slam on my breaks, children playing in the middle of the street, causing me to slam on my breaks are supposed to be “illegal” but they happen everyday. If by chance I ever end up hitting someone doing one of the above, I’m pretty sure they won’t be getting jaywalking tickets or tickets of any sort. I’ll get a ticket for not stopping soon enough and the asshats will sue me.

 

Top Chef on Bravo: Holy Crap. Every week the group of finalists compete in a Quick Fire Challenge and then an Elimination Challenge. Usually if they win the Quick Fire, they’re saved from elimination. Not only do we learn a little something each episode from jack Stephen, the Sommelier, but I get to wonder why in the world Billy Joel’s wife is the host. I totally love Dave because he’s so emotional and yet bound to be let go shortly. I’m really detesting Tiffany at this point. She does seem to know what she’s doing, yet her lips are so thin when she smiles it looks like she’s going to crack. She just seems a little to fake for me. Lee Anne, seems to know what’s up and does win the quick fire challenges quite a bit. Harold is awesome but he doesn’t have any front of house skills. Rob and I pretty much feel like retards when we watch this program since we have no idea what 90% of the ingredients they use are.

The Sopranos: This season has really started out with a bang (excuse the pun). Each week I’m more nervous for the characters. This week’s episode had Artie spouting off quite a bit to too many made guys. I was pretty amazed he walked away with his arm being held in boiling marinara sauce. I expected much worse.

The Next Food Network Star: Technically the show’s over and the winner was GUY!!! Last weekend, Rob and I caught up on all the episodes during a marathon and we were both so impressed with Guy. He just seemed to have the personality to win it. Of course, he also reminded us of our friend Jim Cochran so we had to vote for him.

American Idol: Vote for Taylor, Vote for Taylor, Vote for Taylor.

Cash Cab: I don’t get to see this show very often but it’s pretty neat. People get into a taxi and are asked questions while driving to their destination. If they get three wrong answers, they have to exit the cab. If they make it to their destination, they have a chance to double their money with a final question. They also get to do a “Shout Out” to a random stranger on the street and “Call a Friend”. If they had that show in Vegas, can you imagine how crazy it would be?

Big Love: It took a while to get pass the ick factor of plural marriage. Now, I see the show for what it is-a story about a non-traditional family and their will to be together.

Rob and I are still mourning. Last Thursday’s storm did some serious damage to our neighborhood. Word has it that there was a wind vortex that went right over our block. Our neighbor that lives across from us diagonally, lost a giant fir tree. It was completely uprooted. Our neighbor next to us had worse damage. A giant tree fell in her backyard breaking several pannels of her brand new privacy fence on three sides. Our neighbors across the creek had several trees down and let’s just say the sound of chainsaws has become second nature. Rob and I were extremely blessed that we didn’t have any damage at all. Just a few branches fromt the neighbor’s tree in the yard. Further up the street a privacy fence was flattened.

So, the neighbor who has to replace her privacy fence decided to not risk it and cut down the monster fir tree that hid our house from the street. Absolutely great for privacy and mainly, security. I got a little misty yesterday pulling onto our street and directly seeing our house. Of course, now we have to pay more attention to the landscaping and keeping the side yard up. We miss our old friend.

231 years ago this week began the battles of Lexington and Concord, which in turn touched off the Revolution. I’m sure that we can all agree that the whole Revolution thing turned out to be a good idea. But I’m also willing to bet that, unless your were a U.S. History major, you forgot or were never told what event prompted those first shots.
Well, if I’m ranting, then those folks that know me can probably guess.
On the night of April 18th 1775, 700 British soldiers slipped across Boston Harbor intending to…do what?
Stop a bunch of guys from dumping some leaves in the Harbor? Nope. Think like Rob.
You got it…Take the Colonists guns.
Those 700 Redcoats were met by 75 Minutemen and a few years later we booted the entire British Army back across the pond. The term “Don’t Tread on Me� comes to mind, thank you Mr. Franklin.
The Redcoats were also there to arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock and those two guys did not forget it. Years later when our Forefathers were discussing certain inalienable human rights they made sure that no government including our own would ever infringe upon the people’s right to protect themselves from tyranny. 
Fast forward 230 years. A horrible disaster named Katrina takes out one of my favorite cities on the planet. Civil unrest ensues, like we’ve never seen on U.S. soil. 911 services are lost and police are helpless against the masses.
And what does the City do? Orders the police to disarm the population.
I only heard one mention of this in the national media and then it was gone. What happened is, the mayor and city officials decided to disarm the people because some asshats were shooting at helicopters and convoys. Excuse me, but those are no longer victims, those are criminals who just shot at government agents. By all means, take their guns, put them in jail or just shoot the asshats.  But do not, repeat, DO NOT think you can take guns from law abiding citizens. No matter how big a gun grabber you are.
A little side note: In 1998 the City of New Orleans was the first to start the frivolous lawsuits filed against the firearms industry. This led to a rash of suits designed to bankrupt the industry. Just in 2005 federal law was passed negating and outlawing these law suits.
Thousands of firearms were confiscated, sometimes at gunpoint, from people sitting in their homes and protecting their businesses. Of course they took some of the asshats guns also. The NRA brought suite and confronted them in court. When the federal judge ordered them to cease and desist, the city denied it. After the judge pressed them, they admitted they did, in fact, have guns.
Just last week a judge ordered New Orleans to give them back.
What would you do in this situation? What would I do? I can’t say that I would do the politically correct thing. That thing being, give up the guns and hope for legal recourse. Here in Peoria on a sunny day, I thought that maybe I’d hide my guns and give the cops a piece of shit that doesn’t work. But what about a stormy day in New Orleans, with looting and all that jazz? And then I thought about Sam, John, Ben and all the guys that risked life, limb and liberty so that a thing call The United States of America could be born. I have to admit, sorry Ang, if they come for my guns it’s going to be a very messy situation.
Caveat…the first person to cry “Martial Law� is going to get hit with a rolled up copy of the Bill of Rights.   

I don’t want to be left out, that’s the co-dependency talking, so here goes…

I must have been behind every idiot today. People see a little sunshine and they loose all common sense. What, Rules of the Road? NOT ON YOUR LIFE!

When someone is gracious enough to let you in the lane, don’t be a jackass and decide to still turn left. Now you’ve pissed off the seven cars behind the Gracious One. If the Gracious One knew you were going to block traffic so you could turn left, said Gracious One would not have let you sneak in. Suck it up, go around the corner and find your way back. I highly doubt the bitterness you caused eight cars was worth the two  minutes you might have saved by blocking traffic. I hope the karma gods were taking a break from the rest of us.

Another thing I’ve noticed lately is the complete lack of courtesy for people parked in a parking space from those just chillin’ in parking lot lanes. Let people get the heck out. Don’t block them in and make them wait 45 minutes while a family of eight unloads their cart, returns the cart and packs everyone inside. C’mon, it’s just a few more steps.

Am I the only one that tries not to piss everyone off?

After months of silence, the RANT is back…

NOTICE: The views expressed in Rob’s Rant may or may not be the views of this blogger. From time to time, Rob gets antsy to see his name on this blog.

 ”The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in the insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.”

Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis said that about government control of monopolistic companies in the 20’s.

 

I have a Dilbert cartoon on the wall of my office. Dilbert sits at his desk, Dogbert walks across the desk with a cardboard tube in his hand, saying;
” I’m going to hunt down the people who have strong opinions on subjects they don’t understand. Then I’ll bop them with this cardboard tube.”

 

I spoke with a person the other night and happened to mention that Nebraska was about to pass a CCW (Concealed Carry) law and the governor had promised to sign it. This guy was damn near aghast. “People will be shooting each other at stoplights, well maybe not in Nebraska, but that would never work in a more populated state!”

 

There are a great many people who know nothing about these laws or firearms in general, yet feel it is there duty to be outraged by the thought of someone having the balls to exorcise a little self preservation.

A little quote from Chief Gates of the LAPD…”There are going to be situations where people are going to go without assistance. That’s just the facts of life.”

 

Ok, listen up people.

-48 states have laws providing for the carry of concealed weapons by the public. Last time I counted there were only 50 in the Union, so that’s a pretty good chunk of the country.

-The only two states that do not have a CCW law are Wisconsin and Illinois. Even Kalifornia and New York have CCW.

-Every, EVERY, state that has a CCW saw a decline in violent crime immediately after the institution of those laws.

-The gun accident rates of CCW states do not increase, in fact most states show a decrease.

-There is only one reported incident where a CCW gun was used in a violent crime, and that guy was shot by another CCW holder.

-Semi automatic firearms are just that, SEMI automatic. They are not machineguns, nor can they be converted into machineguns with a nail file.

-Machine guns, the real ones, are legal to own in 36 states, by anyone who is a non felon.

-Same thing with silencers.

-We don’t really call them “silencers”, they’re suppressors just like the muffler on your car.

-Suppressors do not render guns silent, they dampen the report. No amount of gadgetry can quiet the sonic crack a bullet makes when it passes 1085 feet per second.

-A pistol grip, flash hider, collapsible stock and bayonet lug do not make a gun more powerful.

-I mean really, when was the last time someone got bayoneted?

-A flash hider is designed to hide muzzle flash from the person shooting the gun. Not the person who’s getting shot at. It’s so you don’t get blinded when shooting at night.

-There is no such thing as a sniper rifle. They’re just rifles. Most rifles designed for hunting deer are as accurate and use the same ammo.

-Swimming pool accidents kill five times as many people as gun accidents. Don’t even get me started on accidents made by doctors.

-Ok, I got started. It’s like 100X.

-A gun is an inanimate object, it won’t bite you. Don’t blame the sword, blame the hand that wields it.

-The irrational fear of an inanimate object is a recognized symptom of psychosis.

-.50 caliber rifles are not weapons of mass destruction.

-A .50 caliber rifle has never been used to commit a violent crime in the U.S.

-Yes, a .50 cal can go thru the skin of a plane or a tanker truck. So can grandpas 30-06.

-You pronounce it “thirty ought six”

-The 2^nd Amendment has nothing, say it loud and slow, NOTHING to do with hunting.

-In 1792 the term “militia” meant “the whole of the people” not a bunch of guys in Michigan and most certainly not the National Guard.

-The 2^nd Amendment is an individual right. Or did you think “the right of the people” (in the 2^nd) means something different than is did 25 words earlier (in the 1^st) or 40 words later (in the 4^th)?

-”The right of the people to keep and bear arms”…the bear part means carry.

-When a bullet strikes a car, the street, a brick wall or anything for that matter, it will never produce a spark. They are made of lead and copper, not flint.

-There are more firearms in private hands now then at any point in U.S. history, yet violent crime rates have fallen nationwide for more than a decade.

-The largest exceptions are Chicago and Washington D.C.

-It is illegal to own a pistol in Chicago and Washington D.C. and has been for over a decade.

 

That’s all I’ve got for now, my contempt is fading, fading, gone.

Now I have to get ready to head down to Knob Creek for the worlds largest civilian machine gun shoot and military arms show. www.machinegunshoot.com I recommend that every American see this once in their lifetime. It’s Mardi Gras for gun nuts.

Pardon the noise, it’s the sound of freedom.

Molon Labe,

Rob