The Boca Shield Gun Cover

  I had the opportunity to test the Boca Shield Gun Cover this past month.  I had looked forward to receiving this item to hide the shine of my Weatherby .308 while hunting and give it a more stealthy look.
   I was disappointed to learn however, that "universal fit" did not include rifles in my universe.  The forearm section of the Gun Shield simply would not fit over the forearm of my Weatherby, even with two people trying to force/coax it over. I next tried a Howa bolt action with the same result.  I finally tried a Winchester Model 70 in 30.06 and with much effort succeeded in getting it to fit.
  Once installed, it did look and feel great over all.  A few straps to hold the middle section under the scope tighter to the rifle would add to the look as well.  The added bulk made it difficult for my son to get his hand around the grip, but I had no problem.  The shell holder on the stock held the rounds tight without any movement.
  Over all it could be a good product with a few improvements.  The forearm fit is simply too difficult to work with. A thin zipper or velcro opening would allow for much easier installation and removal.  The Gun Shield must be twisted off center and cut to accommodate sling swivels which may lead to tearing due to the extreme force needed to fit over most forearms. If these issues were satisfactorily addressed it would be a great product. As it is now, I believe that the product is so difficult to install that once on, it would not be removed to properly clean the rifle.

Lessons from Aurora

            What lessons can be drawn from the tragic shooting in Aurora, Colorado that would make such an incident less likely to occur in the future?   Following the hi-jacking of the first two flights on September 11, 2001, word got to the passengers on Flight 93 and the passengers heroically made a stand.  Knowing the likely fate that would ensue with inaction, they chose to attack the terrorists and though they perished in the attempt likely saved the lives of their fellow Americans in Washington, as well as an historic landmark.   Going forward from that day, it is highly unlikely that another passenger jet will be hi-jacked as long as there are a number of passengers alive on it.  The attempted underwear bomber was initially subdued by passengers in his attempt on Christmas Day in 2009.  Even more recently, passengers on a Chinese airliner attacked a group of Uighur would-be hijackers earlier this month, beating two of them to death and subduing the rest.

            So what is the solution to attacks such as the cinema shooting? Although the solution causes hysteria and outrage every time it is mentioned it is still the most viable deterrent: armed citizens.  The anti-gunners would instantly picture the Wild West with shootouts over parking spots at every Walmart on a daily basis.  Hyperbolic reactionaries aside, most reasonable people do not believe that scenario is likely.

             The percentage of American households owning firearms is hard to actually pinpoint due to, in part, the unwillingness of some gun owners to be identified as such, but most polls put the percentage between 35 to 50%.  One, or preferably more concealed carry permit holders in the cinema would have drastically cut the death toll.   A senseless massacre such as this takes only seconds or minutes to occur and gives no time for a reaction from law enforcement unless the local force is attending the event in question.   According to the site justfacts.com.,”Based on survey data from a 2000 study published in the Journal of Quantitative Criminology, U.S. civilians use guns to defend themselves and others from crime at least 989,883 times per year.”  This figure is rarely if ever reported but the over 10,000 murdered by firearms every year is proclaimed constantly.  Clearly, not every gun owner would wish to take on the added responsibility of being a concealed carry holder.  But for those who would, the process should be streamlined and nationwide state reciprocity, much like our driver’s license should be encouraged.  The establishment of “gun free” zones and the bureaucratic discouragement or outright outlawing of concealed carry by responsible citizens ensures that criminals who will not obey any law or ordinance can continue to wreak havoc on helpless citizens.

Rush is Wrong

Rush is Wrong!

I must begin by stating that I have been and still am a fan of Rush Limbaugh. I listen as often as I can and Rush still provides helpful insights into the political realm. However, I and many others cannot abide by his new affiliation with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). This allegiance has alienated the millions of gun owners and hunters who have faithfully supported this radio icon. For clarification, HSUS operates NO shelters for animals. It is an anti hunting lobbying group playing on its perceived affiliation with the local Humane Societies and animal shelters nationwide. The HSUS opposes all hunting and ultimately would like to end the hunting tradition in America.
So why does Rush endorse a group that is directly opposed to a large part of his audience? There are two plausible scenarios. In the first, perhaps Rush truly opposes hunting and underestimated or ignored the backlash. He is, after all, an animal lover as the frequent mention of his cat “Pumpkin” will attest to. The second is that Rush was misled, or made the convenient but erroneous connection with local or state Humane Societies which do such an enormous service with often heartbreaking choices concerning abandoned animals and which no one could oppose. I tend to believe the latter.
As a listener since the late 1980’s I have noticed the drastic difference in the Rush of today. Not to sound like one of the main stream media attacks, but he does seem to be out of touch with the common man. Even during the time of his painkiller addiction and the rehab triumph he still seemed as sharp on the show as usual. Now however, a critical week of tuning in may reveal a sad truth. He seems to be trapped in a bubble of celebrity golf outings and dinners along with his near isolation of his Florida compound. Though he does give speeches to large crowds, how much actual interaction is there? Traveling in his own orbit, he takes any trifling criticism as an attack on him personally. Any event scheduled from noon to three is somehow connected to his show. Even in his patter, which many of us can recite verbatim with him it is evident that something is amiss.
His well rehearsed and delivered rants often still include Peter Jennings and Dan Rather as relevant broadcast media members. Sadly, the ability to follow the salient point of the callers to his show cannot go unnoticed. Though his now frequent misunderstanding of callers may be explainable by his hearing loss, it cannot explain his trouble with misunderstanding events or headlines. Recently Rush believed a British headline referred to President Obama as a mutt. He even read the headline aloud which cited Obama as “the owner of The First Mutt”. It took several minutes before he realized his error. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. I know some will attack me for taking this “one” mistake and insinuating the loss of mental acuity. So be it. Before you do though, listen and I mean really listen to Rush. Not with the ear of a fan or someone listening to an old friend recount a favorite story, but with the ear of someone listening to Rush for the first time. With one week’s critical listening, you too may discover that a beloved radio icon has started down the long road to pasture.

Redemption in the City of Sin

Redemption in the City of Sin

I had the opportunity to revisit St. Mary’s church in Lynn, Mass. for the first time in quite a few years. Yes it the same Lynn, Lynn the City of Sin… famed in song and story. It is also my hometown. I was born and raised in Lynn in the 1960’s and early 70’s. I moved first to Maine, then in 1984 I moved to North Carolina before returning to New Hampshire to live. Though I have been a practicing Catholic for decades I had not gone back to St. Mary’s since childhood. I have always told my wife about how beautiful it was and of the statues of the stations of the cross that line the walls .She wanted to take her Confirmation class there as a field trip from here in New Hampshire to see the church so we made a dry run this past week.
As soon as you come to the light at North Franklin and Boston the steeple dominates the skyline. It’s funny how it was always “hidden in plain sight” when I lived there. The sheer size of St. Mary’s is impressive. Usually when you get a chance to see something from your childhood through adult eyes, whether it be a toy, cartoon or TV show it always seems diminished. You are left wondering how your memory and reality can be so divergent. St. Mary’s was not like that.
From the massive oak doors to the marble floors and soaring columns, this church remains magnificent. Nearly every church I have attended in the last 20 years would fit inside St. Mary’s arched roof, steeple and all. The relief behind the altar was painted gold when I was a kid and the pulpit which rose 10 feet was gone but for the most part here was the church of my youth. The museum quality statues in their alcoves have been refurbished and the capitals at the top of the column sport new gold paint. We had the added benefit of the choir practicing prior to the 4pm Mass. This lent a solemnity to the already awe inspiring surroundings.
So what has changed? The schoolyard now has a huge building where recess was held for us at the grammar school. The high school buildings seem to have been expanded but remain recognizable. There was never a list of masses for specific ethnic groups on the bulletin. What remains and dominates though is the overwhelming presence of faith. You can’t admire the work and craftsmanship that built such an architectural wonder and not think of the endurance of faith. It makes the daily travails, hopes, fears and worries recede. It quiets the soul. Your mental lists of perceived personal inequities and injustices seem less relevant. I really was disappointed when Mass came to an end and it was time to leave. In these uncertain times people are looking for answers. They are searching for solace. If you have never been or even not been in decades, attend a Mass at St. Mary’s or any of the hundreds of city churches built when they were expected to last for centuries. Go for the architecture, stay for the redemption.

Obamanomics: The Curly Doctrine

Obamanomics: The Curly Doctrine

One of my favorite Three Stooges episodes involves the stooges in a boat that springs a leak. While Larry and Moe attempt to bail out the water and plug the hole, Curly spies a hand powered auger-style drill. With perfect childlike logic he says “ Oh! A water-letter-outer” and commences to drill holes in the bottom of the boat to let the water out with the obvious result. His theory, as illogical as it is, makes some sense if all knowledge of fluid dynamics, physics and even common sense are ignored. Holes can be used to drain water and many holes can drain even faster. Which brings us to the Curly Doctrine now being employed to solve our economic issues by President Obama.
Though he tries to keep it to himself, President Obama vaguely hints that he may have ‘inherited” the current economic situation from his predecessor George W. Bush. Well… alright he says it a lot and seems quite convinced. Though the economy was in a down turn before the election, the fact is the Dow has lost 3,000 points and dropping since Obama was elected. So what is his answer: SPEND! That always worked for me. Every time I find myself out of money, a mad spending spree always balances my checkbook.
Obamanomics will grow government, nationalize banks, extend the welfare state, implement national healthcare, raise taxes on everyone capable of employing others, and pay for it with crippling taxes and by printing money, which guarantees astronomical inflation in a couple of years. Each one of these is another hole drilled through the bottom of our boat which is quickly becoming the USS Sieve. Though there are instances of corporate greed and excess, all CEOs are not the evil robber barons opposed by the original “Progressives”. Our corporate tax rate remains one of the highest in the world, driving many corporations and jobs overseas. But rather than take steps to alleviate the situation, President Obama decries the private jets, limos, and lavish business junkets. All of which incidentally create jobs. Any CEO who drives anything bigger than a moped covered with sheet metal is pilloried as evil incarnate. So junkets are cancelled, private jet orders dwindle etc.
While this augering of America (pun intended) continues where is the backlash? Anyone who criticizes or is guilty of merely mentioning an alterative is either “following the failed policies of the past” or playing politics. While the Bush administration left a leaky ship, the Curly Doctrine of President Obama is exacerbating the situation. Despite the current Bear Surge of the stock market this week, the overall direction is down. Man the life boats!

The Resurrection of George W. Bush

George W. Bush has the previously unimaginable opportunity to achieve the most amazing resurrection since Lazarus. The Democrats in Congress are flailing for an answer to the current gas crisis which in large part is due to the constrictions that they have placed on oil companies. The environmentalists have had their willing lackeys in Congress place so much red tape on any and all attempts to create or expand domestic energy that it would require executive orders to reverse. Whether the question is offshore oil, offshore natural gas, coal to oil, oil from shale or nuclear power the answer is always the same: litigation from the environmentalists to make the process so expensive and time consuming that energy companies look elsewhere. Is anyone surprised that we now import 70% of our oil and haven’t built a nuclear plant in decades. Even with plans on the table for getting some of these projects towards production, the legal hurdles ensure that relief is nowhere in sight.
So how does Bush pull a Lazarus? Well first let’s look at what is not news anymore. The war in Iraq must be going better than expected at this point. The proof? It has all but vanished from the lips of every talking head on network news and only sees the light in newsprint after the foreclosure notices. The surge has been a success and President Bush is even hinting of a troop withdrawals ahead of expectations. How much credit can Congress take when they have said they support the troops in the same breath as they tried to implement their “slow bleed” policy to leave our soldiers twisting in the wind? The answer is none. What else is not daily news is President Bush’s approval rate. Why not? Could it be because the Congressional approval rate has now hit single digits? How can you condemn as unpopular someone whose approval rate is nearly 700% higher than yours?
Bush has little time left in office to begin to build a legacy. Like a boxer who has taken an early beating but comes on strong in later rounds can steal a decision, it is still possible. After Hurricane Katrina, President Bush allowed refineries freedom from the custom ,state by state, special blend they are forced to make in order to fill demand. He could do it again to bring supply up. Though he has been loathe to wield executive power in this manner, the nation needs it. He could also use the airwaves as Ronald Reagan did to rally people to pressure Congress to act quickly to approve domestic production of all our recourses on an accelerated pace.
The Democrats in Congress are once again on the opposite side an issue with the majority of Americans due to their slavish allegiance to the extreme left. The more of a spotlight the President can focus on Congressional ineptitude, the more people will rally to the cause. The majority of Americans favor domestic drilling, oppose losing the Iraq war, oppose the proposed national 55 mile per hour speed limit, oppose illegal immigration, … the list is long and these are all platforms of Conservatism. Though Bush is certainly no rock ribbed Conservative by any stretch of the imagination, he could use our ideals to mitigate or turn back the perceived Democratic successes in November. In doing so, he would emerge from the tomb that has encased him since the “Mission Accomplished” debacle.

Cultural Literacy

Cultural Literacy
I had a professor in college that spoke of a new concept to me at the time: Cultural Literacy. He was the only professor in the Education building that had any valid teaching credentials (20 years in Detroit public school) so his words carried more weight with me than the “theorists” who taught for the minimum number of years and then dashed back to the collegiate cocoon. Cultural Literacy can best be explained by giving examples. If you hear a phrase like “and your little dog too!” or “I’ll be back” (in an Austrian accent) most people will know exactly where the quote came from and who delivered the line. It wasn’t that long ago when there were only three broadcast channels (or four if you count PBS). That reduced choice meant that a large percentage of people saw the same shows every night and had a collective experience to share the next day. The lack of any recording device meant you had to actually watch the show at the appointed hour or be left out of conversation the next day.
This collective memory and the hundreds or thousands of shared experiences formed a shared cultural literacy that was unique. Think of how foreign you would feel if you find yourself in a room full of Soprano fans dissecting in the most miniscule plot twists and turns if you had never even heard of the show let alone watched it. The advent of hundreds of cable and satellite choices as well as recording devices like T-VO have fragmented society. If you want to watch a Sunday night program on Thursday morning in Spanish with closed captioning, its only a button or two away. That’s not to say choice is bad. Many programs that appeal to a niche audience like hunting, scrapbooking, or automotive performance could not sustain an audience large enough to remain on one of three networks.
Choice only gets to be an issue when it comes to news. People now get to choose news that slants the way they like to see things slanted. Those thrilling days of yesteryear, of the big three networks and the half-hour allotted to national news seem a lifetime away. When you heard the term “Special Report “ during your viewing you just stopped and knew someone had been assassinated or a serious, tragic national event had taken place. Now a car chase, a couple of whales, or Paris Hilton rate the same coverage. It is easy to fall prey to the Drastic Climate Change/ Global Warming frenzy when every weather event worldwide is broadcast as news. If you had a half hour of allotted time per day to cover the news of the world, (closer to twenty two minutes with commercials), I doubt that every heat wave, tornado, snowstorm or even thunderstorm happening anywhere in the world would rate a mention.
The coverage of the war, the economy, etc. are now viewed through a political prism throughout the twenty-four hour news cycles. Fox News was being avoided by Democratic candidates who caved to their far Left constituents. The big three networks as well as CNN race to point out the personal flaws of Republicans while ignoring or helping to explain away the Democrat’s imperfections. How else to explain how stealing documents from the National Archives prior to the 911 Commission hearings by Sandy Berger is delivered with a smile and chuckle ,and “Scooter” Libby’s conviction for “lying” to FBI agents in the investigation of a non-crime is a national event on the level of Watergate? The recent appearance of Hillary on The Factor does give reason to hope. But I wonder if she would have gone on Fox if she had the delegate lead?
The Obama/ Rev. Wright coverage is the latest example of “choose your coverage” TV. If you think Rev. Wright is a reasonable man who raises valid points watch ABC, NBC,CBS,CNN,PBS etc., if you believe he is a hate filled conspiracy theorist who sets race relations back decades, watch Fox or listen to talk radio.
American culture has always changed with the times but remained fairly true to the “melting pot” theory of yesteryear. No matter what country immigrants came from they melded into Americans in a generation. With society now catering to every language and cultural norm of the incoming masses, the impetus to become Americans is lost. Unless there is a shift towards embracing American law, language and lifestyle, the Balkanization of the United States will continue unabated. Well I think Shepard Smith has something new on Obama so I gotta go.