Jealousy in Pictures

We all know the CSGV really hates the NRA and anything associated w/ it (or not associated, they're not picky). This is partly why. Take a look at the differences in offices.

 CSGV Headquarters: Located above a bar (which I'm sure gets used frequently) in a dilapidated looking building w/ top of the line equipment (note the floppy drive):

 NRA Headquarters (using computers made this decade)

Any Questions?

Winning

Daniel Gross, President of the Brady Campaign, says 'The tide is turning' in his latest Huffpo rant (and a rant it is).  Yeah, it is, but not in the direction he's hoping for.  While the whole Florida Martin/Zimmerman (in reality, an anti-ALEC movement) may be a bump in the road for true 'progressive' firearm rights, one thing they ignore are things like this:

 Yep, that's an AR in .308 for sale at Wal-mart.  Can we say 'in common use" boys and girls? 

While Gross may have been hired for fundraising so the folks at the BC can keep their jobs, this is what 'grassroots' is built on.  Actually having membership (which the NRA, SAF, ISRA etc. do) and not being primarily/exclusively funded by the Joyce Foundation or Soros. This is why 74k people show up at the NRA convention while gun control groups don't have that many members combined.

Yeah, the tide is 'turning', but not in their favor.


 

How Does It Feel, Ladd?

Whenever you see a 'task force' regarding gun control in places like Chicago, NYC, MD, etc., it is invariably loaded w/ Joyce foundation puppets and other anti-gun fanatics that come to the usual predetermined conclusions of 'Assault weapon' bans, registration, close the 'gun show loophole'.  You know the routine.

Now the shoe's on the other foot and the CSGV is having conniptions: 

Amazing that they supported the 'task forces' loaded in their favor whole-heartedly and cite them as 'expert opinions'. They still haven't grasped just how fringe they are and how few supporters they actually have.

Meanwhile, in the Other Brady Paradise...

of Australia:

A bikie war between two rival clubs has escalated overnight, with senior members of the Nomads targeted in what police suspect are reprisal attacks for attacks on the Hells Angels gang.

Two more properties in Sydney's north-west were sprayed with bullets overnight and a police van, understood to have been conducting surveillance on a Newtown tattoo parlour, was destroyed by fire...

The overnight shootings are the 10th and 11th in a week, with two tattoo parlours and three houses shot up in the early hours of Tuesday.  

And I'm sure these crimes will be easily solved using the firearm licensing and registration system established by the Aussie government.

h/t to NMG

Winning

Just heard a commercial on the radio for Cheaper Than Dirt.

While there may be some flash-in-the-pan support for 'gun control' after a tragedy, PuSH'ers have lost the culture war.

Nuttin', Zip, Nada for the Nuge

That's all that's come of the 'investigation' into Ted Nugent's 'threats'.

 "The Secret Service interview of Ted Nugent has been completed," Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary told Yahoo News. "The issue has been resolved. The Secret Service does not anticipate any further action."

 So as much as Ladd Everitt and the staff at Media Matters prayed to whatever god they worship that the Nuge would be charged and dragged away to the gulag, this is the reality.  The S.S. knew it was rhetoric and they only did the 'investigation' to satisfy the foaming-at-the-mouth fanatics desperate for any sort of relevance or scandal. He'll continue selling records, books, arrows, and other merchandise, all the while attracting more NRA members, while the CSGV scrambles to keep the lights on. 

That's called 'winning' since the Anti's haven't experience the concept in quite some time.

Bryan Miller: Online @CeasefireNJ

Well it appears our old buddy Cryin' Bryan Miller has found someone to pay for an internet connection again.  Since CeasefireNJ went defunct as an independent group and his domain got snagged, we haven't heard much from him. 

Apparently he figured out this whole 'Twitter' thing and has been posting there.
Send him your love.

H/T to Cemetery's Gun Blob

(Anti) Freedom Riders

Well we all saw this coming:

 A new program in Houston will place undercover TSA agents and police officers on buses whose job it will be to perform bag searches, watch for “suspicious activity” and interrogate passengers in order to ‘curb crime and terrorism’.

 This is the idea of one of the biggest DC race-baiters, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee who apparently has no problems expanding the powers of an agency primarily known for molesting children and abusing the mentally handicapped and the elderly. Of course this is the same person who thinks China and Venezuela are countries we should emulate.

But I'm sure this program will be fully implemented w/ no questions asked. No terrorists will be discovered and millions more dollars will be thrown down the hole for 'security'.  

Bread and Circuses.

Hands and Feet Only Please

The CSGV is really the gift that keeps on giving. Take a look at this statement from their FB page:

Get that?  'Using armed violence IN ANY CONTEXT is flat-out wrong'...

So the widowed mother who shot the goblin breaking into her home w/ a shotgun? 

She was 'wrong' according to the CSGV.

Jeanne Assam who shot the Colorado Springs shooter?

She was also 'wrong' according to the CSGV. 

The police? Military? Wrong. 

They are all just puppets of the NRA. 

There is nothing you can say to these people because they don't live in a rational world.  They live in a world of hate and anger.  A world where despair and negative feelings are valued over civility and mutual enjoyment. A world where the death of a child (or anyone for that matter) is chance to promote their personal agenda (as long as it's done w/ a gun).

They need serious mental help.

BAG Day & Swag

Sold a scope the other day. Other than some POS or a Mosin-Nagant, it wasn't enough for something I really wanted.  At the NRA Convention however, it was enough for this on BAG Day:

Plus there was my collection of 'Pocket Swag' that I gathered over the course of the weekend outside of the usual CD's, brochures, catalogs and other paraphernalia that one normally acquires at these events.

 Next year something that goes *BANG*

 

NRA AM '12: Final Thoughts

After taking yesterday to catch up on everything at home, I now have a chance to put everything together.  Excepting Saturday, the show 'felt' smaller than the others I've been to but, according to Cam Edwards of NRA News, the registered attendance was near 74K, a record number.  Even the number of vendors was huge.  The ladies running the press room told me there are so many wanting room that there's a waiting list for next few years already.

But the industry is dying and there are less gun owners each year.

Yeah right.  We're talking serious clinical levels of denial for anyone who believes that.

The whole 'protest' thing was entertaining.  The CSGV had at least one individual in Leadership Forum, Members meeting and Glenn Beck speech live tweeting it.  Now I'm going to guess that means they signed up for the NRA and registered for the convention since I doubt they were credentialed media.  If that's the case, the only thing they've achieved is handing the NRA another $25 and given us lots of quotes for how far off the mainstream (not to mention unhinged) they've become. 

On the bloggers I've met. There were less than what I remember from '08 and '09 but that's not entirely surprising based off of the economy and that many bloggers are on the coasts.  It was of course great seeing Sebastian and Bitter again.  It's been too long since I've gotten together w/ them. Squeaky has returned to the fold after many years of life getting in the way.  Old NFO helped me solve an issue my BIL had w. his M1 carbine. Saw the Sandcastle Family and John R. again. . Finally got to meet Lawdog (here's his take on the general attitude of the folks at the show and of which I had similar conversations),Jay G. ,  Phlegmfatale ,the Cornered Cat , Rick Ector of Legally Armed in Detroit (LAID) and Mad St. Jack were most fun to talk to. Of course finally seeing 45Superman in the meatworld was an excellent ending. I know I'm missing names but right now I'm just going off of cards and photos. Put up a message if I forgot please.

The NRA staff were great as usual.  Stephanie Samford (NRA-ILA Media Liason) and all the ladies in the Press Room made us feel right at home while the MSM folks looked at us like lepers. 

On the floor, there were AR's as far as the eye could see.  The majority of the vendors were VERY open w/ us about their products and even issues they've been having which is a nice change from the glowing reviews of anything and everything you normally see from the 'professionals' (another part of the discussion I had w/ Kathy Jackson on the differences between the 'old school' and 'new' media).  There were exceptions though. One reason why is this.  I got a fancy for ATI's StG-44 repop. and put up some info and pictures.  I'm a small-time blog but then Tam saw it and posted about it (I'm thinking Uncle's link may be from my mention as well) and their readership is in the (tens of) thousands.

 And for those who complained, here's your obligatory 'booth babe' photo:

Yeah, zombie stuff was almost as prolific as AR's.  But to be honest, there weren't that many 'booth babes', what there were were LOTS of families (another sign the industry's dying, right?).  My nephew went w/ the family of a friend of his, kids all over the place.

No idea if I'm going to be able to make it to Houston next year but Indy's likely a definite.

 NRA AM Day 1A
 NRA AM '12 Day 1B 
 NRA AM '12 Day 2A 
 NRA AM '12: The @CSGV Protest That Wasn't 
 NRA AM '12 Day 2B
NRA AM Day 3: Finale
NRA AM '12: Final Thoughts