The single dumbest song ever written.

July 28th, 2011

Bruce Cockburn’s “If I Had a Rocket Launcher”, which can best be summarized as “I want peace and justice, and I’m willing to blow people up with a rocket launcher to get it.”

So what brings this to mind?

Liberty County investigators have uncovered a treasure trove of stolen items concealed on a wooded lot off U.S. 59 that also contained a marijuana growing operation, a methamphetamine stash and a rocket launcher.

Here’s a (warning! Slideshow!) “gallery” (warning! Slideshow!) of the seized weapons, which include “numerous firearms, including shotguns, semi-automatic shotguns, rifles, handguns and even a rocket launcher.” Oh, my, shotguns and semi-automatic shotguns!

It looks to me like the cops seized a slightly beat up Browning A-5, and I can’t tell for sure what all else. It looks like there’s at least one older double gun in there as well, and maybe one or two revolvers on that pistol rug. (These are, frankly, really crappy photos. Thanks, Chron.)

The photo of the “rocket launcher'” isn’t half-bad, though. Several of the Chron commenters speculate that the “rocket launcher” in question is actually a spent or demilled LAWS launcher, of the sort you can easily find on the surplus market. I don’t have enough experience to be sure about that; if any of my readers know for sure, please leave me a comment or drop me a line.

(Feel free to comment or drop me a line as well if you dispute my “dumbest song ever” statement, but please be prepared to discuss your own personal choice for “dumbest song ever”.)

Posted in Clippings, Guns, Music, Stupid | 4 Comments »

For what it may be worth.

July 28th, 2011

I’m not sure that this qualifies as a “sports firing”, but Bob Bradley is out as head coach of the U.S. men’s soccer team.

Posted in Firings, Sports | 1 Comment »

Time for a Spinal Tap reference.

July 28th, 2011

Of course, it is always time for a Spinal Tap reference, but this one is particularly appropriate.

From the This is Spinal Tap: Official Companion book’s entry on Intravenus De Milo:

It is said to be the only album to have achieved gold status in sales and then platinum status in returns.

You’re probably asking yourself, “Why is this in particular an appropriate reference?” No reason, no reason at all, really, except this one:

After a dismal Q1 in which the company lost $29.6m and “very modest sales” of the Revue were exceeded by returns of the product…

(Hat tip: the Grubes.)

 

Posted in Clippings, Geek | Comments Closed

Quote of the day.

July 28th, 2011

“How do you say ‘United 93, m———er!’ in Norwegian?”

—Staghounds

Posted in Clippings | 4 Comments »

Then it fell over, burned, and sank into the swamp.

July 28th, 2011

Back in November of last year, we made note of the grand opening of the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art in Biloxi, Mississippi.

So how’s the museum doing? The NYT tells us: not so great. As in “almost out of cash” not so great. Major problems:

Posted in Art, Clippings, Gehry | Comments Closed

Two Years Before the Blog.

July 28th, 2011

Today is the second anniversary of Whipped Cream Difficulties.

You would think that, by now, I would have worked out the whipped cream issues. Sadly, no. The problem is more complex than you might think.

Seriously, though, I’d like to thank everyone who’s made this web log the small success it is. The last time I tried to list everyone, I failed miserably. This time, I’m not even going to try; you guys know who you are, and I’ve thanked many of you privately.

Here’s to another few years of blogging before the heat death of the universe, and here’s to whipped cream and other delights.

(Richard Henry Dana, call your office, please.)

Posted in Admin, Books, Food | Comments Closed

Nice going there, Butch.

July 28th, 2011

UNC-Chapel Hill football coach Butch Davis out in the wake of a NCAA investigation.

Davis, 59, had an overall record of 28-23 with three bowl appearances in four seasons, but he steered UNC into what he said earlier this week was the most serious issue the school has faced in decades. A school with a strong track record of rules compliance saw 14 players miss at least one game and seven sit out the entire 2010 season in connection with the NCAA investigation into impermissible benefits given to players and into academic misconduct.

Posted in Clippings, Firings, Sports | 3 Comments »

Today in journalism fraud.

July 27th, 2011

I missed this last week: the Seattle Weekly published a story by freelance writer Rick Swart, alleging that crime writer Ann Rule misrepresented facts in her book Heart Full of Lies: A True Story of Desire and Death. This is the kind of thing I would have paid a lot of attention to if it came across my radar; my mother is a big Ann Rule fan, and I’ve read a few of Rule’s books by way of her. I like Rule’s writing enough to be distressed at the thought.

Yeah. Well, I’m glad that story didn’t come to my attention until today, because it turns out things are more complicated than that. To start with, Rick Swart is engaged to Liysa Northon, the woman at the center of the case. (Ms. Northon was convicted of killing her husband, Chris Northon. Ms. Northon pled guilty to first-degree manslaughter, and received a 12-year sentence.)

Not only did Mr. Swart not divulge this relationship to the editors of the Seattle Weekly, he argues that he wasn’t under any obligation to.

“It’s a freelance piece first of all. I’m selling you a product. So it’s not like you’re my boss and you need to know my personal life.”

What makes this particularly offensive is that Mr. Swart is an experienced journalist; you would expect both that he would know better, and that he wouldn’t have this kind of arrogant attitude. Apparently not.

(Hat tip on this to The Rap Sheet.)

Posted in Books, Clippings, Media | Comments Closed

Noted.

July 27th, 2011

I saw magazines for these a couple of weeks ago, while I was out shopping, and said to myself, “Hmmmm. I didn’t realize there was such a thing.”

But it does explain why H&K was suing GSG.

The H&K MP5 A5 and MP5 SD in .22 LR.

Since I haven’t seen one for sale yet, I can’t comment on the price (and I didn’t notice what the magazines were going for).  But I expect them to be more expensive than the GSG guns, because you suck and H&K hates you.

Posted in Guns | 1 Comment »

All apologies.

July 27th, 2011

I feel bad about this, especially since some folks like South Texas Pistolero apparently think I’m worth reading. (Thank you, sir.) But there’s just not a lot going on right now that’s worth blogging about. I blame the heat. And the vertical integration of the broiler industry.

I guess I could point to yet another reason to carry your damn guns, people!

Or yet another example of the police being indistinguishable from armed thugs.

Or I could put up a nifty photo of myself in one of Sean Sorrentino’s “Project Gunwalker” shirts, which he’s reopened orders for (and which you can now get with a pocket, even) but I haven’t picked up mine from the PO Box yet.

I could also ask what kind of fascist country we’re living in, when a judge expresses doubts about the credibility of an accused murderer.

I suppose I could also ask if it’s actually legal for mariachi bands to collude over the fees they charge; doesn’t that strike folks as being a violation of anti-trust law?

I’ve got a post I’m working on about the egg roll problem, but I’m still doing research on that.

The good news is, we’re only a week away from DEFCON 19, which I do plan on blogging. In that vein, if anyone has recommendations for places to eat in Las Vegas, please drop me an email or leave them in the comments. A trip to Lotus of Siam is required, of course, but I’m looking for something to eat on the other four nights I’ll be there.

Edited to add: Hey, while I’m thinking of it, I do want to point folks to this discussion at Battleswarm. I haven’t had a lot to say about Breivik, mostly because other smarter bloggers are saying it all. But for some reason I’m awfully darn curious about his weaponry; I think maybe because the gun in that photo is so blinged up I wouldn’t be shocked to find out that it’s identical to the ones carried by Food Court Team Six.

Posted in Admin, California Über Alles, Clothing, DEFCON 19, Food, Guns, IANAL, Law, Music, Shirts, Travel | Comments Closed

Your City of Bell update.

July 26th, 2011

The city decided to part ways with Pedro Carrillo as he proposed a tough new set of budget cuts aimed at holding off insolvency, including leaving executive positions unfilled, eliminating the three highest-ranking police officers in the city and requiring employees to pay for half of their retirement.

(I know the linked article makes it sound like his contract expired. But this article calls it a resignation, and includes his resignation letter.)

Posted in Clippings, Politics | Comments Closed

You know what Mexico needs?

July 26th, 2011

(This is taken mostly verbatim from a conversation with Lawrence.)

  • Law and order
  • Paved roads
  • A lack of a drug war
  • Better sushi
  • Big-budget movies with lots of special effects
  • A better economy
  • Crime writers
  • Crime writers who haven’t been executed by cartels
  • A gun in every home
  • Stronger gun control…in the prisons.

Posted in Guns, Politics | Comments Closed

Doug Winner, call your office, please.

July 26th, 2011

Emmis Communications owns a bunch of Austin radio stations. Their holdings include KGSR, which specializes in local and Texas music, news talk station KLBJ, and KROX-FM (aka 101X).

Emmis just paid the FCC $12,000 to settle accusations that KROX-FM was involved in a “payola” scheme…

…that netted one of its hosts “valuable consideration” from a music store, a live music venue, a booking agent and a band manager.

The Statesman story is curiously short on details about the host, music store, live music venue, booking agent, and band manager who were involved. A Google search didn’t turn up much more information, but it did turn up a copy of the consent decree.

(Hattip.)

Posted in Clippings, Radio | Comments Closed

A tip of the hat.

July 22nd, 2011

By way of Jimbo, we’ve learned that Vincent A. Musetto has retired after 40 years at the New York Post.

Mr. Musetto was the Post film editor when he retired. But he is most famous for a headline he composed in 1982 1983. That’s right, Mr. Musetto is the man who came up with this:

As noted in the linked article, Mr. Musetto’s personal favorite of his headlines was “Granny Executed in Her Pink Pajamas”.

We wish Mr. Musetto a happy retirement, and all the best in any future endeavors he embarks upon.

Edited to add: P.S.: The happy decapitator, Charles Dingle, is apparently still in prison. Mr. Dingle denies any involvement in the rape/robbery/beheading spree for which he was convicted.

Posted in Clippings, Law, Media | Comments Closed

The (Double) Eagle has flown the coop.

July 21st, 2011

We previously noted the strange legal saga involving the Federal Government and ten 1933 $20 U.S. gold coins.

(Since that time, we have also read Alison Frankel’s Double Eagle: The Epic Story of the World’s Most Valuable Coin and we think it is a better book than David Tripp’s Illegal Tender: Gold, Greed, and the Mystery of the Lost 1933 Double Eagle. But we digress.)

By way of FARK, we have now learned that a Philadelphia jury has found in favor of the Government. Here’s coverage from the WSJ Law Blog, and here’s coverage from the Inky.

As we noted at the time, this seemed like a case that couldn’t be won, given the events of 2002 and the attendant publicity. We are not displeased to see our prediction come true, though we will be sad if the Treasury ends up destroying the coins. At the same time, though, we suspect this is not the end of the story, and that this case will probably end up in front of Dianna Ross and the Supremes. Watch this space for updates.

Edited to add: We wish we had thought of this sooner. Here’s the story from “Coin World”, which appears to have been covering the trial in detail judging from the other links.

Posted in Books, Clippings, Coins, Law | 1 Comment »

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