Not a photoshop:

William Shatner's Spplat Attack
from 12/28/02 Paintball News

It’s an advertisement for a huge 2002 Trek-themed paintball tournament. More info here. Via Jeff’s Gameblog.

St Louis:

A manager of a Domino’s Pizza restaurant was shot in the leg after handing over cash to two robbers on Thursday night, police said.

At 11:15 p.m. on Thursday, the manager and another employee of the Domino’s at 1444 N. Kingshighway were loading their vehicle for a delivery when they were approached by two men, police said. One announced a robbery and the manager handed over $700. The gunman then shot the 38-year-old manager.

I thought it’s normally “hand over the cash OR I’ll shoot,” not “hand over the cash AND I’ll shoot.” Cooperating with criminals is not a guarantee of safety.

The store’s location is near a spot where a 14-year-old boy was recently shot and killed at his family’s BBQ stand.

Murdoc’s guess is that if the Domino’s manager had pulled a gun and shot at the robbers, local residents would be concerned that a local businessman was armed. Like in Akron.

Over at The Next Chapter are some great photos and background on this baby:

Browning Semi Auto .22 Takedown Rifle in Case

I’ve always wanted one of these. Via Rummel, who notes the rifle, case, and stuff you can fit in there make a neat emergency gun kit.

I’ve received at least two “heads ups” about Senate bill 2099:

Senate Bill SB-2099 will require us to put on our 1040 federal tax Form all guns that you have or own. It may require fingerprints and a tax of $50 per gun.

This has been around for years, though I’ll admit given today’s political leadership I checked again just to make sure.

UPDATE: To be clear, THIS IS A HOAX.

It started making the rounds in 2000 or so, as far as I can gather. I’ve seen it a number of times. It seems to be going around again.

It’s not true.

EMT In Confrontation With Trooper Speaks Out

Oklahoma state cops pulled over an ambulance transporting a patient to the hospital:

“As my partner was pulling onto the shoulder, the cruiser came alongside our unit and gestured for my driver to pull over,” [EMT Maurice] White says. “When the officer came to a complete stop behind the ambulance, I noticed a woman in the front seat. Based on the officer’s erratic driving behavior, I thought that the woman in the front seat of the cruiser was in need of immediate medical attention; hence I exited the rear of the ambulance in order to assess the situation.”

White says the officer was in a rage when he approached them and yelled “get your a– back here! I am giving you a ticket for failure to yield.” White says he told the trooper they had a patient in the ambulance and that they were on their way to the hospital.

“He ignored my statement, became even more belligerent, and demanded my partner come to his patrol car so he could write him a ticket,” White says.

The whole incident was filmed with a cell phone:

Murdoc’s guess is that we’ll be seeing more “you can’t videotape the police” comments from certain corners.

I’m still a bit fuzzy on how this all started. It looks like the troopers must have been in pursuit of someone, but I don’t know who or what happened with the target while these guys were wasting time with the ambulance. I guess I hope that some other cars were still after the original target. (via Uncle)

UPDATE: Dasboard video from the trooper’s cruiser is now available.

Federal “Terrorist” Legislation Could Threaten Gun Owners

I doubt anyone would have problems with prohibiting the sale or transfer of firearms to dangerous terrorists, which is what this bill calls for. There’s just one problem about how that “dangerous terrorist” list is compiled:

“It doesn’t say anything about trials and due process,” Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America, told Fox News. “This is one of the most outrageous pieces of legislation to come along in some time. It’s basically saying, ‘I suspect you, so your rights are toast.’”

The bill’s Constitutionality was a big question.

“There is a Second Amendment right to hold and bear arms,” said Robert Cottrol, a law professor at George Washington University. “That right is not absolute, for instance with convicted criminals. But there would have to be an individualized determination, as in a trial, to prove someone is guilty of something before they are deprived of such a right.”

(via Instapundit)

At Defense Tech.

Lance Cpl. Michael Rogers used it all:

PACIFIC OCEAN (May 22, 2009) Lance Cpl. Michael Rogers awaits instruction after firing an M-240B machine gun during a live-fire exercise aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). Marines from Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team Pacific (FASTPAC) are conducting training with George Washington security forces. George Washington, the Navy's only permanently forward deployed aircraft carrier, is underway conducting a combat operations efficiency evaluation in the western Pacific Ocean. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Rachel N. Clayton/Released)

First Amendment Rights Trampled by Pittsburgh College after Student Advocates for Concealed Carry of Firearms on Campus

PITTSBURGH, May 27, 2009—A student who wants to form a gun-rights group at the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) has been threatened with disciplinary action for her efforts. Student Christine Brashier has turned to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) for help after reporting that administrators banned her informational pamphlets, ordered her to destroy all copies of them, and told her that further “academic misconduct” would not be tolerated.

This is the gem:

When Brashier stated that she wanted to be able to discuss this policy freely on campus, she was told to stop doing so without the permission of the CCAC administration. Dean Burns reportedly said, “You may want to discuss this topic but the college does not, and you cannot make us.”

Waaaahhh! (via Instapundit)

On the road this weekend visiting family with limited internet connection, but here’s an item I posted a few years back and is worth another look.

The men and women who have died in our wars were fighting for me and my family, even though they didn’t know us and we didn’t know them. I possess merely a tiny fraction of the understanding needed to comprehend the sacrifice that they made. With that tiny fraction, I do my best to remember them. Every day, of course, but on this day especially.

Several years ago my family and I visited the USS Yorktown in Charleston, South Carolina. While wandering the great ship, I happened to notice this among the thousands of displays:

It says WITHIN AND NEAR THESE EXHIBIT COMPARTMENTS 32 MEN DIED AND 71 WERE WOUNDED 16 APRIL 1945 WHILE FIGHTING 50 KAMIKAZES.

Right there. Right where I and my family were standing.

Sixty years ago. Before my kids were born. Before I was born. Before my parents were born.

And those men died fighting for all of us.

I don’t know what else to say about it.