RIFLEMAN'S JOURNAL - OCTOBER 2002

On second thought, saving the 30 rounds Czech ammo for the VZ, which I know will group, and taking only the Turk. It grouped once, I wasn't familiar with the rifle yet, and I'm still not a Rifleman, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.

The Mauser just... feels like a rifle. The Mosin's okay - it's a Russian military design, after all - but the Ishapore, well... damn. I hope I can get it down under 4 MOA. I like its capabilities, and the widely-available caliber, and I don't want to have to part with it. My improved recoil tolerance should help.

Letter from Mannix for Governor today, begging for money of course. (I am presently registered as a Republican.) If it were Tom Cox, the Libertarian candidate, I might have considered sending something.

Oregon is not going to have a decent governor. Libertarians "can't get elected dog catcher" here. The Democrat candidate, Ted Kulongoski, is, well, a Democrat - higher taxes, gun control, massive government spending, and assorted forms of socialist totalitarianism. Mannix is a RINO - Republican In Name Only. He's sponsored gun control legislation, and he has voted to raise taxes. The liberals want to run everybody's lives; the conservatives want to run everybody's lives differently. In the letter Mannix talks the party line but, well, I'd rather be in the Free State.

Now, generally speaking, as far as a patriot and gun owner is concerned, any Republican is at least a little less evil than any Democrat, so I have a dilemma: Do I close ranks and vote against the (more blatant batch of) Communist traitors, or follow my conscience and vote Libertarian, knowing I won't get what I want either way? I still haven't decided.

43 - Friday, 4 October 2002: Stopped at the cheap copy place to duplicate some of the targets included in the Guide. Probably won't shoot any tomorrow, but will take some that look like fun just in case.

Shotgun News: J&G Sales, right on the front cover, 7.62 Mosin, $79.90 for a case of 880 rounds, 148-grain brass-case FMJ.

Clayton Cramer gives a good review of Reign of Fire, a dragons-attack-the-world movie; and points out that, absolutely, gunfolk have every reason to be suspicious of the entertainment industry, but that this one seems to have turned out all right. Because Hollywood, et. al., are such raging leftists, I rarely go to the cinema - the latest Star Wars, of course (frankly, I was disappointed with Episode II; more effects, less story, I thought), and Lord of the Rings, sure, and Mel Gibson's The Patriot, that was decent - but most of the rest is propaganda and/or crap. But if Cramer recommends it I may have to investigate. Probably out of theaters already, though, there's usually a three-month lead time for publication.

Fred's M14 Stocks has, in their regular column, been serializing a fiction about a team of Riflemen who take on a UN convoy in Iowa in 2015. They are now including a copy of the whole story free with orders until they run out. I was thinking of getting another Guide bundle anyway - more of the big targets, and I could hand off my first copy to someone.

If I knew anyone who cared, and was also physically able to do anything about it. With Mosins and Mausers well under $100 - and you've seen how well even I can shoot them - there aren't many excuses for not becoming a Rifleman.

Northridge International advertises 10 Mosin chargers for $4.95, 10 M14 for $5. Inter Ordnance lists VZ24 stuff: cleaning rod, which mine is missing but I don't miss, $14.95; replacement stock (doesn't say if it includes hardware or is just bare wood), $29.95, but I've got a line on one of those already. SOG International, 900 rounds of Yugoslavian 7.92mm for $69; Centerfire Systems, same description, $59.97, and 7.62 NATO Spanish, 500 for $69.97, 1,000 for $129.97. Sarco, 7.92mm Portuguese, non-corrosive on chargers, 800 for $159.

Cool! The Stinger Pen Gun is coming back! No price listed in SGN, but how much could it cost to make one? I seem to recall they were selling for under $200 a year or two ago. If I had a mill it might be just the sort of thing I'd try myself. I wouldn't mind buying one, but... I could probably get at least one crate of rifle ammo instead. Well, I can dream.

Oh yeah - saw a Harbor Freight newpaper insert the other day, which advertised a Central Machinery combination mill/drill/lathe for about $550, so I have some idea what a low-end machine would cost. May be too small for an FAL receiver, though. I may visit their local store in North Portland and examine one, if they have any.

JPFO Common Sense column, how to fight the "register guns like cars" argument. Damn, what's my bank balance? Um. I will join JPFO no later than next paycheck. I will!

Feature article on the Belgian FN MAG58 general-purpose machinegun, which we've adopted as the M240 series because the M60 frequently sucks. This country hasn't introduced a proper machinegun since the Browning .50, which started as water-cooled ‘way back in 1921 - and, of course, much of what FN has done in the last century is directly descended from Browning designs. What a sorry state, when we have to import the descendants of our own technology from overseas because we've forgotten how to make decent stuff ourselves.

I really like what the current owners have done with SGN over the last five years. This is not typical "we're reviewing this wonderful product because the company sent us a free one and bought a big full-page ad which we've conveniently placed right next to our story" gun-rag stuff, this is honest, informative reporting by folks who know what they're talking about.

Pre-trip inspection of Ishapore revealed several loose screws. Applied Loctite and elbow grease to stock, nosecap, and trigger guard/action screws.

Only have one 1¼" sling. Will probably stop at Bi-Mart before crossing river to get 1" sling. Will also try Fred Meyer sporting goods aisle. At worst, could swap same sling between rifles. Intend to warm-up with Mauser, since it kicks about as much as the Mosin, which I'm now accustomed to. May just finish with Mauser, swap the sling over and run the Ishapore.

Will take cleaning rod, patches, and window cleaner to neutralize corrosive salts in bore after firing Mauser. Ishapore ammunition should all be non-corrosive. Taking 40 rounds each of Portuguese, South African and Hirtenberger, and 70 rounds Turk for Mauser.

Forecast now calls for overcast and light morning rain, clearing by afternoon, temperature high 60s.

Huh. While packing range bag, found target shot with Ishapore on 10 August - with Portuguese, yet - looking no worse than many I've shot with the Mosin and posted here. Looking back in the log, that must have been string #3 I fired that day. My experience with the Mosin has given me confidence; I should be able to judge, now, whether I am suffering a hardware or software failure, or neither.

44 - Saturday, 5 October 2002: Fred Meyer appears to have discontinued all actual firearm-related items, only a little airgun stuff left. Cowards. Didn't bother trying Bi-Mart, I know they don't have the wider one and I'm already getting a late start. Drizzling as I left for the 11:15 bus. Truly need a motor vehicle.

And... as I charged off to the transit center, I forgot the range bag, with all the ammunition, and didn't realize it until I'd loaded the bike onto the bus rack, so I had to take it back off and ride back, by which time the bus would be gone. Also, as I was doing so, something went pop in my right wrist (quite the weighty bundle, with two battle rifles bungied to the top tube). Hopefully just arthritis. Next bus at 11:55, then 12:35. I've had later starts before, and maybe the weather will improve by then. Meanwhile, have more breakfast and hope the wrist is all right. Can still type, anyway, so can't be too bad.

Used time to get online and examine C-Tran system, looking for connections to Barberton Grange area for next weekend. Downloaded .GIF maps and .PDF schedules, will examine further but first glance looks adequate if weather is good.

Taking 12:35 bus. Drizzle has stopped. Wrist hurts but is functional, slight swelling if any, last two fingers a little tingly - what, the Blue Helmets will let me call in sick? Took a couple acetaminophen and a multivitamin, a friend gave me a big bottle of those and I rarely take any.

...And, both slots on the bus rack are already in use. Next bus 1:15, by which time my transfer from the morning trip will have expired, costing me $1.75 if the driver notices. This bus does not run on Sunday. Are the gods trying to tell me to skip practice this weekend?

Yeah, I guess they are.

Phooey.

Been considering registering jeffersonian.com for some time. Went to pairnic.com, and the .com and .org versions are "not currently available". Chose .us, $19/year, on special, $54 for 4 years. Shouldn't, especially since I should be joining JPFO, but....

On second thought, I should research this more. I want more server space than the 10Mb Inet gives me anyway, though once I get a domain registered I can link to my existing site, which I'm already paying for, to make use of that space too.

Much e-discussion about the Maryland "sniper." If anyone is actually reading this log, a simple web search can turn up the mainstream media stories. Meanwhile, my fellow "right-wing extremist gun-nuts" are already theorizing about Middle-Eastern terrorism (someone is making several one-shot kills in a row, and most Americans, sadly, can't do that, and the ones who can, wouldn't in this way), or a government set-up of gun owners to justify widespread disarmament and tyranny in the name of "Homeland Security."

Damn, I shoulda practiced this weekend after all. Next weekend is the Barberton show but... I might take a rifle or two along anyway, and stop by English Pit on the way back. Naah, too much work without a car. Weather will probably be awful by the 19th but if it isn't I'm going then.

Ooo! Continuing discussion with the Cruffler, he's told me about Clark Rifles Inc., which would be in range if it were flat (he described it as 3/4 of the way up a mountain) or if I had a car, which I am now actually saving for instead of more weapons. This may be what I'm looking for. They do CMP, so I could qualify for a surplus Garand, which would be nothing to sneeze at, although at "$500 as of January 2002" I'd have to save up all over again. They also do steel plates with "any handgun", blackpowder is "coming soon", and several other fun matches, formal and informal. They have a three-gun (rifle, shotgun, & handgun, fightin'-style) match, and a P.I.G. match for Politically Incorrect Guns: extra points for hits made with bayonets attached or extended. I want to try that!

Hmph. 4pm and Drizzling again. Forecast said clearing by afternoon. How much after? Tried handling a rifle, my wrist would have really been a handicap anyway. No discernable swelling, slight numbness is gone but still sore and weak.

Seven-day forecast already calling for rain on the 12th.

Downloaded a .PDF application form for Clark Rifles. Not bad, only $50/year, although, as usual, NRA membership is required. Well, I guess I could hold my nose, close my eyes and send them $35. But first, I think I really should get a motor vehicle so I could actually get there and make use of a membership. And, after doing so, I should probably attend some matches there as a visitor to see if I actually like the place.

45 - Sunday, 6 October 2002: Since I was spending the bus fare to visit the library and pick up Big 5's latest flyer anyway, I stopped by G.I. Joes, to see if they had the 1¼" slings, but they only had the same 1" as Bi-Mart. I could mail-order them I suppose but I'll probably wait ‘til the next big gun show. There may be some at Barberton. Also thought of making my own with bulk strap, but buckles and keepers and such might be hard to find. Will shop around.

Phooey! VZ24s now for $59.99. Even though I'm saving for a motor, I may put another on layaway, if they haven't sold out. That rifle, at that price, is a heck of a deal. Will stop after work tomorrow, didn't even look today since I had other errands to run on the same bus transfer.

Wrist still sore but improving, not least with use. Forecast shows possible clearing for the 12th, but this being Oregon that's not worth much on the 6th.

46 - Monday, 7 October 2002: Wrist much better today. Slinging boxes of hair-care products at work was probably good therapy, in the Nietzschian sense at least.

Stopping by Big 5 after work with cleaning rod, headspace gauge, etc., on chance they have another VZ. Also taking some targets for the salescritters there to show customers, to help sell more rifles, furthering my own cause of arming as many private citizens as possible.

The targets were well-enough received. They had two VZs, grungy and grungier. Both passed headspace, though the reblued one closed further than the one with the really bad-looking bore and little finish at all. I put the reblued one on layaway. That leaves $53.99, counting the Oregon gun-tax, which I could reasonably afford this Friday, payday. Also, both were complete.

Yes, I admit it: I am a hoploholic. And I damn sure don't want to be cured.

Oo! I'll need another Mauser bayonet! No problem, they're everywhere. Maybe a longer one this time....

New Williams Gun Sights catalog in mail. That was fast, I only requested it from their website on Friday or Saturday! Price list as of 1 January 2002, #1282, click-adjustable model FP-98-TK for military Mausers with target knobs, $76.95, same for #1364, model FP-SMLE-TK for Lee-Enfield. I'd have to have someone install it - probably, the first time, anyway - but I seem to be making that kind of contact now, i.e. Barberton. (The Cruffler says he'll hook me up with a guy that shortens shotgun barrels quick & cheap, so I can get that old side-by-side running! It's the only weapon in my collection that isn't fully functional, because of that dented barrel. I might even get a shotshell reloading rig so I can load blackpowder rounds for it, whose lower pressure will be less likely to strain the old thing.) $80-odd, counting shipping - more than the Mauser itself! And I only paid $100 for the Ishapore I kept. Well, we'll see how it groups with original sights with different ammunition, and now that I can handle some recoil. May Loctite the Ishapore's elevation slider after all, I can free it later.

On the other hand, model 5D series, $34.50, but to adjust it you loosen a screw, move the sight, and tighten the screw again - fine for sporting, but the 2nd Amendment ain't about punching paper or putting Bambi on the dinner table.

Still no idea exactly where the thing goes on a Mauser receiver. Web searches not productive. It sure would be nice to have a mill and become a machinist, I might reverse-engineer the FP or even an M14 rear sight and build one myself, nice and rugged with the features I want. Dreamy.

Hm. Now I'll need three 1¼" slings. Maybe four, if I decide to put one on my M590 shotgun, I already have quick-release swivels that wide.

Upon further review, I'll probably just make a payment on the second VZ this payday, and pick it up with the next paycheck. After all, I've already got one.

Forecast now says only partly cloudy for Saturday.

47 - Tuesday, 8 October 2002: Shotgun News two days early. I guess it evens out. Feature article on changing front sights on military-surplus Mausers. Timely! Article covers typical replacements, like Brownells, but also shows how to install an M14 front sight! With hand tools! I'm probably not patient enough for that, but I've been saving SGN since before they had articles anyway, maybe I'll come back to it someday.

Wrist still sore and weak, still improving but more slowly now. Should probably increase caloric intake on principle. I don't usually eat well.

Forecast for 12th now clear with "strong east wind." Good enough if it holds.

Grassrootism going ‘round the net: Ammo Day. A couple years ago someone proposed Ammo Day as July 3rd, the day before Independence Day. Now someone is calling for it on November 19th. Huh? What's so special about that day? Well, any day is a good day to buy ammunition.

Gawd - $60 for a Czech-built Mauser. The stripped action alone is worth that much to a custom rifle builder. What's Big 5 going to have next week? I need to build a larger rifle rack, I have that much woodworking skill at least. If they ever get more of those little Romanian .22 training rifles - unlikely, alas - I'll definitely get one. If they get more Turk ‘38s for around $50 I might get one of those, too; it's still a ‘98-ish Mauser, after all. Should be about time for another general clearance sale on surplus rifles. At these prices, and on layaway, I can ease these things into my budget.

Probably only need/want the one Mosin (and a very nice one I got, until I neglected the bore). The Mausers are the better deal in the larger sense because they can be more widely customized. But, if you want an inexpensive rifle right now that will knock either a deer or a jack-booted thug on its fuzzy butt, every time, as-is, grab one of these M44 Mosin carbines while you can. Military surplus ammunition - which is what the original sights are already calibrated for, remember - is more widely available, and cheaper, for the Mosins, too, at least for now. Also available, though not at Big 5 (yet?), the M38, to which a folding bayonet was later added to create the M44. The M38s, without bayonet, are listed in SGN for more than the M44 with the nice pointy thing already attached. I guess they made a lot of M44s. May still be some 91/30 long rifles at some Big 5 stores, too.

48 - Thursday, 10 October 2002: Voter's Pamphlet, Volume 1 (ballot measures), in mail today. As Lazarus Long said, "When in doubt, vote against."

Voter apathy is understandable - there's nothing, and no one, to vote for anymore, unless you're a Commie traitor or some other kind of totalitarian scum. But as a gun owner it is my duty to always vote. There's always something or someone to vote against, if only in protest.

Apparently the deadline for voter registration is October 15th. I may switch to the Libertarian Party after all. I've pretty much made up my mind to vote for Cox.

"Voters' Guides" in the major local fishwrap, The Oregonian. Looks like the candidate photos are retouched to make Democrats look young and healthy and Republicans look like baby-eating zombies. Naah, the Democrat-dominated media would never do anything so unscrupulous. Why, that would be like burning down a church and killing women and children in order to "save" them, or shooting an unarmed woman in the head while she held an infant in her arms, or sending thugs with submachineguns into a private home to take a child away from his family and send him to a Communist dictatorship!

Naah, the Democrats would never do anything like that.

Wrist still weak, still slowly healing. I wonder if I actually broke something? As a co- worker said, "Lots of parts in there." It does sometimes feel as though not everything is attached as it should be, but if I broke something I would expect a lot more pain, swelling, etc., and all I've got is a decreasingly-limited range of motion and an increasing "load limit." Can shoulder long guns almost as quickly and smoothly now as before the pop. No need for pain relievers since first couple of days, except for unrelated headache.

Um. Ow. No swordplay for a while, anyway. Back onto the wall with the long pointy.

Forecast still clear, windy, high 60s for Saturday.

49 - Saturday, 12 October 2002: Put another $20 on the second VZ yesterday; regular partial rent payment set aside in cash; current phone bill not yet overdue and well within budget. Going to the Barberton Grange show!

Checked e-mail before I left - maybe shouldn't have. You know we gunfolk are well- connected on the net; when the pro-criminal, anti-self-defense crowd makes a stink, activists spread it all over the country in a matter of hours. Democrats, Secretary of State Bill Bradbury, who is running for Senate, and state senator Ginny Burdick, primarily responsible for "closing the gun-show loophole" with Oregon's Measure 5 a couple years ago, are having a rally at Portland State University to deplore "gun violence." They'll be exploiting children, repeating the "12 kids a day" lie, getting schoolkids to send in handprints representing the "children killed by guns," etc.

As Liz Michael says: "Things to do today: 1) Buy guns. 2) Shoot bastards." To prepare for that day, I highly recommend Unintended Consequences by John Ross. Unrealistic in many ways, true, but still highly entertaining, and contains some useful tips. Some copies have found their way into some public library systems.

I don't want to go to war. I'll probably be in the first or second wave of casualties. But... some days I wish the next civil war would start.

At least then I could do something.

Ugh. City humans, again. Also, the driver of the Tri-Met bus to Vancouver took a wrong turn and had to backtrack. Don't they train these people? This is another sign of the "dumbing down" of America, the widespread rise of incompetence. Add this to news of the Nazi rally at PSU, and I'm depressed before I'm halfway to the show.

I wonder if they'll have rent-a-fascists there? (They didn't. In fact it was so small and so dead the cash-box lady just waved me through without paying admission. Decent, friendly people all ‘round, though. Gunfolk, of course.)

Lovely day, anyway, though the forecast wind might give me some trouble on the way back. (‘Some?' Hah!)

Light-rail construction along bus route. I like light rail and use it, but I understand the objections raised about its funding. A farmer in Klamath Falls should not have his taxes going to some politician's pet project in Portland. Anyway this line, when complete, should make it easier to reach the big Expo Center shows, and Vancouver's C-Tran system.

Through various diversions and missed connections, reached Barberton about 1pm. While waiting for bus connection in Vancouver, browsed for arms in pawn shops - about a half-dozen within a block or two of C-Tran's transit center. Nothing I either could afford, or couldn't live without.

Saw a couple Star Model B Super pistols, about $200. Barrel is clearly marked "9mm Largo". They are being advertised in SGN, and likely sold at most retail outlets, as 9x19mm Luger. Sigh. Nobody pays attention to anything anymore.

Had a spill on the way to the show - bad road, no shoulder. Only cosmetic damage to bike, though I broke my glasses again. At least I didn't lose the earpiece, I can superglue it back on for the 20th time. No injuries either - that's why I wear gloves. And a helmet. And jeans, unless it's a very hot day. And, fortunately at the time, a long-sleeve shirt.

I always carry a Leatherman tool, the Sideclip model, clipped into my left front jeans pocket (and a folding knife of some kind clipped in the right). Sometimes the clip gets hung up on doorjambs or such and gets bent out, so it won't grab tight onto the jeans anymore. Well, I landed on it and bent it back. Almost as good as new, if you ignore the incredible scrape marks. Can't recommend the method, though. Truly, ow.

The show, as I was warned, was dead. Will try earlier next time, unless weather is dreadful, which by November it should be. Found my contact, got the spare stock, including handguard and both barrel bands.

A .22 revolver is on my wish list. Saw one I would like, a (presumably pre-Sellout) S&W M63, stainless, 4" barrel, adjustable sights, J-frame with "three-finger" rubber grips, $395. Nope, not this side of a lottery ticket. Very Good, maybe Excellent, condition, though.

Huh - book value from four years ago is $350 New-In-Box. Maybe it came with stuff, I didn't notice.

One table had a reproduction shoulder stock for an 1851 Colt percussion revolver, which should also fit my 1861. $85, Good condition. New they go for about $150, about the cost of the revolver itself. Passed.

Another table had an FR8 Spanish Mauser, as previously described. Parkerizing looked near new, stock admittedly refinished, and bolt handle already turned down, if I recall correctly. $200. That was tempting, but I still gotta eat.

Another table had a very pretty 7x57mm Spanish Mauser carbine, though no price. Lots of Marlin 336 and Winchester ‘94 lever-actions, even for such a small show. Also saw an original Spencer carbine. I'll be going back to this one in the future - but earlier! Half the vendors seemed to have packed up and left before I arrived, and half the remainder did while I was there. Looking forward to Oregon Arms Collectors show near airport on 27th.

Took the long way back across the I-5 bridge. While I was in that part of town, I stopped at Fisherman's Marine & Outdoor, looking for 1¼" slings, but they also only had the 1". Picked up fresh Smith & Wesson catalog. Sure, we're still boycotting them, but I can look, can't I? Also catalog for Harrington & Richardson/New England Firearms, makers of those little single-shot shotguns. Apparently they are now owned by Marlin. H&R used to make several .22 revolvers including some of the last serious top-breaks, but apparently they've discontinued all handguns. Oh well, still plenty of Model 999s in circulation, I imagine.

Clawed my way upwind along Columbia River via Marine Drive, rarely got above third gear on the middle chainring. At least it was flat, and I can always use the exercise. Returned about 3pm, aching variously. Examined stock, found spring intact, came out easy, installed in original stock easy, reinstalled original barrel band, click, all is well, happy-happy. And, aside from that spring, I've got a complete spare stock for a large-ring ‘98 Mauser, specifically a Czech VZ24 of which I will soon have two. Paid $25, but SGN vendors want $35 or $40, and at least it got me out of the apartment.

50 - Sunday, 13 October 2002: Tried paying phone bill online, but Qwest's site sucks. Will have to buy stamps and send an actual paper check through the actual mail. Wow.

Got most of the food I should need until next payday. Partial rent paid (in cash), as per agreement. New shoes. Laundry done even. Withdrew a wad of cash yesterday for Barberton show but of course spent little; surplus divided between groceries and the coffee mug I'm saving for a truck in. So, being relatively financially stable for the moment, I joined Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership. Two years, $40, free lapel pin. Should have joined years ago.

Big 5 had nothing spectacular this week, except for shoes - hikers, as I prefer - for $12.99. Made in China, but what isn't? And, I bought them on sale, so the Commies are getting less of my money than they otherwise would. Between the big cement-floor warehouse where I work, and frequent bicycling (metal pedals, you know), and just plain hiking like from one bus stop to the next when the weather's too bad to bike, I go through shoes pretty quick.

(Surplus military) rifles on sale were the Czech 98/22 Mauser, also CZ production but with a long barrel, and the Mannlicher 95/34 straight-pull in 8x56mm rimmed, which no one stocks and few have ever heard of. $80 and $70, respectively. Some gunsmiths might be doing projects on the Mannlichers; they are in fine shape and, if it can be rebuilt in a useful caliber, a straight-pull would have coolness - but I won't own a weapon that can't be used, and 8x56R is really hard to find.

Hoping for good weather on the 19th - need more practice! Wrist still not healed, also several aches from bike wreck. Forecast thus far, partly cloudy, mid 60s.

51 - Monday, 14 October 2002: Paid phone bill with Qwest's automated phone system. Now, if it's automated, why isn't it available 24 hours? If I call the same 800 number after 5pm I get a recording telling me the office is closed. Their billing computers need human supervision?

Well, considering how their website is designed and (incompletely) constructed, maybe they do.

In a Libertarian society I'd have more than one phone company to choose from. Probably, without big government stifling innovation, I wouldn't need no stinkin' "telephone." Probably have something completely portable and vastly more powerful, reliable and versatile. Hooked into a wicked-awesome ‘puter I'd wear on my wrist, orders of magnitude beyond this archaic Pentium, yet I could still actually afford it ‘cause the government wouldn't steal half my pay.

Government kills progress. Just look at NASA. We'd have %$&* hotels on %$@# Mars by now if it weren't for @$*^! NASA. %^#$ bureaucrats.

52 - Tuesday, 15 October 2002: Maryland "sniper" strikes again. LA Times/Washington Post (oh, they're "fair-and-balanced" - yeah, right) story carried by Oregonian. "Law enforcement source" implies people who have ".223 rifles" are "Nazis".

Does that include all those blueshirt thugs with AR-15s in their patrol cars?

Does it include Lon Horiuchi?

I'm really getting sick of this. I really do know what it felt like to be a Jew in 1930s Germany. 65-odd years ago, a group of totalitarian mass-murdering hate-mongers blamed a certain class of people - Jews - for all of society's ills. Today another group is blaming... me.

It's really ticking me off. Ya know?

In case I wasn't clear - the Maryland/Virginia/D.C. person or persons are not part of the ritually-maligned gun culture. If one of us started shooting people, we damn sure wouldn't be wasting our ammunition on some little old lady at the craft store. Nor would we operate in a crowded urban environment with a high risk of collateral casualties (although, with the right mindset and preparation, it would be much easier to escape-and-evade in a city than out in the sticks), nor would we need to get within 75-150 yards (according to analyses - remember, I'm training to hit human-size targets at 500 yards, without a scope), nor would we have such a low kill rate - what is it, 70%? I haven't the stomach to follow TV news anymore. According to e-discussion, even Fox News Channel is spewing, and I don't have cable anyway.

If my people were doing this, we'd suddenly be having a whole lot of "special elections" in Congress. Top rats at IRS and BATF would be cowering in their burrows, if they made it that far. Senators would be dropping faster than since ancient Rome.

It ain't us. My suspect list has three items. Prime: Al-Qaeda or however the hell you spell it. I understand our troops captured a training video, apparently for internal use and not propaganda, outlining just such random attacks on noncombatant civilian targets. I also understand this possibility is conspicuously absent from mainstream media speculation.

Second: Our Federal Government. Remember Waco? Ruby Ridge? Elian Gonzalez? This could be a cracked BATF or FBI goon - or, it could be conscious and deliberate in order to justify martial law, widespread confiscation of firearms (or at least halting all ("legitimate," background- checked, illegally-registered) sales), or any number or degree of violations of civil rights. Not a breath of this on the networks either, of course. "It couldn't possibly be the King's men, it must be those nasty drug-dealing child-molesting racist homophobic religious-extremist gun-toting thugs!"

Third: the (Sarah) Brady Bunch. The timing of these deaths is just too convenient, with the "assault weapon" and "high capacity magazine" ban up for renewal in ‘04, and a hot governor's race in Maryland where gun control is an issue. This could also be split into either a cracked loner on a personal crusade, or a deliberate plan to justify their agenda - not that there's much difference with those people. Likewise, media not even suggesting the possibility, except to label anyone who raises any of these a "conspiracy nut," followed closely by the previous epithets.

Might have a shooting partner from work, this weekend at English Pit. In case, deciding to take both revolvers, the .357 GP-100 and the repro Colt percussion. Been a while since I practiced with the .357 anyway.

Should probably get at least one more box of my preferred load, Winchester USA white-box, Q4204, 110-grain jacketed hollowpoint - only, um, (full box, partial box, four speedloaders, two speed strips, and the bedside load) 94 rounds on hand. I could burn all that up before getting into the "zone"! Usually get it on sale at Bi-Mart but can probably squeeze in one box at regular price. Um - should make up some handgun targets, of some kind. Have lots on file already, and plenty more can be downloaded. Will probably get off work early enough sometime this week to reach cheap copy place before they close.

Still have not found 1¼" slings, except with industry-standard quick-release swivels already attached, doubling the price - and these old bolt-actions don't come with the studs, and I don't want to drill holes in the stocks (at this point, at least), and the studs would cost some besides. Bank account getting tight, and still ten days ‘til next paycheck. Could dip into coffee-cup truck-fund if necessary, in no danger of starving or anything, but I'm trying to save money, right?

You've heard the joke about a boat being a hole in the water? Guns are metal pipes through which you pump money, at high pressure and velocity.

53 - Wednesday, 16 October 2002: Editorial cartoons in Oregonian (I don't buy the rag, someone brings it in to work most mornings and leaves it in the break room) today, vilifying gunfolk. I imagine they can be viewed from their website, I won't soil my own with the actual images.

Really angry. Made up my own crude op-ed cartoon. Will someone who knows how to draw please give it a proper treatment?

Stopped at Bi-Mart after work, got one more box of .357/110. $14! Usually $12 when on sale, like in the coupon book. Will consider getting some at gun show, might be cheaper still; normally I only buy military-surplus rifle ammunition at the shows, and sometimes some buckshot for my 590.

Forecast for 19th still mid-60s, partly cloudy. Good enough, if I can lift the loaded bike onto the bus rack without crippling myself this time.

Need more rifle practice. See that cartoon? It's not supposed to be funny. The Nazis disarmed the Jews first, then sent them to the "showers." Just imagine: what would have happened if the Jews of Europe had met the Nazis at their doors, not with yellow stars on their jackets and packed suitcases at their feet, but with loaded weapons in their hands? I hope/fear I'll be conducting the experiment myself soon - fear that it will happen at all, and hope I have the guts to, if necessary, ‘die on my feet rather than live on my knees.' (Paraphrased from Mordecai Aneilewicz, Combat Group Leader, Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, 1943. They got him - but it took a while, and it cost.)

The Maryland "sniper" is probably a middle-eastern terrorist. Media and blueshirts are very carefully not releasing descriptions from eyewitnesses - and since when do they not want the public to know who they're looking for?

The guy ain't white. If it ain't bloody awful, and if it can't be blamed on a white male, and preferably a gun-owning Christian Republican, it ain't news in America anymore. See Bernard Goldberg's book, Bias. Gunfolk have known for years that most major media slants way left, but Goldberg spells it right-the-hell out with names and places and dates and for-gods'-sakes transcripts. This "sniper" will turn out to be Al-Qaeda or whatever, and never a syllable of apology will be heard from the "liberal" media scum who paint me and all my kind as psychopathic murderers. At best they'll pretend the whole thing never happened.

Next weekend, may go yet again on Saturday the 26th, depending on weather - should have enough rifle ammo left. Sunday, 27th, is Oregon Arms Collector's show I could, if necessary, walk to with an umbrella (busses don't go there, and I avoid biking in rain). Will probably just veg November 2nd; mandatory-overtime for a convention-center thing on the 9th; big Expo show on the 16th, and then it's winter and I'm probably done shooting ‘til spring.

I think something is genuinely wrong with my wrist. Not getting worse, but not getting better. Something catches and hesitates when I turn it a certain way, while my left moves normally through the same motion. Maybe, now I've got Blue Cross, I could actually get something done about it - but doctors have recently developed a nasty affinity for ethical boundary violations, asking about firearms in the home, how many, how they're stored, what do you need them for, etc.

It's a hell of a state, when you're afraid to go to the doctor for political reasons.

54 - Thursday, 17 October 2002: Made 50 copies of a human-torso silhouette target (Joe Dioso, 1997), about 1/3 scale on letter-size paper. Also a handful of copies of my op-ed cartoon. Left one on bus seat. Wonder if anyone will e-mail about it?

About a half-dozen vagrant-looking types parking their beaters on the street next to my apartment place's driveway. A couple-three are usually there - living out of a rolling land-fill, a succession of old vans packed with junk (for crying out loud, they're homeless and they're carrying around a pink plastic lawn flamingo? Have they no priorities?) - the cemetery across the street seems to attract them, and the convenience store/gas station on the other side of the fence, but never this many at once before. Wearing .357 and two speedloaders. The M590 is likewise always loaded, I've only moved it within easy (easier) reach.

Um. Need serious practice with holster drills. Probably not allowed at English Pit. Will do dry practice, but also want to combine drawing-from-concealment with live fire. Need motor vehicle! Could go up in the hills and do whatever I want with no range officer to argue with me.

Not to put down range officers - when I'm not the only person on the firing line, I like having an RO around. But when it's just me, and I'm the only person who could get hurt if I fumble something, well, that's my own damn responsibility and no one else's business.

Cabela's Christmas catalog in mail. Percussion revolvers: 1858 Remington, blued steel frame, $140, stainless, $200; 1860 Colt, $140. 1851 not listed in authentic .36, but probably on their website, probably $120 or so judging by previous listings. "1862 snub-nose" merely a cut- down 1861 Navy. There is an 1862 Colt - a couple, in fact - but Cabela's' offering ain't it. No authentic (without modern adjustable sights) muzzle-loading rifles significantly below $400. There was a .44 percussion rifle at the Barberton show, $150 as I recall, authentically-enough styled, likely kit-built, might have been a good deal. Lower priority (after vehicle, glasses, bike front wheel, fighting pistol, faster computer...) but would be fun.

Continuing trying to wean myself off caffeine (there's that whole phosphoric acid thing with sodas, too, but mainly I don't want to be suffering withdrawal symptoms when I'm out in the sticks dodging Federals and Blue-Helmets and exercising applied riflery). Trying to find fruit-juice in convenient, affordable, portable container sizes - most of those little foil packs are about half as big as I want (according to discussion on survivalist mailing lists, most folks are chronically dehydrated; I've been trying to drink more, in addition to better). May just have to start decanting the apple juice I make up from frozen concentrate, that would probably be lots cheaper anyway. Tried a larger foil- pack product at work today, hydrated me all right but suffered headache when body did not receive expected can of Barq's root beer. (Barq's has caffeine. Most root beers don't.)

WorldNetDaily article largely confirms what I said in last entry: suspect is likely middle-eastern, likely pseudo-Islamic terrorist (I understand that real Islam forbids suicide, like blowing one's self to pieces on a bus full of Israelis, or flying an airliner into a skyscraper). Disturbing contrast to front-page Oregonian article, "Police unable to produce sketch of suspect." Thomas Jefferson would love the internet. The powers-that-be just can't shut it up.

55 - Friday, 18 October 2002: Putative shooting partner from work begged off. Not bothering with percussion revolver but will still take .357.

Would really like to have low-cost, non-autoloading .22 rifle for hearts-and-minds work. Will ask salescritters at Big 5, when I go there as usual on Sunday, to see if there are any of those Romanian bolt-actions left in their system. May just get one at a show, they're only $70-odd there, saw several at last couple of medium/large shows. Big 5 wanted $100-odd when they weren't on sale.

Voter's Pamphlet volume 2, Candidates (and local Measures), in mail. Will vote Republican where I have no alternative but considering Libertarian candidates wherever available, on principle. Actual Socialists running for some offices. Professional homophobe Lon Mabon running for Senate with Constitution Party. Nice name, bad platform. They are what various leftists like to think I am. Calling themselves Constitutionalists does more harm than good to real supporters of the entire Constitution.

Slow day at work, got off early, used extra time to more-carefully pack range bag. 96 rounds of .357 (a multiple of six - rotating to freshest ammunition for speedloaders and speed strips; and leaving those behind, no speed drills with handgun this time, just basic marksmanship), full 70-round bandolier of Turk 7.92, now 75 rounds of Portuguese, and 60 each of South African and Hirtenberger in 7.62 NATO. Oof. Not putting that on the bike until I'm done lifting it on and off the bus rack.

Reportedly a local blueshirt got non-fatally shot today. Haven't heard enough yet to take sides. Radio news, here it comes: Sixteen-year-old suspect, police called on suspicion of trying to cash bad check. Shots exchanged, suspect hit three times (wonder how many rounds the blueshirt fired? Probably at least twice that many), in surgery, officer expected to make full recovery. Mayor Vera Katz expresses concern and sympathy for the officer and family - and for the suspect. Poor misunderstood victim of society, right? The evil gun-rays made him do it. Blueshirts are inexplicably immune? ...Well, it appears I'll have to take the badgeman's side this time, it looks like he was responding to an actual crime, and like the other guy shot first.

Not always the case.

56 - Saturday, 19 October 2002: Heh. Remembered the (oof!) range bag this time. Made the 9:15 bus. Got bike onto rack without hurting myself, though not as gracefully as I would have liked.

Weather not so bad! Mostly cloudy but dry, even a little sunshine here and there.

The shortcut I found a couple trips ago requires me to lift the (loaded!) bike over a fence. Won't be trying that with wrist in current condition; will ride the extra couple miles.

Reached range at 9:55am! Gate still locked, no one else waiting. Looks like I'll get lane 7.

Range Officer showed up at 10 sharp. Starting with VZ, 25 yards, three 1" targets. Holding 3" low. First string... about a dozen MOA. Maybe the Turk is crap after all.

Recoil tolerance good.

Second string no better. My "Kentucky elevation" is not consistent - keep after a decent rear sight. Maybe get a Mojo after all, I could install it myself, and I'm getting another VZ anyway if I want a Williams. Starting to get the hang of focusing on the front sight instead of something else.

Third string maybe 10 MOA. Starting to settle down? Fourth about the same. Consider aftermarket trigger.

Fifth string... huh. A couple hits! Fresh targets.

String six: lousy. Search for different ammo. Noted that the stamp vending machine at local Post Office is fixed, will buy some, mail ammo statement(s) to ammo vendor(s), mail-order something in next couple of pay periods.

And just as I think that... string seven. Okay, fine, I'll just buy a pile of the dirt- cheap Turk ammo and get lots and lots of practice.

10:45 before I hear anyone else shooting. Fine with me. String eight, about half-again as big, one hit. A little discomfort in shoulder now, 40 rounds fired.

Set Mauser aside, swap sling to Ishapore, see what happens, before I reach a recoil limit and make further practice useless. It has been three weeks, after all. Fresh targets.

Starting with Portuguese. Only loading five at a time. Hah! Have achieved recoil tolerance! Now the Ishapore seems to kick less than the Mauser! Stock ergonomics suck, though. Consider aftermarket butt with American-style "pistol" grip. First Ishapore string decent considering long hiatus. High, though, even with rear sight all the way down. Should have Loctited slider after all? Will hold that much low for next string.

Yes! Actual by-gods hits! The Ishapore is not a lost cause! Third Ishapore string, not much worse. Good!

Try different ammunition now, before I exceed my (growing!) recoil tolerance. Fresh targets, 20 rounds South African. Good-looking stuff, clean and shiny. ...About 8 MOA. Extraction sticky, flattened primers. Portuguese has flattened primers too but extracts smooth. South African is Berdan primed, by the way.

Second Ishapore/South African string - that's more like it. Decided on 10 rounds for third target - nothing spectacular. Try Hirtenberger. Fresh targets.

First Ishapore/Hirtenberger string, respectable. It is Boxer primed! Saving Hirtenberger brass. Extraction still sticky; some gunk on case necks, must brush chamber more thoroughly. (Actual chamber brush? Look at next show.)

Second string - "reckon that-there Hirtenberger shoots a bit to the raat." (Gary Cooper, Sergeant York.) But tight enough - oh yes. Again, ten rounds on last target - so I rushed a little. Also, that rear sight slider keeps shifting.

Fresh targets, going back to Portuguese for three strings. Ishapore toasty by now, barrel likely wandering, and I'm shooting faster for these three strings - still, good enough for now. Also, extraction smooth with Portuguese, even with presumably dirty chamber. Huh.

110 rounds fired. Shoulder just a little sore, no problem there, but arms fatigued from holding up nine-pound rifles.

Quit whining. Fresh targets, three more strings Portuguese, take my time. Heh - target backing eaten away by worse shots than me, trouble finding solid wood to pin the targets to. Three strings, not too awful. Ishapore hot, 85 rounds through it, enough for it for today. Fresh targets, swap sling, three more strings from Mauser. Opening up. 140 rifle rounds fired, enough of that for today.

Moving to handgun range with .357. Two human-silhouette targets at 10 yards, approximate 1/3 (¼?) scale simulates 30 yards (?). Anyway, a lot smaller than I'll likely need a handgun for.

Good thing I decided to bring it. Way low and left. Made sight adjustments, better. Two cylinders at each target, then fresh ones.

Sights appear to be on now, but it's a very good thing I brought it. Will need much more ammunition to practice with. Some SGN vendors list this load by the case. Considering.

Yipe! Revolver gets hot, fast, and stays that way. (Was still warm after hour-long bike ride back!) Too stubby and solid to be a factor in accuracy, though.

96 rounds go quick in a handgun! Last two cylinders, see for yourself. Need to work on firing stance, I'm somewhere between a Weaver and an Isosceles, which of course gives me the benefit of neither.

Huh! Had a misfire, first round of last cylinder. Waited the usual 30 seconds, opened and re-indexed cylinder, fired fine on second strike. Never happened with this piece before! No other malfunctions (ever). Maybe just dirty? No, it's nearly impossible for firing gunk to get in around the firing pin; the first strike didn't seem particularly shallow, and it was properly centered. Shrug. Maybe that round just slipped by Winchester's quality control.

Oh - did not flinch when I got a "click" instead of a "bang." Took me a moment to realize it, too. Very pleased with myself for that.

Left about 1:30pm. 236 rounds fired, 140 rifle and 96 revolver, all "on purpose," not for entertainment. Determined Ishapore can hit stuff after all, and so can the Portuguese NATO and Turk Mauser ammo. Discovered dangerous overconfidence in handgun skills. Good session.

As I was wrapping up with rifles, a guy with a scoped Savage 110 moved into lane 8. Said he needed to get his scope sighted back in after missing a deer by five feet. Said his kids had taken the scope off the rifle and played with it.

He didn't confirm his rifle was still sighted-in before he went out in the woods to kill something?

He doesn't discipline his kids?

Another guy, maybe 21 years old, with a new-in-the-box (!) Remington 710 .30-06 bundled with Bushnell scope, like Big 5 and other chains are selling under $400. Looked like he barely knew which end the hot stuff came out of. Came right out and said he doesn't read manuals. As expected, shortly heard him complaining "this rifle sucks" because he couldn't hit anything with it. At 50 yards. With a scope. Gods help us. Shoulder already sore by then or I might have embarrassed him - "Here, let me try." Naah, I'm not that good yet - but I'm sure I'm better than him.

JPFO membership pack in mail! Cool Jefferson Memorial stamp on USPS priority envelope, I bet JPFO picked it on purpose (not for me, particularly, but because they revere Jefferson as I do). Much stuff in there! All seven "Gran'pa Jack" comics, several back issues of The Firearms Sentinel and The Bill of Rights Sentinel. Copyable target, image of Hitler giving fascist salute, captioned "All in favor of ‘gun control' raise your right hand." Copy of "Proud Supporters of Gun Control" poster, letter size, also therefore copyable.

Price lists and descriptions of JPFO merchandise, books, t-shirts, videos, stickers, lapel pins, pocketknives. May actually order some - unlike NRA, they'll probably do something to defend my rights with the money.

Huh - membership card says I'm a CHARTER MEMBER. No membership number, I guess they don't use them, for both religious and secular reasons - I can dig that.

Ballot also in mail (vote-by-mail elections in Oregon). Can start picking and choosing.

Was going to leave a copy or two of my op-ed ‘toon with range officer, maybe get one posted on shack wall next to bulletin board, but forgot. Maybe next time.

57 - Sunday, 20 October 2002: Didn't bother asking at Big 5 about Romanian .22s, budget just too tight right now, and I'll likely find one for less at a show anyway. Mosin M44s on sale, $50, but one of those is enough for me; not as much aftermarket stuff for them, not as, or as easily, customizable. But the rest of y'all, go get ‘em! Surplus ammunition is everywhere (mail-order in Shotgun News, or retail at nearly any gun show) and dirt-cheap, and they'll knock a Commie or a Fascist on its fuzzy butt.

Saw a couple Cox-for-Governor signs on the way back. One had fallen, I set it back up. Mild warm-fuzziness.

Did not interfere with Democrats' signs; I am morally superior. Somebody has been going around knocking over or cutting apart campaign signs for Trosino, for city council or county commissioner or whatever it is. Can't find that voter's pamphlet right now but I recall he was the only one in that race who even hinted at a party affiliation by listing Republican endorsements.

And the Democrats whine about equal rights and freedom of speech. They're worse bigots than they accuse me of being.

Left a copy of my ‘toon at the laundromat.

Forecast for weekend, rain. If so, fine, I'll sleep in on Saturday and hike to the OAC show on Sunday.

Widespread reports of Maryland/Virginia/D.C. area blueshirts (cops) and blacksuits (FBI, BATF, et. al.) using 4473 forms and illegally-maintained background-check records to harass gunfolk and steal their property. My Cruffler acquaintance compares this to Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, when wholesale deportation and/or murder of Jews and other undesirables began in Nazi Germany.

They're not killing us. Yet. His analogy errs only in degree, not in kind.

I'm not likely on the suspect list, yet (though some Virginia cop reportedly said "Anyone who ever walked into a gun store is a suspect"); never mind that I'm on the other end of the continent, I don't own a wimpy .22 centerfire of any kind. But, I am... apprehensive.

Hell, I'm scared. I should get as much peacetime practice as I can, before it turns into on- the-job training.

Payday this Friday; will be caught up on rent by following payday, 6 November, will then have rather more liquidity to slosh around. Motor vehicle should be my primary concern - may need to get the hell out of Berlin. Even so, seriously considering case or half-case purchase of rifle ammunition, likely 7.62 NATO. The Ishapore seems to like the Portuguese-surplus, I'll likely get a couple-three battlepacks of that. (Disturbing that the South African, which is getting good reviews elsewhere, does not extract well; nor the Hirtenberger, generally considered the best of its breed.)

If forecast clears for Saturday, will take Ishapore only, use up sticky South African and Hirtenberger ammo. Ishapore is loaded, as usual, with Portuguese, as usual. Swapping my only 1¼" sling back onto it now. Would dust off load-bearing harness now but... it's a quarter ‘til midnight and I have work in the morning. Will work over web gear and bugout bag during the week.

Surreal, thinking about a job when the Second American Civil War, or Third Revolution depending how you count it, may start any moment.

58 - Tuesday, 22 October 2002: Phooey - Loctited the Ishapore's rear sight. At least now I should be able to develop a consistent sight picture. One of the useful things in Fred's Guide is a Minute-of- Angle chart - you post it at 25 yards and aim at it, and it tells you how many MOA tall and wide your front sight, or scope reticle, is. Then you remember that and use your existing sight as a passive rangefinder, instead of fumbling with another, maybe battery-dependent, piece of equipment.

Odd, that it still shoots several MOA high with NATO-spec ammunition, with the sight all the way down and presumably calibrated for that load. Points of impact for 25 and 100 yards are supposed to be much the same, right? For most rifles in the .308/.30-06 neighborhood? Not two inches different? The bullet rises through the line of sight, flies over it, then drops down through it again.

Of course it's been a long time since I fired the Ishapore at 100 yards. Maybe this weekend. Should make up some 4", 4MOA targets for use at that distance. At least the South African and the Hirtenberger have about the same POI as the Portuguese, as far as I can tell at this imperfect point in my self-training.

Ew - hard enough seeing that little 1" square at 25 yards. Geometrically it's the same as a 4" square at 100, but there's a lot more atmosphere for those reflected photons to find their way through, out there. Will truly need new glasses (and a haircut!) for effective shooting at greater distances. Clark Rifles Inc. has a 300-yard range. Now that's projecting influence. Will probably just stick to 25-yard practice for now anyway, I can actually see the holes without marching out to the backstop after every string, or even setting the rifle down to use a telescope. Fred points this out, to explain why 25-yard practice is useful.

Forecast now says party cloudy, no rain, for Saturday.

Cruffler says a Williams sight on a Mauser does interfere with the charger guide. Phooey. Well, it's the NATO-caliber Ishapore I'd rather build my plans around anyway, the Mosin and Mauser(s) are alternatives and, okay, for the collection. Don't know yet if a Williams will prevent charger use on a Lee-Enfield. Might order one Mojo sight for one Mauser, maybe second paycheck in November.

Will probably leave the Mosin well-enough alone.

59 - Wednesday, 23 October 2002: Contemplating bugout bag and load-bearing harness. Have several pairs of jeans, in pretty good shape except the inseams are worn through from extensive bicycling. Black, not blue. Been thinking of making bandoliers of them for some time, but months ago someone on some e-list I'm on pointed out that, tactically, bandoliers are inferior to pouches, unless of a different design than I've been making. Fine, I'll make some pouches instead, and build them so they're adaptable to the ALICE system. Will need to study examples, make a decent pattern. Found some snaps for closure in a clearance bin at Bi-Mart, cheap.

Actually dug out the harness. May not do anything useful with it but at least it's near the top of the tectonic heap that is my apartment.

If the forecast for Saturday is rain, I'll pay off the second VZ on Friday and spend the weekend cleaning it up and such. Otherwise I'll just make another payment, leave it on layaway for another pay period, and get more practice with the Ishapore.

Cruffler says those Star 9mm pistols are 9x19mm after all; will have to look closer next time I see one. Single-column, 8-round magazine, and spares may be hard to find (not too hard, SGN vendors who carry the pistols also advertise the magazines, $10 or so), but still, a Browning-pattern fighting pistol, apparently in a world-standard caliber, for about $200 retail. Well, motor vehicle first, I've still got the .357, which can be carried concealed when necessary, and if I'm saving up for a fighting pistol after that I might as well save up for the FEG GP35 anyway.

Or the Bulgarian (not Hungarian after all) Arcus, listed (without prices) by Century Arms in the latest issue of Shotgun News (three days late). Dovetailed sights on the Arcus (easier to replace/adjust/upgrade), two-tone finish may not be tactically sound but is pleasing, and the trigger guard is squared and hooked for the index finger of the support hand, which is a technique I use. Everything else appears to be interchangeable with the GP35. Rubber finger-groove grips would likely be replaced with wood, maybe original military style, maybe something else, slimmer - well, no sense customizing a pistol I don't have.

Bulk ammo deals much the same as previous issue. Did have to dip into truck fund after all, probably can't squeeze a bulk ammo purchase into this pay period, especially considering another payment on the second VZ, the last of the back rent, and partial November rent - and the phone and electric bills will probably show up soon, too. May just buy something cash-and-carry at the next big show in three weeks, probably Portuguese 7.62 NATO if I can find it.

Forecast now looking good for Saturday, 60 and partly cloudy. Probably won't take revolver, only 54 rounds (and much of that "on duty" at bedside) left of the load it's (now...!) sighted-in for, though I have near 200 rounds of other types. Probably just the Ishapore and all the South African and Hirtenberger for this trip.

60 - Thursday, 24 October 2002: Blueshirts think they've caught the Beltway shooter(s). (T)he(y) ain't white and ain't likely (an) NRA member(s). Hearing of the news from other sources, I uncharacteristically tuned in to local TV news tonight for more than the weather - and was graphically reminded why I gave it up.

The primary suspect is a US Army and National Guard veteran with a reputation for marksmanship - whatchagonnadoaboutthat, forbid weapon training to military personnel because they might someday misuse it? An AR-15 (semi-automatic-only version of military M16) variant, which they called a Bushmaster XM15, was found in their possession. No word on motive yet, unless I missed it, but with a name like John Allen Muhammad, well, take a guess. KPTV 12 got someone from The Gun Room, a local gun store with a poor reputation among local gunfolk (less than ethical business practices, no dedication - or even opposition, in their own short-term interest - to the Cause), to show off a couple ARs and deride the Bushmaster as a "cheap knock-off" of the Colt and "not as accurate."

Now, I'm no fan of the mousegun, for ballistic and engineering reasons, but everything I know about it suggests that Bushmaster is a Leading Brand, and market forces would not have made them so unless the preceding description was libelous. Maybe I should e-mail Bushmaster about the story...? Colt, by the way, has had labor and quality-control problems for many years, and are chronically overpriced - which is how Bushmaster, Armalite, and others got their market shares.

I can imagine the anti-self-defense degenerates popping champagne because an "assault weapon" is involved. Maybe not champagne; I wouldn't be surprised if they drink the blood of the innocent victims they've made defenseless. They certainly dance in it enough. Renewal of the ban in ‘04 will be a lot harder to fight now. Cursed convenient timing for them....

Another step closer to civil war.

Unlike them, I have morals. I can't shoot first. I have to wait for hostilities to open before I can kill them - and I'll probably never get any of them in my sights, only their Federal and UN lackeys and thugs. If they don't use their illegally-maintained lists to hunt me down preemptively.

Kristallnacht indeed. I feel a chill, and it's got nothing to do with late-October weather. Motor vehicle now top priority - something reliable and nondescript. May skip bulk ammo purchase altogether, just get a couple hundred rounds for a basic load.

Unrelated story about road crews taking down signs, like campaign signs, that block vision or otherwise violate some code or ordinance. They showed some real-estate and other business signs, but aside from one (short!) glance at a library measure sign, all the campaign signs they showed were for Republican candidates, and they showed those several times, with longer cuts. Subliminal message: Those nasty Republicans are endangering the public by cluttering up your streets.

And KPTV is a Fox news affiliate now! The whole industry is filthy.

Forecast for Saturday still good.

61 - Friday, 25 October 2002: Huh - health insurance is supposed to be $39 a month, but they've taken that much out of both my last two paychecks. May have to look into that.

Owing to the resulting shortage, definitely not paying off the second VZ now, and not even making a payment - still plenty of time left on the layaway term, should be $33.99 remaining counting the gun-tax.

Woke up with sore throat this morning. Still planning on early start for English Pit tomorrow, hope I feel better by then. Depending, I'll bomb the bug with something - over-the-counter cold-and- flu stuff, probably, and maybe some cough drops - and likely burn out what's left with the exercise of the ride, as I've done before. At worst I'll cancel the trip.

New op-ed cartoon:

I originally thought of it before they caught J. A. Muhammad. The suspect was going to wear a turban and be labeled "Al Qaeda," and the cop would have a smoking AK74 (5.45x39mm, possibly easily confused with ‘.223' by demonstrably-incompetent blueshirts) in his other hand, labeled "Soviet Surplus via Afghanistan." Well, I make do with what I have.

The "liberal"-dominated media and high-ranking police are vastly more racist than I have ever been or will ever be. Maybe in a hundred years, whitey can sue for reparations - if we haven't been exterminated by then.

On the way back from the grocery store after work, I passed by the campaign signs again, and the other of the two Cox-for-Governor signs had fallen. I set it back up as well, making sure both were firmly planted. So there!

In e-mail, Cruffler says the Star pistols are 9mm Largo after all! I did not get a close look at them, I only read what was stamped on the chamber through the display case.

Also in e-mail, new alert from Oregon Firearms Federation. Multnomah County Sheriff's Office is illegally collecting information on Concealed Handgun License holders, amounting to Gestapo- or KGB-style dossiers. It's a blatant violation of state law (not to mention the Federal 4th Amendment), but they got some treasonous "judge" to rule in their favor. Budget be damned, I ordered an OFF t-shirt. They need the money to fight this criminal behavior, and I'll damn sure wear the thing.

Sore throat not getting better. Popped a half-dose of cold-and-flu, and a multivitamin, on my way to bed.

Oops! While packing range bag, discovered I only have five 25-yard targets left. Oh well, I still have plenty of 50-yard, two-inch-center targets, I can use those. Also, I've made a few minor adjustments to the 25-yard version, so I'll print out a new one to take to the cheap copy place next week. Packed copies of some of the Guide targets too, simulating 200- and 300-yard humans for use at 25 yards/meters - I should be able to get lots of hits on those, by now. Also taking that MOA chart I talked about, for measuring my front sight.

62 - Saturday, 26 October 2002: Crap! Raining at 8:30am. Might go later if it clears but still not feeling well. At least I got out of bed at a useful hour.

Some sunbreaks about noon, clear and sunny not much later, but I'm just not feeling well enough. No shooting today, or much of anything else. I'll just veg.

63 - Sunday, 27 October 2002: Filled out my ballot the other day; chose Libertarians for Governor and Senate. I would have voted, strategically, for the Republicans - if there were any. I did strategically choose Republican Seale for Congress against Blumenliar - good luck to her, she'll need it. Libertarian party statement in voter's pamphlet made me change my views on a couple ballot measures, but mostly I was already in agreement.

Got a beg-for-money thing from "President George W. Bush" on behalf of GOP Senate candidate Gordon Smith. Considered using the business-reply envelope to explain why I wasn't going to give him any - I am a very dissatisfied customer - but just tossed it instead.

Never did switch my registration from Republican, in time for this election. Will probably switch to Libertarian later though. "A pox on both their houses!" At least I am registered and I do vote.

Feeling a little better today (ugh! Need stronger cough drops, I think). Weather not too awful, and it's not too far, so biking to the OAC show.

It was a small show, but a pleasant one. $3 admission, no rent-a-fascists. The theme for the day was Marlins, and I saw many, some dating back to the 1890s and most in Excellent condition. Not just lever-actions, also Ballard single-shots, even a small revolver that looked a lot like a S&W #2. Saw a Mosin M44 carbine about identical to mine - even a similar serial number! - for $125. (I paid $69 total.) A Turk Mauser in Good, maybe Very Good condition, for $70 or so - now that might have been tempting, another day; the ones Big 5 had for $50 were nearer Fair. A couple .22 revolvers, an Iver Johnson double-action (solid-frame, removable cylinder) 9-shot and a Rough Rider Colt-style single-action (with safety lever!), $125 each - not far from what I'm looking for, but with martial law and civil war coming I have got to get motorized before I make any more significant purchases. Got a couple MREs, $3.50 each, the older dark-brown type that I think is more ruggedly packaged than later versions.

At least I got some exercise. Whatever bug I have seems to be in retreat.

64 - Monday, 28 October 2002: Got off work early, plenty of time to reach the cheap copy place, made a hundred copies of the 25-yard target - that oughta last a while. Also a few copies of my second op-ed ‘toon. Left a couple copies of the first one on busses.

65 - Tuesday, 29 October 2002: Sore throat finally easing off, though for a while I was popping cough drops like candy. It's going around. Wrist - some days better than others. Shoulder, upon which I landed in the October 12th bike wreck, giving me trouble too.

Age sucks.

OFF t-shirt in mail! They e-mailed me that it would ship Monday, and I guess it did! Will wear it tomorrow. Will have to get another one - or, a JPFO shirt, yeah, and maybe a Libertarian shirt from the Advocates.

Eventually. Money, ya know.

New toon:

Weeks ago I was given advance notice of some trade-show thing at work, requiring weekend hours at ungodsly hours, on the weekend of November 9-10. Learned today that I get Saturday off and will work Sunday, starting at 3:30am. May go to Barberton show on 9th, finally meet the Cruffler I've been swapping so much e-mail with. Sunday calls for a few hours' work in the early morning setting up, then a few more tearing down in the afternoon - may squeeze a trip to the 33rd Ave. Armory show in between.

66 - Wednesday, 30 October 2002: Cold! Record low temperatures in the region. Wind-chill too. Set faucet trickling to prevent frozen pipes, would hate to wake up without a nice hot shower. Blankets on sale at Bi-Mart, may get a couple. Got a heater-fan there on sale a couple weeks ago. Raises the electric bill, but at least I have a job this winter. The shack masquerading as an apartment is not energy-efficient, or well-insulated, or weather-sealed, but it is cheap, and that makes up for a lot. At least the roof doesn't leak.

I kind of want a different winter coat. I have a surplus M65 field jacket, which is a good coat, but it's woodland camouflage and I want to get away from wearing camo except for "business," so as not to draw unnecessary attention. Recall the analogies to 1930's Germany. I don't want to walk down the street with the 21st Century equivalent of a yellow Star-of-David pinned to my chest. I may get a black M65 at a surplus store or gun show.

Activism t-shirts are different. Sometimes I want to declare myself (and, except for the mismanaged, unresponsive NRA, the outfits selling the shirts need the money, to try to keep my rifle practice from acquiring practical applications). But... I'm giving it more thought than I should have to, if this were a truly free society. If (when, dammit, when!) I get a pickup, I may not use bumper stickers or window decals, fearing political persecution or police harassment. (And I had them all picked out, too....)

Paranoid, you say? There was a recent case in Texas (of all places!) where an NRA window decal was considered, by a blueshirt, probable cause for search-and-seizure. The blueshirt was slapped down... this time. And not slapped very hard.

Gunfolk and other patriots often say that freedom comes from four boxes, to be used only in the following order: the Soap Box, the Ballot Box, the Jury Box, and the Cartridge Box. The Soap Box is censored, the Ballot Box doesn't count, the Jury Box doesn't work and....

I need more practice.

Forecast for Saturday, cold but clear - may try English Pit again. Handgun ammunition also on sale at Bi-Mart, may get another box of .357/110 and practice with revolver too.

67 - Thursday, 31 October 2002: Crap! Got talked into working on Saturday. Well, I do need the money. Might try English Pit anyway if I get off early enough. A co-worker might go along, may even drive.

Interesting. When I paid my fare, the (black) bus driver gave (white) me a transfer good for less than one hour (it's supposed to be two), and for the wrong fare zone, which could have got me fined by fare inspectors if I were going any further than my apartment. Normally I check the transfer as soon as I get it but I was tired after a busy day at work and a dreadful mob at the supermarket and I just stuffed it in my pocket.

Add this to Chief Charles Moose's blatant reluctance to blame anyone but a white NRA member for the DC-area shootings; his obvious distaste at having to arrest two black Muslims; further back and more widespread, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, et. al. hurling allegations to extort money from companies that don't discriminate against whites by hiring less-qualified minorities; a local (black) schoolkid getting headlines for trying to get Huckleberry Finn censored....

And according to the "liberal" media, I'm supposed to be the racist oppressor.

While visiting infamous anti-Federal commentary site Sierra Times, I saw a name I'd seen before: H. K. Edgerton, a black man, former head of the Asheville, N.C. NAACP and... a Confederate. This courageous and honorable man is shaming me and, hopefully, millions of other Americans, by actually doing something to support what he believes in - specifically, he's marching 1,300 miles across Dixie, carrying the Third National Flag of the Confederacy, to raise awareness of and respect for Southern and Confederate heritage. Here's the Sierra Times link, and a more direct one.

He's more man than I am. I haven't even the guts to raise my First National, which almost no one would recognize. The Third National uses the unmistakable Southern Cross in the canton.

Just to be clear - so far as I know, I have no links to either the Confederacy or the South; no family history, etc. But, the Confederacy's enemy then is my enemy now, so I am sympathetic to Confederate causes. A while back I even bought a couple raffle tickets for a reproduction 1851 Colt revolver, proceeds going to the Pelham Scholarship to support Confederate history. (I didn't win.)

Speaking of raffles, KeapAndBearArms.com is having one, $10 for a chance at a "handgun of your choice." Hmm- a Belgian Browning Hi-Power would be nice....

Phone bill in mail. I could/should pay it right away but will probably procrastinate.

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