Return of the Booth Babes: The 2007 SHOT Show
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Petzal: Predictions for the New Year
“Coach says it’s OK to bleed from the ears.”—Reggie Ray, in Not Another Teen Movie
For fear the hearts of men are failing,
For these are latter days we know.
The Great Depression now is spreading;
God’s word declared it would be so.
I’m going where there’s no Depression,
To that lovely land that’s free from care.
I’ll leave this world of toil and trouble.
My home’s in Heaven; I’m going there.
—A.P. Carter, from Songs of the Depression, by The New Lost City Ramblers, 1959
Some of the following is already fact. The rest of it will probably be fact before 2009 is out.
On December 18, one day after Washington announced its new “reasonable” gun-ownership laws, MSNBC news bunny Mika Brzezinski was mugged outside her D.C. hotel by a robber who did not carry a gun. Meanwhile, the murderer of Chondra Levy, the intern who was killed in a Washington park in 2001, remains at large.
President Obama will push a new firearms-control law through a Congress that is distracted by a debate over whether to bail out kitty litter manufacturers (unsympathetic reporters label the pro-litter faction “The Pissing Pussy Posse”). It establishes the National Bureau of Gun-Owner Control, and requires anyone possessing a firearm in the U.S. to carry an I.D. card issued by the Bureau. One of the requirements for obtaining a card involves passing a psychiatric exam and, to set the example, Vice President Joe Biden takes the first one. He fails it.
Stung by the shooting public’s rejection of the 592nd variation on its basic mid-20th-century rifle design, a major gun manufacturer will develop a breakthrough “game-harvesting system” that is actually a hand-held miniaturized heat-seeking missile with an effective range of 12.7 miles. Called the GHS and mounted with a celestial telescope, it requires no aiming—only pointing in a general direction--and cannot miss.
The GHS is given a radical advertising campaign (“Fair chase is so 20th century.”) and is a raging success; a black-powder version for special seasons soon follows. BATF chief Chelsea Clinton attempts to classify it as a destructive device, but Congress, distracted by the $13.5 billion in severance paid to top execs at GM, Ford, and Chrysler after their companies’ respective bankruptcies, does not go along.
And: This past hunting season I drove to hunts in South Carolina, Maine, and West Virginia, thereby depriving the airlines of the money they would pay ramp apes to dance on my gun case. I also avoided the TSA, getting stranded, the Ritalin-deprived 12-year-old sociopath who always sits in the seat behind me, and the awful despair in the eyes of all flight attendants.
My thanks to all of you who read this thing and contribute to it. I get a tremendous kick out of what you have to say, even if you disagree with me, which is surprising because I am always right.
Happy New Year.
That should have read "when you ship firearms with UPS".
Posted by: Jim in Mo | January 03, 2009 at 05:36 PM
forest hill, you've got a lot more to worry about, you got a president who wants your guns, A little change in your pocket, a new war starting and we're spread thin, a large national debt, ammo gettiing higher every day....Should I go on... Happy New Years everybody...Dave ,get a little more age on you and then I might understand you.(Just kidding)
Posted by: sarg | January 03, 2009 at 06:33 PM
Jim of N.C.. The luggage handles love to bash hig $ gun cases.My advice is: if you plan to hunt with a Outfitter, Club, etc. is to ship diredtly to them by UPS or Fed X. Fed X is my Choice.Some stats require that you ship to another dealer in the AREA YOU hunt. My first trip west, many years ago, all the firearm cases were kept in a seperate area of teh plane and we hand caried by the Airline Luggage director. When you arrived at your destination, the gun had to be retrived at the luggage room and you had to approve who you were and in fact that was your gun. Now the gun cases come down the with the other luggage, and anyone with common senses knows whats in a gun case. By the time you arrive at the luggage counter your gun could be 5 miles away. By all means insure your weapons prior to leaving home and the Airlines will no re-imburse you for any inside damage to any mdse. So take out some insurance with ytou home-owners policy for the trip and try to ship to yourcontact in what-ever area you plan to hunt. I take lots of Medication and I always ship my Rx's that way. And can bet my next trip ( if I return) the gun cases will not go by Air, but we have no guarantee after UPS/Fed X want ship by air aftre it's picket up at your home. Just buy enough insurance to buy a new gun,scope, mounts, and what-ever you may carry in the case. As for Western Hunting, I know we are being lead down the wrong path.All those western states want our high dollar licenses and they know that the game is not there in most cases. Om there's lots of game , but on privae ranches or in fences, but on BLM its fast leaving. I hunted NWMT for 16 days, never saw a Elk, only 2 Mile deer Bucks, ( I got l) a few Mule deer dos and only l spike W-tail. 4-5 ys ago,game was ever where and this was on private land that did join public property. Time is coming when you will hunt fenced property or make arrangfements with a huge Ranch owner who has foun out you nutty hunters will pay big $$$ to hunt a few days. At my age, I suppose my remaining hunts will be here at home. Just as well, as I have all the game from the Rockies I wanted. Now I want a Bear from the Smokey Mtns and would love to hunt ELK in KY if live long enough to get a tag, which I doubt. So Son and I will continue to plant feed plots and hunt here and save that $$ and worry to ravel.But, don't misunderstand, all should go west at least once, it's the most beautiful country in the world @10K feet.Just wish they had a rifle season early during the rut. Ok, shoot-um-straight and often. Got to et ready for a l wekJan Turkey hunt next week for either sex)that's Turkey sex)Looking for a Sears model 50 in 06, anyone got one for sale in excellent condition.?
Posted by: Rocky MtnHunter | January 03, 2009 at 09:37 PM
I wish the airlines would do as the land shipping companies and offer insurance for your baggage. Maybe that would create a reason (and supervision) for the apes to be more careful.
Posted by: Jim in Mo | January 03, 2009 at 11:06 PM
I receive lots of packages deliverd by UPS/FedX. They always leave them at the side door.Ther is a screened porch l6 ft away, and they do;t even leave them ther rain orshine. Once you check in a package and request Land trvel over air, that package is going the way they desire, and usually it's by Air. So just hope/pray your gun case arrives intact. But by all means take out trip insurane on the contents and the case. The best few bucks you will spend on a 5-7K$ hunt. Game out west is not as they say, this past few years the game has declined.Many thibnk the Wolves, Poachers, Cougars and Foexs are the culpits? may be,but last year they had a terrible winter and was stated that 70% of the newborn calves died,. I just know the area I hunt, game was few and very far between.When you hunt l6 days in Elk Country and see only tracks,something is wrong. I think the game Comm. needs to look closer at the Wolf situation and the Cougar as well. If the new Pres. brings the economy back, I may return to Montana or C0 in a couple years, but no point unless the game is there. We got many w-tails here and can hunt my own property with no hassel, so will do so till the west improves. Shoot-um-straight and often,. Hope all stay well and you got the gun for Christmas you wanted. BAck a but, someone sawed off the bbl ofma 338????? that bbl is ruined. Never saw off a rifle bbl. it only makes it a scatter gun and you cannot pattern it. I ruined a Custom made Mauser that I paid dearly for and had the bbl cut off. Shot l00 rounds and never got better than a 4" group. So Sold it to a collector and bought 3 other guns,. I do argue that a 24" bbl is by far better than a 22 " for western hunting. Down here in the south,22" is ok, but our shots are about 100 yds or less. I did take a 9 Pointer with B.P at l70 yds and a 6 pointer with 06 at 270 yds. Have one large field that is about 350 yds across, the remainder are near 200 yds or less.If you go west be prepared to shot up to 400 yds.Zero your gun for 200 yds always for out there and some areas 300 are better.If lopehunting the 300 is better. Happy New Year to all.
Posted by: Rocky MtnHunter | January 04, 2009 at 08:36 PM
New Year...and I have a NEW JOB; by no choice of my own of course. I fell victim to the bad bank economy, but I am thankful for being employed, and wish ALL a happy NEW YEAR!!
Straight shootin` all!!
Posted by: Ralph the Rifleman | January 04, 2009 at 08:59 PM
hahaha
Posted by: lol | January 04, 2009 at 10:05 PM
Carney
Unless you have the Lakeview permit antlerless tag, you are poaching for deer in WA!
Posted by: WA Mtnhunter | January 05, 2009 at 10:33 AM
New products for "09; Super powerful air guns and sub-sonic ammo in many calibers for hunting suburban whitetails. Camo patterns in "gas grill", "real deck", and "decorative shrub" for ambushing those wily deer who moved off the farms and out of the woods to grow fat beside the bike trails of suburbia.
Posted by: Douglas | January 05, 2009 at 12:34 PM
If you wantto keep deer near your place and don;t plant plots, at least buy mineral licks and place 2 or 3 at different locations. Fewfarmers left, kids got teh property and sub-divided itinto building lots. So in order to have a place to hunt you gonna have to lease land and work at keeping food available. You would be suprised at teh number of deer that bed within 100 yds of your house. I live in the woods, and deer bed within that distance all the time. But I provide water,licks, food plots and corn when season opens. Time is coming when when no place to hunt other than fenced farms. Not my type of hunting. SAw too many of those farms out west.. Looks like cattle feed lots. You choose a Animal you want, they price it, feed you supper, then in Am, turn that animal out into another small lot and you kill it. Go home with pictures, showing what a trophy you got. Then in a about 6 months your Mount arrives and you hang on wall and show off to all, now thats HUNTING City style. I want one more Western hunt to New Mexico for a huge Elk and a Lope.At 74, time slipping by and hopefully the DOW will allow me to do this last hunt westward.
Posted by: Rocky MtnHunter | January 08, 2009 at 09:52 PM