Sorry for the light post-Thanksgiving blogging...as usual I'm cleverly using my time off to suffer through my endless travel head cold. And, as usual, I have managed to transfer the virus to my Sweetie, who has been suffering piteously. I've spent my time reading Patrick O'Brian and studying up for my first set of interviews for GUN STORIES early next week. I had hoped to have a major announcement about GS by now, but "negotiations are still under way."
I'm also headed out to OC for a day next week to talk about changes in the gun culture and its implications for 2011, sort of an expansion of my Gun Culture Ver. 2.0 concepts. Based on preliminary sales figures from 2010 and talks with industry execs it's safe to say that self-defense/concealed carry are unequivocally the primary drivers of the market. The big trend for 2010 is the bigger than expected successes of shooting competitions on television, led by TOP SHOT on History and 3-GUN NATION on Versus. I hear channels are scrambling for more shooting programming. I think this is part and parcel of the "normalizing" of firearms ownership and use in the U.S....in short, we're winning the cultural war as well as the political and legal war. If we continue to consolidate our cultural gains and continue our successes in the legal/political arena — especially in the wake of this month's midterm elections — 2011 may well be the year the put the final nails in the coffin of the already largely irrelevant "antigun movement."
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"The big trend for 2010 is the bigger than expected successes of shooting competitions on television, led by TOP SHOT on History and 3-GUN NATION on Versus. I hear channels are scrambling for more shooting programming."
Which will lead to more sponsors for matches, which will lead to better prize tables, which will lead to more shooters, which will lead to more matches, which will lead to more opportunities for sponsors, which will lead to...
Welcome to the virtuous circle.
Michael Bane said:
"If we continue to consolidate our cultural gains and continue our successes in the legal/political arena — especially in the wake of this month's midterm elections — 2011 may well be the year the put the final nails in the coffin of the already largely irrelevant "antigun movement." "
Michael,
This enemy will never be completely destroyed. They are like cockroaches. The only thing we can do is drive them far underground. The reason we will never be able to completely destroy them is they represent a subset of the population that wants to take our rights and enslave us to the state. These people think they know better than anyone else and they are committed to seeing their agenda through. We will always need to be vigilant.
This is what I kept saying when everyone was freaking out about Obama and credulously posting every gun confiscation/UN treaty e-mail rumor they came across in every shooting forum I read.
We're winning - hell, we've won - because we used facts, reason, rational argument and the ballot box. The only way we can lose again is by giving it away through in-your-face idiocy. Which is why I loathe open-carry protests and their "what good is a right if you don't shove it in someone's face" rationale.
As a motorcyclist, I despise loud-pipe Harley idiots because as a minority we can't afford to gratuitously piss off the majority. Thanks to them, now I have to remove the quiet aftermarket performance muffler on my bike because the annoyed majority got a "stock mufflers required to pass inspection and sticker must be displayed" law passed in my state. Thanks a lot, jerks.
That's all I'm asking - don't poke the dog with a stick. Keep letting him know you're friendly and he'll be licking your hand.
I'm cleverly using my time off to suffer through my endless travel head cold.
Flying around in a germ capsule at 30,000 ft will do that to you. Add in the 'not in my own bed' sleep deprivation and it's a perfect cocktail for making you both miserable.
Screw the blog, get some Mucinex, water and SLEEP!
(and beg forgiveness from your Sweetie)
Hey MB here's the perfect steam punk watch for you, kinda pricey though....
http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/27/manufacture-royale-debuts-1-2-million-opera-accordion-watch-si/
Bad sinus? It may sound displeasing, but go to the local riteaid (or whatever you guys have out there in co)... And buy yourself a netipot.... I have used this device in am and pm, and have significantly reduced my sinus prob and have not gotten a cold, even with delta diamond level air travel in 2 years.. At least, it is worth a try!
Now here's the ticket! I've been using one of these since my ENT (who is also a Dive Master)invented it some 20+ years ago. It has saved me from sinus suffering and pain every since!
http://www.cvs.com/CVSApp/catalog/shop_product_detail.jsp?filterBy=&skuId=455278&productId=455278&navAction=push&navCount=2&no_new_crumb=true
I happened to run across this article about Patrick O'Brian yesterday, over at John Derbyshire's site:
http://www.johnderbyshire.com/Reviews/Considerations/patrickobrian.html
Interesting read.
Lemon grass and sliced ginger root work really well for sinus stuffiness. Of course you will have to go to an oriental store to get 'em.
You are probably already aware of this remedy, but for others you boil them together (with a minimal amount of water) for a while then breath the vapors. Before it cools completely, pour out some of the hot tea and put a bit of honey in it. Works as well or better than off-the-shelf remedies. Lemon grass is analgesic...helping you to relax and sleep without harsh chemicals.
Mikes machine looks interesting, but if you travel, you may not want to lug it...
Here is the walgreen version of the neti pot...
http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/walgreens-sinus-wash-neti-pot-kit/ID=prod4156467-product
Once you run out of packets, make your own stash consisting of 2 parts non-iodized salt, 1 part baking powder (that is all the packets are).. This is cheap (less than $20 puts you in business), effective, and you can take it in your suitcase.. It was a life saver for me.. if your sinuses are too blocked, you may need to wait to start after they clear up a bit, but if you make it a regular regieme, you wont get that way again...
I'd really like to see more competition on TV. It seems to come and go; it gets some coverage for a while, then it cools. It's done that probably as long as there's been TV. What I think will help is the large money put up by Maxim magazine with their Maximum Warrior...match...type...thing...or something. I'd like to see that on TV, as the guy who won is a really cool dude. Having something like that on a channel other than The Outdoor Network (who specialize in that kind of programming) would be really great.
If you're not already using it, start using Airborne when you travel. That and Cold Eze have both worked well for me.
Any chance for a push towards Constitutional Carry here in Colorado? I've written my representative but I live in one of the places that stayed in the hands of the progressives and I don't believe he would author anything of the sort.
Brass
Brass, with the current Democratic control of Colorado state government, and Hickenlooper in particular, we'll be lucky to hang on to the CCW law that we have. Another consequence of the collapse of the state GOP this year.
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