7/19/2015

Thoughts On A Sunday

It's a twofer weekend here in New Hampshire, with the 5 Hour Energy 301 NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Loudon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and the 'Luke Bryant' weekend (3 concerts) at our local concert venue. I figure we'll be seeing quite a few folks from the Speedway making the trip up to Lake Winnipesaukee for the concert tonight, at least those who didn't make the trip last night.

The local airport is chockablock full of business jets, with the itinerant parking ramp just about full with Lears, Bombardiers, Citations, and Gulfstreams. Some belong to the race teams, some to corporate sponsors, and some to some of the wealthier race fans. We've hearing them coming into the airport all weekend. I expect the usual exodus will take place starting about an hour after the checker flag falls at Loudon. It's going to be quite noisy here when they leave.

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The trusty F150 received long overdue maintenance, in this case replacement of brake rotors and pads. I had one, possibly two warped rotors that made braking an interesting time. For the most part I would down-shift and let the engine do some of the braking before applying the brakes. Over the past two weeks it got bad enough I realized I could no longer put off the work and took it to my local mechanic.

Now that the brakes are fixed, I have to admit I'm really not used to them not surging and making some of the subtle noises associated with a warped rotor. It's a little disconcerting.

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Melody Lauer brings us 11 self-defense myths that won't die.

My favorite myth: People cannot perform under stress.

Hmm. I see people perform under stress on a regular basis. Much of it is training.

My favorite quote: “It’s not that we don’t have time to aim, it’s that we don’t have time to miss!”

Amen.

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Speaking of self defense, it appears the African-American community is coming around to the idea that guns provide protection, at least according to a Pew poll.

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Speaking further of self defense, the number of concealed carry permits for women is up 270% since 2007.

Good for them!

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Illegal immigration has reached a crisis point. No, not here in the US, but in Germany.

It passed the crisis point here in the US years ago, particularly at the urging of the Teleprompter In Chief. At least Germany's Chancellor Andrea Merkel is willing to address the issue, even if it's hard.

(H/T Maggie's Farm)

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Cap'n Teach informs us that even the Democrats believe climate change will be a minor issue in the upcoming 2016 election.

That matches with what a majority of the American public believe about climate change: it's a minor issue and far down on the list of important issues.

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What's San Francisco's response to the untimely shooting death of Kathryn Steinle by illegal immigrant and convicted criminal Juan Francisco Lopez Sanchez?

Yetanother new law to tighten gun controls in the city.

Considering Sanchez used a gun lost by a federal agent to kill Steinle, not one bought at the only gun store still existing in San Francisco, this proposed new law addresses absolutely nothing and even if it had been in place prior to Steinle's death would not have prevented it.

I'm beginning to think we should enact a quarantine of San Francisco in an effort to contain the insanity that has infected that once great city.

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Sultan Knish offers a bit of advice about 5 Ways to Fight the Left and Make Your Life Better.

Briefly, they are:

5. Don't Give Money to People Who Hate You

4. Shop Small Businesses and Become Independent

3. Build Likeminded Communities

2. Have Fun Starting Trouble (This one's for you, Skip!)

1. Focus on Your Family

Read the whole thing!

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It appears the New York Times has some kind of time machine. It seems they have gone back in time and found that Ayn Rand is a fan of Charleston gunman Dylann Roof.

Really?

That's strange considering Rand consider racism to be “the lowest, most crudely primitive form of collectivism. It is the notion of ascribing moral, social or political significance to a man’s genetic lineage—the notion that a man’s intellectual and characterological traits are produced and transmitted by his internal body chemistry. Which means, in practice, that a man is to be judged, not by his own character and actions, but by the characters and actions of a collective of ancestors.”

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I'm cutting this a bit short as we have received severe thunderstorm warnings and one cell is less than 30 minutes out, so I'm shutting everything down as a precaution.

So, that's the news from Lake Winnipesaukee, where the NASCAR fans are leaving, the barbecue grills are being covered, and where yet another round of thunderstorms is on their way.