I have been this way before

What you are looking at is a Colt 1911 Combat Commander in .38 Super caliber, along with a couple of boxes of ammunition, resting atop a black, leather motorcycle jacket. Neat, hah? This is my most recent acquisition (last week) in the realm of firearms. As for the music, October is over, and it is safe to play Vixen and to remember Jan Kuehnemund, who died on October 10, 2013, at the age of 51. She created Vixen in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1980, while still a high school student.

Maybe, 38 is the perfect number

I managed to go four months without buying another firearm.  Yes, that sentence means I did buy another. Which reminds me, why are people who are affected (or should that be infected ?? afflicted ??) by computers called "nerds" or "geeks," but people who have the same attachment to firearms called "gun nuts?" On second thought, I guess I prefer the term "nut."

Anyway, while I do utilize the personal computer and have done so since before the days of the internet, I still love "things" from the past more than I do those from the present. Would you believe the pistol I just purchased is built to fire a cartridge introduced in 1929? And, that this is the first handgun I, a self-admitted gun nut, have owned which will fire this cartridge? The pistol itself, incidentally, is a Series 70 Colt Model 1911 Combat Commander. As the model number implies, it has been around since 1911 and this particular one dates to 1976.

A thirty-eight caliber in a thirty-eight-year-old pistol .... neat ....

The .38 Super cartridge was a "hot" round in terms of velocity and energy, and state of the art in 1929. Technology has passed it by, as it has so many things. But, as I said, that which is old appeals to me. I carry a portable Royal typewriter, for instance -- 1950 date of manufacture and still like new, that I bought in an antique shop in Knoxville, Tennessee -- on road trips in case power is not available and the battery for my laptop takes its own vacation.

Back to the .38 Super. In the 1930s, the cartridge in a 1911 Colt pistol became a favorite among FBI agents like Melvin "Little Mel" Purvis, as well as many notorious criminals of the era like Lester Gillis, better known as Baby Face Nelson. It was one of the guns carried by lawmen when Bonnie and Clyde "bit the dust," and it was the pistol used by an FBI agent to shoot down John Dillinger.

The cartridge faded away over time, but resurfaced in the 1970s among competition shooters for practical reasons which I will not elaborate upon today. It now has evolved into sort of a "cult round." I do not mean this in a negative sense, but only that, like a number of cartridges, the .38 Super has found itself the favorite of a significant, but relatively small, number of shooters. The .41 magnum is another such example among revolver aficionados.

The .38 Super also is popular in Mexico and some other Latin countries, where pistoleros are not permitted to own handguns which fire military designated rounds like the 9 mm and the .45 ACP caliber.
 

So, you might ask, why am I writing this piece? Simple, because I want to, and I like to do what I want .... and, because it helps me to escape from thoughts of snow and frigid temperatures .... and, because even gun posts sometimes lead to new people, places and ideas .... and, because I become absorbed in the historic role of many people, places and things, and what is more intrinsic to the history of the United States than the firearm? 

  

And, I suppose, because it is one ingredient in my never-ending (so it seems) search for the "perfect handgun." Remember? My interpretation of the quest for the holy grail .... the perfect rifle, the perfect pistol, the perfect car and/or truck, the perfect house on a hill, the perfect companion .... and, yes, I suppose, the perfect god .... or, at least, as Lew Wallace wrote, "The Fair God" ....

Now, you might ask yourself why you are reading this ....

The Marine & The Rifle .... Happy Anniversary

                      The U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon

This is my rifle

In observance of the 239th birthday of the United States Marine Corps -- November 10, 1776-2014 -- printed here is an excerpt from, "Warrior Culture of the U.S. Marines," by Marion F. Sturkey:

"In boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, or San Diego, California, and in the Basic Officer School at Quantico, Virginia, no one escapes from the Rifleman's Creed. Every Marine is trained, first and foremost, as a rifleman, for it is the rifleman who must close with and destroy the enemy. The rifleman remains the most basic tenet of Marine Corps doctrine. All else revolves around him. Marine Aviation, Marine Armor, Marine Artillery and all supporting arms and war-fighting assets exist to support the rifleman. It is believed that Major General William H. Rupertus, USMC, authored the creed shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. It is commonly known as the Rifleman's Creed, but it has also been called 'My Rifle: The Creed of a United States Marine.' Every Marine is expected to live by the creed:"

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine.

My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life.

My rifle, without me, is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will...

My rifle and I know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, nor the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. We will hit...

My rifle is human, even as I, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strength, its parts, its accessories, its sights and its barrel. I will keep my rifle clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other. We will...

Before God, I swear this creed. My rifle and I are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life.

So be it, until victory is America's and there is no enemy, but peace!

It is time to smash all the mirrors

The electorate has spoken, as illustrated in the Dave Granlund cartoon; now we shall see if the victorious, surging Republican Party can put its act together and actually accomplish anything positive and beneficial for the United States and its citizens. The election was Tuesday; today is Friday. Yes, I know I am late, but I do have other things to do and other places to be on occasion. So, anyway, late or whatever, here are my thoughts about the 2014 elections.

Now, we shall see

This will not be long or detailed -- well, not too much of either, anyway .... maybe. It will be a few facts and a few opinions and a few hopes.

Tuesday was not a victory for the Republican Party, although it has regained control of the United States Senate for the first time since 2006 and increased its degree of control in the U.S. House of Representatives by picking up an additional dozen seats. Neither was it a victory for conservative women or for minority Republican candidates, although they outdistanced both liberal men and liberal women in their contests.

What it was is a victory for conservative-political opportunity ....

What it was is a potential victory for the American people and for a possible resurgence of belief in a smaller, less intrusive federal government, and in the freedom and the rights of the individual.

It is an opportunity for conservative philosophy to restore the integrity of a living, breathing document -- the U.S. Constitution, which an American president, Barack Obama, has ignored, betrayed and broken during six years in office. It is an opportunity for conservative politicians to restore prosperity through economic progress, energy independence and employment growth. It is an opportunity for conservative philosophy to regain international influence in a positive way by reaffirming friendships and alliances with democratic nations and by protecting small and/or weak nations from the aggression of tyrants, wanna-be dictators and renegade religious fanatics.

Then, there is the overwhelming number of wins by Republican candidates over Democrat candidates for governorships around the country. Thirty-two of the fifty states now have a Republican governor.

And, a look at some of the individual races demonstrates that minority groups blindly following Democrat "propaganda slogans" may have begun to sway: Republican Mia Love of Utah became the first black woman ever elected to the House of Representatives; Republican Joni Ernst became the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Iowa and the first-ever woman military veteran (with a tour in a combat zone) elected to the U.S. Senate; Republican Tim Scott became the first black man to win election to the U.S. Senate in the South since the era of Reconstruction; Republican Elise Stefanik of New York has become the youngest woman ever elected to the House of Representatives.

I will not take the time to list some of the Democrat icons who lost election or re-election bids. The times certainly "might" be changing.

The results of Tuesday elections cannot be described as anything but breathtaking for supporters of conservative policies. Whether the elections are a repudiation of Obama and his socialistic programs or of liberal Democrat programs in general is an open question. Based on Obama's angry/aggressive/arrogant reaction to election results and the pattern of his presidency to this point in time, I truly believe he is not only a megalomaniac, but clinically psychotic. (Watch his actions during the next two months, if you doubt my opinion.) The answer to any and all questions will be written during the next two years and finalized when the next round of national elections, including that for the next president, will take place in 2016.

It is now up to a Republican House of Representatives and Senate to curtail Obama's socialistic policies, to force him to adopt legislation which improves the economic climate rather than curtails it, and to generate legislation which places the U.S. on a pathway to become a leader once again rather than a bystander on the world stage.

It is now or never for Republican office holders. The question is whether or not they have the intelligence and wisdom to get the message. They are not rock stars; they are politicians, and it is time for them to understand that simple point. A good beginning would be to smash all the mirrors in Washington, D.C.

On a closing note, it is difficult for me to understand why anyone would vote for Al Franken to represent Minnesota in the U.S. Senate. In his first election, six years ago, he won by fewer than four hundred votes among millions. There was a recount and there were accusations of voter fraud. I believe voter fraud did occur. This time, he won easily. It should be obvious that by electing Franken, Minnesotans have clearly demonstrated that they are among those who have their heads buried in the sand in terms of political common sense.

One political pundit explained the voting habits of Minnesotans by noting that the state bird is the loon. This would go a long way in explaining why Franken is the majority choice to be their senator .... typical Minnesota voter + Al Franken = two loons.

P.S. The song is dedicated to the man in the White House who would be king ....

Run, run, run forever following the rainbow

Once upon a time there was an English poet named Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Among his loves was the Arthurian Legend, and his work included pieces drawn from that fable with titles like "Galahad" and "Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere" and "The Lady of Shalott." There were two variations of "Lady," one written in 1833 and the second in 1842. An English painter named John William Waterhouse, inspired by Lord Tennyson's "Lady," produced his vision of her in 1888 in the form of an oil on canvas. This is what you see here today, Waterhouse's "The Lady of Shalott." Because this post does not revolve directly around this poem and that painting, we shall leave further discussion of them for another time. Instead, since the characters in this poem and that painting are a blend of history, myth and legend, it does not seem much of a leap to have them mingle with fairy tales generally relegated to stories for children. So, that is what I am doing in this post, as well as broadening the definition of "fairy tale" to include reference to a contemporary story more fiction than fact. To complete the circle of illustration/words/music, also present is a beautiful song called "Catch the Rainbow." It is performed by a band called Rainbow and portrayed in a marvelous video created by someone who calls them self Deep46Blue.
 

Part I .... the beauty of being a child ....

I recognized all the characters illustrated in this video rendition of "Catch the Rainbow" by Ritchie Blackmore and Ronnie James Dio and other members of the band Rainbow. How did you do? These characters appeared among the stories my mother read to me as a small boy. I probably had most of the tales memorized long before I could read them myself and, I suppose, the presence of these stories actually is how I learned to read. Hmmmm .... I remember that .... remember learning to read. I think I was a lucky boy.

Fram the Fortunate, then and now .... who had a mother, and a grandmother, who taught me not only how to read and never to fear an enchanted forest or the wine-dark sea, but to be honest and how to distinguish the providers from the takers, the good from the evil, the givers from the users, the fairy tales from reality.

I might act like a self-indulging dreamer at times -- a man with an idealistic vision searching for the end of a mythical rainbow where a mysterious princess playing solitaire awaits me as I travel along battling Fafnir and other lindworms and wyverns from here to there on my way to her -- but, I will not be fooled by false prophets or wizards or assorted charlatans along the journey.

Part II .... the allegory of then and now ....

Chicken Little likes to walk in the woods. She likes to look at the trees and hug them. She likes to smell the flowers. She likes to listen to the birds singing.

One day while she is walking an acorn falls from a tree, and hits the top of her little head.

- My, oh, my, the sky is falling. I must run and tell the lion/king about it, - says Chicken Little and begins to run.

She runs and runs. By and by she meets the hen.

- Where are you going? - asks the hen.

- Oh, Henny Penny, the sky is falling and I am going to the lion/king to tell him about it.

- How do you know it? - asks Henny Penny.

- It hit me on the head, so I know it must be so, - says Chicken Little.

- Let me go with you! - says Henny Penny. - Run, run.

So the two run and run until they meet Ducky Lucky.

- The sky is falling, - says Henny Penny. - We are going to the lion/king to tell him about it.

- How do you know that? - asks Ducky Lucky.

- It hit Chicken Little on the head, - says Henny Penny.

- May I come with you? - asks Ducky Lucky.

- Come, - says Henny Penny.

So all three of them run on and on until they meet Foxey Loxey, who in human form is Al Gore and is accompanied by Barry Soetoro and a cohort of liberal power/money mongers.

- Where are you going? - asks Foxey "Al" Loxey.

- The sky is falling and we are going to the lion/king to tell him about it, - says Ducky Lucky.

- Do you know where he lives? - asks the fox.

- I don't, - says Chicken Little.

- I don't, - says Henny Penny.

- I don't, - says Ducky Lucky.

- I do, - says Foxey "Al" Loxey. - Come with me and I can show you the way.

He walks on and on until he comes to his den. The sign above the entrance reads: Church of Climate Change.

- Come right in, - says Foxey "Al" Loxey. You can have anything you want while you rest here before resuming your journey, and I will read to you from the Gospel of Cradle to Grave.

They all go in, but they never, never come out again.
 

Only their music & my words .... only/only

Hey! I have seen these guys here before! You bet -- Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce. I decided to toss Cream to the wolves again this evening, on this occasion by presenting a portion of the band's farewell concert of 1968 at Royal Albert Hall. (God, I love YouTube.) It is a bit more than an hour long. If that is too much for you, I would recommend listening to the first twenty minutes or so. It includes "Sunshine of Your Love," an interview with Bruce and "White Room." Through Bruce, I think you will learn the difference between music and marketing, between artistry then and junk now. (Yeh, like you really care, hah ??) By the way, I believe Bruce really was underrated as a musician and as the "power" of Cream. But, you know how it goes: The girls "dug" Clapton more .... and, it is quite obvious, Clapton is a guitar virtuoso and deserves the adoration he receives. By the way, photographer unknown.

So much for the romance of travel

I recently encountered an ophthalmologist here in middle America who, it turned out, earned her medical degree and completed an ophthalmology residency at Ternopil State Medical University in the Ukraine. She also completed a residency in ophthalmology at Northwestern University in Chicago and practiced in North Dakota before arriving in Minnesota. She speaks English with a marvelous accent. Too bad that she is married. 

Only a few weeks ago, I was speaking with a small town, Minnesota newspaper reporter who had lived in Poland for a few years and, while there, had met and married a young lady born and raised in Poland. Like many newsmen, he is a bit of a vagabond, and had been working for a newspaper in North Dakota immediately before coming to Minnesota.

Why I mention these things, I am not altogether certain, but it seems to me that life has reached a point where Eastern Europe is no farther away from Minnesota than is North Dakota -- Poland or the Ukraine, a few hours by airplane; North Dakota, a very few hours by car.

For certain, travel has lost all its romance and adventure. Here is there and there is here, and the twain keep bumping into each other.

Turn out the lights, the party is over

A few days ago I learned I have "lost" not only one of my favorite musicians, Jack Bruce, but two of my favorite bartenders, as well. Both men died on Sunday, October 19. How often does a guy have two bartenders die on him on the same day? You will note that both died on days their bars were closed for business. Hmmmm .... you do not suppose they arranged things that way, do you?

It might sound like I am making light of events, but Bruce and both bartenders lived relatively long, full lives. We should all be so fortunate. And, death is the price we each and every one of us pays for life.

Actually, both men were bar owners as well as bartenders and from my sort of distant past. Windy was from my youth and Minnesota; and Kenny was from later and South Dakota. 

Windy was mostly a baseball man. Work was something to do between ball games. Playing ball, I mean, not watching .... although, I suppose he watched games, too. He was still playing baseball on "town teams" well into his thirties. He was sort of a role model for teenage athletes. He could throw a baseball harder and faster than I ever could, but I could take him two games out of three at pool.

Kenny was a connoisseur of the bar. It was rare to walk into his establishment when he did not approach me with his "latest concoction" in his hand -- free of charge, of course -- wanting my opinion regarding its "quality." As you might guess, I often volunteered to taste-test his creations until Dandy Don sang, "The Party's Over," and the lights went out.

Anyway, you see? I keep telling you to keep a low profile in October !!

As for me ....

October has only a few days remaining, but sometime during these few days my fate for the next few months probably will be revealed. I have a feeling the outcome will not be good for me or for anyone around me. At this moment, it appears October will continue to be the cruelest of months for me, but the suspense will linger during these last few days until the veil is lifted and certain questions are answered.

One more thing: I recently have been involved ("involved" might not be the best word to use, but ....) in commentary both here and at other blogs regarding climate change and global warming. I want to make clear a couple of points:

One: I do think climate change is real. It has been real since the beginning of time. Unfortunately, the concept of the "beginning of time" for most people seems to be the year they were born.

Two: I do not think mankind has much influence over climate change and, in any case, cannot do a thing about it given the governmental structure of the world. There are about two hundred nations in existence at the moment; getting any dozen of them to agree on anything is pretty much impossible.

Three: There are so many real, actionable problems which, if solved, could improve the lives of the people who inhabit this planet that it seems absurd to me to spend time, money, energy and emotions on abstract (largely political) situations such as climate change. We are talking about definitely unproven science and about governments whose leaders generally are incapable of walking and chewing gum at the same time; does anyone actually expect these self-serving, power-mongering, hypocrites to solve any substantial problems?

Personally, I tend to bend toward a conservative viewpoint, which does not equal a Republican. For political expediency, I have been both a registered Democrat and a registered Republican. Usually, this has had to do with primary election voting rules in states where I was a resident. And, during one of my brief departures from reality into the land of smoke and mirrors, I actually was a salaried staff member for a congressman who was elected to office as a Democrat. (Whoops, I must be a traitor to Democrat Party orthodoxy.)

Beyond that, I would match my environmental credentials against those of most whining tree-huggers, who often live a life of irrational fantasy in context of the natural world.

Once, during a job interview at a newspaper, the fact that I was a member of both the Sierra Club and the National Rifle Association became a point of discussion in terms of reconciliation: How could I be a member of two such apparently diametrically opposite organizations? Easy, I replied: I deal with facts and realities, not with emotions and pipe dreams.

To be brutally blunt: The pied pipers of cradle to grave fascism are attempting to turn climate change into literal religion, and those who are lemmings seem to be following ....