James R. Rummel

I am a self defense instructor who lives in Columbus, Ohio.

How Are Convicted Felons Like the Japanese?

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Citizens of Japan, with very few exceptions, are barred from even touching a single round of ammunition. Defy the law and they could end up in jail for five years.

Convicted felons in the United States, or people who received a Dishonorable Discharge from the armed forces, are pretty much operating under the same restrictions. This section of Federal law has been the subject of much debate amongst those interested in armed self defense. I’ve decided to post about it because John of The Zeray Gazette fame is asking his readers if they agree with the practice.

Just keep in mind that this is my opinion only, and I am certainly not a lawyer or government official by any stretch of the imagination. I’m sure that there will be plenty of stuff in the rambling post below to piss just about everyone off. But this is how see it.

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Will Wonders Never Cease?

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How many dooms have been promised me since I was born?

Rampant pollution was going to choke me, rampant population crush me. Fresh water was going to run out, fresh air was already gone. Deforestation was going to create droughts, desertification was going to bring sand to my front door. Food additives were going to cause my body to fall apart, artificial hormones were going to cause the human race to die out due to sterilization. A new ice age was going to bring a global freeze, while burning the last of the Earth’s oil reserves would bring the end of our technology.

Tipping points were all the rage. Species going extinct in the rain forests due to urbanization would eventually start a global cascade of extinction that would lead to the human race itself going extinct. Pump enough CFC’s in the atmosphere and the Arctic ozone hole would eventually race to cover the entire world. Dump enough pollution in the environment and acid rain would wash your face off of your skull during a gentle Spring shower.

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Mayor Saves Damsel in Distress From Violent Femmes by Waving His Iron Bar Around

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Think I’m pulling your leg? Think again! Put this down as solid proof to the saying “Truth is stranger than fiction”.

A climate change filmmaker and lobbyist is accosted by a gang of ne’er-do-well girls, one of which is carrying an iron bar. The victim is physically handled, shoved up against a car, and threatened. Then Boris Johnson, the Mayor of old London town, just happens to pedal on by. He stops to lend a hand, even going so far as picking up the iron bar and using it to help convince the gang to clear off.

I’m a fully accredited self defense instructor with close to two decades experience in the trade. What do you think would happen to me if I had been the one to stop and help? Johnson is damn lucky that he is the Mayor!

The old saying would have you believe that a Conservative is a Liberal who has been mugged by reality. The filmmaker certainly would fit the bill, but don’t expect her to change her political stripe any time soon.

(Hat top to Milo, and cross posted at Hell in a Handbasket.)

Global Networking

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Glenn brings us this sordid tale. Two men were recently arrested for plotting to perform terrorist attacks in Denmark.

It seems that they are still upset about that whole Muhammad cartoon flap that happened way back in 2005. Makes sense, as Muslim terrorists have a very long memory. They still cite the Crusades as a major reason for hating the West. If something done and gone for close to ten centuries still motivates them to attack people who had nothing whatsoever to do with those long ago events, then I suppose it seems logical that half a decade will seem like a mere tick of the clock. Maybe there will still be terrorists who have a yen to blow up cartoonists in the year 2300 CE or so, simply because of what those long dead scribblers dashed off in the opening years of the 21st Century.

But that is merely tangential to what I really want to discuss.

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Faint Praise

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Obama gets the Nobel Peace Prize. There’ll be no living with him now.

Why did he get it, exactly? For failing to bring the Olympics to Chicago?

It seems that the Nobel committee is still seething that Bush managed to forge a democracy in the Middle East, as their praise of Obama sounds an awful lot like the scolding Bush got during his two terms. It seems that our current President brought hope to the world, changed the climate of international politics, stuff like that. Sounds like one of Obama’s campaign speeches.

The praise heaped on Obama is all about ephemeral accomplishments that have yet to actually happen. Getting the US involved in combating climate change, reducing the number of nuclear weapons in the world, reducing tensions between Muslim nations and the US. Sort of like giving the heavyweight boxing championship to an Internet tough guy who never actually threw a punch.

But trying to use the Nobel prize to try and make Bush feel bad is now traditional for the Nobel committee. Back in 2002, they passed one off to former President Jimmy Carter for that very reason.

The next step is to give a Nobel prize to the girl Bush knew in high school that turned him down for a date. That will show him!