Virtually Unreported: CCW Holder Likely Prevented Larger Clackamas Mall Death Toll

God's veggie icons - shows what those are good for.

Hillary Clinton conveniently gets a concussion before the hearing.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/15/us/us-hillary-clinton-concussion/index.html

If you fall for this, what can I say that would not be insulting but still give an honest appraisal of your judgement faculties?

Jewish Chicken Soup - Heals, Strengthens

I am under the weather after staying out and giving my neighbor some firewood.  I guess the temp is getting colder than my body can keep up with.  Many of my kids are coughing and feeling weak;  they all have respiratory distress thanks to my genes that predisposes them.

Regardless, I went to a Jewish restaurant for some soup - the renowned chicken soup that most Jewish people swear to have magical powers.  Tappy had chicken noodle and I had matzo ball.  After that I worked outside and raked leaves - last minute clean up before the snow hits.  I still feel stronger now that before I had the soup.  And Tappy, she's not coughing and is in good spirits.

Billy was too weak to go.  I'll take him and Fees next time.  But anyway, what is in that soup?

5 RULES FOR CONCEALED CARRY WEAPON

from Kansas Militia

1:* YOUR CONCEALED WEAPON IS FOR PROTECTION OF LIFE ONLY.
Draw it solely in preparation to protect yourself or an innocent third party from the wrongful and criminal activities of another.

2: KNOW EXACTLY WHEN YOU CAN USE YOUR WEAPON. 

A criminal adversary must have or reasonably appear to have:
A. The ABILITY to inflict serious bodily injury. He is armed or reasonably appears to be armed.
B. The OPPORTUNITY to inflict serious bodily harm. He is positioned to harm you with his weapon, and,
C. His INTENT (hostile actions or words) indicates that he means to place you in jeopardy - to do you serious or fatal physical harm.
When all three of these "attack potential" elements are in place simultaneously, then you are facing a reasonably perceived deadly threat that justifies an emergency deadly force response. Note that these conditions may be defined differently in certain circumstances. For example, a small woman may be justified in using deadly force with a handgun against a much stronger male who is unarmed and attempting to rape or kill her. For a male vs. male encounter the defendant probably would not be justified unless possibly if he was physically handicapped, elderly, etc. This is known as disparity of force.

3. IF YOU CAN RUN AWAY SAFELY- RUN!
Just because you are armed doesn't necessarily mean that you must confront a bad guy at gunpoint. Develop your situation awareness skills so that you can be alert to detect and avoid trouble as much as possible. Keep in mind that if you successfully evade a potential confrontation, the single negative consequence involved might only be your bruised ego, which should heal quickly with mature rationalization. But if you force a confrontation, and it escalates into deadly force, you risk the possibility of death or serious injury to yourself and any friends, family members, or innocent bystanders that may be present.
Also you face the possibility of criminal liability and/or financial ruin from a civil lawsuit as a result of your actions. Flee if you can - fight only as a last resort.

Naturally, there are circumstances in which you may be able to flee but it would not be in your best interest or judgment to do so. For example, a situation that you could easily flee from when alone may be difficult to safely avoid if your family was with you. Also it may be a judgment/ethics call on whether or not to fight or flee based on what is happening to potential victims around you.

For example, a gunman may be threatening the life of someone else and not even notice you. If you leave the scene, and go call 911 and just wait for the police to show up, you may have to deal with guilt and emotional issues that result if the gunman kills someone. In contrast, if you intervene, then you may risk your own life. Remember that self-preservation, and keeping your loved ones safe should be your first priorities. Always remember to stay calm and quickly analyze the situation at hand. Use good judgment on how you will react to any given circumstance.

4. DISPLAY YOUR WEAPON, GO TO JAIL.

You should expect to be arrested by police at gunpoint, and be charged with a crime anytime your concealed handgun is seen by another citizen in public, regardless of how unintentional, innocent, or justified the situation might seem.

Choose a method of carry that reliably keeps your gun hidden from public view at all times. You have no control over how a stranger will react to seeing (or learning about) your concealed weapon. He of she might become alarmed and report you as a "man or woman with a gun". Depending on his or her feelings about firearms, this person might maliciously embellish their story in an attempt to have your gun seized by police or in order to get you arrested. Even though your jacket only blew open for a moment, giving a brief glimpse of your gun, that person may tell the police that you were waving it around like a homicidal maniac. An alarmed citizen who reports a "man or woman with a gun" is going to be a lot more credible to police than you are when you are stopped because you match the "suspect's" description and you are found to have a concealed handgun in your possession. Before you deliberately expose your gun in public, ask yourself "is this worth going to jail for?" The only time this question should warrant a "yes" response is when an adversary has at least both the ABILITY and INTENT and is actively seeking the OPPORTUNITY to do you great harm.

Also, remember that proper concealment of a weapon is more than just covering it up so that it is not physically visible. You want to remove as much as possible any signs that you are armed. For example, you would not wear a tight T-shirt that shows the lines of your gun printing through it, especially if that T-shirt has a firearm related logo or statement on it. Also, a black nylon fanny-pack or a photographer's vest may, in certain areas or in certain modes of dress tell any half-educated person that you are packing a gun. It is also not usually a very good idea to let too many people know that you carry a gun. This fact should be limited to your immediate family and select friends who are "gun people" also. Please, for your sake and the sake of others around you - be discreet!

5. DON'T LET YOUR EMOTIONS GET THE BEST OF YOU.

When you are armed, you must realize that you just lost your right to initiate ANY type of confrontation that could possibly escalate into a violent encounter. You must now have a very mellow attitude on life and your fellow mankind.

You just lost the right to flip off the motorist who just cut you off in traffic. You have to ignore the scumbag who just "wolf-whistled" at your wife/girlfriend. If someone wants to pick a fight with you, you lost the right to respond in any way other than a kind, friendly manner while walking away. As an armed person you must be more likely and willing to avoid trouble that an unarmed person would be. You have the legal and moral obligation of de-escalating any situation that you are presented with unless you are faced by someone displaying all three of the "attack potential" elements. Carrying a loaded firearm among your fellow citizens is an awesome responsibility that is not to be taken lightly.

Remember, once you strap on your weapon, you must carry with it a great measure of discretion and judgment, along with an easy-going attitude

Talking to my son about sex

Last night my wife told me that Bruce, 13, had a private talk with his pediatrician who wanted to give him the vaccine against HPV. This prompted me to talk to him about sex.

 I sat him down in front of my laptop and started off asking, "Do you know how babies are made?" "Yes from a scientific point of view." was his troubling response. "Actually it is from every point of view." I countered. "Then I asked how." He said with the sperm and the egg. I pushed , "How does the male give the female the sperm. Is it by kissing? He was uncomfortable or unable to answer so I pulled up YouTube and showed some mating pictures of animals - pigs, horses. "That's how mommies and daddies do it too." And I emphasized that it a good thing, how God wanted creatures to be part of His creation activity.

 "However, some people do that just for the fun of it - even teens." I continued. "It's wrong because they're not married and it's dangerous." I opened up a Google image search and pulled up pictures from "STD penis". Bruce's eyes widened as he saw pictures of diseased and infected penises with pus and rashes and cuts. This is what can happen because of diseases out there that are sexually transmitted. He asked clarification about how those can be transmitted. "Not by sneezing" I said. "Those virus and bacteria gets passed by sex."

 And here's some math - or statistics and probability. Having sex with one girl is like having sex with all the boys whom she slept with and all the girls whom those boys slept with etc. He started getting curious and asked, "So how do you know if you have the disease?" I pulled up Google, searched for symptoms and showed him. "You see, the punishment of sin does not come after death." I counseled. "It starts here and now and it destroys your life." I told him about HIV/AIDS and we went into the biology of the T-cells and host diseases. And while some STDs are curable, imagine having all those wounds, pus and agony in pissing.

Then I went to the relationship impact by asking, "Suppose you find a girl to marry and had to tell her that you have STDs, what are the chances that she will take you? Would you want to dip your dick in a petri dish filled with nasty bacteria?" The only one who would take a diseased guy is most likely a diseased girl. And what kind of life is that?

 I then made my witness saying how I met his mom at Singles for Christ because most likely the girls there do not sleep around. I told him when we got married and how he was born 10 months after. He seems to radiate some admiration and respect for me after that.

Deforming children by protecting them from STDs and pregnancy

Bruce's pediatrician wants to give him a vaccine against HPV - a sexually transmitted disease. We objected because of the message it sends i.e. in case he engages in sex then he will be protected. That "in case" somehow gets translated into "it's normal" to a 13 yr. old and just encourages or opens up the possibility of sex. Protecting him physiologically harms him spiritually, emotionally or mentally because his Christian commitment gets compromised by this contingency clause. Life is full of risks. The HPV vaccines does not protect him from other STDs. So, in case he wants to sin then he must be ready for the consequences. I guess it is that time for a father and son talk about the birds and the bees.