My Life and Guns

I was born in 1946 in South Dakota, and spent my first few childhood years on a sheep farm.

Guns were an everyday necessary tool.  Predators and vermin plagued our sheep; coyotes, foxes and weasels killed their share of our livelihood.  Dad killed as many as possible with a trusty 22 semi-automatic, which I still have.

It's never shot or killed any man, woman or child; nor did my father, who safely discharged more than 16,000 rounds through it.  He also hunted ducks, pheasants, geese, and deer that we ate providing much needed nutrition.

I received my first BB gun for Christmas at 6 years old, Dad taught me gun safety Christmas Day.

For my eighth birthday I received a 22 caliber pellet pistol.  I wore it out after several repairs 5 years later.

At nine, Dad gave me Mom's over/under single shot 410/22 to use.  It shot a lot of delicious quail and rabbits.

At ten, Dad said I could use his 300 Savage to hunt deer.  I killed, gutted and skinned my first buck that season.

By eleven, my Grandfather had given me his old double barrel, side-by side, open hammer, 12 gauge shotgun.  He almost never gave anything away.

On my 12th birthday, Mom and Dad gave me a 9 shot, 22 caliber, western style, revolver and custom holster.  I slept with it near me and loaded for 10 years when I had worn its action out after about 12,000 rounds.

Since then I have rarely been without a loaded hand gun at my side.

Two years later, my father and I bought a Savage, model 99e, lever action, 243 caliber.  Very fast, very accurate; a great deer rifle.  I shot 37 Mule deer bucks and 2 does, which were donated to the needy and the Humane Society.  A few years back I gave the rifle to my oldest son, he still has it.

I shot in Trap Shooting competition for fifteen years, running 100 straight, eleven times in 3 different State and Regional Championships, shooting about 55,000 rounds in practice and competition

Today I have and use several long guns and several hand guns.  I have had for many years, and still have a Concealed Carry Permit.  I test fire hand guns nearly every month, long guns a couple times per year.

I never had to shoot anyone; I've come close to it a few times.

My guns have never deliberately or accidentally shot, or shot toward, anyone.  Never transported themselves or ammunition anywhere, never loaded themselves, never aimed themselves, never fired themselves.

In 66 years no one has ever been harmed by any of my numerous guns, and never will.  They are inanimate tools.

In the same time; many evil, ignorant and careless people and governments have murdered, maimed and injured millions of innocent people, and some guilty ones, with a wide variety tools including guns.

For some reason, some very ignorant people think the problem is the guns.

People wake up!

Guns cannot kill anyone!

People kill people!


   

Preparing for Climate Change, not fighting it

In this Solar system, Earth is certainly a planet of Climate Change.  
During its history our planet has undergone many rapid and robust
climate changes.

Historically, and currently our sun gets hotter and hotter on its way
to eventual Supernova. The sun is the primary source of energy
and heat on earth.  Earth's orbit is in the zone where water can
normally be a liquid, not always vapor, not always solid ice.  
The Liquid Water Zone is moving away from the sun as it grows
hotter. I’m told we are about 60% away from the very cold
always frozen boundary, and 40% from the too hot, no liquid
water on the surface boundary.

Physical proximity and solar chemistry realities mean; in a few
billion years no liquid water on this planet's surface, and not
much else anyone would recognize.

That means there is little if anything mankind can do about
persistent warming.

The next most important source of heat and energy on this
planet is it's molten core and tidal forces from our beautiful
singular moon.

Volcanic eruptions spew heat, various gases, pyroclastic
ash and debris, and molten lava heat blobs and ribbons
onto land, under seas and under ice fields in about 20
places, plus or minus a few, around the world day and night.  
Thanks to our moon’s tidal forces on earth’s crust and core,
our molten core and its related products can always find
their way to the surface and into the atmosphere.

I can’t imagine anyway the inept, incompetent and
uncooperative creatures on this planet could do
anything to change planetary, solar, or cosmic physics.

What should humans be doing?

First, stop thinking we collectively or individually, can
do any perceptible thing about the powerful planetary
and solar forces of the cosmos.

Next, make plans and conserve resources needed to
avoid the effects of climate changes.  Like; changes
in food growing regions, increased energy generation
for food distribution and long-term storage and much
greater habitation air conditioning; more energy for
making and moving clean water to widely dispersed
human populations.  

Enormous infrastructure needs will increase
dramatically as people migrate toward polar regions
to avoid insect borne diseases and low nutrient foods
as the Tropic and Subtropic regions grow wider and
hotter. Waste handling and treatment, crowd control,
policing and punishment; medical treatment and its
training, facilities and equipment must expand
exponentially in new regions with many new demands.

Next, some new social systems; nothing like the weak
ineffectual national and world systems of today.
Reliable and sustainable for millennia; in some
incorruptible organizational way to assure that wealth
is conserved, set aside, safe guarded carefully,
and wisely disbursed to accomplish the gigantic
projects and programs needed to sustains human
population in the late stages of mankind on this planet.

This planet will get hotter each millennium, regardless
of what human populations do or do not do in their
imaginary fight with the global climate.

The only logical effort is preparation for cataclysmic
impacts; opposing cosmic forces by tinkering with
climate manifestations is wasteful, ignorant and futile.

Save for, and be prepared to, make massive
adjustment as changing climates and their
advantages and penalties will certainly impact the
unprepared and immobile very harshly.  

Be prepared to move toward polar regions and
away from sea level coastal regions.

Humans vs Solar Physics; who are the easy winners?
Solar Radiation and Gravitational Forces.

Humans are not powerful or knowledgeable enough to manipulate the sun, the moon, our molten core or the chemistry of our atmosphere.

Don't pick fights with cosmic forces we barely understand and can't effect!

It's not Gun Control

The issue is not gun control.  The issue is people control.

I’ve been to many schools in the past 60 years.  Very few had even the simplest effective security measures.  Many had silly signs telling visitors to check in at the office.  Some had bored teachers reluctantly hanging around gates not verbally challenging anyone’s reasons for being there trying to gain access.

Only one new school in Las Vegas, NV had single point access, enforced by fencing and barricades, into an Administration building with architectural features that prohibited further access without interaction with assigned staff.

Single Point Access being the first point.

This same facility and grounds were completely surrounded by an 8 foot chain link fence topped with three strands of barbed wire.  The vehicle gate and people gate were adjacent each other and attended by a uniformed guard with what looked like a Taser and a spray repellent.  The grounds were supervised by two assigned staff when children were present. They were attentive, vigilant, and physically and verbally active. Either of them may have had concealed lethal weapons as well.

The second point being; active, assigned, visible Security Staffing.

Cameras were visible inside and out.  I assume they were monitored and recorded.  If not, it was a tragic waste of money. At least six cameras covered the entry point, playground, playing field, and outdoor common areas.  All hallways, walkways and classrooms had visible cameras.

The third point being; complete visual surveillance of all facilities inside and out.

It did remind me of some minimum security detention facilities I’ve seen.  But most security devices and structures that could be reasonably incorporated into architectural features had been.  

The point being security features and human behavior were considered and planned for in advance of construction, not an afterthought.  

The presence of a patrol vehicle and uniformed visibly armed guards patrolling the perimeter would have been an additional measure I would strongly suggest anywhere; inner-city, suburb or rural setting.  

Visibly Armed is the point.  

These features and staffing taken together should change the mind of any amateur with evil intent.  It might not discourage a hardened criminal or experienced terrorist. Not many of those have attacked schools, so far.   

These features need to be present always, not 20 minutes after a mass shooting when millions of dollars of police, sheriff, FBI, emergency response equipment and personnel are all over the place accomplishing little, if any, preventive security.