Author: hsoi

To buy, or not to buy

/ hsoi / 6 Comments

I’ve got an itch to buy a new gun.

Why?

Because.

The question is… what?

Shotgun? No. What I have suits me fine. If I wanted anything in this realm, I’d want something with a short barrel, but that means a lot of tax stamps and paperwork, which I’m not in the mood for right now. Tho of course, that could be somewhat mitigated by a Kel-Tec KSG. But good luck getting one any time soon.

Rifle? No. I mean sure… building an AR would be fun. Yeah, tweaking my 6.8 AR would be useful. I’ve been tossing around some ideas for new optics but then I pull back because while yes there are better optics out there than what I have, for what I do the optics are more than sufficient. Yes the other days I started my yen again for that Savage 10FCM Scout, but I’m not dying for it. Of course, I’ve also always had a yen for the Kel-Tec RFB.

Handgun? Yes… this is where I’m really feeling it. But then, I’m not surprised as I’m mostly a handgun guy. That Kel-Tec PMR-30 is interesting to me… not sure if I’d want to buy one, but they’re not too expensive. I’m sure they’re a lot of fun, and I can’t help but be curious about them as a self-defense gun for some people (especially now that Speer is making Gold Dot .22 WMR). I did want to buy a 1911 this year; it’s one gun I don’t have but should have just because of what it is. If I bought, I’m pretty sure as a first I’d buy an STI Spartan. But I’m having second thoughts because I really only want one because I feel I should have one in my collection — it’s a 1911, and that’s all the reason why. But I’m not feeling that’s good enough a reason because it would be a total safe queen for me, or at best a teaching aid. Not a bad reason, but it gives me pause. Ever since the Chiappa Rhino was introduced, it intrigued me. A way to have a carry snub, that could perhaps make .357 Mag in a carry snub a viable option?? And talk about a teaching aid… I know that would be a huge hit at KR Training Basic Pistol 1 classes and probably any other class I brought it to. If it panned out to be solid and reliable, I certainly could see carrying it… and that nudges it up the “good waste of money” ladder.

Some of the local guys are toying around with the Smith & Wesson M&P more. Back when I was choosing a carry gun it came down to the Springfield XD or the Smith & Wesson M&P. The only reason I didn’t go with the M&P was because at the time it was brand new and who knew if it’d be solid or another S&W Sigma stinker. Well, turns out it’s one hell of a gun. I shoot well with it, there are a lot of good things about it… and so perhaps if I did buy something new, this would be the way to go. The thing to consider here is the cost isn’t just for a gun, but Apex trigger parts, a couple of IWB holsters, mag holster, lots of magazines (which apparently are pretty scarce right now), sending the slide to Dawson for sights… that jacks up the cost substantially.

Then there’s a part of me that says to be responsible and use that money on other things… like maybe putting Dawson Precision Charger sights on my carry guns, buying lots of springs and replacing every spring I have in guns and magazines. Or just not spending the money at all. But there’s no fun in that. 🙂

Wife is probably reading this… and probably thinking the “not spending it at all” is the right option. 😉

Are you thinking about any sort of purchase?

Oh yeah… it’s their fault.

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

Mexico wants to sue US gun manufacturers for all the guns flowing into Mexico.

You know… if you really want someone to sue over letting guns flow into Mexico, how about suing BAFTE? Apparently they just sat around and let it happen. I don’t think Ruger or Remington was quite so involved….

Richard Feldman, President of the Independent Firearms Association and former gun industry association executive said: “Maybe we should be suing the Mexican government for their failure to prevent drugs from coming into our country.”

Indeed. Or perhaps better, why don’t we end this “war on drugs” because if there was ever a time to label something “EPIC FAIL”, THIS.

Why didn’t the corporations pay taxes?

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People are up in arms about corporations not paying taxes. Here’s how they do it.

These companies do most of their business in the United States and other moderate-tax countries such as Germany, England and Spain.

But they often put their intellectual property – such as trademarks or patents – into subsidiaries in low-tax countries such as Switzerland, Ireland, Bermuda or the Cayman Islands.

When one of the company’s subsidiaries in a higher-tax country sells a product, it pays a royalty to the subsidiary in the tax haven. That shifts profits to the low-tax country, while the subsidiary in the high-tax country gets a tax deduction for the royalty payment.

“The income is taxed at a lower rate, and the deductions are enjoyed at a higher rate,” says Robert Willens, a Wall Street accounting expert.

And there’s other ways it moves around too. Read the article.

So all that’s happening is people are seeing large, faceless, evil corporations with their fat wallets and rich CEO’s wheedling out of paying taxes. It’s not fair… especially because it’s depriving my favoriate government entitlement program of funding!

I see.

But is anyone asking the more fundamental question? Why are these corporations shifting money around like this? Why are they not wanting to pay the taxes?

Because they want to keep their money.

You know… like you and I do.

You work hard for the things you earn in life. You want to keep a hold of them. You want to reap the benefits of your blood, sweat, and tears. And when someone comes along and takes it from you and leaves you with little left over because “they need it” or “they deserve it” for whatever reason you don’t see fit… it really gets you upset.

So how about this.

Why not figure out how to keep that money here in the first place.

Why not address the more fundamental issue — that people (and corporations) want to keep the things they earned. Allow people to keep their things, even if it is just their GPA.

You’re worried about a growing deficit? That the .gov’s S&P rating was downgraded? So then, why are you still spending money like a madman? If money isn’t coming in, you need to stop sending it out.

People really aren’t all that unwilling to part with their money — when it’s going to be spent on something they consider worthwhile. So imagine… if people and corporations are working so hard to not part with their money and not give it up, seems to me it must be being spent on a lot of things that aren’t worthwhile.

Maybe we should address that issue first.

Second thoughts

/ hsoi

There’s always been something about the Scout Rifle concept that’s always struck a harmonious chord with me.

I’ve got an M1A Scout Squad and I love it. I’d love it a lot more if it wasn’t so heavy; which really isn’t too big a problem for me but… read on.

I have a Savage bolt-action rifle in .308 Winchester, and it’s been my go-to hunting rifle putting more meat on the table than anything else. It’s a solid performer. I have no qualms about buying another Savage, and their 10 FCM Scout of course has much appeal to me. Not sure how well it’d really hold up if it was put through a rigorous weekend of rifle training, but being a somewhat light and handy hunting rifle? More than adequate.

And when Ruger announced their Gunsite Scout Rifle well…. I groaned. Part of the price tag is of course the Gunsite logo, which adds nothing but money to their pockets, which is alright, but I’d rather be getting more gun than branding/marketing. I didn’t want to like it. But this month’s American Rifleman features the rifle and it’s made me look at it again. I think the reason I reconsider it? How well could my kids handle it? I saw how Oldest handled the Savage when he took his first hog, but if not for being able to fully rest it on the sill of the blind’s window, he wouldn’t have been able to hold it out there (just too long, too unbalanced for his size/frame).  But the Ruger? Hrm.

Yes I know… the whole reason I bought the 6.8 was for the kids. 🙂  But go with me… I’m trying to find excuses. 😉

I’m not saying it’s good, I’m not saying it’s bad. I’m saying I’d love to get my hands on one to give it a fair shake.

2011-04-21 Workout

/ hsoi

Today’s workout was good. I’m getting locked into good working ranges and getting more comfortable with things.

I strove to be a little more strict today, but obviously wasn’t strict enough as the owner corrected my form a bit on the dumbbell overhead presses… keep things in line with my ears. I thought I was, but I was focusing more on seeing my form in the mirror in front of me and not feeling where the weight was.

I also didn’t do those “machine crunches” because they really are only working the hip flexors; the abdominal muscles are only being worked as a supporting muscle. Owner suggested to me to use the big Pilates ball, lay on my back over that, and crunch that way. I liked that more than I thought I would. Because of the ball curvature I got a bit more stretch and range of motion for the crunch, and if I keep my feet close together it requires a lot more work to remain balanced. Plus my neck muscles (e.g. sternocleidomastoid) got some work too. I like.

I felt like I could do more, which I take as a good sign that my body is getting used to things. I’ll probably stick on this 2x-week, whole-body-each-workout routine for at least a couple more weeks, no real change-ups in the routine. I don’t want to rush things at this point and let my mental excitement get ahead of my physical capabilities. 🙂

Aging bands

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Wow. KK Downing, guitarist for Judas Priest, is retiring from the band. Official press release.

Man… that feels strange. But yes, finish out the tour that’s already booked… lots of obligations, money, contracts, etc.. But it does make you wonder, is it time for the band to as a whole to retire?

I’ve been wondering about this with a lot of bands. ZZ Top… 40+ years, still going strong, but when is it time? Aerosmith had a lot of turbulence over the past few years with the notion of calling it quits being thrown around. I know Slayer is a band that feels with their sort of music that being up there at 60 years old and still playing doesn’t seem right.

I’d rather see someone go and leave us wanting more, than to be the last guy that never leaves the party… you know, like KISS. 😉  Don’t get me wrong, I love KISS, but 15 years of farewell tours seems kinda silly. Oddly tho, their latest album ‘Sonic Boom’ was pretty good, so should they keep going?

Then you think about personnel changes and when the only “original” member of some band is the guy they used as a touring keyboardist during the mid-70’s… is it really that band any more? When is a replacement too much? Which of course goes back to another key question: what makes a band that band? Replacing Bon Scott wasn’t horrible for AC/DC, nor David Lee Roth for Van Halen. But the guys from Journey keep wanting a guy that sounds like Steve Perry.

Bottom line is… we’re no longer the MTV crowd, we’re the VH-1 crowd, but that’s slowly being pushed out and off too. When’s the time to put the guitar back on the rack? When is the time to say we should leave with a solid legacy and dignity, even if it means leaving the gravy train behind?

Rite of Passage

/ hsoi / 4 Comments

I took Oldest and Youngest shopping today.

For a suit.

Oldest needs a suit, Youngest just gets one (Easter and all). Full jacket and everything. A tie that doesn’t clip-on. And his feet are big enough that he shopped in the proper mens shoe department… ouch, that cost a lot for shoes he’ll rarely wear. But I also picked up a new shoe shine kit because the few things I have in the shoebox just doesn’t cut it any more.

Time for Oldest to learn how to care for good leather shoes.

Time for him to learn how to properly tie a tie.

Oldest looked mighty sharp in that full suit. Even he liked it…. which came as a surprise to me.

Damn. Do they have to grow older?

What Monty Python Taught Me About the Software Industry

/ hsoi / 1 Comment

A great blog post by David “Lefty” Schlesinger on what Monty Python can teach us about the software industry.

If you’re not in this industry, you might not get it all… but he nails it pretty well. The part that really struck a chord with me is Mr. Creosote:

“More” is Not the Same As “Better:” For years, the mobile phone industry — as typified by OEMs like Nokia and Motorola — marched along to the beat of the carriers’ collective “standards and requirements,” which essentially amounted to an extremely lengthy checklist of mostly extreme minor features, quibbles, and quid pro quos. In the case of one major carrier, the requirements specifications stretched to some 1,800 pages.

Apple turned that all upside down with its introduction of the iPhone, which failed to implement even such commonplace features as MMS messaging. Predictions of imminent doom for the device and for AT&T (the carrier foolish enough to go for an unproven phone from an inexperienced manufacturer) were rife (and I admit to being among the misguided doomsayers, initially).

It turned out that consumers didn’t care about the carriers’ checklists, and they pretty much didn’t care about niceties like MMS messaging, either. What they did care about was nice design and thoughtfully constructed — both surprising and consistent — user experience.

Adding features aimlessly guarantees that none of those features will be thoughtfully implemented; it reduces the likelihood that any of them are well-integrated. Worse, just-one-more-feature considerably increases the chances of the unexpected happening to your project (see point 1).

Product marketers love to try to squeeze just one more tiny feature — really, it’s wafer thin! — into everything they work on. It’s a bad idea.

Emphasis added… because I’ve dealt with this for so long.

Writing good software is a craft, which most people don’t get. It’s hard to do, it takes time. It takes iterations, revisions, even throwing everything out and starting over. We can add 1800 pages worth of features if you really want it, but the old saying stands: good, fast, or cheap — pick 2. Unfortunately they usually want it fast and cheap… with more features, and oh, can you just add this?

Your 4.0 GPA is excessive

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

Your 4.0 GPA is excessive. We should take the GPA’s of the 10% of grade earners and redistribute it to the lower-GPA students to help them.

That would be fair, right?

Oh… it’s fair so long as it’s not YOU that’s being taken from. I see. You work hard for your GPA and you want to keep it. Well, I work hard for my money and want to keep it. If you think other people are entitled to my money, I would say others people are entitled to your grade… and your money too. So, whenever you want to write me a check, I’m waiting, because under your logic, I’m entitled. But yet, I haven’t received a check yet. Why not? If you think forced redistribution of wealth is a good thing, set the example and start redistributing your wealth.

More here.

Fire – follow up

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Those fires that were near my home? They know the cause:

According to fire investigators, it was 60-year-old Michael Weathers’ unattended campfire that caused the devastation in Oak Hill.

Officials said Weathers went to the convenience store to buy beer and left hot coals from his campfire unattended. During that time, the wind began blowing the embers and that’s when officials believe the fire started.

Burn bans mean nothing. Hell… not even common sense about not burning when it’s dry and windy out… or not leaving a fire unattended.

Eleven homes destroyed, ten damaged. Hundreds of people misplaced and their lives thrown out of whack.

*sigh*

It wasn’t a malicious act, merely a negligent one. But look at what it caused?

We’re human. We all make mistakes, even preventable ones like this. We have to do what we can to be better… because the costs of our mistakes can be high.