Best & Worst of the Decade (a year early)

Why are we seeing all of these "end of the decade" reviews and stories a year early?

The next decade begins in 2011, not 2010.

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Defeating Full-Body Scanners (what a waste of money!)

HEADLINE: O'Hare to Get Full-Body Scanners

HEADLINE: Netherlands Will Immediately Implement Full Body Scans for All US-Bound Passengers

So the terrorists will just get loaded up with bomb belts and detonate them while they're in the middle of those long lines of people waiting to get scanned and have their baggage X-rayed.

Then what?

We'd have to move the screening to the curb. Then they would roll up in a car or truck bomb.

Then we'd have to have random vehicle inspections on the roadways...

But at least the security and law enforcement growth industries will make more money and we'll lose more of our freedom and privacy.

The solution is an armed, polite population and scrutiny of those who are worthy of suspicion.

UPDATE: From the Monday Jan. 4, 2010 IsraelNationalNews.com

While the United States and other countries beef up airport searches for terrorists, an Israeli expert advises that eying passenger behavior is critical for preventing attacks.

Rafi Sela, a security consultant at Ben Gurion International Airport, explained to the Canadian news agency Canwest, "If you have a suicide bomber or somebody who wants to make an impact, he doesn't have to bring down a plane. He can just explode in the middle of this huge crowd that is waiting for security."

UPDATE: From the Monday Jan. 4, 2010 Guardian New scanners break child porn laws

Heh!

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To lighten the mood after a serious post, here's a Hamas fighter in a photo taken after they took over a border crossing with Egypt.

"... bind them down from mischief... "

A notable quote:

"In questions of power, let us hear no more of trust in men, but rather bind them down from mischief with the chains of the Constitution."

- Thomas Jefferson

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Illegal discrimination in H1N1 swine flu vaccinations / flu shots?

Over at Bob's Newheart I read this:

If you are over age 64 and you want the H1N1 flu vaccine (swine flu) forget it! Even if you meet the criteria set forth by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) you will not be allowed to get the vaccine. I know, today I was refused a shot. This development has great significance for everyone over 64 and especially transplant patients with compromised immune systems.

First of all IF this is indeed, a REGULATION, someone please point me to it by regulation number.

All the material at the two CDC links mentioned in this post and its comments mention that these are RECOMMENDATIONS, e.g..

"the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended that CDC and immunization programs focus on getting the first doses of 2009 H1N1 vaccine to those people who are more likely to get infected with the 2009 H1N1 flu virus"

Neither the word "regulation" nor "law" appears anywhere on those two pages!

Besides, any age or other discrimination in the provision of GOVERNMENT services would be a violation of the privileges and immunities clause of the 14th Amendment, right?

This prevents the States from creating different classes of persons and discriminating on that basis.

It was included in the Constitution primarily to prevent racial discrimination, but subsequent court decisions have affirmed that it is pretty much total in its scope.

A great example are the various States' laws that had required seniors to have yearly tests for their drivers licenses while those aged less than seniors had only been required to be tested every two or four years. The courts have struck those laws down.

So I think anyone who stands in line should be legally allowed to have the vaccination if he hasn't already.

I'd humbly accept if anyone would show me I'm wrong.

CLARIFICATION: I should clarify that I'm not just speaking of age discrimination. I think any citizen - even those not in any high-risk group - should be able to get an H1N1 vaccination if the government (State or Federal) is giving them to citizens.

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The Old Prospector's Lesson :)

The Old Prospector's Lesson
(source unknown)

An old prospector shuffled into the town of El Indio, Texas leading an old
tired mule. The old man headed straight for the only saloon in town, to
clear his parched throat. He walked up to the saloon and tied his old mule
to the hitch rail. As he stood there, brushing some of the dust from his
face and clothes, a young gunslinger stepped out of the saloon with a gun in
one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other.

The young gunslinger looked at the old man and laughed, saying, "Hey old
man, have you ever danced?" The old man looked up at the gunslinger and
said, "No, I never did dance... never really wanted to."

A crowd had gathered as the gunslinger grinned and said, "Well, you old
fool, you're gonna' dance now," and started shooting at the old man's feet.
The old prospector, not wanting to get a toe blown off, started hopping
around like a flea on a hot skillet. Everybody was laughing, fit to be
tied.

When his last bullet had been fired, the young gunslinger, still laughing,
holstered his gun and turned around to go back into the saloon. The old man
turned to his pack mule, pulled out a double-barreled shotgun, and cocked
both hammers. The loud clicks carried clearly through the desert air.

The crowd stopped laughing immediately. The young gunslinger heard the
sounds too, and he turned around very slowly. The silence was almost
deafening. The crowd watched as the young gunman stared at the old timer
and the large gaping holes of those twin barrels.

The barrels of the shotgun never wavered in the old man's hands, as he
quietly said, "Son, have you ever kissed a mule's ass?"

The gunslinger swallowed hard and said, "No sir..... but... I've always
wanted to."

There are two lessons for us all here:

1. Don't waste ammunition.
2. Don't mess with old people.

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† Christian Outdoor Adventure Film Seeking Father-Son Pairs for Film

Casting call from their Web site:

One of America's premiere Christian ministries to the fatherless-Fathers in the Field-is on the hunt for three (father/son teams for - Ed.) the big screen. The father/son teams chosen from a national casting call (underway now) will not only be given the opportunity to share their inspiring stories with people across the country, but will also experience one of three extraordinary adventures:

• Trophy Whitetail Hunt in Texas
• Big Game Fishing Expedition in Costa Rica
• Monster Bull Elk Hunt in Montana

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Who is The Armed Citizen? (New Exhaustive Study of Self-Defense Statistics)

"Who is The Armed Citizen?"

That's the headline next to the armed young female gracing the cover of this month's "America's 1st Freedom" magazine from the NRA.

(This fine magazine is yet another reason to join the National Rifle Association!)

The magazine reports on a study by the Civilian Gun Self-Defense Blog which "tells a broad and - in some cases - surprising story about the nature of self-defense in America". Such as this:

"The most frequently reported crime prevented by armed citizens has been home invasion."

Sleep tight...

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