steve1

reply] So those drop tests in California actually have value? Or just for those with kids or cats? On the newer automatic pistols, the safety should prevent a pistol from firing, when dropped. On mine the hammer is blocked, (if I remember right). On many older pistols and rifles, they can easily fire when dropped, if a bullet is in the chamber and if it is cocked. One of my students was killed by his own 22. He was out hunting gophers. He was crossing some railroad tracks. He dropped his rifle, butt first onto something solid. It went off and shot him through the head.... I guess I don't know much about the drop tests in California. I just assume if I drop a gun, it might go off....

>All that you said makes perfect sense to me. I wish I could put on some rose colored glasses and pretend that things aren't really this bad, but they are! It's too bad that we are all so hung up on having more and more of everything (including kids). I'm not saying I'm any better than anyone else. I'm a greedy bastard too. I just think that many people in America aren't as happy as they should be, and that many crave a simpler life, without all the gadgets, and material things that end up complicating your life. Right now I have two big shops, packed full of crap that I probably don't even need. I own three houses and a fair amount of land. I should be really happy right. It seems like the more stuff I have the less time I have to do anything....It's crazy. In the future I'm going to work hard to simplify my life. That involves getting rid of stuff I don't need, and living a simpler life.....closer to nature. Maybe that's not for everybody, but it makes sense to me...

If I was going into a gunfight at the OK corral I'd be cocked and loaded with the safety off. For home defense, though, that is different. I have safety concerns. We don't have any kids at home now, but sometimes there are kids in the house. I have an automatic pistol up high where kids can't reach it. It is also hidden under something. There's also no bullet in the chamber. Most younger kids would have trouble chambering a round even if they knew how. In that sense it is fairly safe. A friend of mine was killed by keeping an automatic pistol on his headboard (cocked and locked). I don't know if it was on safety or not. One day his cat was crawling around up there and nocked it off. It shot my friend through the head....

I think it would be more accurate to say that the dregs of the once proud race of people have stayed on the reservation, with the vast majority of the more motivated, hard working (and often that means educated, because they worked for that) folks leaving the reservation for a better life elsewhere. I saw some statistics a while back about the chance that someone born on a reservation who went to college would return to the reservation--it was something like 3%, and those were all either teachers or politicians/tribal leaders. Basically, the whole top of the bell curve bailed out because the reservation was such a pit. I agree. Many with ambition, often seek a better life elsewhere, off the Reservation. Sometimes there is a guilt trip that goes along with that. Many say that if you really cared about your tribe, you'd stay and help your people. Others leave to find a culture they don't fit into well. Can you imagine leaving family and friends, and then trying to fit into a culture that in many ways was different than you have known. It might be really tough. Many with grit, do leave the Reservation. A Native American Friend of mine, grew up in the town I work in. He made the most of the programs that were available and went to college. He became a skydiver and made over a thousand jumps. Today he flies a jumbo jet to Japan and back. He's thinking of retiring and running for tribal chairman soon. I have a ton of respect for him. I've been trying to get him to make a demo with me, and then talk to the kids.... The government had a relocation program at one time. I've talked to several native people who were sent to live in other parts of the U.S. Several were sent to L.A. Most came back to the Rez. I guess it was too much of a culture shock to remain in these new places. Can you imagine moving from the prairies of Montana to L.A. The boarding schools were another collossal failure dreamt up by the federal government. I talk to people all the time who are still suffering from generational tauma as a direct result of that. I wish the government would give more thought to the grand plans they come up with to help people....Many times it is tax payer money thrown away. In other cases it may even make the problem worse.

reply] And I'd say that teaching them IS compassionate. It also requires funding as does any societal program. Isn't that really Butter's beef? According to his argument, shouldn't we just let those people at the bottom just fall off the face of the Earth and not "help" them? Sometimes I wonder which choice would be better. I have seen so many government (give away) programs that do little more than make the problem worse. I work on an Indian Reservation. You can not believe the poverty, ignorance, corruption, drug and alcohol problems, and violence that exhists here. A majority of parents have little inclination to work. They get a check because of the color of their skin. There is free health care. Housing is cheap. You can send your kids to college for free (yet there are few takers), and the list of give away programs goes on and on. Are we helping these people or hurting them? This once proud race of people have been reduced to something to be ashamed of. I honestly feel that the government would do better to just cut off this free supply of money. It would be sink or swim time. Those who could find work and make something of themselves could get their dignity back. And the problem is not getting better. Should we keep pumping more money into programs like this. I can see little compassion or forsight in this!

My very first jump should have been out of a C-119. We got all chuted up. The wind came up. We sat in this really hot quanset building for hours, with sweat dripping off our noses. Occaisionally a black hat would walk through, and shout, "What-a-ya gonna be?" Of course all of us would shout...."Airborne!" at the top of our lungs. Finally the wind went down a little, so they crammed us into the back of a C-119. When we got to jump altitude they openned the back doors. I remember looking out the doors and thinking...."Oh shit!" "I wonder if I can really do this?" Later the jump master touched my face, and said...."You all right Boy?" in a deep southern drawl. "Yes Sargent", I quirped, with a sick grin. I guess he could tell, I was plenty scared. But the winds were too strong, and we had to land. The next morning, there was a big C-141 waiting for us. So, that was my first jump. The next four jumps (at Benning) were out of 119's. I made those four jumps on a badly sprained ankle. I didn't want to get recycled, so I tried not to limp whenever a Black Hat was watching....

Are we on a path of self destruction? It sure looks like it to me. I know this is depressing as hell, but isn't it the truth? The eskimos in the far north were experts at living off the land. It took a tremendous amount of knowledge and team work to survive in that terrible climate for thousands of years... Then the price of fur went way up. A person could make a lot of money trapping for a time. Many gave up their traditional ways of survival. Much was forgotten in a very short time. Then the price of fur dropped again. Many were forced to return to their old ways. Guess what, many died because they had already forgotten what they needed to survive. Having the right genetics is important to survival. It's also vital to have the right knowledge base. That may take a life time to learn. I wonder how many Native Americans could survive today if it came to dog eat dog.....

I think we are still more or less survivors. We may be spoiled, but most of us could revert back into the survivor mode if needed. We haven't had enough years of evolution to change that much, in my opinion....

I made four of my five jumps at Army jump school, out of a C-119. We later jumped them at Bragg too. "People ask me how the hell old are you?" That was back in 1970. I don't know if any of them are still flying. We used the two side doors to jump. That made for some close exits, because the two doors were very close together. The jumpmaster would get the two sticks moving out the doors and then he'd get out of the way. I've heard that some jump masters will tap a jumper on the left door and then the right door, back and forth till everyone is out, but I never saw it done like that....

I knew a one legged skydiver in the 70's. Landings then were too brutal and he had to quit. He kept on kayaking, snow skiing, and bike riding...(all with one leg). He later started calling up all his old friends, saying, "I'm about to go on the ultimate trip." He soon after died of bone cancer. I wish I had guts like that..... I met some skydivers (at Eloy, several years back)who were jumping on stubs....Both of their lower legs were blown off (I think by land mines). There were two or three of them, all doing slide in landings....

You talking about horses or are you talking about women? JerryBaumchen I like to talk big. When anyone asks me what my nickname is, I usually tell them Stevie Stud Horse. Most people get a big laugh out of that, because I look more like Elmer Fudd.....But back in the day, I was quite handsome (In a homely kind of way)!

Make some more jumps and you will definitely be more aware of what's going on. It's an emotional overload at first. Things will slow down as you become more experienced. Hopefully you aren't spinning. This is a big problem for some people....

I am still having trouble grasping that concept. There are all kinds of stupid things that I couild pull off when I was younger. It's not so easy these days. About five years ago, I got this wild idea that I could build a log house, by myself. I even did that once when I was younger. Well here it is five years later, and I'm not done yet! I don't know how many nights I went to bed exhausted, and could barely move the next morning. I used to break a horse or two when I was younger. So, I figure what the heck....I'll bet I can still do that. I had a colt run through a fence and fall on my leg a couple years ago. I definitely had a hitch in my get along after that. I could barely get in and out of my truck for some time after. Then yesterday, I walked up behind a colt and got kicked square in the shin. Ended up with a baseball sized knot on my leg, complete with blood and guts. Maybe one of these days, I'll learn that I'm not a kid any more..... Back when I was rodeoing, I had a friend I traveled with. Our plan was, when we got older, we'd get some old broncs that couldn't buck anymore. We figured we get on those once in a while. That way we could still feel like cowboys....Maybe I need to get some colts that aren't so wild....

I still think of myself as a kid. It scares the hell out of me when everytime I look in a mirror or see a picture of myself. Most times I see my grandpa looking back at me. Believe me this is quite depressing. I'll be 60 next year. I haven't jumped in over a year, but plan to get back in the game in a few weeks. Openings were playing hell with my neck. The chiropractor says both my neck and back are deteriorating and arthritis is setting in. I guess that's what happens when you've had a hard life. All those wrecks I took rodeoing and logging didn't help either. Being fit is important. Going to the gym to lift, and doing aerobic work can help a lot. I've been just doing a lot of hard carpenter work lately, and that seems to help. I sure can't work like I once did. Napping and eating are things I look forward to. That reminds me....It's time for lunch!

Being young and fit is important for a job like that. I new a few who smokejumped in their fifties, but not many. Mark Wright was smokejumping a couple years ago. He was around 55 then. He since had a fight with cancer, so maybe he is done with jumping. I haven't seen him skydiving either. Chinook Swindel was around 55 when he could no longer make the runs within minimum time. Bill Newmiester quit when he was in his fifties. I heard it was because injuries forced him out. Jack Nash claimed to be the oldest Smoke-jumper to ever train to smoke jump. He was in his forties when he started jumping. He was assistant jump master on the Man Gulch fire near Helena. Luckily he didn't jump with them that day. All but a few died on that fire.... Jack later became a master rigger and trained several skydivers some of his craft..... Jack went to the big DZ in the sky, many years back....

This has me thinking about packing methods.... I was wondering about packing a rag (a 28 foot, or T-10). It seemed that most people, I knew, layed the canopy down flat, (after flaking), and then 45'd the skirt and folded it into 1/3s before sleeving. But I recall seeing some who would flake and sleeve (with the skirt 45'd.) This was a much quicker and easier method. It seems like both methods would probably work just fine.... Any thoughts on this?

When I was a teacher, several years back, I was handing out Weekly Readers to my students to read. One of the articles on the front page had the headlines..."Just Say No to Guns". I couldn't believe it. Isn't that what kids are taught when dealing with something bad. I thought, "What kind of bullshit is this?" And yes, the entire article was more or less just that. We had a discussion in class, and I let my students know how I felt. In Montana most kids grow up with guns. Hunting is something families do for recreation, and it's a way to get meat. Many use a gun to kill a crippled animal on the farm, or you might use a gun to kill a steer when butchering time came. We'd use a gun to kill skunks in our chicken house. When I was still a boy, my Dad would leave me for days at a time in the back country. He'd also leave a 30/30 just in case a bear came into camp. We had that same 30/30 to defend our home. You couldn't count on a cop to save you when you lived miles from town. During the Fall, I'd have a rifle in my pickup, most days. I'd even take it to school with me, and hunt with it when the school day ended. Many other kids did the same at my high school. Guess what, nothing bad ever happened. And now you have educators teaching kids that guns are bad....Even the sight of a gun is something to be feared....I just don't get it! And then, what are kids being allowed to do after school? Most are watching the most violent garbage you can imagine on TV and playing violent video games. They'd rather be spending time with Mom and Dad, but they are too busy doing their own thing. Maybe it's time America started looking for the real source of the violence problem, rather than just blaming guns....

I wonder what the malfunction rate is on a para-commander. I don't know of many people who went more than 200 jumps, without a malfunction on one. (reguardless of packing method)....

It will be interesting to see if he gets his guns back. I've never done a background check on some of my roommates. I guess I'm lucky I wasn't raided because I ownded a gun or two. It sounds like the ATF has nothing better to do. This is probably the most excitement they've had all week....

QuoteYes. Reason being: if anyone were to waterboard our troops, that would constitute torture and we should be able to address it as such. reply] Some of our troops have had this done to them in training. I doubt if they do much of that anymore, because it is brutal, and yes, it is torture as far as I'm concerned. I think you could easily have someone die while having this perpetrated on them. I mentioned earlier that I watched this done in Special Forces training in the early 70's. How anyone can believe that this isn't torture is more than I can understand..... Why do it if most of the intelligence gathered from it is probably bull shit! I imagine there probably are psychos in the world who would enjoy this sort of thing. But what good comes out of it. Haven't other methods proven more effective?

I live about 30 miles from North Dakota in Montana. The hunting and fishing does make living here worthwhile. If it wasn't for the god awful cold winters, and hot summers, I'd really like it here. There's still plenty of wide open spaces. The climate has a lot to do with that....

I did that once. I set up in the dark. As it got closer to daylight a big gobbler started gobbling. He was in the tree I was leaning against. Then he flew off before I could get him. Yes, these are wily birds. My wife and I usually shoot some every spring. We usually call them in and use a shotgun on them. I was too busy this year to get out. I do miss it....

I had two malfunctions on para-commanders (in about 300 jumps). Both were caused by a short retainer line on my sleeve. The sleeve and pilot chute were pulled into the modifications in the back, which caused a spin. Maybe I could have rode it in, but both times I cut it away. I wonder about packing methods on the para-commanders. I almost always did a book pack job. Maybe things were too neat. I had a lot of hard opennings and burns on my canopy. A lot of jumpers, just flaked and sleeved their canopies. That seemed to work okay. I was leery of that method, so I rarely did it.....

I've got an older Remington 22, with a tubular magazine, that I really enjoy shooting. (I can't recall the model number, right now.) At any rate, I grew up that same model 22. I shot everything from gophers, to grouse, to badgers with it. I later traded it off. I didn't realize how great that old gun was until I no longer had it. About ten years ago I bought another one at a gun show. It has a long barrel, and will drive tacks. The trigger isn't too bad either considering it is a factory trigger. My daughter and I entered a turkey shoot a while back. Everyone was shooting their favorite 22's. I won the men's division and my daughter won the kid's division. We both were shooting the same old Remington....

I guess there is a lot I don't know on this topic. I've never really thought about how breaking the sound barrier might have an effect on accuracy. That is a new concept to me....Didn't Chuck Yaeger say there was increased turbulance as his plane approached the sound barrier? I usually buy several different brands of 22 long rifle, and buy more of the type my rifles shoot best with. Maybe I'll give the subsonic stuff a try....