warpedskydiver

Yes, I do. It's stupid, but Congress often enacts stupid laws. People perceive that machineguns are more dangerous than other firearms, and therefore want extra regulation of them. If the gun-banners can't get an outright ban on .50 caliber rifles, they might move to include them in the NFA for special regulation, i.e., registration and taxes. The more paperwork they can require, the more likely people will have technical paperwork snafus, and therefore the more gun owners that will end up in jail for simple paperwork violations. There are plenty of machinegun owners in jail simply because the government makes mistakes on their registration database. All they have to do is type a serial number incorrectly, and you become an illegal machinegun owner, facing 10 years in prison. That's all-good for the gun-o-phobes. My point was that there is a reason machine guns are illegal. Same reason can be applied to a .50 cal Machine guns are not illegal!!!!! doh!!!! They can be legally purchased if you have a tax stamp for it which is applied for on a form 4

Ban sales of more than one Big Mac a day to a single person, and pass laws that will severely punish by imprisonment any person know to have possession of the parts needed to assemble one.

Sad but very true

So I had an idea after reading another post. My idea is to start a new organization to allow others to help out skydivers in need. It is called "Pussy For Parachutists". The idea is that any caring, decent, unselfish women can stop by any dropzone and donate. Kind of like "Pay It Forward" with a happy ending . What do you folks think?

Ummm I cant count that high, how about just a guess?

DING DING DING, we have a winner! Tell our contestant what his just won Chuck!

If the initial victim in this case did close with, and engage the enemy with a knife, some somebody somewhere, is toasting that mans drill instructor with an ice cold beer. Damn fine job of self defense. NEVER, EVER, LAY DOWN, AND REFUSE TO FIGHT.

[Buddy Hackett Voice] I was making out with this hot babe in my car, and it started getting hot, I got her bra off, and was playing with her tits, she pulled up her skirt and asked me to kiss her where it stinks, so I started up my car and drove her to New Jersey![/Buddy Hackett Voice]

Hey I would have let you do that @ SDC for no charge!

Midway USA has it. http:/midwayusa.com

To be shot in the hands might indicate that the caucasian person of interest here may have had their hands up in a defensive posture.

Kevin I will not be able to be there this Sunday as I will be out of state, but let me know if there is anything I can do to help, Rainbo has my number. Sorry for the loss of your brother, it can't be easy.

What if he only buys you two free jumps in the pissing rain? You better hope he shaves the "boys"

Our imbalance (in this example we can use China) is only going to grow until the point that Chinese resources are somewhat depleted whether that may be by their inability to purchase OIL, gold etc. That depletion will probably occur somewhere in the next 15 years, as the Chinese economy grows, so will it's cost of living, and therefore wages. Once wages have risen to the point that doing business there is as economically disadvantageous as it would be in the EU, or the USA. So where will the next "cheap labor come from?" Good question huh?

NOPD justice being dished out. Just like the way they protected everyones "inalieble rights, that were endowed by our creator."

I will be unable to attend as I will be out of state. I am sure there will be several of our crew there to see him off, and let him know he will not be forgotten.

Who would fear that guy? The only thing scary about him, is how to get the stains off your driveway after you use a 12 gauge on him.

NOPD at their best eh? "good ole boys" that means they are hired murderers down there in NOPD speak. A deceased relative of mine that lived there all his life claimed the entire NOPD should not have one bullet between the entire bunch of them. I think he knew what he was talking about. His grocery store was once robbed by an off duty NOPD officer. BAD IDEA.

Should have immediately sprayed the KB with non chlorinated Brakleen.

QuoteThe real question is...where do you go to get drunk? Quote You are thinking just like me!!!

I have no idea. It's a damn good thing they both didn't wind up as meat chunks on the rails

2 Officers' Lawyers Want Charges Dropped Thursday, January 4, 2007 6:01 AM EST The Associated Press By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Two New Orleans police officers charged in a deadly shooting in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath say the district attorney reneged on a deal granting them partial immunity in exchange for their testimony before a grand jury. Attorneys for both asked a judge on Wednesday to throw out the murder and attempted murder charges against their clients. A grand jury last week indicted the two officers and five others in the Sept. 4, 2005, shootings on the Danziger Bridge that killed two men and wounded four other people. Officer Ignatius Hills and Sgt. Kenneth Bowen were assured their grand jury testimony about the shooting wouldn't be used against them, their attorneys maintain in court papers. District Attorney Eddie Jordan reneged on the deal, they argue. "Officer Hills submits that this flagrant, direct and improper use of his immunized testimony requires this court to quash the indictment against him and order him released," attorney Bruce Whittaker wrote in court papers. Hills is charged with attempted second-degree murder. Bowen initially invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when he appeared before the grand jury in October, attorney Frank DeSalvo said in his motion. Jordan's office later sought a court order compelling Bowen to testify in exchange for partial immunity, he said. "The state cannot meet its heavy burden of proving that all of the evidence it proposes to use was derived from legitimate, independent sources separate and apart from Bowen's grand jury testimony," DeSalvo wrote. Bowen was indicted on a first-degree murder charge after testifying before the grand jury for about five hours. Officer Mike Hunter Jr. is the only other indicted officer who testified before the grand jury. His attorney, Townsend Myers, was out of town Wednesday and hadn't filed a similar motion. Dalton Savwoir, a spokesman for Jordan, declined to comment on the motions except to say, "It's normally the job of the defense attorneys to keep a case from going to court." Bowen, Sgt. Robert Gisevius Jr., officer Anthony Villavaso II and former officer Robert Faulcon Jr., are charged with first-degree murder. Hunter and Officer Robert Barrios are charged with attempted first-degree murder. The officers were to be arraigned Friday. Ronald Madison, a 40-year-old mentally retarded man, and James Brissette, 19, were shot and killed by police on the bridge. Police say the officers were responding to a report of other officers being attacked when they came under fire. Police also claim Madison was reaching for a gun. Madison's brother, Lance, denies he or his brother was armed. He said they were running from a group of teens who had opened fire on the bridge when seven men jumped out of a rental truck and also shot at them without warning.

Man Recalls Rescue on NYC Subway Tracks Thursday, January 4, 2007 4:15 AM EST The Associated Press By DEEPTI HAJELA Listen to Audio NEW YORK (AP) — It took only an instant for Wesley Autrey to decide to jump into a subway track to rescue a stranger from an oncoming train. In hindsight, even he is somewhat startled by his dramatic decision, Autrey said Wednesday. But knowing he narrowly escaped injury or possibly death, the 50-year-old Harlem construction worker doesn't regret his choice. "I did something to save someone's life," he said. The father of three has found himself the object of public attention since Tuesday, when he saved a young man who had fallen onto the subway tracks by pushing him into a gap between the rails. Autrey planned to make the rounds of the morning television shows on Thursday, tape an appearance on David Letterman's CBS "Late Show" and visit City Hall to be honored by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Meanwhile, Autrey said the impact of the risky rescue was sinking in. "It's all hitting me now," Autrey said. "I'm looking, and these trains are coming in now. ... Wow, you did something pretty stupid." While waiting for a downtown Manhattan train, Autrey saw Cameron Hollopeter, a 19-year-old film student, suffering from some kind of medical episode. After stumbling down the platform, Hollopeter, of Littleton, Mass., fell onto the tracks with a train on its way into the station. Autrey, traveling with his two young daughters, knew he had to do something. "If I let him stay there by himself, he's going to be dismembered," the Navy veteran remembered thinking. He jumped down to the tracks, a few feet below platform level, and rolled with the young man into a drainage trough — cold, wet and more than a little unpleasant smelling — between the rails as the southbound No. 1 train came into the 137th Street/City College station. The train's operator saw someone on the tracks and put the emergency brakes on. Some train cars passed over Autrey and Hollopeter with only a couple of inches to spare, but neither man suffered any harm from the incident. Hollopeter was taken to a nearby hospital; Autrey refused medical attention — and then went to work. Autrey went by the hospital Wednesday afternoon for a visit with Hollopeter and his family. Afterward, he and Hollopeter's father addressed reporters. "Mr. Autrey's instinctive and unselfish act saved our son's life," said Larry Hollopeter, his voice choking up. Following the incident, calls came in from all over the country, offering rewards, as people found themselves inspired by Autrey's bravery. His mother beamed over him.

http://www.news.com/ FBI taps cell phone mic as eavesdropping tool By Declan McCullagh http://news.com.com/FBI+taps+cell+phone+mic+as+eavesdropping+tool/2100-1029_3-6140191.html Story last modified Mon Dec 04 06:56:51 PST 2006 The FBI appears to have begun using a novel form of electronic surveillance in criminal investigations: remotely activating a mobile phone's microphone and using it to eavesdrop on nearby conversations. The technique is called a "roving bug," and was approved by top U.S. Department of Justice officials for use against members of a New York organized crime family who were wary of conventional surveillance techniques such as tailing a suspect or wiretapping him. Nextel cell phones owned by two alleged mobsters, John Ardito and his attorney Peter Peluso, were used by the FBI to listen in on nearby conversations. The FBI views Ardito as one of the most powerful men in the Genovese family, a major part of the national Mafia. The surveillance technique came to light in an opinion published this week by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan. He ruled that the "roving bug" was legal because federal wiretapping law is broad enough to permit eavesdropping even of conversations that take place near a suspect's cell phone. Kaplan's opinion said that the eavesdropping technique "functioned whether the phone was powered on or off." Some handsets can't be fully powered down without removing the battery; for instance, some Nokia models will wake up when turned off if an alarm is set. While the Genovese crime family prosecution appears to be the first time a remote-eavesdropping mechanism has been used in a criminal case, the technique has been discussed in security circles for years. The U.S. Commerce Department's security office warns that "a cellular telephone can be turned into a microphone and transmitter for the purpose of listening to conversations in the vicinity of the phone." An article in the Financial Times last year said mobile providers can "remotely install a piece of software on to any handset, without the owner's knowledge, which will activate the microphone even when its owner is not making a call." Nextel and Samsung handsets and the Motorola Razr are especially vulnerable to software downloads that activate their microphones, said James Atkinson, a counter-surveillance consultant who has worked closely with government agencies. "They can be remotely accessed and made to transmit room audio all the time," he said. "You can do that without having physical access to the phone." Because modern handsets are miniature computers, downloaded software could modify the usual interface that always displays when a call is in progress. The spyware could then place a call to the FBI and activate the microphone--all without the owner knowing it happened. (The FBI declined to comment on Friday.) "If a phone has in fact been modified to act as a bug, the only way to counteract that is to either have a bugsweeper follow you around 24-7, which is not practical, or to peel the battery off the phone," Atkinson said. Security-conscious corporate executives routinely remove the batteries from their cell phones, he added. FBI's physical bugs discovered The FBI's Joint Organized Crime Task Force, which includes members of the New York police department, had little luck with conventional surveillance of the Genovese family. They did have a confidential source who reported the suspects met at restaurants including Brunello Trattoria in New Rochelle, N.Y., which the FBI then bugged. But in July 2003, Ardito and his crew discovered bugs in three restaurants, and the FBI quietly removed the rest. Conversations recounted in FBI affidavits show the men were also highly suspicious of being tailed by police and avoided conversations on cell phones whenever possible. That led the FBI to resort to "roving bugs," first of Ardito's Nextel handset and then of Peluso's. U.S. District Judge Barbara Jones approved them in a series of orders in 2003 and 2004, and said she expected to "be advised of the locations" of the suspects when their conversations were recorded. Details of how the Nextel bugs worked are sketchy. Court documents, including an affidavit (p1) and (p2) prepared by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Kolodner in September 2003, refer to them as a "listening device placed in the cellular telephone." That phrase could refer to software or hardware. One private investigator interviewed by CNET News.com, Skipp Porteous of Sherlock Investigations in New York, said he believed the FBI planted a physical bug somewhere in the Nextel handset and did not remotely activate the microphone. "They had to have physical possession of the phone to do it," Porteous said. "There are several ways that they could have gotten physical possession. Then they monitored the bug from fairly near by." But other experts thought microphone activation is the more likely scenario, mostly because the battery in a tiny bug would not have lasted a year and because court documents say the bug works anywhere "within the United States"--in other words, outside the range of a nearby FBI agent armed with a radio receiver. In addition, a paranoid Mafioso likely would be suspicious of any ploy to get him to hand over a cell phone so a bug could be planted. And Kolodner's affidavit seeking a court order lists Ardito's phone number, his 15-digit International Mobile Subscriber Identifier, and lists Nextel Communications as the service provider, all of which would be unnecessary if a physical bug were being planted. A BBC article from 2004 reported that intelligence agencies routinely employ the remote-activiation method. "A mobile sitting on the desk of a politician or businessman can act as a powerful, undetectable bug," the article said, "enabling them to be activated at a later date to pick up sounds even when the receiver is down." For its part, Nextel said through spokesman Travis Sowders: "We're not aware of this investigation, and we weren't asked to participate." Other mobile providers were reluctant to talk about this kind of surveillance. Verizon Wireless said only that it "works closely with law enforcement and public safety officials. When presented with legally authorized orders, we assist law enforcement in every way possible." A Motorola representative said that "your best source in this case would be the FBI itself." Cingular, T-Mobile, and the CTIA trade association did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Mobsters: The surveillance vanguard This isn't the first time the federal government has pushed at the limits of electronic surveillance when investigating reputed mobsters. In one case involving Nicodemo S. Scarfo, the alleged mastermind of a loan shark operation in New Jersey, the FBI found itself thwarted when Scarfo used Pretty Good Privacy software (PGP) to encode confidential business data. So with a judge's approval, FBI agents repeatedly snuck into Scarfo's business to plant a keystroke logger and monitor its output. Like Ardito's lawyers, Scarfo's defense attorneys argued that the then-novel technique was not legal and that the information gleaned through it could not be used. Also like Ardito, Scarfo's lawyers lost when a judge ruled in January 2002 that the evidence was admissible. This week, Judge Kaplan in the southern district of New York concluded that the "roving bugs" were legally permitted to capture hundreds of hours of conversations because the FBI had obtained a court order and alternatives probably wouldn't work. The FBI's "applications made a sufficient case for electronic surveillance," Kaplan wrote. "They indicated that alternative methods of investigation either had failed or were unlikely to produce results, in part because the subjects deliberately avoided government surveillance." Bill Stollhans, president of the Private Investigators Association of Virginia, said such a technique would be legally reserved for police armed with court orders, not private investigators. There is "no law that would allow me as a private investigator to use that type of technique," he said. "That is exclusively for law enforcement. It is not allowable or not legal in the private sector. No client of mine can ask me to overhear telephone or strictly oral conversations." Surreptitious activation of built-in microphones by the FBI has been done before. A 2003 lawsuit revealed that the FBI was able to surreptitiously turn on the built-in microphones in automotive systems like General Motors' OnStar to snoop on passengers' conversations. When FBI agents remotely activated the system and were listening in, passengers in the vehicle could not tell that their conversations were being monitored. Malicious hackers have followed suit. A report last year said Spanish authorities had detained a man who write a Trojan horse that secretly activated a computer's video camera and forwarded him the recordings. Copyright ©1995-2007 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.

You just have to wait