And as if the UK wasn't bad enough..

[bfitzgerald]

Without getting deep into any political discussions..I didn't vote for anyone neither would I.
Never a fan of New Labour (nothing new it was spin and I disliked Blair intensely) But then I don't like the others much either. I'd happily put most of the MP's on a boat in the Solent and torpedo it and not even shed a tear of remorse

There will always be folks who sponge off of benefits and some who have a genuine need nobody has a problem with fairness in this. On the other hand a universal child benefit which is payable to wealthy and poor is utterly illogical in my books..give it to those who need it and not to those who do not.

I met a wealthy man many years ago and he was convinced that income tax should be abolished and everything put on VAT. That seals my "VAT hurts the most vunerable" argument fairly well. VAT is payable on many goods and it will impact those families and they are not all buying flat screen tv's either. Increasing VAT also adds to inflation which makes a mockery of some financial policies and the desire for low inflation.

Regardless we're all at the mercy of a flawed Oil based economy and ever increasing costs of living. I was watching a documentary on Rome the other day..the rise and fall, politics...war etc. Really things have not changed much at all.

[Dusty]

Problem is it never seems to get reduced.

Yes, no matter what the politicians say when they raise taxes, such as it is only a temporary tax and so on, it will not go away and it will get bigger and bigger over time. When the voters start to catch on then they start using euphemisms, such as 'fee', etc. instead of the word 'tax'.

Thomas Jefferson once said "The tree of Liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of Patriots and of Tyrants".

Of course, I'd much rather have a good "Throw all the bums out" election that resulted in a 70%+ turnover. Still, I'll keep the musket loaded in case it's needed.

Dusty

[Javelin]

fff

[bakubo]

Oh boy, this is where our European brothers and sisters on the forum become totally aware of our cultural divide! I am sure most can't fathom, and even loathe, the idea of owning a gun.

[Javelin]

heh. thats why I deleted Winston Churchill's quote. I remember what happened last time I brought up sam colt and Lee Enfield

[Dusty]

Oh boy, this is where our European brothers and sisters on the forum become totally aware of our cultural divide! I am sure most can't fathom, and even loathe, the idea of owning a gun.

Here's where I spent my Saturday evening.

Fully Functional (including the 37mm gun and machine guns) WWII Stuart Tank. My eldest daughter on top.

Tank1.jpg

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Fully Functional, Full Auto, Browning Automatic Rifle.

BAR.jpg

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All this and more - at my Congressman's annual 4th of July pot luck in his back yard!

Here he is talking to my Daughter Sam.

Todd and Sam.jpg

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Dusty

[bakubo]

It has been decades since I have owned a gun, but my best buddy collects them and has probably $100k worth. I like to go shooting with him when I am in his area. Here is me shooting a .50 caliber sniper rifle:

[Birma]

Dusty, that is a very nicely restored Stuart. The 'GI' standing to one side of the tank looks like he is a long time since doing any PT . Interestingly on the other side of the tank it looks like the flag of Great Britian, or the Union flag pre 1800?

[Greg Beetham]

Good resto job on the Stuart, looks almost mint, and wow lookit that BAR, that one looks brand new, yep you guys sure like your ordinance alright.
Guns are much more restricted here, the Government haven't realized yet that guns are a fact of life, the criminal element will always have guns no matter what laws they pass, they've just made sure that the only ones that have guns are the bad guys, yet another example of 21st century common sense.
Greg

[KevinBarrett]

Nice AMAC Model 5100 there, Henry, but it's no Barrett...

[bakubo]

Nice AMAC Model 5100 there, Henry, but it's no Barrett...

I had a chance to shoot it on several occasions. Really cool! It would be even cooler to see the photo of you shooting the Barrett.

As usual, it is all about the gear and not the person behind the gear.

[Dusty]

Dusty, that is a very nicely restored Stuart. The 'GI' standing to one side of the tank looks like he is a long time since doing any PT . Interestingly on the other side of the tank it looks like the flag of Great Britian, or the Union flag pre 1800?

Re-enactors don't have to do the PT that the real soldiers do!

And yes, that's a Union Jack out there. They had quite a few flags from other friendly countries.

Dusty

[Greg Beetham]

Ha ha Henry, it can't help but 'be' about the gear I reckon, take your photo for instance, who would need a rifle that fires a small artillery shell, unless I guess one has a need too do some plinking at things a kilometre away
Greg

ps. Also good for a skirmish against light armoured vehicles, eg. the ap round will penetrate one inch of steel at 200 metres.
http://www.inetres.com/gp/military/infa ... _ammo.html

[bakubo]

Ha ha Henry, it can't help but 'be' about the gear I reckon, take your photo for instance, who would need a rifle that fires a small artillery shell, unless I guess one has a need too do some plinking at things a kilometre away

Yeah, the same question could be asked about almost any object that exists. Who needs it?

ps. Also good for a skirmish against light armoured vehicles, eg. the ap round will penetrate one inch of steel at 200 metres.

My wife is holding one of the .50 cartridges here:

[Greg Beetham]

Yeah I guess, whatever, I read somewhere once that the minimum calibre for general purpose use in Africa 'way back in the good ol' days' was 375 H&H, but it went on too say that probably more big game had been killed by the .303 than just about any other cartridge, probably more to do with the penetrating power of full patch military ball than any stopping power of the cartridge itself. (Although 3/4 foot ton of energy or such is something I wouldn't like to get in the way of either).
Greg
ps. If you were to put say a 30-06 cartridge besides the .50 cal you/we would then see how massive that 50 is by comparison, and the 30-06 will stop just about anything in North America, I'd even go so far as to say the flatter shooting .270W (with the right projectile) would as well.