Just in case anyone thinks my vacation blogging has gone too far off topic.  Click it for the bigger version.

UPDATE:  This photo was taken several months ago when I was thinking about writing up a long post about Makarov ammo.  It was because it seems that every time I go to the range I  hear complaints from other Mak owners that the only thing they don't like about it is how hard it is to get ammo.

Ammo is easy to get.  It can be ordered from several places online and it's very affordable.  Some people claim that they refuse to shoot Silver Bear or whatever other color Bear, they even refuse to shoot Wolf ammo.  Well, Makarovs were made to shoot that stuff.  "But it has corrosive primers!!!!!!!!"  Pfft.  After a shooting session, clean it.

I am fairly fortunate in that our area monthly gun show always has ammo vendors with Makarov ammo.  As pictured above, I usually splurge and get the slightly more expensive Sellier & Bellot ammo (I also get S&B ammo for my CZ-52, by the way), but I have shot all that cheaper stuff and never had a problem with it.

The Hornady XTP ammo on the left is the only Makarov ammo I know of that is a specifically designed personal defense cartridge.  It's much more expensive.  A couple of months ago it was selling at the gun show for $13 per box of 25.  On the rare occasions that I carry my Mak, the Hornady XTP is what it is loaded with.

The loading tool in the picture is available from makarov.com.  The grips are Pearce.  The thumbrest grips that come on Makarovs are useless for a left-hander.

SayUncle points to more anti-McCain-Feingold blogs.

Following the link above, I found this post by Kim du Toit on the subject.  Says Mr. du Toit, " And if you want to join me, feel free to have at the graphics."

I have had at them and have hacked out a couple of variations.  If anyone wants to use them, have at them.

I made these alternative versions because I don't do that red state/blue state stuff.  Until someone comes up with a color for Constitutionalists and/or Libertarians, I won't be pledging allegiance to any single color.

The big one, 440 pixels wide because if I make graphics any wider it skews my columns:


The small 200-pixel-wide version because it will fit in my sidebar:


For anyone who wants to keep track of the blogs telling Congress exactly what they can do with this attempt to abolish our First Amendment rights, I recommend SayUncle's category on the Incumbent Protection Act.

And just to clarify:  I don't carry "ads" as such on this site.  But I can whip up a sidebar box with a picture, a link and a short message in a few minutes.  Not that it will reach very many readers, but then, it's that "army of Davids" thing.

Very concise and to the point.  The entire post from Bob’s Campaign.

The Second Amendment reads:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

I don’t think this clear language needs any amplification or explanation. It means what it says, and I agree with it. The 2nd amendment was adopted with a clear intent: the founders believed that the right of citizens to own firearms is an integral part of a free and safe society. Government must respect this right of the people, as with all other constitutional rights. I will vigorously oppose any legislation that tramples upon the Bill of Rights, including the 2nd Amendment.

There doesn't seem to be any way to register so that one can log in and leave comments, though.  Otherwise I would have left a comment thanking him for specifically mentioning it.

Doing not much of anything but listening to music, reading, catching up on several documentaries that I've taped, and generally slacking off.

Here is one of my favorite songs, by Julie Miller, set in the very wistful key of G minor.

All My Tears

When I go don't cry for me
In my fathers arms I'll be
The wounds this world left on my soul
Will all be healed and I'll be whole

Sun and moon will be replaced
With the light of Jesus' face
And I will not be ashamed
For my savior knows my name

It don't matter where you bury me
I'll be home and I'll be free
It don't matter where I lay
All my tears be washed away

Gold and silver blind the eye
Temporary riches lie
Come and eat from heaven's store
Come and drink and thirst no more

So weep not for me my friend
When my time below does end
For my life belongs to him
Who will raise the dead again

It don't matter where you bury me
I'll be home and I'll be free
It don't matter where I lay
All my tears be washed away

Can Gun Control Reduce Violence? at The War On Guns.

This currently appears nowhere else on the Internet, and I am grateful to Professor Covey for allowing me to present it here. How rarely do we see an academic speaking plainly to legislators about the folly of "gun control"? This is good stuff--much of which even an ornery absolutist like me can agree with--and deserves to be disseminated far and wide. I hope you will agree and help to do so by sharing the url to this post. This is one smart man, and his perspectives make us think.

The whole thing is at War On Guns.