Roll Over, Play Dead

100 bottles of beer on the floor, 100 bottles of beer…

The only thing that makes the high gas prices easier to deal with is the rock-bottom beer pricing these days.  Kash ‘n Karry had 20 packs of Bud Light/Bud Select/Miller Lite on sale for $5.99.

So I bought 5 cases

Is there any reason to own a firearm (or preferably lots of firearms)?

Just take a look at what is going on in New Orleans.  Bands of marauders running around with guns, hijacking vehicles and raiding homes.  There is not much doubt in my mind that the same damn thing would probably have happened in Tampa Bay if we had caught the brunt of Hurricane Charley, the one that instead demolished Port Charlotte.

But that’s what police are for, right…to take care of us in an emergency?  What happens when the police can’t even reach you?  Why, just pull out your mace and take care of those pesky robbers.

Gun control is one of the hottest topics in the country, but the stats show that firearms owners, particulary concealed weapons permit holders, have a lower crime rate than non-permit holders.  In fact, a report published in the LA Times revealed that a permit holder in Florida was 840 times less likely to commit a violent firearm crime than a randomly selected non-permit holder.  This is in direct contrast to the claims that Florida would become the "Wild West" because of the recent updates to the castle doctrine.  I’ve noticed that the people with the strongest dissenting opinions of the updated llegislation are actually the ones who have no fucking idea what is and isn’t allowed under the previous law, or even the new law.  Go figure.

UPDATE (from the Survival of New Orleans blog, a weblog that sprung up for a website hosting company named DirectNIC that is based out of New Orleans and has weathered the hurricane.  They are now defending its property against looters and armed gangs):

The Iberville Housing Projects got pissed off because the police started to "shop" after they kicked out looters. Then they started shooting at cops. When the cops left, the looters looted everything. There’s probably not a grocery left in this city.

Over 30 officers have quit over the last 3 days. Out of 160 officers in his district maybe 55 or 60 are working. He hasn’t seen several since Sunday. HQ is closed, evacuated. No phones to contact them.

"HQ, be advised, we’re going 10 7."

"Ok, y’all coming back on???"

"We don’t know."

And this:

New Orleans Police Department Status: The situation for the NOPD is critical. This is firsthand information I have from an NOPD officer we’re giving shelter to. Their command and control infrastructure is shot. They have limited to no communication whatsoever. He didn’t even know the city was under martial law until we told him! His precinct (5th Precinct) is under water! UNDER WATER — every vehicle under water. They had to commander moving trucks like Ryder and UHaul to get around. The coroner’s office is shut down so bodies are being covered in leaves at best or left where they lie at worst.

They don’t even know their own rules of engagement. He says the force is impotent right now. They have no idea what’s going on, no coordination, virtually no comms, etc. the National Guard is gonna air drop a radio system for them with 200 radios? They are getting very little direction.

The 3rd District bugged out to Baton Rouge because they flooded out.

His quote: "It’s a zoo."

More first hand information direct from him shortly. He’s trying to recover.

I am not trying to be an alarmist, but until we get a military presence of signicance in the city, the roving gangs of thugs own the streets.

x

Whoever decided to base the entire US Strategic Petroleum Reserve near the Gulf of Mexico must not have been considering that a hurricane could possibly send the entire country into a panic when 25% of our production completely shuts down.  Turns out that nearly 95% of the crude oil output from the Gulf has been stopped due to Katrina, so the President ordered a few million barrels be loaned from the SPR.  Problem is that the pipelines are clogged due to all the processing facilities shutting down, so we may actually have a gas problem on our hands.  Good thing it’s not winter, or people up north would be freezing to death at the lack of oil to heat their homes.

Gas is going through the roof.  Shocker.  Thanks GW!