Seriously.

From Technology Review:

. . . They then created a list of over 1500 websites with related content and classified each as falling into the category of favouring gun control, favouring gun rights or balanced. They also divided the websites in these categories into subsections indicating whether they were purely factual, moderate or extreme in their views.

“From the extracted on-topic web pages 25% are purely factual, 10% highly balanced, 31% and 21% moderate and extreme gun rights respectively and 9% and 4% moderate and extreme gun control,” say Koutra and co.

They then studied the browsing habits of individuals to find out the variety of information that they accessed on this topic. The results give clear evidence of the “filter bubble” at work: most users access a small number of sites, most of which fall into the same category. “All in all, people use the web to largely access agreeable information,” conclude Koutra and co.

More at the link. The penultimate paragraph of the study extract indicates their intentions; to devise ways to get partisans to read more opposing views. I’m sure this is more about getting conservatives to accept liberal views than the other way around. It always is.

And why not? The Obama administration already has the DoJ, IRS, EPA, and every other agency doing its bidding, so why not the judiciary, too?

A federal judge said Thursday that she is leaning toward allowing President Barack Obama’s claim of executive privilege in Operation Fast and Furious, the failed law-enforcement operation at the center of a congressional investigation and subpoena fight between the Justice Department and House Republicans.

Remember when, as a candidate, Obama said he would lead the most transparent administration ever? Neither does the mainstream media.

As if the outcome was ever in doubt. From the Washington Post:

A federal judge on Thursday upheld the District’s tough gun registration laws, finding that regulations crafted in response to a landmark Supreme Court decision “pass constitutional scrutiny.”

“The people of this city, acting through their elected representatives, have sought to combat gun violence and promote public safety. The court finds that they have done so in a constitutionally permissible manner,” U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg wrote in an opinion likely to be appealed by gun-rights advocates.

Well, he says it’s more than that, but I’m hoping it’s only temporary. Several things are prompting him to do this, including wanting to spend more time with family, enjoy more of ‘real life’ and attend to things that need attending to.

Firstly, I’m saddened to hear that his mother is suffering from cancer and I truly hope for the best for her.

Secondly, Kevin Baker has been a staple of the pro-gun, pro-Constitution blogasphere for a very long time and his thoughtful essays will be missed.

I wish him well and hope he returns.

As for me (lest you worry), I’ve been churning along here at Alphecca for 12 1/2-years. Because. I. Have. No. Life….

The latest from Tactical Firearms in Katy, Texas:

It really is amazing; how narrow minded liberals are.

From Gizmodo:

It’s party time, ladies and gentlemen. Exactly one month after announcing the move, Google has updated its terms of service, allowing the company to use your profile information in ads. That means your face, name and personal details will start popping up all over your network. Yay!

As the article points out, if you’re not quite as thrilled about this, you can opt-out here.

This one from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell:

The [national] poll, released on Wednesday, says a more than three out of four people surveyed favor a requirement of more-through background checks prior to gun purchases, including in-depth psychological exams, and for closing the “gun-hole loophole” that allows purchases at gun shows without the same types of background checks with other gun sales.

The survey had 78 percent in favor of increased background checks and 80 percent favoring closing the gun-show loophole.

Sixty percent support the banning of sales of assault-type weapons.

I suspect that this one will be quoted from a lot by the anti-gun media.

Complete poll results here.

Get a load of how how much “common sense” gun control this ‘proud gun owner’ wants:

The best proposals are all about common sense and moderation—too often four-letter words in politics. Background checks and mental health evaluations for all gun owners, on a five-year verification cycle, would be a great first step.

Requiring licenses and negligent discharge insurance would be part of common sense reform. Much like vehicles—which are also key pieces of personal property that can take lives when they are operated irresponsibly, firearms should require a license to own and operate. A tiered licensing system could apply to different types of weapons. Insurance could cover any damages caused by negligent discharge, and skyrocketing rates might prove discouraging for repeat offenders.

Prudent limits need to be imposed. We should consider putting a cap on the number of firearms purchased for personal use. Allowances could be made for licensed gun dealers, but home protection and hunting require don’t require individuals to keep an arsenal. At the very least, misdemeanors such as DUIs, drug charges, and white-collar crimes should be added to the list of crimes that preclude offenders from owning firearms.

The criminals are with him, 100%.

In Nigeria, gun ownership is prohibited. So, only the bad guys have them. From Sun News Online:

Will the Nigerian Government stand idly and watch as armed hoodlums decimate Ni­gerians in their thousands before it can do the needful to legalize individual firearms own­ership under certain regulations? My take is that the Nigerian Government must liberal­ize firearms ownership in Nigeria as one way of safeguarding right to life since the armed forces and police have proved seriously chal­lenged and unable to be everywhere to pro­tect the lives of Nigerians and the constitu­tion makes it imperative that the security and welfare of every citizen is the primary duty of government. A stitch in time saves nine.

Read the whole thing. Groups like Boko Haram operate without opposition, killing and kidnapping at will because their victims are unarmed.

He’s 16-years-old:

Police in the Canadian city of Ottawa said they arrested a 16-year-old male charged with carrying out so-called “swatting” attacks that targeted 30 North American targets.

One of the targets included KrebsOnSecurity reporter Brian Krebs, who was previously on the receiving end of a vicious swatting attack that resulted in a team of police pointing guns at him as he opened the front door of his Virginia home. Krebs said the recent attacks were preceded by taunts from someone controlling the Twitter handle @ProbablyOnion. The last tweet made from that account, made on Thursday, stated: “Still awaiting for the horsies to bash down my door.” The individual didn’t have long to wait. That same day, the 16-year-old was arrested, according to press releases…

More, first-hand, here.

We all know what’s going to happen to this little shit punk; nothing. Slap on the wrist. Canadian style justice unless his victims decide to sue him.

From Reason:

The NBC station in New York City recently discovered that the new and allegedly improved “assault weapon” ban championed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo has not done much to make guns less lethal, since the features it prohibited are mostly cosmetic. Reporter Chris Glorioso visited Long Island gun dealer Martin Tretola, who showed him the difference between an AR-15 banned by the SAFE Act and an AR-15 designed to comply with the law: They are pretty much the same, except the legal rifle has none of the features that offended Cuomo.

More at the link.

The biggest difference to me, of course, is the limit on magazine capacity. If I’m ever in a bad situation, the last thing I want is for my attackers to have more ammo than I do.

This happened in Minnesota. From the Star Tribune:

Authorities partly closed a downtown Minneapolis freeway briefly Tuesday morning as they made a “high-risk” traffic stop to detain a motorist who allegedly brandished a gun at another driver.

Turns out the driver was an agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, a State Patrol report said.

[ . . . ]

The State Patrol took the man into custody but released him after officers learned he was an ATF agent who was carrying proper credentials.

“It’s under investigation,” said Lt. Eric Roeske of the Minnesota State Patrol. “We’re trying to determine the facts of what occurred.”

License to brandish. License to kill. Your government at work.

Just another in their series designed to demonize anything gun related.

Me? Trying to build my own gun is too much like work. I’d rather buy one from a reputable manufacturer, knowing that it will function properly. Also, I’ve never had to wait more than about 30-seconds for an NICS background check approval.

I guess it makes for feel good gun control:

Jersey City has begun requiring gun companies that supply its police department with weapons to disclose more about their business practices, an effort that is being watched by law-enforcement agencies in other cities.

Gun-control advocates and firearms industry representatives said Jersey City is the first municipality in the nation to demand such information. Questions include how firms dispose of old weapons and comply with background-check laws, and whether they make semiautomatic rifles—often called assault weapons—for sale to civilians, according to bid documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

The requirement went into effect earlier this year for gun and ammunition contracts worth at least $500,000 for Jersey City’s 800-member police force. The purpose: to try to change the firearms industry through the power of the city purse.

According to the article, several other cities around the country are joining ‘the effort.’

From the Physics arXiv Blog:

Imagine the following scenario. The end of civilisation has occurred, zombies have taken over the Earth and all access to modern technology has ended. The few survivors suddenly need to know the value of pi and, being a mathematician, they turn to you. What do you do?

If ever you find yourself in this situation, you’ll be glad of the work of Vincent Dumoulin and Félix Thouin at the Université de Montréal in Canada. These guys have worked out how to calculate an approximate value of pi using the distribution of pellets from a Mossberg 500 pump-action shotgun, which they assume would be widely available in the event of a zombie apocalypse.

Full how-to details at the link, if you’re really interested. Here’s my 500, and my calculator. I’m guessing the calculator is easier, so I’ll just include that in my survival room.

*Their food is deadly enough. From Breitbart:

On May 9th Jack in the Box announced it would “prefer guests not bring their guns inside [Jack in the Box] restaurants.”

This announcement comes in response to a Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America (Moms Demand) campaign aimed at securing an all-out gun ban in Jack in the Box corporate stores. Moms Demand also wanted franchises to be pressured into banning guns as well.

Moms Demand started the campaign after customers legally carried their rifles into a Fort Worth, Texas, Jack in the Box last week.

“Prefer.” Hmmm…

*Confession: When I was in High School, there was a Jack in the Box near my home and I frequented it A LOT. Great burgers and shakes. Then, I guess, there was an outbreak of bad meat at some of their West Coast stores. Anyway, eventually the chain left New Jersey. Fortunately, Wendy’s moved in.

A week or so back I wrote this:

Now you might be asking me, “Hey Jeff, what’s wrong with offering customers the choice between a regular gun and a ’smart one?’”

Because — and never mind the problems with electronics, etc. — once you validate the concept of the “smart gun” then the states will say, “Ah-hah!” and begin legislating that ONLY “smart guns” can be sold.

I didn’t know it then, but regarding New Jersey, I was right:

The threats came from all over the country in the past two weeks, aimed at gun dealers in California and Maryland who were prepared to sell firearms that would set off New Jersey’s tough law.

Their ultimate target was in New Jersey, where the gun-rights lobby has been frantically working to derail a 12-year-old law intended to speed the adoption of new technology that would ensure guns would fire only in the hands of their authorized users.

[ . . . ]

According to the law, passed when the technology was in its infancy, evidence that such a gun has been delivered to a dealer anywhere in the United States would be enough to start a three-year waiting period, after which every gun sold in New Jersey would be required to be equipped with a user-recognition system.

More at the link.

Answering the important questions! From the Daily Mail:

When giant movie monsters like Godzilla attack, they ultimately have to face the wrath of the U.S. military.

However, just how prepared are the United States military for an invasion of such creatures and would our weapons be any use at all?

From what we’ve seen on the big screen, the Pentagon has no clue, but when it comes down to reality, there are people who would rise to the planets’ defense should a 300-foot, atomic fire breathing monster come ashore.

More at the link, including this video: