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13 Jun 10 - 11:28 AM (#2926775) Subject: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: 3refs I was watching a documentary on the Secret Service, and how they emerged from looking for counterfeit money to protecting one of the most important people on the planet. When they got to the snipers they employ, they discussed what the range was for an effective sniper. I remember Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon when he said that he "did a guy in Laos" from 1000 yards in high wind and only 8-10 guys in the world could make that shot. I was kinda shocked when they said the longest "kill" shot on record was made by a Canadian from the P.P.C.L.I. in Afghanistan So I go surfing and found this video. I'm still kinda shocked! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMrku7K3EiU |
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13 Jun 10 - 11:40 AM (#2926779) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B What a nasty video - I have used rifles and know some sporting enthusiasts, but this is all about killing other humans with superoir technology ! I'm still kinda disgusted! |
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13 Jun 10 - 12:31 PM (#2926798) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Georgiansilver However, technology improves endlessly and so does mans ability because of that technology when taking out his enemies. It is not necessarily the fittest men who win battles these days.. it is those in possession of the best weapons.... as it always was.. The sad thing is that man has to do this at all! |
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13 Jun 10 - 12:46 PM (#2926804) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B And even sadder that it is glorified in this sickening way. |
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13 Jun 10 - 12:51 PM (#2926806) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T A local Newfoundland post about two local snipers Rob Furlong (once had the unofficial title as the best sniper in the history of marksmanship) and sniper Dave Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick's story of his experiences,near the end, is quite compelling: http://fishermansroad.blogspot.com/2010/05/fogo-island-sniper-loses-crown-as.html |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:14 PM (#2926837) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Now yas know what I am talking (endlessly) about in a lot of threads. I still don't know how the sniper knows that that the guy (lady?) is a Taliban who wants to kill him. Maybe the guy is hunting? |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:17 PM (#2926839) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Carlos Hathcock made a 1,000+ meter shot from an M-2 .50 caliber machinegun (1 bullet) in Vietnam. He also shot an enemy sniper who was shooting at him by sending a bullet down the enemy's telescope sight. General John Sedgewick was killed in the American Civil War by a Confederate sniper several hundred yards away. German, American, and British snipers made some amazing shots during WW I and II. For years the Camp Perry shooting matches in Ohio have had "One Mile Shooters" who do just that. As someone who has done target shooting for 53 years now I have great respect for accuracy. As a human being I hate it because we shoot at each other instead of paper targets. As someone who has a small understanding of human nature I don't see that changing any time soon. |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:33 PM (#2926851) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee I have a friend who was a "black" sniper in VN. He is 100% disabled for both mental and physical reasons, not the least of which is PTSD of the worst sort. He now has one of the finest model railroads in this part of the country and enjoys is immensely -- but even with medicine the nightmares and insomnia still come. I only hope that the guys and gals who are "over there" have proper care before and after they leave the service. |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:33 PM (#2926853) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee And by the way, I thought this thread was going to be about something else entirely. |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:45 PM (#2926868) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Bill D I had some interesting moments reading the tread title in various ways. If wars must exist, snipers do have a place in them. I've seen those videos, and all I know is that *I* have no place being in the position of deciding to pull a trigger in such circumstances. |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:46 PM (#2926870) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu As did I, Rap. I was sent that sniper video by link in an email from a relative. I watched it, not knowing what I was about to see. I found it disturbing on a basic level and certainly on the "level" I cited above. |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:56 PM (#2926883) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu This is more of what I thought it might be about. I recall seeing him knock a ballon at 400 yards with a 45 semi... I think, can't recall the gun. |
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13 Jun 10 - 01:57 PM (#2926884) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B I'm not naive enough to believe that warfare will cease and weapons will be turned into ploughshares And, despite the recent killing of 12 people not so very far from me by a man owning legitimate weapons, I do NOT advocate the banning of all guns (the rules in the UK are already pretty strict) What distresses me is the concept of equating killing humans with sporting metaphors coupled with the sort of macho musical background to the video which accompanies the obvious 'enthusiam' for this type of 'sport' |
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13 Jun 10 - 02:10 PM (#2926892) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Uncle_DaveO 3refs and EmmaB, why shocked? Why disgusted? Sharpshooting is in principle no different from say dropping a bomb on an enemy position, or throwing a grenade into an enemy's bunker. Now if you're saying you're shocked at war in itself, that's fair enough, I suppose, but your reactions in this case are specifically referable to the sharpshooting video. Sharpshooting is really no different from other weapon use. Indeed, since the very point of sharpshooting is the precision application of force based on the high expertise of the shooter, it's much more humane in its potential than either the bomb or the grenade referred to in the previous paragraph, since those weapons are much more likely to cause harm to uninvolved bystanders. If you object to a soldier's being able to kill an enemy from a fairly remote distance, you are about five hundred years behind the times, and need to abolish firearms entirely--Actually, farther back than that: The cross-bow and the longbow are pre-firearms, and were objected to on the same basis. You need to go back to hand to hand combat, with swords and axes. If you have a way to abolish war entirely, go ahead. And lots of luck! Dave Oesterreich |
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13 Jun 10 - 02:13 PM (#2926895) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee The music is what bothered me too, Emma. Killing another is not a time for music and dancing. The feeling of "I got him!" is legitimate, but I don't know of anyone who has had to kill someone in combat to rejoice over it for days and weeks. If they do, the person is ill. I recently bought a Ruger Air Hawk Elite Combo (like this) for target shooting. It is a single shot .177 caliber break-action pellet rifle. I will use it on a range, and this Fall will join other air gun enthusiasts in shooting indoors. I also have a customized Crosman .177 caliber CO2 pistol, which is also single shot and which I use the same way. I've reached the point where I like accuracy, but I do NOT like videos like that one. |
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13 Jun 10 - 02:20 PM (#2926907) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu "equating killing humans with sporting metaphors coupled with the sort of macho musical background" It's like marketing smokes to kids. The armed forces do it on the TV that same way. It's kinda sick, but it's... nah, not what this thread is about. |
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13 Jun 10 - 02:21 PM (#2926908) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: 3refs The distance, not the act shocked me! Other than the crappy background song, there was no killing. The round in question took 4 seconds to reach the target and dropped 146 feet and apparently saved more than a few lives! I'm still shocked! |
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13 Jun 10 - 02:46 PM (#2926931) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T "I still don't know how the sniper knows that that the guy (lady?) is a Taliban who wants to kill him. Maybe the guy is hunting" I am not a military person. But, I suspect sniper shots get "called in" from military sources who zero in on specific targets...like with artilary rounds, or air strikes. All are likely to do damage to the enemy and kill people. Unfortunately, wars and conflicts have always resulted in death and disctruction and kill nice people along with those less nice...not something I like to think of..and hope will end....but it's reality and unlikely to stop. |
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13 Jun 10 - 03:58 PM (#2926966) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: kendall 200 yards with an air rifle? Pull the other one! |
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13 Jun 10 - 04:11 PM (#2926971) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu 3? The vid I saw clearly showed appendages flying in the air. Not the same video apparently. I suppose yer right, Ed T. I just don't like Harper prosecuting a civil and religious war half way round the world which we sould have no part in. Terrorism... well, okay, but that is not why these snipers are blowing "targets" apart. Sorry for the thread drift. |
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13 Jun 10 - 05:54 PM (#2927033) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Kendall? Air rifles have changed somewhat since you put down your Red Ryder. My air rifle will do up to 1,200 fps and that scope is 4 to 12 power x 40mm. 200 yards isn't much -- I could, with practice, hit a target at 300 yards. Here's some stuff from Robert Beeman, of the company that makes Beeman air guns: To get some perspective on airgun velocities, consider the muzzle velocities of some well-known guns: A typical "BB" gun imparts about 250 to 350 fps to a light (about 5 grains [0.32 grams]}, .174" (4.4 mm) steel ball. A .22" ( 5.5 mm) rimfire cartridge rifle has a regular-speed muzzle velocity of about 1025 to 1145 fps. Ten pumps in a Daisy Powerline 880 or Crosman Powermaster 760 BB/pellet pneumatic will fire pellets at about 570 to 670 fps. Ten pumps in a Benjamin M342 .22 caliber air rifle, produces about 640 fps. Ten pumps gives about 605 fps in the .177" Crosman 1400 or 695 fps in the .20" Sheridan air rifle. The muzzle velocity of a Beeman R-1 air rifle ranges about 590 to over 1100 fps, depending on model and caliber. A .38" Special (9 mm) firearm or .45" (11.4 mm) ACP firearm wadcutter bullet moves at about 770 fps muzzle velocity, but is extremely dangerous due to its great weight. In terms of the more familiar miles per hour, the BB gun sends out its projectile at about 170 miles per hour, while a top level adult air rifle will rush its projectile out at over 750 miles per hour. Plaintiff lawyers in airgun cases often dwell on the velocity of airguns as a measure of their danger. However, one must temper any considerations of velocity with the mass of the moving object; obviously most of us would choose being hit with a BB at 170 miles per hour rather than by an automobile, or even a hard baseball, going "only" 60 miles per hour! However -- shooting a .177 pellet at more than 1080 fps (speed of sound) will cause the lightweight pellet to yaw and lose a LOT of accuracy. And while muzzle velocity might be 1000 fps, after about 35 yards the pellet starts to drop -- at 300 yards I'd probably have to compensate for around 100 inches of pellet drop. Yeah it can be done. I'm not gonna try it, though. I could easily do it with a rifle, I'm okay out to about 300 meters with a properly zeroed rifle, using open sights; I've never tried it with a scoped rifle. But then again, we only saw a couple or three shots in that video and we have no idea of the size of the actual target. I could tape up a piece of 6 x 6 foot paper and select the best group! Basically, I'm saying that it can be done, but I'd like to see it verified by me personally or someone I can trust. (Max range on my Ruger air rifle, by the way, is supposed to 575 yards.) |
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13 Jun 10 - 06:10 PM (#2927042) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B In a post sometime back I included a report from a female correspondent in Afghanistan which gave an account of the description by soldiers watching a drone hit as a snuff video game The quotes below are from Worldfocus, an American newscast focused on international news and reporting. It distributed to U.S. public television stations by American Public Television and ceased broadcasting on April 2, 2010 "As unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have become increasingly central to America's wars, "drone porn" has taken the internet by storm with captivating aerial images of death and destruction. The Defense Department actually posts its drone attack footage on YouTube via DVidsHub. Some of the videos have caught the attention of millions The military's Predators and Reapers routinely strike Iraq, Afghanistan — and increasingly in Yemen, Somalia and elsewhere With an aim of promoting UAVs domestically as well as "enlightening" our enemies, the Defense Department recently began placing the Predator and Reaper mission clips on YouTube. Ranging from relatively detached wide shots of bombings taken by onboard cameras to startlingly graphic close-ups, the so-called "drone porn" has been a smash hit, as it were, tallying over 10 million views Some marvel at the new technology and discuss the resulting paradigm shift in warfare. Some raise questions, including whether it's principled, dignified or otherwise in America's best interest to post drone prone in the first place. Most comments are along the lines of, "Hell yeah HOOOAH BABY!" " The most watched "drone porn" segments are from Iraq. One video of the killing of "Six armed criminals' Baghdad has over 1 million views: Uncle Dave O said - "If you object to a soldier's being able to kill an enemy from a fairly remote distance, you are about five hundred years behind the times, and need to abolish firearms entirely" I'm not out of touch with reality Uncle Dave O but I am increasingly disturbed with the separation between the attacker and the 'target' - the CIA drone operators are based in the US I believe - and even more so with the increasing overlap between video games of killing and warfare and the association between the legitimate, and highly skilled sport of target shooting. with the shooting of other human who are reduced to mere 'targets' which I feel this video belongs to. "….the moral hazards of such extrajudicial killings are never explored in video games, or drone attacks, and all the usual human safeguards against killing during a ground invasion (namely that you have to look your target in the eye while killing them with your bare hands) are no longer an obstacle." . |
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13 Jun 10 - 06:19 PM (#2927052) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: 3refs Here in Canada. 1. Air guns that are firearms for purposes of both the Firearms Act and the Criminal Code. These are air guns with both a high muzzle velocity (greater than 152.4 meters or 500 feet per second) and a high muzzle energy (greater than 5.7 joules or 4.2 foot-pounds). The "muzzle velocity" is the speed of a projectile at the instant it leaves the muzzle of a gun, normally expressed in metres per second or feet per second. The "muzzle energy" is the energy of a projectile at the instant it leaves the muzzle of a gun, expressed in joules or foot-pounds. Air guns need to meet both standards to be classified as firearms for purposes of the Firearms Act. |
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13 Jun 10 - 06:29 PM (#2927063) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee That's okay. I wasn't planning on bringing ANY guns into Canada. Or anywhere else, for that matter. It's very, very unfortunate, but you can get a gun and ammunition anywhere you happen to be if you a) know who and how and b) are willing to pay enough cash. |
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13 Jun 10 - 06:35 PM (#2927067) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Bill C-391, the private member's bill that could end Canada's long gun registry, is likely on hold for the summer. The bill, introduced by Conservative Candice Hoeppner, passed second reading with the support of 20 votes from Liberal and NDP Members of Parliament. It was then referred to committee for debate and a clause by clause examination. |
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13 Jun 10 - 06:56 PM (#2927077) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Rap... It was then referred to committee for debate and a clause by clause examination at great expense to the taxpayer while ensuring lots of highly paid salaries and perks for those invloved who will provide a summary of their findings which will be useless drivel with no absolute or defining conclusions, upon which, another round of "screw the taxpayer" will be ordered. I added a bit... for clarification. |
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13 Jun 10 - 07:13 PM (#2927093) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: olddude disturbing to say the least, as with most, people come out of training doing the lets get em ... once they are in that positions and have to use the weapon, the rest of their life they are messed up ... exactly what Rap said ... unless one is defective in character, it is nothing to celebrate. There are few people that can match my handgun skills, there are many who can match and exceed my rife skills, but I never had to use either thankfully ... |
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13 Jun 10 - 07:19 PM (#2927096) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Target shooting is just clean fun. |
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13 Jun 10 - 07:23 PM (#2927099) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Likewise, Dan. Likewise. Why do people think cops get counseling after having to shoot and kill someone? Why do railroad engineers get counseling after hitting someone, even though it is not their fault? Why is the military doing a helluva lot more for the mental as well as the physical health of people in the service? Unless you have severe mental problems, killing another human being isn't a video game. It's blood and guts and brains and bone shattered and spewed out on the patient Earth. Ask an EMT, ask a firefighter, ask a cop. Ask someone who has heard the "crack!" of a bullet being fired at him or her, or someone who has held a head-shot or gut-shot buddy in their arms and watched as the light went out. THEN make your videos and talk about killing. |
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13 Jun 10 - 07:29 PM (#2927104) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee In the meantime, I'll go to the range and shoot paper target that have concentric circles on them. |
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13 Jun 10 - 07:33 PM (#2927106) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B "It's blood and guts and brains and bone shattered and spewed out on the patient Earth" Not if you are as far away as the shooters on that vid - or even on another continent! It's "Hell yeah HOOOAH BABY" time! |
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13 Jun 10 - 07:36 PM (#2927107) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Loud and clear, Rap. 5 on 5. |
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13 Jun 10 - 08:40 PM (#2927127) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: kendall In Maine, an air rifle is not considered a firearm. |
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13 Jun 10 - 09:23 PM (#2927160) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T I suppose yer right, Ed T. I just don't like Harper prosecuting a civil and religious war half way round the world which we sould have no part in. Terrorism... well, okay, but that is not why these snipers are blowing "targets" apart. I agree with your political views on this, gnu. But, one has to separate the solder from the political nuts who put them in those situations. It is the young folks, who eagerly enlisted to protect thir country, not the politicialns that put them there, that often face associated issues for the rest of their lives. |
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13 Jun 10 - 09:38 PM (#2927170) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Emma, did you see the telescopes? The telescopic sights? The shooter and his spotter can BOTH see the human beings they shoot. They are NOT targets in some arcade game. Snipers are taught NEVER to look at a target's eyes or they won't be able to pull the trigger. In every single war, whether is is fought with missiles and lasers or rocks, you MUST depersonalize the people you are trying to kills. We even have names for them: Boche, Hun, Wop, Eye-tie, Reds, Commies, Limeys, Gooks, Japs, Nips, Chinks, Lobsterbacks, Fuzzy-Wuzzies, Chalie, Niggers (by Brits, Americans, and others), Papist, Fenians.... Try killing someone you've been introduced to as Herman, Frederich, Giano, Lucio, Ivan, Fedor, Bill, Nguyen, Kim, Yamamoto, Suenaga, Chou, Fred, Offung, Sean, Patel, Patrick.... Had he and I but met By some old ancient inn, We should have set us down to wet Right many a nipperkin! But ranged as infantry, And staring face to face, I shot at him as he at me, And killed him in his place. I shot him dead because-- Because he was my foe, Just so: my foe of course he was; That's clear enough; although He thought he'd 'list, perhaps, Off-hand like--just as I-- Was out of work--had sold his traps-- No other reason why. Yes; quaint and curious war is! You shoot a fellow down You'd treat, if met where any bar is, Or help to half a crown. The Man he Killed --Thomas Hardy |
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13 Jun 10 - 09:46 PM (#2927175) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: GUEST,Uncle Rumpo I'm a civilian and all my life a pacifist humanist and for most of that a long haired hippy peace and love activist.. but i like guns.. I'd love to own a gun. I truly appreciate well designed and engineered machined tools. be that guitars, amps, drills, fishing rod reels, guns.. etc.. ok, my honest, my purely objective observation.. some of the most magnificent products of human intelligence and imagination are weapons.. tools of death and destruction.. evil in intent but strangely perfect and enticing in form and function.. but still wonderfull objects of human creativity.. They should be displayed as works of art.. Is any thing in the Tate Modern more beautiful than the Short Sunderland..??? |
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13 Jun 10 - 10:15 PM (#2927195) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B OK Rapaire. against my better judgement I watched this sickening video again although I tried to mute the triumphant song about the '21st C killing machines' I saw the claim of a kill at one and a half miles and a telesccpic lens panning a building My friend's children have exactly this kind of super macho arcade game and yes I understand well the policy of totally dehumanizing the 'enemy' which is why I have protested (and will continue to do so) on threads here against the use of names like 'Paki' etc when 'justified' as 'friendly banter' I posted the video of the young Israeli soldier in another thread describing all inhabitants of Ramallah in the West Bank as 'dogs, gorillas' etc and 'animals not human like us' Makes it so much easier to kill 'insurgents', women and children without any contact or conscience. "Hell yeah HOOOAH BABY!" |
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13 Jun 10 - 10:27 PM (#2927199) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Emma, that "song" I found to be completely and irredeemably offensive. Only the mentally sick rejoice in killing others. We convicted some of them at Nuremberg in 1946. |
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13 Jun 10 - 10:38 PM (#2927208) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: GUEST,Uncle Rumpo "against my better judgement I watched this sickening video" so that would be the completley shite amateurish teen fanboy waste of bandwith youtube uploaded pile of bollocks ...etc.. there are far more horrible atrocities happening on this planet IN THE REAL WORLD to get angry about..!!!! Sorry Em, don't feel no ill intent to you, don't know you, but please... we, all of us on the side of the 'good guys' can't afford the luxury of being too oversensitive about every petty antagonism in the virtual world that can eventually exaust all our collective resistance energies to fight the real enemy in the here and now 3D world.. |
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14 Jun 10 - 06:55 AM (#2927369) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B "there are far more horrible atrocities happening on this planet IN THE REAL WORLD to get angry about..!!!! " Yes I am well aware - I have participated directly for many years, as far as possible, in attempting to change things in the 'real' world too. However, this should not deny me the option of voicing an opinion about this sort of unpleasant stuff on a folk music forum. |
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14 Jun 10 - 07:14 AM (#2927383) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Amergin I only shoot enthusiasts during the season....not about to get busted for poaching enthusiasts.... |
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14 Jun 10 - 09:44 AM (#2927500) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee I suggest Stubbs barbeque sauce, Amergin. |
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14 Jun 10 - 01:22 PM (#2927638) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T "poaching enthusiasts" I prefer them slow roasted. |
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14 Jun 10 - 01:30 PM (#2927649) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B The 'Cooking Enthusiast ' site - all you need to know Thanks for the laugh Amergin :) |
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14 Jun 10 - 02:47 PM (#2927726) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee A special knife for cutting watermelon? I'll have to get one -- my machete is getting dull. But couldn't I just use one of the kitchen knives I already have? |
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14 Jun 10 - 02:56 PM (#2927734) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: VirginiaTam Friend (in the UK) told me only today that when her parents visited Nevada, they visited a shooting range. They brought the used target home. It was not the typical red and white bullseye target. It was a life sized poster of a family 2 parents 2 kids with bullet holes in their heads. I told her that was just sick. She agreed. |
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14 Jun 10 - 03:17 PM (#2927749) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee You can get (or make) lots of targets. I don't use any with a human outline and I don't want those shooting with me to use such. I can't speak for Nevada, but the people I know there don't shoot targets of parents and children. One of the more challenging targets is an inflated balloon hung by a string on a string stretched in front of a good backstop on a windy day. A quarter-sized washer hung the same way is also fun. The range for the washer should be about 50 feet. Or paste paper over one end of a toilet paper tube and arrange it on a bench (75 feet range) so that to his the paper target you have to shoot down the tube. (You also have to clean up after yourself.) But no pictures or targets of people. Ever. |
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14 Jun 10 - 03:32 PM (#2927759) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: 3refs Perhaps I should learn to title my posts differently! I somehow knew this would turn into a debate, or a debacle! The plain and simple truth is, people, communities and countries need to be protected and have the ability to defend themselves, or you have to depend on someone else to do it for you. Against what? Everything! I have no desire to cause harm. Nor do I wish to do a little "payback" for past atrocities against humankind. But somebody has to take a stand. If your not willing to protect, or support those who do the protecting, then go to the front of the line and take the bullet that was meant for me so I can continue to protect those behind me!!! |
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14 Jun 10 - 04:24 PM (#2927785) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee 3refs...I wrote that check on my 18th birthday. It's still not cashed, but it's still good. |
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14 Jun 10 - 05:29 PM (#2927819) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu 3... your title was fine. Fact is, "Keep Out" is an invite, perhaps even a dare, for peeps to come in and find a reason to shit on you or your thread or whatever. It's just the way the world is. Ignore it.... it is your only option. |
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14 Jun 10 - 05:35 PM (#2927827) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: 3refs Soldiers, Firefighters, Police Officers(I almost said Policemen)have my unwavering, fixed, enduring, resolute, whatever freakin adjective you want to use, devotion and loyalty. Provided you don't screw up, according to my standards, in the cultural atmosphere I was raised in and have come to love. Now I'll get called a bigot! Warmongering bigot! |
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14 Jun 10 - 06:21 PM (#2927866) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Same here, 3. My beef is with the politicians. But my beef is useless... a waste of breath. I shouldn't have said any of it but it pisses me off. |
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14 Jun 10 - 06:47 PM (#2927888) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Emma B "Now I'll get called a bigot! Warmongering bigot!" Well MY distaste was for the video which glorified (with apalling lyrics about 'killing machines') the use of firearms to take human life at distances which served to totally depersonalize the 'target' As was said by another 'Only the mentally sick rejoice in killing others' however the impressive the technology! I opened the thread because I actually DO admire the skilful use of firearms for sporting activities (I have shot skeet in the past); as Rapaire commented 'I thought this thread was going to be about something else entirely.' I AM however appalled by the presentation of modern warfare as some kind of macho arcade game and the weapons designed purely as killing machines as big boys toys and consider this video falls into that category. As I mentioned, there has very recently been a tragic loss of 12 lives in this area by someone going on a disturbed 'killing spree' which just adds to the sense of offence when opening that video. I can't recall using any words like 'bigot' - I reserve that for people who espouse racism etc on the forum - and prefer not to diminish such words by inappropiate usage. Enjoy what you like but don't expect that kind of enjoyment to be shared by everyone and don't attempt to put words like 'warmongering bigot' into other peoples mouths - I don't think I can recall seeing any such comment or suggestion in this thread. |
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14 Jun 10 - 07:22 PM (#2927903) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Using a Sharps .50 caliber "buffalo rifle" Billy Dixon shot Minimic, a Comanche medicine mad, at 1,200 to 1,500 feet at the Second Battle of Adobe Wells. John Sedgewick was shot and killed by a Confederate sharpshooter at over 1,000 yards (910 meters) at the Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse on May 9, 1964. The Whitworth rifle, purchased by the Confederacy from Britain during the US Civil War, had an effective range of 800 to 1,000 yards (730 to 910 meters) and a "total range" of 1,500 yard (1.400 meters). My US Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1917 (the "Enfield") has a rear sight calibrated to 1,800 yards; it has been fired at 850 yards (factory ammunition) and shot a group six (6) inches across (not by me!). There have been many "mile shooters", or at least long range, shots in wars over the years (and none of the above used telescopic sights). The archers at Agincourt couldn't see the faces of the cross-bowmen and French knights; the Persian archers and slingers at Thermopylae couldn't look into the eyes of the Greeks. Even in modern bayonet training you are trained to "aim your bayonet at the throat" and never look at your opponents face. I abhor music that celebrates killing machines and men as simple killing machines. No machine, anywhere, will kill anyone unless a human agency causes it to. I could (but don't!) keep a hand grenade on my coffee table and nothing would happen until I or someone activated it. I respect good shooting, I do NOT respect those who think that there is joy in killing another person. And this is the last post I'll make to this thread. |
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14 Jun 10 - 08:02 PM (#2927918) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu EB... "Enjoy what you like but don't expect that kind of enjoyment to be shared by everyone and don't attempt to put words like 'warmongering bigot' into other peoples mouths..." Ahhhh... you just "put words in other people's mouths" when you said "Enjoy what you like...". The original post from 3 made no such reference to "enjoyment" and none of the posts from 3 on this thread have done so. And none of the other posts have even alluded to said "enjoyment". For you to put such a twist on his words is rude at best and I believe you owe 3 an apology. And don't get all pissy... his post you cite could not be said to be aimed directly at you. But your post is certainly aimed at him. You are putting words in other peoples mouths. And why you bother to do so is puzzling to me. If I have erred in my understanding, please edify me. |
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14 Jun 10 - 09:13 PM (#2927940) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee I must post a correction: John Sedgewick was shot and killed on May 9, 1864 -- not 1964. |
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14 Jun 10 - 10:07 PM (#2927951) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: GUEST,Riginslinger http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1206553/British-sniper-tells-moment-shot-Taliban-commander--TWO-KILOMETRES-away.html b |
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14 Jun 10 - 11:03 PM (#2927975) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: olddude Rap I will come down sometime and show ya some handgun stuff that will blow your socks off ... I like to line up empty 12 gauge cartridges but if I told ya the distance you would not believe me ... with a 40 cal glock |
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14 Jun 10 - 11:08 PM (#2927977) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: olddude Oh and ya don't stand them up, you lay them down, the trick is to pass the bullet through the spent tube and out the back side of the brass .. |
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15 Jun 10 - 03:52 AM (#2928099) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Don(Wyziwyg)T On the whole, and after due consideration, I have come to the conclusion that I would approve > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > of the idea of shooting these enthusiasts. Don T. |
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15 Jun 10 - 02:12 PM (#2928434) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu From my last post "And none of the other posts have even alluded to said "enjoyment"." I was informed by PM that EB was referring to enjoying shooting sports and not to enjoying the YT vids. My apologies, EB, for that particular clause in my post. |
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15 Jun 10 - 07:22 PM (#2928634) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: DougR Rapaire: Wow, I had no idea air rifles today can shoot that far. When I was a wee lad, I rarely left the house without my Daisy air rifle. Mine chouldn't shoot across the street with great accuracy. DougR |
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15 Jun 10 - 10:15 PM (#2928712) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Did I mention that mine sports a 4-12 x 40 scope? |
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16 Jun 10 - 02:21 PM (#2929246) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: JohnInKansas I'm not sure who John Sedgewick was, but the famous last words of John Sedgwick were reported as "Those bastards couldn't hit an elephant from th..." (As reported in various histories of Sedgwick County, Kansas - named for the man.) A traditional "standard of excellence" for long range rifle shooting is the "minute of arc group." This is a feat sufficiently difficult that record books are kept on the relatively few able to achieve it. The odds are raised a bit since one is permitted to shoot the required "five consecutive rounds" before drawing the circle that subtends an arc of one minute from the firing line. One minute of arc at one mile is 18.43 inches. With excellent equipment and training, and under suitable wind and lighting, a person capable of shooting minute of arc groups with resonable consistency stands a fairly good chance of hitting an "intended target" approximating a person (or live game) sometimes, but the truly exceptional individual shots include a significant element of chance. Having once killed a viciously charging jack rabbit at a fairly accurately measured 120 yards with an offhand shot with a .357 Mag handgun, I feel intitled to claim once having made an "impossible shot." I certainly wouldn't claim to be able to do it again, consistently, on demand. (The "10" ring on a 50 ft gallery pistol target is about 3 arc minutes wide, and at the time I did have a couple of fairly recent "9 out of 10" 3 minute groups from my competitive target shooting days. But, unfortunately, all my best groups were from practice sessions.) The combat "solo operative" (sniper) is intended to "engage targets" where there is a reasonable probability of a successful hit; but the additional intent is to keep the enemy aware that they are vulnerable, thereby limiting their ability to move freely without lookking at the hills and shrubbery at all times. A "close miss" has about as much tactical effectiveness as a hit. The theoretical purpose is similar to deploying land mines, which are not mainly intended to kill the enemy, but only to limited enemy mobility. They are supposed to be used to deny the use of land areas. Regulations require that each and every mine placed must be accurately mapped, with maps filed with upper command echelons. Minefields must always be visibly marked until they are cleared. It is thus obvious that only the losers will ever leave mines behind by being forced to retreat without clearing them. It could be expected that the winners would maintain the markings until the maps are available to clearance people (via treaty or capture?). [Draw your own conclusions.] John |
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16 Jun 10 - 02:46 PM (#2929264) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu At 100m, I placed a 6mm plywood board upon which I had put a 100mm long strip of duct tape. I put a 28g rifled slug in the top barrel of my 28" vent rib, full over modified, Baikal (light weight and the best shotgun I ever shouldered... even better than Bro's 30,000+ USD custom Browning). I put a hole in the centre of tape. I put another slug in and did NOT put another hole in the tape. Never "practiced" with slugs again with that shotgun. Just wish someone had been there to see it. I've made hundreds of great shots with hunting long guns, but after a blowback in my right eye from a split casing in a WIN 9422 (cheap Mexican ammo), I have never been the same "shot" I was with open sights. Hand guns are not allowed here. |
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16 Jun 10 - 03:09 PM (#2929279) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Being a rimfire (i.e., .22) enthusiast since my totally misspent youth... I once had a .22 single action revolver (not a very good one!). I used to walk in the woods along the river side of the levees and snap-shoot trash -- beer bottle, cans, "targets of opportunity" at various distances. I got pretty good out to about 50 yards. Then I ended up in the Army, as a Military Policeman, and had to be "familiarized" on the .45 automatic. The Operations Sergeant took me out to a range and put up a man-sized target, usually used on the rifle range, at something like 50 feet. He took up his Post Pistol Team Member stance with his super-duper accurate .45 and proceeded to fire 5 rounds, slow fire and carefully aimed, into the target (which he grouped about a foot across). Then it was my turn, and I did hit the target.... Next was rapid fire. "You'll never need this in police work," he said with scorn, "but I have to teach you anyway." (This is an exact quote -- no rapid fire is needed in police work.) So he hit the target five times. It was my turn. Using an "arms room .45 -- that is, not exactly a precision weapon -- I automatically dropped into a "combat crouch" and shot a six-inch group in the target's "head". He grunted and didn't speak to me all the way back. He didn't care much for me before and he actively disliked me after that. Frankly, I didn't care -- I did some excellent shooting and got a break at a time I really needed one. |
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16 Jun 10 - 04:42 PM (#2929352) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T Three rural air rifle memories from my youth:I got my first air rifle at about ten, and a 22 calibre at about 13. (Don't tey any of these at home). The first was proping shotgun shells and 22 calibre bullets up in wooden slots and trying to set them off with air gun shot, from a distance....(I don't recall us ever setting one off, though we may have)? Second was throwing live 22 calibre shells in an open camp fire, and running behind trees before they shot off. It was scary at 13 years of age...maybe would be even now. Third was a memory of trying to shoot a nuisance squirrel on the top of our farm barn from our back door. I had the squrrel in my sights and pulled the trigger. Just at that time, my fathers head popped up from the entry stairs...I got him top of his hairless head. I was in real trouble, and my father had a small head scar, where the air shot hit, for the rest of his life....a reminder (to me) of just how foolish it is to give a gun to a young person. I inherited a few long guns. But, turned them all in to the police a few years back...to be distroyed. I'm not preaching. It was just the right thing to do for me, at that time in my life. I don't have any need to hunt or shoot anything. But, I now like taking pictures of animals I would have hunted in an earlier phase of my life. |
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16 Jun 10 - 04:59 PM (#2929366) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Q (Frank Staplin) Haven't read this thread- but with 72 or so posts, shooting enthusiasts seems to be a popular sport. |
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16 Jun 10 - 05:29 PM (#2929383) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Uncle_DaveO When I was in high school, I joined the Rifle Club. The school had a (50? 75? foot) rifle range in the gym, with target butts at the end, and covers that folded up when the range wasn't in use. .22s only, of course. An uncle was a member of a local rifle club in town, which used this range, and he suggested I might want to try it. I was able to borrow a .22 rifle for a period, and then bought a Stevens 11-pound barrel target rifle. We were taught safe weapons handling and range procedure, and of course how to squeeeeeeeeeeeze the trigger, how to be rock-solid in any of the three basic firing positions, etc. Incidentally, the club was affiliated as a junior club with the American Rifle Association (if that's the name), and through them we had a subsidized source of ammunition, in the end underwritten by the Army, as I understood it. The Army underwrote it because they wanted to bring along a stream of experienced riflemen. After I left high school I don't think I ever fired that weapon again, and finally got rid of it (I forget how) maybe forty years later because my wife didn't want a firearm in the house with my teenage son. When I was in the Army, the first day on the rifle range, I remember being for the first time ready to fire, in the prone position. An officer came by and said to me: "Now that's good form!" I didn't tell him where I got it. Dave Oesterreich |
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16 Jun 10 - 06:09 PM (#2929407) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Ed T... "Second was throwing live 22 calibre shells in an open camp fire, and running behind trees before they shot off." They don't do that. The leads melts and the powder explodes. You could get some hot lead or ashes on you, but not a bullet. Even if it did do that, it wouldn't even leave a bruise. Worst case would be the brass being propelled backwards from the powder being set off. Now, an unopened can of beans is nasty. When that goes, there is real danger for anyone close to the fire. |
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16 Jun 10 - 06:54 PM (#2929434) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Unc, that was probably ammunition supplied by the Civilian Marksmanship Program, which still runs rifle and air rifle matches. Back in the day it was run by the Dept. of the Army (and had been since 1898!), nowadays it's a separate non-profit with offices in Ohio and Alabama. It's just the place to go for a .30-40 Krag with a rusty, cracked barrel and part of a stock. They still supply (at a cost) .22 ammunition of the Boy Scouts, shooting clubs, 4-H, and similar shooting programs. Back in 1956, when I shot with a high school club which still exists a box of fifty .22 Long Rifle cartridges cost me USD 0.25, the next year it went up to 0.35, and the third year it was a half a dollar. |
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16 Jun 10 - 07:03 PM (#2929441) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T Gnu, I did not say they were lethal, but they did pop. Check out Mythbusters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfoJAwlUopI |
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16 Jun 10 - 07:09 PM (#2929445) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Ed T Gnu, picture yourself at 13, there was no Mythbusters then, nor sources of information, like the internet. We ran like hell and heard pops, (casing or not), and it was indeed scary....and I have a few friends who were there to certify that as a fact. We ate beans, no comparison...just smelled bad. Now, maybe an unopened can of beans (or anythinbg else) in a campfire could possibly explode. |
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16 Jun 10 - 07:10 PM (#2929446) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: gnu Oh, Ed, they can. |
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16 Jun 10 - 07:50 PM (#2929468) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Yes, Ed. They can. So can cans of chili, cans of Campbell's soup, and bottle of Coca-Cola. Taking the bullet out of .22 shell and some tobacco out of a cigarette, pouring the powder from the .22 into the cigarette and then carefully replacing the tobacco was another thing well-thought of in Certain Sections of the country among Certain People I could name but shan't. So was urinating on someone else's campfire. Ah, for the days of my youth! |
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17 Jun 10 - 09:05 AM (#2929803) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: olddude Making great shots with a rifle or handgun on a range is fun, it is no different then people who make trick shots with a pool cue ... However being in war and using a weapon on another is not the same thing at all... And people who tout that never been there or never known anyone who had. No soldier or police office that ever had to use their weapon walked away without being screwed up .. some sooner some later but you will never hear anyone talk about it. In fact what you do hear is depression, and terrible remorse eventually. Shooting holes in a target is just a fun sport, no different than any other sport ... using a weapon in battle is entirely different. At the time of conflict you may hear them say something. It is afterwords when the realization of what they done sets in ... then it is a lifetime of baggage they carry. No amount of medals, no pats on the back or flag waving parades ever fixes it. Have a look at someone like Audey Murphy the most decorated war hero of WWII. Have a look at his later life struggles with depression and alcohol and panic attacks .. Don't confuse the two ... |
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17 Jun 10 - 09:19 AM (#2929812) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: olddude Most of the folks on this thread acquired their skills for hunting. And like me hunted to put some food on the table not because we liked killing anything. A real hunter doesn't want to wound a deer they want to kill it for food. When no one in my family wanted venison any more and I was the only one eating the deer, I quit hunting .. A deer when I was growing up was a valuable source of food ... My neck of the woods kids learned firearm skills before they knew how to ride a bike ... Schools still close on the first day of deer season back home...I also have never met a "real" hunter that enjoyed killing any deer, they enjoyed putting food on the table. |
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17 Jun 10 - 10:35 AM (#2929853) Subject: RE: BS: Shooting enthusiasts only From: Rapparee Amongst my folks, it was said that you became a Real Hunter when you had the animal in your sights, knew you could "take" it, and then said to yourself, "I have a freezer full of meat. I don't need this one." and let it pass. |
