Tuesday Links - 10 February

Impro Guns is up first with Faux Colt Python. Click thru for the photo.

Looks to be another copy of this DIY design.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove - Swedish Yutes Sue Government Over Climate Crisis (scam)

Will this be the time when the kiddies are asked in court if they have made their own lives carbon neutral?

Lone Star Parson - Nicki Minaj Rules

Talented, successful and loved pop star Nicki Minaj came out and said it, you can't vote Democrat and be a Christian.

The Other McCain - ‘A Perfectly Good White Boy’

The reason I mentioned those “trees draped with Spanish moss” in Citrus County is because the pursuit of Travis Lovett was captured on a Florida state trooper’s dashcam, and it’s one of the most harrowing chases you’ll ever see, despite the verdant scenery:

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 7 February 2026: Bedraggled Edition

US tech stocks lost an aggregate $1 trillion as a little air was let out of the AI bubble. (Tom's Hardware)
It definitely hasn't popped, but it's a trillion dollars smaller than it was.

Irons in the Fire - They're also idiots, but the WHO is a bunch of bastards

They still say we don't have their permission. I say "The Marines didn't blow up the place or hang any of you on their way out, so you'd better go with that."

Moonbattery - AWFLs Out of Control at Minneapolis Yoga Studio

Pandering to a malevolent mob is the price of doing business. Those who do not comply will be punished.

Again from William Teach - Democrats Suddenly Upset Over ICE Having Body Cams

That’s strange, especially since Democrats cheered when Judge Sara in Chicago demanded all immigration agents wear them. And how Dems demanded all cops wear them post-George “Fentanyl” Floyd

Wombat-socho - FMJRA 2.0: Better Late Than Never

The Senators took two out of three from Pittsburgh and Boston last week, so now we’re 44-52, tied with Pete’s Brewers for second in the division, 5.5 games behind the Twins.

Again from Wombat-socho - Rule 5 Monday: Boots & Bikinis

Ceterum autem censeo Silicon Valley et Hamas delendam sunt.

Woman Defends Herself from Two Men

Mississippi is not a good place for bad guys. The bad guys are still not getting that memo. Jackson police investigating ‘justifiable’ homicide on Ridgewood Road

I wish the gun-hating part of the Left would explain what a woman should do, if she was disarmed, when 2 masked men break into her home in the middle of the night. (I'm not holding my breath.)

And also, Mississippi has the idea of felony murder. If someone dies, as a result of you committing a felony, then you are responsible for the consequences of your actions. (The Left hates that, because no one should be personally responsible for anything.)

Quintavion Myles, 18, has been charged with murder after 15-year-old Kaden Young was pronounced dead at the scene. According to Jackson police, the incident occurred around 2:30 a.m. Sunday when two men wearing ski masks broke into one of the units. Fearing for her safety, police said the woman living there grabbed a handgun and fired multiple rounds, hitting one of the masked men.

And since this happened in Mississippi, the neighbors were not shocked.

"To be honest, they got what they deserved. They broke into her house. She had the right to defend herself," said Tre Ingram, a resident of the complex.

The woman who did the shooting was taken into custody are released, because this did not happen in New York City. A grand jury will decide if charges are filed, or if this is justified.

Self-defense is a human right.

More Improvised Weapons

Impro Guns brings us Evidence table

Click thru for the Photo

Our friend the airsoft SCAR monstrosity making an appearance alongside what looks to be some sort of pump-action shotgun thing.

I think this is from Brazil, because that is where the "SCAR monstrosity" came from.

Netherlands Climate Institute Un-Edits Climate History

Well, not exactly, but it is a first step. From Climate Depot - Dutch climate skeptics vindicated: Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute reinstates seven pre-1950 heatwaves after long battle

The Netherlands Metorological Institute had edited climate history to REMOVE old heat waves, that did not fit the narrative.

Seven years after Dutch skeptics first challenged KNMI’s temperature adjustments, the institute has reinstated seven “lost” pre-1950 heatwaves at De Bilt — validating claims of over-correction that had erased 16 out of 23 historical extremes.

What were the edits?

In 2016, KNMI homogenized their daily temperatures for the period 1901-1950 because of a change in measurement method in 1950 (Pagoda screen to Stevenson screen) and a displacement 300 meter towards open field in 1951. They had parallel measurement for the change in screens but not for the displacement and therefore they had decided to homogenize De Bilt statistically by comparing it with a station 150 kilometers northeast (a place called Eelde) from De Bilt. The homogenization had a negligible effect on the average temperature. However the hottest days of the year (In The Netherlands this means Tmax of around 30^oC) in the period 1901-1950 were corrected downwards by up to 1.9oC. Because of this, 16 out of those 23 heatwaves vanished from the official records.

KNMI is not the only "scientific organization" to do such editing. Because otherwise the narrative wouldn't be as easy to defend.

The way to fix this was to publish a peer-reviewed paper. Click thru for the details.

Scales Are Falling

Another round of my (fruitless) quest to make people understand that a lot of what goes by the name of Heavy Metal today is what we called Rock & Roll back in the dark ages of the pre-Walkman 1970s. But then most people think that Thrash is all of Heavy Metal. (It isn't.)

Alter Bridge is made up of guitarist Mark Tremonti (Creed, Tremonti, etc.), vocalist and rhythm guitarist Myles Kennedy (vocalist for Slash's backing band), bassist Brian Marshall (Creed), and drummer and keyboardist Scott Phillips (Creed).

Mark Tremonti is a member of both Creed and Alter Bridge. He also has (or at least had) his own band, Tremonti. Myles Kennedy, as vocalist for Slash, has been on my radar for a while. I assume that I found Alter Bridge by way of one of these two, though it could have been that it was served up by one of the streaming services I use. Based on when I found this band, it was probably Spotify, because I hadn't switched to Tidal that long ago.

This song is "Scales Are Falling" by Alter Bridge from their January 2026 album Alter Bridge. It is their eighth studio album.

It is good to know about new music, especially when it is music I like. As I type this, I've heard very little of this new album. It came to my attention by way of the Tidal streaming service, and their playlist The Metalist: Best New Metal & Hard Rock.

Armed Self-Defense - International Edition

From the Philippines. Manila Bulletin - Man hurt after being shot by homeowner during robbery in Antipolo

A man was injured after being shot by the homeowner whose house he was allegedly robbing in Antipolo, Rizal on Friday, Feb. 6.

I would like to say that this sounds pretty good, but the Philippines seems to share views on self-defense with Canada.

The suspect is now in police custody and is facing robbery charges, while the victim has also been arrested for frustrated homicide.

Authorities said further investigation is ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting, including the legality of the firearm’s use.

Still, it sounds like the jury may still be out.

And whatever the governments of Canada and The Philippines believe, self-defense is a human right.

Ham Radio Fox Hunting versus Anti-ICE Protestors

It seems that the insurrectionists in Minneapolis are upset that someone infiltrated their Signal communications. Ian at The Bugscuffle Gazette has the details. Bunny Hunting

Last couple of days my private comms have lit up with various folks informing me that protestors have apparently decided that since their Signal chats have been infiltrated, they should switch to ham radios.

The fact that the folks informing me of this were giggling as they did so should be indicative of how good an idea this is.

Hunting for illegal transmissions, and it is illegal to use coded transmissions on Ham Radio bands, is something that the federal government used to be quite good at. Not sure if they are in practice or not.

But who IS in practice for hunting down transmissions are the Ham Radio operators of the world.

First off, if you want to see a pack of folks what put the “‘tism” in “weaponized autism”, may I introduce you to the amateur radio underworld? Ham radio operators lovingly build their own kit, get certifications and licenses, and build entire social communities. Bunch of loud weirdos crashing their frequencies, ignoring their mores,1, violating their courtesies, and trampling their protocols is likely going to get a whole bunch of feathers ruffled.

Which brings us to "Transmitter Hunting." It goes by several names, including Fox Hunting.

Let me restate that: A bunch of radio nerds find a great deal of pleasure in discovering which of them can locate a transmitter the fastest — and will venture out from their lairs to do so. Not the military. Not the police. Not the government. Private citizens doing “speed radio direction finding” for bragging rights, the fun of it, and minor prizes.

And remember: no matter how good the government is at something, a pack of enthusiastic amateurs will leave the government in the dust.

Click thru for the details.

And let me see if I have this correct. Your operational security is SO BAD that you can't maintain private communications on a system designed to be secure,  but  you think using a system, designed and legislated to avoid all coded messages will work out better. OK then.

5 Largest U.S. Cities Are Essentially Broke

Are we shocked that Democrats can't manage money? Report: 5 largest U.S. cities don’t have enough money to pay bills

The five largest cities in the United States, all led by Democrats, did not have enough money to pay their bills in 2024, according to a new Truth in Accounting report first provided to The Center Square.

Its Financial State of the Cities 2026 report examines the fiscal health of the cities of Los Angeles, Houston, Philadelphia, Chicago and New York City, with New York City again leading the U.S. with the greatest taxpayer burden.

The level of dysfunction is sort of amazing.

According to the data, New York City residents have the highest taxpayer burden of $61,700, followed by Chicagoans’ $42,600, Philadelphians’ $17,000, Houstonians’ $4,800 and Los Angeles residents’ $1,300.

At least LA and Houston are not insane. Well, Houston is bordering on insane. NYC is far past insane, they can't see insane in the rear-view mirror.

Gregor Mendel Blog - The 5 biggest cities

If you need money managed well, you never go over a person on the Left. Steer clear of them, because Leftists are terrible about spending public funds.

Gang Converting Airsoft SCAR into SMG Caught

Impro Guns has a long post on a Brazilian police operational success. Airsoft SCAR SMG conversion gang caught | Impro Guns

Police in Brazil finally busted the gang responsible for churning out 9mm SMGs stuffed into spring powered airsoft SCAR bodies following raids conducted yesterday.

Opening up the clam-shell bodies reveals crude blowback smg innards made from square tubing. They must have been selling like hotcakes as they had been showing up frequently in weapon & drug seizures.

The photos are interesting, because for once the Brazilian police have shown how the guns are constructed.

Click thru for a lot of those photos, info on the magazines, a statement from those Brazilian cops, and a look at the original Airsoft rifle.

Do we think that the capture of this one gang will upset the supply for long?

'Grassroots' anti-ICE Campaigns Are Not Grassroots

From the New York Post: 'Grassroots' anti-ICE campaigns funded by left wing billionaire donors: sources

It is surprising that this appeared in a mainstream outlet, even the Post.

A so-called “ICE Out” march drew an estimated 15,000 left-wing political activists to a frozen, snow-covered Minneapolis on Friday, with attendees chanting “ICE out now” and demanding an end to federal immigration enforcement in the city.

Although framed as a spontaneous uprising of concerned, everyday people, the demonstration — like countless that have regularly metastasized during President Trump’s terms — featured a familiar cast of politically obsessed activists and terminally online characters.

Click thru for the details.

Hat tip Clayton Cramer: The Strongest Argument Against Billionaires

This is the downside of capitalism. It creates pockets of guilt-dominated wealth intent on making sure no one else gets that rich.

They Told Me Cable News Was Over and Done

Maybe not so much. Fox News Posts Highest-Ever Second Quarter Ad Revenue

Inflation certainly had something to do with that, but it is hard to write off.

Fox News delivered its highest second quarter advertising revenue in the network’s history, Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch announced Wednesday during the company’s earnings call.

The record haul was fueled in part by an influx of new advertisers. Murdoch said Fox News added roughly 200 new advertisers in the first half of the fiscal year—on top of the 350 new advertisers the network brought in last year.

Maybe the "cutting the cable" fad has faded, now that people realized it isn't as cheap as it was advertised to be.

Saturday Roundup of Link Roundups

Wombat-socho starts things rolling with In The Mailbox: 02.04.26 (Afternoon Edition)

Weird Catholic: Light A Candle For St. Blaise
Defending The Wood Perilous: Election Fraud 101

The Right Way - Top of the News

Colombia's Petro Says He Gave Trump List of Drug Kingpins - NewsMax
The ultimate backfire - American Thinker

EBL - Minnesota update from Border Czar Tom Homan

Instapundit: PJ Media: Tom Holman's plan is bad news for Democrats
ICE can draw down because local officials have agreed to cooperate. That also lowers the temperature.

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 5 February 2026: November In June Edition

AMD has confirmed that the Steam Machine will ship early this year. (WCCFTech)
The pricing may not be what people have hoped, even those who adjusted their expectations to match the awful new reality delivered by OpenAI.

Small Dead Animals - Wednesday On Turtle Island

The Democrat Party’s America: A dangerous road. The truth about ICE. Suicidal bad ideas.
Stories You Won’t Find At Carney’s CBC: Despised and patronised. Stealth jihad.

Again from Wombat-socho - In The Mailbox: 02.04.26 (Evening Edition)

Chicago Boyz: When Ideology Trumps Everything Else
Da Tech Guy: Oh Please PLEASE Br’er Democrats Don’t Force a Party Line Vote on Funding ICE!

The Glibertarians - Thursday Afternoon Links

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has so far been unable to access data from a Washington Post reporter’s iPhone because it was protected by Apple’s Lockdown Mode when agents seized the device from the reporter’s home, the US government said in a court filing.

A View from the Beach - Flotsam and Jetsam - WaPoo Listing, Discarding Unwanted Load

PJM's Stephen Kruiser thinks There's Gotta Be a Lot of Beard Sweat in the Iranian Regime Right Now. Capt. Ed, BREAKING: Trump to Iran: Pound Sand. Virginia Allen at Da Signal, Why the Cuban Regime Is ‘Sweating.’

Vlad Tepes - Ten items that give an indication of the West’s slide into authoritarian information controlled societies: Links 1 for Feb. 4, 2026

2. Canada has been passing bills under Trudeau that move pretty much all power to the State, and removing any and all transparency and accountability from the State. This is continuing under Carney. This is probably because it was Carney all along.

Wombat-socho again - In The Mailbox: 02.05.26

Don Surber: Results matter
First Street Journal: The subscription losses at The Washington Post say more about the subscribers than the newspaper itself

Gates of Vienna - News Feed 2/5/2026

Epstein & Bill Gates Discussed Getting ‘Rid of Poor People as a Whole’
Newly surfaced material from the latest Epstein Files release is drawing intense scrutiny after an email exchange referenced a disturbing question

Flopping Aces - The Week in Radical Leftism, 02/06/2026 – More from The Economist!

Great one, genius. Last I checked, nobody in America was getting jailed for social media posts, which is more than we can say for you Limeys!
What New York’s Congestion Charge Could Teach the Rest of America

Lawrence Person's BattleSwarm Blog - LinkSwarm For February 6, 2026

California Democrats go all in on voter fraud.
“Trump Takes a Sledgehammer to Deportation Process and Sets Up a Court Fight With Another Activist Judge.”

Once again from Wombat-socho - In The Mailbox: 02.06.26

American Conservative: Who Is Laila Cunningham?
American Greatness: Feds Have Reportedly Charged 158 Anti-ICE Agitators With Federal Crimes in Minnesota – More Expected in Days to Come

J.J. Sefton at Ace of Spades HQ - The Morning Report — 2/4/26

Over the decades, it’s become increasingly clear: the Second Amendment recognizes an individual right to bear arms.
The Second Amendment Has Come a Long Way

Maggie's Farm - Wednesday morning links

Phil Connors' Purgatorio
Chilly weather is in your imagination?

Doug Ross - Larwyn’s Linx: How the Senate Can Pass the SAVE Act Today, Despite the Filibuster

• The End Of the Washington Post Mark Judge
• The Biggest Problem with the Washington Post Is Its Readers John Sexton

Anonymous Conservative - News Briefs – 02/05/2026

Authorities are probing allegations Peter Mandelson may have passed sensitive UK government information to Jeffrey Epstein. Looks like it will take down Kier Starmer.

I leave you with Midweek Memes from Granite Grok, Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #3373 from 90 Miles from Tyranny, Wednesday Memes … from MaddMedic, and What the hell, how 'bout some more memes? from Wirecutter.

Good Guys 2, Bad Guys 0

You should expect homeowners in Florida to be armed. ‘Break into vacant homes to smoke weed’: Homeowner shoots suspect in Nassauville burglary attempt

“If you break into somebody’s home, you should beg to get shot. And that’s exactly what happened,” said Sheriff Bill Leepe, with the Nassau County Sheriffs office.

The sheriff’s office said the shooting was in self-defense. Investigators 18-year-old Anson Shawn Drew and a juvenile broke into a home on Clearwater Road in Nassauville. The report states the suspect pointed a flashlight at the homeowner, who then shot his revolver at the suspect in fear for his life.

Nassauville, Florida is about 15 miles north-northeast of downtown Jacksonville.

The Juvenile was shot. He is in a local hospital where he is expected to survive.

Police caught up with Drew at his home later.

The report states Drew left one of his shoes behind when he ran off. He was later arrested at his home.

Self-defense is a human right.

It Is a Good Thing Law-Abiding Canadians Are Disarmed, Or Someone Might Have Been Hurt

Oh, wait a minute... 7 Toronto men arrested after violent home invasion left homeowner dead: Peel police | Unpublished

On Oct. 1, 2024, at approximately 3:40 a.m., officers responded to shots fired at a residence in the area of Central Parkway West and Confederation Parkway in Mississauga, Ont. It is alleged that four masked individuals entered the home and confronted the occupants, demanding money and valuables.

The homeowner was shot. He eventually died from his wounds.

It would be more than a year for the investigation, which covered 80 kilometers, before they ran the bad guys to ground.

“Ultimately, their efforts led to the seizure of a firearm and the arrest of seven men from Toronto who now face serious charges,” said Milinovich. “This investigation reflects the dedication of our officers and the critical support of our government partners in ensuring investigations like this are properly resourced and those responsible for horrific crimes are held accountable.”

So will there be Justice? I don't know much about the Criminal Justice System in Ontario, but I do know that criminals in Canada frequently have guns, while the law-abiding citizens rarely do.

Now a gun may not have saved this guy, there are no guarantees in life, but 7 against 1 odds are only going to be equalized by a firearm. I don't care if you're Chuch Norris's younger cousin, you are not going to fight off 7 guys. As for calling the cops, well how long do they take to repond where you live? (When you look that number up, remeber if is an average response time.)

11:11

How did a love of Heavy Metal lead to some great acoustic guitar? Rodrigo y Gabriela are a pair of guitar players from Mexico City who met due to a common love of Heavy Metal. But the music they play, or what little I have heard, is definitely not Metal.

The song "11:11" was inspired by Pink Floyd, though they have no such song. Some people say that they hear the inspiration for the song in the Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii film from 1974, but Rodrigo y Gabriela have not said that (as far as I can tell).

This is "11:11" by Rodrigo y Gabriela. It is the title song to their 2009 album.

Improvised 9mm Semiautomatic Pistol

Impro Guns brings us a photo of a 9mm pistol from South Africa. 9mm semi-auto pistol

It was probably a filing cabinet originally.

Click thru for the photo.

The primary assumption surrounding gun control is that guns are impossible for the average person to manufacture. That really is not the case.

Friday Links - 6 February

George Shay at Chicago Contrarian is first with some insurrection news. Chicago Democrats Declare War on the Federal Government

Mayor 6.6 finally finds someone he thinks is worth prosecuting — unfortunately, it’s cops, not criminals

Chicago is broke.

Illinois is not far behind.

That alone ought to concentrate the mind.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove - Oklahoma Legislature Goes After Climate Cult Law Suits

Hopefully more Republican states will follow

Clayton Cramer - The Supply of Racism is So Limited That it Requires Manufacturing

Free Beacon recounts the story of a widely reported racist incident from 2021 that a racially mixed jury has concluded never happened.

Lone Star Parson - Billie Eilish

At the time of writing, Eilish hasn't returned her mansion to the Tongva tribe, curiously, even though she stole it from them and surrounded it by a high wall. Genius singer/songwriter Billie's worth a mere Rainbow Socialist 70MN$.

Miguel Gonzalez - Ham as the tool of Racism: Here we go...

No dear, hams are hung because that is how they are cured, preserved and stored before use. If you don’t mess with them, they get to stay stable for amazing long periods of time.

Again from William Teach - The Yutes Are Feeling Hopeless About Climate Doom

Those numbers are pretty concerning, are they not? They are a direct result of the news, scientists, politicians, teachers, etc, scaring the ever-lovin’ crap out of the kiddies, telling them the world is going to end because of a slight increase in the global temperature over 170 years, but, SOON! doom is coming. Is it any wonder they have these negative feeling?

Irons in the Fire - Yes, every 'Stolen land!' and 'Save the Palistinians!' asshat of them are hypocrites, but remember

Of course. Because people like Billie Eilish are too busy getting their ass kiss for being 'brave' about screaming 'Stolen land!' and 'Fuck ICE!' to give a damn about the Iranians.

Do You Want the Lights (and Heat) to Come On After a Winter Storm?

It is beginning to look like you can't have both a modern society, and liberal sensibilities. Moonbattery Means No Power in Nashville

You can have a society based on the principles of DEI, or you can have the lights come on when you flip the switch. You can’t have both for long. Nashville illustrates why.

Back in 2023 the Nashville power company (Nashville Electric Service) decided that "preserving the canopy" (the trees above power lines) was important enough that they were going to change the way they trimmed trees. This was part of their ESG initiatives. ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance score. (They need a good ESG score to get the attention of folks like Black Rock to get that low-cost money.) DEI rolls under the Social/Governance part of that equation. Fast forward to 2026, and a major ice storm, and what is the result?

As for what these priorities mean to the average citizen, consider that the power has been out for thousands in Nashville for 10 days now following the winter storm that hit on January 24.

Ten days without light, without heat, without refrigeration, without hot water, without a modern civilization. The temperature in Nashville doesn't appear to have been cold enough to result in frozen pipes, but that could be different outside of the city. While a lot of gas-fired water heaters will work without electricity, most gas-fired furnaces will not.

Ten days is long time to be living in the early 1900s.

How much food spoiled in that time? How many restaurants went under because they couldn't serve lunch, and lost their week's supply of food? How many people ran gas-powered generators during that period, negating the Environmental gains of the tree-trimming insanity. (Hat tip to William Teach at Pirate's Cove)

Clare Torry and "Great Gig in the Sky"

The Feral Irishman brings us the details behind one of Pink Floyd's timeless classics. What Did She Do?

No lyrics.

No script.

Just emotion.

Sing about death.

Click thru for the story of her fight to get writing credits, and to listen to "Great Gig in the Sku" from Dark Side of the Moon.

Ride Public Transit? Not on a Bet

Also the Criminal Justice System needs to err more on the side of protecting the law-abiding citizens of Chicago. Man with 14 previous arrests sexually abused woman in CTA elevator: Chicago police - CWB Chicago

CPD records show Porter has been arrested 14 other times since becoming an adult in 2014, mostly for misdemeanors, but court files show nearly all of those charges were dropped. The only exceptions were a 2019 domestic battery case that ended with court supervision he did not complete satisfactorily and two trespassing charges at the same Old Town building that resulted in a 14-day sentence in November.

And so with no consequences, behavior didn't change. No, that's not true. Behavior got worse.

I miss civilization.

Electric Buses Versus Winter Weather

Vermont Daily Chronicle brings us a story of Net Zero insanity. 5 GMT E-buses, bought for $8 million, out of service due to fire risk, frigid weather

First it became apparent that the electric battery posed a fire hazard. (I'm shocked) So they cannot be stored in the garage. OK, so that is a problem, but not an issue, except for the fact that you cannot charge the buses if the temperature is below 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, they don't say it clearly, but it appears that the charging infrastructure is only INSIDE. The buses were pulled from service in November.

The buses, manufactured by New Flyer and delivered less than a year ago, were pulled from service in November after the battery manufacturer warned they posed a potential fire hazard. As a result, the electric buses cannot be stored inside GMT’s garage and must remain outdoors, per the January 29 news report by Laura Ullman.

Cold weather has compounded the problem. The buses require temperatures of at least 41 degrees to safely charge, conditions that have been scarce this winter. The vehicles have remained parked outside, dusted with snow, unable to operate.

That is $8 million worth of buses sidelined. And that means that the diesel buses still in service, are working overtime. Leaving little time for maintenance, and no margin for breakdowns or accidents.

“It’s been literally down to our last bus, where if we have another bus that breaks or some other accident that happens, you know, we would have to start canceling service,” said Green Mountain Transit General Manager Clayton Clark.

This the MGUY Australia video 🤡 Clown World! Yet ANOTHER electric bus DISASTER! He covers the story linked above, as well as the fanfare that greeted the buses when they were purchased.

The northern hemisphere winter is peak time for EV bus hilarity because of the cold weather, which invariably either affects range or charging ability. Perhaps electric buses would work okay in the year round warm climates of say Florida or Italy, but the idea that they could replace diesel in countries like the UK or Canada or northern USA is nothing short of insanity.

As MGUY Australia notes in the video, electric buses in Vermont are nothing but virtue signalling. The video is just over 7 minutes.

Officer Pradeep Tamang

The Other McCain brings a s story out of Georgia. ‘End of Watch’ for a Georgia Cop

So two cops show up at Holiday Inn where the suspect had fraudulently used a credit card (perhaps stolen) to rent a room and, after discovering he’s got an outstanding warrant, they try to put the cuffs on him and get shot because, although it’s illegal for convicted felons to possess firearms, you don’t become a convicted felons by obeying the law, do you?

This took place in Gwinnett County, Georgia about 20 miles northeast of Atlanta.

Click thru for the details, the photos, and the analysis.

Wednesday Link Roundup - 4 February

William Teach at Pirate's Cove starts us off with Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup

1. Victory Girls Blog: Nurses Union Holds Secret Training Sessions To Combat ICE
2. This ain’t Hell…: Stupid people of the week

Wombat-socho - In The Mailbox: 02.02.2026

Shark Tank: Associated Industries of Florida Endorses Ingoglia For CFO
STUMP: U.S. Finalized Mortality 2024

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 3 February 2026: Spinning Wheel Edition

The Trump administration plans to spend $12 billion to establish a national stockpile of critical minerals. (Tom's Hardware)
Rare earth elements and the like, for when China decides to shut off the supply again.

EBL - Federal Court: ICE WINS! MN LOSES! PLUS Federal ID Order!

EBL: Pretti Shooting was Lawful, Dangerous Lie, Andrew Branca on Alex Pretti shooting, Renee Good shooting, and Gutfeld

Don Surber - HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NEWS

ITEM 1: Benjamin Ryan tweeted, “1st Detransitioner to Take a Medical-Malpractice Lawsuit to Trial Wins $2 Million Judgment.
“Fox Varian sued her Westchester, NY, area psychologist and plastic surgeon

The Glibertarians - Sunday Morning Lacuna Links

This flex may not be what they were aiming for (so to speak).
Anti-Semitism polls well in NYC.

Political Hat - News of the Week (February 1st, 2026)

The Administration and the Second Amendment: Damage Control
Gun rights are not Donald Trump’s main issue. Like Ronald Reagan before him, Trump has had his slip-ups with gun rights supporters

Vlad Tepes - A list of ten events that may give some sense of the trajectory of Western Civ at this time, and looking at Silver pricing and the machinery that determines it outside actual market forces: links 1 for February 1, 2026

3. It appears that the media is continuing to laser paint law enforcement for attack, and people who watch it continue to obey.
4. A proper response to Tucker “Qatarlson” and Candice Owens

Bacon Time!!!! - Sunday Linkange

Pirates Cove NY Times Apoplectic Minnesota Mostly Peaceful Protest Called “Insurgency”
Freedom Is Just Another Word.. .Saturday Memes…

Maggie's Farm - Saturday morning links

‘Crisis’ in college math readiness prompts probe by Senator Bill Cassidy
RUMOR: Amy Klobuchar Running for Minnesota Governor, Will Appoint Tim Walz to Her Vacant Senate Seat

I leave you with Food for Thought – 1 February 2026 from Mostly Cajun, Sunday Funnies for 02-01-26 from Stately McDaniel Manor, Sunday Meme Drop from Midwest Chick's Place, Sunday Funnies from Flopping Aces,

Starfleet Academy Is Horrible Writing by Incompetent Writers

Real Life Fake Wizard is not a fan of Star Trek, but even he can see what is being done to this franchise.

Three things destroyed Star Trek. Incompetence, hubris, and defiance. Not just Star Trek, of course, but that is the focus of this review.

Modern writers have no experience, except watching TV shows. They believe they are always right. Defiance? They treat the audience as the enemy.

This is the Real Life Fake Wizard video Bad Writers Murdered Star Trek

I don't have to be a Star Trek fan to recognize when something is being ruined. I don't have to have watched every single episode to understand that 60 years of consistent world building is being thrown away for short-term demographic targeting.

The video is 23 minutes long.

... and for the love of God, cancel Disney Plus

Texans Are Still Armed

Home invaders are still getting shot. Homeowner shoots intruder in Fort Worth home, police say | Fort Worth Star-Telegram

You would think the bad guys would figure this out.

A man attempting to break into an east Fort Worth home on Monday afternoon was shot by the homeowner, police said in a statement.

Maybe he thought no one would be home at 3 o'clock in the afternoon.

Cops showed up and had the guy taken to a local hospital. He is expected to be OK. No other information was provided.

Self-defense is a human right, and this didn't take place in New York City.

The FGC-9 is a Proven Firearm

Impro Guns has another story of the FGC-9 out of South America. The FGC-9 is Flooding the Brazilian Black Market

I wonder how many have been produced worldwide at this point.

Click thru for the photos. The photo above is of an unrelated FGC-9 Mk.II

FGC-9 stands for F*ck Gun Control, 9mm. It is mostly 3D printed, using steel tubing for the barrel, and bar stock for the bolt. There are even 3D plans available for mandrels that allow for some rifling using electricity and saltwater to etch the grooves.

They use standard AR-15 pistol grips, and Glock 9mm magazines. Those can also be printed, along with a mandrel for winding your own magazine spring. I think they use a standard AR-15 fire-control group, but I'm not sure about that.

Stand by Me

The Drifters came up at the end of last year on social media, thanks to their cover of "White Christmas." I lamented that not many people know any other song from The Drifters, and they really only know that song because of the movies Home Alone, and The Santa Clause. I thought I should do something to rectify that situation.

Membership in that band has changed a lot, and that isn't surprising since they were formed in 1953 or '54 and the band is still together today. This version was recorded live in 2015 as a tribute to Ben E. King, one of the many people who were in that group. King recorded it as part of his solo career, and he had passed away in early 2015.

This is "Stand by Me" as covered by The Drifters in 2015. It was originally released as a single in 1961 by Ben E. King.

OK, so this isn't exactly a song from The Drifters from back in the day. I think it is beautiful.

The Day The Music Died

A lot of people have heard the Don McLean song, "American Pie," from 1971, but I'm always amazed by the fact that they don't know what he's talking about.

On 3 February 1959 Richie Valens, J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, and Buddy Holly died in a plane crash, together with pilot Roger Peterson. They were leaving Clear Lake, Iowa, after playing a gig, on their way to Moorhead, Minnesota. The conditions on the tour busses were horrible, so Holly chartered a plane. Shortly after takeoff Peterson lost control of the plane and crashed killing all 4 on board.

This is "American Pie" by Don McLean. It was the title song to his 1971 album.

Tuesday Links - 3 February

Jim Treacher is up first with Don Lemon Arrested for Breaking the Law: This is an OUTRAGE or something

And before you start: The only people whose First Amendment rights have been infringed here are the congregants at the church Don Lemon invaded. He was part of the planning, he trespassed and refused to leave, and he called those churchgoers “white supremacists.” To make matters worse, he’s even profiting from his crimes.

Miguel Gonzalez - And now bodycams are a bad thing.

Karma is such an elegant bitch.

Libs of TikTok - Radical Nurses FIRED after being EXPOSED by LoTT

As ICE deportation operations ramp up across the country, calls for violence against federal agents and conservatives have skyrocketed.

Recently, there has been an upsurge of radical left-wing nurses promoting violent action or targeted discrimination against those they disagree with.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove - Bummer: UN Faces Financial Collapse

Maybe it should collapse. It served it’s purpose at one time, but, now it’s just made up of Jew/Israel haters, climate cultists, and other wackos, and is a major source of graft and waste, and has been all this for at least 30 years

Meep at STUMP - U.S. Finalized Mortality 2024: Highlights

GREAT NEWS! Death is down! Life expectancy exceeding pre-pandemic levels

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 1 February 2026: Carcainisation Edition

You can now buy a flying car. (Yahoo)

Well, more of a flying motorbike.

Actually, more of a flying hammock slung between two banks of rotors and surrounded by a plastic shell.

OldAFSarge at Chant du Départ - A Week After

The knee is better, gets a bit better every day and I'm happy with that. I have avoided walking on ice since then. Should have avoided it altogether but my attention wandered and BAM, next thing you know I'm on the ground wondering just what I was thinking.

The Bugscuffle Gazette - Keys aren't defense tools: Please stop acting like they are

Let me preface this by stating that your vehicle is many things. It is shelter, it is armour, it is storage for many useful items, it is triple-digit escape speeds, and — in extremis — it tends to be a 4,000 pound weapon.

It is none of these things if the keys to it are bent, broken, folded, spindled, missing, or in the possession of your attacker.

Wombat-socho - FMJRA 2.0: One Big Crunch, which is also the Song of the Week (see the SOTW link).

After the last couple of weeks, this was a particularly bad week to be a Senators fan. First we got swept by the Cardinals at Busch Stadium, and then we came home to get whipped by the Expos, winning only one game.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove - We’re Saved: Snowboarder Totally Trying To Save The World

It’s a small story, but, big enough for NBC News to cover it, which perfectly encapsulates what members of the cult do.

The UK Versus Freedom

JoNova has a post on the loss of freedom of movement in Britain. The 15 minute city is back

How could they resist? The 15-minute city is the fantasy idea that the unwashed masses can get everything they need within 15 minutes of home. But of course, their family may live somewhere else, as might their favourite dentist. How many old folks in nursing homes will miss out on visits because someone doesn’t want to fill out a permission slip or get a fine?

The Telegraph calls this Stalinist. Labour opens door to ‘Stalinist’ 15-minute cities across Britain

Under the scheme, drivers would need a residents’ permit that allows 100 days of free travel per year through six traffic filters during operating hours.

The surfs were tied to the land. How is this different?

When you add in their abandoning jury trial, and the assualts on free speech, you have to ask, "What F- is going on in England?"

In that place where Great Britain used to be... More like Airstrip One every day.

Hat tip to Pirate's Cove: If All You See…

International Suicide Rates versus Gun Ownership

The following article has been boiling in the back of my brain, for some time. During his recent trip to SHOT Show, Professor David Yamane reported on a suicide prevention seminar at the show. From his Light Over Heat substack: Suicide Prevention on the Gun Culture Agenda

Significantly, the NSSF organized the SHOT Show’s first-ever general session on suicide prevention - the SHOT Show Suicide Prevention Town Hall. According to NSSF Senior Director of Communications Bill Brassard, while the show has previously offered educational seminars on suicide prevention for retailers and ranges, this is the first general session open to all attendees.

Now I think that suicide prevention is a fine thing. It is why I have such a problem with way Medically Assisted suicide is going in Canada, and in some states, though Canada is by far the worst.

But there is an assumption that bothers me. That assumption is, or at least seems to be, "Access to guns, causes suicide."

In what follows I am going to compare suicide in the US to suicide in Japan. I am only picking on Japan for 1 reason. They have Draconian gun control laws.

In the late 1990s, or early 2000s, the suicide rate in Japan was 2 or 3 times higher than that of the United States. How can this be? Private ownership of firearms is virtually banned in Japan. Japan has some of the strictest gun-control laws in the world. TheGunZone described the situation as "Unmatched Strictness." And yet they had what could only be described as a suicide epidemic.

Consider the study Comparative Study about Methods of Suicide between Japan and the United States (from 2005). That is from The National Center for Biotechnology Information and The National Library of Medicine.

Age-adjusted mortality rates from suicide in Japan were about 2 times higher for males and 3 times higher for females compared with the United States. The most common method among both genders in Japan was hanging, followed by jumping from a high place.

Use of firearms was the most common method in the US, which I suppose accounts for the seminar at SHOT Show. I still think it misses the point.

Trading Economics allows for creation of comparison charts on various dimensions. The following chart shows the suicide rates of Japan versus the United States for the years 2016 through 2021.

The Japanese rate is consistently higher during that period. (During a longer period, but without a subscription I am limited to 5 year graphs.)

Since the early 2000s, Japan's rate has come down considerably, and the US rate has trended higher. The information I can find says that the rates crossed, and the US now has a higher suicide rate than Japan. The US stands at 16.10 per 100,000 and Japan at 15.3 per 100,000 people, as of 2024.

That isn't to say that different sources, or different methods don't arrive at different rates. World Population Review shows Japan have a rate of 18.59 per 100k versus 17.43 per 100k in 2021. World Population Review shows that the Japan rate increased to 21.46 per 100k in 2023. (Click on the graph to enlarge.)

So why am I taking issue with the suicide prevention seminar?

Access to guns in the US does not cause people to kill themselves any more than access to rope in Japan does. People who are, for whatever reason, bent on self-destruction, select a method that they believe will be effective based on what they have access to. People with access to guns select guns. People without access to guns select rope. Or high places from which to jump. Is suicide somehow worse if a gun is used?

Again, I don't have an issue with suicide prevention. Some people in my life have chosen to end their lives, and I have been witness to what it leaves in its wake.

Given that, we could probably learn something from Japan on the topic of suicide prevention. Those rates didn't come down on their own. But that is story for another day.

The UK Government and Its Latest Gun Insanity

The UK is losing its mind. Impro Guns brings us the information. Channel 4 Tests ‘Converted’ Blank Firing Guns

Film makers and gun dog trainers in the UK are having to hand in their toy firework guns because they can be made into acrappy zip guns. The item ‘converted’ only has to successfully fire one shot to be declared illegal. It doesn’t matter if the piece of tubing glued to the sawn off chamber goes flying off afterwards

Meanwhile, the actual criminals in the UK are adopting 3D printed designs.

The Grammy Awards Are About Politics, Not Music

This is how you can tell. 30 Artists Who Haven’t Won Grammys

The Grammy awards were apparently given out over the weekend. I couldn't care less, and while there was some discussion on Social Media, most people didn't care either.

So how can you tell that the Grammy awards are NOT about the music? The list of artists who NEVER won a Grammy. (This is very incomplete) In no particular order.

• Queen
• Jimi Hendrix
• The Beach Boys
• Janis Joplin
• The Who
• Diana Ross
• Journey
• The Doors

There are more.

Then you add in the fiasco in February 1989 when they gave the Grammy Award for "Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental" to Jethro Tull. The band didn't bother to show up, because they weren't Hard Rock/Metal, so why would they win? They won because the people handing out the Grammy awards know next to nothing about music.

Danse Macabre

The Agonist is a band I tripped over a few years back. Probably during the lockdowns, as I had a lot of time to explore new-to-me music. I never really explored much of their music at the time, but of late I have started to dive into some of it. As usual, I like some of it, I don't like some of it. I featured a song from them in November, which started me listening to more of their music.

The Agonist is a Canadian Melodeath Metalcore band out of Montreal. Metalcore = Heavy Metal crossed with Hardcore Punk. (It isn't usually my type of music.) Melodeath = Melodic Death Metal. I should have known this band, because Alissa White-Gluz was the lead singer before she joined Arch Enemy. The lead singer for today's song is Vicky Psarakis, a Greek-American from Chicago. The rest of the band is as follows: Danny Marino playing lead guitar, Pascal "Paco" Jobin on rhythm guitar, Chris Kell playing bass, and Simon McKay on drums.

This song is "Danse Macabre" by the Agonist from the 2015 album Eye of Providence.

Good Guys 2, Bad Guys 0

The bad guys don't expect the law-abiding citizens of Chicago to be armed, and so you can file under "Another failure of the victim-selection process." Concealed carry license holder opens fire during attempted armed robbery in Belmont Cragin, CPD says; 2 in custody - CBS Chicago

Chicago police said a 39-year-old man was getting out of his car in the 5200 block of West Montana Street when two men walked up with a gun and demanded his belongings. Police said the victim, who has a valid CCL, fired multiple shots at the men. One was struck multiple times in the legs, CPD said.

The guy who got shot was taken to a hospital in good condition, and the other guy was arrested.

Belmont Cragin is one of the 77 neighborhoods community areas in Chicago. It is 8 miles northwest of The Loop. It was not one of the more dangerous neighborhoods has reported by HeyJackass! in 2025.

The investigation is in early days, but self-defense is a human right.

They stopped saying 77 neighborhoods, because some of the 77 areas are broken down in to multiple neighborhoods.

Euthanasia as Practiced in Canada Is Horrifying

I miss civilization. Canada Is Showing Us The True, Ugly Colors of Euthanasia

Canada's so-called Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) program isn't just failing vulnerable people -- it's actively betraying them. Time and again, it delivers fresh, horrifying proof that euthanasia is not compassion, but a moral nightmare dressed as mercy. Yet far too many still look away. Why?

Because it is far away, and they haven't come for you. Yet.

It starts off with the story of Mrs. B. My post on that incident is Euthanized 'against her will' - Isn't This Murder?

Then there is the case of Kiano Vafaeian. He was 26, blind in one eye and depressed. His family only learned of his application for MaiD after he was dead. He applied a couple of times, but his family saved his life twice. This time they were not able to intervene.

But MAiD's 2022 expansion to non-terminal chronic conditions reopened the door. Approved again and scheduled to be euthanized that September in Toronto, his mother once more successfully rallied support through petitions and media, even prompting her son's doctor to withdraw. Years passed. Then, in late 2025, Vafaeian was approved yet again, this time in Vancouver by Dr. Ellen Wiebe, who has carried out over 400 executions by euthanasia. This final green light exploited a loophole, framing his torment as primarily physical (diabetes-related blindness) despite depression's undeniable dominance. The young man, not even 30 years old, was euthanized on December 30, 2025.

And then there is the case of Canadian actress Claire Brosseau. She is 48 and depressed, but wants to die, and is suing for that right. She has manic depression, anxiety, substance abuse, but no chronic physical ailments. Not being offed by the medical profession violates her right to die. Or something.

It is certainly cheaper to kill people, than to care for them, but is that what civilized people do? Don't get me wrong. I have said that if I was suffering from acute radiation poisoning, I would not stick around for the mechanics of dying. If you knew what that kind of death involved, you probably wouldn't either. There are other ends I wouldn't want. Certain kinds of stage 4 cancer come to mind.

If there is pain, that I can understand. But killing people, medically, because they are depressed seems wrong to me. It speaks to the nihilistic nature of modern life.

Hat tip to MaddMedic at Freedom Is Just Another Word...

Minneapolis Shootings The Result of Sanctuary Policies

Police union leader says blocking ICE coordination led to deadly Minneapolis shootings | Alpha News MN

St. Paul Police Federation President Mark Ross said that if local police had been allowed to assist federal agents, the deadly encounters involving Renee Good and Alex Pretti could have been avoided.

This should surprise no one.

“Unfortunately, our local politicians would not allow us to do that,” Ross said.

Of course the violence and the shootings have been used to drive the Fraud Scandal in Minnesota right out of the headlines. Strange coincidence that. (Hat tip to INTERNED in Northfield!!!)

January in Chicago

HeyJackass! brings us the Chicago January Wrap-up

The return of the Polar Vortex on the back half of the month helped keep a lid on the nonsense or maybe it was the Justice Involved Violence Influencers™ hitting the streets in sub-zero temps.

The final totals for January were 31 killed, 103 shot and wounded. That was a slight decrease from January 2025, and down significantly from 2021 or 2022. And yes, the level of crime is influenced by the weather, especially extreme cold and snow, though even heavy rain can have a measurable impact.

Click thru for the breakdown by race, gender, the number of Shot-In-The-Ass, Selfies, and more.

In other stats, one non-fatal shooting was deemed to be justified self-defense.

University Police Chief Who Said Students "Too Drunk" for 2A Rights Arrested for Drunk Driving

Some days the jokes write themselves. From Shooting News Weekly: UNH Police Chief Who Testified Students are ‘Too Drunk’ for Campus Carry is Arrested…For Drunk Driving

Your vocabulary lesson for the day: Projection.

Psychological projection

Projection is the process of displacing one’s feelings onto a different person, animal, or object. The term is most commonly used to describe defensive projection—attributing one’s own unacceptable urges to another.

I wonder if they do random drug/alcohol testing at the University of New Hampshire. Somehow I doubt it.

Enter Steven Lee, the 50-year-old Chief of Police at the University of New Hampshire. He recently testified that college students absolutely shouldn’t be trusted with guns on campus. Reason? “They’re too drunk,” he said. The gun control advocate, using his professional position as Chief of Police — advocating that New Hampshire protect the kids by keeping them disarmed. Assume they’re constantly intoxicated and irresponsible.

Fast-forward to present day: Chief Lee — badge, gun, and all — was pulled over in Portsmouth at almost 1 a.m. (Pro-tip for the chief: nothing good happens after midnight.)

Chief Steven Lee was (allegedly) hammered enough to earn himself a pair of shiny bracelets and a DUI charge.

The Chief is now on vacation paid leave.

Hat tip to Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit.

Still Worth Your Time - Road to Perdition

I mentioned this movie several years ago. I still like it, and I watched it again recently.

Tom Hanks plays the role of Mike Sullivan, an enforcer for the Irish Mob in a nameless Midwestern city. Paul Newman is his surrogate father, and head of that mob. Father and son. Conflict. Betrayal. And Jude Law playing an insane hitman hired by The Outfit out of Chicago.

Here is what I said before... 357 Magnum Archives: Movies You Haven’t Seen: Road to Perdition

It certainly has an amazing cast.

• Tom Hanks
• Jude Law
• Daniel Craig
• Paul Newman

and Tyler Hoechlin playing the part of Tom Hanks’ son.

It was lovingly filmed, and the way they recreated The Midwest of the Great Depression, including Chicago, was amazing.

You can find the trailer at this link.

As near as I can tell, it is streaming on Paramount+. I own a copy of the DVD. I may have to buy it as a Blu-ray, since they don't seem to have plans for a 4K release.

Self-Defense in Los Angeles

With the a glimpse of the thinking in the Criminal Justice system in greater LA. Homeowner shoots teen burglary suspect at luxury LA home

A Los Angeles homeowner opened fire on a pair of burglars as they were trying to break into the $2.4 million home overnight, leaving one 16-year-old suspect injured.

Why is his age an issue? I guess it explains why they haven't published his name.

And again, you are not protected by the magic dirt under your feet.

Home burglaries in Los Angeles remain a significant concern for residents because of high-tech, targeted attacks, even as overall burglary statistics trend downward.

While 2025 saw a substantial reduction in total reported burglaries compared to previous years, the threat of sophisticated, organized crews, especially in the San Fernando Valley and affluent areas, remains an issue.

And because this took place in Los Angeles ...

It remains unknown if the homeowner will face any charges for discharging the weapon.

Because DAs HATE self-defense, and I'm sure it is worse in Deep Blue Los Angeles. "How dare you not rely on the state for absolutely everything!"

Self-defense is a human right. I guess we have to see if it is legal in Los Angeles.