Wind Turbines Killing Bats and Birds Down Under

That doesn't even count the roads, the bases, or building the dam things. Wind Turbines vs Nature: How Reckless Renewables Are Destroying the Environment - Watts Up With That?

This is a story about how wind turbines are harming Australian rainforests. It starts with a description of how old growth forest was bulldozed for roads to the site in question.

Twenty-eight turbines stood over us, each 226 metres tall, 91 metres taller than the London Eye. Around their concrete footings lay dead bats and birds.

Steven crouched beside them. “They light the turbines up at night,” he told us. “The lights pull in the insects, and the insects pull in the bats. Nobody is really even counting.”

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain, and pay no attention to the real cost of building and maintaining these things.

"Green"

The FBI Wouldn't Cook the Books on Mass Shootings...

Or would they? John R. Lott Jr. at National Review: Yes, Armed Civilians Can — and Do — Stop Mass Shootings

Data ignored by the FBI show the importance of defensive gun use in bringing down active shooters.

I'm shocked that government employees would let their personal biases color the work they do. Or maybe not.

The problem persists. From 2014 through 2025, the FBI identified 408 active-shooter incidents but credited armed citizens with stopping only 16 — just 3.9 percent.

The CPRC, however, has identified numerous additional cases and maintains an updated list. Our research tells a dramatically different story. We identified 615 active-shooter incidents from 2014 through 2025 and found that armed citizens stopped 225 of them.

Click thru for the details.

I guess you don't have to be good at math to work for the FBI. (Hat tip to Breitbart.)

NYPD Hates the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution

From Shooting News Weekly: NYPD: ‘Assault Weapons’ Must Remain Banned Because People In Dense Cities Need to Have Fewer 2A Rights Than Everyone Else

It is just the statement from the New York Police Department amicus brief in Viramontes v. Cook County. It isn't long.

Hat tip to Stephen Green at Instapundit: THAT’S NOT HOW THAT WORKS

RIP Patrick Stewart

It seems like we have lost most of a generation of actors this year.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to: Johns Hopkins Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Fund https://t.co/luC5CdcWDy Alzheimer’s Foundation of America Caregiver Resources https://t.co/zvNptfyuNd Photo Credit: Tommy Garcia https://t.co/XNncEVq56X

— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) October 29, 2026

Accomplice Takes Deal to Avoid Felony Murder Trial

The Left will be happy because they hate Felony Murder. Being held accountable for the completely foreseeable consequences of one's actions is not something they approve of. Burglary accomplice sentenced to 8 years; murder charge dismissed in fatal home intrusion | West Plains Daily Quill

Two guys broke into a home last November. One of them was shot and killed by the 77-year-old homeowner. A shotgun will ruin your day that way. The other would-be, bad guy was arrested.

Under Missouri law, a person can be charged with felony murder if a death occurs during the commission of certain felony crimes, even if the defendant did not directly fire the fatal shot. Prosecutors originally levied the second-degree murder charge against Geringer under that statutory provision.

The plea agreement drops the Second Degree Murder charge, in favor of not risking court.

He will receive credit for the 11 months he served waiting for trial.

West Plains, Missouri, is about 150 miles southwest of St. Louis.

So was this Justice served, or not?

RCMP Raid Electric Bus Manufacturer

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police raid a company over investor fraud allegations. Police raid Saint-Jérôme, Que., headquarters of EV manufacturer Lion Electric

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police conducted a search at Lion Electric's headquarters in Saint-Jérôme on Wednesday.

The search is part of an investment fraud probe that started more than a year ago, according to RCMP Sgt. Erique Gasse.

For more info, see the video embedded below. During the height of the EV mania, Quebec, and few US states, mandated that all new school buses had to be electric. The Quebec government invested more than $100 million Canadian in the company. It was sold later for $6 million, and the province dropped its all-electric mandate. Not sure if the US states did likewise. The company filed for the Canadian version of bankruptcy in early 2025.

As part of the bankruptcy they went through, they voided all warranties outside of Quebec. US school districts that own Lion Electric buses are mostly not able to drive them because they cannot get parts anywhere. This doesn't even deal with the issues the buses had in cold weather.

Why should you care? The US government gave Lion Electric about $150 million US, through grants to school districts to buy electric buses. A lot of which were never delivered, and bunch of the ones delivered do not work. That is a horrible record, and why the company was accused of deceiving investors about the health of the company.

Here is a post from September noting that a lot of money disappeared in the form of buses paid for but not delivered. Fewer than 4 in 10 were delivered, though they were not all Lion Electric buses. The Mystery of the Disappearing EV Grants.

In another post from September, a Lion Electric bus catches fire. If an Electric Bus Catches Fire Is It Still a Zero Emission Vehicle?

This is the StacheD Training video Police Raid Lion Electric: Investment Fraud Investigation. Pat gets the hat tip.

I've covered Lion Electric a number of times on this channel. Bus fires, quality problems, and recalls. Lion actually sent me a cease and desist back in January 2025.

Tesla Semi Fire Shuts Highway in SF Bay Area During Rush Hour

Highway I-880 is in the western part of the San Francisco Bay Area (Hayward). It was closed for 10 hours for a Tesla Semi fire.

Nothing mentions how the fire got started, if anyone even knows. Was it the battery that started the fire, or was a tire, or the breaks that started things, and then the battery got involved? We will probably never find out, even if Tesla has some insight into the issue.

This is the StacheD Training video Tesla Semi Battery Fire Shuts Down I-880 at Rush Hour

The battery in this truck is massive. Depending on the version, it's either a 548 or 822kWh battery. Essentially, three battery packs. The rough equivalency is 7 to 8 Tesla Model Y's.

All burning at the same time. Pat talks about the difference between a diesel semi fire, and this fire in the video. The video is four and a half minutes.

300 Blackout Ballistics

I had tripped over this article a few days back, and then I got an email from Wideners. I make no money, nor do I receive anything for posting this. Subsonic 300 Blackout Ballistics - Field Trials

I have wanted to build a 300 Blackout AR since I first read about it. A heavy, slow-moving (relatively speaking) bullet out of an AR platform would seem to be what is called for when it comes to home defense. Now that the ATF has relented on suppressors (Ohio is still trying to get its act together) a subsonic 300 Blackout seems to be just what is wanted.

Many say shooting is a game of inches. This is true. But it can also be a game of silence and ballistic efficiency. In this article, our goal is to understand the finer details of subsonic 300 Blackout cartridges. We’ll compare different companies, different barrels, all at different distances.

It’s often tough to decide which rounds to test in these comparisons. So we selected options that cover a few different categories. The combinations of 300 BLK ammo and barrel lengths we tested gave us data that should be useful for a variety of gun owners.

I do love a good statistical study.

The one thing that has held me back is the thought of adding another caliber to my logistics chain. I have recently thought that 12 gauge should move to the forefront, and another part of me is considering .45 ACP in something suppressed. But, that all calls for more disposable income than I have right now. I just spent way too much money on repairs for my SUV, and tomorrow I get to rent a trencher to play in the mud, though it is more dirt than mud.

If any of you have experience with 300 Blackout, I would love to hear in the comments. The only thing I know for sure is that, depending on the barrel length, variable/adjustable gas block is required. I can't recall without digging for notes if direct gas impingement is OK, or if a piston is preferred.

Wednesday Link Roundup - 28 October

William Teach at Pirate's Cove starts things rolling with Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup

The Other McCain has Rule 5 Sunday. And In The Mailbox.
The Chive has Sunday morning coffee.

Wombat-socho - In The Mailbox: 10.27.26 (Early Evening Edition)

Don Surber: When Elon Musk saved Ukraine
Elizabeth Nickson: Note To The Institutional Left

EBL - Saturday Night Girls With Guns

24 October 1776: preparation leading to White Plains
EBL: The World Turned Upside Down

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 27 October 2026: Australian Cheetahs Edition

Can AI solve the COBOL crisis? (The Verge)
Yes. Ish. AI acts as a force multiplier for an intelligent, focused project lead.
It also acts as a force multiplier for an unintelligent, unfocused project lead.

A View from the Beach - Flotsam and Jetsam - "Gone are the Days When the Ox Fell Down"

Hon. Vickie Paladino @VickieforNYC, "None of the conversations taking place by Democrats and leftists in anticipation of retaking Congress are about the ways they’re going to make life more affordable for Americans.

Political Hat - News of the Week (October 25th, 2026)

The Affordable Care Act has proven unaffordable
A report from the Peterson-Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that ObamaCare premiums are projected to increase significantly through 2027.

Don Surber - Highlights of the week

ITEM 22: Media-ite reported, “Politico Responds to WH Threat With Major Correction to One of Its Stories—But Argues Errors Aren’t Grounds For Censorship.”
Telling someone to correct an error is not censorship

Small Dead Animals - Sunday On Turtle Island

The Democratic Party’s America: Thumotic thoughts. Voting in California. Democrats make a vow.
Mohammed Carney’s Canada: Our new strategic partner. Ignoble Nobels.

Vlad Tepes - 5 items and an explanation of how this site views events: Links post 1 for Oct. 24, 2026

1. Pretty much all Western nations, and this includes the United States depending on where exactly, is at one or another stage of the following process. The disassembly of rule of law, and its replacement with a dialectically driven state.

Gates of Vienna - News Feed 10/24/2026

Google has changed its privacy policy, allowing it to use content from Gmail, Drive, and Photos to target ads, if those services are connected to its Personal Intelligence AI feature, available in Search and Gemini.

The Glibertarians - Saturday evening Links

The Progressive movement started in the Republican party.
Soccer hooligans be all, “daaaamn”.
Deep State gonna Deep State.

Bacon Time - Sunday Linkange

Pirates Cove Federal Appeals Court Says That Illegals Can Be Held Without Bond
Freedom Is Just Another Word.. .Saturday Memes…

Maggie's Farm - Saturday morning links

Niall Ferguson: Is There Method to Trump’s Foreign Policy Madness? Plus. . .
The Coming Insurrection - And what to do about it.

J.J. Sefton at Ace of Spades HQ - The Morning Report — 10/27 /26

The horror story of the rampant sexual abuse of students.
Pedophilia Proliferates in U.S. Schools

Doug Ross - Larwyn’s Linx: Another Weekend of Riots, Arson and Street Battles in France and Beyond *

The Bush Family Dynasty's Final Betrayal Against America - JD Rucker
FBI Arrests CIA Contractor Accused of Leaking Classified Defense Secrets to Romantic Partner - AG

I leave you wtih Saturday’s Yeah, we made it, Meme Drop 10-24-26 from Midwest Chick's Place, Sunday Funnies For 10-25-26 from Stately McDaniel Manor, Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #4330 from 90 Miles from Tyranny, Memes and Things from The Feral Irishman, and Sunday Funnies from Flopping Aces.

Armed Self-Defense During July 2026

The Crime Prevention Research Center is compiling lists of self-defense incidents. Defensive Gun Uses By People Legally Carrying Guns: 25 Cases During July 2026

The Left loves to go on about how good people with guns never stop crimes. That is simply not the case. It is why I keep track of these cases. See the link "Tales of Self-defense Found Here" at the top of the sidebar. If you find yourself in such a discussion about "how often does it actually happen?" you can send that link. I don't have a story every day, but I do have such a story most days. And occasionally we get something like the In-N-Out Burger shooting, or the recent Oregon school shooting, both of which were stopped, by armed citizens.

Click thru.

Free Speech Is Dead in the UK

And Conservative Councillor Simon Bennett, from Wolverhampton in the West Midlands is a whiny little Beotch. A UK teen made fun of a politician. Then cops showed up at his door.

It’s easy to take free speech for granted when it’s all you’ve known as an American — but look no further than the United Kingdom for a reminder of why our First Amendment is so important.

That’s where a 15-year-old boy was awakened by four West Midlands police officers early one morning this August, because his Facebook posts allegedly offended a local politician.

The offensive post? He put whiskers and rabbit ears on a photo of Bennett, so Bennett sicked the local cops on the 15-year-old. The cops, having clearly solved all crime in the West Midlands, arrested the kid, took a mugshot and collected his DNA. Why? "Because shut up, and obey our authority, that's why!"

Click thru for details, or look at the memes online. X has been beautiful.

Wolverhampton, or Wolves, is about 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Birmingham.

Quiet Fire

This is a song I found by way of social media. I really like it. But as a result of the social media link, I know nothing about the artist. That will change in the future.

This song is "Quiet Fire" by Melody Gardot from her 2006 album Worrisome Heart

This came to me by way of the Sensei of Sarcasm Song Game.

Tuesday Links - 27 October

Miguel Gonzalez is first with And the deranged rant of the day goes to...

His [Michael Jochum] blood pressure must be through the roof or probably he has already suffered a stroke.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove - Your Fault: Hotcoldwetdry Increase Gun Violence Or Something

No matter the issue the cult of climastrology will link itself

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 24 October 2026: Twelfth Of Never Edition

Speaking of things that nobody knows how to do a trailer has leaked for Mass Effect 4. (WCCFTech)

It had been in early development at BioWare when the storied company was shut down... In "early" development for six years.

Meep at Stump - RIP, Walter Koenig, age 90: On Natural v. “Unnatural” Causes of Death by Age

26 Oct 2026, Hollywood Reporter: Walter Koenig, the Russian Crewman Chekov on ‘Star Trek,’ Dies at 90

Wombat-socho - FMJRA 2.0: Better Than Nothing

Another dreadful week for Senators fans, as we managed to win exactly two games, one from the Brewers and the other from the Angels. We are now 22-41, five games behind the fourth-place Brewers and 10.5 games behind the division-leading Red Sox.

Paul Vallas at Chicago Contrarian - Chicago’s “Fair Share Budget” Is Just More Brandon Johnson Gamesmanship.

If the mayor's 2027 budget version passes, Johnson would have raised annual taxes $1.3 billion, while his school board has raised property taxes another $857 million. These increases fall on residents and businesses regardless on income

Again from Wombat-socho - Rule 5 Sunday: Casual Friday Redux

Ceterum autem censeo Silicon Valley et Hamas delendam sunt.

The Silicon Graybeard - 'More missions, more often' - NASA on selecting science missions

NASA is talking about overhauling how it selects and develops science missions, in an effort to reduce costs, and increase the pace of missions.

News Flash - The Trace Doesn't Like Guns

Gee, who'da thunk it? The Trace: Guns Are Toxic!

They have a "statistical study" to prove it. Or something.

The Trace wants gun owners to think about one word after leaving the range: toxic.

Dramatic framing? Sure. Completely invented? No.

For those of you not paying attention, The Trace was founded with money from Bloomberg, and is basically the media arm of Everytown for Gun Safety, which also has ties to Bloomberg. How do you spell "bias?"

Guns do produce toxic fumes. Some lead if you are using lead bullets. It is worse if you are shooting in an indoor range than if you are outdoors. You should wash your hands, but you should do that anyway.

The Trace is worried about, wait for it ..., the children.

The report estimates that roughly six million American children live in households where someone shoots lead-based ammunition but practices no post-shooting hygiene.

That number sounds alarming. However, it needs some important context.

They did not survey 6 million households. They reference a survey. (never talk to surveyors about your firearms.) Based on the answers they got they made some guesses.

The survey did appear in American Journal of Preventive Medicine, but that doesn't mean any inference from the survey will hold up to scrutiny.

Here is the critical distinction: The study did not test six million children.

It did not collect blood samples from the children, measure lead dust inside their homes or determine whether any particular range trip caused harmful exposure.

Read the whole thing; it isn't long. Hat tip to MaddMedic at Freedom Is Just Another Word…

On the subject of firearm-related surveys: If some rando opinion surveyor asks you if you own firearms, the only correct answer is "No." Or "Of course not; I'm insulted." Or something to that effect.

The Changes in Concealed Carry from 1979 thru Today

From Light Over Heat with Professor David Yamane we get an interesting map. Watch the Concealed Carry Revolution Unfold in 52 Seconds

In 1979 only Washington State had a Shall Issue concealed carry law, and Vermont never restricted concealed carry.

Indiana switched to Shall Issue in 1980. Florida followed in 1987.

[Florida] didn’t create shall issue, but it opened the floodgates. Look at how quickly the map turns blue through the late 1980s and 1990s.

The holdouts, the Bruen decision from SCOTUS in 2022. And the Constitutional Carry wave.

Alaska went that way in 2003, and today there are 29 states.

Using the map. If you teach, present or write about guns in America, you’re welcome to use it, but please credit: David Yamane, Gun Culture 2.0.

Some of useful definitions.

• Restricted (red): concealed carry was banned outright or permitted at officials’ discretion (“no issue” or “may issue”).
• Shall issue (blue): officials must issue a permit to any applicant who meets the statutory requirements.
• Permitless carry (green): anyone who can legally possess a handgun can carry it concealed in public without a permit.

I was going to take issue with the "restricted" definition, but after consideration I think it is the right breakdown. It meant you had to be someone special to get a CCW license in those states, which meant, for the average person, no issue.

I'm Shocked that the BBC Is Biased

OK, so absolutely no one is shocked that the BBC has a liberal bias. BBC education website used by millions takes down Leftist views after pushing 'extreme views' on migration and Net Zero | Daily Mail Online

The BBC has removed 'Left-wing' material from its education website that pushed 'extreme' views on migration and Net Zero after an exposé by The Mail on Sunday.

The corporation was last week accused of 'brainwashing' children after we revealed how BBC Bitesize encouraged them to play an online game in which they were rewarded for choosing 'open borders' and giving an amnesty to illegal migrants.

Click thru for details.

Name In Blood

Zakk Wylde was the guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne, but they had a falling out in the middle 1990s, and so Wylde struck out in on his own. Black Label Society started as a solo project, but eventually morphed into a band.

This is "Name In Blood" by Black Label Society & Zakk Wylde from the 2026 album Engines of Demolition

Self-Defense Is All About Attitude

Use whatever is at hand. Weedwacker-wielding Amish woman fends off alleged kidnapper - NewsBreak

Lancaster Online reports that on the afternoon of Oct. 14, a 23-year-old woman was working in her yard with a motorized weed trimmer when Junior Jose Davila-Moran allegedly approached her, holding a pair of handcuffs and a serrated knife. He allegedly demanded that she put on the handcuffs, and the victim then screamed and stepped forward with the weed trimmer. Davila-Moran allegedly fled the scene.

The bad guy was apprehended by cops a few days later, with the handcuffs still in his truck.

"Don't bring a knife to a weedwacker fight," is just wrong, so I didn't use that as a title.

Lying FBI Agents Finally Facing Some Justice

Deep state? What deep state? Miranda Devine: FBI agents finally facing accountability after trying to smother the Hunter Biden corruption scandal

I'm shocked - shocked I tell you! - to discover that the FBI is a lying bunch of liars.

Two of the FBI agents most closely identified with the FBI’s politicized operation to smother the Hunter Biden corruption scandal are facing their first taste of accountability.

Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides were charged Friday with allegedly lying to Congress about Hunter Biden’s laptop.

Because admitting that Hunter Biden was involved in a bunch of things most people would consider "unsavory" at best, and criminal at worst.

Benavides had known since as early as March 2019 about allegations that Hunter Biden had received millions of dollars from foreign entities when his father was vice president.

He was one of four FBI agents sent to Brussels to interview Gal Luft, the Israeli-American professor who tipped off the FBI that Hunter and his uncle Jim Biden were receiving corrupt payments from Chinese energy company CEFC.

Deep state. Shadow government. You say tomato ...

A few weeks after that briefing, Floris confided to a colleague: “I’m basically running a shadow government across the FBI,” as revealed in a recently declassified internal FBI chat from Sept. 25, 2020.

Read the whole thing. Your tax dollars at work, destroying the democracy.