[QUOTE=tServo;533288]Are you referring to the word "gub" ?
Maybe it comes from a VERY early Woody Allen movie "Take The Money and Run".
He plays a hapless, incompetent loser who drifts into a life of crime.
In one scene, he goes into a bank to rob it and hands the teller a hand written note that says
"Act natural, I'm pointing a gub at you" but the teller starts arguing with about the word which
looks like "gub". Pretty soon, everyone is looking at the note with Allen and arguing with him and each other.

His punishment is prison for 10 years in solitary confinement with an insurance salesman.[/QUOTE]
I was quoting that scene. The word 'gub' is a household joke here. As in, "The guvmint is comin' to take yer gubs away!"

[url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/aurora-beacon-news/ct-abn-cross-man-zanis-retiring-st-1227-20191226-wcjzfdg4ena2fjg2rcjfghlapa-story.html]Aurora's Greg Zanis, known for making crosses for mass shooting victims across the country, is retiring[/url][quote]Greg Zanis of Aurora, who has erected crosses for victims of mass shootings across the country, is retiring from the work that has often put him in the national spotlight.

He's made more than 27,000 crosses over the years as part of his Crosses for Losses ministry.

"I always felt this was my calling," Zanis said.

He said he believed his work "began to show a face of the victims" of shootings around America.

In the last year he's acknowledged his ministry became increasingly harder to do.

"I leave a piece of my heart behind each time I go," he told The Beacon-News last spring.

"I had a breaking point in El Paso," he said of the Aug. 3, 2019, mass shooting outside of a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas. A gunman shot and killed 22 people and injured 24 others.

"I hadn't slept for two days, it was 106 degrees and I collapsed from the pressure when I heard there were two more victims of the mass shooting," he said.

A trip earlier this month to the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida, became a turning point, he said. Three people were killed and eight others were injured in a shooting there.

"I got as far as Indianapolis and turned back. I decided I wasn't going to do this anymore," he said.
<snip>
Zanis has approached Lutheran Charities of Northbrook about taking over his ministry.

"I feel it is not the end of the ministry. It is the end of me doing it," he said.

He may take a year to train those interested in picking up where he left off, he said.
[/quote]

[url]https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50936575[/url]

No further comment.

I fired a bullet into the air, it fell to earth I knew not where...
 

[url=https://apnews.com/1ac4073cb971004c6e55d25e51ac7c8c]Houston woman ringing in new year killed by stray bullet[/url][quote]January 1, 2020 GMT
HOUSTON (AP) — Authorities say a woman ringing in the new year was fatally shot by a stray bullet outside her Houston home.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said 61-year-old Philippa Ashford died after being shot at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. The sheriff’s department said it appears she may have been struck by celebratory gunfire from outside her immediate neighborhood.
<snip>[/quote]

[QUOTE=Dr Sardonicus;533932][url=https://apnews.com/1ac4073cb971004c6e55d25e51ac7c8c]Houston woman ringing in new year killed by stray bullet[/url][/QUOTE]
That is why retina has 2 layers of steel with concrete in between over his lair.

[QUOTE=Uncwilly;533945]That is why retina has 2 layers of steel with concrete in between over his lair.[/QUOTE]
This is why I stay home and away from windows around midnight on 01/01, even in a "nice" Near North Chicago neighborhood. Thoughtless people do not realize that there is a difference between firecrackers, and pistols fired skyward. That chunk of metal has to come down somewhere.

"My kind of town, Chicago is my kind of town..." -- National Funeral Directors Association
 

[QUOTE=kladner;533957]This is why I stay home and away from windows around midnight on 01/01, even in a "nice" Near North Chicago neighborhood. Thoughtless people do not realize that there is a difference between firecrackers, and pistols fired skyward. That chunk of metal has to come down somewhere.[/QUOTE]
Never mind celebratory gunfire. It seems that in Chicago, people who fire guns mean business.

[url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-new-years-shootings-20200101-w72jsldhdfhbbimakkvjeyis54-story.html]Woman shot, police dodge gunfire twice during early hours of New Year’s Day in Chicago: cops[/url][quote]<snip>
The first shooting of 2020 in the city happened when a woman was wounded inside a West Garfield Park house by a bullet that came through the window, according to Chicago police.

About 12:15 a.m., gunfire struck the 24-year-old in the back while she was in the residence in the 4400 block of West Adams Street. She was taken to Stroger Hospital, where she was stabilized, police said.
<snip>[/quote]

[url=https://apnews.com/f9edeb4059c1ab508642371eab13d0db]Boy arrested after shooting that killed 4 in small Utah town[/url][quote]A boy armed with a gun killed three children and a woman inside a Utah home, then accompanied a fifth victim to a hospital, where he was arrested, police said Saturday.

Police were still trying to piece together who’s who and what happened leading up to Friday night's shooting in Grantsville. Investigators believe the victims are all related to one another, and officials declined to release information about the shooter other than he is a juvenile male.
<snip>
Utah Gov. Gary Herbert released a statement through Twitter.

"Parents and grandparents, secure your firearms! Everyone, hug your loved ones tight. And remember love, not hate, will heal broken individuals and families," he wrote.[/quote]With all due respect, Governor, the dead don't heal.

[url=https://apnews.com/8b6f867e5f52baf2b699f564d177e899]Gunman kills 5 at Milwaukee brewery before taking own life[/url][quote]MILWAUKEE (AP) — An employee opened fire Wednesday at one of the nation's largest breweries in Milwaukee, killing five fellow workers before taking his own life, police said.[/quote]

[url]https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-51955450[/url]
[quote] How else is the US responding to coronavirus?

The leader of Baltimore, Maryland, urged gang members to stop shooting each other, saying hospital beds are needed to treat coronavirus patients.

Following a spate of shootings on Tuesday night, Mayor Jack Young said: "We cannot clog up our hospitals and their beds with people that are being shot senselessly because we're going to need those beds for people infected with the coronavirus. [/quote]
.

[url=https://apnews.com/562d790538089f7ad8fdea146802674d]US agency includes gun sellers as 'critical' infrastructure[/url][quote]WASHINGTON (AP) — A gun rights group is cheering the Trump administration's designation of the firearms industry, including retailers, as part of the nation's critical infrastructure during the coronavirus emergency.
<snip>
The group Gun Owners of America says in a statement Saturday that it is encouraged that the Trump administration is not ignoring what it calls "the ability to protect yourself" during the emergency stemming from the pandemic.[/quote]
(Apologies to Humphrey Bogart) You don't like it, do you, Erich, people with the Coronavirus coming too close? Show them your gun, why don't you? If they don't stop, shoot them.

[QUOTE=Dr Sardonicus;541239][URL="https://apnews.com/562d790538089f7ad8fdea146802674d"]US agency includes gun sellers as 'critical' infrastructure[/URL]
(Apologies to Humphrey Bogart) You don't like it, do you, Erich, people with the Coronavirus coming too close? Show them your gun, why don't you? If they don't stop, shoot them.[/QUOTE]


Similar news from the NRA:
[URL]https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/nra-sues-california-for-shuttering-gun-shops-as-nonessential-business-amid-coronavirus-outbreak[/URL]

I also read that there is a big run on weapons once again. Probably those people stock-piling guns expect some chaos caused by the crisis management of their great leader?
Or do they want to shoot the virus...

[QUOTE=Till;541245]I also read that there is a big run on weapons once again. Probably those people stock-piling guns expect some chaos caused by the crisis management of their great leader?
Or do they want to shoot the virus...[/QUOTE]
Beats me. Maybe they're worried guns will suddenly become unavailable. Or maybe that the gummint will use the crisis to [size=4]TAKE OUR GUNS AWAY!!![/SIZE]

They could just go down to the liquor store to relieve their anxieties, because liquor stores are essential, too.

Hmm. Gun stores [i]and[/i] liquor stores are essential. What could possibly go wrong?

People there were watching too much of zombie apocalypse... :sad:

[QUOTE=xilman;523029][URL="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-49221936"]I live on the outskirts of El Paso.[/URL]

[URL="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Paso%2C_La_Palma"]The civilized one[/URL], thankfully.[/QUOTE]
[url=https://apnews.com/f2d5c788faf8725f3e7fcb84b5c9c2fc]El Paso Walmart shooting victim dies, death toll now 23[/url][quote]April 26, 2020
A man shot in the Aug. 3 attack targeting Latinos in an El Paso Walmart died after months in the hospital, raising the death toll from the attack to 23, according to a hospital official.

"After a nearly nine-month fight, our hearts are heavy as we report Guillermo 'Memo' Garcia, our last remaining patient being treated from the El Paso shooting, has passed away," said Del Sol Medical Center CEO David Shimp.

Garcia and his wife Jessica Coca Garcia were fundraising for their daughter's soccer team in the Walmart parking lot when the suspected gunman opened fire that Saturday morning.[/quote]

[QUOTE=Dr Sardonicus;543941][url=https://apnews.com/f2d5c788faf8725f3e7fcb84b5c9c2fc]El Paso Walmart shooting victim dies, death toll now 23[/url][/QUOTE]Thanks for reminding me because it led me back to [url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinus_canariensis[/url]

A few years ago I brung back a cone from La Palma and planted the~ 5 seeds contained within. Three grew, two of which were passed on to friends. Mine is thriving, is about 50cm high, and is now growing at >10cm each year. No idea how many other individuals are alive in the UK but guess it is fewer than 1000 and could well be as few as a dozen or so.

I'll take a picture RSN and post it here.

[QUOTE]Mine is thriving, is about 50cm high, and is now growing at >10cm each year.[/QUOTE]
Impressive, and gratifying for the grower, I am sure! :tu:

Hats off to Canada. Two weeks after a mass murder they ban assault weapons. I loved Trudeau’s comment “I’m banning these weapons because Canadians need more than thoughts and prayers.”

[QUOTE=tServo;544448]Hats off to Canada. Two weeks after a mass murder they ban assault weapons. I loved Trudeau’s comment “I’m banning these weapons because Canadians need more than thoughts and prayers.”[/QUOTE]
Kudos! Bravo! :beer2:

'Twill be a long time coming for us who are South of that border. :sad:

[url=https://myfox8.com/news/12-year-old-boy-suspended-for-5-days-deputies-visit-house-after-toy-gun-seen-during-online-class/]12-year-old boy suspended for 5 days, deputies visit house after toy gun seen during online class[/url] [quote]“He was in tears when the cops came. He was just in tears. He was scared. We all were scared. I literally was scared for his life,” said Curtis Elliot.[/quote]Everyone knew is was clearly a toy gun, so why the ridiculous overreaction? Why even react at all? There is nothing to react to.

Wouldn't they be happy the child was just trying to protect himself?

Also: Why do the police invoke such a reaction into the populace?

Guns are for your protection, right? And the police are also for your protection, right? So combining the two should be an awesome outcome, right? No one will ever die or be injured ever again, right? So everyone should be super-happy when the police show-up, and feel awesomely safe and secure.

But wait, there's more:

[url=https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2020/09/oregon-man-shoots-self-in-groin-while-showing-off-gun-in-supermarket-checkout-line-cops-say.html]Oregon man shoots self in groin while showing off gun in supermarket checkout line, cops say[/url] [quote]An Oregon man is on the mend after police say he accidentally shot himself in the groin while flaunting a concealed handgun at a Lincoln City supermarket.[/quote]So now guns are a vanity crutch also? How come it didn't protect him? That's weird. Almost as if the for-your-protection claims aren't true or something.

[QUOTE=retina;557530][url=https://myfox8.com/news/12-year-old-boy-suspended-for-5-days-deputies-visit-house-after-toy-gun-seen-during-online-class/]12-year-old boy suspended for 5 days, deputies visit house after toy gun seen during online class[/url] Everyone knew is was clearly a toy gun, so why the ridiculous overreaction? Why even react at all? There is nothing to react to.[/QUOTE]
I noticed the following (my emphasis) in a [url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/12-year-old-suspended-after-teacher-spots-toy-gun-during-virtual-class]Faux News report[/url]:[quote]The El Paso County Sheriff's Office said [b]although the teacher thought it was a toy gun[/b] authorities still did a welfare check on Isaiah Elliott without parental notification.

"It was really frightening and upsetting for me as a parent, especially as the parent of [b]an African-American young man[/b], especially given what's going on in our country right now," Curtis Elliott, Isaiah's father, told KDVR.[/quote]I'm sure the young man's skin color had nothing to do with it, of course.

Other little tidbits:[quote]The toy gun was neon green and black with an orange tip featuring the words on the handle: "Zombie Hunter."[/quote]Well, there you have it. Obviously a threat to supporters of the POTUS. No wonder they called in the deputies! The orange tip signifies that it's a toy gun. So you see, race had nothing to do with it. The teacher must be colorblind, haw haw!
[quote]Reports said the school district, the Widefield District #3, refused to give the Elliott family the recording of the online class, but authorities showed the family a video of the class from a recording from a police body camera.[/quote]Yeah, I'll bet they refused.

[url=https://apnews.com/article/wisconsin-us-news-police-kenosha-shootings-4da6d238eed3fab22f01ab21bd839d78]Man charged with supplying gun in deadly Wisconsin protest[/url][quote]KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) — Prosecutors have charged a Wisconsin man with supplying the gun that police say an Illinois teen used to kill two people during a protest over police brutality in August.

Online court records show prosecutors in Kenosha charged 19-year-old Dominick Black on Nov. 3 with two felony counts of supplying a dangerous weapon to a minor causing death. Black could face up to 25 years in prison if convicted on both counts.
<snip>
Black told police that when they went to his stepfather's house he was concerned about Rittenhouse having the gun because he wasn't 18, but if he told Rittenhouse he couldn't have it Rittenhouse "would have thrown a fit," the reports said.[/quote]

[url=https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-rockford-shootings-chicago-illinois-8fd8b49a766a96aab43528539ffca3f9]Shooting at Illinois bowling alley leaves 3 dead, 3 injured[/url][quote]ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) — A gunman opened fire inside an Illinois bowling alley, killing three people and injuring three others Saturday night in what authorities believe was a random attack.

A 37-year-old male suspect was in custody after the shooting at Don Carter Lanes, Rockford police said in a social media post.[/quote][b]EDIT:[/b] In a [url=https://apnews.com/article/rockford-shootings-illinois-c0692de8b46ca5cc8f642855eb2eef15]followup story[/url] (I removed the suspect's name)[quote]ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) — A U.S. serviceman from Florida has been charged in a shooting at an Illinois bowling alley that left three people dead and three wounded, authorities said Sunday.
<snip>
:censored: was taken into custody shortly after the shooting at around 7 p.m., Rockford Police Chief Dan O'Shea said at a news conference Sunday morning.

"I am very confident the officers that were on the scene in the building were able to stop further violence," O'Shea said.

He said the three who died were all men, aged 73, 65 and 69, but did not provide names.

Additionally, he said, a 14-year-old boy was shot in the face and airlifted to hospital in Madison in stable condition, and a 16-year-old girl who was shot in the shoulder was treated at a hospital and released. A 62-year-old man underwent surgery overnight after suffering multiple gunshot wounds and is in critical condition, the chief said.

The suspect has no known ties to the victims, O'Shea said.[/quote]

[url=https://apnews.com/article/college-football-denton-dallas-utah-utes-football-football-a640e18bc818766069af6b053c21a81d]Authorities: Utah’s Ty Jordan died in accidental shooting[/url][quote]DALLAS (AP) — Ty Jordan, a star freshman running back for the University of Utah, died at a Dallas-area hospital after accidently shooting himself, authorities said Sunday.

University officials announced Jordan's death Saturday, a day after he was named Pac-12's newcomer of the year, but did not release details.[/quote]

The news story below brings to mind something I heard many years ago in a radio interview with a police officer. They were talking about using firearms in defense of one's home. The officer told of a woman who asked about it, to which he responded by asking her if she would point the gun at the intruder and say "Hold it!" or something like that. The woman had said she would.

To which the officer had replied, "You'd be dead." Meaning that, in such a situation, an intruder might also be armed, and would almost certainly be very jumpy and likely to act impulsively out of desperation if confronted. So, he had explained to the woman, if you choose to defend your home with a gun, you have to be prepared, literally, to shoot first and ask questions later.

[url=https://apnews.com/article/shootings-texas-dallas-a2fa2488c99d7abd63e2d1b59e722821]Sheriff: Pastor dead, 2 hurt in shooting at Texas church[/url][quote]Smith said police were initially pursuing the man because he was suspected of brandishing a shotgun through the sunroof of a Volkswagen Jetta he was driving Saturday. Authorities believe the suspect, identified as 21-year-old Mytrez Deunte Woolen of Marshall, Texas, broke into the church after police had left the area around 2 a.m. Sunday.

Pastor Mark Allen McWilliams, 62, drew a gun and ordered Woolen to stop, Smith said, but Woolen grabbed the weapon and began shooting with it. McWilliams was killed, a second person was injured by gunfire and another was hurt in a fall.[/quote]

[QUOTE=Dr Sardonicus;568346]The officer told of a woman who asked about it, to which he responded by asking her if she would point the gun at the intruder and say "Hold it!" or something like that. The woman had said she would.

To which the officer had replied, "You'd be dead."[/QUOTE]A friend of a friend told me that they kept their 7 shot shotgun loaded with (in order) 2 rounds of snake or bird shot, 3 rounds 00 Buck, 2 slugs. The first two can be fired in a room of the house and not harm people in the adjacent rooms. Also, likely to stop or prevent harm by a bad person, while not generally doing irreparable harm to a family member accidentally shot. The 00 Buck will stop a person. (The 2 rounds of snake shot can be quickly racked out if needed). The slugs are disabling vehicles if needed.

[url=https://apnews.com/article/new-york-gun-politics-coronavirus-pandemic-texas-cbe5845c17e18eed8679d6daec75ff75]NRA declares bankruptcy, plans to incorporate in Texas[/url][quote]AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The National Rifle Association announced Friday it has filed for bankruptcy and will seek to incorporate the nation’s most politically influential gun-rights group in Texas instead of New York.

The announcement made on the NRA's website comes months after New York's attorney general [url=https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-new-york-lawsuits-election-2020-u-s-news-056b7845ad1a35a68a4bf837329d9f6f]sued the organization[/url] over claims that top executives illegally diverted tens of millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts for associates and other questionable expenditures.
<snip>
The NRA said it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Dallas federal court.
<snip>[/quote]

CBS had interviews on tonite's news with the 2 capital police officers who looked like they were in deep trouble during the riots. One was the guy who was dragged out onto the outside steps and was being pummeled by the crowd and the other one was caught in a door and being crushed by the mob pushing on it.

What I don't understand is why the other officers didn't use lethal force to save them. Don't they carry guns? I'm fairly sure I have seen them with hand guns. If there ever was a justifiable cause this sure looked like one.
Maybe the subsequent paperwork was just too onerous to make it worthwhile.

[QUOTE=tServo;569416]
What I don't understand is why the other officers didn't use lethal force to save them. Don't they carry guns? I'm fairly sure I have seen them with hand guns. If there ever was a justifiable cause this sure looked like one. [/QUOTE]

[URL="https://twitter.com/McCormackJohn/status/1349903191169757186"]https://twitter.com/McCormackJohn/status/1349903191169757186[/URL]

Following up on [url=https://www.mersenneforum.org/showpost.php?p=569414&postcount=706]this post[/url]...

[url=https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-us-news-health-coronavirus-pandemic-ny-state-wire-a281b888b64d391374f24539a820d60f]Judge dismisses NRA bankruptcy case in blow to gun group[/url][quote]DALLAS (AP) - A federal judge dismissed the National Rifle Association's bankruptcy case Tuesday, leaving the powerful gun-rights group to face a New York state lawsuit that accuses it of financial abuses and aims to put it out of business.

The judge was tasked with deciding whether the NRA should be allowed to incorporate in Texas instead of New York, where the state is suing in an effort to disband the group. Though headquartered in Virginia, the NRA was chartered as a nonprofit in New York in 1871 and is incorporated in the state.

Judge Harlin Hale said in a written order that he was dismissing the case because he found the bankruptcy was not filed in good faith.

"The Court believes the NRA's purpose in filing bankruptcy is less like a traditional bankruptcy case in which a debtor is faced with financial difficulties or a judgment that it cannot satisfy and more like cases in which courts have found bankruptcy was filed to gain an unfair advantage in litigation or to avoid a regulatory scheme," Hale wrote.

His decision followed 11 days of testimony and arguments. Lawyers for New York and the NRA's former advertising agency grilled the group's embattled top executive, Wayne LaPierre, who acknowledged putting the NRA into Chapter 11 bankruptcy without the knowledge or assent of most of its board and other top officers.

"Excluding so many people from the process of deciding to file for bankruptcy, including the vast majority of the board of directors, the chief financial officer, and the general counsel, is nothing less than shocking," the judge added.
<snip>[/quote]