Humpday Happenings...

Middle of the week (already?) and you know what THAT means, right?
No?
Well, stick around and we'll give you the *411* on all the fun stuff.
Today's weather in the Heartland will be WARM...as in close to JULY warm, with temps reaching the upper 80s (sounds like yesterday).
Chance of showers is slight, but THAT will change in the next several days.
So, keep the A/C at the ready...you'll probably need it.
In the meantime, let's get started and get moving...
*** First up, as is the usual, is the Motto of the Week, aka WHO SAID THAT?
"It may be true that you can't fool all the people all the time, but you can fool enough of them to rule a large country."
Now, in lieu of the political atmosphere in America these days, I think this duly apropos.
So, who said it? The answer at the top of tomorrow's post.
Meanwhile, back at the coroner's office...
*** Yes friends, we have made it to HOMICIDE NUMBER NINETEEN!

(that's 19 for those keeping score in the "dead pool" at work).
And here's the story as it broke so far:
http://www.wane.com/dpp/news/crime/one-dead-in-huron-st-shooting
This happened in the 1300 block of Huron St around 2337 hrs.

And hey, it wasn't on the...(...all together, gang)...SOUTHEAST SIDE of town...

A-f$cking-Mazing, isn't it?

A man was exiting a house there, when he was gunned down (someone had a grudge?) and at least 7 rounds had been expended. A long shell casing was seen, so that tells me it probably wasn't a handgun (magnum rounds tend to hang out in wheelguns, ergo no ejected casings).

The first officer on scene attempted CPR, but after the victim was taken to hospital (St. Joe is nearby) the man died.
Police don't know if the possible (?) suspect was lying in wait for the man to exit the house. I'd say SOMEONE was.
No weapons were recovered at the scene and as usual, no arrests have been made, but detectives were speaking to possible witnesses in the area.
The coroner's office will be forthcoming with the victim's ID later.
(( Editor's update - 1630 Hrs - The victim has been ID'ed as Ryann Trejo, age 32))
*** A little closer to (our) home, there's this...

A dog gets shot by an off-duty corrections officer in the 4400 block of S. Warsaw (which IS on the SE side of town), and the dog is struck three times and lives.

I don't know if it's divine intervention, luck, or poor marksmanship for the result, but here's the story:

http://www.wane.com/dpp/news/local/dog-shot-by-officer-three-times-lives
The officer states the dog was approaching him in a threatening manner...a good reason to draw your weapon down HERE, believe you me.
Several times in the past, officers downed a dog that was running at them, with one time happening during a foot pursuit, so you can easily see that ANY officer is on guard when it comes to someone else's canine, especially a pit bull.
Antione Billingsley is the owner of the dog in this story, named "Baby" (?), and says he doesn't have the $900 needed for the vet.
He states the 3 year old dog has never acted aggressively and believes something must have happened to make the dog run from the house.

Having been a pet owner most ALL my life, I find it rather appalling that the dog has gone WITHOUT surgery, and that to me says a LOT about the OWNER of any pet.


He's a gooooooddddd boy!

 You love the animal THAT much...then you FIND a way to treat it...make a payment plan with the vet (I'm sure they still do that), but you do something.
(maybe get a damn job, knowing the people down here) 
You wouldn't let a family member with TWO legs undergo such neglect, would you?
(they do down in the ghettohood...all the time)
Now, if this is the SAME Antione (or Antoine) Billingsley whose court records I pulled up, he hasn't been on Warsaw St. all that long (2-3 years), and has a VERY nice (long) rap sheet dating back to 1987, including such items as no operator's license, various other traffic violations, possession of pot, disorderly, several carrying handgun w/o license (by a convicted felon), several battery charges, receiving stolen property and resisting law enforcement.
Nah...couldn't POSSIBLY be the SAME guy...just one helluva "coincidence"?
Moving on...
*** The city of Columbus, Indiana has recently began jerking it's knee...up past it's head, in fact, and here's why:
http://www.wane.com/dpp/news/indiana/columbus-eyes-limits-on-lookalike-weapons

Seems that a city of only 44,000 (and change) that's predominantly WHITE (85%+) has a problem with "lookalike" weapons...such as AIRSOFT pistols, BB pistols and rifles, and the like.

And the city council as well as the police chief wants to do something about it.

Here's the story from their local paper, The Republic:

http://www.therepublic.com/view/local_story/Targeting-_1368929358

Now, I'm one of those "older kids" that has had BB pistols since I was a teen, and NEVER used any of them in a manner that would cause alarm or concern to anyone (yet...). It's called BEING RESPONSIBLE...and not wanting to have Dad take it from you...LOL.

Hell, Dad and I used to go down to the river (in Philly) and shoot at rats or cans with our pellet pistols.

And NEVER were we chased away...not even when a PPD officer came to "watch". He got a kick out of it, really.

The RIGHT hand holds the real .40 cal.

But THESE days, it's a whole different ballgame (or shooting gallery, if you prefer).

There are felonious people out there, who cannot by any stretch of the law purchase a REAL firearm to commit their crimes (the system works on occasion), so they turn to the Internet and get themselves a lookalike pistol...the kind with those ORANGE TIPS on the barrels.

Thing is, they promptly remove or cover the orange so as to make the pistol "appear" to be a lot more REAL that it actually is.

That kind of stunt makes it DAMN hard for ANY law-enforcement officer to tell the difference...follow me so far?

It's not the officer's fault if he/she determines that a weapon is being pointed at them and they react with deadly force, only to find out the "gun" was an AIRSOFT pistol with 6MM plastic BBs inside that wouldn't even break the skin.

And the general public (for the most part) is about as UNINFORMED as a bag of rocks on this, and tend to react accordingly.

So, the days of plinking cans in the back yard with your son or daughter might be numbered, if the Columbus, Indiana city council and police chief have anything to say about it.

Such a thing was done back in Philly (that was in the 1970s), and that's why Dad and I had to drive OUTSIDE the city limits to purchase OUR pellet pistols in Bucks County, PA.
Philly created a BAN on BB pistols and rifles, which clearly explains ALL the murders from REAL firearms they have there now.
Columbus wants to do something similar...restrictions of lookalike weapons.
Their BIG mistake is labelling such weapons AS GUNS...totally incorrect.


Both metal, both have blowback - bottom is the airgun.

A BB pistol is NOT a gun in the strict sense of the usage of the word. A GUN implies that it is a FIREARM, and that presupposes that a CHEMICAL REACTION takes place to propel the projectile from the muzzle at a relatively HIGH VELOCITY. That kinda stuff KILLS.
That's NOT what an AIRSOFT pistol or rifle is all about.
They are all considered LOW-velocity in nature...approx. 200 FPS.
My BB pistols range in velocity from 295 FPS up to 430 FPS, and my paintball marker pistol is also in that upper range.
(that just leaves a mark and hurts like hell)
That's a FAR cry from the 1190 FPS velocity of my 9MM or the 850 FPS velocity of my .45 ACP. The shotgun is up there also.

The one on the RIGHT means business!

I can totally understand the reason behind WHY Columbus wants to "restrict" such air or spring operated pistols and rifles, but you also have to take into consideration the fact that even if you hold up a store with a cap pistol or a butter knife, that IS a FELONY. The law makes no bones about what TYPE of weapon used in a ARMED ROBBERY...and the adjudication metes out the correct punishment in such cases.

The MIDDLE one is the real deal!

But to want to BAN or RESTRICT such "weapons" takes us down a nasty path...
What about scissors? Or knives? Or compasses? Or baseball bats?
See what I mean?
I say let the current laws STAND in Columbus, but enforce the PUNISHMENT aspect of the law whenever it is broken.
There is a huge difference between a REAL FIREARM and a low-velocity air or spring pistol.
I say enforce PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY...and ACCOUNTABILITY, for the kids, parents AND adults, rather than create more laws which can take even more fun out of a child's life.
We've done enough already with removing dodgeball and certain forms of "tag"...
*** Lastly today, what's happened to our kids?
What happened to the childhoods WE used to enjoy, but are somehow denied to today's children?

And what happens when the kids turn to social media or video games for their "playtime"?
Well, the results are all around us...disrespect for authority, the beginnings of criminal behavior, even more sexual experimentation (and rising teen pregnancies with ages getting even lower), poor social skills, if ANY at all, and a total lack of caring about consequences.
That sure isn't how the hell WE were raised, is it?

We had to do dumb things like OBEY our parents, teachers, and even everyone else who was OLDER than us, because they KNEW more than we did.

And whatever punishment we inflicted upon ourselves by our OWN actions, resulted in a LEARNING experience, however painful it might have been.
Not seeing all that much of THAT stuff today, are we?

When you never take the time to INSTRUCT and then REINFORCE such instruction with the whole "cause and effect" aspect of life, how the hell can you train up ANY child into becoming a better human being?
You just cannot.
And woe to us that think the government will do as good if not better job...that's living a lie from the start.
Our children...our future.
We have two choices, and the sooner we choose to teach them correctly, the better off we ALL will wind up, right?
It's for them as much as it is for us, if not more so.

Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.