Just one small problem with that Masada...

...actually 3000 small problems with the Magpul Masada, otherwise known as the Bushmaster ACR, now known as the Remington ACR--it's all so incestuous. When Adolf found out he was quite pissed.

This rifle has an interesting history, and I do hope it replaces the M4 carbine. For the background, read this very good Wikipedia article about the Bushmaster ACR. Wish they'd kept the Masada name, though--very cool.

Helping out in Haiti

I don't need to tell you Haiti is a hurting place. There is really not much to add; I would simply like to share a few relief agencies I like.

World Vision (http://www.worldvision.org/), which, I'm proud to say, is headquartered here in Washington State.

Catholic Relief Services (http://www.crs.org/), even if you aren't Catholic ;)

Salvation Army (http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/). It's fun to drop change in the pot at Christmas so why not drop some more. They have boots on the ground in many countries, and a strong presence in Haiti.

Search Dog Foundation (http://www.searchdogfoundation.org/) is one that I haven't donated to in the past but sounds very cool. They rescue dogs and train them to work with firefighters and other first responders to find people buried alive in the wreckage of disasters.

An Interesting Year for Guns Ahead

With the biggest event in the shooting world, the SHOT Show, less than a week away, we have already seen quite a few leaks and early product announcements. I believe it's going to be an interesting year for guns, both technologically and legislatively.

Ruger gets (even further) behind the .327 Federal Magnum

Ruger releases two new revolvers in the somewhat controversial .327 Federal Magnum... Controversial meaning, do we really need a .32 magnum magnum? Or, do we really need a smaller, faster .357 magnum? I answer, why not, if it means more rounds in the cylinder. For more commentary, see Michael Bane's post New Rugers, and Ruger Blackhawk and GP100 Chambered in .327 Federal Magnum on the ever-burgeoning blog ONEINCHGROUP.

The Epitomization of Italian Engineering: Rhino .357 Magnum

Possibly filed under W for WTF, Chiappa's new Rhino reflects perfectly the ideals of Italian engineering, which they apply to cars, firearms and battleships equally: one: must have the style of a beautiful woman; two: must handle like a beautiful woman; three: function follows form. As a case in point, a friend of mine had a Fiat in which the tachometer needle moved counterclockwise. The reason for doing this was that the steering column would otherwise have obscured the 0 - 6000 RPM range. Well, you ask, why not simply move the tachometer dial? Oh no, that would have broken up the symmetry of the dashboard. In the case of the Rhino, what makes this revolver unique is that the barrel is lined up with the bottom of the cylinder--this low centerline causes the recoil to travel directly into the shooter's palm and wrist, rather than above them, thus reducing barrel rise. With a .357 snubby, this is certainly a serious consideration.

Fig. 1: Cutaway view of the Chiappa Rhino

Carry options just get better and better

Ruger 9SRc: ...Watch the demo video on the Ruger website or the DRTV Podcast. Michael Bane compares an SR9c with a Glock 26 one-on-one. NICE compact carry. I like the design even better than the Taurus 709. While we don't know whether the Ruger will prove to be as reliable as the Glock, it's certainly prettier!
Boberg XR9-S Shorty 9mm: ...still developing...

Candy for the black rifle crowd

This video of the Remington ACR was recently leaked on YouTube. Remington got just about everything right on this one: the FN SCAR desert tan styling; the collapsible stocks; the gas-piston action, interchangeable 5.56mm and 6.8mm SPC barrels; non-reciprocating charging handle, on the left hand side; and the cherry on top, an optional muzzle entry tool (hint: it's not just for breaking windows).

Developing...

A public service announcement regarding Afictive.net...

A convenient new feature has been added to allow you to reach this obscure parcel of the Internets. You can now use www.afictive.net as well as afictive.blogspot.com to access this website.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled web surfing experience.

Moving Forward into 2010

As we journey forth into a new year, I've decided to do things a bit differently on ye olde blog. Even the paltry few posts I racked up last year have given me insight into what kind of content I want to post, and in a deeper sense, what I should spend my time thinking about.

I intend to be positive in my rhetoric. By this I do not mean happy affirmations such as "Every day in every way I am getting better and better. Then I grab the shotgun." No, I simply mean that it is better to provide workable alternatives than criticize. It is better to persuade rather than attack--though I shall hurl mockery at the truly deserving. And in imaginative matters, it is better to put into practice than theorize.

Writing this blog has surprised me because I orginally intended it to be a creative outlet, a venue to think out loud more socially acceptable than muttering to myself in the library men's room. Possibly even a way to trick myself into writing fiction. Rather I have turned out far more political content than I'd intended. I might be forgiven because I, like so many others today, have been booted into uncomfortable intimacy with the unwinding of our economy; our flagrant, dissolute budgetary and tax policy, reaching back several administrations; and our inexplicable indulgence as a society for malignant ideas.

Moreover, I regret my previous apathy and inaction. This while the country overall is going through a defining crisis, a political and cultural transformation, where our civil society finally comes to terms with its long flirtation with fashionable statism and cultural relativism.

In the final analysis, blogs are simply streams of opinions, and the latter, like anuses, are ubiquitous. The world doesn't need another streaming anus. It is more than a little presumptuous to set out writing in hopes of changing people's minds im Großen und Ganzen, so perhaps I'm simply inviting others to my own thoughts.

There are good arguments for having no political commentary at all on one's blog, and I've considered these carefully. For now it shall remain, for it is not so much a matter of shouting slogans as a concern about basic freedoms. And it is an integral part of who I am. Nevertheless, life comprises so many other matters, and I must try not to neglect these.

It's the blimp, it's the blimp! (No, just another year)

New Year's Eve was accompanied by a robust snowfall and a full moon, illuminating the woods in supernal twilight, all of which I welcome and regard as a propitious omen.

This is our place, which we affectionately refer to as "Wolfenbach" because of its situation on Wolf Creek Road in Winthrop WA. And this appelation may once again be appropriate, as the first Grey Wolves sighted in Washington State for almost a century live right here in the Methow Valley.

Poor 2009. Everyone I talk to pretty much universally regards it as a bad year, spitting "good riddance" after it. Perhaps Microsoft shall build their own version of the Goodyear blimp to celebrate the accomplishments of the past year, such as they are. I propose that they call it the "Badyear Blimp." Or to retread a term I have oft heard used in conjunction with 2009, "The Crap Zeppelin."

In any event, we have affixed a Pennsylvania Dutch Hex sign on the front of our house. This should ward off further evil times and perhaps even the local Jehovah's Witnesses.