sports

Ahab’s NFL Preview

Posted on by Caleb

The first game of the NFL season.  I can feel the anticipation.  After the Colt’s championship season, I’m doubly excited about this year, since the 49ers (my favorite team) had a great rebuilding year, and a strong off season.

Of course, I’m going to write an incredibly long and boringly detailed NFL Preview post now; complete with my personal breakdown on what I think each team in the NFL is going to do this year.  If you don’t like hot, steamy, NFL coverage, this is not the blag entry for you.

AFC East

Buffalo Bills – The Bills added rookie Marshawn Lynch at running back during the off-season.  While he has tremendous potential, I don’t think Lynch alone is going to be enough to overcome the Patriots, or the fact that J.P. Lossman is still the Bills quarterback.  In short, another year of sucking.

Miami Dolphins – Who the hell is their starting QB?  Trent Green?  That’s good, he’s only 73 years old.

New England Patriots – The sportswriter’s darling to win it all this year, and it’s hard to not see why.  Between Tom Brady, Randy Moss, Dante’ Stallworth, and Lawrence Maroney, the Pats are STACKED on offense.

New York Jets – I don’t see another miracle for Mangini this year.  I mean, they could maybe win a wild card, but the AFC is just too tough for the Jets.  Their starting running back is…uh…er…well, you get my point.

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens – I hate the Ravens.  That said, they have their work cut out for them this year, in what has got to be the toughest conference in the NFL.  I don’t think their offense is strong enough to get it done, although the addition of McGahee at RB should help their faltering run game.

Cincinnati  Bengals – Loads of offense.  No defense.  Tough conference.  No playoffs here.

Cleveland Browns – If I could overcome my utter loathing of Brady Quinn for even 7 seconds (which I can’t) I might be able to acknowledge that Jamal Lewis could help take the pressure off the passing game.  Although, I don’t think they’re going to win more than 3 games.

Pittsburgh Steelers – I risk a divorce for saying this, but this is my pick to win their division.  My wife hates the Steelers, but I have a soft spot for them.  Maybe it’s their “littl lost boy” QB in Ben Wafflesburger, or the fact that Fast Willie Parker has consistently produced for my fantasy teams, but I just can’t get over the fact that I sort of like the Steelers.

AFC South

Indianapolis Colts – My wife’s favorite team, and my 2nd favorite team.  Should win the AFC South for the 3,334 season in a row.  Lost a lot of key roleplayers during the off-season, but I am a believe in Adam Vinateri and his magic leg.

Houston Texans – Hey, if Ahman Green can manuever his wheelchair around the field, and if Matt Schaub sucks less than David Carr, they might win 6 games.

Jacksonville Jaguars – The most serious threat (that I see) to the Colts in this division.  Absolutely devastating at RB, their biggest weakness is in their QB.  If they start Leftwich instead of Garrard, that would be a big mistake.

Tennessee Titans – Vince Young is good.  Very good.  The problem is with the Titans, everything else is measure in terms of potential.  They “could” do this, and they “could” do that.

AFC West

Kansas City Chiefs – Bastards managed to sneak into the playoffs last year behind Larry Johnson and some bad play from Denver.  Won’t happen again this year.

Denver Broncos – My mom’s favorite team.  All of Denver is on their hands and knees praying that Jay Cutler turns into the next Elway, and not another Jake Plummer.

Oakland Raiders – Due to my former geographic location, I am required by law to hate the Raiders for abandoning LA.  However, the Raiders are studly on defense, and if they get the 30 TDs-11 INTs Culpepper from a few seasons ago (and not the one from last season) they could sneak into the playoffs.

San Diego Chargers – My pick for the AFC Champion this year.  I think they’re going to overcome the Norv Turner suck factor and win the AFC.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys – I hate the Cowboys.  I hate their gay little stars, I hate their stupid stadium (note: the hole is *not* so God watch your idiot team play), and I hate their owner.  That’s why I’m glad that they have T.O., it makes it so much easier to focus my hatred.

New York Giants – Eli needs to not suck.  Their new RB that is replacing Tiki needs to not suck.  I think that they might squeak into a wild card spot.

Philly Eagles – The Iggles will probably have a very quiet season of winning 11 games and their division.  Provided that their older players (Westbrook and McNabb) stay healthy.

Washington Redskins – I hope you like winning 5 games.

NFC North

Chicago Bears – With Rex Grossman still under center, the Bears will continue to ride their defense; although probably to only 9 or 10 wins this year.  Cedric Benson is promising, but can’t overcome the black hole of crap that surrounds Rex.

Detroit Lions – The sleeper pick to win the NFC North.  Of course, I say that every year.

Green Bay Packers – You know my comment about Ahman Green’s wheelchair?  That goes double for Brett Favre.  8 wins, tops.

Minnesota Vikings – Another team with no chance.  You know, it occurs to me that the NFC North sucks.

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons – Probably better off without Michael Vick, as despite his shortcomings, Joey Harrington at least realizes he can’t just keep the ball on every play.  They might get 7 wins.

Carolina Panthers – Jake Delhomme to Steve Smith.  Lather, rinse, repeat, until defenses  triple team Smith.  Then finish 8 and 8.

New Orleans Saints – After a heartwarming and surprising season, the Saints will probably win the South; they’re also my pick for the NFC in the Super Bowl.

Tampa Bay Bucs – If Cadillac stays healthy, if Garcia can repeat last year’s heroics, if, if if…

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals – See Tampa Bay, but replace Cadillac with Edgerrin and add the caveat that their line has to not suck.  Probably makes the wild card.

Seattle Seahawks – Two years removed from getting cheated out of a Super Bowl, the Seahawks won’t make the playoffs this year.  They’re getting too old, and the rest of the conference is catching up too fast.

St. Louis Rams – Behind Stephen Jackson, the Rams might sneak into the playoffs this year.

San Francisco 49ers – CHAMPIONSHIP!  ALEX SMITH IS THE NEXT JOE MONTANA!  Uh…I mean…with a talented RB, a QB coming into his own, and plenty of targets, the 49ers begin to regain the glory of the Montana/Young years.

Playoff Picture

NFC

Wildcards: Arizona, Detroit

Division Winners: San Francisco, New Orleans, Chicago, and Philly

NFC Championship Game: New Orleans vs. San Francisco (that’s right, I said it)  New Orleans wins 34-30.

AFC

Wildcards: Denver, Cincinnati

Division Winners: Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, San Diego, New England

AFC Championship Game: San Diego vs. Indianapolis – San Diego wins 41-38.

Super Bowl: New Orleans vs. San Diego – New Orleans wins in a shocker, 24-20.

shooting

Mousegun ballistic fun

Posted on by Caleb

My favorite round out of my P22 is the Aguila SniperSubSonic, or as Uncle calls them, “those stubby Aguila rounds“.  I’ve had some fun comparing terminal ballistics of rounds before, and I thought it would be fun to do it again.

A 60 grain .22 LR round clocks in at about 700-750 fps out of my Walther P22.  That equals 75 foot pounds of energy.

A .32 S&W Long pushing a 98 grain bullet at a measly 705 fps is going to generate 108 foot pounds of energy.

A .32 S&W (not Long) with an 85 grain bullet at 680 fps is going to generate 87 foot pounds of energy.

Compare that to a 40 grain CCI Mini-Mag, which from the P22 is pushing 900 fps; that comes out to 72 foot pounds of force.

A .25 ACP 50 grain FMJ actually has less energy (67 foot pounds) than the Aguila rounds out of my P22.  Of course, it probably feeds a bit more reliably.

Now, this is all a fun game, because foot pounds of force don’t necessarily equal reliable stopping power.  At the same time, it’s educational to note that the .32 S&W Long, which was the standard police cartridge of the NYPD for quite some time, offers very little in the way of a ballistic advantage over a 60 grain .22.

Of course, if I really wanted the “perfect” carry gun, I’d just figure out a way to bubba my P22 into carrying a .25 ACP necked down to hold one of the 30 grain TNT bullets that CCI uses in their .22 Magnum loads.

Uncategorized

GOP Debate

Posted on by Caleb

I watched about 43 seconds of the GOP debate last night, and I must say that I picked an ideal moment to tune in. The moderator had just asked Romney a question about what he (Romney) would do to ensure the safety and security of the American people against further terrorist attacks.

Mitt’s answer started off well, talking about safety, about how he’d be willing to arrest people in mosques and things like that, so for a while I was actually pretty happy. Then he said “but you have to remember that we have these things called civil liberties”; and I started to get happy, because for a brief, shining second I thought he was going to say that civil liberties were important.

I was wrong. He finished that sentence with (I don’t remember the exact quote) “the ultimate civil liberty is your right to not be killed, and it’s the President’s job to protect that”.

My wife and I discussed the ramifications of that statement, and come to the (shocking) conclusion that Romney had just said, on national TV, that he was perfectly willing to trample on whichever parts of the Constitution he felt interfered with “his job” of “protecting us”.

Personally, I’d rather not have Mitt Romney providing for my protection. I mean, Massachusetts during his reign  time in office wasn’t exactly the safest state in the country.

In other news, it is about damn time that Fred D. Thompson declared his official candidacy for El Presidente.  I honestly do feel like Fred is the best bet of the actual viable candidates running for office; it would be nice to not look at the ballot in November and say “which is the lesser of two evils” when casting my vote.

Uncategorized

Weird food experiments

Posted on by Caleb

A while back, I challenged a fellow member of the clanBOB Forums by implying that hamburger (the entire thing, bun and all) could not be fried.

Well, the forumite rose the occasion and put me in my place.  The Horrible Burger Experiment was a stunning success; two McDonald’s hamburgers were successfully fried in ways that should probably not be repeated.

Apparently, you really can pan-fry anything.

Uncategorized

Kydex holsters

Posted on by Caleb

Sebastian had another kydex holster bite the dirt recently. I have a serious love/hate relationship with kydex rigs; on the one hand I hate and loathe things that are not beautiful leather, on the other hand I appreciate the rugged functionality of the plastic rigs.

When I carry the P22, I often carry in a kydex rig, just because it’s so easy, and the Walther just looks right in my little plastic holster.

Oh, one more thing. Carrying revolvers in kydex is HERESY.

Thoughts?

Uncategorized

September E-Postal Match: Safari

Posted on by Caleb

E-Postal Update: The deadline for entries has been extended to 10pm Eastern Time, Sunday October 7th.

Ah, fall. As the air slowly turns crisp and cool (although not in Indiana wtf 92 degrees?), my thoughts slowly turn to my ever present dream of visiting Africa, taking in the majesty of its unspoilt plains, wide open spaces; and of course taking the time to blow some of its wildlife directly into the arms of God.

With that in mind, I present September’s E-Postal Match, aptly titled “Safari”. This match will require both a .22 rifle and a pistol (centerfire or rimfire), and there are two stages to the match.

Stage 1

Rhino Target

Print two of the above targets, and place them side-by-side at 20 yards or 50 feet, whichever is available. With a .22 caliber rifle (.22 Short, LR, or Magnum – no centerfire .22s) fire five shots at the left target, and then five shots at the right target, for a total of ten shots with the rifle. All shots must be fired from the standing position, no use of rests, supports, or slings allowed.

Stage 2

Rhino Target 2

Print two of the above targets and place them side by side at 10 yards or 25 feet, whichever is available. With a rimfire or centerfire pistol, fire two shots at each bullseye (two per rhino). That should give you a total of ten shots per paper, with a grand total of 20 shots with a handgun. All shots are to be fired from whichever standing position you find most comfortable, one hand, two hand, just no rests allowed.

Edit for clarity: When firing at the pistol target, it doesn’t matter which order you fire your shots in. Just make sure it’s two per rhino at all ten rhinos on both sheets.

Recap

The course totals ten shots with a .22 rimfire rifle, fired from a standing position; 20 shots fired offhand with a pistol. Course total is 30 shots.

Scoring

The red dot in the center of the target will be scored as a 5, the white ring (and middle red line) will be scored as a 4, the outermost white area (and outer red ring) are scored as a 3. Shots that hit the paper but not inside the rings are scored as a zero. The maximum score for this event is 150 points. In the event of a tie, the highest score on the rifle target will be used to break the tie.

Classes

Since this match mandates the use of a rimfire rifle for all entries, the classes are slightly different.

Class One – Rifle w/optics, rimfire pistol w/optics.

Class Two – Rifle no optics, rimfire pistol w/optics

Class Three – Rifle w/optics, rimfire pistol no optics.

Class Four – Rifle no optics, rimfire pistol no optics.

Class Five – Rifle w/optics, centerfire pistol w/optics

Class Six – Rifle no optics, centerfire pistol w/optics.

Class Seven – Rifle w/optics, centerfire no optics.

Class Eight – Rifle no optics, centerfire no optics.

A total of eight class for you get to get your gun on.

Email all entries to me at admiralahab (at) gmail (dot) com before Sunday, October 7th at 5pm. Include “E-Postal Match: Safari” as the subject line of the email.

Happy shooting!

humor

Dumb people and physics

Posted on by Caleb

The top image in this post from Fodder reminded me that I wanted to share some advice with the guy on the motorcycle from yesterday.

The Gross Vehicular Weight of your fake Harley is approximately 1,000 pounds.  The Gross Vehicular Weight of my Subaru Forester is approximately 4,000 pounds.  Despite the fact that the combined weight of you and your girlfriend adds another 600 pounds to the weight of the bike, I still have a better than 2/1 weight ratio going here.

What the means for you is that it is not wise to try and run me off the road.  Yes, you’re right.  It was dick of me to laugh when I saw a huge fat man with his huge fat girlfriend, sans helmets, tailgating me on your totally awesome imitation Harley.  Looking in my review mirror and chuckling was immature, I won’t deny that.

Of course, instead of taking the moral high ground and ignoring my immature laughter, you chose to take the lowest route possible.  Most amusing was when you pulled alongside my 4,000 lbs vehicle and attempted to crowd me off the road.  Equally entertaining was after that, when I hit the brakes and allowed you to pass and you starting going so slow you had to weave the bike back and forth to keep it from toppling.

Of course, the cherry on this proverbial sundae of entertainment was while I was waiting to turn left behind you, you turned around your bike, gave me the finger, and said “Who’se laughing now, asshole” before roaring off in a most manful fashion, sure to impress the hulking lass clinging to dear life behind you.   Sadly, you probably didn’t see my face when you asked me “who’s laughing”, because at the time you did that I had been completely overcome by the hilarity of the situation and was laughing so hard tears were running down my face.

Again, I admit my immaturity in laughing at a fat combo on a knock-off Harley.  Thankfully, your childish antics allowed me to not only maintain my comfortable sense of moral superiority, but also provided me with a pile of laughs for the rest of the day.

The moral of the story is that even if you get mad because some punk in a SUV is laughing at your fat-ass, don’t forget about the laws of physics.  A 1000 pound motorcycle cannot crowd a 4000 pound SUV unless the SUV lets him.

gun control

Too bad for Germany

Posted on by Caleb

The Euro-Nanny State wins again!

German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble dropped plans to ease gun-control laws, bowing to complaints within the ruling coalition that the move threatened public safety.

“Safety comes first,” Schaeuble said in a faxed statement today. The government will give “absolute priority” to security concerns.

I suppose however that I should show some respect to the Interior Minister, as he was trying to ease the gun control laws.  Specifically, he was attempting to have the law that mandates the minimum age to own a firearm as 21 repealed, and have the minimum set back to 18.

Unfortunately, his fellow party members and other members of the government decided that this would somehow create public danger, and his move to make an eminently reasonable change to the law died in midstream.

Uncategorized

Speaking of hunting

Posted on by Caleb

John Lott goes over a few of the reasons that hunting is in decline in the States, and Sebastian adds his commentary. Over at Countertop, it seems he has attracted the ire of one of the of the Anointed Defenders of Fuzzy Bunnies.

With regards to the piece by Lott, I am not much of a hunter. It’s not that I don’t like hunting, or that I think it’s wrong, it just isn’t much of a starter for me. I don’t honestly feel like spending my Saturdays out in the Indiana woods in freakin’ November – in case you hadn’t noticed, it gets cold up here.

Moving on to Counterop and his new friend, I have never understood the whole “hunting is bad” thing; nor do I understand people who feel like animals are equal to people. I don’t get it. Some people honestly believe that animals, things that have no art, no music, are the moral equals of people. I just don’t understand how several million years of evolution could bring you to that conclusion.

Finally, I just bought a box of these for my .45. I have no idea what I’m going to use them for, but the little guy that sits on my shoulder keeps whispering “Bambi” into my ear. Or possibly coyotes, although coyotes with an 8 inch handgun would be a hell of a shot.