Oh FFS, here we go again with that Monday stuff:
So let’s get out of its way, so to speak, with a little humor:
And speaking of beer:
Moving on…
And speaking of beliefs:
…and speaking of Commies:
Getting back to sex (as always):
And finally:
But before we get out of the way of life’s slings and arrows, here are a couple of whirlwinds:
Now, about that little wind problem… get out there and break it.
Loyal Reader Dave S sends me this missive from his gun-filled bunker deep in in the wilds of The Old Dominion:
“In your quest for beautiful sports cars I’ve always wondered why you’ve never mentioned what is for me the epitome of the class, that unlike its British brethren runs, isn’t a mechanic’s hobby, and hasn’t lost itself in the American quest for Moar Power: the Honda S2000.”
And it’s a damn good question, for which I have no answer except increasing senility.
The little S2000 was, I think, one of Honda’s best-ever cars, with a loyal and devoted fan base; and to this day I cannot fathom why they stopped making them in 2009 — especially as Mazda still makes their Miata to this day, to the delight of many.
I don’t accept that S2000 sales were anemic, by the way, if that’s given as the reason. I think that S2000 was killed by the Dreaded Bean Counters (may they all sprout assholes in their elbows and shit in their food each time they reach for the salt). These bloodless pencil-pushers looked at the numbers and decided that unless a car sells more than x million units a year, it should be done away with. “Why,” they would exclaim, “should the mighty Honda corporation cater to a few fools who want to drive with the wind in their hair, when all said fools need to do is lower the windows of their Civics and Accords to get the same result?” (Maybe it sounded better in the original Japanese.)
I’m not sure that’s what actually happened, but I’ll bet it’s closer to the truth than saying that Jeffrey Epstein committed hara-kiri.
Herewith a few more S2000 pics, to make up for my earlier omissions:
2008 Honda S2000
Fie on them. If Honda still made this little beauty, I’d have it on the shortlist for New Wife’s next car, well ahead of the Miata or the Fiat 124 derivative.
And of course, this wouldn’t be the first time Honda discontinued a fine car for no apparent reason (NSX coff coff coff ).
Reader Dave sent me a pic of his own S2000, but the pic included his hot wife with her hair and clothing all windblown and tousled (no doubt because of a long trip taken in the Honda) so I used pics off the Innerwebs instead. I’m old-fashioned that way.
While the incompetent asswipe known as President #44 never saw a process that shouldn’t be controlled by Gummint, God-Emperor Trump and his crew disagree — especially when faced with a real emergency:
The Trump administration has rolled back a Food And Drug Administration rule instituted by President Barack Obama that has stalled coronavirus testing at the state level.
The rule in question previously required state-run laboratories to only run medical tests pre-approved by the F.D.A.
“We believe this policy strikes the right balance during this public health emergency,” said FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn of the rule change. “We will continue to help to ensure sound science prior to clinical testing and follow-up with the critical independent review from the FDA, while quickly expanding testing capabilities in the U.S.
“This action today reflects our public health commitment to addressing critical public health needs and rapidly responding and adapting to this dynamic and evolving situation.”
And so say all of us. No doubt, Obama’s minions wouldn’t have cared if a thousand people died (e.g. the H1N1 episode), as long as everything was being controlled by the federal government. And now a medical opinion:
I have often noted that poor grammar acts as a comprehension speed-bump — when one is reading something, a mistake makes one stop and say, “Whut?” Here’s an example. In an otherwise-fine examination of a politician’s fuckup, Driscoll made me say “Whut?” (twice), viz.:
The past tense of “slay” is “slew”. As in: ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ “Lil’ David slew Golia’ an’ shouted for joy”. ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪
Oh NOES we’re not going to meet our gooooooooooaaaaaaaallll!
Not a single country is on course to meet targets to reverse spiralling obesity rates by 2025, a damning report has revealed.
Countries are ‘worryingly off-track’ to meet World Health Organization targets agreed to by member states, according to the World Obesity Federation (WOF).
Research suggests there is a less than a 10 per cent chance the world will meet targets within five years, while the UK and US have zero chance.
Around 200 countries had pledged to significantly cut their obesity levels by making sure levels didn’t rise any more from 2010.
Wait just a fucking minute. “World Obesity Federation”? When the hell did this quango come into being, how is it funded, and how much do its members get paid?
I am so sick of self-important fuckwits telling me how to live my life: what to eat and drink, how to spend my money, when I can do this or that, what cars should look like, how much water toilets may use when flushed, where I can and can’t shoot my guns, what light bulbs I can and can’t use, et cetera, et cetera, et fucking cetera.
The world is getting fatter because people are no longer two meals away from starvation (which was the case for pretty much most of human existence until about 1970), and our metabolisms haven’t adjusted — because this stuff takes a lot longer than a few years, and it does not respond to scolding, shaming and guilt-making.
“Oh but that’s unhealthy and if you don’t do what we tell you, you’re gonna diiieeee!” comes the perpetual whine of Busybodies International (the parent company of the World Obesity Federation, also of the Federal Highway Administration, the Food & Drug Administration, et al.)
Well, to use a Texas expression: fuck all y’all.
It’s a little early to have another pint of gin, but it’s never too early for one of of these:
Back in a bit.
Yeah, I’ve noticed this alarming development too:
Taking a look at some of the most popular firearms companies, I was honestly a bit shocked to see how the synthetic/polymer/laminate wood stocks have come to dominate the market. The vast majority of Ruger, Remington and Savage rifles and shotguns are stocked in something other than walnut. The Winchester Model 70 maintains a walnut stock advantage, as does the lineup of Winchester lever-action rifles, but synthetic-stocked lever-actions are popping up regularly these days; Marlin and Henry being two examples which come quickly to mind.
This bullshit is something I’ve bemoaned ever since I was first able to hold a gun. Here’s why:
A well-sealed walnut stock will actually stand up well to most hunting situations, though they aren’t as rigid or easy to produce as a synthetic stock. While the mass-produced stocks are created by machinery, the higher-end walnut stocks are finished by hand. Custom stocks are a work of art, and to watch a classically trained stockmaker hand-carve a stock is like watching Michelangelo work. Names like Ralf Martini, Todd Ramirez, D’Arcy Echols, Mark Renmant and JJ Perodeau, just to name a few, can make the stock of your dreams. And I firmly believe that, like a fine watch, everyone should own at least one gun with a stock they are truly proud of.
That’s part of it, but not all of it. I love the feel of a wooden stock in my hands, a feeling that is entirely absent when I hold a piece of fucking plastic. Wood is warm, it feels natural and somehow seems to form a bond between gun and man in a way that some synthetic material just… doesn’t.
And I don’t buy this “wood warps and pushes the barrel out of register” bullshit. I’ve shot rifles in some pretty damn extreme conditions (African heat and Wisconsin cold, not to mention Scotland windy and wet) and I have never experienced that, in any rifle. I suppose it could happen, if the stock is too tight against the metal (which it shouldn’t be to begin with); I’ve just never noticed it.
Frankly, I think the clue to this nonsense lies in here:
Those [wood] stocks—even the blanks from which they are made—are not cheap. The custom walnut stock is extremely labor-intensive, and the highly figured walnut, which was much more common a century ago, has become a rarity. Many of the hardwood stocks in use today are rather plain looking, and the figured stocks come at a premium, for certain.
Much easier, cheaper and more “efficient” (fuck, I’m starting to hate that word) just to pour some polymer crap into a mold and screw the rifle action in, ten seconds’ work and all done.
Bah.
I have only two rifles with Tupperware stocks — my Marlin 880SQ and 882SSV rimfire rifles — simply because Marlin doesn’t offer those two models with wood stocks, and it’s a long-term project of mine to replace the soulless black plastic with wood, one day, even though the stocks will probably end up costing me more than the original rifles themselves.
Compare the above with the rifle below, and tell me I’m wrong.
Let’s not even GO here:
(I note, by the way, that fine shotguns seldom come with PoliGrip stocks, so that’s all I need to say about that.)
I know: yelling about this is like moaning about the wind-tunnel shape of modern cars — it’s pointless, and as a trend, plastic stocks are no doubt here forever.
But I’ll tell you this (and it’s a promise): the day that new rifles are ONLY offered with plastic stocks is the day I stop buying new rifles altogether.