Month: June 2022

June 2, 2022 – ‘Tacticool’ Thursday

June 2, 2022 /

This came up in Trap a few weeks ago, that is the color of shooting glass lenses and the environmental conditions. This is helpful for shooting but it is also helpful in fishing as well. Different color of lenses can give you a tiny advantage with different light conditions.

When I first got my range membership, I thought I would treat myself to some new shooting glasses. I bought a multi lens pack that contained a range of different colors. On the package, there is a guide that helps select the right conditions for the right lens.

I personally like clear for indoors, yellow for overcast or low light and grey/black for sunny days. I think that gives a lot of versatility. But there are many more variations. Not being a professional or a competitor, I could see how maybe any slight advantage might be helpful but I can get by with the three.

Since my son adopted my shooting glasses during trap season, I decided to see what was out there and upgrade. I recently bought a pair of WileyX WX Saints. You might say they are safety glasses or sunglasses but they have interchangeable lenses. The truth is, many sunglasses can also work as safety glasses. The important thing is that they are tested to ANSI Z87.1 standards. That is the impact test for worthwhile safety glasses.

For fishing, polarized glass is important. Not only do glasses protect your eyes for rays bouncing off the water but they also help you see fish. If you are a sight fisherman, then seeing fish is an advantage to catching them. And, the better you can match the color, the better you can see fish.

Another thing about sunglasses and safety, many sunglasses are more fashion accessories than safety gear. That is to say, the need to have full, wrap around capability to provide the best protection. Many of the blade styles (from Oakley) or the thick temple bands (like Costa and Oakley) provide full protection. I would definitely prefer plastic lenses for safety purposes as well.

One thing I find a pain is wearing glasses and muffs at the same time. After prolonged use, the muffs press the glasses into the head. The glasses also interfere with the muff seal and are less effective at stopping noise. I don’t think this conundrum can be avoided but it has got me thinking of investigating the earbud style hearing protection. Generally speaking, I don’t think they provide as good of protection as the muffs, but they would eliminate the headache of the glasses/muff squeeze. Maybe that is my next purchase.

End Your Programming Routine: As far as safety gear goes, to me glasses are the most important safety gear at the range. The reason being is that hearing protection is definitely a requirement at the line or inside but if you get 20 feet away (as long as you are behind the shooters) sound starts to dissipate. You never know when shrapnel can come back at you, even from other shooters on different bays. I have been shooting in one bay and heard stuff hit the roof from another shooter somewhere unknown. I don’t think it is worth the risk.

June 1, 2022 – Mark Twain

June 1, 2022 /

“We build a fire in a powder magazine, then double the fire department to put it out. We inflame wild beasts with the smell of blood, and then innocently wonder at the wave of brutal appetite that sweeps the land as a consequence.” Mark Twain Speech, between October 5 and October 17, 1907

I probably should do more research on this character. He seems like someone that we share a lot of views in common. I have to say that I ran across this quote when I was scrolling through one of the groups I watch on MeWe. When I tried to find the source, I found a lot of quotes that were interesting.

“No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot”, “I was educated once – it took me years to get over it” and “Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.” These are a handful of quotes that makes you want to laugh and cry at the same time.

Mark Twain, was the pen name of Samuel Clemmons. Every time you read about him, he is described as a ‘humorist‘. As far as I am concerned, I see him as a man that was intelligent and had a platform to deliver his views in a way that was palatable to many, like Shakespeare or Benjamin Franklin. In some ways, I think this is what Rush Limbaugh did. You may not have liked his views or even thought he was funny, but there were many times he was attempting to use humor as a way to make a point.

Of course, I have read Tom Sawyer and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. And, you should know by now, I am not convinced of the innuendo between Twain and his writings in terms of a social platform. I will not deny that his views outside of his writing were pretty clear and direct. All that being said, you cannot necessarily separate Twain’s opinion and the subject matter of his writings. At the very least, his writing built his speaking platform.

I ran across this over the weekend…

I think irony is an important aspect of humor. Isn’t it ironic that someone would want to organize some sort of anti-violence demonstration while simultaneously promoting violence at the same time.

I am going to speculate about what I think Bob is saying. No country should invade another country and kill it’s citizens and try to take it’s territory, therefore I side with Ukraine. After thinking about this, I have to say that even self defense is violence. I have to imagine that if Ukraine was not resisting, there would be significantly less death and destruction. That is not a conviction of right and wrong, but educated conjecture.

I skimmed through most of the replies and I am confused about the intent of this. This is organized as a response to the Uvalde shooting last week. I think orange was a bridge between hunter orange i.e. gun owners and people wanting to protest bun violence (?). I have no doubt that a large contingent of people do not fully understand the second amendment but there is no connection between that and hunting other that guns are mostly used to participate.

I think Twain would do his research on the subject before commenting. Which side is really the good/bad guys here? Is it the Ukrainians who denied regional succession to become Russians after an overwhelming vote to do so or is it Russians seizing foreign territory? And, how can you be against violence yet support it at the same time?

We have got some issues here. Unfortunately, people are not looking deep enough into something before adding a no thought given emoji to their signature. I am giving Bob the benefit of the doubt here, I am assuming he is ignorant and really means well. I sure hope that it is not the other way.

End Your Programming Routine: “Just because you’re taught that something’s right and everyone believes it’s right, it don’t make it right.” I don’t know the exact context of this quote, but Twain was an unapologetic abolitionist. Think about the context of the day versus today’s view of slavery. Now, use that same discipline for everything else in life.