We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html Fri, 06 Jan 2012 18:06:03 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2012 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:53:28 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100103 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100103 Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:37:41 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100066 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100066 Sun, 14 Mar 2010 02:09:29 -0600
The important thing was that word got out, a couple of bloggers and commenters got together online and came up with a plan. Actually rather simple, one of the bloggers who lives in the area wrote a letter and printed two copies. One would be sent standard first-class mail, the second would be sent certified mail with return receipt requested. The only thing requested was a copy of The Final Report from the Investigation of the Death of James Emerick Dean.

I believe there will be a "Day of Reckoning" and *all of the Truth* will come out.

]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100058 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100058 Sat, 13 Mar 2010 16:43:05 -0600
I remember while I was at uni a 'gunman' who was at the nearby hospital emergency (who from memory shot one of the patients) went into the university afterwards.  It was a rather rapid lockdown but let's face it no one there had the means to stop him very reliably including security.

The police were really rather slow so I suppose a Dept of Education would prefer a faster response.  This leads to the redundancy problems.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100030 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100030 Sat, 13 Mar 2010 03:36:06 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100028 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100028 Sat, 13 Mar 2010 00:30:05 -0600
Take a moment and Google "James Emerick Dean".
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100024 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100024 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 20:18:41 -0600
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100020 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100020 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:28:15 -0600

]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100018 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100018 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:01:08 -0600
For twenty hours.

The incoming Brigade OOD (an astute and devilishly good-lookin' young Captain) wandered over to where the highly-unhappy Brigade commander was morosely staring at the pistol, the magazine, and the two loose rounds, picked up the pistol, racked the slide, and out popped -- guess what?
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100017 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100017 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:31:27 -0600 I remember when Lewis was locked down over 2/75th losing an AT4 during a FTX

My 1SG and sat in the Duty Office drinking coffee trying to figure out how you lose something that durn big....
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100016 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100016 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:32:12 -0600 Yeah, CS, that about covers my point. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100015 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100015 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:52:07 -0600
It renders my perception of humour a bit...oh, less perceptive.

(That, and I'm kind of a dunderhead anyway.)

but following the path of Boq's note on federal responses, you'd think they'd have learned from serving a misdemeanour failure-to-appear in Idaho back in '92-I mean, it cost them lots of credibility, the life of an agent, two potential witnesses/bystanders, and three million dollars when the lawsuit hit, not to mention having the case thrown out.

For those who're new-I'm talking about a nut named Randy Weaver here.  What should have been a slam-dunk warrant service turned into a multi-week standoff and killed two civilians and one agent (and the dog), one of whom was a minor child, and the other was holding a loaded baby-over a failure-to-appear in a questionable firearms case.

So...there's reason to be concerned when the Pros are screwing up like that, and we see Amatuers getting the same hardware and trained to the same doctrine (without having to meet the minimum standards the professionals would), on the taxpayer dime.

And that doesn't even account for the poor accounting practices of agencies like HLS,  USBP, or TSA-losing firearms? when I was in a NON infantry unit in the early nineties, one piece of unaccounted brass kept half our battalion out on the range for a week until it was found.  One would think that agencies tasked to law-enforcement would have higher standards, not lower, in accounting for things that go 'bang' and can potentially put holes in people.

The mind BOGGLES at what this says about our GS-ratings out there, particularly now that we have the  Party in power that likes loose ROE for domestic incidents and ridiculously tight ROE for foreign incidents.  (the goals of Waco couild've been accomplished by two guys in suits with a sherriff's escort, the Davidians actually called '911' during the opening stages of the assault....which was staged on the last day the warrant had before it expired after a month of fiddle-(Censored) around.)

The real concern I see, is that agencies whose job IS NOT to storm buildings or free hostages getting that week-of-training every-three-years killing themselves or some innocent bystander playing barney-fife with hardware they don't have a genuine need to have-which boils down to what John the Armorer said about rationalizing our Federal Law Enforcement types.

If I, as a tax-payer am paying for this shit, the shit better be in the hands of people who know what they're doing-and more importantly, know what they're SUPPOSED TO DO, including minding their backstops and pursuing less...bloody...means whenever practical or possible.  (Hey, if it's good enough to saddle the DoD with, it's good enough to saddle the FBI with.)

They should also be held accountable for WHERE their weapons are.  "Lost"?  Weapons will stop being 'lost' when lost weapons translate into lost federal jobs, lost federal benefits, and corruption charges with convictions, or firing for incompetence.

Those entrusted with a badge and gun, must be held to the highest possible standards, because they are given a leeway in their actions that joe citizen does not have.


]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100014 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100014 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:45:39 -0600
I still think that Accountancy SWAT teams spread to hell and gone is a bad idea.

And I was mostly goofing on the 2A thing.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100006 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100006 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:35:32 -0600
Yes, the second amendment's purpose is to serve as a check on tyranny.  HOWEVER, that doesn't negate the utility of pitting would-be dictators against one another, or hamstringing the ability of any single agency to accumulate too much power in relation to the others.  Citizens taking up arms is the LAST RESORT, the more barriers to things getting that bad (where the citizens HAVE to take up arms), the better-because once the shooting starts, history shows that regardless of who wins, the Constitution and the Citizenry lose.

This was a point that was stressed, oddly enough, back when I was involved in the so-called "Militia Movement" in the nineties.  It's better to fight tyranny at the ballot-box and the board-room, than in the streets....


Now, it IS goofy, but-

Postal Inspectors have gone armed for a long time (a VERY long time, I remember seeing a surplus sale of Ruger Security Six handguns from their investigation service.)  Dept. of Education? well.... an analysis of "What are they doing" probably is in order-My guess would be the arms are for non-school building security.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100005 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100005 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:26:45 -0600
So...when do we cut in to the DoE's?

I guess they could always try to sugar coat this with a good advertising campaign.
Couple of Remington 870 Express's with the tag line "It's for the Children! (tm)"
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100001 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-100001 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:54:52 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99995 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99995 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:19:40 -0600
Hell, Homeland Security apparently misplaces pistols, rifle, and shotguns all the time.  Even the Secret Service seems to have a similiar problem.  Unless they're giving skeet lessons, I see no reason for Department of Education shotguns.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99989 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99989 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:14:56 -0600 I may be a little fuzzy on the details...but...in one of those incidences where a wacko started shooting at a school; a teacher raced out to his car got his pistol, went back in and tagged the perp. It was one of those in New York State or close. The authorities kept the details out of the press and the media didn't want to glorify the teacher...a NRA member. This was 3 or 4 years ago. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99988 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99988 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:09:04 -0600 Maybe they need to recover their student loans? http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99987 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99987 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:50:44 -0600
I had one principal tell me privately that since the school massacre in Chechnya, several teachers were carrying.  He didn't say if they had the weapons with them, or in their cars, but he thought it the height of idiocy to advertise a 'gun-free' zone since a perp isn't going to care about the law anyway. 

While I am not a strategic analyst, I would far rather my son's teacher was armed, and knowledgeable in its use and had access rather than waiting for the cops to get there.
The high school, on the otter heiny, is totally....pc.

You may now commence firing tomatoes.  I need to make spaghetti sauce, so just make sure they aren't too ripe.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99986 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99986 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:45:13 -0600 "I shudder at the thought of what the National Endowment of the Arts SWAT team looks like."

The Village People?  LOL]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99984 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99984 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 06:35:53 -0600
For *their* offices.

You know -- for when all those thousands of protesters demanding school vouchers decide to storm the building.

Your mileage may vary.

Personally, I'm curious about *when* the Department of Education bureaucrats entered the arms race, because that will go a long way toward answering *why* they did...]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99983 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99983 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:58:33 -0600
There is ZERO justification for having the Department of Education.

Fix the latter and the former problem goes away.  And we save a boat load of money
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99981 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99981 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:54:47 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99980 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99980 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:35:50 -0600
This is a first step. I believe we should all be all over our Congressmen and Senators about this.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99979 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99979 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:25:06 -0600 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99978 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99978 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:21:01 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99977 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99977 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:01:09 -0600
If you really need SWAT support, get the Marshals, FBI, or Secret Service to provide it.

Not every Federal Agency withsome law enforcement interest indulging their delusions of grandeur living out their Walter Mitty fantasies of Harry Callahan.

Or use local LEOs to for the service.

Does the DoEd Fraud Unit really need to be assaulting into buildings?]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99970 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99970 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:01:12 -0600 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99969 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99969 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:48:39 -0600 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99967 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99967 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:32:23 -0600
The reason I write this is to point out the Vonnegut story, "Harrison Bergeron."

I dislike bullies. ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99965 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99965 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:14:58 -0600
No, I think that Federal Law enforcement is over-militarized, as is law enforcement in general.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99963 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99963 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:19:40 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99961 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99961 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:02:16 -0600 I shudder at the thought of what the National Endowment of the Arts SWAT team looks like. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99960 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99960 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 16:19:55 -0600 LOP are designated as the only shotguns authorized for ED based on compatibility with ED existing shotgun inventory, certified armor and combat training and protocol, maintenance, and parts.
ED = Department of Education.

Existing shotgun inventory, certified armor and combat training and protocol.

Those suckers are *serious* about student loan repayment.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99955 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99955 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:27:02 -0600

]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99953 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99953 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:11:29 -0600
A crowd of agencies means that no single agency head has too much power.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99952 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99952 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:10:38 -0600
The weapons themselves aren't the issue, its the fact that everyone from the Dept of Education to the Dept of Government Kitty Litter changing has a SWAT team.

I tend to agree that its just foolish and a real waste of money time and resources.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99950 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99950 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:10:49 -0600 I see no need for the Dept of Ed to need shotguns.  Any school hostage/attack situations will be taken care of by the fully armed, locked and loaded, local police department.  I can think of absolutely no situation which would require a Dept of Ed federal employee to need a gun.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99948 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99948 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:17:08 -0600 Agencies go by, require for them to be at the ready for the worst. Whether that is in itself an overkill which tramples our civil liberties, is open for question. Not a mile from where I live, I see daily uniformed Department of Agriculture Police and FDA Police, policing around in their Chrysler 300 squad cars.  And that's not counting their goons in black taking down doors as they serve warrants and subpoenas.

Do you remember back in 1981 or 82 when those two FBI agents got greased because all they had were snub-nosed .38's, when they approached a drug informant? I'm sure that a quick Google search will flesh out the details. Anyways, from that point on, the Feds go in loaded for bear whenever remotely approaching an unpredictable situation.

That being said, that is the force projection doctrine that the Feds have. Until that doctrine changes, Remington and Mossberg will keep on doing brisk business with the EPA, Smithsonian and other sundry bureaucracies.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99945 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99945 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:04:53 -0600 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99942 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99942 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:36:12 -0600
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/om/fs_po/oig/oig-orgchart.doc

http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/om/fs_po/oig/inv.html (look at the last bullet point)

Wherever our government hands-out grants and federal funding, there is fraud to be found. And while it is almost always a white-collar crime, whenever the Feds serves a warrant or subpoena, they always come in loaded for bear.

The Standard Operating Procedure that our Federal Law Enforcement Agencies go by, require for them to be at the ready for the worst. Whether that is in itself an overkill which tramples our civil liberties, is open for question. But as I see it, this procurement falls within their normal organizational mission and objectives.
]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99941 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/03/i_understand_do.html#comment-99941 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:25:21 -0600