Comments by "Stephen Villano" (@spvillano) on "CNN"
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John Ronkainen , as I said, thanks, but no thanks. I had more medals than my previous commanders and hence, declined wearing them, out of courtesy of the commander.
So, yeah, I really do have a drawer full of them and a few in a safe at a location I cannot discuss.
BTW, for the original posting query, yes, indeed, I've been personally present to witness the sale of an M2 .50 BMG machinegun, via class 3 procedures and requirements.
I also know of one locally for sale. While the notion of shooting a jackhammer and hitting a target is cool and a fine memory, I'll decline. The cost of ammunition is far too high to engage in that spine traumatizing sport of lugging that thing around.
I helped light infantry learn armored infantry, and hence, had to teach a large number of infantry how to handle Ma Deuce and attach her to her pintle. Wasn't a lot of fun, as I was beginning to age.
I'm retired now, with 27 years, eight months of service.
My knees are gone, my lower back is lojacked by itself away from my abuses, I don't have a single joint without osteoarthritis. So, no, I'd not want to lug that chunk of pig iron around.
Well, save if I were permitted to "present" the weapon to a village idiot, by dropping it carelessly upon his lap.
But then, I'd be obligated to call 911 for the femoral fractures.
Thankfully, the number of people I've barely considered doing that do are numbered on a single hand, with plenty of fingers left over to continue the daily activities of life.
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R3v0LuT1oNpRo , .50 BMG rifles have been on the civilian market for decades, zero crimes have been committed with them due to their incredible bulk and the expense of the ammunition.
As for fully automatic rifles and even submachine guns, one can legally purchase those, but the background investigation is the same as the investigation to acquire a top secret security clearance. To date, three crimes have been committed with NFA firearms, one committed by a law enforcement officer who shot up a drug house.
I'd say that out of the thousands of NFA firearms (what fully automatic is, as well as disguised firearms and destructive weapons (bombs, artillery, rockets (military type), that's exceptionally low.
Now, semi-automatic weapons are a different story. The overwhelming majority of those weapons are for sporting purposes, although the more portable models are indeed used in the commission of a crime, especially so for pistols.
I personally advocate for firearms to be stored in firearms safes, they're expensive, so treat them like the expensive investment that they are. I do.
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Alex Friday , well, it's true.
Amazingly, I've been married for 33+ years. Amazing, as the marriage has outlasted a 27 year, 8 month military career.
In that career, well, my knees hurt when moving, my back hurts to the point where I only write to it to communicate with it and it's taken to letting my right leg collapse without warning. My ribs on my right side hurt, about a hand width below the nipple, then take half of that down, due to an RPG sending something into my side ESAPI plate and it twisted.
That's a good thing, I ended up with a few broken ribs, but not a flail chest, which does really bad things to you, had the ESAPI plate not twisted. Things like sliced up lung, dead, trying to breathe through a lung full of blood that is now filling the operational lung thing, well, it gets unpleasant.
Hurting can be fixed when injured, dead, not so much.
Arthritis in the left shoulder as well, courtesy of a bad landing.
It's been 20 years since I could take a blood pressure, while holding the stethoscope with my fingers, without hearing "Earthquake in Sensoround", so I've had to palm it.
That is the short list.
Here's the funny part.
My wife doesn't have a problem with my purchasing a firearm to compete with or a couple for general recreational shooting.
She's never objected to my phenomenal number of field knives, combat knives, etc I've acquired over the decades.
Let's suffice it to say, many peers who served under SOCOM rather liked my collection, some surprised over choices of edged weapons until I demonstrated them.
So, yeah.
She'd leave me if I brought one of those home.
But then, I'd leave me too, leaving that big, heavy rifle lonely.
So, might as well leave it lonely at the gun shop and pick up something I might want to use.
Currently, that is an M1911, GI specification. Mine is actually worn down on the frame. Time for a new one to dress up slightly.
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@joehamill6743 which one is the "real original bible"?
As for his placing his hand on the bible, there is no Constitutional requirement for him to do so, one swears not on a book, but on one's own word of honor and if invoking a deity, then before that deity as witness of their word. But, the religious portions are not required by our laws and Constitution, that whole first amendment thing and all.
Then, it also comes to, which bible, as there are a few different versions, depending upon sect, as well as which transliteration was utilized.
As an example:
Catholic and Protestant Bibles both include 27 books in the New Testament. Protestant Bibles have only 39 books in the Old Testament, however, while Catholic Bibles have 46. The seven books included in Catholic Bibles are Tobit, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach, and Baruch.
Which is fascinating, given that Protestantism sprang from Roman Catholicism, so one would think they'd share the same religious text.
But, history is always more complicated than that and the victors get to become the editors.
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Whenever the doomsayers go on about something this early in the campaign and well, it is early, it's the last months that count the most, I shoot them a picture of Truman holding aloft a newspaper with the headline, "Dewey Wins!".
For the historically challenged, we never had a President Dewey, we did have an elected President Truman.
That said, I know who I voted for in the primary, want to yank my candidate that I and the majority of the party chose, enjoy my vote for a party candidate I never heard of and is decidedly not a Democrat, as a return of the respect that was shown to my fucking vote. Don't be surprised then though, if my next Democratic Party vote is cast when the sun goes white dwarf.
I myself have a prediction, that the GOP will go the way of the Whig party before it - for precisely the same reason and in pretty much the same way.
The GOP's only strength currently is, "We have a Trump". To which I reply, "Oh? I thought the mindless beast wandered off".
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Nope, an exculpatory answer would be, "The lid fell off of a couple of boxes, saw shampoo and hairspray in one, a bunch of papers in the other, put their lids on, as it's his personal shit".
Bullshitting and outright lying just are shitty ideas, the former is even believable, as going through an employer's personal effects while moving them is really a bad career move.
Now, do I believe him at all? I might, if I was on a jury and not presented evidence supporting his viewing the contents in detail of multiple boxes, have to accept him at his word. But, I do, in my heart of hearts believe that he's more full of shit than a Christmas goose.
That all said, I'd obviously never work for Trump, as I like actually always getting paid. I also won't work for crooks, too bad for one's reputation in the end. That said, if somehow I fouled up and had his job and was moving shit tons of boxes and I saw marked classified folders or worse, the documents themselves, I'd have to make a telephone call to report the finding, as I still do hold a security clearance and rather value doing so.
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