You know how much we love Veronica Belmont. Well, she’s started a new book club.
Says Veronica (who is in love with TFB Knuckledragger, though she isn’t aware of it yet):
“As if one book club wasn’t enough, I’ve joined forces with some of my fantastically geeky girlfriends (Felicia Day, Kiala Kazebee, and Bonnie Burton) for a little project called the Vaginal Fantasy Hangout. This new monthly Google+ hangout session will focus on books from the fantasy, science fiction, paranormal romance, and mystery genres. There will also probably be a little sexy-time (as I like to call it) in the stories as well, which we will discuss to great lengths (and to our great amusement).
Our first episode is up, and we also have a Goodreads group and a Facebook page! Hope you’ll join us! Next episode will tape live on Feb 27th at 8pm PST over on Felicia’s G+ page…”
Well, we’ll tell you. All of the manufacturers have been notified of our 12 Days of Tactical Christmas contest winners. These folks will have gone into the order queue, but please give them time to process and then ship your prizes. Some of the manufacturers will notify us (for instance, the 5.11 Tactical MOABs have already gone out, and the Blue Force Gear slings have either shipped already or will ship very shortly) but others will be caught up in their ops tempo and may not remember to do so. You are going to receive your prizes; thanks for participating in the contest! If you think that was cool, wait ’til you see what Tactical Fanboy, BOLO Report and Soldier Systems Daily are all doing for Christmas this year. It’ll be epic.
Isao Machii is something to see with a sword (though he’s so fast you really don’t see it, so to speak). Stan Lee (who we love) told us about him first. Then we found out he taught the Mad Duo (or so they claim) the week before they learned grappling from Ryan the Yeti and that just really made him a lot cooler. Seriously, if you’ve never heard or watched Isao Machii work, you need to.
Eye Handy has released its first “Best Of” video. Very nice indeed. We highly recommend this self-help series to learn how to do all sorts of things (as we should have made abundantly clear over the last few days).
You need to make some Jello shots for the Superbowl party today? Plan on having a legion of nubile college coeds cheer for you, or just want something besides beer?
This young lady will help.
Gonna skip the Jello and stick with a beer keg? We can help you with that too.
Hate Real Shallow and Vacuous Housewives of Different Cities? Us too. Here’s something a little different.
Foreign Islamist fighters poured into Somalia back in ’06 when the Ethiopian military moved in to assist former president Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed. They were happily greeted by al-Shabaab and integrated into much of Somali society, though in August of last year many of them were expelled from Mogadishu after heavy fighting with AMISOM and TFG forces.
Somalia Report has an interview with Shuuto Juuni Mohamed, the wife of one of these fighters. Though her father says she was brainwashed, the 20-year old woman remains loyal to her banished jihadist husband.
Spartan Imports, purveyor of Airsoft equipment and nifty kit, has posted their SHOT Show wrap-up for all and sundry to read. If you get a second, check it out.
Yesterday we ran an article about Best Ranger. I did a poor job of explaining the issue of Big Army’s limitations supporting the Best Ranger Competition. This is my fault, not the NCOs we spoke to about it and I apologize for the vague wording. The fact is, Best Ranger IS supported by Big Army, but regulations prevent certain things from being funded by them (such as prizes, some of the dinners and hospitality stuff, etc.) I apologize for the apparent inaccuracy and will work diligently to avoid anything that could be misinterpreted, misunderstood or is out and out wrong in the future!
Please still consider supporting Best Ranger. You can get the details by calling l Ms. Bryant at 706-718-9520 or e-mailing her at CandyssBryant@gmail.com.
TANSTAAFL
Rangers from 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment in Afghanistan.
As you might have expected, there were a number of sunglasses, goggles and other types of eyepro at SHOT. Body Specs had several on display, but the most interesting were the Pistol model. They’re a fairly high impact wrap style eye-pro, hard coated for scratch resistance and all the usual tacti-goggle-glass features.
The cool thing about them, however, was the adjustability feature. The lenses are capable of telescoping out and panascoping up and down (angling), allowing you to adjust for length (fit from your face) and the cant of the goggles themselves. Whether you’re one of those good looking guys make everything look good or one of those big mongoloid types with a huge forehead, you can fine tune the fit. Cant them down so they don’t bump your eyebrows, adjust if so they aren’t molested by the front of your helmet, the lighting or your shooting position. If you prefer an adjustment from when you’re got a helmet on versus when it’s off, easily done (same as if you prefer a modification from standing to prone).
The nosepiece has a wide contact area, doesn’t seem to slip at all, and supports an Rx insert if you need corrective lenses, and they have some new specialized purple or brown lenses made for competitive shooters.
One question we’d have would be how frequently you can adjust them before they begin to wear down. Upon first try, they have sufficient resistance but in fairness we’d have to ask long term would they start slipping on their own? It would be impossible to say without putting them through field trials, but at first glance and a quick “try-on” they feel pretty good. In any case, they only run $40 retail, which is pretty inexpensive compared to some of the Gucci military goggles and better known eyepro. Might be worth taking a crack at it.
Bod Specs is a woman-, veteran-owned business based in Grass Valley, CA. You can call 530-268-8882 or e-mail the owner directly at Anna@bodyspecs.com. They do have a distributor on the GSA Schedule if you need one.
The Pistol comes with smoke and clear lenses, retention lanyard and a semi-rigid carry case you can attach to your gear should you be so inclined. Oh, and the Pistol has an NSN:
4240-01-526-9637. More at the Body Specs website.
Edit: I apparently didn’t write this terribly well, so some of the part about supporting the Best Ranger contest didn’t come across the right way (that’s my fault, not the NCOs we talked to). Best Ranger IS supported by Big Army, but regulations prevent certain things from being funded by them (such as prizes, some of the dinners and hospitality stuff, etc.) I apologize for the apparent inaccuracy and will work diligently to avoid anything that could be misinterpreted, misunderstood or is out and out wrong in the future! TANSTAAFL
A couple of us had the privilege and pleasure of spending some time with instructors from the RTB (Ranger Training Brigade) while we were at SHOT. If all goes well we’re going to be periodically sharing some Ranger news with you. (Only stuff that’s either open source material or cleared hot by their PAO, so we’re clear.) Now, you may not be aware of it, but yesterday was a pretty big day in US Army Ranger history. Yesterday, the 25th, was the anniversary of the “Abrams Charter” of 1974. That’s the directive by General Creighton Abrams (you may recall they named a big vehicle after him) instructing the Army to activate the first battalion sized Ranger unit since World War II. US Army Forces Command HQ command then published General Orders 127 , which stood up 1ST Battalion (Ranger) 75th Infantry. General Abrams believed that the Army would be improved as a whole by the inclusion of permanent Rangers within its ranks (in no small part due to the diffusion of leadership and fighting ability throughout its ranks as Ranger qualified Soldiers slowly spread into other units).
The Abrams Charter said: “The Battalion is to be an elite, light and the most proficient infantry in the world. A Battalion that can do things with its hands and weapons better than anyone. The Battalion will contain no ‘hoodlums or brigands’ and if the Battalion is formed from such persons it will be disbanded. Wherever the Battalion goes, it must be apparent that it is the best.”
You may be one of the many people who’ve watched the Best Ranger competition. We’re going to delve into that competition in the future, discuss its development and goals and whatnot, but we’d like to throw in a quick plug on its behalf – though the competition is supported by Big Army, there are a number of constraints that prevent Big Army from assisting with ancillary expenses (like dinners, prizes, etc.). There are a number of reasons why, but essentially those ancillary needs are all taken care of with the support of benefactors. If you are interested in supporting Best Ranger, we urge you to contact them and help out. (Here are the current 2012 supporters: feel free to join their ranks.) If you are interested in supporting the Best Ranger Competition, call Ms. Bryant at 706-718-9520 or e-mail her at CandyssBryant@gmail.com.
More on that to follow.
2/75 Rangers in Afghanistan just a couple of months ago.
There were several service dogs in evidence at SHOT Show, not surprisingly. Soldier Systems caught up with the director of one organization that helps provide them at no cost to the veteran: and recruits the dogs from animal shelters! Read the article about Paws and Stripes, if you would, and consider supporting them. At a minimum go like their Facebook page and help spread the word!
MilSim Event, a motivated airsoft organization very active in the Oklahoma-Texas region (and slowly spreading into other states, doing some awesome stuff) put up a one-year video retrospective of 2011. Check it out. We’ll show you some stuff from their big damn battle at Ft. Hood soon.
Gear Whore’s Anonymous just closed down preorders for their new Combat Pocket Tee (CPT) Mark I, inspired by the one “Colonel Smith” was wearing in the movie “The A-Team”. GWA, if you weren’t aware of it, is a page for all gear whores everywhere: the obsessed, the addicted and even those in recovery.
The images below are roughs made by GWA out of raw materials, so it’s not an exact portrayal.
Tactical Fanboy: Combat Pocket Tee from Gear Whores Anonymous
Art of Manlinesshas republished their 30 day guide to being a better man (and frankly, with just a little modification it would work pretty well for females). You should check it out. (FYI they are also on Facebook.) If you aren’t subscribed to AoM, you oughta consider it.
Tactical Fanboy recommends: The Art of Manliness
Take the advice of Art of Manliness and start the year by attempting to square yourself away.
You should remain vigilant. Just because Tactical Fanboy, Soldier Systems or The BOLO Report runs on 12 Tactical Christmas doesn’t mean something else won’t happen later on.
Created by Athena Means, long-time gun owner and participant in practical shooting sports, GunGoddess.com is a website that caters to women shooters with a line of female-centric products. To quote the owner herself: “My feeling is, there’s no reason why women shooters can’t kick ass just as well in pink as in OD green!”
GunGoddess deals primarily in originally designed apparel, bullet casing jewelry, range and firearms bags, concealed-carry purses, and firearms accessories, most of which can be found in bright colors and/or leopard print. The site will soon be offering apparel and accessories for younger shooters. Also to come is a section on women’s firearms training courses and shooting clubs around the country.
Besides GunGoddess, there’s also GunfighterWear, which offers a similar selection of products intended for males such as apparel, bullet casing jewelry, range and firearms bags, and firearms accessories. GunfighterWear products are designed with more subdued and traditional colors and styles when compared to the big sister brand.
It’s a 2-piece ice cube tray shaped like an AK magazine. It forms 10 6.5cm long ice structures modeled after the 7.62x39mm cartridge. You get to cool your drinks with ice shaped like AK-47 rounds. What’s not to love? Well, the creator(s) could have made more of an effort to make the ice a more accurate size, but that’s a small issue. For a novelty item, it’s not a bad idea at all.
Is anyone else wishing for an AR Ice Cube Tray right about now?
German news channel N24 confused the actual emblem of SEAL Team Six with an emblem made by a member of Maquis Forces International, a Star Trek fan organization based on the Maquis, itself an organization featured in The Next Generation*, Deep Space Nine*, and Voyager*. Based simply on how cool it looks, I could see why N24 would settle with the (unintentional) imposter emblem. However, the inclusion of a phaser, a Klingon skull, bat’leth swords, ‘SEALS’ instead of ‘SEAL’, and the word Maquis should have been enough evidence to point towards some kind of error. After all, SEAL Team Six did use the HK416 in the Bin Laden takedown, so proper recognition from a German news channel isn’t uncalled for. It’s still funny, though.
*These are all Star Trek series that nobody cares about.
