Free In Idaho!

A couple weeks ago I wrote a post about taking the wife shooting, and in the comments  I had mentioned that there was a story behind the .22.  I have heard my wife tell the story about how she told a boy once not to knock on her front door because “Dad has a really big gun”.  Her Dad taught her to shoot shotguns and rifles, but that “big gun” always bugged her, and she has a certain “hesitation” when it comes to handguns.  I’ve never been able to get her to join me at the range.

So this morning, we decided it’d been too long since we’ve gone out for an adventure, so I suggested we take a couple of the guns out to the desert and shoot some targets and clays.  She said yes (oh boy)!  So we loaded up the thrower and some clay, her Dad’s Hi-Standard .22 and my Dad’s Browning A5, and we headed out to the BLM land where it’s open for shooting.  We had a wonderful time, got cooked to a crisp, broke a bunch of clay, and poked holes in some paper.  My sweet Idaho girl remembered what the shotgun feels like ;-)  and she even got to shoot her Dad’s “big gun”… the first time she’d ever handled it.  Took the top off of a plastic pop bottle, did that one!  (proud and puffed up like a toad, yup, that’s me)

On the way back to civilization we saw burrowing owls and a badger, and my wife said “Next time we’ll have to come out earlier”… YES!

In light of the immigration bill shenanigans, the so-called energy bill, and McCain’s recent dustups with his fellow senators, I find it interesting that we also have more and more calls to shut up the talkers and bring back the so-called Fairness Doctrine (can bloggers be next?).  Here’s Trent Lott and Diane Feinstein trying to explain it

we’re too ignorant to understand the complexities, eh Trent?

explosive hyperbole, and overwhelmingly one way, eh Diane?

and here’s John Kerry, no hyperbole and simple, sew we kan unnerstan it  (hat tip Michelle)

Conservatives squeezed out opposite views?  That would be awful, were it true… that’s why we’re getting this immigration bill rammed down our throats right?  Because the eeevilll conservatives have taken over and don’t allow opposing views.

Pay attention to this one.  There is plenty of time before the next election to change the playing field.  Let’s see, if there are 12 million new Democrat voters, and the government forces all the talkers to hire their own version of Alan Colmes, Hillary! ought to start thinking about renting a hall or two, ya think?

Stanley Kurtz on NRO

Something about this immigration battle doesn’t sit well. For all the bitterness of our political battles, there’s at least the sense that the government responds to the drift of public opinion. The Republicans in Congress turned into big spenders and the war in Iraq went poorly. As a result the Democrats prospered in 2006, if narrowly. That’s how democracy works. Our politics are often angry and ugly (and that’s a problem), but this is because the public is deeply divided on issues of great importance. Deep down, we understand that our political problems reflect our own divisions.

Somehow this immigration battle feels different.

Yeah, nobody wants it, but the masters of the universe in Washington are going to give it to us anyway. According to a new Rasmussen poll

Among the public, there is a bi-partisan lack of enthusiasm for the Senate bill. It is supported by 22% of Republicans, 23% of Democrats, and 22% of those not affiliated with either major party. It is opposed by 52% of Republicans, 50% of Democrats, and 48% of unaffiliateds.

From an ideological perspective, the bill is opposed by 59% of conservatives, 54% of liberals, and 45% of political moderates. Among those for whom none of the traditional ideological labels apply, just 20% are opposed.

Support is found from 20% of conservatives, 32% of liberals, and 18% of moderates.

Just 32% believe it would be better to pass the current bill instead of doing nothing.

Are we going to have to depend on the House Republicans to kill this thing? According to the Washington Times, it looks like that is the only place brains and guts still reside

Even if the bill survives the Senate this week, the House may be a bigger challenge for Mr. Bush, who faces a full-scale revolt in his own party on the issue.

House Republicans voted 114-23 yesterday to pass a resolution disapproving of the Senate bill, a stark move that sends a signal to Mr. Bush, House Democrats and Senate Republicans.

House Minority Leader John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, said he gave a “heads-up” to the White House that the vote was coming and “they weren’t happy about it.”

But Republicans said they needed to make a statement to distance themselves from the bill, which they fear could be labeled a “Republican” bill because of the support of Mr. Bush and Senate Republicans.

“This is not a Republican bill. The House Republicans don’t want to be associated with this bill, and are opposed to it,” said Rep. Peter T. King, New York Republican.

The direction the House wants to go, at this time, seems to emphasize border security and enforcement of current laws rather than the amnesty and special visa provisions of the Senate version. If the Senate insists on passing this bill tomorrow, the House Republicans will get their chance to put their votes where their mouths are. And regardless, we get our chance to vote later on…