Perhaps the Bounciest Goosestepping EVER

I must admit that I'm enamored of the green coat and black skirt ensemble. Normally military skirts are right at knee length or below, but careful, dutiful study over frequent rewatchings has proven to my satisfaction that these skirts are 1-2 inches above the knee. Combined with such... bouncy... goosestepping, this is an audacious fashion choice.

And yet, somehow, it works. It's almost ridiculous, but not quite. Neither is it "sexy" or "slutty". It has an endering teenage quality to it, like you might get if you crossed cheerleaders with ROTC cadets.

(Sunday) Schooling People

If you're going to cherry-pick Bible passages at me, you'd better bring your A-game, because not only am I going to read the entire chapter for context if you do, I'm also going to research your position using various concordances and commentaries. And if you're wrong, I will absolutely beat you over the head with it, and the icing on top will be Jesus's words against your position.

For context, last week a friend of mine made this Facebook post:


The comments are about what you'd expect. Most of them were from people who either moaned about how far we as a people have fallen from the light, or how Paul was deeply mistaken and that he'd be paying for this mistake in the afterlife.

Now when it comes to personal opinion, that's all well and good; you can believe whatever you like as far as I'm concerned. But when someone quotes the Bible in order to justify a belief which is completely in opposition to what Jesus preached, I go all Rarity on them.



The Old Testament
So when Christians try to condemn homosexuality using the Bible, the first place they usually go to is Leviticus, because it states twice (Lev. 18:22 and Lev. 20:13) that homosexuality is an abomination. In fact, Lev. 20:13 goes so far as to state that a man who has sex with another man must be put to death.

Now, setting aside for a moment the irony that the people who are making this quotation won't go out and execute homosexuals -- meaning they are violating the exact same Law which they claim to uphold -- there's the fact that they are cherry-picking the Law to suit their own ends.

No, no, no, sweetheart; you don't get to do that. You either follow ALL of Leviticus, or you follow NONE of it. And if you decide to follow all of it, that requires a radical change in lifestyle, because the Law bans a whole lot of things, including but not limited to:

• Eating Fat or Blood (Lev. 3:17) - Sorry, no marbled rare ribeye for you!
• Drinking alcohol in holy places (Lev. 10:9) - Sucks to be you if you're Catholic. 
• Eating an animal which doesn’t both chew cud and has a divided hoof (Lev. 11:4-7) - This is the basis for the whole "no pork" part of Judaism. No bacon for you!
• Eating seafood without fins or scales (Lev 11:10-12) - This basically amounts to "Fish and only fish." No shrimp, no crabs, no lobster, no calamari. I expect a LOT of people in Louisiana and Maryland would be upset by this. 
• Mixing fabrics in clothing (Lev. 19:19) - No blends for you! All your clothes must be 100% cotton or wool or whatever. Go on, check your underwear; I bet it's a blend. 
• Trimming or shaving your beard and/or sideburns (Lev. 19:27) - I guarantee you that every single American male has broken this law countless times throughout their loves. Fortunately for them, there's no penalty given. 
• Getting a tattoo (Lev. 19:28) - Yes, even the cute little one on your ankle. 
• And finally, my favorite:  (Lev. 20:9) "Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death. Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head." This pretty much dooms anyone who was ever a teenager. 

What's that, I hear you say? You don't want to do all these things? You want to shave and wear blended clothing and drink sacramental wine and eat bacon?

Sure, you can do all those things. Mark 7:14-23 is your escape clause.

Of course, if you use this, then you can't condemn homosexuals, either.

But wait! I hear you cry. Jesus specifically said 'sexual immorality'! Doesn't that include homosexuality?

Perhaps it does and perhaps it doesn't; I'll address that in a moment. Let me point out, though, that Jesus intervened to save the life of a woman caught in adultery -- the penalty for which was death of both parties, although the male adulterer is nowhere to be found -- so is it truly that difficult to believe that He would also challenge the death penalty for those who are homosexual?

But Erin! I again hear you cry. Jesus told the woman to 'Go and sin no more.' If He tells her to stop being an adulteress, then wouldn't He also tell a homosexual to stop being gay?

That is a topic for another discussion, because it assumes homosexuality is a choice.  I've met enough gay people who have fervently wished they could be heterosexual just to feel "normal" to cast that particular assumption into very strong doubt for me. Furthermore, there is a debate that homosexuality may be the result of genetics or environmental factors such as birth order.

If you want to have the debate that homosexuality is an illness or genetic defect, then I suppose we could argue that Jesus might cure a gay person of his gayness the same way He cured lame people of their lameness. But that's categorically not the same thing as telling a sinner to stop sinning.

The New Testament
Speaking of sinners and the New Testament, let's talk about the other favorite passage which is brought out. While there are several references to homosexuality in the Epistles (1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 1 Timothy 1:9-10, and Jude 1:7 -- although with that last one, I'd argue that the "sin of Sodom" wasn't so much homosexuality as it was the roving rape gangs), the one I see most often is Romans 1:26-27.

Taken by itself, this passage seems pretty damning... except one should never take a Bible passage by itself; one should always read it in context with the passages before it and after it. In this case, start at the beginning of the paragraph -- which is Romans 1:18 and titled "God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity" -- and read to verse 32, the end of the chapter.

The very first verse of the chapter says "The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people". Verse 21 says "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to Him ." In other words, God's wrath is directed not specifically at homosexual people, but rather at the people who are neither worshiping God nor thanking Him. In fact, verse 24 specifically states that it's only after they failed to honor God that God abandoned them to their sinful natures.

Then there's the verse which follows the quote:

You can see where it quite plainly states that those people who didn't worship God had depraved minds and were deceitful, malicious, envious murderers. Now since the Apostle Paul didn't differentiate between the people in verse 27 and verses 28-31, it's fair to say that he's talking about the same people. But not all all murderers are homosexual, and not all homosexuals are murderers. So the Apostle Paul is speaking categorically, i.e. all who fail to worship God give themselves over to some form of depravity (sin).

Now here comes the best part! The very next line -- which is Romans 2:1 - says "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things."

In other words, Paul is saying "Hey, reader! YOU'RE A SINNER TOO. So stop passing judgement on other people, because you will be judged for that as well."

According to Christian doctrine, we are all sinners -- man and woman, gay and straight -- and the wages of sin are death , but those wages have been paid through the blood sacrifice of the lamb, Jesus Christ. All we must do is accept His forgiveness, believe, and we shall be saved (1 John 1:7, Acts 3:19).

As far as I'm concerned, this addresses all of the objections which may be found in the New Testament. If you aren't convinced, though, let me leave you with the words of our Savior, as recorded in the Book of Matthew, chapter 7:

Go, and do thou likewise. 

On Hurricanes and Weather

As I write this, it's a comfortable 73 degrees at 11 PM Saturday in the Mountain time zone, with a cool breeze blowing down from the Sandia Mountain range and an unusually high humidity of 48%.

Just a few years back, though, I lived in the city of Port Arthur, TX: birthplace of Janis Joplin and hometown of economic depression, abandoned downtown buildings of Southeast Texas, the center of an inflated cost of living due to oil refineries. Too far East to truly be Texas and too far West to truly be Louisiana, it's the home of fumes, mold, and swamps, and the subject of an Al Jazeera docu-piece on air quality.

I lived there for close to 10 years. When I say close, I mean close; I moved there in June of 2003 and left on the last day of April 2013. In that time, I evacuated for three hurricanes and slept through several more. My apartment was completely destroyed once, the roof ripped off of the second-floor two-bedroom I shared with my ex-wife, soaking everything that wasn't packed into the tiny car we owned after my Monte Carlo had given up the ghost on its second transmission. I was more fortunate the next two times I evacuated, as my one-bedroom post-divorce apartment was untouched.

I don't like hurricanes. They're a huge inconvenience at best, and a life-altering pain in the ass at worst (assuming you get out of their path). I have a few friends still in that part of Texas right now, and I hope you and they both have the good sense of being not there if you're otherwise in the path of Hurricane Fuck This Shit.

When I was presented with the option of moving away from Texas some 4-ish years ago,  I took that opportunity and have yet to regret it. The constant high humidity in the swamps where I lived was wrecking my sinuses, leaving me short of breath and giving me constant headaches due to the mold and fumes in the area. In the first two weeks I was in New Mexico, the thin, dry, clean mountain air forced its way into my head and I could feel my sinuses changing shape, opening for the first time in years. I have breathed easily since then.

But  I've found that the true advantage to living here is the weather. The dry desert air is truly an amazing thing. While living in Texas, I once walked a quarter mile on the coldest day of the year to the Walgreen's on the corner. It was about 38 degrees outside... with 100% humidity. The cold cut through the jacket, hoodie, jeans, and pajama pants I was wearing, and I wanted to fall against the wall of the building I was at and die halfway through the walk. In stark contrast, I went to see a Rifftrax Live show here in New Mexico in late October. As I was walking to the theater in a leather jacket and thin t-shirt, I thought to myself, "It's a little chilly out here." I later checked the temperature at the time and it was 27 degrees, but with only 13% humidity. In the summer it can reach as high as 110 outside, but with the low humidity it feels vastly more comfortable than the 85 degrees at 100% humidity that a Southeast Texas Spring or Fall would bring.

And that's not getting into the four distinct seasons and snow in Winter that I now see.

What am I getting at right now? Nothing in particular, honestly. Just that I hope my friends are okay and that one day they'll see the light and move inland. I genuinely do not ever think I could bring myself to live within a hundred miles of a coastline again. It's just not healthy.

Gun Blog Variety Podcast #158 - Nashville is Nice, So I'll Say It Twice

Sean continues his love affair with the City of Nashville.

• What does a #1 New York Times bestseller have to do with range etiquette? Beth talks to us about Range Rules & Expectations.
• When is a dispute not a dispute? When it's an armed robbery. Sean finds out about our deceased suspect.
• Barron is on assignment and will return soon.
• This week, Miguel discusses that oft-repeated maxim of the Tactical Shooter: Competitions will get you killed in the streets!
• Our Main Topic is the Eclipse. Sean spent the weekend with Co-host Emeritus Adam in Nashville and watched the Eclipse in Gallatin, Tennessee.
• Tiffany is headed up north for the very first NRA Carry Guard Expo. She tells us what NRA Carry Guard is, and what is she hoping to learn at the Expo.
• It's hot and you've got to walk to safety. What things should you bring? Erin explains hot weather survival gear.
• Weer’d sends us a message from a dark future. It's like "12 Monkeys" up in here.
• And our Plug of the Week is the City of Nashville.

Thank you for downloading, listening, and subscribing. You are subscribed, right? We are available on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, and Google Play Music!

Listen to the podcast here.

Read the show notes here.

Thanks to LuckyGunner and Remington for their sponsorship, and a special thanks to Firearms Policy Coalition for their support.

Blue Collar Prepping Transcript -

Hot Weather Survival Gear

For the past two weeks I’ve talked about what to wear in hot weather and what gear to have if your car is stranded. But what if you need to self-rescue, or otherwise need to walk long distances in that hot weather? That’s the topic of this third and final installment. 

First of all, you’re going to need the right clothing, so be sure to check last week’s segment on hot weather clothing. Pay special attention to your feet, especially if you’re wearing impermeable boots or you’re walking through a lot of water. The very last thing you want is something that makes it painful or uncomfortable to walk, so make sure you listen to my segment on preventing fungal infections from episode 143. 

Check your feet regularly to prevent blistering. If you find yourself developing hot spots, then either cushion them with moleskin from Dr. Scholls or use something called HikeGoo,which is a cream that both moisturizes your skin and lubricates the hot spot to prevent more friction. 

Change your socks as often as possible, even if you have only two pairs. Get a mesh stuff bag, put a carabiner clip on the drawstring, and hang the used pair from your belt loop or backpack strap to dry in the sunlight and fresh air. (This will take longer in humid climates, unfortunately.)

Regardless of whether it’s during the day or at night, walking in hot weather is thirsty business because you’re going to be sweating our water to keep cool. This means you absolutely need a way to keep water with you at all times. I recommend a hydration bladder in the largest size possible; most brands like CamelBak top out at 3 liters, but the MSR DromLite comes in 2, 4, and 6 Liter versions.

 
You’re also going to need a way to carry that bladder, because water is heavy. Most backpacks these days are hydration bladder compatible - but check, because they may only go up to 2 liters - although a lot of bladder manufacturers also sell carriers for their products. Whichever way you go, make sure you get the lightest color possible. Your all-black MOLLE-festooned CamelBak carrier may look tactical, but the dark color will absorb the sunlight and heat up your water. About the only thing worse than drinking hot water when you’re thirsty is drinking no water at all. 

And you’re going to be drinking a lot of that water. A LOT. We’re supposed to drink 2 liters, or half a gallon, of water a day just as part of our regular activities, so if you’re having to do hard work in the blazing sun and humidity, you’re going to be sweating a lot more and becoming dehydrated that much faster. This means you need a way to refill your water reservoir. 

There are various types of pumps and filters out there, but I swear by the Sawyer Mini. It’s inexpensive without being cheap, it’s lightweight, it’s good for 100 thousand gallons, and - best of all - you can put it right on the tubing of your hydration bladder between the bite valve and the reservoir itself. This means you won’t have to take the time to pump clean water in before you can drink it.
Instead, just take a bit of cloth, like a bandana or a t-shirt, and put it over the reservoir’s opening to filter out any large contaminants like dirt, bugs, leaves, etc. Then fill up and drink through the filter. 

If you do this, keep two things in mind:

1. You must remember that the water in the reservoir is unsafe until it passes through the filter, so don’t use that water for bathing or cooking by just pouring it back out. Send it through the filter first. 
2. Second, understand that filters aren’t perfect and there’s still a chance you might get a parasite from drinking unboiled water. This is a risk you’ll need to take, because you will die from dehydration and overheating long before the parasites can even make you sick. Get to safety, and then you can worry about what you drank. 

Finally, here’s a hot-weather ProTip for you: Keep your mouth closed and breathe through your nose as much as possible. In fact, if you can find something clean, smooth, and inedible - such as a guitar pick, or a metal washer, or even a clean pebble - put in your mouth. Not only will it remind you to keep your mouth closed, but the presence of it in your mouth will cause you to salivate. This will keep your mouth moist and help you feel less parched and thirsty.

• Dr. Scholl's Moleskin Plus 24" x 4 5/8" Padding Roll - http://amzn.to/2vtot4F
• HikeGoo Blister Prevention Cream - http://amzn.to/2g9agYp
• Mesh Stuff Sack - http://amzn.to/2ivk0x2
• MSR DromLite - http://amzn.to/2xwITLy
• Sawyer Mini Water Filter - http://amzn.to/2w2zD3W

SHTWeekend: Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief

I know that I rarely have the time to write prepping articles any more (this is a huge regret of mine), but this afternoon I had the time and the inspiration to make one.

Go over to Blue Collar Prepping and check out the ways you can help the survivors of Hurricane Harvey.

"Youthy Drift-By"

Seen on Der Lederhosen:

For those who aren't familiar with familia sermo, it means "household word" -- the specific bits of jargon created by a family based in shared experience, in-jokes, and the like.

Who knew the DoD had a sense of humor?