Anyone who’s read the comments under a gun-related post, whether here or any other stop on the intertubes, knows one thing for sure: no matter how simple or innocuous a statement may seem to be, whatever the writer just said about guns, ammo or gear…he’s doing it wrong. And a recent post by Brandon at monderno.com [h/t thegunfeed.com] laid it all out about as well as anyone . . .
- If your thumbs aren’t pointed up then you’re doing it wrong.
- If your thumbs aren’t pointed forward or down then you’re doing it wrong.
- If your thumbs aren’t touching the slide then you’re doing it wrong.
- If your thumbs ARE touching the slide then you’re doing it wrong.
- If you’re not using Weaver stance, you’re doing it wrong.
- If you’re not using Isosceles stance, you’re doing it wrong.
- If you care about stance in the first place then you’re wrong.
And that’s just for pistols. Go read the rest. You’re welcome.
Besides quick, cheap and discreet porn delivery, Al Gore’s greatest invention (yet) seems best suited for letting anyone with a keyboard and at least a third grade command of the Eenglish langwage let everyone else out there in Cyberspace (including our friends at the NSA) know that he/she/it and they know a helluva lot more than you do about whatever the topic at hand may be. And Jeebus H. K-rist it gets old. Fast.
Wanna express your opinion? Kewl. That’s what the comments are for. Wanna tell the dood two comments up what a blithering f-ing idiot he is for blowing his dinero on an XD 45 ACP when he should have done the smart thing and gotten a GLOCK 21 like you did? Take a long, deep breath, then blow it out your ejection port, mkay?
http://xkcd.com/386/
No better place to post this classic, where someone realizes that someone is wrong on the internet and cannot rest until it is corrected.
My peeve is the clip-magazine correction. I shoot .22 and Mossberg always called their mags ‘clips’ back in the 50-60’s, so it is a generational thing I guess.
Smartasses in the gun culture are why I don’t spend more time at the range.
Why would anyone bother you at the range? Just avoid the drama on Internet gun fora where way too many people post comments whose only experience with firearms is using them while playing video games.
😉
It is a gathering place for experts.
But you are right, I should lighten up.
More than one reason to wear ear protection at the range. And just because some one voices an opinion there’s no reason to take that opinion to heart.
“More than one reason to wear ear protection at the range.”
tru dat
I guess I should realize how fortunate I am to belong to a really great gun club with lots of private shooting pits. I never have to talk to anyone, if I choose not to, but in the three+ years I’ve been a member I’ve only run into one of the “experts” you describe. The rest of the guys are just out there to enjoy the shooting sports and love to swap information and let everyone tryout their firearms, etc.
But if I had to put up with idiots at the gun club, I’d be out of there in a heart beat.
Honestly, in the military it was common to hear M-16 mags being referred to as “clips.” And oddly enough, there were no internet commandos around to correct the wayward souls, and we all had more important stuff to worry about.
Bravo! We as a nation are plagued with experts! Or, in many cases, “experts.” It’s one thing to seek out or share sound advice, but my god we run to the internet before we do any damn thing these days! Google, what’s the best way to put a pillow in the case? Google, how should I sit on my couch so my back doesn’t get sore? Google, what’s better, iced tea or lemonade? It’s like nobody can figure things out or make a decision without having their friggin hands held by some “authority” (who is usually only an authority because they typed an article online and you didn’t). It’s so feeble. And don’t even start me on the consumerism! People love their gear, I get it. But today I made a strap for my Mossberg 590 with two loops of paracord and the shoulder strap from a duffle bag. Looks like hell, but saved me thirty bucks and it WORKS. When the SHTF, you won’t be able to buy your way out of trouble, and you won’t have the internet to tell you what to do!
End my rant. Begin smart alecks saying “you’re wrong” lol.
Everyone knows lemonade is better for you than iced tea. Well, sweet tea that is. Where have you been?
Man, I can’t believe you just said that! Lemonade is only better than iced tea if the lemons are fresh-squeezed! Duh!
sweet tea is for sissies who can’t handle straight tea.
You know…what you should have posted….
LOL…great post…both Brandon’s and this one.
This is why I have a hard time sticking around most forums.
It’s easy to criticize. Its a lot harder to create original content. As far as I’m concerned, those who write a lot of critical comments should get off their asses and write something. TTAG has a pretty open policy for reader submissions. Think you know something? Write an article and share your expertise. Then duck and wait for the “helpful” comments.
Preach it, brother.
I’ve got a video channel and you would not believe some of the comments I get, or, maybe you would.
I’d like to assume people saying some of the stuff they say from time to time are just drunk and wasting their time on the Internet.
Either that, or the mental institutions of this nation are now giving free access to the Internet.
🙂
I chalk it up to boredom, and too much free time, either new retirees who’ve discovered the internet or basement dwellers. I love seeing new guys on forums that rack up 1,000 posts in under a year ==> Sure sign of an “expert” 🙂
As an aside, nice to see people doing what they can for the sake of gun news and info, but the Gun Wire is way out ahead of the GunFeed.
http://thegunwire.com/
Nick said the other day that thegunwire actively avoids any interaction with TTAG, as apparently they personally dislike RF. I see no problem with returning the favor. If you don’t want my company, I’m not going to force it on you.
Sorry, who is Nick?
I know the GunWire guy, I’ll check in with him.
Nick Leghorn, one of the three principals of this joint you’re posting on?
Oh, the silly drama. Some people are WAY to emotionally invested in this nonsense.
My pet peeve is guys that come on TTAG using their real name, a full face avatar of themselves and then their screen name links to some self-involved site they are pimping. Of course, these guys always present themselves as more reasoned then every one else, using such words as “silly”, “nonsense” and “mental institutions”.
I just thought it was amusing that he (who posts all the time) didn’t know who Nick was.
An “expert” is not allowed to publically acknowledge the existence of those that may be as much of or more of an “expert” than oneself. Unless they are “silly”. Which Leghorn ain’t. Therefore, he doesn’t exist.
The internet: allowing you to say things to total strangers that would get you punched in the face in real life since 1985.
+1
“including our friends at the NSA”
but but but, it is just metadata!!!!!
They know you rang a phone sex service at 2:24 am and spoke for 18 minutes. But they don’t know what you talked about.
They know you called the suicide prevention hotline from the Golden Gate Bridge. But the topic of the call remains a secret.
They know you spoke with an HIV testing service, then your doctor, then your health insurance company in the same hour. But they don’t know what was discussed.
They know you received a call from the local NRA office while it was having a campaign against gun legislation, and then called your senators and congressional representatives immediately after. But the content of those calls remains safe from government intrusion.
They know you called a gynecologist, spoke for a half hour, and then called the local Planned Parenthood’s number later that day. But nobody knows what you spoke about.
You’re a blithering idiot. I am, obviously, the one with all the answer. You all should hold your comments till I post first.
At least the 4 rules will always be right. So unless I am violating one of the 4 rules keep unsolicited opinions to yourself. That is all.
Not necessarily worldwide – apparently they have different rules in Israel, for starters.
Its the height of hubris to deny Glocks perfection.
But it’s a matter of taste whether you find the grip comfortable or unwieldy.
Its not Gastons fault if your mitts are misshapen.
I don’t know, they fit around John Browning and Bill Ruger’s designs just fine.
I’ll adapt an aphorism from my own profession:
“The only thing two gun owners will agree on is that the third gun owner is an idiot.”
I agree with this article. There are many considerations for any given application and what is best for one person may be less than optimal for another. By all means I encourage everyone to share their knowledge, experience, and advice.
I also encourage people to correct untruths. An example of an untruth would be claiming that a person standing on the ground could use a pistol to shoot down an aircraft flying at 30,000 feet.
As for debatable topics, feel free to express your opinion. But don’t tell someone else that their opinion is wrong. Let the facts speak for themselves.
“I also encourage people to correct untruths. An example of an untruth would be claiming that a person standing on the ground could use a pistol to shoot down an aircraft flying at 30,000 feet.”
I prefer this one: “Shot placement is NOT everything. You shoot someone with a .45 cal, you hit them near anywhere and they go down.”
Years ago I heard this definition for “Expert”. X is an unknown factor and Spurt is nothing but a drip under pressure. I wish I could remember where I picked that up.
My dad always said “former drip under pressure.”
We must have generational similar dads. Mine said he was a hydro-static engineer. It meant he worked ‘well’ under pressure.
I always thought posting opinions and comments on the Internet was just to throw your ideas into public scrutiny. If people agree with you, it’s an indication you might be on the right track. If they disagree with you, it’s an indication you, or they, might be total morons. Either way, it helps evaluate your opinions and ideas, which can make them better formed and convincing when you do talk to people face-to-face. It’s not worth getting punched in the face for a poorly formed idea or crack-pot opinion.
In the exchange of information on “How To” topics, especially where anything dangerous is concerned, best take whatever advice you find with caution. Never forget the large percentage of Internet “Experts” really just want to try to sell you something, and/or have no stake in whether their advice helps you or hurts you.
The easiest thing is to be a “hater”…lowest common denominator…because so few people are actually right most of the time and so many are eager to demonstrate that time and again.
It’s good TTAG tolerates some regular “hater trolls” here because they provide a reality check that’s beneficial. If they actually make a point that reflects what some people are thinking that’s good information. If all they can do is provide insult and derision to a discussion, that’s good because it means they have no valid response to what is being said.
The key thing to remember is that you cannot let your ego get involved in whatever is posted or responded. These kinds of discussions are the freest and most open you can hope to get involved with. You are exposed to a huge spectrum of ideas and points of view ranging from reasonable to tin-foil-hat-crackpot, from thoroughly factually correct to dismally uninformed and from naïvely foolish to bitterly paranoid. It’s intellectually worthwhile and great entertainment!
IMHO, this is why I like this site. As a life long shooter and student of life, I know that there are folks with more experience, and are a heck of a lot smarter than I am.
I am fortunate that I get to absorb opinions and experiences on the how’s and whys of doing this or that.
For instance, the tip on getting cosmoline off of a stock like the mosin. The paper towel, black plastic, sun trick. I would have not known that. Now I do. It makes sense.
Keep up the great work writers and commenters alike.
There is more than one way to separate the wheat from the chaff….
My SO reminded me once as I was attempting to ‘correct’ someone in a forum discussion that it was like I was trying to win in the Special Olympics.
But…I thought that was pretty much the business model for TTAG?
Thanks for the shout out Dan!
I bought a Remington 597 and a Springfield XD9, because the Ruger 10-22 and the Glock 17 just didn’t feel right to me.
So, yes. I have been told I was wrong on many such occasions.
It feels good.
Very similar, but I love my marlin model 60 and my M&P’s. All my shooting friends have Glock and I hate the feel of them in my hands.
Stances are fine (whatever they may be)
in combat conditions, your stance is not going to be perfect.
Same with firing lines. a combat environment is 360 degrees. no firing lines. much different than basic marksmanship.
All this talk about the internet and who is right and what is better and not one twelve year old has mentioned anything about the exploits of my mother!? Im shocked. Maybe I should stir the pot a little…
.40 Glock pwns a .45 1911 anyday!
Hehehe
James the wiener Yeager says you have a small peepee if you have a .40, but what do I know I shoot .40 too…and my wife is not complaining.
Can you believe it. Hasbro in their game ,Clue, ya know , Col Musterd in the library with the revolver, when the game piece I played with was most definitly a 1911. Sheesh what idiots.
Am I right or am I wrong.
Comments are closed.