MISSISSIPPI RESPONDS TO CHARLIE RANGEL: Heh.

BIZARRE REPUBLICAN DEATH WISH UPDATE: “The depleted House Republican caucus, a minority in the next Congress, convenes at 8 a.m. in the Capitol Friday on the brink of committing an act of supreme irrationality. The House members blame their leadership for tasting the bitter dregs of defeat. Yet, the consensus so far is that, in secret ballot, they will re-elect some or all of those leaders.”

UPDATE: On the other hand, Influence Peddler thinks that Pelosi is blowing it.

THERE ARE SOME SECTIONS OF KNOXVILLE THAT I WOULD NOT ADVISE YOU TO INVADE:

A Knox County commissioner did not let a gunman rob his business. Instead he pulled out his own gun.

The tense moments took place Saturday inside Greg “Lumpy” Lambert’s car dealership, Advantage Auto Sales on Clinton Highway. . . .

Lambert printed out a “bill of sale” while Stackhouse went outside to smoke a cigarette.

When he came back inside, things got ugly. That’s when, Lambert says, Stackhouse pulled out his gun and started waving it around.

Lambert, who is a strong gun rights activist and member of the National Rifle Association, reached into his pocket and pulled out his gun.

“I did a more proper draw out and up, and of course at that point I said, ‘Drop it,’ Lambert said. “He said he didn’t want any trouble. He just wanted to leave. I said, ‘You’re not leaving with that gun.’ Of course, I was using some profanities. I have to confess in a tense situation I can have a potty mouth.”

Lambert says Stackhouse dropped his gun on the floor and fled. He left his driver’s licence at the business.

Knox county authorities arrested him several hours later.

Nice to see things work out this way.

UPDATE: Safety-oriented readers don’t like the photo that accompanies the story. Presumably, however, the photographer used one of these.