STOCKHOLM SYNDROME.

MORE ON THIS LATER, but had fun shooting this afternoon with SayUncle, Les Jones, and some guys from LuckyGunner.com, an ammo company started by some of my law students. Among other things, I fired an AR-15 modified to shoot a .50 BMG round, from Zel Custom. Kinda heavy, and almost as tall as Helen, but fun. And I was able to fire it from the shoulder. Perfect for home defense — if you’re defending your home from Terminator robots!

Note the helping hand with some rounds of ammo . . . .

UPDATE: Frank Wilson emails: “Good heavens … law professors clinging to their guns!” You have to admit, though, that I don’t look even a little bit bitter.

And Charles Oliva emails: “Good finger discipline.” I was well trained.

MORE: Reader Pat Gang writes: “Glenn, that picture gives me new hope for our country.” Heh. Well, the culture has changed a lot on guns, that’s for sure, and to a degree that would have seemed — heck, did seem — unthinkable less than twenty years ago.

HERITAGE 1, MEDIA MATTERS 0: A fish, a barrel, a smoking gun.

LOSING IT? Maurice Hinchey allegedly assaults reporter. Nah. It was just a “Weigel hug.”

READER JOHN MACDONALD WARNS TEA PARTIERS NOT TO GET COCKY:

Never underestimate the opposition , the polls haven’t closed. military ballots AWOL, the union/ACORN ground team has lots of experience GOTV..the dirty tricks will increase in intensity…and MSM will put out early polling results during Election day to try to derpess the GOP voters- ..and the candidates leading slightly need even more to win- at least 3-5% above the fraud factor- Remember Franken.So it’s all hands on deck for the next couple of weeks. Focus on the fact that the major legislation has already been passed to make the U.S. into a socialist country. The ideologues will continue their path unless they lose handily on Nov 2…and that means getting your family and friends and their friends to the voting booths.

I keep saying it, too. Don’t get cocky. It’s not over yet, and it won’t be over on November 3.

TABLOID BLOGOSPHERE NEWS: Ed Driscoll and Hugh Hewitt photographed with Playboy Bunnies in Las Vegas!

POWER LINE: They Ignored Us.

CONTEST: Guess Which One Is Ahmadinejad’s Wife?

ACADEMIA, WHERE DISSENT FLOURISHES: “Hilton told the Telegram Leader that he had worded his e-mail ‘very badly’ and said that he was sorry and would cooperate if the university punishes him.”

THINGS I DIDN’T KNOW: Amazon has a Bondage And Fetish section. They pretty much carry everything these days. . .

But there looks to be a lot of overlap with the sexy Halloween costumes. What does that say?

UPDATE: Reader Howard Isaacs writes:

Thanks for the link to Amazon’s bondage section. What you neglected to point out though, are the product reviews. E.g., Mark Twain MT (“see all my reviews”) is less than thrilled with the Fetish Fantasy O-ring Gag With Nipple Clamps, Black . Titling his review, “It does not work,” he says, “The picture is not the real product, which only has the ring and chains. The leather around neck and breasts are not part of the product. It won’t stay in your partner’s mouth. Simply put, it is not working as it appears and I would highly recommend you not waste your money on it.” In all, highly educational.

Heh.

BETTER LIVING THROUGH SELF-DECEPTION: Many Obese People Don’t Want to Lose Weight:

A substantial proportion of obese people don’t think they’re too fat, new research shows.

Among more than 2,000 obese Dallas County residents surveyed in 2000-2002, 14 percent of African Americans and 11 percent of Hispanics — but just 2 percent of whites — believed that they needed to lose weight, Dr. Tiffany M. Powell of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and her colleagues found.

People who misperceived their body size were happier with their health, and felt healthier, than those who did recognize their obesity; they were also more likely to think they were at low risk of developing high blood pressure or diabetes or having a heart attack during their lifetimes. In fact, two-thirds of people with body size misperception thought they were at low risk of becoming obese.

On the upside, at least they’re experiencing less stress. That’s got to be good for their health, right?

WHAT’S WRONG WITH airline baggage fees.

THE POETRY OF ECONOMIC LIBERTY.

WALKING CAN CUT AGE-RELATED MEMORY DECLINE.

PREDICTIONS ARE HARD, especially about the future.

FROM ASTROTURFING to OprahTurfing. “Oprah surprised the entire Daily Show audience today (October 14) with a promise to fly the audience out to Washington, D.C. for the Rally to Restore Sanity and put them all up in hotels!”

AT AMAZON, it’s the Friday Sale.

WALTER OLSON: Andrew Cuomo and the Gunmaker Litigation.

BILL WHITTLE: WHAT WE BELIEVE, PART 2.

OUCH: “First, I can’t believe he said ‘you look like a student’ to a woman who identified herself as a member of a university faculty. That is an irrelevant and, I would say, sexist remark. Not only is it equivalent to saying “gee, you’re pretty,” but it’s revealing that you have a picture of what professors are supposed to look like and you don’t mind derailing the conversation to say she doesn’t look like one. I know it’s supposed to be a compliment, but it’s really clueless.”

“You know, you don’t act like a President. You’re more like a . . . game-show host.”

LAS VEGAS SLOTS vs. Electronic Voting Machines.

UPDATE: Reader Pierre Honeyman says this is wrong:

I used to work for Diebold Elections Systems/Premier Election Solutions. I’ve been through the entire certification process with them and I’m quite familiar with it. Anyhow:

1) Software:

For all certified (certified by the FEC) software the source code is submitted for review to a certified independent testing authority. When software is tested by them the ITA uses a “trusted build”, that is, they use a build from the source code that they’ve reviewed, that they’ve built from vendor documentation, and digitally signed (signatures are kept on file with the FEC). It is this software, and only this software, that is considered to be certified by the FEC.

2) Spot Checking:

It is certainly possible for election officials to spot check vendor equipment. Hardware and software signatures are available with the certification documentation. Only hardware/software that meets that configuration is considered certified by the FEC.

3) Background scrutiny:

I don’t know what federal law requires but all software programmers at Premier had to undergo a background check, including criminal records check, before being hired.

4) Equipment Certification:

Equipment and software certification is done to standards set by the FEC, using test plans approved by the FEC, at test facilities independent from the vendor. For profit? Please. Is “For Profit” suddenly evil?

5) Handling disputes:

That will vary by jurisdiction and is, for the most part, out of the hands of the vendor.

I still like paper ballots.

ED MORRISSEY: Will NOW fire its California president? “Honestly, as I wrote the first time, it’s not a great idea for Whitman to play a victim card in an election. This, however, is different. NOW routinely plays victim cards, and has done so explicitly on this kind of rhetoric. Now they have been ‘hoist with their own petard,’ and should be held accountable to their own standards.”

Feminism died in 1998, and so obviously that even Maureen Dowd noticed. Now it’s just about protecting and supporting your political masters, even if doing so turns you into a Groper’s Support Group.

“SHE’S COMING OFF AS FAKE. Not a good sign.”

IS THIS HOPE, OR CHANGE? Don’t Worry! The 2011 Deficit Should Be The Biggest Ever!

WINNING FRIENDS AND INFLUENCING PEOPLE: My Redneck Constituents. I just want to stress that Mike Reynolds is no relation. . . .