Its no secret that mass media types don't have a clue about guns. But AP writer John Christoffersen displays a new kind of ignorance with this gem of an article. In an article about the Newtown shootings, after several mentions of "a safe with shotgun shells" Christoffersen writes:

A loaded 12-gauge shotgun was found in the glove compartment of the Honda Civic Lanza drove to the school with two magazines containing 70 rounds of Winchester 12-gauge shotgun rounds.

I've seen some pretty short shotguns in my time. But the minimum length barrel without NFA registration is 18 inches. If you pay the NFA tax, you can buy one of those Road Warrior style sawed off double barrels, but I doubt that even that would fit in the glove box of a Honda Civic. Christoffersen displays not only an ignorance of guns, but of Hondas.

UPDATE: It looks like several other AP writers have taken over and completely rewritten the article.

Obama wanted stories about gun violence so I submitted one. I couldn't help myself...

Now here's a candidate that I could get behind.

I'm Gerarda Culipher: a military wife, lawyer, and mother of three and running for Virginia Senate. We're hosting a Freedom Ride, Saturday March 26th at Patriot Harley-Davidson in Fairfax. Donuts starting at 7am, bikers depart for Iwo Jima at 8am.

I wonder if she rides her own?

As a boy growing up in Virginia, this Monday was always Lee-Jackson-King Day. We celebrated the birth of two great Virginians and Civil War Generals Robert E. Lee, and Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson; and of course the great American Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Robert E. Lee was born on January 19, 1807. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson was born January 21, 1824. Martin Luther King Jr. was born January 15, 1929. As you can see, coincidence seems to have brought their birthdays together.

Robert E. Lee's birthday has been celebrated as a Virginia holiday since 1889. In 1904, the legislature added the birthday of Stonewall Jackson to the holiday, and Lee-Jackson Day was born. Eighty years later, Republican President Ronald Reagan declared the day in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Virginia, who since 1978 had celebrated King's Birthday in conjunction with New Years Day, made the change and simply tacked him onto Lee-Jackson Day. Thus Lee-Jackson-King Day was born.

In January of 2000, Virginia's Republican Governor James Gilmore asked the Legislature to move Lee-Jackson Day to the previous Friday, which would give Martin Luther King, Jr. a holiday of his own. The Legislature agreed, and the holidays were shuffled around, giving Commonwealth of Virginia employees a nice long 4-day weekend.

I made the personal decision to keep the three men together on one day, as a symbol of unity, justice, and a warm snuggly feeling inside. So Happy Lee-Jackson-King Day everybody.

Oh, and I notice my research into the origins of this Holiday has been plagiarized over at Wikipedia. Oh well, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Whenever anyone would ask me how to lose weight, I always told them to eat less. For years I've been telling people it all boils down to calories eaten versus calories burned. Now the rest of the world finally seems to be catching up to me.

"I didn't do any exercise. I didn't work out. What I did do was eat less. I cut out all sweets, all desserts, and quit drinking during the week. I also ate a lot of popcorn. . .My 14 months is up, and I've lost 96 pounds." -- Ravenwood, December 2008.

"The bottom-line diet: Eat less." -- CNN Headline, November, 2010.