Dreams from Ragnar
Those of you who read the blog closely, or who know me personally probably already know this, but the Urbanagora blogger known as Ragnar is my father. Dad and I have several things in common, but politically, we couldn’t be much farther apart. Dad is a radical neo-con. I’m a prairie populist with a strong civil libertarian streak. But deep down, I suspect my Dad’s conservatism is rooted in his love of guns, and hatred of anyone who wants to take his guns away. They would need multiple trucks to do so.
Last weekend I was back in Illinois for Thanksgiving and I met up with Ragnar to watch the Illini play in the South Padre Island tournament. Dad was spirited, shouting “Woo hoo” and stomping when something good happened and “Jesus Christ” whenever Chester Frasier popped an ill-advised shot. After watching Illinois beat Kent State, Dad and I watched Casino Royale and he showed me one of his “James Bond guns.” Then he gave a 400 level lecture on the history of German handguns.
Dad knows more about guns than everyone else on this blog put together could hope to learn in 10 years. While his stockpiling of arms makes me a little nervous that instead of collecting he really is preparing for some kind of revolution, I’ve learned that its his own way of sticking it to the man. Most of his purchases are in retaliation to gun control laws or prospective gun control laws. Whenever he shows me a particularly lethal looking machine, he usually peppers his remarks with phrases like “I bought this before stinkin-fuckin-Durbin makes it illegal to” or “that no-good-summbitch Blagojevich wants to take this away, I’d like to see him try.”
I think I’m starting to get Ragnar. Today I spotted something I know he would love, something he may even try to make for himself. A while back Kevin (IlliniKC) introduced me to a blog called Geekologie, which I really like. Today they feature something my Dad’s collection is missing, which is pretty hard to do, anyway, check out this post on a Chainsaw Bayonet. Dad loved it.
Here’s a video from the blog with a demonstration of the utility of an AR-15/saw combo:
Comment by Billy Joe Mills on 2 December 2008 at 9:44 pm:
hahaha cheers to Ragnar.
Comment by Ragnar on 3 December 2008 at 10:14 am:
This is a totally fictional account of my personal life that I completely disavow. This Joshua individual is making this up to poke fun at my support of sensible gun control legislation and the need to get the guns off the street. I fully support the Brady campaign and Diane Feinstein is my favorite senator. The only firearms in my possession have been rendered non-functional and are family heirlooms and serve as a reminder to us of the senseless futility of violent response to aggression of any type. I love Chester Frasier and find James Bond movies to be Boorish.
Comment by chrism on 3 December 2008 at 11:43 am:
chester frasier is one of the worse players in illinois basketball history
Comment by Joshua on 3 December 2008 at 12:20 pm:
Almost certainly the worst starting point guard in my lifetime. What I wouldn’t give to have Kiwane Garris or Frank Williams or even Rennie Clemons again. Dee and Deron too.
I blame the last second screw up last night on McCamey. He’s gotta know that the one guy you cant give the ball with .6 seconds left is Chester.
Comment by illinikc33 on 3 December 2008 at 1:41 pm:
In my 6+ years here, I don’t think I’ve seen Chester make a jump shot . . . and yes, it feels like he’s been here for 6+ years.
Comment by Sharkey on 4 December 2008 at 3:49 pm:
Illinikc33— Do you have a hard time disguising the fact that you are a homosexual?
Comment by The Shark is Hungry on 4 December 2008 at 6:01 pm:
No, do you?