A New Sort Of Scope Failure

Broken scopes don't always tell you when they quit.  This malfunction was more obvious...

The other afternoon I was at the range refining the 200 yard zero of Erik's Kimber and my Remington. That mission accomplished, I wandered over to the range officer's bench to wait for a cease fire. He was spotting for his sons who were attempting to zero their Savage 110 30'06 rifles at the 100 yard line. Since being put away last season the elder son's rifle developed a need for a foot of left windage correction. When he tried to removed the turret cover to get at the adjustment knob the entire turret came off in his hand, leaving a sad little hole in the side of his scope. The scope was a $60.00 Tasco 3-9x, aged about ten years. As I left he said he'd be visiting the local Gander Mountain that evening to buy a Redfield (the one with the Leupold lifetime warranty).  When a Redfield 2-7x costs but $130 there is no reason to put up with a cheaper or less reliable scope.  Remember, buying a good scope once is better than buying cheap scopes a couple times. 

Another Podcast Leads To Another Author Leads To Another Book...

When will it end?

The podcast, RSA Events.

The author, Richard Watson.

The book, Future Minds.

The reading list continues to swell...

Diwali

Welcome to the Festival of Lights...

The Indian holiday of Diwali marks the Hindu New Year (in the lunar calendar), the beginning of winter, honors the victory of good over evil, and the power of bright over dark.  This year it begins on November 3rd but the main festivities begin on the 5th.  Diwali, or Deepavali as it is called by some traditions, is a family holiday that involves celebrating with friends, eating special sweets, and setting off fireworks.  Happy Diwali to our friends from South Asia, wherever their travels may find them.

UPDATE TO ADD: Try the Ladoo, it's to die for...yummy!

Fully Committed?

"You have Family as a value? That’s beautiful. This is your family right here. Now protect it by making your numbers..."

In his excellent article at the Fall 2010 edition of The Conference Board Review, Stan Slap summarizes his strong ideas about what is required to secure the commitment of mid-level managers:

What’s needed is a model that will reliably allow managers to live their values at work without the company having to constantly facilitate the process. A self-sustaining model that is a safe and healthy choice for both the company and its managers. Brace yourself: The model is called leadership.

This article is drawn from Slap's book "Bury My Heart At Conference Room B" which has just been added to my reading list...

To Boldly Go

A One-Way Human Mission to Mars?

photo of the red planet courtesy of wikimedia commons

We have to leave the planet sooner or later and Mars is the only plausible choice at this time.  A mission to to Mars would cost less than half as much if we don't plan to come back.  Would you travel to Mars as a colonist?  Intriguing.

UPDATED TO ADD: here's the entire issue of the Journal of Cosmology dealing with the topic of travel to and exploration of Mars.  The papers are also published as a hardbound volume titled The Human Mission to Mars. Colonizing the Red Planet.