That sign is on a few places in Minnesota. Part of Minnesota carry law specifies the size and wording of the sign for those who insist on denying others the right of self-defense and wish to publicly say "Take your business elsewhere, we prefer having unarmed victims here."

Even though I do not have a carry permit and thus do not carry, I do try to avoid rewarding such businesses with my patronage. Today things got ironic in a sad way. jmaynard and I went to a gun show which was held at the local VFW. Normally that show would have been held at the National Guard armory, but work is being done on that building. So the show is taking place at the VFW. And there is a sign that the VFW bans guns.

That's odd. Not just that a place holding a gun show bans the carrying of firearms, but that it's the VFW. VFW? Veterans of Foreign Wars - the folks who have fought for your, my, and others freedoms. Folks who know their way around firearms, and know that what they are: mere machines, inanimate objects. I wonder what the real story is. I suspect it's some cluless building owner or clueless insurance company that insists on that sign being there. I rather doubt the members of the VFW are the ones behind it being there. At least I hope not. I'd like to think well of them.

Current Mood: disappointed

During our Christmas travels, jmaynard read one of the Monk books, based on the TV show, and then I did. I've also been watching Monk on the USA network when on the treadmill. While reading the books I wondered how much I'd like the TV show. Would the stuff that seemed funny to hear about or be skipped over be annoying to see on TV? Last night I got the answer: Yes.

Last night I watched Monk and overall it was fairly good for a TV show. But the dwelling on Adrian Monk's foibles got to be grating to the point I used the mute button for quite a bit of the show. Some of the commercials managed to be less annoying. That particular show might have been something of an extreme case as it involved Monk having been shot and how miserable he acts and makes others afterward.

One thing did strike me while reading the books. Monk has this thing about even numbers. He takes issue with the movie The 39 Steps for not going to 40. He dislikes a baker's dozen of things as 13 is odd. Yet his favorite clearer is Formula 409. That seems a bit strange. Perhaps that's been addressed, but I'm coming in late on things so haven't seen that.