Deadeye Rick

[haha]

Texas gov. shoots, kills 'wily' coyote during jog - Yahoo! News

My kind of governor.

Ha

 

[cantlogin]

Whether the details are true or not is something we'll never know but it is certainly a fantastic publicity move in his political arena. I'm an animal sort of guy and I love all the critters that share "my" property but I don't see any set of circumstances that makes his actions unacceptable. I read only a few of the comments on the story but I'm amazed by the number of negative remarks.

 

[REWahoo]

I read only a few of the comments on the story but I'm amazed by the number of negative remarks.

I suspect many of those remarks are tied to Perry's politics rather than this particular incident. They probably refer to him as "Slick Rick", not Deadeye...

 

[ziggy29]

There goes the coyote lover vote this November.

 

[calmloki]

The story as printed seems suspect. The Gov may have killed a coyote and it may have been looking at his dog, but his concern that it might attack him feels gratuitous. Think the Gov is ringing in a little self protection justification that he really doesn't need.

Note that he charged his weapon - the coyote isn't said to have charged.

 

[RunningBum]

At least he knew what he was shooting at, unlike "the sun was in my eyes and I thought that lawyer was a duck" Cheney.

It makes me nervous to have people carrying guns on those trails, but there are enough problems on an urban trail like that (my guess is that he was on the Barton Creek greenbelt, for those who know Austin) so maybe it's better if there's some question of whether the good guys will be carrying too.

 

[IndependentlyPoor]

I suspect many of those remarks are tied to Perry's politics rather than this particular incident. They probably refer to him as "Slick Rick", not Deadeye...

Nah, not "Slick Rick". Those who don't like him prefer "Governor Goodhair" when they resort to childish name calling.

Seriously, though. This story weirds me out. I grew up in Texas and have spent my fair share of time stalking about woods and fields toting rifles and shotguns, but I have never felt the need to carry a sidearm for protection out in the wild, much less go jogging with one stuck in my belt. Good grief. After a mile or so, the weight of the thing bouncing along would drive you nuts, if probably chafe like the dickens.

And this one is truly cringe worthy.

Perry said he will carry his .380 Ruger — loaded with hollow-point bullets — when jogging on trails because he is afraid of snakes.

A Texan afraid of snakes? Um, they give me the willys too, but when I see one, I generally just step aside. And I can't imagine any snake not slithering away well in advance of the pounding footsteps of a jogger.

Don't you think a well-aimed rock would have convinced the coyote (not known for their bravery) to run away?

Maybe I am out of touch now with the gun carrying crowd, but I have never heard of anyone (outside of Star Trek) "Charging his weapon".

Put me down as cynical, but I believe that this story is nothing more than Governor Perry polishing his macho image.

 

[ziggy29]

Seriously, though. This story weirds me out. I grew up in Texas and have spent my fair share of time stalking about woods and fields toting rifles and shotguns, but I have never felt the need to carry a sidearm for protection out in the wild, much less go jogging with one stuck in my belt.

I can see why you wouldn't need a gun. Then again, you aren't a fairly controversial, love-him-or-hate-him polarizing political figure who might be the target of some kooks who despise his politics and would do him harm.

As far as this being political grandstanding, I don't think so. The time for that would have been in the primary season. Suffice it to say that most of the people who would think this is a cool story and look favorably on it weren't going to vote for Bill White anyway.

 

[FinanceDude]

When I was in Colorado about 20 years ago, a mangy coyote approached us when we were hiking outside of Denver, up in the mountains. It seemed tame but I think most coyotes carry rabies so we just kept an eye on it. It followed us, I think some folks fed it so it was looking for food. When it got about 15 feet away we decided that was close enough so we made a bunch of snowballs and started throwing them at it. It would run a few feet away and stop. This kept going until I nailed it right in the head with a well-aimed snowball..........that made it run away..........

 

[cantlogin]

When I was in Colorado about 20 years ago, a mangy coyote approached us when we were hiking outside of Denver, up in the mountains. It seemed tame but I think most coyotes carry rabies so we just kept an eye on it. It followed us, I think some folks fed it so it was looking for food. When it got about 15 feet away we decided that was close enough so we made a bunch of snowballs and started throwing them at it. It would run a few feet away and stop. This kept going until I nailed it right in the head with a well-aimed snowball..........that made it run away..........

This post is useless without... VIDEO!

 

[RunningBum]

Nah, not "Slick Rick". Those who don't like him prefer "Governor Goodhair" when they resort to childish name calling.

...

A Texan afraid of snakes? Um, they give me the willys too, but when I see one, I generally just step aside. And I can't imagine any snake not slithering away well in advance of the pounding footsteps of a jogger.

Slick Rick is the nickname I remember from 2 years ago when I lived there.

I've twice been running on trails and came across a rattler coiled on the trail and rattling at me. I stopped and waited, and it did not move. Both times I had to take a wide berth around, once involved some pretty good bush whacking on a tight trail with a drop-off on one side. I suspect more have slithered away before I ever saw them, but it can happen.

 

[Martha]

Correlations with rattle snake bites:



Women: low
Young men with tatoos: high

(heard from herpetologist)

 

[RunningBum]

No tattoos here. Maybe that's why I wasn't bitten.

 

[RunningBum]

But maybe Perry has one, so he feels the need to carry a gun.

I don't know guns, but that sounds like a lot of gun for a snake.

 

[ziggy29]

I don't know guns, but that sounds like a lot of gun for a snake.

But not too much gun for a politically-motivated kook who might want to assault him (or worse). There's a reason why the President has Secret Service protection.

 

[Leonidas]

Governor Zoolander is almost as big a publicity stunt-prostitute as Joe Arpaio.

At the ranch the manager shoots coyotes when they get numerous and bold enough to go after the livestock. He usually has to stake out the trash dump because they don't tend to want to be around people. I've seen them from a distance, heard them at night, but never had a close up encounter with one.

There are some places in the big city where if I were to go running there I would carry a gun. I'm not sure how smart a guy is who would rob a jogger (who carries a wallet when they run?), but it happens. Some guy tried to rob a kid on a trail not far from where I live just the other day. When the kid pleaded that he had nothing on him the bad guy cut him.

 

[IndependentlyPoor]

But not too much gun for a politically-motivated kook who might want to assault him (or worse). There's a reason why the President has Secret Service protection.

Um, er...
Not to pick a fight with a moderator, but Governor Perry has a security detail too.

On this particular morning, Perry said, he was jogging without his security detail shortly after sunrise.

 

[ziggy29]

Um, er...
Not to pick a fight iwth a moderator, but Governor Perry has a security detail too.

It's okay to disagree with us, really...

I know he has a security detail, but this time he went out *without* his security detail. A major political figure needs security, and if his security detail isn't around him, he may have felt he needed to provide his own security.

 

[Martha]

Governor Zoolander

 

[Bestwifeever]

People in high places just can't be too careful. Remember this? Swamp rabbit was lucky Jimmy was armed only with an oar....

While home in Plains, Georgia, President Jimmy Carter set out on a solo fishing expedition when he came under attack by a swamp rabbit. The rabbit, which had been swimming near his boat, attempted to board the vessel despite Carter’s efforts to shoo it away with his paddle.

 

[ziggy29]

People in high places just can't be too careful. Remember this? Swamp rabbit was lucky Jimmy was armed only with an oar....

And Jimmy was lucky this wasn't the "killer rabbit" from Monty Python and the Holy Grail...

YouTube - Killer Rabbit

 

[Katsmeow]

I am not a Rick Perry fan at all, but I have to say that I have no problem with what he did in this instance. I suspect that some who don't like it are people who don't like it because they don't like Rick Perry. Of course I am sure there are those who are anti-guns and would be against it on general principle.

 

[RunningBum]

But not too much gun for a politically-motivated kook who might want to assault him (or worse). There's a reason why the President has Secret Service protection.

I was just taking him at his word, since he said he was carrying it because of snakes. Are you saying I can't trust what a politician says?

It probably is a good idea for him to carry when alone.

 

[Leonidas]

I am not a Rick Perry fan at all, but I have to say that I have no problem with what he did in this instance. I suspect that some who don't like it are people who don't like it because they don't like Rick Perry. Of course I am sure there are those who are anti-guns and would be against it on general principle.

Then there are people like me who are conservative, have voted for Perry in the past (and might do so again, depending on how my ex-boss Bill White talks), and don't have a problem with people lawfully carrying guns or even doing what Perry did.

The issue I have with Perry is that his rhetoric, and many of his executive decisions, are blatant plays to the conservative voters, as if they were all simpletons who can't tell the difference between decisions made based on a set of beliefs, and "Hey, vote for me! I'm ultra-conservative!

I'm not saying the incident was fictional, or staged, but it just smells like a play toward the demographic that Perry is always chasing. It might be totally legit - who knows. Certainly Perry doesn't mind the publicity it gets him.

If I was walking my wife's dog around the neighborhood and a coyote started stalking the little PITA, I would send him off to Coyote Heaven. Mostly because there is no way in hell I could ever go back home without that freaking Yorkie in the same condition she left in.

 

[dex]

Note that he charged his weapon - the coyote isn't said to have charged.

"charged his weapon" means loaded. It would have been a real interesting if the coyote charged a weapon. The coyote did "came out of the brush toward his daughter's Labrador retriever"