This post is all about GUNS, ok?  So, Beth Anne, shut 'er down now.  For the rest of you, love it or leave it.

Twice annually, the good folks at the Hernando Sportsman's Club have a Machine Gun Shoot.  Bring your own machine guns, or rent one for twenty bucks a throw.

For a Canadian gun owner and enthusiast, this was Full Metal Jacket nirvana.  On arrival and exiting the car, I was immediately transported on an audiological warp to the midst of a small arms skirmish.  Viet Nam, Kosabo, Iraq, Afganistan, the impact was the same, I'm sure.  The sounds of semi-auto gunfire, machine guns, mortars and (the holy grail of automatic gunfire) the "gatling" minigun, the smell of gunfire and the heat, all combined to make this an extraodinary experience.

A variety of machine guns, ready to take on ISIL!

Locked and loaded

There were a lot of dudes who took this very seriously!

It took about 6 tries to get this MG to fire.  Seems there was a problem with the feed mechanism. Which is ok, unless you are facing one of those 'Human wave" types of situations one of the boys was telling me about.

What got my number 1 vote was the "gatling" minigun.  This sucker fires between 4000 and 6000 rounds PER MINUTE.  Do the math; 100 rounds per second.  Now, by any reasonable standard, that is serious fire power.  In the Viet Nam conflict, they would install these baby's on C130s, firing out of cut-outs in the side of the fuselage.  The grunts loved 'em.  Referred to these as "Puff the Magic Dragon".  I chatted with a vet who described the scene;  "puff" would be called in to "neutralize" a zone.  When firing commenced, there were simultaneous displays of, on the firing side a silver coloured hail, and on the other side, a yellow (brass) coloured spray of spent casings.  Nothing survived this onslaught.  It would cut a house, vehicle or person(s) in half in nano seconds.  Here's a a pic:

Mini gun

Now, when this puppy was fired, its like hearing a chainsaw.  It defies any better description  I don't know what the technical specs are for duration of fire, but in the 15 or so seconds I heard it rip, it ate up about $1000 worth of ammo.  Again, do the math.  The cost of fire superiority is not cheap!

Noi surprisingly, the NRA was a notable presence. There was also a well-received presence by the "Bomber Girls".  Not sure just what the origins are, but I can tell you there were all kinds of red necks lined up to have their pictures taken with these ladies.  

 After about 40 minutes or so, the range officer called a halt so that all those gunner could check their targets (lol - accuracy of fire was not a priority here; rather, maximum damage to things like old cars, trucks, dish washers, propane cylinders, water bottles, etc.).  I ventured out into the 'hot zone" for a look-see:

So, as you can see, it was great fun watching our US neighbor's having fun on a Sunday morning (Thank you Lord, thank you Jesus).  I think I had this permanent smile the whole time.  The coup de grace was the booth that sold tickets for $20 (US, of course) for a go with an  MP5 machine gun.  In my opinion, this is rather a wimpy piece; I'd have paid twice that plus for a go on the minigun.  But, that's just me...

At the end of the day, I left with a robust sense of confidence in the ability of our southern neighbors to repel, with vigour, the most vile and treacherous threat from any enemy; regardless of their choice of head gear.  Oh say can you see...  Yup, I can see it.