74 Replies to ““16,000 rounds of factory-loaded .40 S&W caliber, 180-grain jacketed hollow point””

  1. “Can anyone think of a logical reason why the National Weather Service would be purchasing ammunition?”
    No, unless the NWS has been recruited to form part of Obama’s alternative army, which he mentioned during the ’98 campaign.

  6. There are individual lots which go to named employees with the title DOC (Director of Communication?)Perhaps these people are concerned about deniers stocking them after making news releases that connect weather events to a central theme of “climate chaos”. Or, maybe they plan to shoot at the weather map to forecast tomorrow’s rain.

  7. “Can anyone think of a logical reason why the National Weather Service would be purchasing ammunition?”
    You WILL start to believe in catastrophic global warming with a .40 S&W caliber, 180-grain jacketed hollow point pointed at you, I promise.

  9. Actually the total is 46 thousand rounds (line items 1-3 in the “invitation for bids”.
    Sounds like someone is expecting a “s–t storm”!

  10. Scaring crows away from poorly-sited weather stations. Their wings fluttering might cool down the thermometers.

  11. “National Weather Service” you ask?
    Why, haven’t you heard about how DANGEROUS all those AGW deniers are?
    They have GUNS if you haven’t heard!
    /Kool Aid drinking Moonbat

  13. How very Liberal of a government trying to disarm it’s citizens while arming itself to the teeth.
    Now across America are random police checkpoints, TSA security at airports, bus stations, malls, and sporting events.
    Soon over 30,000 drones will be flying over the US physically watching you, as your communications including e-mail, computer, and telephone conversations are listened too. In the meantime the US government (Obamba) has implemented the National Defence Authorization Act (NDAA) allowing the military to arrest anyone they wish without a Due Process, a warrant, or trial for indefinite detention.
    As read on the Drudge Report yesterday, the US army and police SWAT teams are training to fight, kill or detain US army veterans and militia. Their scope of “radicals” include people who express Nationalism, “Don’t tread on Me” stickers, Tea Party supporters, and generally anyone else who may have a vested interest in the prosperous country America used to be.
    But it’s probably nothing.

  14. “No reloads may be used with these weapons.”
    So it’s not only acceptable but mandatory to further despoil the earth by producing fresh brass instead of recycling. Sustainability for thee, but not for me.

  15. From the comments here by commentor exfedagent .
    GUYS! THIS IS A NON-STORY! I am a former federal agent. NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration has a SMALL (about 100) group of federal agents and officers who are GS-1811′s and GS-1801′s who enforce federal game laws on the high seas. They are ocean going federal game wardens enforcing the Lacy Act and the Magnison Conservation Act. It’s a great job. I personally know some of them and went to FLETC with one of them. They have been around since at least the mid-1980′s. Almost no one in the public domain and most of the people in federal law enforcement don’t know they exist BECAUSE THEY ARE SO SMALL. They carry .40 caliber handguns and have for many years. This is a routine ammo purchase. They are spending money they have left in their annual budget before the budget closes out at the end of September. Your reactions in your posts are understandable given that you didn’t have the facts!

  16. U.S. Federal “Law Enforcement” positions carry a 20 year retirement plan. Also, pay can (and usually is) better for “Law Enforcement” personnel. This is more nonsense foisted on various agencies by U.S. Federal Employee Unions and is just one more reason to prohibit the Unionization of ALL government employees.

  17. Jacketed Hollow Points ?
    Someone is planning on doing a lot of shooting and planning on causing a lot of damage.

  18. My information has it that the US department of homeland security in ordered 450 million rounds of .40 S&W talon ammo – the reason is obvious. These agencies enforce domestic regulatory law. They deal only with US citizens. It is obvious something coming down the pipe is deemed to be unpalatable to the public and the fed enforcers are gearing up to shoot Americans who resist.
    It’s the only logical answer. Why doesn’t the lamestream media openly pose this question and start a dialogue about the federal gvernment’s “us and them” imperialism.

  19. Quote: “Can anyone think of a logical reason why the National Weather Service would be purchasing ammunition?”
    Climate change. Because every other ailment know to man is linked to it, so why not join the party?

  21. BTW_ as an interesting sidebar to this domestic apocalypse Fed buying spree, the government also ordered enough freeze dried food to choke the supplier’s capacity to sell to civilians. Oddly enough mountain house freeze dried foods is the number one survival item that collapse preppers seek for long term food suppy stock piling.
    We wonder about the government’s new found taste for freeze dried food because the US military and sundtry Fed paramilitary enforcement agencies have already contracted for MRE’s (meals ready to eat) on decade long supply contracts and has massive surplus of long term storage food.
    Did they do this to deny access of sustainable food to potentail resisters??
    Why 450 million rounds of pistol ammo?

  22. OK, I’ve waited long enough for the collective genius to come up with the real reason, so here goes.
    Storm troopers.

  23. Posted by: northernont at August 14, 2012 11:23 AM
    Thanks for the info. on the ammo purchase. Makes sense.
    Gotta like Storm Troopers though. lol

  24. Can NOAA special agents and enforcement officers carry firearms and make arrests like state conservation officers? Why do fisheries agents carry guns?
    NOAA’s special agents and enforcement officers are federal law enforcement officers that are specialized in investigating crimes involving the poaching, smuggling, and illegal trafficking of marine resources. In the performance of their duties, our agents and officers also detect and uncover other federal crimes. OLE agents and officers carry their issued firearms at all times while on duty, as carrying firearms is an essential function of an agent’s and officer’s job; indeed, it is a condition of employment. The authority for OLE agents and officers to bear firearms is contained in Title 16 U.S.C. 3375(b). OLE agents and officers carrying a weapon during the work day is no different than any other federal law enforcement officer.
    http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ole/faq.html#q16

  27. Well, good to hear that this is normal. The “deniers” really shouldn’t worry until the warmists get drones.
    The creepy part is that the idea of relatively benign government departments having police-like powers is not so far-retched. The US Department of Education has its own SWAT team. Apparently, fraud and default on student loans are reason enough for approving no-knock, early morning raids.
    http://reason.com/reasontv/2011/06/09/matt-welch-talks-department-of

  29. Well, now that all the conspiracy nuts have had their say, without checking out their facts, this buy was for the fisheries section of NOAA. These fisheries officers are armed and they are going up against some pretty well armed organized crime groups on the high seas. Their job is to ENFORCE some US game laws in our territorial waters. If you look a little further into the story, these ammunition lots are going to coastal cities with NOAA fisheries stations. Look out! Flipper is going to start a civil war. BOO!

  30. Well, now that all the conspiracy nuts have had their say, without checking out their facts, this buy was for the fisheries section of NOAA. These fisheries officers are armed and they are going up against some pretty well armed organized crime groups on the high seas. Their job is to ENFORCE some US game laws in our territorial waters. If you look a little further into the story, these ammunition lots are going to coastal cities with NOAA fisheries stations. Look out! Flipper is going to start a civil war. BOO!

  31. It’s the 450 million rounds for DHS and a further 750 million they are currently trying to order (see a link at Drudge) that’s what worries me. That stuff isn’t going to Flipper.

  32. I see ES and OCB beat me to it.
    NOAA enforces US fishery law on the open sea.
    And this means dealing with possibly very grumpy foreign nationals with money to lose who might object to someone taking their fish or fining them.
    Thus, guns. And ammunition for training (notice the bid also included paper targets).
    (Brian M’s concern is also overrated – those counts were maximums over several years, and DHS also runs the National Law Enforcement Training Center and further includes the Coast Guard.
    Both of which functions, not to mention the Border Patrol and Customs And Immigration, all legitimately require armament, and thus ammunition in quantity for practice and use.)

  33. In the US they have guns to protect them. In Can we teach them to run and hide. I think I would rather work in the US.

  34. I humbly apologise for EVER thinking that the President of the United States of America, PBUH,would contemplate anything but total devotion to the Constitution of the U.S.
    He DID mention forming a sort-of militia during the 2008 campaign,and that set off my typically conservative raging paranoia.
    It was the lousy coffee I had this morning, not my fault at all.
    I’m a victim of Maxwell House,which was my wife’s idea to buy.

  35. Storm troopers….not as frivilous as it sounds.
    The reason the lefties invented that “law” about reference to Nazi’s is to avoid the inconvenient truth.
    One of the unique (until now) features of the 3rd Reich was it’s issue of pistols to each and every civil servant right down to railway platform officials.
    This besides expanding their ability to project force had the effect of inspiring loyalty from all these armed bureaucrats. Proudly armed, it made those minions feel important. Having a pistol gave them a feeling of importance…superior….a badge of office..
    This demand for pistols exceeded the industry’s ability to supply, with the result that pistol making facilities in occupied countries where immediately harnessed to address the shortage. FN in Belgium was cranking out P35’s for the 3rd Reich and the P35 was a substitute standard Whermacht pistol…as were Tokarevs from the Russian Tulla arsenal (rechambered to 9mm para with pressure relieving gas vent drilled in the barrel).
    Inferior French pocket pistols made railway officals/traffic wardens stand a bit taller….
    Immediately on adopting the Walther P38 pistol, the German War Ministry contracted Mauser to produce P38 under licence….later even engaging Spreewerk, Berlin (an artillery company) to produce more.
    IMHO it is disturbing…..this vast arming of US civil servants has an eerie parallel to the 3rd Reich practice….probably for the same reasons.
    Those of us familiar with firearms, without paranoia, notice that US border people are all armed…a different atmosphere…..
    with attitudes to match.
    BTW…most “reloads” are actually “handloads” more reliable, and consistant than mass produced ammo.
    Personally I reload shotshells for trap shooting but hand load my hunting loads. My center-fire rifle and pistol loads exceed match quality. Mass produced loads are measured…not weighed….basically loading ammo like soda bottles on a line…
    Any veteran will attest to the frequent “duds” in mass produced military ammo…Armourers encounter many damaged weapons from bullets lodging in the barrel.

  36. I am not buying that line about the fisheries and the high-seas, BS.
    This is Obama getting ready for CWII.
    ,

  37. To back up others about it is going to the NOAA version of the Game Warden, in the General Services Administration (GSA) where it tells them where to deliver the ammo there is a list of acronyms:
    8,000 rounds to: Ross Lane DOC, NOAA, NMFS, OLE, NED 130 Oak Street, Suite 5, Ellsworth, ME, 04605
    Here is what each acronym stands for:
    DOC – Department of Commerce
    NOAA – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
    NMFS – National Marine Fisheries Service
    OLE – Office of Law Enforcement
    what NED is I don’t remember off hand

  38. This is first of all a very small amount of ammunition. People who carry pistols need to practise frequently.
    In any case, the feds have admitted that this item was misposted due to clerical error; the ammo was intended for the 100 or so armed agents of a fisheries agency. Human error does happen, actually.
    The 450K rounds for OHS everybody is worried about is also pretty small potatoes in the big scheme of things. OHS has well over 200,000 employees in Customs and Immigration, the Secret Service, the Coast Guard, the TSA and so forth. Certainly most are not armed, but if even 2% are (which is probably way low), 450,000 rounds only gives each of those a hundred rounds or so to practise with in a year. Not so scary.
    I’m aware that I will immediately be flagged as a troll or a government agent or something, but common sense is still a useful tool. Let’s try using it.

  40. Almost all government agencies have an Office of the Inspector General, staffed with federal law enforcement officers.
    It usually takes about 50 rounds per person to conduct annual qualification on their assigned weapon. Some agencies might require more frequent qualification. And of course there is going to be rounds used in practice.
    The FLEOs are always going to keep stock in hand as well as what they intend to use. If they recently upgraded from 9mm to .40 cal, that would explain the large purchases. 9mm sucks as a man killing cartridge while .40 cal has equivaent killing power to .357 magnum.
    16,000 rounds really isn’t that much for an organization. I use about 500-750 rounds per year and I stockpile at least 2000 rounds.

  41. Don’t worry Bob, but either way, just went to Cabala’s and ordered another 1,000 rounds of 7.62mm’s and two extra 30 round clips. I feel better, but Janet has probably red-flagged me as a potential Domestic Terrorist.
    Basically, I just don’t trust this Administration.
    ,

  42. I personally don’t trust *any* Administration. To use an old phrase, pols are like bananas – they’re all yellow, they hang together in bunches and there ain’t a straight one in the bunch.
    On the other hand, I don’t accept YouTube as an objective source and I’m not willing to allow myself to freak out over what are clearly routine purchases. Slogans about police states come cheap; logic costs.

  43. I personally don’t trust *any* Administration. To use an old phrase, pols are like bananas – they’re all yellow, they hang together in bunches and there ain’t a straight one in the bunch.
    On the other hand, I don’t accept YouTube as an objective source and I’m not willing to allow myself to freak out over what are clearly routine purchases. Slogans about police states come cheap; logic costs.

  44. Bob said: “I’m not willing to allow myself to freak out over what are clearly routine purchases.”
    I see my other comment got caught in the filter. Whatever.
    Bob, the point is not that a police force bought ammunition. They do that. Not usually in such large amounts, but they certainly do that.
    The point is rather, is it reasonable that the NOAA has its own police force? Oh, not to mention FEMA, Dept. of Energy, Dept. of Fisheries, Dept. of The Interior, Dept. of Agriculture, Dept. of EDUCATION. They all not only have armed officers, Energy, Agriculture and education have SWAT teams too.
    Is it reasonable that the US Dept. of Education has a SWAT team, Bob? Because they very definitely have one, and they’ve been using it. Student loan enforcement apparently is very high risk these days.

  46. Many Obamabots in the civil service will also be reserve officers
    in the People’s Militia once “they have proved their worth”.
    .

  47. Bob >
    Not an issue Bob, just stand out of everyone else’s way if any fireworks start, otherwise you’re just another obstacle getting in the way.
    Take the train and you won’t be in anyone’s way of course, millions before you have taken that ride already.

  48. Apperantly several NWS buildings are also considered “sensative” because of the facilites. Weather services may operate radar, and have access to government satelites, etc…

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