Wednesday, April 5, 2017

April 5, 2017 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

Disappearing into the wilderness, problems using 9 mm in a revolver, increased anti-White sentiment in South Africa, and more....

"Shotgun Gunfight Advantage"--Suarez International (3 min.)

Firearms/Self-Defense/Survival:
  • "More Details on That Deadly Broken Arrow, OK Burglary"--The Truth About Guns. This is the recent burglary event where the homeowner's son confronted the intruders with an AR, killing all three. Added details include that the three perps had broken into the attached garage of the home before breaking into the kitchen where they were shot.
  • "Facts, Tips and Tricks concerning Shotgun Ammunition"--The Firearms Blog. Ever wondered to what the "Dram" or "Dram Equivalent" on a box of shot shells referred? The power of the load if it had been loaded with black powder (a Dram is 1/16 of an ounce or about 27.3 grains). 
  • Ruger has announced a couple new products:
  • "SEALs Looking For Neurostimulation ‘Cognitive Enhancement’"--The Truth About Guns. The Nazis used amphetamines ("Pervitin"). Soldiers today have used energy drinks ("Rip It"). Other enhancement medications you might see mentioned are Semax (for mental clarity after long periods of no sleep), Carvedilol (dampens the fight or flight response), and Pramaricetum (also to boost focus, memory, and perception).
  • "Bullet Migration in 9mm Revolvers"--Ammo Land. I've noted before that some of the worst jams I've had with a handgun were in revolvers where a bullet has worked itself loose from the case. That is why most commercial revolver loads will be crimped. However, as this article discusses, 9 mm is not crimped, and some manufacturers are specifically labeling their boxes with warnings not to use the ammunition in revolvers. If you reload, I would note that Lee makes a 9 mm factory crimping die that you can purchase by itself, which would allow you to crimp 9 mm if you so wished.
  • "Running Spares- Keeping Your Weapon Going"--Bushbeater. Keep spares of the important, but easily broken or lost parts for your firearms. The author notes, for instance, that the only part part he has regularly seen break on an AR is the bolt (but he also warns that you need to make sure that your weapon is headspaced for the new bolt, so also have go- and no go-gauges). He also recommends spare trigger parts and springs for your weapons (including the retaining plate or "shepherds' hook" spring for AKs). And to prevent breakdowns, or, at least, improve your chance of being able to find parts, he suggests sticking to mil-spec, quality parts and using common firearms.
  • "How To Make Japanese Weave Spoke Basket"--Sigma III Survival School
  • "How 1,600 People Went Missing from Our Public Lands Without a Trace"--Outdoor. It is not clear whether this article falls within the categories of self-defense or survival, or both. The basic point of the article is that if you get lost in the wilderness, there are very limited resources (money, time, people) that can be allocated to find you. It also notes, however, that there is a relatively large number of people--probably much more than the 1,600 estimate--that mysteriously disappeared in our wild lands. Some of the disappearances--probably most--are cases where, as noted, there are simply insufficient resources to locate dead or injured people. For instance, the body of the young man whose story is the backdrop for this article, was only discovered by a persistence lacking in most searches. But there is also a mysterious element in many cases: why did the person go where they did? why are the bodies sometimes found in areas that had previously been carefully searched, sometimes even in plain view? 
       There are lots of things that can happen. While very rare, it is not unknown for serial killers to target outdoorsmen (see, e.g., Thomas Lee Dillon or Cary Anthony Stayner). (It was reports of the killings perpetrated by the latter that convinced me to always go armed when in the woods). It is easy for people to become disoriented and lost, only to succumb to exposure ... especially if the weather should suddenly turn bad. Curiosity can lead someone where they shouldn't. For instance, many years ago, while hiking, I decided, on a whim, to leave a hiking trail to follow a game trail that went up a steep slope before petering out. Turning around, I slipped and fell while attempting to negotiate the slope and impaled an arm on the stub of a branch on a fallen tree (fortunately, it went between everything important). It was supposed to be a short walk, so I hadn't taken anyone with me and, at that point, was about a half-mile from my campsite, but it easily could have been a more debilitating injury. And, finally, even experienced woodsman can sometimes be overwhelmed by the isolation and their imaginations, and suddenly panic--it is the spirit of the lonely places.
Other Stuff:
  • "Bannon Removed From National Security Council Role in Shakeup"--Bloomberg. This isn't good--another non-establishment figure that seems to be being sidelined.
  • "Are Mexico’s Oil Reserves Almost Depleted?"--Zero Hedge. The article reports that "[w]ithout resumption in investments and more drilling, and if no significant finds occur, Mexico will be running out of reserves within 9 years, according to an official from the National Hydrocarbons Commission." The article notes, however, that foreign companies have made new discoveries in offshore deposits which might slow or reverse this trend. 
       I've noted before that, of all nations, the one with whom we should most fear a ground war is Mexico. Assuming that its government doesn't collapse from corruption, imagine a situation 10 years in the future: Mexico is running out of oil, industrial jobs have dried up, and the United States is in political disarray and its citizens make up a substantial portion of the border population. What better time to try and seize parts of Texas and California for oil and other industries?
       Data showed that anti-xenophobic and anti-colonialist or anti-white South African posts have also grown exponentially.
           "The typical narrative here is that we shouldn't take our anger out on fellow Africans, but rather on 'the real enemy', colonialism or white South Africans. This is allied to the #FeesMustFall movement."
             Jones said this sentiment was less than 1% of the conversation in 2011. In the first two months of 2017, it made up 24% of the total conversation around xenophobia.
               "In other words, in January and February this year, one in four posts referring to xenophobia from any angle, positive or negative, on social media in SA fell into the anti-white or anti-colonial category. This points to a dramatic shift in South Africa's political landscape, especially among young black South Africans."
        • Related: "Young Americans Are Killing Marriage"--Bloomberg. From the article: "In 1980, two-thirds of 25- to 34-year-olds were already married. One in eight had already been married and divorced. In 2015, just two in five millennials were married, and only 7 percent had been divorced."

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