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Monday, October 31, 2022

The Docent's Memo (October 31, 2022)

 

VIDEO: "Massad Ayoob looks at four different angles of shoulder holster positions - Critical Mas Episode 17"--Wilson Combat (16 min.)

VIDEO: "Concealed Carry: 38 Special Ammo Selection (Featuring Hornady Critical Defense Lite)"--Paul Harrell (32 min.). Harrell tests various loads out of a S&W snub-nosed revolver. The best performer of the lot in terms of all three criterial--muzzle energy, accuracy (i.e., hitting to point of aim with the fixed sights on the snubby), and damage to the meat target--was the Hornady Critical Defense +P. Wadcutters seemed to cause as much damage and deform about as well as the heavier 158 grain semi-wadcutter hollow point bullets; and, if you were in a jurisdiction that did not allow expanding bullets, the wadcutter probably would serve you better than anything else.

Firearms & Self-Defense:

  • A new Weekend Knowledge Dump from Greg Ellifritz. A couple of the links that stuck out were: (i) "Best Practices" for concealed carry license holders, which is a list of 12 practical tips/advice; and (ii) an article in the November Rangemaster Newsletter describing research that showed that the test subjects (police officers in this case) made better shoot/no-shoot decisions when they started from a low ready position than when the muzzle was higher or pointed at a target.
  • Jon Low also has a new Defensive Pistolcraft post. A couple things he mentions that seem unrelated is that the majority of officers feloniously killed every year never removed their service weapon from its holster. He also suggests that even people with a lot of training will never apply that training when the need arises. But it ties together when Low delves into the concepts of inattention and misdirection. An excerpt:
     A friend, who is a criminal defense attorney, asked me to view some video recordings for a case he was working on.  The defense attorney thought something was strange about the scenario.  He couldn't understand why the bad guy let the good guy (his client) shoot the bad guy.  
 
     The bad guy (mugger) had his pistol pointed at the good guy (client).  Other bad guys were standing around.  The good guy shot the bad guy in the head, killing him instantly.  I explained to the attorney how the good guy had misdirected the bad guy's attention by hand gesture, verbiage, and body language.  Once the bad guy was shot, the other bad guys fled.  Because none of the other bad guys had seen the good guy draw his gun.  They were all wondering, "What's going on?",  "Who fired the shot?" 
 
     The defense attorney had not understood prior to my explanation.  The prosecutor apparently never understood.  All charges were dropped prior to trial.  Because it's self-defense.  

Read the whole thing and check out the comments and links as to other topics. 

  • Useful information for those using telescopic sights: "What the Hell is Parallax, and Do Hunters Need to Care About it?" by Richard Mann, Field & Stream. Mann explains that "parallax is the apparent displacement or the difference in apparent direction of an object as seen from two different points, not on a straight line with the object," such as, when using a rifle scope and "the reticle and the target are not focused in the same place and you move your head a little bit, the reticle will move." Most scopes, he notes, are designed to be parallax free within a certain distance: 50 yards for a rimfire scope and 150 yards for most centerfire scopes. Some scopes also come with a parallax adjustment: "The parallax adjustment on a riflescope simply positions the reticle focus and the image focus at the same spot." He discusses the topic further as well as offers guidance on how to adjust parallax, so be sure to read the whole thing.
  • "NEW Magpul BDA AR-15 Arm Brace"--The Firearm Blog. The ATF's pistol brace rule is supposed to be finalized in December. I doubt that the millions of people with SBA3 braces from SB Tactical or similar braces from other companies are going to try to register their weapons as an SBR, which means that there are going to be a lot of people looking to replace their braces soon. Or at least that is apparently what Magpul thinks. If you went through the ATF's proposed rule, you probably noticed that one of the braces used as an example, and that passed their point system, was KAK's Shockwave Blade brace. That appears to be the inspiration for Magpul's new brace as it also is a blade-style brace. But to make sure that it is legal under the proposed rule, the brace is also non-adjustable for length of pull and it has a QD swivel mount at the back of the brace to make it clear that it was not intended to be shouldered (and make it extremely uncomfortable to shoot should you do so). MSRP is $59.99. So far it is only being offered in black.
  • "Brutal Beating in Elk Country: Authorities Identify Suspects Who Allegedly Assaulted Two Hunters in Wyoming"--Outdoor Life. The victims had come across an elk that had been shot and, not wanting the meat to go to waste, decided to take the elk as their own after waiting a short period of time to see if any other hunters claimed it. Later, they encountered a group of hunters that accused the victims of stealing their elk carcass. Things escalated and resulted in one of the victims being pulled from his side-by-side and beaten. Not to justify what the attackers did, but the victims were in the wrong to have claimed the elk as their own after only waiting 20 minutes. If the elk had run any distance from where it was shot, or the person that shot it had to climb a steep slope to get to the animal, it could easily take much longer to track down than just 20 minutes.  Anyway, a reminder that the monkey dance can happen anywhere. 
    The Monkey Dance is the most common and the most avoidable of the social violence types.  It can usually be avoided with a simple apology.  It can be defused with submissive body language—an apology, down cast eyes.

    It can also often be simply bypassed:

    “What are YOU lookin’ at?”

    “Huh? Oh, didn’t know.  Worked all night last night I must have zoned out for a minute.”  Bypassing requires extremely relaxed body language. And a low, slow, slightly puzzled tone of voice really helps.  If the guy keeps fishing, treat the follow-ups as thoughtful questions.  Don’t Monkey Dance back and don’t become agitated or show anger.

    If you get caught in a Monkey Dance and don’t realize it until you are a few steps down the road, apologize (a simple ‘sorry’ no explanation) put your hands up, palms out (both shows peaceful intent and makes a classic ‘fence’ which is a very good thing when things go bad) and back away.  Then leave the area.

Also:

    Possibly the greatest danger in the Monkey Dance, for most people, is legal.  It is not self-defense.  No matter how big he was or who started it, there are too many opportunities to walk away for a Monkey Dance fight to be called self-defense.  Even if you are losing, you are losing a grade school-level fistfight.  Lethal response will not be justified. In fact, in some jurisdictions which explicitly state that aggressors cannot claim self-defense an exception is made if the victim introduces the possibility of lethal force. For just two examples, see Illinois statute 720 ILCS 5/7‑4 Ch. 38, par. 7‑4 or Montana code 45-3-105.

    “He started it,” is a grade school defense, not a legal defense. 

    The GMD is another dominance game very different from the individual monkey dance.  In this ritual, members of the group compete for status and to show their loyalty to the group by showing how vicious they can be to someone perceived as an “outsider”.  It is purely a contest to prove who is more a part of the group by who can do the most violence to the outsider.

    Group psychology and the power of mobs plays a huge part in this, making normal decent people behave in a way they would never have imagined, as they get caught up in the “feeding frenzy”.  The victim is completely inconsequential.  Once it starts, the victim is literal a non-person.  Any pleading, fighting, passivity will be interpreted by the group as proof of “otherness” and further justification to escalate.  Sometimes even the death of the outsider doesn’t stop the dance.
There are places in the United States where if you do something rude and improper you will get disapproving looks and people will whisper about you. They might snub you in the coffee room or not invite you to go bowling. And there are places in the U. S. where doing something that society considers rude will get you beaten without a second thought.
    According to Terry Thompson, regional communications manager for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, mountain lion encounters like the one depicted in Erickson’s video are rare in Idaho. “We haven’t had any attacks in Idaho for years,” Thompson told F&S. “This [cat] looks like it’s kind of in stealth mode. That’s not a good sign. It’s in effect stalking him. It could have kittens back in those conifers and aspens in the background, but you’d never know.”

    Regardless of whether the mountain lion was defending a cached kill, protecting nearby kittens, or engaged in a predatory stalk, Thompson says that Erickson handled the situation well. “I’m surprised the guy held off as long as he did before he shot,” he said. “This cat was really close. Erickson backed away and kept his eyes on it. What he did was right.”

    No. What he did was not right. This is more of an example of a positive outcome despite poor judgment or actions. The most basic rule about dealing with a cougar that is stalking you is to not run away from it. Mountain lions are the largest of the small cats and, just like your pet cat, are "programmed" to chase after things whether a ball of paper thrown past it or prey that is moving away from it. Although the hunter, Erikson, was not "running" he was backing away from it which amounted to basically the same thing. He should have at least stopped while facing the thing. In his shoes, I probably would have not only stopped but stepped toward it to see if that extra bit of intimidation might have caused it to break off its stalk and go elsewhere. 
 
    Another rule is to make yourself look bigger and more aggressive. Erikson did not do anything in that regard until he finally shot toward the cat (I assume that he intended to miss it). He should have shot earlier and shot into the ground in front of the cougar to try and spray it with dirt and stuff rather than kick up dirt behind it where it wouldn't see it.  
  • "Concealed Carry Corner: Are Concealed Carry Jackets Worth It?"--The Firearm Blog. Short answer is "no". Slightly longer answer is that there are some jackets or coats designed to allow easy access to firearms carried in traditional holsters through an outside zipper or a zipper inside a jacket pocket. But you can use a regular jacket and slip a firearm into a side pocket, a breast pocket, or be prepared to pull up on the jacket to access a firearm much as if you were wearing a long t-shirt or pull-over. 
  • Although this article from the Daily Mail focuses on a shootout between black gang members in NYC, the article is notable for reporting that overall violent crime has increased by 31% so far this year, with dramatic increases in felony assault, rape, and robberies, although murders and "shooting victims" had declined since last year.

VIDEO: "'How Will We Know It's Time' - Earth's Disaster Q and A"--Suspicious Observers (6 min.)
Discusses what are signs of a "bug-out worthy event" vis-a-vis super-flare/micro-nova.

VIDEO: "Survival Books, A Few Recommendations"--Boonedockery (53 min.)
Some recommendations for survival/prepping books as well as an explanation why he doesn't like military manuals. 

Prepping & Survival:
    Francis’s son administered some preliminary first aid, packing the gunshot wound with bandages, before ushering him out of the area on the horse. Once they met with rescuers, Francis was taken to a nearby ranch where a medical helicopter was awaiting his arrival. He was then flown to the University of Utah Hospital.

    Bingham said that his condition is still unknown to Sublette County authorities at this time. “I think Game & Fish is trying to talk to the hunter and they’re looking for the bear today,” he said. “We’re not really sure how substantial the bear part of the attack was. The biggest concern was blood loss from the gunshot wound.” 

If he hadn't had the SOS device, it might have been a much longer wait to get the father to medical help with a concomitant greater loss of blood. The article also reports that "Francis’s attack marks the second grizzly bear-human conflict in Wyoming in less than two weeks," the other being the recent attack on two wrestlers.  

  • There are areas of the country where bugging out by a small boat, canoe or kayak would be reasonable. If you are considering such, this article might be helpful: "How to Pack a Canoe or Kayak for a Camping Trip"--Field & Stream.
  • "Ambush: Francis Marion and the Art of Guerrilla Warfare"--American Battlefield Trust. Francis Marion, aka The Swamp Fox, was a partisan general in the Revolutionary War serving in the southern colonies. Marion was known for his irregular tactics and what today would be described as maneuver warfare. This article gives a brief look at the man and his tactical philosophy before moving to its main subject: an ambush conducted against British and Loyalist forces on August 30, 1781, at Parker's Ferry on the Pon Pon River (Edisto River) about 33 miles west of Charleston.
  • "Energy Execs Tell Granholm Shuttered US Oil Refineries Won't Restart." The article relates that "U.S. energy executives told [Michigan Governor] Jennifer Granholm that shuttered crude oil refineries won’t restart, Valero’s Chief Executive Joe Gorder said on Tuesday." The author also reminds us: "In June, Chevron CEO Mike Wirth posited that there would never be another new refinery built in the United States." We've reached peak oil, but it isn't because of running out of oil, but because of deliberate policy decisions by our rulers. 
None of this should be surprising, as we've warned diesel markets have been in crisis for much of 2022. Our latest note titled "Forget Oil, The Real Crisis Is Diesel Inventories: The US Has Just 25 Days Left" outlines the severity of the crisis but also points out underinvestment in the nation's fuel-making capacity, refinery closures and disruptions, strong domestic demand, soaring exports for the fuel, and embargo on Russian energy products have all helped to deplete inventories and the price surge. 

  • Let's Go Brandon! "Threat of Nationwide Railroad Strike Grows after 2nd Union Rejects Proposed Deal." The Administration supposedly had brokered a deal in September to avoid a railroad strike, but there were skeptics who believed that the only deal reached was for unions to not strike until after mid-terms. It appears that the skeptics were correct. The article mentions that all 12 rail unions must approve their agreements to prevent a strike next month, but so far only half have votes in favor of proposed agreements while two have already voted against. The good news--for the Democrats at least--is that the unions agreed not to strike until after the mid-term elections. The Washington Examiner (via MSN) reported:

This bad news from Oct. 26 [i.e., the second union voting down a new agreement] was tempered, however, by an agreement between the railroads and the latest union to say no to the deal, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen. It stipulated that there would be no work stoppage until December at the earliest. The same is likely true for the other holdout unions as well.

VIDEO: "MASSIVE Beach Ripples in Sahara Should Not be Possible (12,000 Year Ancient Event?)"--Bright Insight (15 min.). Probably good to watch this in conjunction with "Micronova/Crust Displacement | Q and A Oct.30.2022" (9 min.) from Suspicious Observers which notes how there could be sudden rises or falls of the crust as it displaces.


VIDEO: "Slavery - Summary on a Map"--Geo History (21 min.)
Not a very comprehensive history because it primarily focuses on Europe and Africa (and the trans-Atlantic slave trade) while ignoring much of the Middle-East, all of the Far-East until the late 19th Century, and all of India and Southeast Asia. However, I give it bonus points for tacitly acknowledging that slavery is a common factor of socialist/communist regimes.

 News & Analysis:

    ... homicide rates rose by an average of nearly 10% in 50 of the most populated U.S. cities between the third quarter of last year and the third quarter of this year — and are still rising — according to a new study.

    WalletHub compared 50 of America's largest cities based on per capita homicides for the third quarter (July through September) of each year since 2020, using locally published crime data to compile its findings.

    According to WalletHub, these were the ten cities with the highest homicide cases per 100,000 residents from July through September:

St. Louis, Mo. (19.69)
Kansas City, Mo. (14.86)
Detroit, Mich. (13.24)
Baltimore, Md. (12.45)
New Orleans, La. (10.99)
Milwaukee, Wisc. (10.46)
Memphis, Tenn. (9.99)
Philadelphia, Pa. (9.36)
Norfolk, Va. (7.78)
Chicago, Ill. (7.71) 
 
    The top prosecutors in most of these cities are backed by progressive megadonor George Soros, a billionaire who's spent the last several years injecting tens of millions of dollars into local district attorney races nationwide, backing candidates who support policies such as abolishing bail, defunding the police, and decriminalizing or deprioritizing certain offenses.

    In St. Louis, for example, Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner is one of the first prosecutors bankrolled by Soros' financial network of organizations and affiliates, heavily funded by these sources in 2016 and again in 2020.

    Amid high homicide figures, Gardner has declined more cases and issued fewer arrest warrants than her predecessor, charging fewer felonies and prosecuting thousands of fewer cases as a result. She has also deferred prison sentences for misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies as part of her reform initiatives.

    Gardner has said this is part of her "platform to reduce the number of cases unnecessarily charged in order to focus on the more difficult cases for trial."

    Last year, Gardner came under fire after three murder cases under her purview were dismissed in one week due to prosecutors in her office not showing up for hearings or being unprepared.

    Her campaign website boasts that she's "made jail and prison a last resort, reserved for those who pose a true public safety risk," while limiting "the arrest and detention of people accused of misdemeanors and low-level felonies."
    That’s quite a bombshell. We might quibble about just how much China’s GDP is manipulated, but 40-60% seems a pretty solid guesstimate, and explains a whole host of observable facts, from banking and mortgage problems to tofu dregs buildings to their inability to manufacture advanced semiconductors.

    The question isn’t whether China is massively manipulating their GDP numbers, the only question is by how much.
Dow signed a letter of intent with reactor developer X-energy, and plans to buy a minority stake in the company. The plan is to deploy X-energy’s Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor technology at one of Dow’s Gulf Coast complexes, with operations expected to begin by 2030.

The proposed power-plant is a new breed of small, modular power plant designs. The article explains:

    The Xe-100 is an 80 MWe reactor design that is optimised to operate as a four-unit plant, delivering 320 MW of electric or 200 MW of heat. The pebble-bed reactor works like a gum-ball machine where new fuel pebbles the size of billiard balls are fed into the top of the reactor to refresh the older ones ejected from the bottom. Each pebble remains in the core for around three years and circulated through up to six times to achieve full burnup. Helium is cycled through the reactor to extract the heat into a steam generator.

    The company says its Triso fuel pebbles, which each contain 18,000 particles of uranium, are coated in layers of carbon that will prevent the release of more than 99.99% of fission byproducts. X-energy says the fuel is its own containment vessel so will eliminate the need for large containment facilities and shrink the safety perimeters required around nuclear facilities. The US Department of Energy (DoE) says the technology would allow the plant to be constructed within 500 m of factories or urban areas. 

DARPA is working on the next leap forward in energy distribution by leveraging wireless power beaming to create a dynamic, adaptive, speed of light wireless energy web. The goal of the Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay (POWER) program is to design and demonstrate airborne optical energy relays. These relays are a critical component necessary to allow ground-sourced lasers to be coupled with high-altitude, efficient long-range transmission. Additionally, such relays will enable future multi-path wireless energy networks.

Not the broadcast power on which Tesla worked, but still cool.

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2 comments:

  1. John WilderNovember 1, 2022 at 11:02 AM

    Interesting that the Sahara dunes was recommended to both of us at the same time.

    ReplyDelete

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