Gun & Prepping News #76

Some links that may be of interest:

• "'Head on a Swivel' is Stupid Advice"--Active Response Training. Greg Ellifritz notes that if you are scanning for an active threat, you are already too late. Instead, you need to determine what is the baseline behavior for your environment and then try and spot what is out of place. Also, the constant looking around just makes you look like an easy mark. 
• "Concealed Carry Do's and Don'ts"--Shooting Illustrated. The article begins:

    Carrying a concealed firearm is a serious responsibility that goes beyond simply knowing how to operate the gun. A major component of responsible carry is ensuring the firearm remains concealed. Publicly displaying the firearm, whether through printing (showing the outline of the gun through clothing), accidental exposure or a wardrobe malfunction, can alarm bystanders, attract unwanted attention and, in some jurisdictions, lead to legal consequences.

    One of the most overlooked aspects of concealed carry is the chosen cover garment. While much attention is often given to firearm choice and holster selection, clothing can ultimately determine the success or failure of true concealment. This article outlines four essential checks to perform on concealment garments to reduce the risk of public exposure, along with basic considerations to help prevent such issues and alternative clothing or carry methods that may offer greater reliability.

    Like clockwork, every time I get a new piece of gear, my first thought is: How will this impact my daily carry? These days, I don’t spend much time thinking about holsters. Within seconds of handling a new one, I usually know whether it will work for me or not. Belts are pretty similar, though I still run a quick function test before trusting one for daily use. Where I really spend the most time is with cover garments. A new shirt, a pair of shorts, even different shoes can make me pause and ask: Will this affect my carry or my drawing? To answer that, I use a dedicated practice setup that lets me run function tests before I take anything into the real world.

• "4 Common Locations For Your Pocket Pistol"--Athlon Outdoors. They are: (1) the front pocket, (2) the back pocket (although this is apparently best in jeans), (3) a coat or jacket pocket, and (4) a cargo pocket. As to the latter, the author recommends Chris Fry’s ModuLoader Pocket Shield from Raven Concealment Systems. 
• Not a pocket pistol: "Ruger Security-380 Review: A Reliable .380 Built for Defense"--The Truth About Guns.  This is a larger .380 platform that I would put into the same category as the Beretta 84--a full sized pistol compared to most firearms in .380, but still small enough it could be used for concealed carry. 
• "Ruger LCP Max Problems: What You Need to Know"--Hunting Mark.  The title to this article is stupid. The author did not identify any problem specific to the Ruger LCP Max. Rather it is a list of points applicable to every semi-auto handgun: keep it clean, use the correct ammo, autoloaders can be finicky about ammo, avoid limp wristing, etc. He makes some mention of firing pins breaking, but that issue (from what I could find) was, as the article suggests, from extensive dry firing without using a snap cap; and this is, again, a problem that can crop up with other firearms. I wouldn't have even included the article except that it does go over a lot of issues and points that new gun owners might not think of. 
• "Thoughts on defensive and emergency-use rifles"--Bayou Renaissance Man. Some good advice on training and selecting a rifle. The author, Peter Grant, recommends above all else that you learn to shoot a rifle--his suggestion is to sign up for an Appleseed course and get a .22 "training" rifle. Other points: consider who will be using your rifle; some points on selecting a rifle; a brief discussion on stocking up on ammunition; and a warning about attaching too many accessories.
• "Never Miss Again Part III: Stabilize Your Rifle"--Guns America.  Using bipods, tripods, and shooting bags. 
• "Hi-Point's AR-15 May Surprise You"--Guns & Ammo. From the article/review:

Dubbed the “HP-­15,” Hi-­Point’s foray into the AR-­15 world is available in three main configurations. The three models are an AR-­15 rifle, AR-­15 pistol chambered in 5.56x45mm, and an AR-­15 pistol chambered in .300 Blackout. Multiple camo options are also available, with upgraded furniture. Unlike other Hi-­Point firearms, the HP-­15 is direct-impingement gas operated, consistent with Eugene Stoner’s original intent for the AR-15. Both rifle versions feature carbine-­length gas systems, while the pistol version uses a pistol-­length gas system.      

 The carbine, which was reviewed, seems to be a solid but basic AR-15 and accurate at 100 yards with the scope that the author mounted: "The best group measured just a half inch, while the overall average of five, five-­shot groups with three loads of differing bullet weights was a respectable 1.2 inches."  

• "A Brief History Of Rimfire"--Guns Digest. While today rimfires are synonymous with light, small caliber rounds, it wasn't always that way. The first rimfire does appear to have been the .22 Short in 1860, but these were quickly followed by larger calibers. The article relates, for instance:

In 1860, B. Tyler Henry patented a rimfire repeater with a cartridge called the .44 Henry Flat. By 1865, repeating carbines utilizing .56- and .58-caliber rimfire cartridges like the Sharps and the Spencer outmatched all muzzleloading small arms on the battlefield and helped the North win the Civil War. The U.S. Army reportedly resisted the Spencer rifle, chambered in .56-56 Spencer, but after President Abraham Lincoln shot a Spencer himself in 1863, he insisted a large order get placed. After the war, the Winchester 1866 “yellow boy” in .44 Rimfire went on to win the West—and Winchester the imaginations of shooters everywhere. By 1880, a catalog for Union Metallic Cartridge Company listed 40 rimfire cartridges for sale. Only two were .22s. More than half ranged between the Colt .41 and .58 Joslyn. 

• Some more history: "Gunpowder: Alchemy, Bombards, & Pyrotechnics: History of Explosive that Changed the World"--Ammo Land.  A review of a book of the same title. The author begins:

    Gunpowder by Jack Kelly is the best history on the subject this writer has encountered. It is not a “how to” book, although the essentials of how to make black powder are covered in enough detail that one could do so. The book elaborates on the thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of persons who died while making black powder over the roughly 800 years of its primacy. “Gunpowder” starts with an examination of the long development of the “fire drug” in China, from about 1050 A.D. to 1230 A.D. During this 180-year period, Chinese “fire drug” producers learned to increase the amount of saltpeter to the optimum amount of about 75% of the total by weight, with 15% softwood charcoal and 10% sulfur. The type of wood used for charcoal is critical to the quality of the gunpowder produced.

    The formula for gunpowder was likely transmitted to Europe through the Muslim world. While both Chinese and Muslim cultures had access to the information, it was Europeans who perfected gunpowder to a form that was relatively stable and could be transported across oceans in usable condition. In this form, it was ready to use at a moment’s notice in relatively fast loading, reliable and accurate cannon, and handheld individual weapons. 

• "The Best Free Medical References Available- Updated"--Active Response Training.  Some PDFs and training courses on medical care: everything from "Where There Is No Doctor" to trauma care, to caring for radiological injuries (i.e., caused by nuclear weapons). 
• "Honest Medical Training"--Tactical Wisdom.  The author writes:

I know we all love our T-CCC classes and the coolest of the cool-guy tactical medical classes, but can we talk a little about realistic training for what you are really going to face? Sure, gunshot wounds and explosive trauma are a part of it, but to be fair, it is a VERY small part of the medical skills you actually need. In this we are going to talk about the bare minimum I feel we all need. ...

He recommends taking a basic first aid class (either from the Red Cross or a local college or university) followed with a wilderness first aid class. He also suggests a pet first aid class and learning a bit about holistic medicine. I will note that your experience with a Red Cross class may vary. I attended a Red Cross First Aid class with one of my sons (which he needed for a Merit Badge) and everyone else in attendance were from various businesses who were just there to check a box with no real interest in the class--and the instruction was about the same level. It was only after I insisted (because no one else was interested) that the instructor gave some hands on training to my son on applying bandages. 

• "This Is the Workout That Actually Builds Bone Density"--Self.  An excerpt:

    To support bone density, your routine should include two pillars: weight-bearing (impact) activity and strength training. Dr. Bukata recommends aiming for at least 30 minutes of weight-bearing movement each day—walking, running, dancing, or even climbing stairs all count. “The key is to get up on your feet and move for those 30 minutes,” she says, noting that consistency matters more than doing it all at once.

    Then, layer in resistance training at least two to three times per week. Kelly suggests gradually working toward heavier loads. “Around 70% to 85% of your one-rep max for three to eight reps is a good range for bone stimulus,” she says, or about an 8 to 9 out of 10 effort level. If you’re newer to this style of training, start small and build up. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s progression. 

• "So, How Long Can an Overweight Person Live Without Food?"--Modern Survival Blog. From the article:

An overweight person will live about as long as anyone else when starving, around 8 weeks, maybe 12. Fat can supply calories and some nutrients when starving, but it is not nutritionally complete and will not guarantee survival in the total absence of other food.

 So he's saying I should be okay if I have a multivitamin? Anyway, the bulk of the article (heh!) discusses starvation and goes into more detail about the short conclusion set out above. 

• A couple articles on solar panels from CNET:
• "What Type of Solar Panels Should You Get?" discussing different types of solar panels.
• "This Is How Much Sunlight Your Solar Panel System Needs." Discusses peak sun hours and how to calculate it. Your location is good for solar power if it receives 4 peak sun hours per day. There is also a table that shows peak sun hours per day by state. The entry for Idaho, for instance, indicates peak sun hours as ranging between 3.4 and 4.8, so perhaps marginal depending on what part of the state you live. 

•  "9 Missed Meals From Anarchy"--Modern Survival Blog. The author delves into our food distribution networks and just-in-time inventory systems, and advises that we work on securing our own food supplies:

    Not only do I mean acquiring food, but literally your security thereof. If the worst should ever happen and you’re surrounded by hungry neighbors having missed 9 meals (for the sake of argument), what’s going to happen next? Yes, anarchy and chaos.

    Do your neighbors know that you have stored away a bunch of food for ‘just in case’? Do they have an inclination that you are a ((GASP!)) ‘prepper’? (I rather prefer to say something like, ‘sensibly prepared person’).

    Have you thought about how you might handle the ensuing anarchy? Just remember, loose lips sink ships. Be the ant, not the grasshopper.

    There are a ton of helpful articles on the blog within these categories. Search and read them for ideas of your own.

    Don’t delay. We are living in dangerous times. Secure your food situation. Should nothing ever happen, well, it’s only going to cost more later – so you’ve saved money on what would have been some future food purchases. It’s insurance. And you just might need it. 

• "Stock up Suggestions"--Stop Shouting. It's not just food to worry about in the event of supply chain disruptions. The author of this piece has suggestions based on her actual experience living overseas on stocking up on supplies like medications, supplements, canned protein sources, hygiene supplies, etc.
• "How to Store Onions for Up to 3 Months, According to Our Test Kitchen"--Better Homes & Gardens. The first step is to store them in mesh bag or basket that allows air circulation. Don't wash them. Store in a cool, dark, dry location, but not a refrigerator. Keep them away from apples and potatoes (the onions release a chemical that caused the apples and potatoes to rot). The article also has some tips for specific types of onions. Onions also freeze well. 
• "Half of America’s Cities Are Depopulating. We Could Be Headed for a Ghost Town Era."--Popular Mechanics (via AOL). Cities have always relied on sucking in workers from the countryside, but never to the extreme seen in the modern world. An excerpt:

    A study published in Nature Cities forecasts the behavior of U.S. populations by investigating a variety of trends, data, and models. The results paint a rough picture of the future for cities across the country.

    “We found that, by 2100, close to half of the nearly 30,000 cities in the United States will face some sort of population decline, representing 12-23 percent of the population of these 30,000 cities and 27-44 percent of the populated area,” the authors wrote. “The implications of this massive decline in population will bring unprecedented challenges.” 

VIDEO: Basic Hand And Arm Signals

The video below goes over common or basic hand and arm signals for infantry. It shows the signals as presented in military manuals and then the host demonstrates the signals. 

VIDEO: "INFANTRYMAN'S GUIDE: Basic Hand & Arm Signals"
Brent0331 (13 min.)

An Enemy Hath Done This

I've seen several articles recently about different family members of Iranian elites living in the U.S. while expressing their hatred for the "Great Satan". For instance, a recent piece at Powerline Blog--"Why Are They Here?"--focuses on the sluttily dressed niece of slain Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani who enjoyed the high life in America. But more interesting to me was this observation in the opening line of the article: 

It seems that one can best explain America’s immigration policies with the supposition that they were crafted by our enemies to do as much harm as possible. 

   Our current immigration policy is the result of the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act (aka Hart-Celler Act). As Wikipedia notes, "[t]he law abolished the National Origins Formula, which had been the basis of U.S. immigration policy since the 1920s." "The National Origins Formula had been established in the 1920s to preserve American homogeneity by promoting immigration from Western and Northern Europe" by admitting new immigrants in proportion to their proportion of the population and prohibiting immigration from certain countries. 

    Naturally there were politicians who sponsored the bill that became the Act and those that voted for it. But politicians rarely act on their own initiative. Major bills like that are generally the result of careful planning and years of work by organizations and bodies wanting the change. So who were those organizations? I can't say who were all the organizations and groups behind the 1965 Act, but there is one group that claims primary responsibility--revels in it, even. In their own words from a Jewish Telegraph Agency's 2014 piece by Raffi Wineburg, entitled "From the Archive: Jews welcome the stranger":

    In the 1920s, after decades of relatively loose immigration laws had enabled more than 2 million Eastern European Jews to settle in the U.S., Jews fought an effort to close the gates to the “goldene medina.” The Immigration Act of 1924, a bill advanced by a notoriously racist Republican congressman named Albert Johnson, enacted a quota system that would severely limit Jewish immigration and totally exclude immigrants from Asia.

    Jewish leaders staunchly opposed the bill, with JTA reporting “militant action against” it. The United Hebrew Trades, an association of Jewish labor unions in New York, brought together 136 Jewish organizations in order to “wage a nationwide campaign to defeat” the bill.

    Jewish efforts concerned Johnson, who responding to an inquiry by a JTA correspondent replied coldly: “If the Jewish people combine to defeat the immigration bill as reported by the [Immigration Committee of the House of Representatives], their children will regret it.”

    Nonetheless, the bill passed with ease, and its devastating effects — reducing Jewish immigration from hundreds of thousands annually to less than 15,000 per year — were fully on display in 1939 when refugees, most notably a group of 907 German Jews aboard the S.S. St. Louis, were refused entry.

    The law remained largely intact until the 1952 McCarran-Walter Act, which sought to uphold the previous quota system. The measure was deemed racist and exclusionary.

    Jewish groups condemned the bill. JTA reported that “all major Jewish groups” spoke out against the act, warning that it would “abandon our country’s finest traditions by dropping an iron curtain around our shores.” Despite an executive veto from President Harry Truman, the measure passed overwhelmingly in Congress.

    In 1965, an immigration bill arrived that Jewish groups could support. The Hart-Cellar Act sought to dismantle the quota system in place since 1924 and finally opened the doors to Asian, African and Middle Eastern populations. Although Jews, with Israel available, no longer needed the open doors, major Jewish groups still rushed to support the bill. In a joint statement, seven national Jewish groups, including the American Jewish Congress and the Conservative movement’s United Synagogue of America, called the bill a “long overdue” change to the quota system that had “defaced our immigration policy and mocked our national protestations of equality.”

    Perhaps the most impassioned plea, however, came from a Jewish New York congressman named Leonard Farbstein, who told the House that the act would come too late for the Jews “buried in mass graves at Auschwitz, Dachau and Bergen-Belsen” who were denied U.S. visas.

    But, Farbstein said, the new law would allow those murdered Jews to “rest easier in their graves” because America may now provide an easier haven to refugees. 

And, in this 2019 article from Jewish Currents with the title, "The Jewish Case for Open Borders" author Greg Afinogenov writes:

The policies that Trump supports draw on the same logic as the closed-borders isolationism that led the United States to reject Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust. After World War II, this profound moral crime was addressed with the creation of the refugee asylum system—the very system that Central American migrants invoke as they seek refuge in the United States. 

There is a certain irony that the warning given by Albert Johnson has come to pass as the country is seeing a flood of refugees and immigrants that have brought with them the antisemitism of which the Jews were so afraid.  

RPG Saturday: Gamma World 1st Edition

Last week I linked to a video review of 1st edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D). But my friends and I did not just play AD&D. Not only were we interested in different genres, but the mother of a couple of my friends (who were brothers) had been heavily influenced by the "moral panic" against Dungeons & Dragons and similar fantasy role playing games. Thus, there were times when she would not allow her sons to play TTRPGs that incorporated magic systems. 

One of the alternative RPGs we played was another game from TSR called Gamma World.  This was a post-apocalypse setting well in the far future. The apocalypse itself was to have taken place several centuries in the future thus assuring the opportunity to come across crazed robots, laser rifles and pistols, and other science fiction gear. It was not intended to even remotely be a realistic setting. Mutated creatures and plant life lurked everywhere, and the players could play the role of either pure strain humans or mutants with strange new powers or abilities. 

I had the first edition of the game which came in a box with what I consider one of the most intriguing cover art of any post-apocalypse game, showing a small group of explorers with lasers or blasters of some sort and other high-tech gear reconnoitering the ruins of a large city. The box set included a rather thin rule book compared to modern RPGs, a poster sized map, and miscellaneous advertising material for TSR products. I do not remember it coming with any dice, but I may be wrong.   

The game did not describe any particular location where it took place, but the map included in the box set was of the continental United States region, although the coastlines were different (apparently the ice caps had melted flooding many areas) and marking off mountains and some of the large cities. 

The first video below is a review of the first edition Gamma World, but also mentions some aspects of the second edition which I understand was not too different from the first edition. Subsequent editions had major changes to the rules with each edition. 

As the video mentions, the game is available through Drive Thru RPG in PDF, a softcover print on demand book, or a combo with both the PDF and the printed book. I unfortunately had gotten rid of my boxed set long ago, but I did pick up the print on demand copy which, to be honest, is actually better quality than the original rule book. The cover is the color art from the box and it includes the map as a two page spread in the back of the book. 

The second video below is a tutorial that covers creating a character for 1st edition Gamma World thereby necessarily giving a bit more detail on some of the rules. 

 VIDEO: "Classic TSR Game Review: Gamma World"
captcorajus (RPG Retro Reviews) (17 min.)

VIDEO: "Let's Make A Gamma World 1st Edition Character"
zigmenthotep (21 min.)

The DIGNIDAD Act of 2025 Is Just A Re-Run Of The 1986 Immigration Act

The Library of Congress has a brief summary of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA). 

    Congress enacted the Immigration Reform and Control Act (also known as the Simpson-Mazzoli Act or the Reagan Amnesty) and President Ronald Reagan signed it into law in November 1986. This act introduced civil and criminal penalties to employers who knowingly hired undocumented immigrants or individuals unauthorized to work in the U.S. However, the act also offered legalization, which led to lawful permanent residence (LPR) and prospective naturalization to undocumented migrants, who entered the country prior to 1982. Farm workers who could validate at least ninety days of employment also qualified for lawful permanent residency.

    U.S. law required qualified applicants, who had continuously resided in the U.S. since 1982, to apply within a one-year window, from May 1987 to May 1988, pay a fee, and provide extensive documentation, which included fingerprints, employment history, proof of continuous residency, and other documents. After 1986, U.S. law required hired employees to demonstrate work eligibility by filling out an I-9 form and submitting certifications of citizenship or work authorization. Applicants also had to complete interviews and medical examinations. Employers who failed to document 1-9 forms upon inspection were charged with warnings, fines, or criminal proceedings. The General Accounting Office (GAO) was also established to investigate employer discrimination against authorized immigrant workers.

    An estimated 3 million individuals—mostly of Hispanic descent—gained legal status through IRCA, securing economic and social opportunities as legal residents of the United States and gaining protection from deportation. In an effort to halt unlawful crossings and unauthorized workers, the IRCA also approved increased border security resources, including higher budgets for the Border Patrol and the Department of Labor. 

The basic idea behind the IRCA was to use a carrot and stick approach to immigration by (supposedly) increasing border security and punishing employers who hired illegal aliens, but also giving illegal aliens that had resided in the United States a pathway to citizenship.  It was sold to the public with the promise that it would largely eliminate illegal immigration. We know how well that worked out.

    But here we are in 2026 and certain RINOs are at it again.  Sponsored by Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla. and Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., among others, the bill would increase border security, expand E-Verify to all employers, and grant legal status to illegals that had been here since January 1, 2021, or been brought into the country as children. There are a lot of other goodies for the Democrats and big business, such as making it easier for foreigners with STEM degrees to get work visas, raise per-country visa caps, speed up the processing of the green cards, and throw a bunch of money at various government departments. In other words, it is a reboot of the 1986 law but more expensive. 

    And this is on top of the Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act (H.R. 5494), introduced by Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA) in September 2025, which would create a new H-2C visa program to import more foreign construction workers to further enrich the large contractors and provide another backdoor for permanent immigration. 

    Trump was elected on the promise of mass deportation and controlling immigration. If the Dignidad Act passes and is signed into law, the Republicans WILL lose control of Congress. Perhaps they would have lost anyway, but this would guarantee it. 

Sources:

• "1986: Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986"--Library of Congress. 
• "Yes, the ‘DIGNIDAD Act’ Grants Amnesty; Why Do 20 GOP Lawmakers Support It?"--Legal Insurrection.
• "The DIGNIDAD (Dignity) Act as ‘Rage Bait’ for Those Who Want More Enforcement"--Center for Immigration Studies.  
• "The DIGNIDAD (Dignity) Act of 2025 Seeks to Transform U.S. Immigration"--Inside Business Immigration. 
• "Worst Thing GOP Could Do For Midterms Is Embrace Amnesty, So Of Course They’re Doing That"--The Federalist.  
• "Bipartisan push in U.S. House to create new visa program, help home builders who rely on immigrant workers"--The Hill.  

Weekend Reading #51

 Some longer and more involved reading for weekend:

• First up is Greg Ellifritz's Weekend Knowledge Dump for this weekend. He links and offers some brief commentary to some great resources. Here are some that caught my attention in particular:
• A "crash course" in self-defense from Art of Manliness, which goes over some basic self-defense concepts.
• In that vein, a link to a piece that discusses the differences between how men and women are attacked. Basically, women tend to be grabbed and dragged, and violence against them can often turn into a sexual assault, whereas men are likely to be victims of "social" violence. He has some other points as well.
• And a link from Recoil Magazine discussing what criminals look for when trying to determine who to attack: things like gate, posture, age, sex, fitness, etc. Basically, traits that would identify a weak and easily intimidated target versus one more likely to fight back.
• An interesting review of a couple of common .380 ACP defensive rounds (Hydra-Shok and Critical Defense) against a meat target where the meat target was bare, had medium clothing layers, and heavy clothing layers. All rounds were fired from a KelTek P38T which is probably one of the smallest .380 pistols available. Expansion was uniformly good against the bare target, but clothing had a tremendous impact on expansion with both rounds. 
• A link to Issue 24 of Armed Lifestyle magazine. The magazine includes a number of articles including one on the importance of dry fire, another on situational awareness for runners, and even one on pirates!
• And an article from Outdoor Life on the last interview of Buffalo Bill Cody. One of the interesting insights, which Greg excerpts, is how Wild Bill Hickok was able to win his gun fights despite being, in Cody's opinion, a mediocre gun fighter: once Hickok determined he was going to shoot a man he was cool, calm, and didn't hesitate. 
• John Wilder discusses Lent in his post: "In Which I Discuss What Mustard, Ramen, Historical Timekeeping, Fasting, And Booze Have In Common." He did the fasting and praying and it helped: he says he went down a size on his waistline and he feels closer to God. And reading his article, I learned more about Lent and Ash Wednesday than I knew before. 
• Digging through old bookmarks, I happened across one for this article from Aish: "Jews and Booze: The Fascinating History of Jews and Alcohol." It begins with how Jews in Eastern Europe came to dominate the alcohol trade--particular in running taverns--how that fell apart, and their subsequently taking a substantial role in the organized crime and smuggling of alcohol during prohibition. An excerpt:

    While the vast majority of Jews had nothing to do with organized crime or bootlegging, Jewish mobsters played a disproportionately large role in the illegal alcohol business. The most prominent Jew in the bootlegging business was an Eastern European immigrant named Meyer Lansky who had teamed up with the Italian American mobster Charles “Lucky” Luciano to develop the National Crime Syndicate in the U.S.

    Across the border in Canada the production and sale of alcohol was completely legal, and Lansky saw this as a great source of booze for the American market. His number one supplier in Canada was Sam Bronfman. The Bronfman family, also from Eastern Europe, had immigrated to Montreal and acquired the Canadian Seagram’s Distillery Company in the early 1920’s. Sam Bronfman turned Seagram into a very profitable enterprise in no small part due to prohibition.

    The challenge for Lansky was how to smuggle the alcohol into America. The safest route was by water, across Lake Erie, the smallest of the Great Lakes, located on the border between the U.S. and Canada. So much booze was smuggled across that lake by Bronfman to Lansky that it was nicknamed “the Jewish Lake.”

    There were also a number of exemptions to the prohibition of the sale of alcohol. One of them was for sacramental or religious reasons. Because sacramental wine could be legally distributed through synagogues, many congregations reported massive increases, up to tenfold, in membership during prohibition and there were even cases of non-Jews establishing “Jewish congregations” for the same purpose! 

•  And speaking of organized crime: "How a Botched Contract Killing Exposed Freemason 'Mafia' Network Inside French Secret Society as Murder Trial Begins for 22 Accused"--People. The article begins:

    A trial is underway in France for 22 individuals who officials allege ordered or carried out crimes for a group of Freemasons living in a suburb of Paris.

    The group is accused of mafia-like dealings, ordering hit squads to vanquish rivals and allegedly killing one individual.

    This was all exposed when two individuals allegedly contracted to carry out a murder were arrested outside their target's home, according to Le Monde, France 24 and Radio France Internationale.

    The men at the center of the scandal are all members of the Athanor Freemasons, a former sect of the Grande Loge de l'Alliance Maçonnique Française that was closed in 2021 after these crimes came to light. 

• And now for something completely different: "America’s First UFO Sighting"--History.com. Recorded on March 1, 1639, by John Winthrop. It also discusses another recorded sighting several years later in 1644.

Amazon Bricking Older Kindles

The New York Post reports that as of May 20, 2026, Amazon is stopping support for older Kindle and Kindle Fire readers including downloading new content from a Kindle library or registering the devices. The affected devices include:

•  Kindle 1st Generation (2007) and 2nd Generation (2009), Kindle DX (2009) and DX Graphite (2010), Kindle Keyboard (2010), Kindle 4 (2011), Kindle Touch (2011), Kindle 5 (2012), and Kindle Paperwhite 1st Generation (2012).
• The Kindle Fire 1st Gen (2011), Kindle Fire 2nd Gen (2012), Kindle Fire HD 7 (2012), Kindle Fire HD 8.9 (2012).  

Per the article, you will still be able to use the devices, but only with what has been downloaded onto the device. Amazon has also warned that if you restore a device to factory settings, you will not be able to register the device. 

Why 10.5-Inches For .300 Blackout

 From "Why I Chose a 10.5” Barrel for My 300 Blackout Build" by Scott Witner:

When chambering supersonic loads, 300 BLK produces more than 1,153 ft-lbs of energy at 10.5″, while 5.56 NATO’s M193 load produces 1,161 ft-lbs in a 16″ barrel.

Also:

... with a 10.5″ barrel, the subsonic round’s dwell time is sufficient to cycle the bolt without the need for an adjustable gas block. At this barrel length, supersonic rounds don’t produce too much felt recoil with a fixed gas block; the gun is neither over- nor under-gassed.

If you’re running both supersonic and subsonic loads, especially suppressed, 10.5″ gives you the gas dwell time to cycle reliably without adding the complexity (and cost) of an adjustable gas block.    

And from "Mike" in the comments:

Here’s the “why” that Scott didn’t cover: in a 125gr super, all the powder is burnt by 9 inches of barrel travel. In 5.56 NATO it’s something like 18 inches. This is a joint result of both the power charge and of the diameter of the flight channel on that caliber. Consumer .223 is usually burnt in 16.

In a 10.5 inch barrel, 300BLK is done burning sauce before the exit, and on Subs, the fire is out about the time she passes the gas port. This is why 10.5 is the optimal full flexibility barrel length on 300BLK      

When I built my .300 Blackout pistol--which was only ever intended for supersonic ammo--I used a 9-inch barrel because that was the point of full powder burn. But I noted that it was just a tad too long to fit inside your standard day pack/book bag. If I were to do it over again, I think I would go with a 7.5-inch barrel for the additional compactness it would offer. 

    As for 7.5-inch, the author relates:

A 7.5″ barrel has traditionally not met the definition of “optimal” for 300 Blackout. The supersonic load loses nearly 20% of its muzzle velocity at that length, while the 190-grain subsonic load loses 10%. Only the heaviest subsonic loads (220-grain) approach nominal velocity at 7.5″, losing around 6.7%.

I think the loss in muzzle velocity would be worth it being more easily stored or packed around in a vehicle.  

British Newscaster Lays Out The New American International Order

 A couple weeks ago I posted about "The New American Based International Order," presenting an interpretation of Trump's actions by someone calling themselves 10Δ. Now a British newscaster has said essentially the same thing, as noted by M.A. Rothman on X (along with a video of the newscaster's comments) (emphasis in original):

    GB News’ Alex Armstrong laid out the geopolitical map that American media refuses to draw: this war isn’t about toppling Iran. It’s about 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 — and America is winning on every front. 

    Start with oil. The Strait of Hormuz carries 𝟒𝟓% 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐚’𝐬 𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲. Trump effectively captured Venezuela’s oil supply in January. As Armstrong put it: “𝘓𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘸𝘩𝘰’𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘯. 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴.” China is in the middle of a tariff negotiation with Trump — and suddenly its entire energy supply depends on American goodwill. 

    Then Europe. With Russian energy off the table and domestic energy hollowed out by the “𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘣𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘯𝘦𝘵 𝘻𝘦𝘳𝘰,” Europe is becoming 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐚𝐬. Armstrong: “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘨𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘰.” 

    Armstrong connected the dots to what the Pentagon calls 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚 — Greenland through the Panama Canal, the entire Western Hemisphere secured as a self-sufficient American economic and security zone. “𝘕𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘯𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴, 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥, 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦-𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘯. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢.”  

This is the new petro dollar. But the Democrats will throw it away in a day because they are traitors that have more loyalty to foreigners than to the United States. 

    Reading this, though, I am reminded of Edger Rice Burroughs' 1915 book, The Lost Continent (aka Beyond Thirty), the story of a small group of Americans that by misfortune arrive in a post-apocalypse England decades after the U.S. lost contact with Europe following the Great War. In the book, the United States had not intervened in the war and the length and brutality of the war had reduced Europe to a new state of barbarism. The title "Beyond Thirty" refers to the fact (in the book) that the Americas had forbidden travel beyond the 30th Parallel. 

Of Course: Minneapolis To Overturn Gay Bathhouse Ban To Appease Somalis

I'd seen a few headlines on this topic but passed them over until seeing this at ZeroHedge: "Minneapolis Pushes To Legalize Sex Bath-Houses For Gay Somali Immigrants." The ban had been enacted with the support of the LGBT community in the 1980s to combat the spread of AIDS, but "[a]ctivists now claim the rules disproportionately harmed same-sex partnerships and people with HIV/AIDS while driving gatherings into unsafe private spaces." I'm not a doctor, but I'm pretty sure that viruses don't care where it happens. The real question is whether the inevitable explosion in STDs will provide yet another way for Somalis to rip off American taxpayers.