September 26, 2016 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

Source: "The ghosts of Asia's financial collapse: Mansions destined to belong to the super-rich lie abandoned in Bangkok following 1997 banking disaster"--Daily Mail. Not entirely abandoned--the article notes that squatters live in some of the mansions.

• "Self Defense as a Motorist in a Riotous Attack"--The Truth About Guns. The author of this piece has embedded a video showing some of the rioters in Charlotte attacking people in vehicles. He goes on to discuss Glenn Reynolds comments about driving through a crowd (and the blow-back Reynolds has received--hopefully Reynolds has read Vox Day's book SJW's Always Lie which discusses how to protect yourself against the thought police). Finally, he suggests a couple of articles on the topic from a criminal defense attorney and Greg Ellifritz. Although he does not mention this humble blog, I would note that I recently posted on this topic, quoting from Mas Ayoob's discussion of this topic in one of his books.
• "Equipping and Training: 4 Tips for Getting Good With Your Concealed Carry Weapon"--PJ Media. Basic considerations: (1) buy a good gun and one that is right for you in terms of how accurately you can shoot it (not necessarily what is least expensive or biggest caliber); (2) spend time at the range training/practicing; (3) buy snap caps and practice on loading/unloading your firearm (and, I would add, drawing and reholstering); and (4) move your practice from simple to more complex situations, including drawing and shooting from different positions.'
• "Hillary Clinton: We Cannot End Terrorism Without Gun Control"--Breitbart. 
• Pension Problems:

• "Dallas police in crisis as dozens of officers suddenly retire early so they can get their pensions before the fund runs out"--Daily Mail. According to the article, "[e]ven the Chief of Police David Brown has handed in his notice and will retire early next month after the long-term viability of the pot was damaged by high-risk investments."

• "Oregon Can’t Postpone Judgment Day Forever"--American Interest. According to the article, Oregon has $22 billion in unfunded pension debt, and is facing an $855 million budget hit after the Oregon Supreme Court struck down proposed pension reforms. 

• "October surprise: Could Russia ties doom Trump's candidacy?"--The Hill. From the article:

GOP nominee Donald Trump and Republicans might be counting on an "October surprise" of embarrassing material about Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton obtained through Russian espionage against the Democratic Party, but what if the real October surprise is public disclosure of, or intelligence leaks about, the true extent of Russian espionage and, very possibly, possible Russian or pro-Russian Ukrainian financial relationships that could be a game-ending disaster for the Trump campaign?

Glenn Reynolds goes further, after noting an article about an investigation into ties between a Trump adviser and the Kremlin, and wonders if the Democrats (via the FBI) end October by indicting Trump and a bunch of his staff. I think I could safely predict that such an action would cause some social unrest. Would the Democrats (and Republican) establishment go this far? Maybe. As the Anonymous Conservative so ably states: "I have to think if this continues as it could, it would almost require some sort of countermeasure deployed by the elites, be it election hacking, or something more serious. I cannot imagine that they will surrender their power on some quaint principle like respect for the American electoral system."

• Related (somewhat): "They Had to Improve It"--Richard Fernandez. He writes:

Nick Cohen warns in the Guardian that the "new elite" for so long unchallenged is now facing its self-generated Nemesis: "the often demagogic and always deceitful nationalism ... of Donald Trump, Marine Le Pen and Vladimir Putin." He explains that while part of the blame must lie with orthodox leftists "who respond to the challenge of argument by screaming for the police to arrest the politically incorrect or for universities to ban speakers," things have gone altogether too far in the other direction to ignore. "Only true liberalism can thwart the demagogues" now he writes. Otherwise the upstarts might gain power and treat the globalist elites exactly the way they treated others. 

The strategy of "by any means necessary" appeals to the militants confident they possess the truth and are on the "right side of history." For them the rules are made to be broken. They could cheat because history gave them license to. "By any means necessary is a translation of a phrase used by the French intellectual Jean-Paul Sartre in his play Dirty Hands. It entered the popular civil rights culture through a speech given by Malcolm X at the Organization of Afro-American Unity Founding Rally on June 28, 1964. It is generally considered to leave open all available tactics for the desired ends, including violence."

The problem is that the strategy works when only one side employs it. When both sides employ it equally, they become locked in a race to the bottom. ...

• "China slowdown is global economy's biggest threat, Rogoff says"--BBC. The article begins: "The former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund has told the BBC a slowdown in China is the greatest threat to the global economy."