February 13, 2017 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

"Conservatism is the NEW Counter-Culture"--

Paul Joseph Watson (8 min.)

Firearms/Prepping:

• "Atibal XP8 Review: Budget Done Right!"--The New Rifleman. The author reviews Atibal's new 1-8x illuminated reticle scope and likes what he sees. Which makes me think I jumped in too early on an AR telescopic sight ... but you gotta jump in at some time.
• "The Fallacy of Reviews – Sample Size of One"--The Firearms Blog. The author writes to remind readers that a single review may not paint an accurate picture of a firearm. He gives as an example the Military Arms Channel's recent negative review of the new Remington RP9. After other glowing reviews came out, the Military Arms Channel got hold of another exemplar and found that the handgun was not that bad after all. The moral of the story:

Always get additional opinions. Reviews of guns are only on a single gun and may not reflect the performance of the platform.  A bad review does not mean the firearm is bad or that the article is truthful as it is a bad review. Don’t just latch onto the first or most boisterous opinion you find. Spend the time, do the research, and make informed choices.

• Speaking of which: "Gun Review: SIG SAUER P320 RX Compact"--Nick Leghorn at The Truth About Guns. This is the model that ships with a small reflex sight installed. Leghorn's basic determination was that the firearm (with reflex sight installed) was too big and bulky for concealed carry.
• "Survival Saturday: Successful Prepping in an Urban Environment"--The Truth About Knives. Some basic points made by the author: (1) don't brag about your preparations; (2) be careful what you wear (i.e., don't go full camo) but try to be the "grey man"; (3) get to know your city; (4) don't make your BOB too heavy to carry; (5) don't trust anyone; (6) in line with what he said earlier, don't wear tactical gear; (7) have several bug-out locations (and, I would add, multiple routes); and (8) make water your number 1 priority.
• "How I Feel About the Colt M1911 Handgun"--Nathaniel F. has penned a sarcastic piece about the 1911's continued relevance. Basically, why go with a 100 year old design? I guess my comment is that many of our firearms designs (or elements thereof) are equally as old: it is primarily the quality of the parts (mostly due to CNC machining) and materials that distinguish modern firearms from older designs--so why not? I have a WWII era 1911A1, and it probably would not be my first choice in a defensive handgun because it doesn't reliably feed hollowpoint bullets (although the Ruger ARX does fine), its heavy, and the sights are small and hard to see. However, it would do; and a newer version would do better. 
• "Budget Bushcraft Gear: Finnish Army Wool Jacket and Pants"--Rocky Mountain Bushcraft. A review of some surplus Finnish wool pants and jacket available from Barre Army Navy Store for very reasonable prices--the whole set is less than what I recently paid just for a run-of-the-mill wool jacket. The author notes that the wool is thinner--more a 3 season thickness--but should be fine for 4-season wear if layered. 
• "‘The Walking Dead’ Is A Defense Of Gun Ownership"--The Federalist. I don't watch The Walking Dead, but the author does and thinks that this recent season is an excellent argument for gun ownership. Key point:

The right to self-defense is God-given, natural, visceral, and as entwined with our humanity as breathing, eating, sleeping, or even love itself. So naturally, in their never-ending quest for power and dominance, liberals and would-be tyrants find it necessary upon seizing power to remove the right of their subjects to defend themselves and others. After all, why would individuals matter when the state is supreme? Really, shouldn’t we worry less about our own pathetic lives and get busy finding the state more “sh-t?”

The Swamp Fights Back:

• "The Spy Revolt Against Trump Begins"--Observer. Senior officials with the CIA and NSA don't want to provide sensitive intelligence to the National Security Council or the President. Supposedly (and in line with the current Deep State narrative) this is because they don't trust the President or Michael Flynn from releasing this information to the Russians. IMHO, if they don't want to do their job, they should be fired.
• "Boo-Hoo: 'Civil Servants' Upset by Arrival of Trump"--Michael Walsh at PJ Media.

Other Stuff:

• "Criminals Begin To Turn K – Cartels Shooting At Border Patrol"--Anonymous Conservative. The article that the Anonymous Conservative cites concerns an incident where U.S. Border Patrol agents tried to stop a vehicle attempting to flee back into Mexico. In doing so, they came under fire from the Mexican side of the border. The point I want to raise, however, is that Anonymous Conservative, in this case as well as others, suggests that the behavior was the result of drug traffickers shifting to a K-select behavior. Perhaps I misunderstand his point, but I don't see this as a sign of a shift to K-select behavior, but the desperation of an r-select individual: the metaphorical cornered rat. The impatience, thrill-seeking, impulsivity that are the hallmarks of the r-selected individual are the same behavioral patterns that produce criminal conduct, including violence. They are not K-select individuals, but just violent r's.
• "Angela Merkel Will Expel Asylum Seekers From Germany As Support For Muslim Migrants Collapses"--Heatstreet. I'll believe it when I see it. Especially since a recently leaked report indicates that Herr Merkel wants to import 14 million refugees over the next several decades. The excuse is the need to boost the population and bring in workers--at the same time we are being told that we face the imminent risk of having workers replaced by robots and AIs. Elon Musk is even claiming that we have to become symbiotic with AIs to even remain relevant. So no need to import a bunch of new workers, I would think.
• "GERMANY IN CHAOS: Reports of series of arsons while refugee centre also goes up in flames"--Express. Not sure how this got through the censors, but the article reports that "migrants have been accused of starting a series of fires across Germany in a series of destructive arson attacks."
• A conflict of interest: A California State Senator who supports making California a sanctuary state has admitted that half of his family are under deportation threat.
• "IBM To Train 25 Million Africans For Free To Build Workforce"--Blacklisted News. According to the article, to keep technical jobs from continuing to be outsourced to India, IBM "will be providing a free cloud-based learning platform able to train people from basic computer skills to high-end app development" to Africans. So why can't they do that here in the U.S.?
• "Not So Fast, UN: The US Owes No 'Reparations' to Blacks"--American Thinker. I think it is the other way around.
• "China Has A Bird Flu Virus Accelerating"--Anonymous Conservative. He cites a couple articles indicating that not only does China have a spreading contagion of H7N9 avian flu, but the lethality jumped by 50% in just one month. Caveat: we are still talking about small numbers of people that have gotten sick (less than 100 according to the numbers in the articles), so its not time to go into panic mode or anything. Just be aware that it is percolating around out there.
• A reminder that we live in the 21st Century: "Drone Attack Swarms Take Off From F-16"--Scout.com. The next iteration of aircraft carrier.