Engaging In Thoughtcrime

• "Researchers say Amazon face-detection technology shows bias"--Japan Today. Another case of "racist" AIs. Funny part: "The researchers said that in their tests, Amazon's technology labeled darker-skinned women as men 31 percent of the time."
• "The Yellow Vests Noticed"--The American Conservative. Among the criticisms of our political, corporate and entertainment elites is one I've raised before:

Silence on how the H-1B visas transformed the field of IT, the field that was sold to Americans as a chance to have a middle-class lifestyle as manufacturing plants were shut down. What happened? Nearly 30 years of the H-1B program being used to avoid hiring American workers, crush the wages of the Americans they were employing, the virtual hostage-taking of their American workers by threatening them with unemployment if they protested against the 80-90 hour work weeks demanded of them, and then told they were racists not standing in solidarity with their immigrant co-workers if they had any complaints.

• More Chinese innovation: "Another Apple Engineer Accused of Stealing Autonomous Vehicle Trade Secrets"--NBC Bay Area. "For the second time in six months, the FBI is accusing a Chinese national [Jizhong Chen] working for Apple of attempting to steal trade secrets related to the company’s secret autonomous vehicle program[.]"
• "AMAZINGLY, ECONOMY DIDN’T CARE ABOUT 'SHUTDOWN'"--Powerline Blog.
• "The White Man’s Burden: Reflections on the Custodial State"--Fred On Everything. He writes:

      The hostility to genetics [research] springs entirely  from the fear that Mr. Watson will be proved right–that it will show blacks to be less intelligent than whites.  Of course the politically correct don’t really believe in the intellectual equality of the races. If they did, they would welcome genetic research as a way of establishing the equality. You do not fear investigation unless you suspect it will give the wrong answer.

      A similar though smaller gap is suspected between whites and Latinos. For this there is evidence,and counterevidence. A gap seems to exist between whites and various Asians. We shall see. But the black-white gap is the bombshell. Here the evidence is overwhelming, and there is no counterevidence. Thus the furious repression.

       That intelligence is genetic should be obvious regardless of technical knowledge. ... If intelligence were cultural as we are obliged to say, almost on pain of death, all the children who grew up in Isaac Newton’s neighborhood would have been towering mathematical geniuses. Were they?

       A dread question: Is it not now obvious, has it not been obvious for a very long time, that blacks cannot function in a technological society? A few, yes. Most, no. This is the case worldwide. Low intelligence, perhaps accompanied by poor impulse control, explains well the urban chaos, the crime, the poverty. 

       We are accustomed now to the intractable gap between blacks and whites.  The gap appears on all tests of cognitive capacity and academic achievement: all of the IQ tests, the SATs, GREs, MCATs, LSATs, ACT, National Merit, AFQT, and others. This is so predictable as to make the value of pi seem capricious.  ...

       Yearly the horrible news pours from the schools.  The results of Maryland’s state test of academic achievement are typical. In 2017 in Baltimore there were thirteen high schools in which not a single student tested proficient in math. Customarily this is blamed on poor schools, but every aspect of the Baltimore system, from the mayor to the students is controlled by blacks, and the per-student expenditure is high. Similar results from other cities–Detroit, Chicago–are common, normal, expected.

     A question no one asks, at least not out loud: To what extent are blacks dependent on the charity of whites? What would happen if all public assistance, all programs specifically or de facto for blacks were withdrawn?

• Shades of r/K: "The End of Democracy"--Anatomically Correct Banana. The author observes:

Racial identity (for all but whites), and its hostilities, are on the rise in American politics, unsurprising when you consider Finnish researcher Tatu Vanhanen’s findings of a correlation of .726 between conflict and the degree of diversity in a given area. Consider that on the first day of Democrat control of the House of Representatives, we were treated to the following by their party members: a comparison of President Trump to Adolf Hitler by Representative Hank Johnson; a pledge by Representative Rashida Tlaib that, “We’re gonna impeach the motherfucker”; an introduction of the articles of impeachment against Trump by Representative Brad Sherman; an introduction of a bill to grant Washington, DC (which went 90.8% for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election, 5.1% for various independent candidates, and 4.1% for Donald Trump) statehood by Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton; and the introduction of a bill to abolish the electoral college by Representative Steve Cohen. For those keeping score at home, Johnson is black, Tlaib is a Palestinian-Moslem, Sherman is Jewish, Norton is black, and Cohen is Jewish. Not long after, a bill to abolish ICE was introduced by House Democrats Adriano Espaillat (Dominican), Pramila Jayapal (Indian), and Mark Pocan (gay Jew).

• "Sources of group differences"--West Hunter.

Could genetic differences have an effect on the flavor of culture in different populations?  Well, even allowing for differences in intelligence: sure.  Identical twins like the same things, pick similar clothes,   read similar authors:  genetically different populations could and must have different tastes and preferences, on average.

• "Biogeographic Ancestry, Cognitive Ability and Socioeconomic Outcomes" by Emil O. W. Kirkegaard, et al., in the journal Psych. From the abstract: "In regression models using four different codings for SIRE [self-identified racial/ethnic group] as a covariate, we found incremental relationships between genetic ancestry and both general cognitive ability and parental socioeconomic status (SES)." And the key graphic:

Figure 3. Association between European ancestry and cognitive ability (z score) in the African American (Standard) SIRE Group.

• "Academia’s Case of Stockholm Syndrome"--Quillette. Excerpt:

       A far cry from its ostensible scholarly mission, academia today resembles “a priesthood or a guild” or even a “cult“, with peer review serving an essential administrative need in a system of promotion, tenure, funding, and accolades designed to maintain the established order. Under this model, political posturing and bogus theorizing have become indistinguishable from scholarship in some fields. Identity politics and demagoguery have even infected mathematics, as seen in the recent saga of Ted Hill’s twice accepted, once published, and twice rescinded article on the Greater Male Variability Hypothesis. In health-related disciplines, with big money at stake, conflicts of interest dictate which results are reported, and what stays in the file drawer. In our own field, small cliques monopolize the flagship journals, as nearly half of all articles published in The Annals of Statistics are authored by a member of its own editorial board.

       Even ignoring the subversiveness and pettiness that current norms enable, this system fails in its major promise to ensure the quality of published literature. It is widely believed that most published scientific findings are false: a recent analysis successfully replicated only 61 percent of social science findings published in Science and Nature, and an earlier study replicated just 39 percent of findings from top psychology journals. Scientists who were once celebrated have become maligned amidst allegations of fraud or shoddy scholarship. Meanwhile, thoughtful, potentially transformative ideas struggle to see the light of day, as chronicled in Francis Perey’s four-decade quest to publish foundational work on probability theory. On top of these well-publicized incidents, individual researchers privately trade stories about their own experiences with discrimination, incompetence, and obfuscation in their respective disciplines.

Some Inconvenient Facts

An article at PJ Media, entitled "Record Cold Forces Rethink on Global Warming," cites a quote from English biologist Thomas Huxley from over a century ago: "The great tragedy of science -- the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact." So, lets look at some of what is going on:

A frozen walkway along Lake Michigan in Chicago (source)

• "One of the coldest spells in HISTORY wreaks havoc across the Midwest where rail tracks are set alight to keep trains moving and people are warned to 'avoid taking deep breaths' in -70 wind chill"--Daily Mail. The article indicates that "Plummeting temperatures in Chicago have forecasters predicting that the city will be colder than parts of Alaska, the North Pole and Antarctica," and that the cold will only get worse as the week continues.
• "‘It Is Getting Cold, Fast’: Thousands In Twin Cities Lost Power In Dangerous Cold"--CBS Minnesota. At the peak of the outage, 8,000 residents were affected. Do you have a backup heating plan? I have a fireplace and large kerosene heater ... and I've had to use them in the past when our furnace went down or we've lost power during the winter. 
• "USPS suspends mail delivery in NINE states as a deadly deep freeze hits the Midwest and officials warn the extreme temperatures pose a life-threatening public health risk"--Daily Mail. 

January 29, 2019 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

"Is Your Grip Why You Miss? | Shooting Low Left?"--Geauga Firearms Academy (15 min.)

• A new Woodpile Report. 
• Jon Low at Defensive Pistol Craft published his monthly roundup last week. Check it out.
• "6 PISTOL READY POSITIONS YOU'D BETTER KNOW"--Wide Open Spaces. The author begins by explaining:

        Ready positions are methods of holding the gun to maintain safe muzzle awareness before and after engaging a square range target or a deadly force attack. Square range etiquette and real world problem solving drive the two schools of thought on pistol ready positions. For the most part, deadly force encounters don't happen at the artificial training environment of the shooting range.

       There are dozens of ready positions that go by dozens of different names. Having an understanding of a few of the basic positions provides a foundation of safe gun handling options for real world problem solving.

She then goes on to explain and illustrate through photographs the different positions: (1) Position Sul; (2) traditional low ready; (3) modified low ready; (4) high ready; (5) compressed ready; and (6) temple index.

• "Why Do We Teach: “Sul” Position"--Cutting Edge Training. The author explains that the Sul position is not and was not intended as a combat ready position. 

        “Sul” is Portugese for “south,” and was originally developed in Brazil.  The original intent was to provide a safer way to move with a handgun in-hand through a crowd or past a person without muzzling anyone. 

       How it works:  From a practical ready position with the handgun in a one- or two-hand hold, muzzle directed toward the threat area, the Sul is performed by bringing the weapon to the torso with the muzzle directed downward, or south, and pointed off to the side of the support-hand’s leg (if in the right-hand, the muzzle is directed down and just to the side of the left-leg).  As the muzzle moves downward into the Sul, the support-hand either comes off the grip and flattens naturally, palm down on the torso (ready to quickly move into a two-hand grip), or it comes up over the weapon, covering it.

        The support-hand is available to reach out and grab a subject if the situation demands (never the first choice with a firearm in-hand, but being forced to go hands-on with a threatening or resistive subject happens far too often to be ignored or simply dismissed by saying, “Never touch anyone with a gun in your hand”).  Your support-hand may reach out and touch a person you are moving past, ensuring you know their position, to let him know you are moving past, and making sure he doesn’t move unexpectedly.

       If moving through a crowd, the weapon moves into a safer muzzle position against the body, and the support-hand moves to cover the weapon as the first line of defense against weapon retention threats.  The support-hand comes off the handgun as needed to guide others, creating a path to quickly move through the crowd while still having the handgun in-hand.  As quickly as the support-hand moves from the weapon to reach out, it comes back, covering the weapon as the shooter continues to move. 

      When the shooter is past the individual or through the crowd, the muzzle comes up and the weapon again floats away from the mid-torso, pointing wherever the shooter needs it for quick response to imminent threat.  

Position Sul (source)

• "Position SUL Revisited" by Ron Yanor. The author discusses some things he sees in training that people do wrong with the Sul and discusses some training issues. An excerpt:

Both thumbs touching are a proper characteristic of SUL. Some operators say the middle finger knuckle [strong hand] and crook of the index finger [support hand] are the only points of contact. Yes, they become an articulated pivot point, but the thumbs play a role in a correct position. Shooters with pistols having mechanical safeties say they must keep their thumb on the frame to engage the safety. This is a training misstep. Occasionally we see this with M9 shooters using the de-cocking lever as a safety, which requires a ‘thumb/lever up’ manipulation. For 1911 shooters, the thumb sweeps the safety off as pistol comes up.

This author doesn't care for the "retention" version of the Sul where the off hand is covering the pistol as his testing has not shown that it increases retention, but it does slow the transition to a firing stance. The author also explains when it should be used:

         When should Position SUL be employed? This is another often misinterpreted factor. According to Direct Action Group, SUL is used in three fundamental situations: First, when you are in transit and not when you are the cover man. In a team environment, operators often move in a stack configuration. The first operator in that formation may present his/her weapon, but it is imperative the others orient their pistol safely.

         Second, when officers or other friendly persons are crossing into your sector of fire or arc of coverage. When holding a part of a room or covering a suspect, other officers may move into your area of responsibility. Going to SUL keeps your muzzle off back-up personnel or teammates.

         Third, during domination of crowds.There will be situations where officers are holding a perimeter, controlling occupants, or similar tasks that require the pistol to be in hand, but not pointed at persons. SUL is a ‘non-offensive’ position that can mitigate citizen complaints or negative media commentary. At the same time, it provides a quick presentation if needed and good weapons retention.

• I've seen a couple sites linking to this article: "The Telephone Game and the Training Industry"--Tactical Professor. You are probably familiar with the Telephone Game, but if not, it involves a line of people. The first person whispters a message to the person behind him or her, and it continues down the line, until the last person reveals the message to everyone and its compared to the original message. Often there are extreme (and humorous) differences between the original message and the final one. The game is often used to illustrate the dangers of gossip and/or the fallibility of human memory. The Tactical Professor sees a similar process in the firearms training community concerning certain theoretical concepts, statistics, intellectual concepts and so on. Common ones are explanations of the Jeff Cooper's color codes, John Boyd's OODA loop and so on. His recommendation is to take second hand information with a grain of salt, and try to go back to the original source. 
• "How to Get Started Reloading Rifle Ammo"--The Truth About Guns. 

• Related: "Hodgdon Announces the 2019 Reloading Roadshow"--Ammo Land. Hodgdon representatives are going to travel the country to put on training seminars at local Hodgdon dealers to teach consumers how to reload.

• This is a great read for those interested in military history or the history of the AR system: "Behind Enemy Lines With The CAR-15 Rifle"--American Rifleman. The author relates not just his experience with the weapon, but its use in Vietnam more generally, and some of its development history (plus lots of great photographs). Interestingly, the original version used a 10-inch barrel, but it was too loud and incapable of launching a rifle grenade, and sometimes had extraction problems. "To address these issues, Colt developed the CAR-15s final version, the XM177E2, dubbed by Colt the Model 629. First, the barrel was increased to 11.5", which notably reduced muzzle blast and sound signature; the chamber was chrome-plated to eliminate extraction problems; and a ring was installed behind the moderator to allow the firing of rifle grenades. This final version had a slightly longer overall length, adding 1.5", and a weight increase of about half a pound."
• "How the Providence Non Semi-Automatic Pistol Works, Shot Show 2019"--Ammo Land. It makes use of a bolt with a fixed firing pin.

"Earth Catastrophe Cycle | Ice Age"--Suspicious Observers (7 min.)

• To the Left, the end justifies the means: "The Atlantic’s Dick Polman: Democrats Need ‘a New Massacre’ to Make Gun Control Push ‘a First-Tier Story’"--Breitbart. 
• "The Clinton campaign sought dirt on Trump from Russian officials. Where’s the outrage?"--Marc A. Thiessen at The Washington Post. He writes about the actual Russian collusion:

By contrast [to the Trump campaign], the Clinton campaign proactively sought dirt on Trump from Russian government sources. They did it through cutouts. In April 2016, Clinton campaign lawyer Marc Elias retained opposition research firm Fusion GPS to compile incriminating information on Trump. Fusion GPS in turn hired Christopher Steele, a former British MI6 operative with sources among Russian government officials. The result was the salacious dossier, whose sources included “a senior Russian Foreign Ministry figure” and “a former top level intelligence officer still active in the Kremlin.” Steele’s work was paid for by Clinton’s presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee. That means a paid agent of the Clinton campaign approached Russian officials for damaging material on Trump.

• Rod Dreher sees what is going on, but just can't admit it: "Library Liberals Gaslighting Whitey"--The American Conservative. He cites from a passage about Robin DiAngelo, who contends that "racism—especially antiblackness—is a system that forms the bedrock of our entire society," and has advanced such terms as "white fragility" to explain away why whites may object to being called racist. Dreher writes:

        Do you see what’s being done here? She is redefining racism as something of which individuals are only guilty insofar as they are white, on the grounds that “our entire society” is constructed on a foundation of “whiteness.”

      And if you, as a white person, object to that? Well, that just goes to show how mentally and emotionally fragile you are. In other words, you’re crazy, and don’t have to be taken seriously.

     This is ideological gaslighting of the first degree. 

Unfortunately, Dreher thinks that if white Christians keep their heads down and be quiet, this will somehow blow over.

• "What Will It Take To Make You Understand And Accept That They Hate You?"--Kurt Schlichter at Townhall Magazine. Schlichter has some thoughts on what the attack on the Convington students means:

       Do you think that a leftist Supreme Court majority won’t construe the First Amendment to exclude protection for “hate speech,” by which I mean any thoughts you might wish to express that they object to?

       Do you think they won’t turn the federal bureaucracy – including law enforcement – against their political enemies a thousand times harder than before, having been rewarded for the last decade of doing so?

      Do you think they won’t start tossing dissenters into prison? They do in England. You can go to jail for a tweet there – and do you think the left thinks that’s a bad thing, or a creative European innovation that needs to be imported?

      How about the Second Amendment? Are you kidding? The idea that our citizenry maintains the ultimate veto over tyranny drives them bonkers.

      Do you think they won’t use violence to make you conform? Hell, Democrat presidential candidate Eric Swalwell is willing to nuke you for not giving up your guns. We know that because he said so.

     It’s time to stop pretending that people who hate our guts don’t hate our guts, and that given the chance they won’t act exactly like people who hate our guts would act.

• "EXTERMINATING WHITEY: The end game of identity politics"--Mark Tapson at Front Page Magazine. An excerpt:

       What all this comes down to is identity politics, the Marxist-inspired ideology of divide-and-conquer. It shrewdly posits that the dynamics of Western society can be reduced simply to the conflict between oppressor and oppressed, and thus the most effective way to resist and ultimately overcome the oppressor is to define and categorize people not by their individual character but collectively by the immutabilities of race and sex. In America as well as elsewhere in the Western world, the oppressor is seen as the Christian white male, and all other identities belong to one or more categories of the oppressed. The end game is not unity of the body politic, not e pluribus unum, but the overthrow of the oppressor.

* * *     

      But for all the left’s obsession with victims, the demographic facing far-and-away the most open bigotry today is the oppressor class, white Christian men. Nowhere is this more evident than in the indoctrination mills of our universities, where entire Women’s Studies and Ethnic Studies departments extol the righteous victimhood of the oppressed classes, alongside proliferating programs on “deconstructing whiteness” and “toxic masculinity.” In response to the Covington controversy, Kevin Allred, a white man and purported educator who teaches a course in “Politicizing Beyoncé,” tweeted that “white people really are terrorists. whiteness is terrorism.” Substitute "blackness," "Jewishness," or "Muslims" for "white people" in that tweet and there would be a flood of hate speech accusations and a Twitter ban. But because the left has made it culturally acceptable to spew hatred at whites, Allred will face no consequences. Whites who object to this are dismissed by the left as whining snowflakes – proving the point that blatant bigotry against them is acceptable.

• "BRACKEN: COVINGTON GIVES A GLIMPSE OF CIVIL WAR TWO"--American Partisan. He explains:

         The Covington confrontation points to an ironclad historical pattern. Every previous genocide in modern times was preceded by a similar pattern of public demonization of state-designated scapegoats. But is correlation causation? Does the American Left intend to eventually commit genocide against white heritage American males? In my opinion, yes. Scapegoating is part of a clear pattern of conduct seen during every socialist power grab from the French Revolution until now. In the case of German national socialists, European Jews were the scapegoats of the Nazis during their climb to power. In the case of international socialists, AKA Communists, class enemies were usually but not always the designated scapegoats. Examples of class enemies would include the Kulaks in the Soviet Union, “landlords” in China, and “intellectuals” in Cambodia. But in other cases ethnic groups were targeted as scapegoats by Communists, to include the Ukrainians, Crimeans, Latvians and others.

        So, are today’s Democrats already planning to load their white heritage American enemies into boxcars for trips to a new Gulag? Probably not many at this time, but Barack Obama’s political mentor Bill Ayers certainly considered it. Ayers believed that so many Americans would bitterly resist Communism that 25 million would have to be “eliminated.”

      Today in the United States, a possible future genocide remains far down the track and around the curve, well out of sight, and beyond the power of most Americans to even imagine. But the historical record is clear. Broad social approval of class- or racially-based scapegoating is a necessary precursor stage to eventual genocide, and a combination of both variants was clearly seen in the Covington case.

• "Starbucks’ Howard Schultz: America Exists for Immigrants, Not Americans"--Breitbart. Schultz is in favor of open borders and unlimited immigration, and that there is no downside to open immigration:

The perspective is common among bankers and investors, such as Schultz, because they gain economically when the federal government imports welfare-aided consumers and cheap workers. Overall, investors tend to prioritize economic growth above Americans’ concerns about wages and salaries, crime and real estate costs, civic harmony, and government priorities. 

• "HOW DID KAMALA HARRIS GET AHEAD?"--Powerline Blog. She slept her way to the top.

• Related: "Willie Brown: So What If I Dated Kamala Harris and Gave Her State Jobs?"--Breitbart. Well, it might indicate that her only job skills are those shown in the Kama Sutra.

• "Waters: More Diverse Financial Institutions Needed, Particularly in Management"--PJ Media. Among other things, the article reports that "Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, said she 'probably' would support the effort to study reparations for descendants of slaves."
• This is what the Left calls global warming: "Killer vortex: Dangerous 'life-threatening' subzero temperatures that can kill in minutes are set to strike the Midwest and Northeast this week with over a foot of snow forecast in some parts"--Daily Mail. 

• Related: "The Coldest Days Ever In Chicago: This Week’s Temps Come Close"--CBS Chicago. May break records set in the 1980s.

• Related: "Deadliest freeze in a generation has 110 million people across U.S. bracing for record-breaking extreme low temperatures - as forecasters warn frostbite and hypothermia could occur in SECONDS"--Daily Mail. 

• "Global property markets on the turn"--DW. Chinese investors are pulling back from the real estate markets in Sydney, Bangkok, London, Vancouver, and Singapore, causing market down turns. 
• "The Supreme Court may kill Roe v. Wade as soon as this week"--Think Progress. The headline is a bit of an exaggeration, as there would be no explicit or implicit revocation of the "right" to obtain an abortion. Rather, the court is expected to decline to hear an appeal of the case June Medical Services v. Gee which sought to overturn a Louisiana law which requires doctors performing abortions to have hospital privileges at a hospital not more than 30 miles from where the abortion is being performed and which hospital offers obstetrical or gynecological health care services. 
• A reminder that we live in the 21st Century: "Elon Musk: Why I'm Building the Starship out of Stainless Steel"--Popular Mechanics. He's going to replace the carbon-fiber skin with stainless steel, explaining:

       The thing that’s counterintuitive about the stainless steel is, it’s obviously cheap, it’s obviously fast—but it’s not obviously the lightest. But it is actually the lightest. If you look at the properties of a high-quality stainless steel, the thing that isn’t obvious is that at cryogenic temperatures, the strength is boosted by 50 percent.

       Most steels, as you get to cryogenic temperatures, they become very brittle. You’ve seen the trick with liquid nitrogen on typical carbon steel: You spray liquid nitrogen, you can hit it with a hammer, it shatters like glass. That’s true of most steels, but not of stainless steel that has a high chrome-nickel content. That actually increases in strength, and ductility is still very high. So you have, like, 12 to 18 percent ductility at, say, minus 330 degrees Fahrenheit. Very ductile, very tough. No fracture issues.

January 27, 2019 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

"Earth Catastrophe Cycle | The Oceans"--Suspicious Observers (7 min.)

• It's not too late to check out Active Response Training's Weekend Knowledge Dump for this past week. Links include a test of three different popular .223/5.56 defense loads out of an AR pistol (7.5 inch barrel) which just seem to confirm my decision to use .300 Blackout for a pistol AR rather than 5.56.
• While you are at the Active Response Training site, check out Greg Ellifritz's article on "How to Spot a Bad Guy- A Comprehensive Look at Body Language and Pre-Assault Indicators." It is important to understand that the use of firearm or other deadly weapon is (or should be) the end of a long path of opportunities to avoid crime. The biggest factor in whether you are going to be the victim of a violent crime is life-style choices. But if you find yourself in a situation where you are being stalked by a potential predator, you need to learn to watch for certain behavior to identify the fact that you are being singled out for a possible assault as well as warnings that an attack is imminent. As Ellifritz mentions, a clenched hand or holding hands above the waistline are signs that someone may be getting ready to use those hands. Similarly, someone positioning themselves into a fighting stance is a sign that they may be about to fight. Ellifritz also mentions breathing, the "thousand yard stare", or touching themselves around their face or shoulders in order to mask movements or nervousness. Anyway, Ellifritz discusses a lot more warning signs, as well as methods to reduce signals or signs that a criminal might look for to determine whether you are potential victim or someone to be avoided. Read the whole thing.
• "New CMMG Resolute .350 Legend in Burnt Bronze Cerakote"--The Firearm Blog. Winchester was apparently working with CMMG to bring out an AR using the new .350 Legend. Since it is based on the .223 case, the bolt and bolt carrier are the same, and it makes use of a standard AR15 upper and lower. The barrel is obviously different, but because it is a straight wall cartridge, it cannot use the standard AR magazine. The magazine it does use, however, can be used in the standard AR magazine well. CMMG is making complete rifles, but also promises to release separate uppers and, even, just barrels. CMMG will also sell the new magazines. 
• "Guns for Beginners: How to Aim a Pistol"--The Truth About Guns. A critical point:

You should see an equal amount of light between the sight posts (called “light bars”) and equal height of the front and rear sight.  That is good sight alignment. After you can obtain both good sight alignment and a good sight picture, it’s all up to your trigger finger.  In fact, a proper trigger press is probably more important than a perfect sight picture and alignment.

• "5 facts about crime in the U.S."--Pew Research Center. They are: (1) Violent crime in the U.S. has fallen sharply over the past quarter century; (2) Property crime has declined significantly over the long term; (3) Public perceptions about crime in the U.S. often don’t align with the data; (4) There are large geographic variations in crime rates; and (5) Most crimes are not reported to police, and most reported crimes are not solved.
• "FIVE TIPS TO MODIFY A ZIPPO LIGHTER FOR SURVIVAL FIRE MAKING"--Survival Common Sense. Tips include putting an extra flint in the fuel reservoir under the stuffing, and some methods of sealing the lighter to reduce the evaporation of the fuel. And that is the biggest problem with the Zippo, in my opinion, is how quickly fuel can evaporate. The author noted that, even sealed, he had all the fuel evaporate within a few days. It doesn't take long for fuel to evaporate, so you need to make sure that the lighter works before you go out, and be sure to top it off if you are planning on going into the field or woods.
• "TTAG Exclusive Ammo Review: Steinel .38 Special 125 gr +P Snub Nose Pro"--The Truth About Guns. This is a monolithic projectile, made of copper, that performed quit well in ballistic tests conducted by the author out of a J-frame snub-nosed revolver. He reports consistent penetration of 13-inches, and consistent expansion even through heavy clothing and leather. MSRP is a little high, however: $32 for 25 rounds.
• "Review of the North American Arms Mini-Revolvers"--The Survivalist Blog. The other day I linked to a video from Lucky Gunner that wasn't very positive about the NAA revolvers. In this review, the author approaches the weapon more as one for keeping with you in a non-permissive environment. In answer to why carry one, the author responds: "Simply put, when you positively cannot carry anything else. These guns have serious advantages in their niche, but as niches go theirs is very, very small." The author goes on to discuss different models and the disadvantages and advantages to this weapon.
• "Should You Buy An AK-47 Rifle?"--The Truth About Guns. The AR glut and international sanctions have resulted in a price reversal where a decent quality AR is cheaper than an AK.
• We know that the Glock 42 was the .380 single stack compact pistol, and the Glock 43 was the single stack 9 mm pistol. Then Glock released the Glock 45 which was the Glock 19 slide mated to the Glock 17 frame. And then Glock just recently released the Glock 48 which is a single-stack 9 mm with a slightly longer grip on the frame. But what about the missing numbers:

• Glock 44? Don't know.

• Glock 46? A 9 mm with a rotating barrel that was apparently intended to compete in the German Police pistol trials.

• Glock 47? This is a single stack in 9x18 (Makarov) caliber. 

"Hitler Survivor Warns Americans To Buy MORE GUNS"--JPChannel100 (4 min.)

A reader brought this video to my attention. I would also add to stock up on ammunition.

• "Yellow vest protestors block Parisian streets with burning barricades as demonstrators face-off with riot police and violence erupts in France for the 11th week running"--Daily Mail. The article reports that "[t]he worst early violence was in Paris, and in northern towns including Evreux and Rouen, in Normandy, where tear gas and baton charges were used by police to restore order."

• Related: "Doctors Say Number of Serious Injuries Inflicted on Yellow Vests Unprecedented"--Breitbart. 

• "French protest leader 'will be disabled for life' after eye injury: Yellow Vest activist is put in coma after he is struck the in face by rubber bullet amid calls for 'mass uprising' against Macron"--Daily Mail. 

• "Migrant Caravan Swells to 12,000 at Mexico’s Southern Border"--Breitbart. Per the article: "The ranks of a new Central American migrant caravan reportedly grew in size to more than 12,000 as of Friday. The caravan is now heading to Mexico’s southern border." The article suggests that changes to Mexico's immigration laws, making it easier for migrants to obtain humanitarian visas, is part of the reason for the surge (although that doesn't seem to have been an issue in the past). In that regard, the article indicates that "[i]t is believed that many of the migrants will be able to seek out temporary work while waiting at the U.S. border for asylum requests to be processed. Many are expected to decide to attempt to cross illegally into the United States."

• Flashback: "Yale Study: There Are Probably Twice As Many Illegal Immigrants Living In America As Commonly Believed"--Hot Air. At least 16 million, and perhaps more.

• "Pew: Record 67 percent of Hispanic migrants live in US"--Washington Examiner. So, of all the Latin Americans that have migrated from their native country to another country since 1990, 67% have ended up in the United States.

• "Fort Bragg soldiers accused of arranging sham marriages between soldiers and immigrants"--Stars & Stripes. The soldiers involved? Sgt. Edward Kumi Anguah and Pvt. Ahmid Mohammed-Murtada.
• Only police can be trusted with guns: "Officer Accused of Fatally Shooting Cop During Russian Roulette"--Breitbart. 
• Château Heartiste has some thoughts on the arrest of Roger Stone by the FBI and whether the FBI is a rogue agency. Specifically:

Roger Stone, a political operative and former Trump campaign associate, was arrested in a pre-dawn raid by a battalion of FBI agents wielding automatic weapons, because Stone was a dangerous threat as evidenced by the cheesy process crimes he is charged with committing. Fake News CNN was there to film it, obviously tipped off by the FBI. I’ve no doubt Mueller himself directed a subordinate to tell CNN about the raid, because this piece of shit wanted his handiwork broadcast live and in color, as a message to those who thwarted the ascension of his Queen Hillary to the throne. He’s Still With Her.

He has also uncovered the FBI and CNN link, discovering that the CNN reporter at the scene, Josh Campbell, used to work for the FBI as an assistant to James Comey. 

• "This Map Shows Where in the World the U.S. Military Is Combatting Terrorism"--Smithsonian Magazine. Apparently "the U.S. is now operating in 40 percent of the world’s nations".
• Anthony Watts reports that "Germany totally kills coal – will likely end up in the dark, without heat and light." Germany already killed off their nuclear power industry, which forced the country to rely more heavily on coal. Now Germany is planning on closing all 84 of its coal fired power plants over the next 19 years. To be replaced by what? Supposedly the generating capacity will be made up through so-called renewable resources, presumably wind or solar. So how will this play out over the long run? Wind turbines are energy and material intensive to manufacture compared to their output, besides the fact that they tend to chop up birds. It also isn't reliable. Germany isn't exactly the best country for solar power, so that source will also be intermittent. So Germany has the choice of either purchasing power from other countries to make up shortfalls (i.e., exporting its carbon footprint) or storing the power during periods of excess production. Generally storing power under these circumstances is accomplished by pumping water into reservoirs and then using the water to drive turbines when the wind or solar power production declines. Consequently, Germany will need to build large reservoirs. I'm not sure how that will be any more environmentally friendly than coal mining.

       My guess is that Germany will have to backtrack. Perhaps not return to burning coal, but switching to power plants burning natural gas. I can't see Germany sending troops to Syria in order that the pipeline from the Gulf States can reach Europe, so Germany will have to turn to Russia to import even more natural gas or ... gasp ... purchase gas from Israel as it develops its off-shore gas fields. If Germany does the latter, though, it will cause friction between Germany and Turkey and, by extension, friction within Germany because of its large Turkish community.

• "Bank of England Cuts off Maduro Regime from $1.2bn in Gold Assets"--Breitbart. The article suggests that the decision by the Bank of England was made under pressure from the United States, but I wonder if the Bank of England simply no longer has the gold. The article notes: "It is believed, according to Bloomberg, that in mid-December the president of Venezuela’s central bank, Calixto Ortega, led a delegation to London to access the gold reserves but was unsuccessful." And a November 2018 article I found indicates that Venezuela had begun requesting its gold from the Bank 2 months prior (i.e., in September), but the Bank had not complied with the request.

• Related: "How Germany got its gold back"--Financial Times. During the cold war, Germany built up and stored its gold reserves in Paris, London and New York, in order to keep it out of the hands of the Soviet Union in the event of war. In the early 2000s, Germany repatriated some of the gold stored at the Bank of England. In 2013, Germany decided to repatriate half of the gold kept at foreign locations, including from Paris and the Fed in New York.

• Related: "The Fed Has 6,200 Tons of Gold in a Manhattan Basement—Or Does It?"--Wall Street Journal (alternate source). The article relates that "[i]n a 2012 audit of U.S. gold at the Fed’s vault, the U.S. Mint and the Treasury’s Office of Inspector General sent 367 samples to an independent lab for testing. All but three samples came back within 0.13% of the purity recorded by the government, within standard industry tolerance, according to the Mint and Treasury." And what about those three? 

• We only have 12 years to save the planet: "Mao et al 2019 Show an Upcoming 1-Deg C + Decline in Global Land Surface Temperatures by the Early 2100s"--Watts Up With That.
• "Army readying 1000-mile ‘super gun’ that can strike Chinese targets beyond retaliation range"--Great Power War. No information on how the weapon is supposed to work; i.e., whether it is some kind of magnetic rail gun or what.
• More failures to detect dark matter: "An experiment to search for dark-matter interactions using sodium iodide detectors"--Nature. Key point: "no definitive signal from such dark-matter interactions has been detected despite concerted efforts by many collaborations." 

• Related: An alternative to dark energy: "Configuration entropy of the Cosmic Web: Can voids mimic the dark energy?" (PDF)--Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Could this explain the discrepancies in measurements of the Hubble Constant?

P for Projection -- My review of "V for Vendetta"

           V for Vendetta, a 2005-2006 film, popped up on my Netflix recommendations last night. Knowing that it has a certain cachet among the Left, I decided to watch it.

(Source)

          If you haven't seen the film, the basic premise is that a conservative Christian politician, Adam Sutler (played by John Hurt) plotted his rise to power by unleashing a false-flag biological terror attack, a la the Reichstag fire, on London, beginning with the release of a toxic virus at a school for young children. Frightened by the attack,  Sutler's party is overwhelmingly voted into power and he eventually becomes a dictator, calling himself Chancellor. England becomes a totalitarian state in a fashion that is a mix of 1984 and the Nazi regime.

         The titular character, V, is one of the original test subjects used to develop the virus used in the terror attack. Unlike the other subjects that all died, however, V becomes stronger and more intelligent, essentially transforming into something akin to Frankenstein's monster from the Frankenstein novel. He somehow escapes from the cell in which he is being held and destroys the research lab, escaping into the night. From that point on, he plots his revenge, living underground and hiding his deformed appearance with a Guy Fawkes mask, similar to the Phantom of the Opera.

         All of the foregoing is slowly revealed through the movie, which begins some 20 years after V's escape, on a Guy Fawkes day, when our other main protagonist, Evey (played by Natalie Portman), is caught outside after curfew by members of the secret police. V saves Evey from them, and then takes her to a roof top to witness as he blows up the Old Bailey, the central criminal court for England and Wales. V subsequently sends a message over the central television network proclaiming that he will, on the next Guy Fawkes day, destroy the Parliament building.

        The rest of the movie then revolves around Evey's interaction with other characters in order to show what a despotic government under which she lives, as well as her conversion to V's point of view; V's successful efforts to kill off those responsible for his imprisonment; and Eric Finch, an investigator for Scotland Yard that is tasked with tracking down V, but along the way learns of the back story to V and the false flag attack that gave rise to Sutler's rise to power.

        The story culminates with V's final confrontation with Sutler and Sutler's right hand man, thousands of people descending on Parliament whilst dressed as Guy Fawkes, to witness its destruction, and the destruction of the Parliament building, as promised, by a bomb delivered by a subway car along a forgotten subway tunnel running below the Parliament building. The audience is left to presume that the death of the top leaders of the party and destruction of the Parliament building will automatically, somehow, lead to freedom and prosperity.

      The impression I was left with was that the movie was simply two hours of Leftist/Liberal projection onto social conservatives.

      First, we have the Chancellor Sutler, a "Big Brother" type character, who is portrayed as a religious conservative blinded by power and who wants to enforce his beliefs over all of England. Thus, we learn that there are books, music and art that is forbidden, including the Koran. Of course, as we have witnessed, the censorship and thought control doesn't come from conservatives, but from the Left, with a constantly evolving and broadening of what cannot be discussed because it is not Politically Correct, the censorship of content on social media, and the general hostility shown in media toward Christians and white men, and Antifa shutting down conservative speakers through riots and protests. It apparently is completely lost on the Left that the two worst tyrants of the 20th Century, Stalin and Mao, were both communist, and that Hitler was a socialist.

      Next, one of the character's hunted down by V is a lecherous Bishop, and an ally of Sutler, who likes young girls. Yet in real life, we saw the #metoo movement arise because of the behavior of the liberals and leftist of Hollywood and big media, with rumors of pedophile rings among the liberal elite, including the liberals running the BBC. And where we have seen sexual abuse among Catholic priests, it has turned out to be either committed by, or protected by, clergy that were considered liberals and, generally, were homosexual. The reason that liberal elites are so convinced of "toxic masculinity" is because the liberal men with whom they associate with are boors, abusers and deviants.

     The movie makes reference to persecution against Muslims, including one of the secondary characters being executed because he possessed a Koran. Thus, it was ironic, at least to me, that the thousands of V supporters storming the military and police barricade around the Parliament building are seen marching down the length of Westminster Bridge--the very same bridge that, in 2017, was the scene of a Muslim terrorist attack. And one of the main story points was that the false flag bio-terror attack started at a school, with one scene shot outside the memorial for the children that died. Again, this is ironic given that thousands of young girls were raped in various British cities by religiously motivated Muslim gangs, but the police did nothing in order to not appear racist.

     Two of the secondary characters are homosexual, and the movie makes clear that homosexuals are being persecuted by the ruling political party. Yet, again, turning to real life, we see that it is the so-called liberals, including homosexuals on the Left, that are the persecutors, driving Christian bakers and photographers out of business, forcing passage of laws and regulations to outlaw expressing one's belief that homosexuality or gay marriage is morally wrong under the guise of "hate speech", and generally attacking anyone who objects to gay marriage or allowing transvestites into women's restrooms. (See, e.g., here, here, here and here).

      In short, V for Vendetta is film wherein liberals project their worst impulses onto conservatives, as a way of making them feel better about themselves.

Some More on Tourniquets

A few weeks ago, I had published a post entitled "Ratchet Tourniquets?" where I tried to summarize some of the latest thoughts on what were the best tourniquets to use. One of my readers corresponded with me and shared with me some more information  on the subject, including a couple of useful videos.

"Special Forces Medic Reviews Tourniquets"--Tactical Rifleman (10 min.)

In the foregoing video, the host, Karl, discusses the CAT tourniquet, the SOFTT, and the TK4. He notes that you are fine with using any tourniquet approved by the Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care (COTCCC). However, his recommendations are for the newest CAT (Gen. 7) because it remedies deficiencies in the windlass and tabs found in the earlier generation. It is also his pick for self-application.

Similarly, Karl recommends the latest generation of the SOFTT, the SOFTT Wide (or SOFTT-W) because it also remedied some deficiencies in the in the earlier models. While great for casualty care, it takes additional movements to pull it tight that make it less desirable for self-application.

The TK4 is an old tech tourniquet that he recommends only because the CAT and SOFTT are too large to be used on a child or canine.

Karl also discusses some recommendations on using a tourniquet under combat conditions, to-wit: he recommends that the tourniquet be quickly applied as high up on the limb as possible, over the uniform or clothing, before moving the casualty to cover. Once under cover, the limb can be exposed and a tourniquet applied closer to the wound.

My friend also recommended this other video:

"MUST-HAVE Medical Items with Special Forces Medic Jay Paisley, ret."--Warrior Poet Society (41 min.)

The foregoing video covers a lot more than just tourniquets, but Paisley, who had been a SOF medic, has some recommendations on tourniquets and their use. Of course, he indicates that you should use tourniquets approved by the Committee on TCCC. For the civilian, he doesn't see a need to repackage your tourniquets or other items to make them quicker to access; it is more important to leave them in their original packaging to prevent them from getting contaminated or otherwise deteriorating. He also recommends that tourniquets be applied initially to any wounded limb, and then replaced with a pressure bandage if it is determined that is all that is needed.

Paisley covers a lot of other topics, including chest seals, intubation, and so on, so watch the whole video.

My friend noted that for self-application he actually preferred the RevMedx TX tourniquets, which are a ratcheting type. I had read of some problems with ratcheting tourniquets with clothing/skin/blood getting stuck in the ratcheting mechanism. But my friend indicated that he had never had this as an issue when practicing with it, at least no more than the blood blisters and bruising he'd received when practicing with the CAT or SOFTT. So, even though it is not COTCCC approved, he keeps a RevMedx tourniquet under his belt for self-application, and a SOFTT-W on the outside of his IFAK.

January 23, 2019 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

"Knowing When To Draw Makes All The Difference"--Active Self Protection (5 min.)

An off duty police officer in Brazil is robbed at gun point. Unfortunately, he tried to draw his firearm while already at gun point. Pulling a trigger is faster than drawing a firearm. It didn't end well for the officer.

• I've been looking for more information on the new .350 Legend cartridge from Winchester and, specifically, whether it would work out of an AR style rifle. The only article that says anything about the topic (and the answer is "yes") is this one from Military.com, which states: 

      It will work in a variety of platforms, from bolt action to AR-style rifles.

     "We designed this cartridge to work in many different guns ... we anticipate a lot more guns to be available in the future," Gibson [a Winchester rep.] said.

• "Shots in the Dark: A Low Light Qualification"--Sensible Self Defense. The article is primarily about shooting qualification courses in low-light. But the author also discusses flashlights, including this tid-bit: "We have discovered that a powerful light (300 lumens and up) overpowers a weaker light and permits the shooter to identify and engage targets that would otherwise be hidden from view." He also discusses flashlights that he uses.
• "Rift Over NRA Highlights Fundamental Divide among Gun Owners"--David Codrea at Ammo Land.  He notes: "Longtime readers of my stuff know I’m in the camp that says criticizing the NRA's leadership statements and decisions is no more an indictment of the association than criticizing a politician as un-American. As the slogan says, 'I’m the NRA.' And I reserve the right to criticize when I feel it warranted not only because it’s a duty people of conscience have, but also because I’ve done my part to support the association over the years."
• "Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Gun Rights Case Stemming From New York Restrictions"--The Captain's Journal. He has a very lengthy selection of links to cops (the one's that gun grabbers believe are the only ones that can be trusted with guns) behaving badly while using guns.
• "Surviving in a Venezuelan City: 'You have no clue about how people really are when they are faced with hunger'"--Organic Prepper. One point he raises is how the criminals gather intelligence on what you have: 

      ... Families are usually large and that includes those with black sheep in their herd, too. Therefore, collecting intelligence information about who to steal from is easier for those lazy MFs.

       Usually they sent in small kids, in teams, around 9-12 children, or women with babies, to beg for anything, and they will eyeball flatscreen TVs in your living room, or if your furniture is fancy, main air conditioning or any general indications of wealth, how many cars, bikes, or whatever goodies their older relatives could steal… usually at gunpoint.

• "Montie’s Law of Self-Defense"--Wim Demeere's Blog. Excerpt:

      ... a long time ago, he explained his strategy for fighting and spoke the words I now call Montie’s law.

       “It’s never the other guy’s turn. He doesn’t get a turn. It’s always my turn.”

       He swarms his opponents with constant attacks and uses overwhelming force to get the job done. If the opponent is lucky, he might get in a first shot, but after that, it’s never his turn again. I liked that a lot and expanded that idea into what I use it for now.

* * *

         ... As soon as that first punch lands, the victim is groggy and has a hard time standing up. He isn’t knocked out, but – and this is the critical point – he is no longer able to defend against the next attack. When that next attack comes, it doesn’t matter if it is less effective than that first blow because it still does enough damage to lower the capabilities of the victim. This progressively diminishes his ability to stop the aggressor and so each next blow lands as well. The result is a vicious circle the victim can’t get out of.

Read the whole thing.

"The NAA Mini-Revolver: You Can Do Better"--Lucky Gunner Ammo (12 min.)

The author discusses why the NAA mini-revolvers are not good choices for a primary concealed carry weapon, even if your options are limited due to weight or size. 

• TANSTAAFL: "Thousands in Venezuela Join Protests Against Maduro"--New York Times. The people have grown disillusioned with Maduro's government:

         Discontent has deepened across Venezuela’s socioeconomic classes as hyperinflation has rendered wages worthless. Citizens of what was once one of the region’s wealthiest nations have starved to death and died from preventable diseases.

       More than three million Venezuelans have left the country in recent years, and those who stayed behind have struggled to find food and medicine while contending with water shortages and rampant crime.

       Eva Golinger, an American lawyer who was a close friend  of the leftist strongman Hugo Chávez, Mr. Maduro’s mentor and predecessor, said the government could no longer count on its traditional bastions of support to overpower opposition movements, which in the past were led by wealthy and middle-class Venezuelans.

      “The difference this time is that the discontent is not just opposition,” said Ms. Golinger, who wrote a memoir called “Confidante of ‘Tyrants,’ ” about her ties with Venezuelan and other leaders. “In fact, it’s mainly poor people who are tired of going without basic products and earning decent wages.”

Frankly, after reading the whole article, I doubt that the people in Venezuela have learned the lesson that there ain't no such thing as a free lunch. In any event, Reuters reports that the military is still standing strong behind Maduro.

• Speaking of disillusionment, take a look at the Affordable Care Act (aka, Obama-Care) in action: "U.S. insulin costs per patient nearly doubled from 2012 to 2016, study finds"--NBC News. Per the article, "[t]he figures represent the combined amount paid by a patient and his health plan for the medicine and do not reflect rebates paid at a later date." No reason is given for the increases, other than "[d]rugmakers say they periodically need to raise U.S. list prices of their medications to help offset steep rebates they must offer to get them covered by insurance plans." In other words, the companies are raising prices to protect profits, and the actual price depends on what insurance plan you have. This is a textbook example of price discrimination by a monopoly. One of the complaints leveled against drug firms is that they employ price discrimination on an international level--one of the reasons why medications cost nearly twice as much in the United States than in Europe, and drugs are even cheaper in third world countries.
• "It Is Later Than You Think" by Bill Reader, posted at According to Hoyt. A discussion of the growing disconnect between the ruling elites and the common people and how this is undermining our representative form of government. Key point:

      ... Now that the opinions of the people—in Germany, in England, in the United States, and now in France—have become inconvenient, the governments are finding they would like to dissolve the people and elect another. And they will do anything to achieve that end—”we let our servants drug our strength with lies”. France and England sound poised to commit to these brave new social experiments in their own ways, and the US won’t be far behind if the Democrats ever get enough funding to run a few more fraudulent investigations.

        So look around you, while you still can. The sun is high in the sky. The last day of rule by the people—by the actual people, rather than by a “bolshevik” (literally, majority) minority— is half gone already. We’ve all been living in a very pleasant world, but it’s one that’s enabled us to relatively disregard politics, and that has let some very unsavory characters slip in while we were living in a dream. “The pleasure and the poison had its way”.

      It is later than you think.

• "The British road to Dirty War: analysis by David Betz & MLR Smith"--The Bruges Group. This is a similar analysis to that above, but focused on what is happening in the U.K. The authors first spend time discussing the new ruling elites and conclude:

With the rise of the new political classes, a different political dynamic is emerging. Drawn from similar backgrounds (often middle-class, university educated, with little prior career experience outside politics itself), members of parliament increasingly sound alike, think alike and act alike. The evolution of a monochrome political establishment is producing a radical disconnect, which the Brexit denouement is throwing into stark relief. What we appear to be witnessing is the corrupt mutation of the notion of the representation of the people in parliament, into the substitution of the will of the people by the interests of the political class. We are entering the realms, no less, of state capture.

This is coupled by a belief (or "gamble" as the authors put it) that "the public, kept compliant by political spinning, a constant diet of soaps and reality television, debt, social media pap, welfare dependency and the like, will not work themselves up into any state of anger of the sort anticipated by Nigel Farage if their political preferences are dishonoured. Or at least not enough of them will to make a difference." But this is where the authors beg to differ.

There is a dominant theory of the cause of revolutions, analysed by those like Ted Robert Gurr in Why Men Rebel (1970), according to which people rebel not so much when they are materially deprived or when they are repressed but when a significant gap materialises between the future they have been promised and expect and the reality of their actual circumstance.

The authors then go on to argue that overturning Brexit will inflame voters and begin Britain down the road to more political violence. 

• "Anti-Christian Ideology Is an Emerging Aspect of White Progressive Populism"--David French at the National Review. French is a cuckservative and it shows in this article, starting with his shibboleth that populism on the right is inherently racist, and cumulating in his description of the anti-Christian bias in current American politics and law as part of a "white progressive populism," rather than an earmark of the elite stretching back to the post World War I era, if not earlier. Nevertheless, he does make an astute observation:

        ... According to Pew Research Center data, 72 percent of white Republicans believe in the God of the Bible. Only 32 percent of white Democrats share that belief. That’s a stunning gap, especially considering the historical dominance of the Christian faith in the United States.

        Our culture war is also a religious conflict, and that means progressive populism will almost certainly continue to trend against conservative Christianity. And as this happens, it will be increasingly difficult to confine our differences to the political realm. The fear and loathing will extend to individuals. It will mean more attempts to destroy lives and limit individual liberty. And when it does, our divide will only grow.

      Hostility to traditional, orthodox Christianity is no longer confined to the white progressive elite. It’s now popular in the white Left. Liberal elites who attack traditional Christian beliefs and express contempt for traditional Christians aren’t demonstrating their disconnect from America, they’re giving their constituents exactly what they want.

(Underline added).

• And another gap that continues to grow: "Super Rich Americans Are Getting Younger and Multiplying"--BloombergQuint. From the article:

       A survey of U.S. investors with $25 million or more finds their average age dropped by 11 years since 2014, to 47. These fabulously rich Americans, whose ranks have more than doubled since the depths of the Great Recession, are younger than less wealthy millionaires. The average age of those with at least a mere $1 million is 62, a number that hasn’t budged in years. 

       The finding suggests a “vast generational transfer of wealth” is “just beginning,” said George Walper Jr., president of the Spectrem Group, which conducted the study. The sample size was small—185 Americans with more than $25 million in net worth—but the findings are consistent with other economic research on the top 0.1 percent.

• "The War Over ‘Toxic Masculinity’"--The American Conservative. The American Psychological Association recently released its “Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Boys and Men.” The Guidelines make the contention that "that many of society’s ills—homicide and other violent crimes, suicide, misbehavior in school, declining life expectancy, even attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder—stem from traditional masculinity." Or, "[i]n other words, traditional masculinity is the product of bad societal customs, which need to be reformed so boys and men can be reconditioned to become, essentially, more feminine and hence less troublesome to society." 
• "The Feminine Mistake"--Wilder, Wealthy and Wise. John Wilder comments on the APA's new guidelines, feminism and its link to Marxist thinkers, and how feminism is key to destroying the traditional family, all with his usual wit and satire. An excerpt:

Dear reader, it is clear that men are different.  Why else would Gillette© have an entire commercial telling men how awful we are, which happened just last week?  Clearly, we don’t have a commercial from Playtex™ telling women not to kill their kids by drowning them in a car which would be equally as valid, but it’s still not there.  So, men and women are different, in that men are evil.  Men are so evil that a razor company, which theoretically sells to men, can spend nearly two minutes telling men how awful they are.

• A long read but worth it: "A PRIMER ON THE GEOPOLITICS OF OIL"--Anand Toprani at War on the Rocks.

January 22, 2019 -- A Quick Run Around the Web

"The AR is not Direct Gas Impingement"--Military Arms Channel (24 min.)

The host explains that the AR15 is not a true direct gas impingement system; rather, Stoner figured out a way to move the piston to a position inside the bolt carrier so that the recoil forces would be straight back.

• A new Woodpile Report is up. Ol' Remus begins by playing the world's smallest violin for the furloughed federal workers: "For nonessential federal employees the shutdown is a vacation with deferred payment, yet we're expected to weep in solidarity because they're being inconvenienced. Welcome to the real world. We Deplorables work without pay for the equivalent of several months of every year to fund DC's parasitic bloat. And we have to show up every day." He then goes on to discuss methods of storing .22 LR ammunition for long term, before turning to his summary of articles and news. Check it out.
• The Organic Prepper has more sympathy for the plight of the furloughed federal works, and the those that soon may be without SNAP benefits, and, therefore, has some articles on getting by on less--particularly, how to cut your grocery bill:

• "How to Feed Your Family When You’re Flat Broke." Ideas from the author's book on the subject.

• "The Shutdown Show: How Sending Out Food Stamp Benefits Early Could Cause Another Problem in a Few Weeks." Some states are sending out SNAP benefits for February early in order to make sure recipients get their benefits; problem is that recipients may spend the benefits early. Also, because of the shutdown, some stores have not been able to renew their license to accept SNAP payments.

• "The Flat Broke Cookbook: FREE If You Need It."

• One of the new products released at Shot Show was a new cartridge from Winchester, which they are calling the .350 Legend. There are different loads available, including a 145 grain full metal jacket load, a 150 grain XP load, and a 180 grain PowerPoint load. The case is a modified .223 case that is straight walled so it can accept a .357 caliber bullet. This design allows it to be used for deer hunting in most states. Winchester has kept this close to its chest, so to speak, so the only rifle made for this caliber appears to be the Winchester XPR bolt-action. Although it is based on the .223 case, I haven't found anything discussing whether it would work out of an AR. It appears to be marketed to those that would otherwise use .450 Bushmaster (by offering less recoil) or .300 Blk (by offering more energy). (See also Winchester's web-page on the cartridge).
• Blue Lives Matter reports that the Texas homeowner that drove off 5 home invaders, with 3 ultimately dying from their wounds, used an AK-47 style rifle.
• "Supreme Court to hear challenge to New York City gun ordinance"--Washington Examiner. The suit challenges a NYC law that prohibits persons possessing firearms under a "premises license" from transporting their firearms outside the city, even if it is merely to take the firearm to a shooting range or another residence.
• "Three Separate 2018 Studies Found Zero Evidence That Universal Background Checks Prevent Gun Deaths"--The Truth About Guns. It won't deter the gun grabbers, however.
• Another Shot Show first look: "Armscor VR80 Semi-Auto Shotgun"--The Firearm Blog. A shotgun that looks a lot like an AR, and takes detachable box magazines.
• "Headlamp Compared to a Handheld Flashlight – The Good and Bad"--Modern Survival Blog. Basically an article on why you should have both. If I could only have one, however, I would pick a headlamp.
• "First-Look and Review: The New LTO Tracker2 Thermal From Leupold"--Guns America Digest. From the article:

        The big upgrade to these two Tracker 2 models is what Leupold terms the “Beacon” mode. When selected, the Beacon mode quickly recalibrates the screen for increased detection in hot environments. When activated in one of three Hi-Bright screen colors, Beacon mode detects the warmest object in the active image and rebalances all the Hi-bright colors back down to grayscale.

       Result: The screen is a grayscale color under the Beacon threshold until a “warmer” spot is detected and is then displayed as a Hi-Bright condition. Any exposed areas of that deer or hog crouched down behind brush, for example, should pop right up into the Tracker 2’s screen. The Beacon mode is standard in both the LTO Tracker 2 and the LTO Tracker 2 HD.

• "Political shifts, sales slump cast shadow over gun industry"--AP. Mostly about the "Trump Slump" in gun sales as well as hostile legislative action. The article ends:

For now, Bartozzi said his organization [the NSSF] is focused on a measure that would expand public gun ranges, funded by an existing tax on firearms and ammunition sales that supports conservation, safety programs and shooting ranges on public lands. The hope is that increasing the number of public ranges will encourage more people to become hunters.

• The Rio Times reports that after Brazil announced new rules loosening the requirements for purchasing a firearm for self-defense, stock prices of Taurus had risen by 180 percent, but have recently fallen by 20%. It is not clear whether this fall was a market correction or because Brazil is considering allowing the importation of weapons from foreign manufacturers.

"China Rewrites the Bible?! 10 Ways China is Targeting Christians and Catholics"--China Uncensored (14 min.).

• "China Is Losing The Trade War In Nearly Every Way"--Forbes. From the article:

       Exports:  -4.4% versus estimate 2% and November’s 5.4%

      Imports: -7.6% versus estimate 4.5% and November’s 3%

      Trade Balance: $57 billion versus estimate $51 billion and November’s $44 billion

       Exports to the U.S. fell 3.7%, the first nonseasonal decline since October 2016. That would indicate an end to the pre-tariff purchasing rush by U.S. companies in the third quarter and into the fourth. Exports to the U.S. had previously climbed over 12% for three consecutive months.

       “The Chinese trade numbers released today got all the alarm bells ringing,” says Naeem Aslam, chief market strategist for Think Markets in London and a Forbes contributor. “If you need any evidence how the trade spat is impacting a country’s economic health then look no further than China trade. The lower export number means lower jobs, which means another direct impact on the (Chinese) economy. Donald Trump can be pleased. His policies have brought China to its knees.”

• Related: "China sneezes, but will Germany catch a cold?"--DW. The slow down of China's economy is impacting Germany's economy by limiting exports from Germany to China.

• Related: "China’s plans to dominate hi-tech sector with ‘Made in China 2025’ plan hit a stumbling block as US trade war takes its toll"--South China Morning Post. From the article:

        Production of industrial robots fell by 12.1 per cent in December from a year earlier after a drop of 7.0 per cent in November, according to data published by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday.

       Meanwhile, growth in the new-energy car sector, which has been heavily subsidised by the government, slowed to 15.5 per cent in December from 24.6 per cent in November.

     Production of integrated circuits, the semiconductors that power smartphones, computers and other electronic devices, as well as high-end industrial and military products, also fell by 2.1 per cent in December, although this was an improvement from November’s decline of 7 per cent.

Also: "The ongoing trade war with the United States was identified as the main cause of the fall in advanced industrial output as high US tariffs cut into demand, causing business and consumer confidence to shrink and so perpetuating a downward spiral in economic activity."

• Surprise, surprise. The film, Black Panther, has been nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture. It is the first superhero film to be so nominated. It was an okay film, but definitely mediocre when compared to the other Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films that have been produced to date, and certainly no where near as good as Avengers: Infinity War. So why was it nominated? Pure virtual signaling.
• "Fake News Media Doubles Down with Another Covington Catholic MAGA Teen Smear"--PJ Media. As noted yesterday, rather than confessing they were wrong, certain media outlets have doubled down by trying to find something ... anything ... else about the high school to show that it and its students are "evil." What they found was photographs from a decade ago from a black-out basketball game where some students had gone as far as paint their faces black. The media is calling it "black face," however, ignoring what it means to have a "black-out" crowd at a sporting event. Oh, and they made up a story about racial abuse at another basketball game.

• Related: Sue 'em all and let God sort 'em out: "Lawyer for Covington Catholic HS Families Threatens Lawsuits Against Media Unless They Retract False Stories"--PJ Media. 

• Related: The left don't care about collateral damage: "Teenager falsely identified, threatened for viral National Mall protest confrontation"--Washington Examiner. 

• Related: "If You Still Think Nick Sandmann’s Smile Is Proof of Racism, You’re Seeing What You Want to See"--Reason.

• Related: "Liberals Are Bigots, But It's Okay Because That Kid Had a MAGA Hat"--Jim Treacher at PJ Media. He explains: "Back in the old days, white supremacy meant burning crosses, threatening and hurting and killing people, saying racist things, etc. Now all you need to do is stand in one spot, literally saying nothing, and that's white supremacy."

• Related: And some thoughts from Tucker Carlson who sums up the whole incident pretty well: "So what’s actually going on here? Well, it’s not really about race. In fact, most of the stories about race really aren’t about race. And this is no different. This story is about the people in power [the media and celebrities] protecting their power, and justifying their power, by destroying and mocking those weaker than they are [the Catholic students]."

• Gun control in action: "Murders in Mexico rise by a third in 2018 to new record"--Reuters. The article reports that murders in Mexico rose by 33 percent in 2018, breaking the record for a second year running, with investigators opening 33,341 murder probes in 2018 compared with 25,036 from the prior year.

• Related: "Residents go on rampage after lynching of suspected kidnappers foiled"--Mexico News Daily. From the lede: "Angry residents of Tepalcingo, Morelos, vandalized municipal police headquarters and set fire to two vehicles last night after police stepped in to prevent the lynching of suspected kidnappers."

• Mexico is not alone: "Brazil Registers Record Number of Violent Deaths in 2017"--The Rio Times. Statistics indicate that Brazil suffered 63,880 cases of violent deaths in 2017, and 2018 statistics, when released, are not expected to be much better.

• Related: "Organized Attacks Throughout Brazil’s Ceara State Continue"--The Rio Times. "Since the first week of the year, 280 attacks have been registered, including the burning of buses, vehicles, public buildings, and banking establishments, as well as bombs placed in utility facilities across the state." The attacks are believed to have been orchestrated by prison gangs.

• Saudi Arabia intends on bulldozing a sight near its border with Jordan believed to be the actual location where the Israelites camped near Mt. Sinai while journeying in the wilderness. The location will be used to construct the new Mega-City called Neom.
• "SINGLE MINDED: FORGET MARRIAGE, SOUTH KOREANS AREN’T EVEN DATING"--This Week In Asia. How bad is it? "South Korea’s birth rate is also the lowest in the world, dropping to 0.95 at the end of last year – meaning that for every 100 women, just 95 children were born. To maintain a stable population, the birth rate needs to be 2.1."
• "Our universe has antimatter partner on the other side of the Big Bang, say physicists"--Physics World. The hypothesis is that the Big Bang created two universes: ours, and a mirror universe comprised of antimatter that extends backwards in time.
• A reminder that we live in the 21st Century: "What China’s Antarctic Behavior Tells Us About the Future of Space"--The Diplomat Magazine. China's space plans include exploiting the mineral riches of the solar system. From the article:

The road map published by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASTC) indicates that between 2020 and 2045, China aims to achieve several significant milestones with regard to space technology to include a reusable carrier rocket by 2035, and a nuclear powered space shuttle by 2040, which would augment larger payloads to include human presence in space. These plans for a nuclear powered space fleet are supported by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), which in a report published in the People’s Daily front page stated that this development would enable China to commercially explore and exploit the natural resources available in space by 2040. Wang Chunghui, associate professor of aerospace propulsion at the School of Astronautics at Beihang University, stated, “The nuclear vessels are built to colonise the solar system and beyond.”

One of the keys to the success of the West is that every time Western civilization has gone into a terminal decline, some new frontier or source of resources has opened up, revitalizing the civilization. I believe that space could be that next frontier, but only if Western nations step up to the plate and actually work to colonize the solar system.