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Thursday, May 1, 2025

We're Back! Bombs & Bants Episode 155

 John Wilder and the crew return to the small screen with a new Bombs & Bants podcast:

 VIDEO: "Bombs and Bants Episode 155" (56 min.)

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Google Strikes Again

Google has taken down my last two "Gun & Prepping News" posts, allegedly for violating their Malware and Viruses policy. As usual with Google, they don't provide sufficient detail to easily identify the problem. Based on a prior instance of this, the issue is my providing a link to an article or website that was deemed to have too many pop-ups or some issue with malware. Unfortunately I don't know which one, but likely one of the small survival/prepping sites.

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Wednesday, April 30, 2025

VIDEO: What Killed The Shopping Mall

There are probably many reasons why the indoor shopping mall--once an important fixture of life in the United States--has declined. The easy answer is that Amazon killed the shopping mall, but the shopping mall was in decline long before Amazon become the dominant shopping experience. Other reasons cited for the decline of malls include how onerous it can be to visit one. As Nick Lopez points out in his article defending the strip mall:

    Malls are failing because they ultimately share the same critical design flaw as downtown: Parking proximity to limited entry points for the business makes it a more difficult shopping option for consumers, and a more difficult restocking option for retailers.

    Strip malls don’t have this issue. You park in front of the store you want to go to, and enter and exit the store directly to your car. Meanwhile, the goods enter the store directly from the back and exit out the front.

    When it comes to dealing with the things you buy, while ordering online and having the stuff delivered to your door is most convenient, the second most convenient option is a strip mall or power center. Other malls or downtown shopping require remote parking, and a bit of a walk to get to and from the retailer. 

I believe another problem with the indoor malls is that they have become a mono-culture of stores. Just as Sears, in its last couple of decades, stopped being a department store and increasingly became a clothing store, so malls became infested with clothing stores and little else. 

    But an important draw of malls was also the social experience--a place to hang out and perhaps have a snack or cheap bite to eat. But as the Daily Caller video below describes, malls have become overrun with undesirable groups making them unpleasant, at best, and possibly dangerous to visit.

VIDEO: "Is THIS What Really Killed Shopping Malls?"
TheDC Shorts (3 min.)

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Tuesday, April 29, 2025

The Rise of Incidents of Colon Cancer in Young People

 A couple articles. First, with a hat tip to Instapundit, is this article from the UPI: "Bacterial toxin implicated In [sic] young adult colon cancers." Essentially, the researchers state that "[a] bacterial toxin called colibactin, produced by certain strains of E. coli, appears to alter gut DNA in a way that prompts colon cancer, researchers report in the journal Nature." But, the article continues, "[m]ore research now is needed to figure out how children are being exposed to colibactin-producing bacteria, and what can be done about it, researchers said."

    In addition, I separately came across an article from the Daily Mail reporting that "[c]onsuming cannabis nearly every day increased the risk of dying from colon cancer by up to 20-fold, the research found." 

    Researchers at the University of California San Diego tracked over 1,000 colon cancer patients and compared daily marijuana users to non-users.

    The difference was stark — people who used weed daily before their diagnosis had a 56 percent chance of dying within five years of spotting the cancer. That was 11 times higher than those who never touched the drug.

    The outlook was even worse for patients who had an official cannabis addiction diagnosis. They were 24 times more likely to die than their peers within five years.

    The experts believe THC, the active ingredient in cannabis that causes hallucinogenic effects, may cause inflammation in the colon, which causes cancer cells to grow.

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Earthquakes Near Anchorage

The Daily Mail reports: "Major US city that's on volcano watch is rocked by near-5.0 magnitude earthquake." This is yet another incident related to increased activity associated with Mt. Spurr in Alaska. "The 4.7 magnitude earthquake is the fifth quake measuring a 4.1 or greater in the South-Central region of Alaska in the last 11 days," according to the article.

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FAFO: Throwing Things At Cars

From the Daily Mail: "Boy, 13, filmed being taught very painful lesson after he hurled Play-Doh at strangers' cars." Julian Torres, 13, and his friends had been, according to them, simply throwing Play-Doh onto a street when, as Torres describes it, "one of my friends threw a piece in the road, and there was a car, like, coming on like really fast, and, like, it kind of like hit the Play-Doh." See, it was the driver's fault that he ran into the piece of Play-Doh thrown by the boys. "Torres had attempted to hide from the man when he saw the car turn around, but he caught up with him and lashed out at the youth." It does not appear that Torres was injured and no injuries are mentioned in the article.

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Monday, April 28, 2025

The Diversity Report #26

 A selection of articles showcasing the benefits of diversity, equity and inclusion: 

 Huge crowds carrying signs with messages such as “Irish Lives Matter”, “Ireland for the Irish”, and “Ireland is Full” took to the streets of the Irish capital on Saturday in a protest coinciding with the anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising, which marked the start of the armed conflict against British rule over the island.

The mainstream media is trying to downplay this, with most articles stating only that "thousands" protested, but estimates of attendees are as high as 40,000 to 50,000 people. Meanwhile, a counter demonstration attracted "hundreds".

    The Army Blackhawk pilot involved in the Washington, DC, plane crash failed to heed her flight instructor’s warning just 15 seconds before the deadly crash that killed 67 people, according to a new report.

    Moments before the deadly Jan. 29 crash near Reagan International Airport, Capt. Rebecca Lobach missed an order from co-pilot Andrew Eaves, who was overseeing her training mission, to change course and avoid the descending American Airlines jet, the New York Times reported.

    Along with the error, officials found that the pilots “stepped on” some of the air traffic controller’s instructions, meaning they accidentally cut him off when pressing the button to talk over the radio and likely missed important information.

    According to a criminal complaint obtained by The Post, an ICE officer and a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) official showed up outside Dugan’s courtroom April 18 with a warrant for Flores-Ruiz’s arrest for illegally entering the US, but were told by a security guard and a sheriff’s sergeant to wait outside until after the hearing.

    The complaint noted that Flores-Ruiz, 30, had been deported from the US once before in 2013. It was not immediately clear when he crossed the border again, and there is no evidence he did so legally.

    Flores-Ruiz was appearing before Dugan April 18 for a pre-trial conference on three misdemeanor battery charges stemming from a fight the previous month in which he was accused of punching another person 30 times after being accused of playing music too loudly, according to a police report obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

    The complaint states that while the team assigned to arrest Flores-Ruiz, which included FBI and DEA agents, waited for the hearing to conclude, they were photographed by a public defender, who informed Dugan’s clerk that “there appeared to be ICE agents in the hallway.”

    After speaking with the clerk, Dugan “became visibly angry” and left the bench to confront the federal agents, according to an affidavit by a FBI special agent. 

Dugan then purportedly directed the federal agents to the office of the chief judge, before escorted "Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out of the courtroom’s 'jury door' to a non-public area of the courthouse," from whence they "made it out of the courthouse before the suspect was arrested by a FBI and DEA agent following a brief foot chase."

“Enough is enough. I have no intention of allowing anyone to be taken out of my courtroom by ICE and sent to a concentration camp, especially without due process as BOTH of the constitutions we swore to support requires. Should I start raising bail money?” Wisconsin Circuit Judge Monica Isham wrote in an email obtained by Wisconsin Right Now.

The Daily Mail notes that Isham "was elected in 2023 as the first Native American and first minority to serve as a circuit judge in Sawyer County". 

    Former Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano and his wife, Nancy Cano, were taken into custody Thursday after federal agents raided their Las Cruces home.

    The two face charges of evidence tampering amid allegations they harbored Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, an alleged illegal alien who is also believed to be a member of Venezuela’s notorious Tren de Aragua gang.​

* * * 

... Court documents reveal that he was initially hired by Nancy Cano for home repairs and later offered accommodation in the couple's guesthouse. ...

And some more details from a DOJ press release:

    On Feb. 28, 2025, HSI executed two federal search warrants in connection with the investigation, resulting in the arrest of the Ortega-Lopez and multiple associates, and the seizure of four firearms.

    Ortega-Lopez was arrested for illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. Four firearms believed to be in Ortega-Lopez’s possession, along with three of his cell phones, were seized during the operation. During the search, Ortega-Lopez was permitted to make a phone call before being taken to the Doña Ana County Detention Center (DACDC). He informed agents that a particular phone he wished to use was not among the devices recovered. Video calls from DACDC later showed Nancy Cano holding a black iPhone believed to be Ortega’s fourth phone.

    In a March 7 call with Ortega-Lopez, Nancy Cano used the device to contact a person named “Michelle” via WhatsApp, then facilitated a FaceTime conversation between Michelle and Ortega-Lopez using her personal phone. Additionally, in an April 20 call, Nancy Cano and Ortega-Lopez discussed deleting his Facebook account – a platform where he had previously shared incriminating content, including gang affiliations and images with firearms.

    On April 24, HSI agents executed a subsequent search warrant at the Cano residence to locate the missing cellphone. During questioning, Jose Cano admitted to destroying Ortega’s cellphone by smashing it with a hammer approximately five weeks prior, believing it contained incriminating photos and videos of Ortega with firearms.

    Forensic analysis of the recovered phones revealed messages linked to Ortega’s criminal activities, including affiliations with the Tren de Aragua gang and images of Ortega with firearms. 

    According to Fox’s exclusive report, the FBI has uncovered a plot that includes Venezuelan officials helping gang members sneak into the US—and not just to commit random crimes, but to carry out Maduro’s sinister agenda. According to the report, these gangbangers are being used like pawns in a proxy war and were sent here to intimidate and possibly kill critics of the regime right here on US soil.

    And what did the Biden regime do about it while they were in power? Nothing. Or maybe worse than nothing. They opened the floodgates at the southern border and rolled out the red carpet for these violent thugs. No vetting, no questions—just a welcome mat and a pat on the back as these gangbangers illegally flooded in.

    Whether they were complicit or just blindly obsessed with social justice, the result is the same: Biden and the Dems helped Maduro destabilize the United States—and now President Trump is left to clean up the mess.

With almost complete impunity, the Gulf Cartel expanded its control in Tamaulipas to the point where it operates as an alternative government in the border city of Matamoros. Through this control, all businesses, including food vendors, flower shops, and even panhandlers, are required to pay a weekly protection fee to the Gulf Cartel. The cartel operates a massive database of the city’s commerce and even uses city officials to collect the funds.

    In a statement, a Hennepin County [Minnesota] Attorney's Office spokesperson wrote:

    "This policy acknowledges that there are many factors to be considered in negotiations. Each case – and defendant – is unique. Someone’s age may change the likelihood of growth and change. A defendant’s race matters because we know unaddressed unconscious biases lead to racial disparities, which is an unacceptable outcome.

    Our goal with this policy matches the goal of all our work: to achieve safe, equitable, and just outcomes that center the healing of victims while improving public safety."

    A Chinese-owned and operated factory complex in Ohio illegally imported workers from China, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio.

    Last week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio released a statement saying that federal officials had seized $126 million in assets related to an investigation into illegal staffing and money laundering.

    “It is alleged that many of the workers were illegally smuggled into the United States, primarily through Mexico, and encouraged to travel to the Dayton area to be employed by one of the target entities and serve as a workforce at the various factories,” the office stated. 

The article adds: "One of the companies raided included Fuyao Glass America, the company that appeared in the Obama’s prize-winning 2019 documentary, American Factory."

    Mohamad Hamad, 23, who has dual citizenship in the US and Lebanon, was already charged for defacing a synagogue was hit Tuesday with a nine-count superseding indictment along with Talya Lubit, 24, and Micaiah Collins, 22.

    “Mohamad Hamad lied about his loyalty to the United States, among other false statements, in an attempt to obtain a Top-Secret security clearance,” Acting US Attorney Troy Rivetti said.

 And now, it looks as if Mohamed Adan Mohamed, a young resident of the left’s brave, new, multicultural Mankato, Minn., was stopped just in the nick of time. A special agent with the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) said that “there were strong indicators that Mohamed was preparing to conduct some sort of attack (Mass Casualty Event) in the next twenty-four hours.” Mohamed Adan Mohamed was stopped, but what is being done to prevent others in the future from plotting jihad massacres of the kind that he wanted to perpetrate? Nothing whatsoever, of course.

  • Diversity is a strength: "Muslim Migrants Set Church in Wales Ablaze"--Geller Report. She also notes that "British churches are vandalised an average of eight times a day, according to new data by the Countryside Alliance," and that "[o]ver three years, there were 3,237 cases of criminal damage to churches – including arson."
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Friday, April 25, 2025

Potpourri of Random Stuff

 What can’t talk but will respond when spoken to?

An echo.

    Singletons around the globe are in greater danger of experiencing mental health issues than their hitched peers, a new study has found.

    “Our analysis revealed that unmarried individuals had a higher risk of depressive symptoms than their married counterparts across all countries,” wrote the authors of the new study, published Tuesday in the Nature Human Behavior journal.

    Ramanujan brings life to the myth of the self-taught genius. He grew up poor and uneducated and did much of his research while isolated in southern India, barely able to afford food. In 1912, when he was 24, he began to send a series of letters to prominent mathematicians. These were mostly ignored, but one recipient, the English mathematician G.H. Hardy, corresponded with Ramanujan for a year and eventually persuaded him to come to England, smoothing the way with the colonial bureaucracies.

    It became apparent to Hardy and his colleagues that Ramanujan could sense mathematical truths — could access entire worlds — that others simply could not. (Hardy, a mathematical giant in his own right, is said to have quipped that his greatest contribution to mathematics was the discovery of Ramanujan.) Before Ramanujan died in 1920 at the age of 32, he came up with thousands of elegant and surprising results, often without proof. He was fond of saying that his equations had been bestowed on him by the gods.

    More than 100 years later, mathematicians are still trying to catch up to Ramanujan’s divine genius, as his visions appear again and again in disparate corners of the world of mathematics.

    Near the end of his important new book, The Disappearing of the President: Trump, Truth Social, and the Fight for the Republic, Lee Smith makes an important — and chilling — distinction. What has been happening in the last few years with the attacks on former President Donald Trump has not been a two-tiered system of justice, where some people get punished and others get off, as many conservatives have been arguing. Instead, it is a system of lawlessness. In fact, it’s barely a system at all.

    “In the current system,” Smith writes, “law is an instrument the regime uses to punish political opponents, while everything is legit for the ruling party. That is, the current system is lawless.”

And lawless pretty well describes both the J6 prosecutions and the sudden flurry of judges deciding political issues. 

    Every society faces a fundamental choice. Either deny men what they observably and actually prefer or deny women what they think they prefer in theory. Across the West, the last 60 years have been an experiment in the latter. Women have been given the red carpet treatment in the corporations, in the universities, and even in the men’s locker rooms. Divorces and custodies have been granted on demand. Pregnancies have been prevented. Babies have been aborted. Obesity and ugliness have been celebrated. The churches have been de-doctrinated and literally neutered. Refugees have been welcomed. The insane have been liberated from their asylums.

    And yet, not only are women unhappier than they were before being granted their collective societal bucket list, men are increasingly opting out of every form of participation in society. So, unless women are both as willing and as capable as men of performing most of what historically had been male duties, or men are forcibly denied the right to exercise their preferences and conscripted to perform the tasks that women won’t, the choice is between a) societal collapse and b) denying women the right to fully exercise their preferences.

  •  "Who Rules the World?"--American Greatness. The 2023 article addresses some of the popular conspiracy theories of aliens or a cabal of powerful families, but continues:

    It’s obligatory to question this paradigm, but rejecting the idea of 13 families running the planetary show doesn’t nullify the possibility that a global hierarchy of institutions exist that are more powerful than national governments. Anyone familiar with the ESG movement recognizes that it is being rolled out and enforced by banks and financial institutions who make access to cash, loans and investments contingent on compliance.

    Similarly, anyone watching the contemporary obsessions with gender ideology and climate alarm has to acknowledge that corporations have incorporated them into their products and marketing. And do corporations control governments? Up until a few years ago when gender ideology and climate alarm coopted and silenced them, that is what the American Left had made a premise of their existence. Now, apparently, accusing the government of being beholden to corporations and banks is a “right wing conspiracy theory.”

    If one does accept the idea that a handful of families own controlling interests in a hierarchy of financial institutions and corporations, that doesn’t necessarily mean the list published (or republished) by TheInfoNG is entirely accurate. Closer to home and more recently, Investopedia published an article “Top 10 Wealthiest Families in the World,” listing the following titanic dynasties: Walton, Mars, Koch, Al Saud, Hermès, Ambani, Wertheimer, Cargill/MacMillan, Thomson, and Hoffmann/Oeri. Is it them? Why aren’t the Rothschilds on this list? Where, for that matter, is Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, or Mark Zuckerberg?

    Regardless of how you calculate wealth and financial control, and who you determine occupy the top spots, it is probably naive to think that individuals with stupefying wealth would not also be controlling the most powerful institutions in the world.

    Louis Knapp saw the girl in the red parka and decided to stop. It was roughly 3 p.m. on Sunday, December 1, 1946, and Knapp was driving along Route 67A in Bennington, Vermont. A building contractor by trade, he was headed for home a few miles away. He asked the girl where she was going.

    To hike the Long Trail, she said. It was a reference to a path that climbed five miles up Glastenbury Mountain, one well-known in the area. She didn’t seem dressed for it, though. It was late afternoon, and the weather, already cool, would be getting colder.

    Knapp figured she was a student at Bennington College, which was right near where he had stopped. He thought her a little clumsy—she had tripped climbing into his truck—but otherwise unremarkable.

    The two said little as Knapp neared his driveway on Route 9 toward Glastenbury. Down the road roughly two miles was the entrance to the Long Trail.

    “Thanks, that’s swell,” the girl said, and headed in that direction.

    A few minutes later, Knapp’s daughter went outside. Route 9 was flat, and you could see a considerable distance of up to a half-mile either way. She would later tell police that there had been no sign of the hitchhiker, even though she still should have been within view. No one could walk a half-mile that quickly.

    The girl’s name was Paula Welden, and for the next several weeks, she was the biggest story to hit Bennington in a long time. Her fate would lend credence to the growing belief that this part of the Long Trail was home to an area that seemed to harbor one story after another of people who simply vanished. So many, in fact, that it came to be called the Bennington Triangle.

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Thursday, April 24, 2025

The Coming Civil Wars

The producer of this video discusses the seeming inevitability of civil wars in Europe, referencing the worsening violence in Sweden as an example of a situation where civil war has already seemingly started. He compares it to violence seen in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. (See also: "Sweden’s Murder Rate Now Higher Than El Salvador’s After Years of Globalist Mass Migration Policies—Half of Older Swedes Want to Flee the Country"--Gateway Pundit). There is a certain irony--or perhaps karma--in this as Sweden was key in organizing Western sanctions against the white led governments of Rhodesia and South Africa.

VIDEO: "The coming civil wars which are about to engulf the West and tear it apart"
History Debunked (5 min).

The producer of the History Debunked video also casually mentioned that civil war might even come to the United States. In that regard, I would point to the video below, providing additional analysis about the recent reports of police having stopped a van driven by two illegals carrying 180,000 rounds of ammunition (see my post from April 21) and suggesting that the quantity and caliber hint at the ammunition being intended to use in belt fed weapons, while also noting all of the military facilities in the area of Pueblo, Colorado. 

VIDEO: "Cartels prepare for inside the US attack with 180k rounds in Colorado"
Mike G. (13 min.)

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You Can't Have The West Without Westerners

 A critique of classical liberalism and chasing the lowest wage costs. The video also notes that love of one's country, nation or people is really a love of one's ancestors.

VIDEO: "The Regime Has Unleashed Something it Cannot Contain"
Richard The Fourth (17 min.)

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Austria Is Done

"41.2% of Vienna Students Are Muslim: ‘No Longer Immigration,’ But ‘Displacement’"--Legal Insurrection. "According to newly released data from the City Council of Vienna for the 2024–2025 academic year," the article reports, "Muslim students now represent 41.2% of the population across primary, secondary, and vocational schools—making them the largest single religious group. By comparison, just 34.5% of students identify as Christian (including 17.5% Catholic and 14.5% Orthodox), while 23% report no religious affiliation."

    It reminds me of a piece by Vox Day from a few days ago entitled "Failure = Replacement" which makes the obvious point that if a nation or people refuse or otherwise fail to have children, they will be replaced. The issue came up because of a comment from Owen Benjamin in which he stated: "if you refuse to have children and you refuse to do labor, you should be replaced. Mexicans, Somalians, it doesn’t matter, you’re not valuable to society, no one owes you anything, your skin color is not a credit, it doesn’t make you special." Vox defended Benjamin's comment, observing that "the point is not that these people 'should' be replaced, it is that they 'will' be replaced and that they 'are' being replaced because they a) won’t breed, b) won’t work, and c) won’t fight." 

    Benjamin, I think, approached the issue more from a money class or libertarian perspective which was that if you are not useful to the overclass, you "should" be replaced; whereas Day is approaching the issue from a pragmatic perspective. But they both reach the same conclusion. 

    Of course, saying "go have children" is easy to say but more difficult in practice. It does, after all, take two to tango, as the saying goes. I discuss this topic regularly it seems, but here is a piece from Town Hall that recognizes that "It's Not Just a Population Crisis," but is a dating and marriage crisis as well. 

    Yes, people aren't having as many children, but that's not really the issue. It's a symptom of the issue.

    Children, you see, are the end result of a series of decisions made by men and women, and the way society suggests people make those decisions has ramifications that go well beyond the short-term ramifications people see.

    People aren't having kids because they're not getting married like they used to. They're not getting married as much because dating is a lot harder than it used to be, and they're going on fewer dates. Part of this is because both sexes have some warped ideas about dating, coupled with some legitimate concerns about where lines are that shouldn't be crossed.

    First, let's talk about the warped ideas.

    While I'm long out of the dating pool – thank God, considering all of this – I've kept an eye on it because I have kids, one of whom is an adult and is one of those having issues.

    What he encounters is a world where a lot of women, including some who frankly shouldn't even think about being picky, follow the 666 Rule. What that means is they want their partners to be six-feet tall, have a six-figure income, and have at least six inches...um...downstairs, let's say. Some will say the third six is six-pack abs, which is a bit less dirty, but still pretty superficial.

The author notes that only 3% of American men meet the first two criteria. The author also points out:

Men aren't blameless in all of this, though, because a lot of women aren't that superficial. They're open to dating guys. The problem is that men don't approach them anymore. Part of that could be due to the whole #MeToo movement, which brought up sexual harassment as something that should destroy your life. I'm not going to condone sexual harassment, either, but when you've been told that it's defined as, "An unwanted sexual advance," guys can be a little gun shy of risking it, not understanding that asking a woman out, then accepting no for an answer, shouldn't be a problem.

And then there is the hypergamy:

And that's without getting into the fact that even more sane, rational women want a man with at least a comparable level of education, only to miss the fact that women are being accepted and graduating from school at much higher rates, meaning the dating pool is going to be skewed.

    There are ways to fix this, but it would never be accepted by any group with power and influence, and so it will not happen.

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Wednesday, April 23, 2025

The Diversity Report #25

A selection of articles showcasing the benefits of diversity, equity and inclusion: 

    It’s no mistake that leftists and woke activists are obsessed with power dynamics; their new religion ensures that they cannot see the world any other way. For woke ideologues everything revolves around which groups hold power and how they can take that power for themselves. Thus, questions of right and wrong never enter into the equation. Power is the end that justifies all means.

    They see moral order as an artificial construct that oppresses them (because they want to do evil without consequence). Moral relativism at its core requires the victimization of others as a form of rebellion against order. Of course, the injustice of this mentality is hard to dismiss but leftists have a way around that.

    There’s no shortage of woke activists who have displayed a contempt for the law and for morals when they’re being judged, but they will joyfully embrace morals and the law when they think these things can be used against their enemies. Hypocritically, leftists like the idea of rules, but only for other people. Rules are a shield to prevent retribution from the people they victimize. That’s the only purpose rules serve for the woke.

    To summarize, leftists are total relativists. The rules do not apply to them. The law does not apply to them. Morality does not apply to them. Conscience is non-existent for them (or it exists but they have trained their minds to ignore it). Biological reality does not apply to them. They think they are special and that boundaries should only exist for the people they don’t like.

    This is pure evil. There’s no other rational way to look at it.

Earlier this month, four prison officers at His Majesty’s Prison Frankland were injured with boiling oil and a makeshift blade. Hashem Abedi, who was convicted of aiding his brother in bombing an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester that left 22 dead and over a thousand injured, was alleged to have been the attacker.

Muslims believe that dogs are unclean and so the prisoners had, successfully it seems, argued that they should not have to come in contact with the dogs.

  • "The King Of England Can’t Even Celebrate Easter Without Mentioning Islam"--The Federalist. Keep in mind that Charles is not just the king of England, but also the head of the Church of England, ostensibly a Christian faith. The article notes that Charles was busy on Palm Sunday honoring the Sikh holiday of Vaisakhi. But, of course, Easter couldn't be about Christianity but had to involve other decidedly un-Christian religions:
“The love [Christ] showed when he walked the Earth reflected the Jewish ethic of caring for the stranger and those in need, a deep human instinct echoed in Islam and other religious traditions, and in the hearts of all who seek the good of others,” the king wrote. 

I think that this statement shows that Charles knows as much about Christianity as he does about living in a cardboard box under a bridge. Of course the whole reason that the parable of the Good Samaritan was so powerful and divisive at the time was precisely because there was no Jewish ethic of caring for the stranger.

In December of 2022, an Afghan was arrested for raping a 13-year-old boy in the French city of Croisilles. While in custody for that crime, he was charged for the February 2022 attempted murder of a tourist in Paris. He was then transferred to Paris to stand trial on the attempted murder case. The trial has started, and during proceedings he spontaneously admitted the rape of the boy in December of 2022.

    The commander of Fort McCoy was relieved of duty after the U.S. Army base failed to install photos of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on a wall displaying their chain of command.

    Col.  Sheyla Baez Ramirez was suspended as garrison commander of Ft. McCoy in Wisconsin. "This suspension is not related to any misconduct," the U.S. Army Reserve Command said in a statement, "We have no further details to provide at this time while this matter is under review."

    Despite the fears of LGBTQ activists, though, season two co-star Isabela Merced has insisted that there is a lot of LGBTQ representation in this season and promised that “the gays are going to be fed.”

    Merced also claimed that the series hired “a gay woman” to edit at least one of the episodes, and the actress insisted that “going as authentic as possible” with the LGBTQ angles for the season.

 A San Francisco-based drag queen group is facing backlash after its Easter performance, which mocked Jesus and Christianity, was marketed to children. The controversial show, held during the Easter weekend, featured performances that some critics argue crossed a line by making light of sacred Christian symbols and beliefs. Despite the growing outrage, the group has defended its performance, claiming it was meant to be an inclusive celebration of creativity and self-expression. However, the performance was marketed to a young audience during one of Christianity’s most sacred holidays.

    “Efforts to go to restaurants, to have social gatherings, things that are very much beer occasions, have softened in the more recent term,” Constellation Brands CEO Bill Newlands said.

    The executive said that Latino customers, who represent half of the beer brand’s customer base, have limited social gatherings, which Newlands said often include beer drinking.

    María Belén Méndez, an archaeologist who was not involved with the project, said the discovery confirms "that there has been an interconnection between both cultures and what their relationships with their gods and celestial bodies was like."

    "We see how the issue of sacrifice exists in both cultures. It was a practice; it's not that they were violent, it was their way of connecting with the celestial bodies," she said.

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Tuesday, April 22, 2025

More On China's Sudden Population Decline

 Back on April 1, 2025, I posted a piece entitled "How Many Died Because Of Covid In China?" which collected some videos noting that China appears to have suffered a massive and abrupt decline in its population, possibly due to Covid. I note that a few days ago, the See More Rocks substack by Robin Westenra had a similar post entitled "Hundreds of Millions Dead? What Is China Hiding?" addressing the same issue, but linking to additional material including an interview with someone named Dr. Andrew Kaufman and articles from the Epoch Times. Quoting from an April 15 article by Alex Wu, Westenra relates:

    Chinese residents across the country continue to reveal on social media and to The Epoch Times that amid ongoing respiratory infections and overcrowding at local hospitals and crematoriums, China’s villages, towns, and even streets in the big cities are looking eerily empty.

    Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in China’s Wuhan, a wave of mass respiratory infections has appeared across China almost every year. Because of the regime’s record of publishing unreliable data, including its underreporting of COVID-19 infections in early 2020, analysts and the public often rely on anecdotal stories and evidence.

    Mr. Chen, a truck driver in Fujian Province in southeast China who only gave his last name for safety reasons, told The Epoch Times that in the past two years, many people he knows have died. He said he has heard from many of his acquaintances that the situation is similar all over the country.

    Early in the pandemic, the nation’s funeral homes were operating at full capacity but unable to keep up with demand. The authorities then expanded and renovated the nation’s funeral homes, and the speed of cremating corpses increased after the renovation, Chen said.

    He said that two or three years ago, there were too many bodies waiting for cremation and not enough furnaces to cremate them. “At that time, when sending off relatives, you had to queue for several days, or even half a month to a month.”

    In the last few years, Chen said, the number of deaths seen in China remains concerning. Now, many of his relatives and friends have passed away.

    He compared it with the past. “Only one friend died in ten to twenty years,” he said. “In recent years, I have seen funerals happening everyday. I often drive outside and [always] see hearses.”

    Regarding the claim by China’s ruling communist party (CCP) that China has a population of 1.4 billion, Chen said that the official data is not credible.

    Mr. Li, a villager in Zhoukou of Henan Province in north China who only gave his last name for safety reasons, told The Epoch Times that in recent days, local hospitals have all been overcrowded with patients and that many people have died from conditions like pneumonia, heart attack, and ischemic stroke.

    Most of the deceased were otherwise healthy-appearing individuals in their thirties or forties, he said.

    He said that in recent years, local villages with populations of around 500 to 600 people have reported many deaths. Some people died before they could be sent to the hospital, he said of their condition.

    “Poor people are like ants, they die and are buried quietly. Their families cannot afford the cremation. This kind of situation is too common nowadays,” he said.

It continues with other anecdotes and data. Westerna also includes other articles and videos, some dating back several years, contending that the deaths in China have been far worse than the CCP has admitted. 

    What the 4/15/2025 Epoch Times article suggests, however, is that there is some really nasty bug currently (or very recently) circulating in China.

at 4 comments:

More Proof of the Two-Tier Justice System

 One set of laws for the Democrat elites and one for the rest of us: "OUTRAGEOUS: Soros-Backed County Attorney Says Member of Tim Walz Administration Won't Face Criminal Charges For Vandalizing at Least 6 Teslas - Police Blast Decision!"--The Gateway Pundit. 

    Soros-backed Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty will not seek criminal charges for the Tim Walz staffer who vandalized at least six Teslas in Minnesota, causing $20,000 in damage.

    The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office will seek “diversion” rather than criminal charges.

    Last week, TGP reported that a fiscal policy analyst for Minnesota Governor (and failed VP candidate) Tim Walz’s administration was caught on camera vandalizing a Tesla.

    Dylan Bryan Adams, 33, was caught on camera keying a Tesla while walking his dog.

The NY Post notes that Adams caused at over $20,000 of damages, adding that "Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said at the time of the incident that the damage in each case was the equivalent of a felony."

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Monday, April 21, 2025

Mt. Spurr Now Steaming

On April 11, 2025, I had linked to an article reporting on an uptick in earthquakes around Mt. Spurr, a volcano on Alaska, as a possible prelude to the volcano becoming more active. Now a report that the volcano is venting steam from its summit crater.

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Illegal Aliens Busted With 180,000 Rounds of Ammo

From Gateway Pundit: "Two Mexican Nationals Busted in Colorado With 180,000 Rounds of Ammunition." From the article:

    Two Mexican nationals were arrested in Colorado last month after authorities found them transporting 180,000 rounds of ammunition during a traffic stop, federal officials have announced.

    Caesar Ramon Martinez Solis, 41, and Humberto Ivan Amador Gavira, 24, were pulled over on March 26th in Cañon City, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Colorado.

    Detectives from Fremont County stopped their white Chevrolet van after it failed to dim its headlights, didn’t signal a turn, and had a broken license plate light, according to an arrest affidavit. 

The pair were in the United States illegally.

    Martinez Solis ... explained that he and Amador Gavira, whom he identified as his brother-in-law, had traveled from Mexico to Denver the day before to look at a vehicle.

    They then drove to Salt Lake City, where they stopped at a gun shop, and Amador Gavira bought the ammunition, according to the affidavit.

    “[Martinez Solis] further explained that he did not know the intent with the ammunition but that he believed it was destined for Pueblo,” the affidavit stated.

The article indicated that the ammo was a mixture of .308 and 7.62. I assume that it was 7.62x51 but the article didn't specify, so I supposed it could have been 7.62x39. 

Related (?): 

    According to the DEA’s website, the Sinaloa Cartel, and the Jalisco Cartel also known as the CJNG Cartel, are operating global criminal enterprises and rely on a global supply chain to smuggle fentanyl into the U.S.

    “They operate in all the major cities and they are responsible for bringing drugs into our state,” said Pullen. “The men and women of the DEA are out investigating drug trafficking organizations across the state, including in Southern Colorado and right here in Colorado Springs, and we identify members of cartels regularly who are involved in importing drugs into the state and distributing drugs on our streets.”

    In May of this year, “Operation Cash Out” was launched across Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, and Montana to target and stop the supply of money to cartels.

    “Cartels do not care about the 100,000 Americans who died last year, they only care about the money they make,” Pullen said. “They are making billions of dollars; these pills are incredibly cheap to make, two to three cents to make per pill within Mexico.”

    According to Pullen, the DEA is involved in looking at the entire network when it comes to drug trafficking organizations and a big piece of that is looking at the way cartels move their money.

    “The cartels are making a fortune,” he said. “In some places, we even see pills being sold, say on an Indian reservation for $50 or $60 per pill, so they are making an incredible profit.” 

at 4 comments:

Pope Francis' Death And What Is Next

Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio) passed away earlier today after a last Easter appearance on Sunday. He was age 88. He had been suffering from a bilateral lung infection since February 14, 2025. Francis has been considered to have been a liberal force within the Catholic Church. Per the NY Post article cited above:

    The Jesuit rankled some critics, both inside and outside the Vatican, with progressive attitudes and advisements, including naming several women to major posts in the Vatican and urging the church to be understanding of both gay and divorced Catholics who desire to received the Eucharist — though he stopped short of voicing approval for gay marriage.

* * *

    Pope Francis was a vociferous advocate for the rights of migrants and refugees and implored countries in the West to consider the plight of the least among us. This advocacy included recently speaking out against President Trump’s promise to enforce American immigration policy — calling mass deportations a “disgrace.”

 According to another New York Post article, this is what happens next:

    The church enters a period known as “sede vacante” — a Latin phrase that translates to “empty seat” or “vacant seat” — when the Throne of Saint Peter is unoccupied.

    Traditionally, this period can last several weeks as Pope Francis’ body lies in state, his funeral is held, and the Vatican prepares for the closed-door meeting to elect his successor.

    During this time, the College of Cardinals will temporarily take over and assume limited powers — led by the camerlengo, or chamberlain.

    Irish-born Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who is the church’s current camerlengo, will be in charge of running the administration and finances of the Holy See — otherwise known as the Catholic Church’s government.

But there must also be a conclave to select the next Pope:

    Under the Vatican’s procedures, a “conclave” — a meeting where cardinals vote on the next pontiff — must start in the 15 to 20 days after Pope Francis’ death.

    The meeting will take place in the Sistine Chapel, the famed hall within the Vatican that’s adorned with Michelangelo’s paintings, where cardinals will take an oath of secrecy before sealing the doors.

    Once the conclave begins, the cardinals won’t be allowed to leave the Vatican until they have chosen a new pope.

    They will sleep in the Casa Santa Marta hotel inside the Vatican grounds and won’t have access to phones, the internet or newspapers.

    Only 138 of the 253 cardinals will be able to serve as electors in the conclave — up from a previous limit of 120 — and no cardinals over the age of 80 can participate in voting.

The article goes on to explain that there will be two daily ballot sessions that will continue until one candidate has 2/3 or more of the vote. "If a majority isn’t reached, the ballot cards are put in a stove and burned with an additive that produces black smoke, which signals to the outside world that a pope still hasn’t been chosen," the article explains. "Once a majority vote is reached, the secret ballots are burned with an additive that’ll produce white smoke." Also, "[t]he sessions will be suspended for a day if a majority isn’t reached within three days. The process then continues again in the same format until a new pope is picked."

    Finally, the Post explains "Here are the top cardinals who could replace Pope Francis after the conclave." The article begins by stating: "The next pontiff could come from Africa, Italy, or Sri Lanka — possibly even America — but it’s likely that whoever is elected to follow Pope Francis, who died Monday at age 88, will nudge the Catholic Church back to the ideological center, experts said." But as I read through the six likely candidates, four were described as ones that would either continue Francis' policy of liberalizing the Catholic Church or even pushing it further left. Of the two "conservatives" listed, one of them was not even a cardinal and, so, not a realistic option.

at 4 comments:

Friday, April 18, 2025

The March Through The Institutions Is Complete

From the Federalist: "Fired Insubordinate Officers Reveal Massive U.S. Military Resentment Against Elected Civilian Command." From the article:

    There is a cancer in America’s military ranks, and it must be expunged before it’s too late. That cancer lies in uniformed service members’ widespread rejection of the uniquely American concept of civilian control of the military and disregard for the absolute necessity that America’s military officers remain apolitical in the face of the constitutional will of the electorate.

    Recent events reveal this cancer, and they include the relief for cause of Navy Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield after she reportedly refused to hang photos of President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on her headquarters’ customary “Chain of Command” board and reportedly told her subordinates in a town hall that she would “wait [the Trump administration] out” the next four years. They also include the relief for cause of Col. Sussanah Meyers, commander of the U.S. Space Force’s base in Greenland, after she openly questioned (to all of her subordinates via email) Vice President J.D. Vance’s official pronouncements regarding the United States, Greenland, and Denmark.

    Since Trump’s inauguration, numerous other senior generals and admirals have been relieved by President Trump for various publicly unspecified reasons, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown; Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti; Adm. Linda Lee Fagan, the commandant of the Coast Guard; and Air Force Gen. Timothy D. Haugh, director of the National Security Agency and commander of U.S. Cyber Command. Each of these four-star firings is publicly shrouded in a certain degree of mystery, but rumors abound that so-called diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) played a part in one way or another.

The author relates:

Since Trump’s inauguration, I have been flooded with reports of insubordination in the ranks toward Trump and Hegseth. Those reports range from fairly senior officers in the Pentagon showing open disrespect around the E-Ring coffee maker, all the way down to junior enlisted disrespecting their president and secretary of defense in the ship’s galley or the chow hall.

And:

I have heard from some anti-Trump officers that it is acceptable for them to challenge Trump and be “disloyal” to him on political matters because while the enlisted oath of office includes the phrase “that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States,” no such words regarding the president appear in the officer oath of office. This idea is highly disturbing. 

And, he warns:

The trends we are seeing feel dangerously close to an embrace of 1970s South American-style military juntas. Think about Gen. Mark Milley telling China he would warn them about U.S. military activity. Think about Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman using his position on the National Security Council as a springboard for impeaching a president because he did not like the way that president was lawfully discharging his duties. These are not the marks of healthy civilian control of the military. They are instead marks of a military approaching the rationalization of a coup.

    I can't remember the source, but years ago I came across a quip that the military could never plan a coup because there wasn't enough computing power on the planet to run all the Power Point presentations that would be needed. But that is just someone whistling past the graveyard. It seems apparent, according to other comments in the article, that the author believes that Marxist ideology, in the form of DEI, has become a core value of the military; and thus, the author suggests, "when Donald Trump seeks to exercise his constitutional powers to purge a purely political doctrine, the generals and admirals mistakenly see this as an effort to purge a fundamental, essential, and apolitical military ethos. This gives them license to feel justified in 'resisting' the lawful orders of their commander-in-chief and engaging in insubordination as they falsely imagine they are protecting a core competency of our nation’s defense."

    I'm more cynical, and would suggest that is is not just DEI they are defending, but threats to the largess and mutual backscratching we see between industry, finance, and the military--what Eisenhower termed the industrial-military complex. What will they do when DOGE turns its eyes on the Defense Department?

at 2 comments:

Thursday, April 17, 2025

CIA To Go After Drug Cartels?

From Breitbart: "CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis: CIA to Create a ‘Finely Tuned Machine’ to Destroy the Cartels." The CIA has long been in bed with drug traffickers, smugglers, and other criminal organizations. It is an unfortunate aspect of both police and intelligence work that police and spies sometimes have to work with or obtain assistance from criminals, crime organizations and sleazy politicians (both here and abroad). But there have long been conspiracy theories that the CIA has been complicit in the drug trade as a means of funding stretching back as far as Vietnam. There are even a couple Wikipedia articles on the topic:

Thus, it will be interesting to see how effective is the CIA at destroying the cartels and reducing the importation of drugs into the United States. Perhaps it will be different this time around because the cartels have aligned with China.

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UVB-76 Waking Up?

UVB-76, variously called "MDZhB", "The Buzzer", and has been coined "the Doomsday Radio Station" in the media, is a military shortwave radio state that began operating in 1976 and broadcasts in Upper Side Band mode on the frequency of 4625 kHz (wavelength of 64.8 m). Per the Wikipedia article on it, "[i]t broadcasts a short, monotonous buzz tone, repeating at a rate of approximately 25 tones per minute, 24 hours per day," or "sometimes cartoon character Yosemite Sam saying 'Varmint, I'm a-gonna b-b-b-bloooow ya ta'smithereenies'." But as the article goes on to explain, starting in 1997, the buzzing signal would sometimes be interrupted by a voice transmission in Russian. There are three main formats of the voice transmissions, although there have been a few exceptions, believed to have been inadvertent transmissions or someone hijacking the frequency. 

    Two common theories for the station are that it is used to transmit messages to spies; or that it is a "deadhand" station intended to trigger a Soviet/Russian military response should it go dead. Per the Wikipedia article, however, the first is unlikely because of the low power of the transmission which limits its range and the voice broadcasts are at irregular times; and the second is unlikely because the station has gone off the air several times (for instance, the station suddenly went radio silent for 24 hours on June 5, 2010).

    Another theory is that the Russian military is broadcasting on the frequency to preserve its use: that by broadcasting continuously, they prevent someone else from "poaching" the frequency. The source of the signal had allegedly been narrowed down to a location near Povarovo, Russia, about halfway between Zelenograd and Solnechnogorsk - 6.2 miles northwest of Moscow, but then was apparently moved in September 2010. "The station then popped up near the city of Saint Petersburg and the village of Kerro Massiv - possibly the result of widespread reorganization of the Russian military seen that year," reports the Daily Mail, adding that "[a]s of writing [October 2024], The Buzzer now appears to be broadcast solely from the 69th Communication Hub in Moscow, possibly due to more reorganization efforts for the particular area, in the Moscow Military District."

    However, the station appears to have become more active recently. On March 4, 2025, EurAsia Daily (a Russian news site) reported that the station had become sharply more active in February:

    The so-called "Doomsday Radio Station" UVB-76 became sharply more active in February 2025. This is evidenced by the logs of the ether, which are maintained in the Telegram channel "UVB-76 logs".

    During the month, the station aired 46 times. A record number of 25 messages were sent to UVB—76 on February 12. Then the words "coarsening", "child", "suckling", "buinaksk", "optoshum", "offspring", "sortostage", "yeletsobazaz", "shtatognom", "menrosharzh", "commissar", "zhadyuga", "long", "khrushchoplob" were transmitted. On this day, the Presidents of the United States and Russian President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation.

    The last messages were heard on March 3. The words "iotolast" and "runic" got on the air.

The article cited unnamed experts who warned against panic and assured that "UVB-76 is in no way connected with the Russian nuclear deterrent forces."

    And, earlier today, the British paper, The Express, reported that "Russia's doomsday radio wakes up and sends four eerie cryptic messages." From the article:

    ... On Tuesday, the station signalled four words, according to Telegram channel UVB-76 logs. These were: Neptune, Thymus, Foxcloak, and Nootabu.

    The channel, which constantly logs the station’s activity, said the radio buzzed the eerie messages within 24 hours, which is highly unusual. Speculation over the meaning behind the signals include codes for secret military operations, yet its purpose remains a mystery. ...

The article adds:

In February, UVB-76 released a staggering 25 messages within 24 hours, according to Russian state media, which include: Synopsis, Boulevard, Coarsening, B*******, Optoshum, Elecbase, Shtatognome Commissar and Volkokran.

at 1 comment:

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Japan's Population Continues to Decline

The Daily Wire reports that Japan's birth rates have hit a new record low despite a $25 billion program to encourage women to have children. Per the article:

    Japan’s population plummeted for the 14th year in a row in 2024, declining by nearly 900,000 people despite massive government spending aimed at encouraging childbirth.

    New data released on Monday by Japan’s Internal Affairs Ministry shows the number of Japanese nationals declining by 898,000, marking the steepest annual decline since authorities began keeping records in the 1950s.

The article also notes:

The country’s fertility rate in 2023 stood at just 1.2 expected births per woman over her lifetime, far below the 2.1 needed to maintain a stable population, reflected in Japan’s child population declining to a record-low 11.2% of the population, 13.8 million, after a decline of 343,000 last year. 

Buy why aren't the Japanese having children? "Surveys show many younger Japanese are reluctant to marry or have families, discouraged by bleak job prospects, rising living costs outpacing salary growth, and corporate cultures incompatible with dual-income parenting." And:

Ryuichi Kaneko, demographer and professor at Meiji University, told the Asahi Shimbun newspaper: “I believe one of the reasons Japan’s declining birthrate has become especially severe is that, in the postwar period, the country built a society that prioritized economic activity to an extreme degree.”

I've noted before that the only populations in developed countries (and even many "third world" countries) that have fertility rates above replacement levels are those that are highly religious. Not just "kinda religious" but with high levels of religiosity. It may be a matter of hope in the future, feelings of duty, or just faith in a higher power, but whatever it is, religiosity is the key. And, in this regard, I would note that unadulterated capitalism does not care about God or religion anymore than does communism. What we need is a religious revival in the West. 

    But this is where the Devil is in the details, for what better way to ensnare men than for the Devil to drive us into a misery so great that people will beg for anyone to save them, even if it turns out to be the Anti-Christ. 

VIDEO: "Money Power is Destroying Everything"
Richard The Fourth (9 min.)

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Gun & Prepping News #28

 Some items that have caught my attention:

  • First up, if you haven't done so already, be sure to check out Greg Ellifritz's Weekend Knowledge Dump from last Friday, April 11 for some more firearm and prepping related articles.
  • "The RXM Versus the Glock Gen 3 – Who is the Most Glock?"--Guns America.  A hands on comparison between the new Ruger RXM and a Glock 19 Gen 3. Because the older Glock did not have a slide cut for mounting an optic, the author just compared the two using the standard iron sights each shipped with. Some highlights: the RXM uses a chassis system, so you can get different grip modules; the RXM has better factory sights (including a tritium night sight on the front sight blade); the RXM has slightly better ergonomics because the grip is slightly thinner than the Gen 3 Glock; while the magazine release is basically the same, the author indicates that sculpting of the grip made reloads quicker with the RXM. 
  • Back to basics: "How to Clean Your AR-15: A Complete Guide"--The Firearm Blog. Tips, tricks, and recommended tools and supplies, as well as detailed step-by-step instructions. 
  • "How To Wield the Shockwave Effectively"--Guns America. Advice on how to effectively run the Mossberg Shockwave firearm and the similar Remington Tac-14. The author also discusses the pros and cons of these type of firearms. 
  • "Savage Revel – A New Lever-Action 22"--Guns America. The rifle comes in .22 LR, .22 WMR, and .17 HMR, but the model reviewed is .22 LR. This also appears to be the basic "Classic" model, and Savage also has a higher grade model (the DLX) which comes with a slightly fancier stock and threaded barrel. The two primary items that stick out about this rifle is that it can easily be broken down for cleaning, maintenance, or transportation by removing two pins; and the low price relative to many other .22 lever actions out there. The MSRP for the classic is $439 which means it may be available from dealers for less than $400.
  • "Ruger American Generation II Ranch Rifle in .350 Legend"--The Truth About Guns. Although the .350 Legend was designed for hunting in states that require using straight wall cartridges, the author thought it would do well in the forests of Pennsylvania. The article reviews both the Ruger American Gen II Ranch Rifle and the author's experience shooting it with the .350 Legend. 
  • "Franklin Armory’s Reformation Returns"--The Firearm Blog. The Reformation was a firearm that was manufactured with straight grooves in the barrel in order for it to qualify as merely a "firearm" and, thereby, get around the restrictions on SBRs but without being classified as a shotgun. Because it doesn't have true, curved rifling, it is intended only as a short range weapon. But, as the article reports, "[i]n 2019, however, the ATF classified the Reformation as a GCA-only regulated short-barrel shotgun - last month this was overturned." Consequently, "7.5-inch and 11.5-inch barrel length versions of Reformation are now available for purchase through Franklin Armory’s dealer network in the vast majority of US states." Models are available with or without Franklin Armory's binary trigger, and the weapon is available in 5.56 or .300 BLK.
  • Some firearm history: "The International Harvester M1 Garand: A New Rifle For The Nuclear Age"--American Rifleman. When the Korean War broke out, the U.S. found itself having to once again manufacture M-1 Garand rifles. Because of the risk of a single nuclear strike wiping out most of the highly concentrated firearms manufacturing base, the Army opted to award one of the contracts to a company hundreds of miles away from the New England firms, which is how a farm equipment manufacturer, International Harvester, wound up with a contract. The article goes on to describe some of the obstacles that International Harvester had to overcome, as well as differences between the WWII and Korean War rifles.
  • And more firearm history: "The 'M1917 Carbine'"--American Rifleman. Most of you probably know that when the U.S. entered World War I, the U.S. Springfield Armory couldn't produce enough of the M1903 Springfield rifles as it needed and so turned to Remington (which was already producing rifles for the British military) to rechamber that rifle in .30-06 for use by American forces, thus giving birth to the M1917 "Enfield" rifle. After the war, there were large numbers of the M1917 rifles left over. As the article describes, a large number of these rifles were supplied to China after the outbreak of World War II. But because the rifle was large and cumbersome, a number of the M1917 were cut down--shorter barrels and butt stocks--to make them easier to handle for the smaller Chinese troops. 
  • "Kydex Vs Leather Holsters: Which Is Best For You?"--The Firearm Blog.  The author discusses the pros and cons of kydex and leather holsters, and also looks at various hybrid models available. Having carried daily for decades, I much prefer the leather holsters for comfort. However, I still use both--it depends on the use and the firearm. For instance, I have a snub-nosed revolver with a shrouded hammer, which doesn't work well with a thumb-break strap. Thus, I tend to use it with a Kydex/polymer holster if carrying it outside the waistband.  
  • "Concealed Carry Corner: Why Less Really Is More"--The Firearm Blog. The article covers several topics, but the first and foremost is a large gun versus a small gun:

When it comes to carrying a concealed firearm, size and weight are two of the biggest factors to being able to carry it comfortably all day long. Sure, you can carry just about anything for one full day, but by the end of the day, you may have hot spots so bad you can’t comfortably carry next day. Various upgrades like a better belt and properly fitting pants can help tremendously, but these items don’t automatically make carrying a larger gun easier. No matter what tricks or upgrades you use, there’s no overcoming just how heavy some guns can be, especially on hot summer days when your skin may be more irritated. 

  • Oops: "Chicago Buyback Blunder: Glock Turned In, Ends Up In Teen’s Hands"--Guns America. A Glock pistol turned into police at a gun buyback event "somehow disappeared inside the precinct and magically resurfaced a year later—in the hands of a 16-year-old fleeing a crime scene." 
  • "The Cheapskate Contrarian’s Guide to Prepping – Learn to Wear Long Sleeves All Year"--Jerking the Trigger. Why you should learn to wear long sleeve shirts year long, including to replace having to use sunscreen (and how much of that do you have in your prepping supplies, anyway). The author notes that thrift stores have plenty of long sleeve shirts for cheap. He also likes the hooded sun shirts.
  • "The Disaster Laptop Computer" (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) -- Survival Blog. Part 1 goes into the basic computer system. The author opted for a Nimo N171 I3-1215U computer with the Windows operating system because it could run the software he needed, and it used a USB-C charging system, meaning that it could be charged off a power bank (whereas most older laptops would need a 110 V power supply to charge). It also discusses other hardware, the set-up (including the apps he removed), and a general list of software he intended to load.

    In Part 2, the author goes into more detail on specific software including "unzipping" compressed files, for radio programming, document reading, calendaring and task management, and creating diagrams.

    In Part 3, the author goes over books and videos to download as reference sources, as well as sources to obtain these items. 

  •  "Different Fishing Setups You Should Know About"--SHTF Preparedness. These are three basic setups for fishing lakes and ponds: (i) a setup for cast and retrieving; (ii) another for fishing off the bottom; and (iii) suspended bobber and bait fishing.
  • "Apartment Safety Upgrades to Consider in 2025"--Apartment Prepper.  Some basic things you can do (and probably without upsetting a landlord) to make your doors and windows more secure, improve lighting, and some other tips. My wife and lived in apartments and rentals for the first 6 or 7 years we were married and a few of the basic things we did were: (a) in one apartment, we needed to install longer screws into the hinges of a patio door; (b) we picked up some simple stick up door alarms that would set off a chime or alarm when a door was open; (c) we picked up a brace designed to fit under a door handle to better secure the main entry; and (d) picked up a brace designed to better secure a sliding patio door.
  • "How to Start an Edible Garden for Preppers"--Modern Survival Online. A lot of good tips, so check it out.
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