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Archive for category Opinion
There is no “safe” place in the world – is “feeling” safe enough?
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Opinion on 23/Apr/2011 16:45
There is no “safe” place in the world. Crime is unpredictable.
Do you want to feel safe or be safe?
Laws make you feel safe, but a gun can make you be safe.
Criminals prey on the weak – a gun can help the weak protect themselves and their families. A gun gives the weak person a chance to survive. This is why women and the elderly benefit from guns the most. A 90 pound grandmother with a gun can stop a 200 pound man from attacking her.
Some would say that if the only way to feel safe is to carrying a gun, then you are not talking freedom, but you are in fact being imprisoned by your own fears.
Is that true? Is carrying a gun an indication that someone has succumbed to fear, that they are living in fear of an attack that most likely will never happen?
Or are they more like the person who buys a fire extinguisher in case there is a fire, or who buys insurance in case something bad happens in the future? Is that living in fear or is it being prepared? Seems like it depends on the attitude and the mindset. Owning a fire extinguisher does not mean you are obsessed with a neurotic fear of fire, but sure, someone who is obsessed with a neurotic fear of fire might own several fire extinguishers.
Some would say that having a gun is no insurance of safety. That’s true. Owning a fire extinguisher is no insurance there will never be a fire, either – but having one will make you better able to respond if there is a fire.
Some will say that guns are not a panacea to society’s ills. They aren’t meant to be. They are a tool, one that can be used for good or evil. If there is any cure to society’s ills it will be in the hearts and minds of good people, regardless of the tools they might have in their hands. A hammer can be used to build a summer cottage or a torture chamber. If it’s used to build a torture chamber, the problem is not the hammer.
Is the simple fact that guns are dangerous and can kill people enough to justify banning guns? People are killed by drunk drivers – do we need to ban alcohol and cars? Besides, strict laws on gun ownership have no effect on the lawless; they only affect regular citizens that use them legally.
Tell Congress: It’s Time for Some Sanity when it comes to Security
Posted by Gary in Law, News, Opinion, Threat Watch on 16/Apr/2011 12:44
It’s not often that the ACLU and I are on the same side of an issue.
From: ACLU
A 6-year old getting patted down at the airport — leaving her confused and in tears because she thought she did something wrong — is an example of the out-of-control searches and security measures in our airports.
Aviation security requires striking a delicate balance between the personal safety of passengers and their right to privacy. Unfortunately, TSA has developed increasingly invasive methods of searching passengers that are encroaching upon their rights. The TSA has subjected passengers to “enhanced” pat-downs, which have resulted in reports of people feeling humiliated and traumatized, and, in some cases, reports comparing their psychological impact to sexual assaults.
Tell Congress to support the bipartisan Aircraft Passenger Whole-Body Imaging Limitations Act of 2011. Read more.
Immaculate Intervention: The Wars of Humanitarianism
Posted by Brian in Opinion, Threat Watch on 6/Apr/2011 12:30
Immaculate Intervention: The Wars of Humanitarianism is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By George Friedman
There are wars in pursuit of interest. In these wars, nations pursue economic or strategic ends to protect the nation or expand its power. There are also wars of ideology, designed to spread some idea of “the good,†whether this good is religious or secular. The two obviously can be intertwined, such that a war designed to spread an ideology also strengthens the interests of the nation spreading the ideology.
Since World War II, a new class of war has emerged that we might call humanitarian wars — wars in which the combatants claim to be fighting neither for their national interest nor to impose any ideology, but rather to prevent inordinate human suffering. In Kosovo and now in Libya, this has been defined as stopping a government from committing mass murder. But it is not confined to that. In the 1990s, the U.S. intervention in Somalia was intended to alleviate a famine while the invasion of Haiti was designed to remove a corrupt and oppressive regime causing grievous suffering.
It is important to distinguish these interventions from peacekeeping missions. In a peacekeeping mission, third-party forces are sent to oversee some agreement reached by combatants. Peacekeeping operations are not conducted to impose a settlement by force of arms; rather, they are conducted to oversee a settlement by a neutral force. In the event the agreement collapses and war resumes, the peacekeepers either withdraw or take cover. They are soldiers, but they are not there to fight beyond protecting themselves. Read the rest of this entry »
Michael Yon Says Rolling Stone Article Is Bullshit
Rolling Stone reported recently on a “kill team” in Afghanistan.
Michael Yon says that the article is misleading to say the least:
The online edition of the Rolling Stone story contains a section with a video called “Motorcycle Kill,†which includes our Soldiers gunning down Taliban who were speeding on a motorcycle toward our guys. These Soldiers were also with 5/2 SBCT, far away from the “Kill Team†later accused of the murders. Rolling Stone commits a literary “crime†by deceptively entwining this normal combat video with the Kill Team story. The Taliban on the motorcycle were killed during an intense operation in the Arghandab near Kandahar City.
AQAP and the Vacuum of Authority in Yemen
Posted by Brian in Opinion, Threat Watch on 31/Mar/2011 14:43
AQAP and the Vacuum of Authority in Yemen is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By Scott Stewart
While the world’s attention is focused on the combat transpiring in Libya and the events in Egypt and Bahrain, Yemen has also descended into crisis. The country is deeply split over its support for Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, and this profound divide has also extended to the most powerful institutions in the country — the military and the tribes — with some factions calling for Saleh to relinquish power and others supporting him. The tense standoff in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa has served to divert attention (and security forces) from other parts of the country.
On March 28, an explosion at a munitions factory in southern Yemen killed at least 110 people. The factory, which reportedly produced AK rifles and ammunition, was located in the town of Jaar in Abyan province. Armed militants looted the factory March 27, and the explosion reportedly occurred the next day as local townspeople were rummaging through the factory. It is not known what sparked the explosion, but it is suspected to have been an accident, perhaps caused by careless smoking. Read the rest of this entry »
Charlton Heston’s “A Torch With No Flame”
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Law, News, Opinion on 29/Mar/2011 18:44
“If we focus on anti-gun legislation but ignore an anti-gun generation…”
What Happened to the American Declaration of War?
What Happened to the American Declaration of War? is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By George Friedman
In my book “The Next Decade,†I spend a good deal of time considering the relation of the American Empire to the American Republic and the threat the empire poses to the republic. If there is a single point where these matters converge, it is in the constitutional requirement that Congress approve wars through a declaration of war and in the abandonment of this requirement since World War II. This is the point where the burdens and interests of the United States as a global empire collide with the principles and rights of the United States as a republic.
World War II was the last war the United States fought with a formal declaration of war. The wars fought since have had congressional approval, both in the sense that resolutions were passed and that Congress appropriated funds, but the Constitution is explicit in requiring a formal declaration. It does so for two reasons, I think. The first is to prevent the president from taking the country to war without the consent of the governed, as represented by Congress. Second, by providing for a specific path to war, it provides the president power and legitimacy he would not have without that declaration; it both restrains the president and empowers him. Not only does it make his position as commander in chief unassailable by authorizing military action, it creates shared responsibility for war. A declaration of war informs the public of the burdens they will have to bear by leaving no doubt that Congress has decided on a new order — war — with how each member of Congress voted made known to the public. Read the rest of this entry »
Leatherwood ART M-1000 Sniper Scope
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Opinion, Optics, Warrior Tools on 26/Mar/2011 15:48
“The Leatherwood ART M-1000 2.5-10 x44mm Rifle Scope. The ART Series Scopes were the Brain Child of the Legendary Jim Leatherwood, who’s mounting system gave the U.S. Military Sniper teams the decided edge over the Battlefields in Vietnam. Still in service today, the ART Scope is a quality optic that is rugged and easy to master. And at an affordable price of $349.99 from Natchez Shooting Supply or $389.99 from MidwayUSA.com.”
As usual, there are varying opinions on the usefulness of this product. Some other feedback to consider:
Surefire Responds to Force Science Institute
From:Â Derek McDonald -Â Vice President of Marketing, SureFire
Dear SureFire Customers and Supporters:
Recently an article appeared in an email newsletter distributed by the Force Science News of the Force Science Institute, quoting its own Dr. Lewinski. The article and Dr. Lewinski make several troubling assertions that must be rebutted in the (long-term) interest of officer safety. The gist of the article and Lewinski is that grip-activated pistol-light switches are unsafe. I paraphrase (to clarify), quote, and respond to some of the more disturbing assertions below. Read the rest of this entry »
Taming Chaos with a Personal Plan
Posted by Brian in Comms, Opinion, Threat Watch on 17/Mar/2011 14:53
Taming Chaos with a Personal Plan is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By Scott Stewart
Over the past week we’ve seen a massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan that caused a nuclear accident, the Saudis sending troops into Bahrain to quell civil unrest there and the government of Yemen taking measures to expel foreign media as protests have swelled against Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
We have also recently seen large-scale evacuations of expatriates from Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, and it is not unreasonable to assume that we might see a similar exodus from Bahrain and Yemen if developments in those countries deteriorate. Moreover, in Japan, the risk of radiation and conditions that are not yet under control at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant could force further evacuations there.
In light of this uncertain environment, STRATFOR thought it prudent to address once again the topic of personal contingency planning. Indeed, we also made this topic the subject of this week’s 
Above the Tearline video. While we have often discussed this topic in relation to terrorist attacks, its principles are also readily applicable to crises caused by natural disaster, war and civil unrest. When a crisis erupts, having an established personal contingency plan provides people with a head start and a set of tools that can help them avoid, or at least mitigate, the effects of the chaos and panic that accompany crisis events. Read the rest of this entry »
“Either you are the weapon and your gun is a tool, or your gun is a weapon and you are a tool.†– James Yeager
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Opinion, Training on 9/Mar/2011 11:38
Gunblast.com – Smith & Wesson M&P 15-22
Posted by Gary in Opinion, Smith & Wesson Long Guns, Warrior Tools on 8/Mar/2011 14:14
Gunblast.com Reviews the Smith & Wesson M&P 15-22.  “Its a dandy.”
H.R.308 – Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act
Read the Bill at OpenCongress.org
Bonehead LA Police Chief chimes in.
From: Patriot Statesman
Send in the clowns. In a new effort to create new crimes, infringe on our second amendment rights and punish law abiding gun owners, Representative Carolyn McCarthy of New York has introduced a bill that would make it illegal to make, import, sell or give away any standard capacity firearm magazine.
…If you own magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds, H.R. 308 would also put you at risk of prosecution. Because virtually no existing magazines bear any markings that show when they were made, H.R. 308 would require that magazines made after the ban be marked to distinguish them from pre-ban magazines. However, the bill’s “grandfather clause†for possession of pre-ban magazines would only create an affirmative defense — forcing defendants to prove that they possessed the magazines before the ban. This nearly impossible requirement is a major difference from the 1994 ban, which put the burden of proof on the government.
Obama, Mexican president reach trucking agreement
Posted by Gary in Law, News, Opinion, Threat Watch on 3/Mar/2011 15:36
This is fraught with so many possible unintended consistences that it boggles the mind as to how people sworn to protect this nation could think there is a possible upside. But then again maybe the “upside” they are looking at only applies to scenarios we (liberty loving free men) would not consider positive. I’m not trying to be obtuse I’m trying to temper my consternation. Maybe that is a lost cause.
Excerpts from The Courier Press and AP contain obvious double-speak/right-think phrases implying that it is the Mexican government that is concerned about guns from our country causing the violence in Mexico and how a more open border might make that worse. Hmm, maybe we should rethink the whole second amendment thing while we are at it?
President Barack Obama and Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Thursday will announce a plan to open up U.S. highways to Mexican trucks, removing a longstanding roadblock to improved relations between the North American allies.
…The meeting comes three weeks after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jaime Zapata was shot to death in northern Mexico with a gun smuggled in from the U.S.
more
Never Fight a Land War in Asia
Posted by Brian in Opinion, Threat Watch on 1/Mar/2011 15:23
Never Fight a Land War in Asia is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By George Friedman
U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, speaking at West Point, said last week that “Any future defense secretary who advises the president to again send a big American land army into Asia or into the Middle East or Africa should have his head examined.†In saying this, Gates was repeating a dictum laid down by Douglas MacArthur after the Korean War, who urged the United States to avoid land wars in Asia. Given that the United States has fought four major land wars in Asia since World War II — Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq — none of which had ideal outcomes, it is useful to ask three questions: First, why is fighting a land war in Asia a bad idea? Second, why does the United States seem compelled to fight these wars? And third, what is the alternative that protects U.S. interests in Asia without large-scale military land wars?
The Hindrances of Overseas Wars
Let’s begin with the first question, the answer to which is rooted in demographics and space. The population of Iraq is currently about 32 million. Afghanistan has a population of less than 30 million. The U.S. military, all told, consists of about 1.5 million active-duty personnel (plus 980,000 in the reserves), of whom more than 550,000 belong to the Army and about 200,000 are part of the Marine Corps. Given this, it is important to note that the United States strains to deploy about 200,000 troops at any one time in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that many of these troops are in support rather than combat roles. The same was true in Vietnam, where the United States was challenged to field a maximum of about 550,000 troops (in a country much more populous than Iraq or Afghanistan) despite conscription and a larger standing army. Indeed, the same problem existed in World War II. Read the rest of this entry »