Notes from JWR: My only comment on the recent tragedy in Salt Lake City (where Sulejman Talovic, an 18-year-old Bosnian Muslim refugee ran amok with a shotgun and a .38 wheelgun) is that if we had a better armed citizenry, this madman would have been stopped much more quickly. (Probably long before he could have shot ten people.) I have no doubt that the gun grabbers will try to capitalize on this sad event. But they don’t have an intellectual leg to stand on. Madmen will always be able to get hold of weapons, regardless of how many gun laws that the Barbara Boxers and Hitlery Clintons of the world put on the books. If Vermont-style concealed carry (with no permit required) were adopted nationwide, we would live in a much safer country. An armed society is a polite society.
I spent most of yesterday afternoon out with our primary chainsaw (a Stihl 029 with a 24″ bar) cutting some firewood for next winter. It was a good opportunity to brief our kids about chainsaw safety–especially the necessity of wearing Kevlar chainsaw chaps. The widespread use of these chaps in recent years has greatly reduced those messy trips to the Emergency Room.
Speaking of cutting things off, I’m about to cut off the current debate on climate change at SurvivalBlog, since there are obviously some almost diametrically opposed views, and the debate is starting to run in circles. Thanks for your input, folks. The bottom line, in my estimation: Just be ready, regardless of what happens vis-a-vis short term weather patterns, or potential long term climate change.