I would like to say thanks to all the SurvivalBlog readers, who took the time to drop me an e-mail to thank me for my articles and efforts, writing for SurvivalBlog. I personally responded to every one of you who wrote. I’m sorry my responses couldn’t have been longer, but I received more than 100 e-mails from SurvivalBloggers, and it took me quite a while to catch-up to them all. I sincerely appreciated hearing from each and every one of you.
I’ve learned that SurvivalBlog readers are usually a very intelligent bunch of folks, not your average run-of-the-mill, gun store nuts or mall ninjas. You are well-read and an educated bunch, to be sure. Many SurvivalBlog readers have written me asking questions about certain types of guns, and I hope I’ve been of some help with my answers. Some have written to me with gunsmithing questions, and once again, I hope I’ve been of some help as it’s difficult to make a diagnoses without actually seeing the gun and the problems it may have been having.
A lot of SurvivalBlog readers have written asking me to do an article on a certain gun, and if I’ve owned that gun, I’ll get around to writing about it sooner or later. I note one readers had a letter posted on SurvivalBlog August 16th, requesting that I do an article about the Draco pistol. While I would like to accommodate you all, if I don’t own a particular firearm, or have owned it, it’s difficult for me to obtain samples for test and evaluation. I can’t just pick-up the phone or e-mail a gun company and ask them to send me whatever I want to test. There is a process, and part of that process is having the right connections, as well as usually having an assignment from one of my editors for a particular gun to test and evaluate.
Additionally, some gun companies send me guns for test and evaluation, and I end up paying shipping – both ways! As you all may be aware, I receive no pay from SurvivalBlog for doing my articles. So, it’s hard for me to justify requesting a firearm to write about, if I have to pay shipping to get the firearm, and then pay return shipping – it is especially expensive when dealing with handguns, which must be shipped Next Day UPS or FedEx. I’m sure many readers think that gun writers make a lot of money from their articles – we don’t! With many of us, it’s simply a side job or a hobby – many gun writers hold other jobs. In my case, I work as a writer, doing firearm and knife articles, as well as teaching firearms classes, doing security consulting, writing books and when the economy permits, I breed and sell German Shepherds.
Some of you may have noticed, that I’m now only doing one article per week for SurvivalBlog. There’s a reason for this. I thought I had developed Carpal Tunnel in my right wrist, making it extremely difficult to do a lot of typing – not good for a writer. However, my yearly visit to my doctor revealed osteo-arthritis in my right wrist, as well as my right hip and lower back – and that also makes it difficult for me to sit and type for very long. Thirty-five years in the martial arts takes a toll on a person’s body, no doubt about that. So, for the time being, I’ll just be doing one article per week for SurvivalBlog.
Once again, I’d like to thank all of you who took the time to write me, and saying thanks for my articles. I’ll be doing more gun and knife articles, as well as reviewing some other survival related products, as well as some reloading articles – and if you’re not into reloading, then you’d better start to think about getting into it.
Thanks again, to you all, and thanks to Jim Rawles, for giving me the editorial freedom to write about what interests me. – SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Pat Cascio [1]