Category: Current Events & Politics

Gun and Magazine Ban Planned for Illinois

Reader Jim W. just sent word of horrendous new gun ban legislation in Illinois that is on the fast track to floor votes in the Illinois legislature. These laws would ban most semi-autos and even pump-actions! Magazines that can hold 11+ rounds of magazines would also be banned. I recommend that Illinois residents read the text of the bills, regularly monitor their status, and of course contact their legislators. For the sake of expediency, I’m quoting from the NRA-ILA web site, verbatim: It is imperative that you contact your state Senator IMMEDIATELY to express your opposition to House Bills 815 …


Letter Re: Firearms Feeding Frenzy

Dater JWR: I am a retired police officer, SWAT team member, firearms instructor, armorer, First Aid CPR/AED instructor, and consider myself and my wife into prepping at a moderate level. While we do not have everything that I would like to have in my arms and accessories I know I am so far ahead of many of my friends that my confidence is high on that point. I must tell you I was shocked when we visited a Southwestern Ohio gun store  about a week ago. My friend, an employee and also retired law enforcement officer, looked at us like …


Letter Re: 3D Printing Rifle Magazines

Hello, James. I was wondering about something. If it is possible to build an entire lower assembly for an AR-15 (though a bit more fragile than what most people are aware of) using a 3D printer, wouldn’t it also be possible to program that same printer to make composite construction 30 magazines (or larger) for AR series rifles. All that you would need to do then is buy the springs. Everything else can be produced using the printer. Sincerely, – Gerald H.   JWR Replies: Unfortunately, with current technology I don’t think that the plastics used have the requisite tensile …


Letter Re: AR-15 Rifle and Pistol Legality in the U.S.

James, Please let your readers know this is dangerous ground, as ATF considers converting from rifle to pistol to be a felony. If you buy a stripped lower receiver to build into a gun, you have to decide whether to buy it as a rifle or handgun when you fill out the 4473. If you buy it as a rifle, you cannot change it later, as it violates the NFA. If you buy it as a pistol and decide to build it as a rifle, you cannot go back, as this also violates the NFA. Building it as a pistol, …


Resolving to Start the New Year Right

Here at the Rawles Ranch, we’ve resolved to get back into doing our daily stretching/calisthenics and thrice-weekly tactical hikes on the National Forest land that compasses our property. (We had let this practice slip away last Fall, as the cold weather set in.) Hence forth, no more lame excuses. We’ve also begun supporting C.R.O.S.S. Ministries with weekly support. With automatic PayPal payments, this won’t be overlooked. They deserve your support, too. Note that these are Christian missionaries who will train South Sudanese villagers with small arms, so that they can defend themselves. This is a Biblical concept! (Luke 22:36) We’ve …


Banning Our Birthright: Feinstein’s New, Ugly Legislation

Here are some details on the proposed gun and magazine ban, directly Madame Feinstein’s web site. Also see this PDF. In summary, the law includes some handguns, it requires nationwide registration, background checks and fingerprinting, even for current owners, just one evil feature-such as a pistol grip–can get a semi-auto banned, and it mentions: “Grandfathering weapons legally possessed on the date of enactment.” Does this mean that your heirs must turn in your guns for destruction? Let’s wait to see the wording of the bill that is introduced. But regardless, this is definitely bad legislation, so start contacting your legislators! …


Letter Re: My Travails in Buying Rifles, Magazines, and Ammo

Mr. Rawles, I wanted to write to you about my recent experience with the US shortage of semi-automatic rifles, full-capacity magazines, and .223 ammo.   I am relatively new prepper.  So far, we’ve got the bug-out bags, the bug-out bins, the emergency plans, the food and water, some other stuff, and a start on guns and ammo.  As of last week, I had my 9mm Glock, a 12 gauge Remington 870 shotgun, various pellet guns (and ~2500 rounds of various ammo).  I had been thinking of my next gun purchase, and leaning toward the Ruger 10/22 takedown model.  That would have gotten me …


Letter Re: A Nation of Glass

James, After the Sandy Hook tragedy I got thinking of my own personal security . From limited information in the press the perpetrator came though the window because the doors were locked . After  sending a few rounds through the tempered glass , the glass pulverized and he simply stepped though and started his killing spree . Question , where was the window located ? If it was a side-light to the door then it would be a double paned tempered glass window . Question, if it was a side-light window why no laminated wire mesh? That would have slowed …


Last Call For Full Capacity Magazines!

The Nanny Statists are on the war path, here in the United States. While their incessant calls for a ban on semi-auto firearms will probably fail, I predict that a bipartisan compromise in Congress will result in a new ban on full capacity magazines. This renewal of the 1994 to 2004 ban will likely have a grandfather clause, but no sunset clause. So TODAY is the day to do your best to round out your family’s multi-generational supply of magazines. Even if you’ don’t already own an AR-15 or and AK-47, buy a dozen magazines for each. And for all …


Of Wolves, Bureaucrats, Biologist-Activists, and Assorted Parasites

I’ve come to the conclusion that our worst imaginings of Canadian timber wolves (purposefully introduced to the Lower 48 by do-gooder bureaucrats in 1995) might have been insufficient. To those of us who live in the rural west, these land sharks are well known for their fanged depredations on sheep, cattle, deer, elk, and moose. But their greater menace–at least to humans–might actually be in the form of a tiny tapeworm that they carry: Echinococcus granulosus. This tapeworm was endemic with these wolves, long before they were introduced. Tapeworm cysts have been identified in both Idaho and Montana in recent …


Debasement is Still Inevitable: Another Year for the Real Cupronickel Nickel?

I’ve been warning SurvivalBlog readers about the debasement of the nickel for several years. It now costs the U.S. Mint 11.2 cents to produce each nickel, so debasement seems inevitable. After a two-year study, testing 80 different alloys, the United States Mint’s findings on alternative metals were announced on December 14, 2012. In essence they’ve said: “We need more time.” Here is the key line from the report summary: “The Mint has made significant progress and, at this time, has concluded that additional R&D is necessary before it can recommend any changes to the current coin composition.” Here is a …


Letter Re: How to Thwart Nigerian Scammers: Demand Proof of Life

Captain Rawles, Regarding the multiple letters you are receiving on the Nigerian scams, you may want to warn your readers that participation can lead to incarceration. The reader who told his story of USAA bank taking the amount of the fake checks from his account was lucky. Frequently, these scams prey on people who get greedy and suffer the consequences. In many cases, people receive a check (sometimes out of the blue, with no prior email contact) in the mail with a request to deposit it and send back 10% or 25%, etc to an international address (often in Canada). …


Europe In The News: Ominous Prospects, by Michael F.

It appears as if there are some new developments going in on the Continent, that unfortunately appear to be old memes being resurrected for the 21st Century. Let’s take a look at the highlights of recent events: Greece continues to have widespread protests and riots as unemployment remains above 25% (25.4%, when measured in August, 2012) and austerity measures continue to be implemented. Spain is in a deep recession, and has been since 2008.  The banking industry in Spain alone could require 60 Billion Euros to remain solvent. Portugal and Italy are in similar straits to Spain and all three are close to emulating the protests, …


Letter Re: Mysterious Lights in North Dakota?

Jim, You recently linked to NightlightMap.com. What is that big huge area of brightness in [ostensibly lightly-populated] Northwest North Dakota? That makes me question the usefulness of that map at all. – Sam D. JWR Replies: Those lights are the main concentration of activity in the Bakken oil fields–see this map.  (See also, these photos.) Reader Rob H. tells me that the dots of light shown are mostly the light of burning off excess wellhead gas. (Plus, presumably: floodlights around drilling rigs, and floodlights around equipment yards, and the light of burning off excess wellhead gas, and floodlights, and the …


Two Letters Re: How to Thwart Nigerian Scammers: Demand Proof of Life

James,  Another variation to watch out for is when the scammer asks you to pay using an escrow account supposedly managed by Amazon or eBay.   A too good to be true add is found, you respond, the scammer/seller tells you he sells using an eBay escrow account. The merchandise will ship to you after you send a check to Escrow. The scammer directs you to a link sent in the scammers/sellers email that appears to be an eBay site.   The scammer creates the illusion of security using a brand like eBay with some official looking legal contract showing how …