Category: Current Events & Politics

Nine Letters Re: Concealed Carry Permits–Pros and Cons

Jim: I too live in an open carry state where it is also allowed in private vehicles and have chosen not to apply for a concealed carry permit. According to the most recent CDC data, West Virginia has the greatest proportion of homes with at least one gun East of the Mississippi and the fifth highest in the entire country. During a recent discussion with a local LEO, he didn’t even look twice at the 9mm on my hip. We even have two rifles on our flag and the mascot of our flagship university is authorized by state law to …


Letter Re: Concealed Carry Permits–Pros and Cons

Hi James: I’m just wondering what you and your readers think about concealed carry permits? When the SHTF, do I want to have a permit and be within the bounds of the law, but also be “registered” with the government? So far, all the weapons I have are hand-me-downs, so haven’t had to do a background check for purchasing a new weapon, but needing a new handgun, so unless I find a private sale, that may soon change. Any thoughts or advice? – Greg S. JWR Replies: My view on this topic is undoubtedly biased, since I live in a …


Two Letters Re: Knob Creek After Action Report

Jim, Sorry to be late on my Knob Creek roundup I was indecisive as to the interest level in the past, as it concerns those mostly east of the Mississippi.   Arrived Friday morning and was shocked at how sparse the crowd was compared to past events. It was still a good sized crowd but I could actually get around and wasn’t standing room only. I am guessing that a couple of rain fronts that came through in the week previous dampened enthusiasm, along with the economy and people have been on an ammo buying spree for over a year, …


Letter Re: More About Duty to Inform Laws for CCW Holders

Mr. Rawles- The following appears in the 10/6/12 “Odds ‘n Sods” section: “Do you carry concealed and/or in your car?Be aware of “Must Inform Officer” state laws . (No such laws in any of the American Redoubt states, where the gendarmes all rightly assume that most of the vehicles they pull over will contain at least one loaded gun.)” The linked text goes to an image which is at least misleading for at least one state – Minnesota. (I suspect this is true for other states but I am not as familiar with the laws of the other 49…) While …


Letter Re: You Don’t Need To Be A Conservative To Be Prepared

Sir: Anyone who spends any amount of time on survivalist and preparedness oriented forums knows that a certain political worldview is the most commonly encountered perspective, particularly with respect to economic concerns. Particularly in the literary niche that is survivalist/preparedness fiction, the protagonist is often identified as a conservative critic of Keynesian economic thought and favors the gold standard. Very often the plot presupposes a very right-wing political orientation. Matthew Bracken (Enemies Foreign and Domestic), Thomas Sherry (Deep Winter, Shatter), Glen Tate (299 Days), and even James Wesley Rawles (Patriots) all share to some degree this worldview. Some authors even …


Letter Re: QE3–What Just Happened To Me?

Dear Editor: The monetization dubbed Quantitative Easing (QE) Round 3 (“QE3”) is very confusing, and there is a lot of mystery attached to the confusion. To fully understand what just happened to us I find it useful to frame the scenario in this why, and this maybe a better way to understand it for some. When I put currency somewhere(make a purchase or invest it) it is currency that I worked to obtain and represents an exchange of my labor for a specific amount of currency. This currency is representative (if I negotiate the salary correctly) of the value of …


Four Letters Re: Why I Hate Preppers

James, Allen is right on about “arm chair” preppers. Many folks out there only talk the talk, without taking the walk.   Like Allen, I did not marry until my mid-40s also agreeing to live near a small community. The drive to my retreat is 42 miles to a fairly rural farm area when I grew up. My wife supports me wholeheartedly in this effort including participating where she can in learning new skills.   Over the last 8 years, I have been re-learning many of my boyhood skills critical to a rural lifestyle. It is amazing how much a …


Why I Hate Preppers, by Allen C.

I may as well go ahead and apologize to anyone who is already offended by my title without apologizing for offending you.  I do not actually hate preppers.  I’m just fed up with them.  While I’m at it I may as well apologize for generalizing.  I don’t like putting labels on anyone any more than I like being labeled, but it is necessary to generalize in this case so if you consider yourself in one group, but the other better describes you then I accept that in advance.  If it sounds like I apologize a lot it is because I …


Letter Re: State Government Debt Levels

James: Reader “X.” wrote an article Re: State Government Debt Levels, in which the author makes the case that the US income to debt ratio is approximately 1:1. I think the author mixed facts to come up with a mathematical equality where none exists.  I repeat in totality the paragraph where this is stated: “The trepidation most of us feel when thinking of the current level of debt (not to be confused with deficit) is likely well-founded.  Individuals tend to think of things in relation to themselves; in other words, I earn $56,000 yearly, and I owe $212,000 on my …


Risk and Unrealistic Promises, by Seth D.

The problem so much of this country faces can be sourced back to one common practice that many of us cannot bring ourselves to face.  Unrealistic promises.  The world is full of risks, in fact life could be described as nothing but a massive risk management exercise. Will my paychecks be enough to cover my bills this month? Will I have any unexpected expenses this month? Will a plane fall out of the sky on to me? Will my business be adversely affected by Obamacare? Will the price of oil rise so high I can’t afford my commute? Will the …


Letter Re: State Government Debt Levels

James, I just finished reading one of the financial articles you linked in yesterday’s post.  The topic of the article was debt levels of U.S. states.  In it, the author broke down the debt burden of each state citizen; for example, a Californians’ per capita obligation is just over $16,000, while Texans are at a lower level of around $11,000.   So:  Two things.   First:  I think in doing this we are perpetuating the concept of the State’s (used here in the sense of a nation-state/political entity) authority to impose the public debt burden on non-sovereign individuals.  While I …


Letter Re: Advice on Refinancing

Dear James, I’d like your advice. We live in a house on five rural acres in Wisconsin. It’s both our year-round house and a sorta retreat. We now have the chance to refinance our mortgage at a lower interest rate. (Just 3.88%, as oppose to the 5.2% on our existing mortgage.) Our outstanding balance is about $210K. Should we re-fi, or stand pat? Any special considerations, given the perilous economic times, these days? Thanks in advance for your advice. – Hal K. JWR Replies: Yes, this might be an advantageous time to re-finance. A 3.88% rate is excellent. Just beware …


When Will It Happen? What Will It Be?, by Son Of Texas

There as many opinions and even more guesses than those who are guessing about what will cause the collapse of the world as we know it.  There may be unexpected triggers in nature or in society such as natural disasters of a sudden or a gradual nature, geopolitical events or developments, or environmental triggers that may be natural or man made.  With or without any of these events and processes about which there is an enormous volume of speculation, my previous skepticism about one in particular has been transformed to a personal certainty.   Economic Collapse – Really?   The …


Letter Re: Milsurp Concertina Wire Now Must Be De-Militarized

Dear JWR: Recent concertina wire sales at GovernmentLiquidation.com are now coming with the following notice: "All scrap under this contract requires mutilation by the buyer prior to removal if allowed at location or mutilation must be witnessed and certified by DOD personnel at buyers facility. Title to the material does not pass to the buyer until the scrap has been mutilated. Buyer agrees to allow USG personnel to witness destruction." So much for cheap, domestic military surplus concertina wire. 🙁 – Mr. C.


Letter Re: Long Term Public Employee Pension Obligations

James: A good read, and the author is right, we shouldn’t paint with a broad brush. However I think he had one glaring inaccuracy, and that inaccuracy is regarding the crucial fact is the crux of the problem people have with government pensions. he wrote:   “I contribute 3% of my salary to my government retirement. Not much you say, but in the civilian corporate world, most companies provide 100% of the employees’ retirement without employee contribution”   This is a blatant falsehood. Company provided pensions have been getting phased out aggressively. They may have been the norm in earlier decades, …