Category: Note

On February 5th, 1988 two indictments were unsealed, accusing Panamanian General Manuel Noriega of drug trafficking and bribery. — Warning! The private party gun transfer ban bills (H.R. 8 and its Senate equivalent, S.42) appear to be on the fast track through committees and passage.  Please contact both of your U.S. Senators and remind them that this bill is unconstitutional. This law would essentially end the privacy of firearms ownership. Nearly all modern gun transfers would have to go through an FFL, (for a fee) with an FBI background check. Whether it is a sale, a gift, a trade, or …

On this day in 1789, George Washington became the first and only president to be unanimously elected by the Electoral College. This was repeated again on this same day in 1792. Because of the way the early American voting procedure worked, the electors cast two votes with no distinction for president or vice president. Washington was chosen by all of the electors and is considered to have been unanimously elected. Of the others on the ballots, Adams had the most votes and thus became the vice president. — Today we are posting a review from our Field Gear Editor, Pat …

Today is the birthday of painter and illustrator Norman Rockwell (1894–1978.) This is also the birthday of writer James Michener (1907–1997), known for his very well-researched epic novels, such as Centennial.

Great news!  South Dakota’s newly-elected Republican Governor Kristi Noem just signed a permitless Constitutional Carry bill into law! The news report states:  “There are currently 12 states that allow permit-less carry: Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Dakota, West Virginia, Wyoming, and Vermont. That number will rise to at least 13 with South Dakota, and could further increase to include Texas, Oklahoma, and Iowa, all three of which are witnessing efforts to repeal permit requirements in their respective states.”  Freedom is on the march! — February 2nd is the birthday of Ayn Rand (born Alisa Zinov’yevna …

February 1st is the anniversary of the secession of Texas from the United States in 1861. A State Convention considering secession opened in Austin on January 28th, 1861 and on February 1st, by a vote of 166-8, adopted an Ordinance of Secession from the United States. It’s important to note that not all Texans favored this act and the state Governor, Sam Houston, while being loyal to the union, refused offers from President Lincoln to keep him in office and was subsequently deposed as governor. We also remember February 1st, 2003, when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas and …

On January 31, 1606, Guy Fawkes was executed for his part in the Gunpowder Plot against parliament and King James. Also on this day in 1872, American author Pearl Zane Grey was born. He was best know for his popular adventure western novels, including Riders of the Purple Sage, which was his best-selling book. o  o  o SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present the final entry for Round 80 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable …

This year’s new 2005-2018 edition of our waterproof archive USB stick has been selling rapidly. This new edition has a lot more bonus books than before, one more year of the blog posts, and it is now housed on a 16 GB stick. Last year’s was an 8 GB stick. That leaves you 7 GB of free space on the stick to store scans of your personal documents, any of your favorite reference PDFs, et cetera. When I last checked, we had already sold 700 sticks and just 300 were still available. Don’t miss out!  Order one for yourself, and …

Today is the birthday of journalist and inventor Thomas Paine (1737–1809.) And speaking of Toms, today is also the birthday of actor Tom Selleck (born 1945), best known for playing the title role of Magnum, P.I. He is an avid shooter and quite pro-gun. o o o SurvivalBlog Writing Contest The following is another entry for Round 80 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to …

January 28th is the anniversary of the rescue of General James L. Dozier from his Italian Red Brigades kidnappers. A few years later, Colonel Jeff Cooper created a shooting drill in honor of those who freed him– The Dozier Drill. — Today we present another product review from our own Pat Cascio.

Today is the birthday of singer-songwriter Kate Wolf (born 1942, died December 10, 1986.)  Her untimely death at age 44 of leukemia cut short an amazing career and deprived America of a great songwriting talent. This is also the birthday of the late Helen Chenoweth (born, 1938, died October 2, 2006). She was a controversial Republican congresswoman from Orofino, Idaho. January 27th is also commemorated at International Holocaust Remembrance Day. o o o SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 80 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First …

January 26th, 1945 is the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by the Soviet Army. Established in 1941, Auschwitz was composed of a group of three large camps and 40 smaller camps used for slave labor, unethical medical experiments, and monstrous killing grounds where prisoners were gassed and cremated. As the Soviets headed for Auschwitz, the German Gestapo began a murder spree and began destroying the facility in an attempt to hide the evidence of their crimes. When the Soviets arrived, they encountered 648 corpses and more than 7,000 starving camp survivors along with storehouses filled with hundreds of thousands …

Today is the birthday of celebrated Scottish poet Robert “Bobby” Burns. He was born on January 25, 1759.  

January 24th is the birthday of René Barjavel (born 1911, died November 24, 1985). This prescient French science fiction author wrote several books with survivalist themes, including Ravage, which was titled Ashes, Ashes in its English translation. Today is also the birthday of Tamara K., the editor of the excellent View From The Porch blog.

January 23, 1855 was the birthday of John Moses Browning. He was the brilliant designer of dozens of guns, including the M1911 pistol, Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR), and the venerable M2 .50 Caliber Machinegun. This is also the birthday of my #2 Grandson. His coincidental birthday will ensure that he will inherit a disproportionately large portion of my guns that are Browning designs.

Congratulations to Michael Cargill (the owner of Central Texas Gun Works) for his success in this lawsuit: District Court Fines Austin, TX, $9,000 for Refusing Carry of Handguns at City Hall. Cargill is an upstanding, liberty-minded gentleman. He also runs one of the few gun stores in the country that accepts Bitcoin, in payment. Oh, and he sells Ghostgunner milling machines and 80% receiver blanks. He is quite a guy! — On January 22 , 1944 Allied forces began their successful landing at Anzio, Italy.