Economics and Investing:

Saudi-Iran Dispute Won’t Cause Lasting Oil Price Rally

o o o

Wall Street Journal: 7% Fall in the Chinese Market Triggered Closure for the Day – T.A.

o o o

Items from Professor Preponomics:

US News

Rand Paul: Here’s Why We Should Audit the Fed (Business Insider) Excerpt: “It is no secret that the Federal Reserve’s unchecked printing press causes recessions and increases income inequality. Allowing the Fed to inflate our money supply will artificially keep interests rates low, but at what cost? Their acts can no longer go unchecked…”

The Rise of the Zombie Earmark (Taxpayers for Common Sense) The key to a change in behavior is the CHANGE in BEHAVIOR. It’s not about imposing new rules only to find ways to work around them! It is about making a sincere and determined decision to change course and then following through on that choice. Excerpt: “When Congress banned earmarks in 2011, House Speaker John Boehner said stripping lawmakers’ ability to direct federal dollars to their pet projects was a “critical step to restore public trust.” But nearly five years later, members of Congress have found stealthy ways to load up defense spending bills with scores of provisions propping up programs the military didn’t request and doesn’t want — while also allowing some earmarks from decades past to live on.”

International News

Greece Warns Creditors on “Unreasonable Demands” Over Pensions (Financial Times) Excerpt: “He stressed that the economy would not withstand a repeat of the 2015 stand-off that pushed the country to the brink of a eurozone exit and financial collapse.”

Personal Economics and Household Finance

Recognize the Signs of Discontentment (Stewardship Central) Although this article was written with churches in mind, the message is also a very important one for individual households. Excerpt: “There’s one issue in particular that, if not dealt with, makes the proper handling of money almost impossible. That issue is discontentment. And it’s a great place to start the money conversation.”

How the Medical Code Overhaul Will Affect You (Market Watch) Be aware of the changes coming and anticipate that more time will be dedicated to your insurance and payment of any money due than will be invested in time with your healthcare professional. Excerpt: “Your doctor and medical staff may get crankier. Your health insurance claims may be denied or delayed. You could be pressured to pay health care balances in full, rather than over time. Welcome to the new world of medical coding that took effect Oct. 1, 2015.”

Monthly Spending Worksheet (Frugal Living) A simple tool well worth using to sort out where your money is going and how to manage it more effectively. Even for those among us who are proactively financially disciplined, a review and refresher of the ways in which we spend money is a good idea!

The Jury Duty Scam (Identity Theft Resource Center) Spoiler Alert: Do not make payments over the phone. Here’s How It Works: “Callers posing as sheriff’s deputies reach out to individuals at random to inform them that they have failed to appear for jury duty, and have therefore had a contempt judgment levied against them. The deputies then offer to accept payment over the phone for the fine.”

Odds ‘n Sods:

Doctors can report some mentally ill patients to FBI under new gun control rule – JBG

o o o

Reader P.S sent in this link to a “Graduation-rate Estimator”. For communities that are fairly well in the middle, it does a pretty good job of estimating graduation rates from high school. However, as you move towards the ends of the spectrum, it has trouble. It is possible on the estimator to get better than 100% graduation simply by paying your teachers more than anywhere else. Nonetheless, if you are looking for a tool to help you decide where to relocate, this might help. Of course a far better concept is to find what areas are supportive of homeschooling or private schooling.

o o o

Obama releases details of his planned “executive orders” on gun control: White House Will Require Background Checks at Gun Shows and Online I noticed plenty of “talking points” keywords, such as “gun show loophole”, “common sense”, and “The majority support it.” Of course all of the talking points are distortions of known facts, and the report actually ends with the statement that none of these actions would have actually stopped any of the violence this last year.

o o o

Obama is the #1 gun salesperson ever! – 2015: The Year of the Gun. The FBI reports an all-time record number of background checks processed. – Sent in by RBS

o o o

From the Desk of Mike Williamson, SurvivalBlog Editor At Large:
Widener’s still has some M44 Mosin Nagant carbines available. These were re-arsenaled post WWII. The ones I just received were in much better shape than described, clean, operated smoothly, and shot accurately. If you are not familiar with this series of rifles, they are tough, reliable, easy to maintain and accessorize (though there’s no real need to), have sufficient power for most animals on the North American continent, and use ammo that is readily available both commercially and surplus, being still in production for Russian machine guns.

As there will be no imports of Russian weapons for the foreseeable future and because numbers are dwindling, they are also a worthwhile investment with potential for appreciation.

I have no financial interest in Widener’s but am a regular customer. I have found them to be professional, courteous, and to deliver excellent product at fair prices.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“We’re developing a new citizenry. One that will be very selective about cereals and automobiles, but won’t be able to think.” – Rod Serling

Annual Reminder: The Ten Cent Challenge

I only post one reminder each year about Ten Cent Challenge subscriptions, and this is it. Unlike the whining leftist hand-wringers at PBS, I don’t do endless pledge drives.

I depend on my readers to help pay the bills to keep SurvivalBlog up and running. Our web hosting on a dedicated server costs $650 per month, and our local ISP bill is $135 per month. We also have a salaried Managing Editor, a paid Product Review Editor, and other expenses including liability insurance, phone bills, computer hardware, software, accounting, subscriptions, writing contest Honorable Mention prizes, and so forth.

My appeal is simple: If you feel that you get more than 10 cents per day in value from reading SurvivalBlog, then please make a voluntary subscription payment, for 10 cents a day. (That’s $36.50 for a year.)

I don’t keep any e-mail lists, which is why this annual post is necessary. (I never e-mail any solicitations for subscriptions or renewals. Subscriptions are purely on the honor system.)

The Silver Dimes Option I also take payment for subscriptions in the form of pre-1965 U.S. silver dimes. The current multiplier for silver is around 20-to-1. (20 times face value–so a silver dime is worth about $2.00.) But since mass inflation looks inevitable, I expect that the value of a silver dime will soon exceed $10. So please just send three silver dimes for each year’s subscription. OBTW, it is best to tape them to a scrap 3?x5? card before placing them in an envelope, so that the coins don’t rattle around. And of course check with your postal clerk for the correct postage.

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Notes for Monday – January 04, 2016

January 4th is the birthday of George Hyde, who was born “Heide” in 1888, in Arpfingen, Germany. He was the chief gun designer for the Inland Division of General Motors (GM) in Dayton, Ohio during World War II. Hyde was best-known as the co-designer of the M3 “Grease gun” SMG and the Liberator pistol, but he also designed the Bendix-Hyde Carbine and the M2 Hyde submachinegun. He immigrated to the United States in 1927. A gent at the Nitro Express Forumsmentioned some details on his life before World War II: Before 1935 Hyde was the shop foreman and metal man at Griffin & Howe. He quit there and went into business for himself. Samuel A. “Harry” Leonard teamed up with Hyde, and their rifles are marked “Leonard & Hyde New York” on the barrel. In May of 1935 [school teacher and New York National Guard Major N.H.] Ned Roberts and his father-in-law [well-known carte-de-visite photographer] W.G.C. Kimball went into business together as “Roberts and Kimball” in Woburn, Massachusetts. Their idea was to make high-quality sporting and varmint rifles on Mauser actions in the then-popular cartridge that bears Roberts’ name, the .257 Roberts. Metal work on these Roberts & Kimball guns was done by George Hyde, and the stocking was done by Harry Leonard. Some information suggests that Leonard and Hyde did not relocate to Massachusetts but that the work was sent to them in New York City. Roberts & Kimball company lasted less than a year, and their rifles are not found very often.

Pat Cascio’s Product Review: MagPul D60 AR Magazine

3

I’ve seen it, not a few times and not a hundred times but thousands of times, while in gun shops all over the country. A person will lay down a large sum of money for a high-end firearm of some type and then ask the clerk behind the gun shop counter, “Do you have any cheap magazines for this gun?” Are you kidding me? The same goes when it comes to buying a holster for that new 1911 that cost a guy two grand. He’ll buy a $20 generic nylon holster to go on his ultra-thin dress belt! I just don’t get it. I really don’t!

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Many people mistakenly believe that any old magazines will work in their guns, so they opt to buy whatever is least expensive, stupidly thinking that all magazines are created equal. I still remember, just prior to the 1994 assault weapon and hi-cap magazine ban taking place, when there were a number of fly-by-night companies turning out magazines that held more than 10-rds as fast as they could. They were so ashamed of their own products that they didn’t even stamp their names on the magazines.

I fell victim several times to some of these no-name magazines. I purchased a couple dozen Ruger Mini-14, 30-rd magazines, via mail order. To be sure, they were not made by Ruger or any other company that I could identify. The magazines were crudely assembled, and they were not heat treated. If you dropped one of these magazines on the feed lips, the lips would bend. I also fell prey to another after-market magazine scam. Just prior to the 1994 assault weapon and hi-cap mag ban taking place, I found an outfit that had “genuine” GLOCK 19 15-rd magazines for only $5 each. I should have known better. I was assured by the person on the other end of the phone that these were genuine GLOCK magazines. When they, several dozen of them, arrived, they were simple plastic magazines that resembled GLOCK magazines. There was no metal lining, and to be sure they were junk. Not a one would function. I used them for a lot of years in some of my handgun classes to teach malfunction drills.

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As a rule, it’s just hard to beat factory– Original Equipment Manufactured (OEM)– magazines. However, there are exceptions to this rule, and that is buying magazines from makers that supply factory mags to gun makers, like MecGar and Metal Form magazines, to name a couple. These two companies produce outstanding “after market” magazines, which I’ve had no problems with. Many of the mags for my 1911s are from MecGar and Metal Form. They make mags for many of the big name 1911 makers.

When it comes to AR-15 magazines, I can’t begin to tell you how many different makers there are of these particular types of magazines. Some AR-15 mags are better than others, as it is with all things. Some are advertised as being “mil-spec”, and that doesn’t exactly tickle my fancy. It just means that those mags are built to the bare military specifications required by the military. There are also aluminum, stainless steel, and polymer AR-15 magazines. I steer clear of some of the polymer AR mags, like ProMag, because I’ve found they aren’t reliable in my testing. To be sure, if a name isn’t found on the magazine, then you should steer clear of it, period!

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Shortly after the Sandy Hook shooting a few years back, one particular mail-order company was absolutely taking advantage of people who were seeking 30-rd AR-15 magazines. They were advertising “genuine” Colt 30-rd AR-15 magazines for a mere $99.97 each! First of all, there was no way of knowing if these were genuine Colt. Just because the floor plates had the Colt name and logo on them doesn’t mean that the rest of the magazine was Colt. They were not in any original packaging. Floor plates are easy enough to change. Be advised! Also, be aware of factory rebuilt “genuine” mil-spec mags that you’ll find at gun shows, packaged in plastic, with some kind of NSN (National Stock Number) printed on a piece of paper inside the plastic bag with the mag. To my knowledge, the military does NOT rebuild magazines. They discard them when they start giving feeding problems.

When it comes to AR-15 magazines, I prefer, above all others, those polymer mags from MagPul. I’ve found them to be of the highest quality, and I’ve yet to have them fail on me. I like the dual feed design that allows rounds to feed smoothly into M4 feed ramped ARs. I also like that you can store MagPul 30-rd mags, fully loaded, with the storage cap on the mags, so there is no pressure on the feed lips. Plus, over the years, MagPul has made several improvements on their AR-15 mags, making each generation a little bit better than the previous one.

100_6526

The nice folks at US Tactical Supply contacted me just before Christmas and asked me if I wanted to test the new MagPul D60 drum magazine that holds 60-rds of .223/5.56 ammo. Well, needless to say, I beat feet to Albany, OR to pick up a sample for this article. Of course, we had the wettest December on record in Western Oregon, so my range time was limited and I also vowed to take some time off to enjoy the holiday. So, it was a while before I actually got out and did much shooting and testing on this MagPul D60 drum magazine.

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This new mag from MagPul is made primarily out of polymer, and it appears to be the same tough stuff that their regular polymer mags are made out of. Of course, we have the metal spring and a few other minor parts that are made out of metal. However, the body of the magazine is flat black polymer material. The magazine slides in and out of my ARs without any problems; it’s smooth, real smooth! Also, it locks in place, without having to force it, even when the magazine is completely full. Some AR-15 magazines have to be forcefully driven home when they are fully loaded and on a closed bolt. That’s not so with the D60 magazine.

There is a small, clear viewing window on the back of the magazine to give you an idea of how many rounds are in the mag. There is also a ratcheting loading lever that you have to use in order to load roads into the D60. Without using this lever, you’ll never get the magazine loaded. Even with the lever, the magazine is a bit hard to load. It’s not a magazine you can load in a hurry. This is the mag you load and keep in your AR, ready for action, and 60-rds on-tap should be enough to keep the bad guy’s heads down so you can find cover and then reload with some of your 30-rd mags. Once again, this mag takes some time to load-up, but it is well worth it.

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I tested the MagPul D60 drum mag in four different ARs– one from Ruger (their outstanding AR-556), Bushmaster AR with polymer upper and lower, Windham Weaponry, and one from a local Oregon company called Rogue Defense. Due to the time it took to load-up the D60 mag, I only ran one magazine full– 60-rds– through each of the above ARs. However, I had a great assortment of ammo from Black Hills Ammunition  to mix in the magazine. In .223, I had their 50-gr Hornady V-Max, 52-gr Match Hollow Point, 55-gr FMJ (new and reman ammo), 55-gr Soft Point, 60-gr Soft Point, and 68-gr Heavy Match Hollow Point. I also had their 5.56mm 69-gr OTM and their 77-gr OTM.

I mixed the above ammo in each magazine. I simply dumped the above ammo from their factory boxes into one big box, stirred the ammo up, and proceeded to load the magazine. I did this four times from this mix of various types and weights of ammo from Black Hills Ammunition. I figured this would be an excellent test for the D60 to run through.

I had zero malfunctions, with any of the ARs I was using and all the ammo, no matter what kind it was, fed smoothly. You will readily notice that this MagPul D60 drum really feeds ultra-smoothly in your AR. To be sure, your AR barrel will really heat up when you fire 60-rds through it as fast as you can pull the trigger.

Needless to say, it was tiring to load-up the D60 four different times; however, after a while, I got some kind of rhythm to my loading, and it went a bit faster as time went by. Still, this isn’t a magazine designed to be rapidly reloaded, nor was it meant to be. As I mentioned, this is the magazine you load-up and stick in your AR for an initial combat engagement, and 60-rds should be enough to keep the bad guys’ heads down, so you can seek cover to reload and reengage if need be. This is the magazine I keep in my bedroom AR– the first gun I’ll reach for when things go bad. It’s kinda hard to beat 60-rds of ammo on-tap for your initial engagement, eh?

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Please check out the US Tactical Supply website and their new 2016 online catalog. They are great people to do business with– a small, family-owned company who provide outstanding customer service, and they go out of their way to carry as many USA-made products as possible, and the MagPul D60 is made in the USA, to be sure. With the current administration seeking to end all private gun ownership, now might be the perfect time to lay claim to one or two of these D60 drum magazines. Get ‘em while you still can!

– Senior Product Review Editor, Pat Cascio

Recipe of the Week: Minted Grape Juice with a Tart Lime Accent, by T.A.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large White Grape Juice, usual large plastic container
  • 1 generous handful mint leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 3 medium juicy green Limes, sliced thinly

Directions:

  1. Pour off about 1 cup of the grape juice to make room to add your coarsely chopped mint leaves.
  2. Add thinly sliced limes.
  3. Replace the cap and then rock your grape juice bottle back and forth to circulate the juice in and around the mint leaves and lime slices.
  4. Refrigerate overnight to incorporate the flavors.
  5. Pour into serving cups or pitcher through a screen sieve that’s fine enough to catch the mint leaves and lime slices.

Enjoy!

o o o

Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:
Robb’s Homemade Life has posted a Video on DIY Veggie “Beef” Burger made from storage foods (with a “secret” ingredient).

Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. Thanks!

Letter Re: Windstorm

Jim/Hugh

After the 17-Nov windstorm, we lost power for five days, having similar damages and drama in the article by ShepherdFarmerGeek! Thank you UTAH Power for driving 40 hours to help Avista out!

  • Now we keep two turkey fryer pots of water on the woodstove for hot water and extra radiant heat between firings. Oh, we leave our tin can of used chicken egg shells on the stove instead of the kitchen window so they dry crispy and are easy to crush.
  • We installed a Lux Bidet on the toilet two years ago, which has cut our TP usage by 95%! No more stockpiling TP, use washable cloths like I did in the middle east!
  • The water pump for the house: I wired it into an Outback UPS, so we can flush and wash for days. When the power goes out, having running water is a MAJOR PLUS for the Missus during those critical “normalcy bias adjustment minutes.” I fire up the generator with less urgency.
  • Those cheap solar lanterns placed in the house are a great place to fully drain your disposable AA batteries. We have mostly switched to Eneloops.
  • Christmas LED strings are left hanging in the living room, since they use five watts and are fun.
  • My VHF antenna blew over because I thought I was living in a wind-free zone after moving here to Idaho three years ago from SC. After this wind storm, my policy has changed to “you better tether”, including metal roofing edges! Hurricane studies show that metal roofing peels off because you leave them un-screwed along the edges. Get your DeWalt out and do the “tighten up!”
  • As soon as we lose power, out comes the blankets and they get draped on the fridges. We have been leaving the chest freezer covered since last year. It runs less.

– K&K

Economics and Investing:

FUTURE MONEY TRENDS: Silver Will Break $50 In 2016

o o o

New Year begins with record number of men not in the labor force: Those not in the labor force increased by 1.9 million last year while the labor force increased by only 1.1 million.

o o o

Items from Professor Preponomics:

US News

New Year Begins with a Record Number of Men NOT In the Labor Force (My Budget 360) Excerpt: “Employment, income, and financial prosperity are the most important issues for Americans. It is ironic that in 2008 the election was driven largely by the economy. It is very likely to be driven again by the same thing now that it is official that the middle class is a minority. Keep an eye out on the labor force participation rate.”

Law Enforcement Groups Cry Foul After Congress Seizes Money from Controversial Forfeiture Fund (CNS News) One word for this: WRONG. Excerpt: “In short, law enforcement agencies have grown dependent on civil forfeiture revenues, with the inevitable result being that agencies end up seizing property from property owners who are wholly innocent.”

Puerto Rico is in SERIOUS TROUBLE. (Huffington Post) Be careful from whom you borrow and under what terms… Excerpt: “Puerto Rico’s terms of repayment are particularly onerous because so much of its debt is now controlled by big U.S. hedge funds.”

International News

How a Demographic Time Bomb Will Transform the Global Economy (The Telegraph) Excerpt: “Japan’s population is now projected to shrink from around 126m today to 87m in 50 years’ time. At this rate, there will be no one left by 2500.”

Portugal: Europe’s Next Greece? (Outside the Beltway) Excerpt: “With much of Europe worried about terrorism and refugees, there hasn’t been much attention paid to the financial issues that have gripped many of the continents weaker members, but that may be about to change thanks to Portugal…”

Greek Central Banker Urges Government on Bailout Reforms (Reuters) Excerpt: “Greece’s central bank chief has urged the leftist-led government to implement bailout reforms agreed with the country’s lenders, warning that backtracking would entail risks the economy could not withstand.”

Personal Economics and Household Finance

10 Reasons Why You Should Switch to Linux (It’s F.O.S.S.) #1 Reason: It’s FREE! We switched all of our computers to Linux some time ago, for several reasons, including the fact that Linux is almost maintenance free, works on older computers, is very fast, and the software is…free!

Odds ‘n Sods:

More details are beginning to emerge on the Oregon situation:
Reader A.L. sent in this link to Mike Vanderboegh’s blog: No more free Wacos.
Reader Joe K. sent in the link to Oathkeepers official statement: The Hammond Family Does NOT Want an Armed Stand Off, and Nobody Has a Right to Force One On Them.

o o o

A very good article about collectivism and freedom: One American’s Rage Spills Over: Dear Liberal… Here’s Why I’m So Hostile – L.A.

o o o

Those who have tangled with the American justice system know that it should not be confused with justice. Reader D.S. sent in this link: America’s criminal justice system is a hoax.

o o o

China enters the fray in the middle east: Pentagon Stunned As Thousands Of Chinese Troops Enter ISIS War – M.T.

o o o

The Looming Environmental Disaster In Missouri That Nobody Is Talking About. – What happens when an underground landfill fire comes into contact with waste from the Manhattan Project? – T.P.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“It is in the free market that self-interest finds its finest expression; that is a cardinal point in individualism. If the market is regularly raided, by robbers or the government, and the safety of property is impaired, the individual loses interest in production, and the abundance of things men live by shrinks. Hence, it is for the good of society that self-interest in the economic sphere be allowed to operate without hindrance.” – Frank Chodorov

Important Provisos For SurvivalBlog Readers

(Please Read This!)

SurvivalBlog, a private information service, is obliged to post some disclaimers and provisos, annually. These notices are current as of January 1, 2016 and remain in force unless later specifically revoked or modified by the Editor.

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About Our Privacy

I was under strict orders from the late Memsahib to keep the location of the Rawles Ranch private. All that I can say is that it is “Somewhere West of the Rockies.” Nor can I mention the names of my children. I’m sure that you can understand the security concerns that go along with our survival preparations.

Letter Re: Shaving Problem/Solution

HJL,

As we have been reminded this year in the Northwest and elsewhere, power outages can occur at any time for a variety of reasons (fires, floods, wind storms, snow, ice). As the utilities shutdown, electricity goes off. If we have been diligent, we have been getting ready to the best of our ability and means for at least short-term self sustainment. We have food, several gallons of water, and various supplies on hand. As I was updating the health and hygiene portion of being prepared I discovered that shaving could become a real problem for me. I have stocked some safety razors, shaving cream, and after shave. However, I have sensitive skin, which is easily irritated by using a safety razor. I normally use a rechargeable shaver and stock several bottles of pre-shave and after shave lotion. However, during a power outage, the charge on my shaver will last only a few days at best. I really don’t want to have to deal with a raw, chaffed chin and neck, which could result in a skin infection because I had to use a safety razor. Then it dawned on me. I have a solution in my travel shave kit. When I make short trips, I take a travel size shaver (2-AA battery operated). I have also used mine for several years while in the military reserve on my two or three week annual trainings. Since I already keep a good supply of AA batteries on hand for other gadgets and have a solar battery charger with several rechargeable AA batteries, I am prepared. As a result I now can continue to shave like normal until the power is restored. Although this might seem like a minor issue, it would mean one less source of stress in what would be a very stressful situation. – MRP

Letter: Voting – More Important Than Ever

1

HJL’s Preface: The arguments laid out in this letter are good arguments, and they make sense for the most part. However, SurvivalBlog speaks with one voice and one mind on the issue of voting in the upcoming elections. There are some issues that are so important that compromise is impossible. The political establishment has created an atmosphere where practically all issues are on the table. There is very little difference between the Democrat and Republican parties today (except, perhaps, for the speed at which they push this once great country into moral oblivion.) A prime example of this would be the caving of the GOP to Obama’s demands in passing the recent Omnibus spending bill. Many have stated that if the political winds don’t change, this country will be headed for God’s judgment, but I would suggest to our readers that it is already under God’s judgment. When God judged a nation in the Bible, He usually did it by giving them a “bad king” and they wreaked havoc on themselves, suffering the consequences of their own actions. As Paul points out:

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” – Romans 1:18-25

I believe that America has had a string of “bad kings” and what makes it worse is that He allowed us to give ourselves these bad kings. We have placed ourselves willingly under God’s judgment.

That being said, I have determined that I can no longer vote for “the lesser of two evils”. I can not stand before God on judgment day and attempt to justify my actions in casting a vote for any leader who compromises the commandments of God. If the political establishment can not put a candidate in place who is willing to stand for righteousness, then they will not get my vote. If that means I don’t vote for anybody, so be it. The commandments of God supercede the laws and traditions of man, and when the two diverge I choose the commandments of God.

To make it easy for establishment to understand, I am willing to simplify my demands of a candidate to these two:

  1. The candidate absolutely must stand for life. That means first and foremost, the candidate must be pro-life/anti-abortion. The taking of the life of a baby (as early as conception) belongs only in the hands of God. There are other issues involving the stand for life, but that one stands tall.
  2. The candidate absolutely must stand for the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights.

It is incumbent upon us to let the establishment know that we will no longer accept a compromise on those issues. As long as we accept a compromise candidate and cast our votes in their favor, the establishment will never produce a candidate that stands principled in their ethics.

o o o

Hugh,

“Bad officials are elected by good citizens who do not vote” – George Nathan, 1955.

Mainstream news sources are currently providing heavy coverage of Democrat candidates coming out about their gun control intentions. In Virginia, the Governor acted by executive order to ban guns in all state offices. On the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton appears to have said an Australian-style forced gun buyback and elimination of unregistered private ownership nationwide is “worth considering”.

Now that the Democrat candidates have tipped their hands and their intentions are no longer hidden by creeping incrementalism, Second Amendment supporters are declaring the imminent demise of the Left, that the Democrats have finally been given enough rope to hang themselves and the Democrats will surely lose the election in a landslide.

While the foregoing might be true in a nation of well-educated, free, forward-looking people or where keen students of history understood tyranny and the threat of good intentions, you have to ask yourself to be honest: does that seem like the nation today? Or is this nation composed of a shockingly high number of people who are beholden to the government and will do whatever it says, no matter what? Are there more knee-jerk reactionary, emotionalist, mathematically ignorant people who feel that government will keep them safe from ridiculously remote threats if they sacrifice their freedom?

We must not commit the cardinal sin of pride or over-confidence. We cannot simply assume that rational thought, calm discourse, or good policy will prevail. It will require effort from the Second Amendment supporters, from lovers of liberty and good government, and from people who want their children to be able to enjoy freedom to preserve these things we hold dear. That effort involves actually going to the voting booths in a few weeks for states that are holding elections this year, and gathering strength over the next year until the national elections in 2016 and voting again.

Some people aren’t comfortable with this concept for several reasons. Let’s spend a moment to understand what is at stake before talking about why it must be done and how. First, people need to remember that the District of Columbia v. Heller decision from the Supreme Court in 2008 was decided in a 5-4 decision. One justice was all that stood between the statists who wanted to disarm everyone except formally registered state militias, like the National Guard, and the traditional right to keep and bear arms, which can be exercised by any citizen. One vote would have changed everything.

The average age of sitting U.S. Supreme Court Justices is 75. Four are over 80 with Justice Ginsburg the most senior 87 years of age, and she’ll be 88 next March. These are lifetime appointments, after all. The youngest justice is 55, followed by the next youngest two justices who are both 60, and another at 65, but even so there are a few of the “younger” justices who are said to be in poor health. The point here is that odds are extremely high the next President gets to nominate at least one and probably several candidates for the Supreme Court.

In its most simple terms: lose the Presidency in 2016 and Hillary Clinton or another gun-grabbing Democrat will appoint justices who will use their lifetime tenure on the Supreme Court to gut your right to keep and bear arms and possibly many other rights as well. There’s no protection from the Senate confirmation either, because it is a simple majority vote. Currently, there are 54 Republican Senators, but lose just four seats or have just a few defectors and there will be no stopping that candidate or any other that gets nominated. Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, or some other hard-core liberal will have your right destroyed. This is clear and present danger to a Constitutional right that teeters on a single Supreme Court vote.

More than one website has suggested that the People would fight before they would give up their rights. Let’s consider that proposition for a moment. To preserve the right, a person merely needs to get up, travel a short distance to a polling station in a heated vehicle, check in to the warm, well-lit polling station, cast their vote, and return home.

If they won’t get off the sofa to do this simple, easy task, how can anyone think that same person would give up all material comforts, career, savings, and property, face primitive living conditions, starvation, freezing field conditions, and the constant prospect of death from drones, helicopters, aircraft, snipers, artillery, and the full might of the federal government armed forces in order to keep what they already have? That is a proposition that defies logic, so if you are one of the rational people who can carry a coherent thought, you can see it is a non-starter. If they won’t vote, they won’t fight. This is what the gun-grabbers are counting on.

The only way to stop that mindset, the only way to convince the Democrats to recalculate their strategy is by a massive show of force at the voting booth this November and next November. We all need to go to our friends and get their friends too and make sure everyone is registered to vote in a timely fashion, has a ride to the polling station and will get up, go to the polls, and cast their vote. If they’re going to be out of town, get them an absentee ballot. Turn the so-called Blue and Purple states red with votes, before it is too late.

The bare prospect of registering to vote scares a lot of hold-outs who will claim that they don’t want to register to vote or actually vote because it puts them on the grid, in the sights of the establishment, or because it gives legitimacy to a regime that has departed from the Constitution. Here’s the bad news: if you think the State doesn’t know about you from online activity, phones, utilities, school enrollments, or other public activities, the State still knows by property records, tax records, purchases with “saver” cards at stores, by subscriptions, club memberships, drone overflights, and by State informants. They already know or can find you with no meaningful effort whatsoever. They also don’t need the vote of the hold-outs to establish their legitimacy. Masses of people on government aid will gladly give the State all of the support it needs to continue. The only way that will change is if you get up, register, and vote for candidates who want to restrict the warrantless searches and unlimited data retention, and who will campaign for real freedom and restriction of State power.

This is a struggle that affects us all. Every single vote counts. Many of the state and local elections in the last cycle were won or lost by a few hundred votes, some by a few dozen. Your vote, and those of your friends, family, and connections, can tip the balance. So bring them with you and help them make it a reality. After all, if you can’t win a vote, how could you win a war? – K.A.