I use MidwayUSA for most of my ammo needs, since they often run sales on 9mm and 5.56. I own a 870 Wingmaster, non tactical myself, totally understand the wood and steel feel. Remington filed for bankruptcy two days ago, second time since 2018 (i believe). Hope they make it through this one.
Good article explaining the current ammo shortage.:
I have no direct knowledge of this, but, based on past experience, I would venture there is a lot of truth to your statement.
Not about VPNs, but Silk Road was also supposed to be anonymous…
Regarding the data brokers: you can certainly do it yourself or use a service. If you are a LEO, organizations like leowebproject and privacyforcops are a great resource. I can’t keep up with the wack-a-mole nature of the data brokers but it’s all these guys do. If you’re not sworn, there are services like delete me that do the same thing. Using these services is not perfect but it sure makes it harder to get your info especially for the less dedicated.
Thanks for posting the information, brother.
Thought for the day:
" A hunter does not seek dead game"
Something that came up this week while working. It seems that a few individuals have limited knowledge on carbine and rifle scopes. There are numerous scopes on the market and each have their advantages. They also have a tremendous marketing machine around them, which makes the information even more confusing. Cost is even more of a gray area. How much to spend? If you are into precision long range shooting, the scope will probably cost more than the rifle. Average Joe? IMO, you should try to buy a scope that is roughly half of what your rifle costs. A 3 to 4 hundred dollar scope will usually get the job done, whether hunting or self defense. If you are thinking of buying, do your research.
Some more information:
This is the part 99% of people screw up on. They either buy TOO much magnification or too little — ESPECIALLY when buying the best AR-15 rifle scope.
Magnification is how much closer you can see the target than a naked eye.
For example, if the magnification is 2X that means you can see TWO TIMES closer than the naked eye. Easy enough?
How Do You Find Magnification?
It’s usually the first number (or range of numbers) on a scope. For example: if a scope says 3×32… then the first number (‘3’) is the magnification. However, if it says 2-7×32… then the first range of numbers (2-7) is the magnification. In other words: you can choose a magnification between 2-7X. Because of this, there are actually two scope types:
Fixed power scope
Variable power scope.
Fixed power scope means there’s only 1 magnification (Ex: 3X), while variable allows you to choose from a range of magnifications (Ex: 2-7X).
Fixed Power vs Variable Power
That depends on your use. If you require more than one magnification, then go for the variable. However, fixed power scopes are faster, higher quality, and cost less. So, keep that in mind when you’re choosing your scope.
How Much Magnification Do You Need?
This is HIGHLY dependent on your rifle usage. If you use your rifle primarily for small game or homestead defense (>100 yards), then go for a magnification between 1 – 4x. Pro Tip: Go for a fixed power scope. It’ll make your short-range encounters faster.
However, if you use your rifle primarily for hunting large game in forests or mountains (>200 yards), then go for a magnification between 5 – 8x. Or, if you’re a sniper that hunts in fields or deserts (200+ yards), then go for a magnification between 9 – 12x.
A side note on an earlier cyber security post:
*Hackers will use fake phone updates to gain access to your phone and/or laptop. *
Without getting technical, hackers can set up a fake wifi hotspot, or sometimes take over a legitimate one, and send a “fake update” to everyone who’s connected to that network. Instead of downloading a update you are really giving the hacker access to your phone.
Not only can the hacker then steal all of your information, he could even turn your phone into his own personal spying device. He can activate your camera, microphone, GPS, etc.
The best defense is to avoid using pubic wifi when possible. However, if you are connected to a public hotspot, and you get an update notification simply dismiss it. Once away from the hotspot you can restart your phone. If the update was legit you will get another notification.
Will not have access for few days. Be safe, take all precautions on COVID and watch your 6.
Also, when using variable power scopes, you need to know if it is first focal plane or second focal plane if you are using anything beyond a simple crosshair reticle.
First focal plane - the reticle is in front of the magnifying lens, so when you increase power, the reticle gets bigger with the object you are observing. If you are using anything beyond a simple cross hair reticle, the markings appear to get farther apart as the image magnifies. But they are actually staying the same relative size to the image you are observing, so the 6 mil line is always the 6 mil line whether you are at 1 power or 24.
Second focal plane - the reticle is behind the magnifying lens, so regardless of what power you are using the reticle is always the same size. The markings lose their relativity to the image as you increase power, so unless you know the math to adjust for it, then your holds will be off once you change power from where you established zero at.
Thought for the day:
"Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others.” Robert Louis Stevenson
This came up last week: It can be applied to any type of martial arts training from shooting to Kempo. Learn to recognize what is true skill from bullshit. A specific technique shown by some Instagram star is no always based on the real world of combat survival.
An important part of goal setting is not just adopting new behaviors, but also identifying which habits you should ditch. Although there isn’t a single correct approach to training, we often unintentionally develop bad habits through different forms of indoctrination. Whether it’s our unit formally teaching outdated methodology or a buddy informally exposing us to cherry-picked information, once a technique becomes routine it can be really hard to alter.
Thought for the day:
You have power over your mind not outside events, realize this and you find strength.
Marcus Aurelius
Something that came up recently during a SWAT conference: 6 major SWAT teams presented a overall debrief of their most difficult call outs in 2019/ first half of 2020. These are always beneficial because not only do the team leaders describe what went right, but, more importantly, discuss their mistakes in a very candid forum. These debriefs are not held in a public setting and all electronics are banned from the location, thus, helping to insure an accurate and honest account.
One of the prevailing topics was stress and how to handle stress during a long or violent confrontation. This was discussed in depth, partly because an experienced SWAT operator with over ten years of experience, despite being in excellent shape, suffered a career ending stroke. The medical expert suggested the cause was Tachypsychia.
So, what does this have to do with you? If you ever have to deal with any violent encounter, from an armed aggressor to a physical assault, to being caught in a riot, you will experience these same physical effects as someone in gunfight. Know the physical changes you will be dealing with, prepare for them, study what will happened to you so you will not be caught totally off guard.
And as TC Luoma likes to say: Here is some science:
You are about to encounter a set of physical and neurological conditions that will greatly affect your ability judge time, space, vision and auditory exclusion. This is collectively known as Tachypsychia which is a neurological condition that alters the perception of time, usually induced by physical exertion, drug use, or a traumatic event. It is sometimes referred to by martial arts instructors and self-defense experts as the Tachy Psyche Effect. For someone affected by Tachypsychia, time perceived by the individual either lengthens, making events appear to slow down, or contracts, objects appearing as moving in a speeding blur. It is believed that tachypsychia is induced by a combination of high levels of dopamine and norepinephrine, usually during periods of great physical stress and/or in violent confrontation.
What are the physical effects?
Also called the “fight or flight” response of the body to an event our mind considers life-threatening, Tachypsychia is believed to include numerous physical changes.
1) Adrenaline response
Upon being stimulated by fear or anger, the adrenal medulla may automatically produce the hormone epinephrine (aka adrenaline) directly into the blood stream. This can have various effects on various bodily systems, including:
Increased heart rate and blood pressure. It is common for a Tachypsychia subject’s pulse to rise to between 200 and 300 beats per minute (bpm). Increased heart rate (above 250 bpm) can cause fainting, and the body may adduct all limbs, adopting fetal position, in preparation for a coma.
Dilation of the bronchial passages, permitting higher absorption of oxygen.
Dilated pupils to allow more light to enter, and visual exclusion—tunnel vision—occurs, allowing greater focus but resulting in the loss of peripheral vision.
Release of glucose into the bloodstream, generating extra energy by raising the blood sugar level.
It is common for an individual to experience auditory exclusion or sensitivity. It is also common for individuals to experience an increased pain tolerance, loss of color vision, short term memory loss, decreased fine motor skills, decreased communication skills, or decreased coordination.
Upon being stimulated by fear or anger, the adrenal medulla may automatically produce the hormone epinephrine (aka adrenaline) directly into the blood stream. This can have various effects on various bodily systems, including:
The most common experience during Tachypsychia is the feeling that time has either increased or slowed down, brought on by the increased brain activity cause by epinephrine, or the severe decrease in brain activity caused by the “catecholamine washout” occurring after the event.
It is common for an individual experiencing Tachypsychia to have serious misinterpretations of their surroundings during the events, through a combination of their altered perception of time, as well as transient partial color blindness and tunnel vision. After the irregularly high levels of adrenaline consumed during sympathetic nervous system activation, an individual may display signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, and it is common for the person to display extreme emotional lability and fatigue, regardless of their actual physical exertion.
It is possible to manage Tachypsychia still occurring after the event, and it is common for soldiers/LEO’s and martial artists to use Tachypsychia in order to increase their performance during stressful situations.
You will need to understand all of the above before you actually become involved in a deadly force encounter. Your hearing will be gone. You will experience acute tunnel vision. Your ability to judge space and time will be gone as will your ability to reliably remember what just happened.
Thought for the day:
“The police cannot protect the citizen at this stage of our development, and they cannot even protect themselves in many cases. It is up to the private citizen to protect himself and his family, and this is not only acceptable, but mandatory.”
Jeff Cooper
This quote is over 20 years old and never more truer than today. Just like doing your drills, it never hurts to review the basics.
Understanding & implementing these four tips can help you accomplish this over the long run.
When leaving the house each day, stepping out into the world, the vast majority of us are not expecting a physical confrontation.
We shouldn’t be fear stricken but we must keep things real as well.
If the unfortunate does happen, are you ready to handle it?
What would you do?
Will you respond or react? ( there is a difference )
Understand basic situational awareness or the art of conflict deescalation.
Begin delving into the acquisition of skills needed to recognize & avoid a physical confrontation.
Make it a personal responsibility to begin learning and to share with others tips and techniques that could help them stay a bit safer in today’s modern unpredictable world.
The four tips above are great starting points and can go a long way in keeping you safe.
WHOLEistic SELF-defense is vital in our world today. We must protect ourselves from all angles.
SELF-defense is a lifestyle…Invest in yourSELF.
Thought for the day:
““The power to destroy a thing is the absolute control over it.” ― Frank Herbert, Dune
Don’t think of learning self-defense as the same as learning martial art.
Self-defense fundamentals can be taught very quickly.
Think of it like learning first-aid and CPR; life-saving skills you learn in a matter of hours. Legit skills, that can save a life, the only difference in this metaphor, is that when you learn practical self-defense skills, the life you’re be saving might be yours.
Thought for the day:
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. - Winston Churchill
Even the most disciplined are subject to violence. If your find yourself (or another innocent person) in a fight or flight scenario where fighting is unavoidable; be ready to self aid or administer life saving aid to others.
Know how to apply a tourniquet
Know how to stopthebleed
Know how to open an airway and give CPR
A personal side note:
As I have stated before, I usually check in on Pat McNamara’s Instagram page on a regular basis. I have attended his training courses on my own dime and respect his instruction. In fact, the only 3 pages I follow are former instructors. That said, Pat Mac provided many a laugh while I was in some hostile places with the original “gas it up and burn it down” YouTube videos. There were really popular among military / Leo’s groups I was with in the boondocks. Today, I follow him mainly for his work outs, since, he provides a variety of physical training.
His Instagram page has been down for two days. Curious, I Googled for information and found a post from someone who stated his account had been suspended or nuked. If this is true, then WTF? He has never made apolitical comment that I am aware of, either in training or on his page.
I would like to ask someone here with tech savvy to check this out for me. I have no idea how to find out if this true, I would appreciate your help. And, if it is true: fuck Instagram.
It’s guns. That’s all it takes.
Meanwhile, porn is OK even though, let’s be honest, it’s an industry that takes advantage of young women from broken homes who might also be drug addicted (or will become addicts once they enter that world) and does not provide healthcare (in spite of the health risks inherent in sex work) or pay that much (even though the industry probably generates billions). The whacko part of the Left wants to actually make sex work, as in prostitution, legal. I guess that will empower those unfortunate young women who were dealt a bad hand in life and decide to turn to selling their bodies to strangers.
Then you have Hollywood with it’s romanticizing of “gun culture” and vigilante justice in many of its films. It even portrays hard nosed cops who aren’t afraid to bend the rules or beat some scumbag criminal as the good guys. I’m not saying I don’t like those films but they are made by the same people who are against legal ownership of guns and support BLM.
You really think its as simple as “guns”? I bet there was a meme posted in poor taste, or some group reported his account as offensive and insta/FB just took the account down while they review for compliance. Accounts dont get nuked for stuff as harmless as firearm drills, and firearm discussions… gun porn accounts are all over instagram arent they?
Because, guns.
Which would be weird with all the other gun porn accounts on there.
Plot twist: I bet he nuked his own account after getting fed up with instagram and social media in general…
For those interested, here is Pat Mac’s new account:
Although, he does make it clear what happened in his first post, it appears from reading the comments , he was hacked.
Thought for the day:
Failure to plan is planning to fail.
This post is a little different from my generally generic advice tailored to meet requirements in other areas. I am writing this post with Americans in mind, especially those living in or near our major cities. Violence, lawlessness, rioting and chaos continues to spread from Portland to NYC, with no solution from our snowflake leaders. If you live in one of these lawless cities, it’s time for you to make some concrete plans to protect yourself, your family, and your property.
Before the Feds picked me up full time, I worked in Iraq and Djibouti for a PMC, specializing in close protection and hostage rescue. The work requires more planning since you don’t have a lot of access to a QRT. “Failure to plan, is planning to fail” takes on a whole new meaning when you are 20 miles deep in hostile boondocks with only your own resources to survive.
You can develop a broad plan by enlisting the 6 principles we used to plan our missions:
Weapons: self-explanatory and if you are against learning to use a firearm, and still believe guns are the devils brew, you are going to have difficult time surviving a violent attack. It is time to realize that evil can only be stopped by good men with a gun. Is your family’s protection worth more than your beliefs?
Transportation: You live in Portland and the terrorists are starting to invade the neighborhoods of the city, burning homes, looting and destroying everything you have worked for. You need to get your family and leave, but, your vehicle has been neglected by your laziness and has a dead battery, or the fuel is low’ or your tires are slick and bald. Your family is trapped because you failed to plan and used the old time worn excuse” I will do it next week”. I have evaded more trouble by being able to egress than I ever have shooting it out.
Communications: Never, ever, either you or your family, be without communications. If you have a plan with a major carrier, I suggest buying a backup burner phone for each family member. Don’t be dependent on one carrier with your families’ lives, get them a second phone, teach them how to use it, and always have them nearby.
Back up: Back up is sparse in the red desert and the same for you in Chicago or Seattle. The idea situation would be you would have trained family members to call on in case of emergency, but, you may be like me, and have no family. If no one is there to back you up, then transportation becomes even more important. You must find at least 3 escape venues. Before the Marist terrorists attacked our cities, I would have advised you to find a police station. No more, ignore the city police, try to find a National Guard facility ,or a state police precinct, or a military base you can drive close enough to park and not get shot. If none of those are in your area, get a hardcopy map and memorize your exit streets and roads. Find the nearest state park and go there, I have never known of anyone rioting in a camp ground. Use your awareness, look for safe havens, I don’t know your area, so, that is on you.
Do not rely on major police departments for back up. During the riots in Portland last night, (60) 911 calls went unanswered because the police were fighting the terrorists).
Mental: during a crisis is no time to think about what you should do, you already should have some mental plans on what you are going to do. Take the time now to think about where you stand on your beliefs on how you will deal with violence. Will you allow your property or possessions to be destroyed or stolen? Are you capable of responding to violence with violence? Know yourself. Know that simply leaving before violence escalates is the smartest legal decision, just don’t wait to the final minutes to act.
Miscellaneous: Your bug out vehicle kit is more important than ever. If you don’t have one, start building one now. Medical supplies, prescription medicines, food and water for at least three days, rain gear, spare clothes and COVID cleaning supplies are at the top of the list. Carry enough cash with you to buy food and fuel for at least a week. In third world countries, I always carried enough cash in case I was stopped a checkpoint and “fined” for using their roads. Don’t rely on finding an ATM, especially in an inner city. They are sparse in rural areas and my last work was in rural western Tennessee and two gas stations where I stopped did not take credit cards. I must have looked like an idiot walking around the pumps three times trying to find the credit card reader. Carry some spare cash.
Paranoid Post: Most of you will think so, and, that’s fine. I have always thought it was better to consider all possibilities than ignore reality. Just me.
I remember we discussed the usefulness of a CB radio one time on here.
One of those camping stoves can be a life saver. They are small and inexpensive so you can own more than one. They come in handy when you lose power.
This brings up a question. Does anyone know how long MREs are good for? I have a couple of cases worth that have been sitting around for a few years now as thankfully, I haven’t been in a desperate enough situation to have to use them. But I’m thinking I might need to toss them and find something to replace them.
Within moderate temperatures, 75 degrees or less, they will last on average about 5 years. (military grade) . If you are in year round colder temperatures, shelf life can be extended up to 8 or 9 years. In hot climates, and exposed to temperatures in the 100’s, shelf life is on average about 2 months. If yours have been kept in a moderate climate, they should be fine to use.