tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89645960453608032122024-03-12T18:56:25.018-07:00Accept The ChallengeYou cannot delegate your personal safety or preparedness. YOU are responsible. Accept The Challenge to prepare yourself - and your loved ones - for any threat or emergency that may come your way.<br><br>
Audentes fortuna juvatChief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.comBlogger597125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-30852694452681749202018-03-28T19:36:00.000-07:002018-03-28T19:36:29.489-07:00Dear Student Protesters<br />
You're being played for fools.<br />
<br />
Let me explain. Back in the day - when I was your age, say the late 1970's - when we went to school, part of the learning experience was something called, "critical thinking". Based upon what I see, hear and read, that's no longer a part of the Educational Experience.<br />
<br />
What's "critical thinking"? It's being taught, trained and encouraged to question and evaluate everything. More specifically, it is about identifying a problem, taking a set of facts or circumstances, evaluating that data, and coming up with an opinion or solution that will solve whatever problem you're tackling at the moment.<br />
<b><i><br /></i></b>
<b><i>Critical Thinking uses logic and reason, and leaves emotion out of the solution</i></b>. Propaganda - a political tool - on the other hand, uses emotion at its core.<br />
<br />
---<br />
Before I get into the Critical Thinking area, I want to delve into the core of the propaganda campaign that's been in place for decades, but has gone into overdrive since the election of Trump.<br />
<br />
Public teachers, the media and Democrat politician - all with socialist political agendas (as opposed to wanting to actually slow or halt school shootings) have propagandized your brains that, <b>Guns Are Evil</b>.<br />
<br />
Why would they say this about an inanimate object? Take a loaded gun, place it on a table, and see how no one gets hurt until someone pulls the trigger. This isn't about about <i>gun control</i>, it's about <b>control</b>, period.<br />
<br />
You're being trained to never question authority. That starts with being trained to take what your teacher says as gospel. If a teacher tells you something, just do it, don't question it.<br />
<br />
Seriously, when have you ever been <b>told to question</b> anything one of your teachers has told you? When I was your age, we had entire classes devoted solely to questioning what was being said, and this wasn't even the debate club!<br />
<br />
Here's a question: If a teacher stated in class that "guns kill" and they should all be banned because nothing good ever comes from guns - and you then challenged that statement - what would happen?<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.nj.com/somerset/index.ssf/2016/09/high_school_student_reportedly_suspended_for_anti-.html" target="_blank">Here's a student</a> who did an anti-gun control video for a class project. The police were called, he was suspended, and was required to undergo a 5 hour psych evaluation before he could return to school.<br />
<br />
All for producing A VIDEO that espoused beliefs contrary to the teacher and school. That's scary as hell.<br />
<br />
And it's not just students. <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/03/19/high-school-teacher-placed-on-leave-after-questioning-schools-stance-on-anti-abortion-walkout.html" target="_blank">Here's a teacher</a> who questioned the students whether they thought the administrators would be as supportive of students leaving the school to protest at a conservative anti-abortion rally as they were of the liberal anti-gun rally.<br />
<br />
She was put on leave for simply asking her students the question.<br />
<br />
It is so much mindless drivel, it has me worried about your generation. This weekend, I watched some interviews of some students at one of the marches. A number of them were asked, "What is an assault rifle"? Despite carrying signs saying they needed to be banned, the students couldn't answer the question. How is that possible?<br />
<br />
That's propaganda at work. Stir the masses towards the desired ideology, and denigrate, humiliate AND PUNISH those that dare not join in the group-think.<br />
<br />
<b>Propaganda removes the "reality" component, and only presents the Nirvana argument.</b> "Imagine a world without guns. No student deaths!" <br />
<br />
As you'll see below, the number of guns per capita has little to do with the number of murders committed.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
Alright, let's get to the crux of your protests: Keeping you from getting killed while you're in school. An outstanding goal, and something I think everyone in America can agree with.<br />
<br />
Your teachers, school administrators, and their funding sources are using emotion - propaganda, not logic and reason - to persuade your actions. They're telling you, "KIDS DIED BY GUNS, SO IF WE BAN GUNS, NO MORE KIDS WILL DIE!!!", or some similar, simplistic solution.<br />
<br />
And you're falling for it.<br />
<br />
Let's introduce some facts into the discussion - some facts I'm guessing you're never allowed to hear in school.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Fact:</u></b> All public K-12 schools in America are Gun Free Zones. <a href="https://www.theblaze.com/news/2017/01/09/over-98-of-mass-shootings-occurred-on-gun-free-zones-research-shows" target="_blank">98% of mass shootings have happened in Gun Free Zones</a> (either by law, such as at schools and libraries, or by the choice of the property owner, such as at movie theaters and churches).<br />
<br />
<b><u>Why?</u></b> As stated earlier, it's about control. They emotionally say, "we don't want guns around kids" - <i>an idea easily sold</i> - without thinking about <b>the unintended consequences</b>. The laws control the law-abiding masses, but they can't control the threat - those criminals who don't obey the laws and bring guns - and use them for murder - on unprotected campus'.<br />
<br />
Have you noticed that none of these mass shootings happen at police stations? Why do you think that is? I'll tell you why: they know they will have resistance to their attack - via the guns most of the people in the station are carrying - and they will end up dead before they can complete their twisted mission.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Fact:</u></b> Go to any Department of Education in any local school district, state or federal government facility, and they have limited access points and armed guards.<br />
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<b><u>Why?</u></b> Because they believe they are better than you, and deserve safety. <b>Through their actions, they are saying the lives of the administrators are more important than the lives of the children they're supposed to be protecting.</b> The elite - the bosses - are more important to The Greater Good than the Little People - in this case, that would be you. If this weren't true then on the same date the DOE buildings got access points and guards, the schools would have gotten them, too. Read <i>Animal Farm</i> by George Orwell for further clarification. You'll see how in socialist ideology, "Some animals are more equal than others."<br />
<br />
<b><u>Fact:</u></b> Every mass shooting has been ended by someone using a gun. Either the criminal took their own life, the police used guns to apprehend or kill the criminal, or <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/08/texas-church-shooting-not-first-time-good-guy-with-gun-takes-down-mass-shooter.html" target="_blank">they were stopped by a private citizen with a gun</a>.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Why?</u></b> Because force can only be defeated with force. I know, it goes against the Nirvana Ideology you've been fed, but this is the real world. These criminals aren't there to be reasoned with or talked out of their deeds. They have a twisted mission to take out as many people as they are able, and maybe, just maybe get out of there alive. But only after the bodies have been stacked like cord wood in the hallways.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Fact:</u></b> No law has ever stopped a crime from being committed, be it a gun law, an immigration law, a murder law, a theft law or a drug law. Laws codify what society deems to be unacceptable behavior, then prescribes the punishment for breaking the law.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Why?</u></b> Laws are words on a piece of paper. Criminals disregard those words and act as they see fit, even when they know the punishment if caught.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b>To summarize this collection of facts:</b> By law, no guns are allowed on school campus' or other Gun Free Zones, yet nearly all mass shootings happen on these properties. The laws written on paper have offered the people on these properties no protection from the people who have chosen to break the law. These criminals with guns are only stopped by other people with guns, and the people responsible for the safety of these properties work in buildings where they themselves are protected by other people with guns.</i></blockquote>
Now, you can disagree with my opinions stated earlier, but you cannot refute these facts.<br />
<br />
One of the suggestions from your propagandist administrators and teachers is that we model the gun laws in Australia. Here are some facts - <b>and citations for you to verify</b> - regarding the US, El Salvador (highest murder rate in the world) and your supposed savior, Australia.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ofcliaYph8E/WrmKJPASBuI/AAAAAAAAB7Q/hYB9hfF4kCAvmTqZYZl4OcEEyXwdJ6pFwCLcBGAs/s1600/murder_rates.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="133" data-original-width="446" height="188" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ofcliaYph8E/WrmKJPASBuI/AAAAAAAAB7Q/hYB9hfF4kCAvmTqZYZl4OcEEyXwdJ6pFwCLcBGAs/s640/murder_rates.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<i>The population figures are all around 2015 or 2016, with the murder rate from Wikipedia done for 2015. These were the closest dates I could find, and if you do the math, the difference in murder rate is little more than a rounding error.</i><br />
<br />
At first glance, you might say, "<i>Well damn! See, the Australian model works! The US is nearly 5 times higher. Ban the guns, let's save some lives!</i>"<br />
<br />
OK, now here's the big kick in the nut sack.<br />
<br />
Personally, I don't care how someone tries to kill me - I'm just as dead whether I'm killed by a baseball bat, someone placing a bomb on my front doorstep, poison, strangulation or a gun. I'm guessing you're the same.<br />
<br />
The propaganda you've been fed basically says that if we get rid of all guns, murders will cease to exist, or they'll go way, way down.<br />
<br />
Since guns are the topic at hand, <b>let's assume that every one of those murders listed above was committed by some sort of gun.</b> We know that not to be true, but let's make that assumption for what follows.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7E-IEW_QpW0/WrmMzzLeSRI/AAAAAAAAB7k/hGqNoc8mdL4G2m5rQ7omUMu3sChuiIELQCLcBGAs/s1600/murders_by_gun.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="198" data-original-width="440" height="288" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7E-IEW_QpW0/WrmMzzLeSRI/AAAAAAAAB7k/hGqNoc8mdL4G2m5rQ7omUMu3sChuiIELQCLcBGAs/s640/murders_by_gun.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<i>Citations:</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Population: <a href="http://www.multpl.com/united-states-population/table" target="_blank">Here</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Salvador" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia" target="_blank">here</a></i><br />
<i>Total murders and murder rates: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_intentional_homicide_rate" target="_blank">Here</a></i><br />
<i>Guns per 100 citizens: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estimated_number_of_guns_per_capita_by_country" target="_blank">Here</a></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>You'll note that most of these citations are Wikipedia - no friend of guns.</i><br />
<br />
<br />
Well, well, well, old "gun free" Australia actually has a buttload of guns, and ....... WTF?! If you compare the number of murders with the number of guns ('cause all murders are committed by guns, remember), well, HOLY SHIT!, it actually has a murder rate over 1 and a half times that of the good ol' USA!<br />
<br />
But wait, it <u>doesn't</u> have more murders. I don't understand. I thought more guns = more murders. If we then compare the Aussies to El Salvador, which has 56% <b>fewer guns per capita,</b> but hundreds of times <b>more</b> murders, you've got a migraine the size of Michael Moore's fat ass.<br />
<br />
If you're being honest and unemotional, you can only come to one conclusion:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">It's not the guns, it's the people using them.</span></b></blockquote>
And you now have the facts to prove it.<br />
---<br />
<br />
Well that's just great. We know it's not the gun itself that's causing the problem, but what do we do NOW to stop these killings at Gun Free Zones?<br />
<br />
I gave <a href="http://bisonrma.blogspot.com/2018/02/another-gun-free-zone-slaughter-and.html" target="_blank">the detailed answer</a> the day of the Florida school shooting. I'll recap it again:<br />
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Short-term (like right-damned-now) we harden the schools to limit access and provide armed security at those access points - just like is done for the elites - the school administrators and all of the politicians writing the laws.<br />
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I personally think it's a great idea to give teachers who have received their Concealed Carry Permits the authority to carry on campus. Same with other citizens with Permits - have them work the access points. They're all carrying a gun everywhere else they're going, why would we limit them when they're on campus where they're needed the most?<br />
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I'll leave the details and preferences for you to voice to your teachers and administrators. Whether it's citizens and teachers, or adding more police officers or hired security, I really don't care. But I think using citizens will help add a sense of community to the endeavor.<br />
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The long-term fix is more difficult. <u>Way</u> more difficult and will likely never happen.<br />
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We need to allow kids to fix their own problems, and return our reward system to only recognize actual achievement, not just participation. In fact, we must encourage them to do so from their earliest years. We've got you kids and young adults trained to turn to a teacher, administrator, parent or counselor to fix their problems. And whatever you do, you get a star, and certificate or a trophy, even when you didn't work to get it.<br />
<br />
Someone says something mean and is being a bully - tell a teacher.<br />
Play a sport or instrument, or participate in an activity - get an award regardless of your contribution.<br />
<br />
Real life doesn't work that way.<br />
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The result is kids growing up not knowing how to deal with shitty situations. If they ask for help and don't get it, their only route to satisfaction is to have a temper tantrum. That tantrum may range from needing a "safe space" to shooting up a school.<br />
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Success in life is dependent upon your ability to make difficult decisions. Throughout your youth, you're never given the opportunity to deal with adversity and failure. Someone else always figures it out for you. There's always a safety net to catch your ass.<br />
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Real life doesn't give a damn how delicate you may be. Solve problems, carry your own weight, produce value or get out of the way.<br />
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<br />
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<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2018 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-33931393310225215082018-03-04T11:47:00.000-08:002018-03-04T11:47:37.769-08:00#NeverAgain - The Practical And Non-Emotional VersionFor your Oscar Party chit-chat between commercials..... Originally posted at the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/boomerpreps/" target="_blank">BoomerPreps Facebook</a> page:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
The rich, pompous, protected-by-armed-guards Hollywood elites will flap their gums in mock righteous indignation at tonight's award ceremony (which I hope none of you are watching). Their rally cry will be <a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/neveragain?source=feed_text" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">NeverAgain</span></span></a>. Well, I've got some #NeverAgain items to add to your list that will actually stop or minimize the slaughter of our school children.</blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
#NeverAgain will we be lulled into a feel-good false sense of security by putting up "Gun Free Zone" signs in an attempt to sto<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">p homicidal maniacs.</span></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;"></span>#NeverAgain will we put our trust in any bureaucracy to keep us safe. Background checks, visits by the police and tips to federal authorities all get overlooked, time and again. Our safety is our personal responsibility.</blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
#NeverAgain will we make it legal for teachers, administrators or other school employees who have been properly trained and vetted, to be disarmed in the place where we most need them armed.</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
#NeverAgain will we allow the actions of a homicidal maniac to influence and restrict the access to firearms owned and used safely by millions and millions of law-abiding Americans.</blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
#NeverAgain will we stand silent when the ACTIONS of an individual are ignored, and the blame is placed on the inanimate object he used for mass murder.</blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
#NeverAgain will we allow Political Correctness and Social Engineering of school districts to prevent the arrest, suspension or expulsion of dangerous students from our schools. Your actions have consequences in the real world. Teach them that lesson while they're still young.</blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
Share with your friends.</blockquote>
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2018 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-68815261449088956602018-02-15T17:21:00.000-08:002018-02-15T17:42:09.471-08:00Another Gun Free Zone Slaughter - And THE SolutionYet another Gun Free Zone got all shot to shit, with 17 dead. Apparently, only the Gun Grabbers are surprised by this with their immediate calls that, "<b><i>Something must be done!!!</i></b>".<br />
<br />
This problem - Gun Free Zones becoming Free Fire Zones - is not going to stop until we do two things - one short-term, and one long-term. Oh, and the Gun Grabbers and their ilk will not agree with either one of these.<br />
<br />
First, let's get some points of agreement:<br />
<br />
1. Any place in the world that does not have a physical deterrent to bad guys is considered a "soft target" and will always be their first choice of attack. This is why churches, schools, markets/malls, theaters, etc., are nearly always the targets of the attackers. Lots of people and little or no defense against an attack.<br />
<br />
2. We're into at least our second generation of kids who have not been taught how to deal with adversity.<br />
<br />
3. You will never, EVER be able to stop all mass killings. I don't care how badly you want to wish it away, humans are violent, have always harmed each other, and will continue to do so. What we can do - <b><i>must do</i></b> - is minimize the damage from each individual event.<br />
--- ---<br />
<br />
The liberal, Gun Grabber Fix is wholly useless. Their demand that background checks be done, and High Capacity (actually, regular capacity) magazines and the guns to which they're attached be banned, are both useless as tits on a bull.<br />
<br />
In virtually every mass shooting, the guns were either purchased legally, or were stolen. Duh.<br />
<br />
So, the ones that were purchased legally - so far, without exception, through gun dealers that administered background checks - does nothing. (This is, once again, the case with the current shooter). Either the person was normal at the time, or The System fucked up and, <i>even though they had the information that the buyer was not eligible for a purchase</i>, approved the buyer anyways. Death by bureaucracy.<br />
<br />
And it's already illegal to steal shit, so making another Feel-Good law ("At least we did SOMETHING!!") making it even MORE illegal to steal guns, is again, useless.<br />
<br />
It's akin to issuing a protective order against someone. To someone intent on doing harm, a restraining order is as effective in stopping them as the paper it's written on.<br />
<br />
So let's just ban the Evil Black Guns all together, m'kay? How has that worked in Mexico? Hell, guns are basically illegal yet Mexico has dead, bullet-riddled bodies stacked like cord wood in the streets.<br />
<br />
And making the government the sole holder of weapons has worked out perfectly every time it's been done. Just ask the people from Stalin's Russia, Hitler's Germany and Pol Pot's Cambodia.<br />
<br />
And do you really think that law abiding American's are going to give up their guns without a fight? Seriously? There's a meme out there along the lines of, <i>"There are a trillion rounds of ammunition and 200 million guns in private hands in America. If there was a gun problem, you'd know about it!"</i> Try to confiscate those guns, and you'd know about it in short order.<br />
--- ---<br />
<br />
So how 'bout we do something that is actually effective in stopping - or at least minimizing - the carnage wrought by people with evil intent?<br />
<br />
<b>Short-Term Fix: Physically Harden Our Society</b><br />
<br />
This includes physical barriers to limit access, and a greater ability of citizens to physically defend themselves and others. We're actually seeing progress on both of these things slowly happening, but the pace needs to quicken.<br />
<br />
Physical barriers - I think it's very important that these barriers not have the appearance of a prison. We're seeing some larger cities install those posts along roads where pedestrians are present that will stop a car or truck from just mowing down people. They also make them look like tree pots.<br />
<br />
For things like schools, you MUST limit the entry/exit points. If schools need money, it needs to go here, and not into the pockets of the liberal teacher's unions.<br />
<br />
Each school should only have AT MOST 2 or 3 access points where you can actually come in contact with students and staff. And (here's the kicker) each of those points needs to be manned by at least two armed individuals.<br />
<br />
Notice I said "individuals" and not "police officers". I guarantee you that if individuals with Concealed Carry Permits were offered the opportunity to spend a few hours a day, one or two days a week to stand guard at each of the access points, you'd have a waiting list a mile long.<br />
<br />
Why at least two persons per access point? Because, if like the shooter in Florida, the bad guy shoots someone before they enter the campus, the back-up can sound the alarm, and then return fire.<br />
<br />
And it wouldn't cost the school a dime, other than the time it takes for scheduling.<br />
<br />
Along those same lines, if a teacher or administrator has their permit, encourage them to carry as well.<br />
<br />
What the above mentioned items also do is to help build a sense of community. Neighbors looking out for each other.<br />
<br />
Now, the liberal response will be, "<b>All of those guns around those children will make them less safe!</b>".<br />
<br />
Bullshit.<br />
<br />
Right now, if a teacher, administrator, janitor or whatever employee wanted to shoot up a school, they could do it. <b>Nothing could stop them from wholesale slaughter right now, this very second, in every school in America.</b><br />
<br />
<b>Except another teacher with a gun.</b><br />
<br />
In conjunction with this normalized gun policy, we absolutely MUST exorcise this concept of Gun Free Zones from America. It is simply the liberal mindset of a Utopian society.<br />
<br />
<i>If we put up signs, or disallow guns via legislation, guns will never be present. Kumbaya, brother.</i><br />
<br />
Good God, that hurts my head. Sorry, cupcake, your world doesn't exist and it never will. What is so horrific in your world view is that to be safe, everyone must first be assumed to be guilty - or at least pre-disposed - towards hurting others. <i>We're taking away your rights for the Greater Good.</i> So, like the late-great state of California ( and NY, CT, MA, IL, et al), you take away the ability of good, decent citizens to arm themselves, because The Nanny State thinks them all to be threats.<br />
<br />
And this, despite all of the evidence to the contrary in Shall-Issue states. America needs to wake the hell up.<br />
--- ---<br />
<br />
Buckle up, comrades. If the short-term fix caused you emergency Safe Space occupancy, the long-term fix will bring on a full-force melt-down.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Long-Term Fix: Mentally Harden Our Society</b><br />
<br />
If I had to put a date on when the tipping point occurred, I'd say it was October 1, 1993. That was the day when <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Polly_Klaas" target="_blank">Polly Klaas was abducted</a>. This sweet 12 year old girl was taken from her mother's home and strangled to death.<br />
<br />
It scared the hell out of America. The thought that Small Town America could have strangers entering homes and killing children spread panic throughout America.<br />
<br />
The response was to smother your kids with protection and to micro-manage their lives ("helicopter moms"). This full-control ideology seamlessly flowed into the schools of America where, again, everything is managed for you. If there's a bully, or if someone says or does something you don't like, it is actually against the rules to fix it yourself - you MUST have the (State) school do it for you.<br />
<br />
<b>The result has been kids growing up without the ability to solve problems on their own.</b> The message drilled into our children's heads is, "<i>The State will take care of you.</i>"<br />
<br />
I remember when my boys were in grammar school in the late 1990's, and they came home with a paper saying that if they were physically attacked at school - and subsequently defended themselves - both the aggressor and my child would be suspended. The only acceptable response was for my child to turn tail, and find a teacher.<br />
<br />
I damned near lost my mind. I had a talk with them that was clear as rain: If someone physically hurts you, you WILL defend yourself until they stop. I told them that they would NEVER be punished by me or my wife for defending themselves. Never. I told them that I would take any heat that was dealt out by school officials, and if they were in fact suspended, I'd take the time off work and spend it with them.<br />
<br />
(I also made it painfully clear that if they started the aggression, there would be hell to pay. They believed me).<br />
<br />
Around this same time is when the Participation Trophy came to prominence. It didn't matter what activity mom signed you up for, even if you sucked at it, you got a pat on the head. Performance was irrelevant. Reward without effort.<br />
<br />
The result of that is kids who expect to get recognition and recompense regardless of their actions or efforts.<br />
<br />
<b>Combine those two, and we now have a generation-and-a-half of humans who have been trained to never deal with adversity, and who expect a positive outcome for everything they do (or don't do). </b>Like a small child, they have been trained that if they throw a hissy fit, they will get attention and what they want.<br />
<br />
<i><b>So, if I've been trained that the State is going to take care of all of my needs, and then the State does something I don't like, what's the outcome going to be?</b></i><br />
<br />
If I don't have any coping skills, and I'm now not getting the positive outcome I want, well, I'm gonna explode. I'm gonna throw a tantrum. If society is lucky, it will just be someone who has a meltdown in a mall, and they just get escorted away and a new prescription for happy drugs. On the other end of the spectrum, we get a school, church, business or large gathering place all shot to hell, and people die.<br />
<br />
Our Cupcake Du Jour - Nikolas Cruz - falls in the latter category. He was expelled from the school he shot up, his parents recently died, and supposedly, there's a girl who scorned him.<br />
<br />
In his eyes, society has shit in his Coco Puffs, and he's going to show them all who's boss the only way he knows how.<br />
<br />
The fix for this is both simple and impossible: We must allow and encourage our children to fix their own problems. At home, at school, and eventually, at work.<br />
<br />
It's never going to happen, though. Why? Because that means giving up control in the schools, and centralized control is the core of socialist ideology. The socialist teachers and administrators will never just teach kids reading, and history, and math. They see it as their obligation - their mission - to also show them their world view that obedience to authority is paramount. Without solidarity there can be no society. None of this individualism, personal excellence or grabbing for the brass ring nonsense. Those are the ideas of the evil capitalists.<br />
<br />
You must work for, and be subservient to the Greater Good. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borg_(Star_Trek)" target="_blank">We Are Borg</a>. If some kids get killed, or a theater or church gets shot up, well, that's just collateral damage in furtherance of the final goal.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>One death is a tragedy; one million is a statistic.</i><br />
Joseph Stalin</blockquote>
You're nothing but cannon fodder for the socialists. But they have the propaganda game down pat.<br />
<br />
Hey, we'll fix your interpersonal problems. We'll feed you. We'll give you happy drugs. We'll house and clothe you. We'll give you some walking around money. <b>But we demand unwavering obedience.</b><br />
<br />
If you take away the school's ability to make the child's life easier - by fixing their problems and filling their bellies - you take away their power to persuade.<br />
<br />
So this is going to have to fall on the shoulders of the parents. I am not optimistic.<br />
<br />
The first batch of kids that were indoctrinated with this statist mentality are now parents. Most don't know any better than to do the same with their kids.<br />
<br />
Some are, gratefully, turning to home schooling. It's a tough road to hoe, but many are doing it. Not only are you paying the taxes for the drones in public school, but you've got to pay for the text books and study guides to teach your kid, plus give up a source of income of the parent who stays home to teach their child.<br />
<br />
God Bless every home that is trying to get out of the grip of the State. It's a horrible place to be.<br />
--- ---<br />
<br />
So, we're down to only implementing the short-term solution, and even that will be an uphill battle. The money might be appropriated to reconfigure the schools to limit physical access, but there won't be wide-spread acceptance of armed citizens in schools.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>We don't let them have ideas. Why would we let them have guns?</i><br />
Joseph Stalin</blockquote>
Disarmament is an important secondary goal of all good socialists. If The Deplorables don't have guns, they can't resist when things get really sporty. They sure as hell can't let some uncouth Red Neck look good saving kids in a school. It goes counter to the propaganda that All Guns Are Evil.<br />
<br />
The Central Committee says, "Nyet. Not gonna happen."<br />
<br />
Sleep tight, America, and say a prayer for the next batch of kids that will be shot up at another school in this land. It's a foregone conclusion.<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2018 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-28833862345578341022018-01-15T12:17:00.000-08:002018-01-15T12:17:14.436-08:00Your Own Personal "Shithole" Country Test<b>NEWS FLASH!! HOT STOCK TIP!! Buy stock in Victoria's Secret, Fruit-Of-The-Loom and Jockey, because there are so many panties bunched up into wads, they're all going to need to be replaced.</b><br />
<br />
The latest wadding occurred when President Trump ALLEGEDLY made comments about stopping the flow of dollars to, and people from "shithole" countries.<br />
<br />
Although the source of these alleged comments was the lying piece of crap, Sen. Dick-head Durbin, let's assume every word The Dick Head says Trump uttered was correct.<br />
<br />
What's the definition of a Shithole country? I'm here to help, and it's really, really easy. Here we go, kids:<br />
<br />
Answer me this: <b><i>Would you and your spouse <u>pay for a vacation</u> to this country with your pre-teen boy and girl children or grandchildren, where you would <u>all</u> freely visit 80% of the country (every country has shitholes in it) day or night?</i></b><br />
<br />
If you answered yes, it's not a shithole. If you answered no, it IS a shithole.<br />
<br />
Easy, right? Put your money where your mouth is, or STFU.<br />
<br />
Of course, the Leftist Press flipped this into a racist comment. Even from the most Trump-despising "reporting", I saw not a single mention of anyone's race or color. Just that he said or implied that certain countries sucked ass. Somehow, when talking about countries, the actual meaning is racism. WTF?<br />
<br />
Typical of them to infer what Trump actually meant without him even saying it.<br />
<br />
The one that kills me is Haiti. Clearly a shithole, has been for, well, forever. But, on that same rock - Hispaniola - is the Dominican Republic. The per capita GDP for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haiti" target="_blank">Haiti</a> is around $1,800. For the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominican_Republic" target="_blank">Dominican Republic</a> - remember, it's on the same rock - the per capita GDP is a bit over $17,000 - more than a 9-fold greater economic force.<br />
<br />
Same damned rock, one country is a shithole, the other is not. Trump must be employing reverse-racism with regards to the Dominican Republic. HATER!!!<br />
<br />
Even Haiti's also-mentioned shithole brother, El Salvador has a higher per capita GDP at $4,700. It is THE BEST at something, though: It has the highest murder rate in Central America at 108.69 per 100,000 citizens (the US is a laggard at 4.88 per 100K). Wanna go to Central America? Go to Panama, with a per capita GDP of $13,600 and the lowest murder rate in the region at 11.38/100K<br />
---<br />
<br />
It's all about choices. We owe these shithole countries nothing. Not money, time, citizenship or anything. Our own country has enough actual ills where that money - <b><i>our</i></b> money - would be better spent.<br />
<br />
Xenophobic, racist, "small tent", hater, bigot - call me whatever you'd like. I couldn't give a rabbit turd about what I'm called. As much as the liberals would have you believe otherwise, we're not made of money. Look to our deficit for proof.<br />
<br />
These shithole countries - if they want to change their designation - need to look to their prosperous, self-sufficient neighbors, and follow their example. Our charity leads to an unmotivated populous, which perpetuates their poverty.<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2018 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-45793232337819186302018-01-07T14:59:00.000-08:002018-01-08T11:05:04.114-08:00The Great "White Privilege" ConSo, I'm be-bopping around on Facebook, and run across this "must see" Facebook post titled, "If someone doesn't understand privilege, show them this". There's a video, and it has been watched over 24 million times.<br />
<br />
Dumb-ass me, I get sucked in and watch it. Blood pressure instantaneously shoots into the 300's.<br />
<br />
Well, I'm going to ask you to watch it as well, so when I tear it a new asshole down below, you'll have some context for the comments.<br />
<br />
Now, go take your BP medicine, chase it with a cup of Chamomile tea, and watch. Sorry I had to do this to you.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="476" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fviralmotion%2Fvideos%2F1478269608969148%2F&show_text=0&width=476" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" width="476"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Ok, here we go.....<br />
<br />
Right off the bat, as is espoused by the leftists and their Identity Politics ideology, each race is lumped into one, homogeneous blob. No individual excellence, effort or talent is acceptable. <b>This view on life disgusts me</b>, but I'm going to play by their rules - all blacks are alike, all whites are alike, all Hispanics are alike, all Asians are alike.<br />
<br />
The supposed analogy of success in a foot race being similar to success in life is absurd and simple-minded. How do you compare an event that takes seconds with one that spans your lifetime? Well, you do it when you're selling an idea that is full of shit, and has no basis in reality.<br />
<br />
<b><i><u>This is nothing more than a leftist propaganda piece designed to make whites feel bad about their earned success, and blacks to feel good about their earned failures.</u></i></b><br />
<br />
After the introduction, the "Two Steps Forward" charade begins (queue important, powerful, insightful, maybe even melancholy music). Did you notice how all of the people that stepped forward were white, and not a single one was black? Really? Not a single black there had any of these things? <b>Bullshit</b>. But I get it - that doesn't make for a good propaganda video, so it doesn't make the final cut.<br />
<br />
When the happy whites jumped forward, the camera immediately cuts to the close-up face of a sad black. <i>Those whites are happy that the blacks are sad! Bad, bad whites! </i><br />
<br />
<i></i><a href="https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10008224" target="_blank">Joseph Goebbels</a> would be proud! <i>"If you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth."</i> That's White Privilege in a nutshell. It's a great con.<br />
<br />
<b>The message of this propaganda piece is:</b> <i>Whites have what they have because of privilege, not effort. No personal choice was involved whatsoever. Because of this privilege, whites have an unfair, unearned headstart in life that keeps blacks perpetually behind whites economically. If blacks only had a fair chance, they'd kick the economic shit out of whites.</i><br />
<br />
Let's look at each of the 8 pieces of the Two-Step Privilege Pie -<br />
<br />
<b>1. If both of your parents parents are still married</b><br />
<br />
The Guilt Monger (the guy talking) actually comes right out of the chute with the single most important item. While he's right that more whites are in dual parent families - and that is HUGELY important in successfully raising a child - his framing of the item is (not surprisingly) all wrong.<br />
<br />
WHITE ADULTS HAVE MADE THE CHOICE to maintain nuclear families, and blacks have rejected it in hoards. Let's introduce some facts into this discussion:<br />
<br />
In 1960 - just before the Civil Rights Act - 22% of black families were single parent. 9% of white families were the same.<br />
<br />
By 2011, <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2013/jul/29/don-lemon/cnns-don-lemon-says-more-72-percent-african-americ/" target="_blank">67% of blacks were single parent families</a>, compared to 25% for whites.<br />
<br />
To put this into Simple Talk for the propagandists, two-thirds of black families CHOOSE TO UNDERMINE THE FUTURE SUCCESS OF THEIR CHILDREN by producing kids without two parents being there to raise them.<br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>2. If you grew up with a father figure in the home</b><br />
<br />
The Guilt Monger got lazy on this one. It's an extension of the first item. In 1960, 91% of those single parent black families were headed by women. In 2006, it's virtually the same - 91.4%, <b>only now there are three times the number of single parent families.</b><br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>3. If you had access to a private education</b><br />
<br />
Continuing the theme of, "You didn't do shit to get where you are", The Guilt Monger tries to make whites feel guilty for the good choices they made in life - namely putting great importance on the education of their children.<br />
<br />
Personal story: My wife and I paid for private school for both of our boys up through the 8th grade. Our thinking was, we'd give them the very best education possible so that when they started high school and became adults in our society, they'd kick ass and take names (it worked, by the way!).<br />
<br />
Oh, I forgot: During 4 of those years, I was under- or un-employed (odd jobs, temp work, night shift pick-up work, commission sales). I did whatever it took to bring money into our family. We were heavily dependent upon my wife's clerical job, AND BOTH OF US DID WITHOUT so our kids could succeed.<br />
<br />
It's nothing heroic. <i><b>It's your fucking job as a parent!</b></i><br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>4. If you had access to a free tutor growing up</b><br />
<br />
OK, pump the brakes there, <a href="https://skreened.com/boomerpreps/cupcake" target="_blank">cupcake</a>! Show me one public school district in America that doesn't have after-school tutoring, OR special ed classes for those falling behind, and I'll show you a public school district that isn't in America, or one in a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/01/20/how-appalling-are-conditions-in-detroit-public-schools-this-appalling/?utm_term=.6a62f85efd32" target="_blank">liberal jurisdiction</a> where the district has pissed away the funding.<br />
<br />
It takes effort, you pukes. Both on the part of the parent and the student. If you don't want to take advantage of the opportunity, well, that's your choice.<br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>5. If you never had to worry about having your cell phone shut off</b><br />
<br />
WTF? The Guilt Monger is really stretching on this one. Not being able to chat up your buddies or sexting with your BF/GF is one of the causes of your downfall?<br />
<br />
Holy shit, GET YOUR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT. Here's a White Privilege Tip: If you have to make a choice between a cell phone and ANYTHING that will make you more educated or employable, choose the latter.<br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>6. If you never had to help mom or dad with the bills</b><br />
<br />
First of all, go re-read the previous comments about parents making good economic and educational decisions for their kids.<br />
<br />
Not surprisingly, again, The Guilt Monger got this one ass-backwards. If the parents failed in their primary job of providing for their family, and the kid had to kick in to help out (which is what nuclear families do), these kids should be the ones taking the two steps forward.<br />
<br />
They have now tasted reality. Seen first hand that sometimes bad things happen to good people. That life isn't always fair.<br />
<br />
They learned to deal with it. Maybe they had to get a minimum wage job to fill in the gaps. That experience in and of itself was educational: <i>Get an education so you don't need to work in minimum wage jobs that won't pay you enough to live on.</i><br />
<br />
If you have to work as a kid to support your family, the head of household fucked up. They didn't get educated enough for the well-paying job needed to raise a family, or they spend all of their money instead of saving for a rainy day, or they weren't motivated enough to do whatever was needed to pay the bills.<br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>7. If it wasn't because of your athletic ability, you didn't have to pay for college</b><br />
<br />
Hot cup of racism, anyone? Holy shit. The Guilt Monger implies that the only way blacks go to college is via an athletic scholarship, and whites via merit scholarship (ACTUAL scholarship).<br />
<br />
More importantly, so what if it WERE true? Why should whites feel guilty because they studied, got good grades, rose to the top of their class, and went to college because of their effort? Maybe that's what they're good at. If a black can go to college because he or she is good at sports, who fucking cares? They are still being given the opportunity to attend college and get a higher education.<br />
<br />
If you don't want to take advantage of that opportunity, you're a fucking idiot.<br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<b>8. If you never worried where your next meal was going to come from</b><br />
<br />
Ughhh. More from The Guilt Monger on parental bad choices. School meals, food charities, public assistance. If your kid is truly worried about food, you're fucking up big-time, and are a lazy piece of shit to boot.<br />
<br />
And I should feel guilty about their shitty choices, <i><b>why</b></i>?<br />
---<br />
<br />
Not satisfied with the superficial white guilt, The Guilt Monger piled on with these quotes:<br />
<br />
<i>I want all of you guys up front to turn around and look (whites turn around to see blacks behind them).</i> Feel white guilt because of our bullshit exercise.<br />
<br />
<i>Every statement I've made has nothing to do with anything you have done.</i> False as discussed above, and it DOES have everything to do with what their parents have done.<br />
<br />
<i>We would be foolish to not recognize we've been given more opportunity. We don't want to recognize we've been given a head start.</i> I recognize the shit out of it. I was given an opportunity by my parents, and I gave the same opportunity to my children. I hope they continue the trend with their kids.<br />
<br />
<i>Because the reality is, if this was a fair race, and everyone was back on that line, I guarantee you some of these black dudes would smoke all of you.</i> Nice racist statement, you piece of shit. Continue the stereotype that the only way blacks succeed is through athletic prowess.<br />
<br />
<i>And it's only because you've had this big of a head start that you're going to win this race called life.</i> <b>Go fuck yourself, asshole</b>. Me and my kids will win our own personal races because of the life decisions we've made. <b>Us winning will not stop blacks from winning, too.</b> They just need to start making good decisions, too.<br />
<br />
<i>Nothing you've done has put you in the lead you have right now.</i> Again, go pump a cat. Make a propaganda video on that.<br />
<br />
<i>If you didn't learn anything from this activity, you're a fool.</i> FINALLY, something we agree upon. I learned that The Guilt Monger has digested the leftist ideology of victimhood, hook, line and sinker, and refuses to see things as they truly are. I hope that at least some of the 24 million people that have watched his propaganda were able to see through his bullshit as well.<br />
<br />
<i>Roll screen shots of biblical passage.</i> Hey, try these on for size:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.<br />
Timothy 5:8 </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.<br />
James 4:17</blockquote>
---<br />
<br />
Last thoughts:<br />
<br />
Does racism exist? Oh hell yes. When it's done through jobs or education, it's illegal. <b>If you've been discriminated against, what did you do about it?</b><br />
<br />
Did you just sit back and bitch about it, or did you do something to fix the problem? Did you go to the NAACP local chapter, tell them your story and have them represent you in a case against the offender? If not, why not?<br />
<br />
If the organization didn't help you, why not? Isn't that what they're there for? According to them,<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination.</i></blockquote>
Shit, I agree with everything there, but I can't find a damned thing on their website where they actually did any of that stuff. All kinds of donation and membership stuff, and promotions for TV shows and their national convention, but no accomplishments.<br />
<br />
Even their separate Legal Defense Fund shows squat.<br />
<br />
Why's that? Consider this...<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>There is a class of colored people who make a business of keeping the troubles, the wrongs, and the hardships of the Negro race before the public. Having learned that they are able to make a living out of their troubles, they have grown into the settled habit of advertising their wrongs-partly because they want sympathy and partly because it pays. Some of these people do not want the Negro to lose his grievances, because they do not want to lose their jobs.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
--Booker T. Washington</blockquote>
<br />
Don't allow yourself to think of yourself as a victim. Think of yourself as a doer. <b>You're an individual - not a demographic sector - who can accomplish anything you want to work for.</b><br />
<br />
And if you're a black man, take it upon yourself to find a black boy, and teach him what it really means to be a self-reliant, responsible man. Lead by example.<br />
<br />
Make a difference.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2018 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-88439703855623007552017-12-10T15:00:00.000-08:002017-12-10T15:00:22.237-08:00Leaches and The Band of ThievesHoly crap, folks, it's been a while. I have had so much I've wanted to write about, but life and business keep getting into the way!<br />
<br />
So, today, I got my now-annual email from the CPA that does the books for my precious metals store. Was it full of, "Way to go" or "Fix this now" or "You're right on track" missives for the business?<br />
<br />
No.<br />
<br />
It was yet another email telling me I've got to, "pay my fair share" of the outstanding debt the asswipes in Sacramento encumbered the state.<br />
<br />
Back when the economy crashed in 2008, California decided it was a good idea to extend the unemployment insurance payments. Normally, you get 26 weeks of payments. The spendthrifts in Sacramento decided to extend that to 99 week. <b>Yeah, roughly 2 years of unemployment payments.</b><br />
<br />
Just one little problem: They didn't have the cash. No problem! They just borrowed it from the federal government. All they had to do was pay it back in a couple of years out of the General Fund, and it's all good!<br />
<br />
I know this will shock you to your core, but Sacramento didn't pay its bill. When Cali decided not to pay it, the burden fell to business owners. Shocking, right?<br />
<br />
Last year, I had to pay an extra lump sum $126 per employee. This year, it's $145 each. Merry Christmas to one and all!<br />
<br />
There's still an outstanding balance of over $600,000,000 (that's six-hundred-million dollars, boys and girls). I'm guessing I'll be getting another similar email around Christmas next year, too.<br />
<br />
And Sacramento wonders why businesses are fleeing the state....<br />
---<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
My perspective on taxes is quite straight-forward. And shockingly, it follows the Constitution:<br />
<br />
State and local government is responsible for the following: The legal system, Infrastructure, and public safety In all of these areas, <b>every single citizen must have equal access to those services.</b><br />
<br />
Legal: To establish and enforce laws, to settle disputes between citizens via the courts, and to pass sentencing for criminals.<br />
<br />
Infrastructure: Roads, bridges, water systems, parks, schools, etc. - whatever the state or local citizens want that's not empowered to the Feds.<br />
<br />
Public Safety: Police, fire, medics. Could also include restaurant inspections (a obscene waste of public monies), business licensing (another huge waste) or anything the state and local citizens say they want.<br />
<br />
For the federal government, you get those three things (the military and Naturalization - border control - being added to the Public Safety category), plus they get to ensure the safety of our money (HA HA HA HA HA!) and our foreign policy. Importantly, <b>the Tenth Amendment is adhered to strongly - if a power wasn't specifically granted to the feds, it's a state power.</b><br />
<br />
It's all pretty clearly laid out in Article 1, sections 8, 9 and 10 of the Constitution. Go look for yourself. As unbelievable as it sounds to many Americans, I'm not making this shit up. Really.<br />
---<br />
<br />
At all levels of government, nothing else. <b>Especially charity.</b> Charity is an individual decision. It is theft to force me to pay to enrich someone else. Period.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="float: left;">
<span data-dobid="hdw">char·i·ty</span><span class="lr_dct_ph">ˈCHerədē/</span><span class="lr_dct_spkr lr_dct_spkr_off" data-ved="0ahUKEwirvtnrnIDYAhUI2WMKHSoiBucQlfQBCC4wAA" jsaction="dob.p" style="display: inline-block; height: 16px; margin: 0px 2px 4px 5px; opacity: 0.55; vertical-align: middle; width: 16px;" title="Listen"><input height="14" src="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAA4AAAAOCAQAAAC1QeVaAAAAi0lEQVQokWNgQAYyQFzGsIJBnwED8DNcBpK+DM8YfjMUokqxMRxg+A9m8TJsBLLSEFKMDCuBAv/hCncxfGWQhUn2gaVAktkMXkBSHmh0OwNU8D9csoHhO4MikN7BcAGb5H+GYiDdCTQYq2QubkkkY/E6CLtXdiJ7BTMQMnAHXxFm6IICvhwY8AYQLgCw2U9d90B8BAAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==" style="font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;" type="image" width="14" /><br /></span><i>noun</i><strong>1</strong>.<br />an organization set up to provide help and raise money for those in need.<table class="vk_tbl vk_gy" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(135, 135, 135) !important;"><tbody>
<tr><td class="lr_dct_nyms_ttl" style="font-style: italic; padding: 0px 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top; white-space: nowrap;">synonyms:</td><td style="padding: 0px;">nonprofit organization, voluntary organization, charitable institution; <span data-log-string="synonyms-more-click" jsaction="dob.m"><span class="lr_dct_more_btn" style="color: #1a0dab; cursor: pointer; margin-left: 4px;">More</span><div style="display: inline;">
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<strong>2</strong>.<br />the voluntary giving of help, typically in the form of money, to those in need.<table class="vk_tbl vk_gy" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(135, 135, 135) !important;"><tbody>
<tr><td class="lr_dct_nyms_ttl" style="font-style: italic; padding: 0px 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top; white-space: nowrap;">synonyms:</td><td style="padding: 0px;">financial assistance, <span class="_Yht" data-term-for-update="aid" data-ved="0ahUKEwirvtnrnIDYAhUI2WMKHSoiBucQ_SoINzAA" jsaction="dob.uwt" role="link" style="color: #1a0dab; cursor: pointer;" tabindex="0">aid</span>, <span class="_Yht" data-term-for-update="welfare" data-ved="0ahUKEwirvtnrnIDYAhUI2WMKHSoiBucQ_SoIODAA" jsaction="dob.uwt" role="link" style="color: #1a0dab; cursor: pointer;" tabindex="0">welfare</span>, <span class="_Yht" data-term-for-update="relief" data-ved="0ahUKEwirvtnrnIDYAhUI2WMKHSoiBucQ_SoIOTAA" jsaction="dob.uwt" role="link" style="color: #1a0dab; cursor: pointer;" tabindex="0">relief</span>, financial relief; <span data-log-string="synonyms-more-click" jsaction="dob.m"><span class="lr_dct_more_btn" style="color: #1a0dab; cursor: pointer; margin-left: 4px;">More</span></span></td></tr>
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<br />
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<br />
Charity at the various government levels is called welfare, public assistance, a hand up, subsidized housing, blah, blah, blah. <b>The common thread is that money is taken by force from the many, and given to the few. </b>The concept of equal access is a foreign one with these charity programs.<br />
<br />
Why in the hell am I being forced to pay for someone else's life decisions? If you got pregnant at age 14, why should I pay for the food and housing for you and your child? If you decided to not pay attention in school and you end up a functional illiterate, why should I pay to give you training when you get older? Here's a good one: If you have a multiple birth (triplets, etc.) or give birth to a child with metal or physical problems, why should I pay for their treatment and care?<br />
<br />
Just asking these questions gets you labeled as a hater, a bigot and a soul-less monster. <i>Think of the children!</i><br />
<br />
I call Bullshit!<br />
<br />
In every single issue listed above, <b>and any other government hand-out program</b>, there is a private sector solution. Without exception. All funded by private money.<br />
<br />
It may not be as generous (with our money) as the recipient would like, but they are almost always more effective. Why? They can discriminate. For instance, if you're in a government-funded drug re-hab program, you can go for as long as you want. In free private programs, you can go for as long as THEY want. Fall off the wagon, and you're out of luck.<br />
<br />
It's called an incentive to perform. You want free, you're going to have to work for it.<br />
<br />
Look at our WIC and similar food programs. The more kids you spit out, the more money you get. You have no incentive to act responsibly. In fact, you're encouraged to do just the opposite.<br />
---<br />
<br />
Historically, you were responsible for your lot in life. You could change it if you so desired. Sometimes you were dealt a shitty hand. You made the best of it as you could. Sometimes you succeeded, sometimes you failed.<br />
<br />
But you and those around you learned from the experience. <br />
<br />
You saw that there were bad consequences for abusing drugs or alcohol. You ended up dead or broke if you made the wrong choices. <br />
<br />
You didn't have kids until you could feed, clothe and house them.<br />
<br />
You knew that you needed skills or knowledge to get and keep jobs that paid your bills.<br />
<br />
The concept of, "living within your means" is a foreign one to so many Americans. With all of our government, "safety nets" <b>why should you act personally responsible?</b><br />
<br />
Now, get pregnant by choice out of wedlock, you get free food and housing, and an Obama phone to chat up your homies.<br />
<br />
Now, spend all of your money on vacations and toys, then claim poverty and get a check and free medical for life.<br />
<br />
Now, have the education and skills to flip burgers, and you earn $30,000 a year full time.<br />
<br />
There's no accountability for past choices. Just checks, and food, and housing, and medical. <b>All the things my stupid ass works for every day.</b><br />
---<br />
<br />
The question is, "How do we incent government to shrink itself to Constitutionally limited size?" It's impossible. Don't be so naive as to say, "Vote the bums out!" Been there, done that, no change.<br />
<br />
Like any other entity, government's primary urge is to grow. Unlike private entities, government has no requirement of efficiency.<br />
<br />
I know that I'm tilting at windmills here. It will never change until it collapses. Instead of planning for ways to increase my cash flow during retirement, I focus on acquiring assets that can't be counted against the "means test" I'm going to be faced with when I decide to draw on Social Security - another "forced purchase" foisted upon us by government.<br />
<br />
I didn't agree to be bound by the ever-changing Social Security rules, yet bound I am. Who would ever agree to make payments into a system where once you start receiving the benefits, you are limited to how much additional income you can earn outside of the payments? And one where, when you die, your heirs don't get to receive the remaining funds you were forced to "contribute"?<br />
<br />
<i>It's for the greater good!</i> they cry. Bite me. I don't exist for the greater good. I <b>exist</b> for me and my family. I <b>work</b> for me and my family.<br />
<br />
Fuck the Greater Good. They're a bunch of leaches, led by a band of thieves.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-55377532746354654372017-10-03T17:17:00.000-07:002017-10-03T17:17:19.486-07:00Dear Softhead Gun GrabbersUghhhh.<br />
<br />
Vegas. Horrible act by a deranged individual. That's the story so far, but let's wait and see how this turns out. Something stinks here, folks.<br />
<br />
Anyhoo, Bigger picture: This is an opportunity for The Controlling Class to try and whittle your self-defense/gun ownership rights.<br />
<br />
Hey, softheads, here's a softball pitch for ya: I'm in. The only rules are, the law or action you propose must have stopped this bastard from doing what he did, and it must be constitutional.<br />
<br />
None of the "feel good" bullshit just so you can say you tried, and you can go visit Jimmy Kimmel and do a stint with Wolfy on CNN. We've got enough of that craps on the books already. <br />
<br />
So do we have a deal? That's about as "common sense" of a gun law as you could want, right?<br />
<br />
Of course, your search for the ironic, "Silver Bullet" is impossible. There is no law that could be written that would have stopped this shooting. None, zero, zip, nada.<br />
<br />
From current reports, this guy was as clean as your colon after jalapeno night at the local taco truck. His biggest societal crime was a traffic ticket. He was a retired millionaire. He owned a retirement apartment complex.<br />
<br />
A background check would have taken 20 seconds, so even if he had to have each and every one of his 40 or 50 guns checked and registered, <i>nothing would have been stopped</i>. You can't legislate against snapping and losing your shit. Well, you can, but it won't do anything.<br />
<br />
The only thing going against him was that he was a former government employee. Twice. An IRS agent and a US postal employee. In Softheadlandia, you pukes would have likely given him an express pass during the check. He was one of you Big Gov folks.<br />
<br />
If he "upgraded" his rifles to full-auto, he broke the law. How did that law work out? Should we write another law making it against the law to break the previous law? <b>Do you see how stupid you sound?</b><br />
<br />
Remember, you idiots, BAD GUYS DON'T FOLLOW THE LAW! Laws only affect the actions of law-abiding citizens. <b>Why is this shit so difficult for you to understand?</b><br />
<br />
Oh, maybe you DO understand, and you actually have another motive, like your OG Totalitarians, Pol Pot, Hitler, Lenin, Mao and Stalin. They were big into the whole gun control gig. <i>It's for your own safety, you stupid Dirt People.</i><br />
<br />
Then they cut off your head and stuff it up your ass.<br />
<br />
I don't know about you, cupcake, but they ain't takin' any self-defense tool I've got, regardless of what it is. If you want to go purring into the afterlife - full of righteous, moral satisfaction - more power to ya. I'm sure the 9mm slug your superiors deposit into your brainpan will put you into the deep sleep of socialist bliss.<br />
<br />
G'night, you softhead.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
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<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-25396474938153685302017-08-16T19:19:00.001-07:002017-08-16T19:19:05.140-07:00Wake Up - Charlottesville Is Just The Latest In A Long StringGawd, I didn't want to do this post.<br />
<br />
The whole Charlottesville deal. In short, WHAT THE HELL?!<br />
<br />
Before I get into the meat and potatoes of this thing, let's refresh our collective understanding of American speech and actions:<br />
<br />
First: There IS NO SUCH THING AS <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2017/06/19/supreme-court-unanimously-reaffirms-there-is-no-hate-speech-exception-to-the-first-amendment/?utm_term=.b8c66bb3286b" target="_blank">ILLEGAL HATE SPEECH</a> in America. The first amendment and a shit-ton of court cases say so. You can be a loud-and-proud racist - like the KKK or The New Black Panthers - and no one can stop you from spreading your hatred. You have two options when you hear speech with which you disagree: You can leave and not listen to it, or you can protest the speaker by NON-VIOLENT MEANS.<br />
<br />
Second: Simply because you call someone a fascist, a racist, a misogynist, or a homophobe, DOES NOT MAKE IT SO. That being said, even if the person you're labeling IS one of those things, tough shit. They still have the right to say what they want, regardless of how hateful, painful, "unsafe" or just plain mean YOU think their speech is.<br />
<br />
Third: In broad terms, the only type of speech that is illegal is that which IMMEDIATELY incites violence against others ("Let's go beat that skinhead!"), places others in IMMEDIATE DANGER (yelling "Fire!!" in a movie theater), or slanderous speech which is directed towards an individual or group and which negatively impacts the reputation of the individual or group.<br />
---<br />
<br />
OK, I'm watching the whole thing unfold at my store on Saturday morning, Pacific time. I'm thinking, "Where are the cops?" There are people from both sides attacking each other with sticks, fists, newspaper machines, pepper spray and the like. <b>"Where the FUCK are the cops?"</b><br />
<br />
Then, things turn for the worse. Some Nazi-fuck runs down a crowd of counter-protesters, killing a lady and injuring around 20. Cowardly, fucked up shit.<br />
<br />
The president makes this statement about the violence:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>“I think there is blame on both sides. And I have no doubt about it, and you don’t have any doubt about it either,” Trump told the media. “And if you reported it accurately, you would say it.”</i></blockquote>
Let the reaming begin!<br />
<br />
Trump DARED to not blame the violent situation solely on the right-wing protesters. He correctly placed blame and condemnation on ALL who participated in the violence.<br />
<br />
The result was sickeningly predictable. RINOs caved and chastised the president. The left did what the left always does - claim victimhood and blame the president. And the press, well, they soiled their shorts like they haven't soiled them in a very long time. <br />
<br />
The four-hour Viagra time limit has clearly been exceeded.<br />
<br />
It has been non-stop hyperventilation about how we fought the Nazi's and what they stood for. The maddening irony is that all of these supposed anti-fascist groups and media are actually practicing exactly what we fought against in World War II: <b>Shut down and silence the opposition through violence.</b><br />
<br />
RINO-In-Chief, John McCain <strike>media-ass-kissingly</strike> heroically said there is no moral equivalence between Nazis and the myriad of left-wing groups.<br />
<br />
The media soiled themselves again. <i>Kleenex, to the publisher's office, <b>stat!</b></i><br />
<br />
Trump, NOT ONCE, said the BELIEFS OR WORDS of any of the groups were morally equivalent (although I would challenge that when discussing the antifa and black nationalist groups).<br />
<br />
The moral equivalence is not about what the various groups stand for, it's how they BOTH VIOLENTLY ATTACKED THEIR OPPOSITION.<br />
<br />
It was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_for_Radicals" target="_blank">Classic Alinsky</a> - <i>"If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive." Violence from the other side can win the public to your side because the public sympathizes with the underdog.</i><br />
<br />
Wait, what's this? The bastion of liberal, alt-left-think, <a href="http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-charlottesville-witnesses-20170815-story.html" target="_blank">The Los Angeles Times</a> - to their credit - ran an article where basically both sides in the Charlottesville cluster-fuck proudly stated that <u>they and their groups, started the violence</u>. Seriously, both sides took credit!<br />
<br />
Well slap my ass, and paint me a pinko! <b>Isn't that what Trump said?</b><br />
<br />
Don't matter. Queue crickets chirping.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
OK kids, buckle up as we enter the Way-Back-In-Time Capsule, and <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2017/08/15/how-obama-handled-an-attack-by-a-racial-nationalist/" target="_blank">let's visit Dallas, Texas</a> in July of 2016 - one whole, long year ago - practically ancient history:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>In July of 2016, <b>an avowed black nationalist</b> <b>murdered five police officers</b> during a <b>Black Lives Matter demonstration</b> in Dallas, Texas. The act of violence was well-planned and was motivated entirely by the hate-filled ideology of the shooter, Micah Xavier Johnson.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b>With several officers dead by the hand of a committed black nationalist,</b> one might think the Obama administration may have considered the assassinations domestic terror and launched an investigation into groups associated with this ideology.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Not at all.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Barack Obama condemned the shootings, <b>but he did not call out or even allude to Johnson’s hateful views</b>. He did, however, blame “powerful weapons” for the violence.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>In her statement on the shooting, then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch exploited the tragedy to push for gun control and <b>praise the cause of Black Lives Matter.</b> No mention of Johnson’s ideology or “hate” was made in her statement, but <b>she did manage to directly name multiple cases of police-involved shootings</b> — all after cops were the ones murdered.</i></blockquote>
Ah, the old switcheroo! <i>"Wardrobe! Bring in the Strawman!"</i><br />
<br />
Don't blame the individual, blame the inanimate object. That would be like Trump blaming the murder of the woman in Charlottesville on the car.<br />
<br />
Trump would then have AG Sessions march out and chastise car makers for the death and destruction they've brought upon our fair land, then defend the Nazis for their good works and blaming the Jews for "being in the wrong place at the wrong time".<br />
<br />
Except none of that happened. Trump gets hammered and Obama gets his belly rubbed and told what a great guy he is.<br />
---<br />
<br />
<u>The real world:</u><br />
<br />
This shit is getting real. We are seeing with disturbing regularity where police departments are ordered to stand-down when leftists riot and/or initiate violence. <br />
<br />
Democrat-controlled cities will provide you no safe harbor. <b>You will not be allowed to speak of ideas and policies which are in opposition to the controlling narrative of the left.</b> <br />
<br />
The police in these cities have, uniformly, been instructed to "stand down", and they've followed those orders. WITHOUT EXCEPTION, cities which have had left-wing violence directed towards right-wing speech - and where the police stood by with their hands in the tactical vest pockets - <b>have been cities controlled by Democrats:</b> Berkeley (more times than I can count), Baltimore, San Jose, Ferguson, San Francisco, St. Louis, Seattle, Oakland, Washington DC, Portland, Sacramento, and, oh yeah, Charlottesville.<br />
<br />
Here's the thing: I'm not suggesting you don't go to any damned rally or convention, or hear any speaker you want. Not even close. <br />
<br />
<b>I'm just saying that you need to expect unchecked violence if the city in which you are attending the event is a Democrat-controlled city.</b><br />
<br />
As a personal suggestion, get your CCW license if your state requires one to carry a gun, and get to the range on a regular basis. It is a horrible thing to think of having to defend your life for expressing your political beliefs, but that's where we are.<br />
<br />
Or don't, and get your head caved in by a bike lock being wielded like a mace, or baseball bat using your head for T-ball practice. Your choice.<br />
<br />
It would be more horrible to see our right of free speech and assembly violently taken away by these leftist fascists.<br />
<br />
Hide your head in the sand, click your heels and wish it all away. Pretend it's just a phase our country is going through, and "this too, shall pass".<br />
<br />
Or do something, and prepare.<br />
<br />
Here in Nevada, there's a whole lot of physical red state between me and Clark County (Las Vegas), and a decent amount between me and Washoe County (Reno). On the down-side, those two counties account for 87% of the population of the state. Clark County alone is around two-thirds of the state population.<br />
<br />
Still, my wife will soon be picking up her CCW. She regularly works in Carson City (the state capitol) and that's prime protest turf for the leftists.<br />
---<br />
<br />
As an aside, Reno in Washoe County is an interesting city. Outside of the city proper, it's as red-state as you can get. Seriously, it's surrounded on all sides by conservatives! I've heard serious talk of partitioning the county just above Reno, and creating a separate, new county. The folks that live in that area have absolutely nothing in common with the sanctuary city, leftist ideology of Reno.<br />
<br />
Could be interesting.....<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-90031688567061067062017-07-22T16:31:00.000-07:002017-07-22T16:31:50.127-07:00Short Attention Span Theater: Curse Of Identity PoliticsEnjoy...<br />
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---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-16237253651859040802017-07-14T14:17:00.001-07:002017-07-14T14:27:59.202-07:00Leave Me Alone. I've Been Busy!Well, well, well, what a month it's been.<br />
<br />
At the store, we've been hunting like crazy for new employees. We recently lost two of our long-term guys. Like me, one had also had enough of the California bullshit, and has moved out of state. I had absolutely no "sales pitch" to get him to stay. Hell, why would I? I did the same damned thing!<br />
<br />
The other one really hurt. Our oldest employee - whom we had promoted to manager - has had the itch to do his own thing (a different field) for the past couple of years. Well, he started doing it part time about a year ago, and his business absolutely exploded. Between working for us and on his new business, he was working 12 hour days, 7 days a week. I shit you not.<br />
<br />
He put in the time and effort, and it paid off. I couldn't be happier for him. He's a true friend, and I'll miss him around the store. <br />
<br />
He gave us 3 months advanced notice, and we still haven't been able to find a replacement. It's tough - you can't just put someone you don't know VERY well in charge of lots of cash, bullion and jewelry, and assume things will be fine. So the hunt continues.<br />
<br />
With regards to the first employee, he gave us 30 days notice, and we ran ads on a variety of venues. I've got to tell you, the resumes I got were shocking. The lack of grammar and spelling proficiency, and the overall shittiness of the majority of the ones we got, was stunning, to say the least.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qogrrskbxnQ/WWkxKIX8g9I/AAAAAAAAB5Q/hyZEAyGlec0Ofk2QIBI6RnhNMSfXf9rvgCLcBGAs/s1600/idiot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="462" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qogrrskbxnQ/WWkxKIX8g9I/AAAAAAAAB5Q/hyZEAyGlec0Ofk2QIBI6RnhNMSfXf9rvgCLcBGAs/s400/idiot.jpg" width="282" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of our applicants. Looks kinda familiar, no?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I shit you not, I would put the level of competence at 4th or 5th grade. Same lack of competence whether it was from a recent high school grad, or a 50 year old man or woman. <br />
<br />
It was shocking. I got an absolutely perfect resume from a lady in the next town over, but she had none of the skills we were looking for. I still called her to tell her that her resume was fantastic, and she should have no problem finding a job, considering her competition. She informed me she had been offered a job that morning.<br />
<br />
These soft-heads out there realize that their resume is their first opportunity to impress or repel a potential employer, right?<br />
<br />
Finally found a guy. <i>Thank you Lord!</i> He starts this Saturday for training. Fingers crossed....<br />
---<br />
<br />
The little bit of free time I've had has been mainly directed to projects around the homestead.<br />
<br />
First on the hit parade was fixing our freeze-less yard hydrant out on one of the corners of the property. I noticed that water was literally bubbling up from around the pipe going underground. Here's what I found:<br />
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<br />
<br />
What you're looking at is 2 feet underground. The PVC pipe is the supply line going into the vertical cast iron pipe for the hydrant. If you look closely, the supply pipe was simply friction-fit into the 90 degree elbow, with a gratuitous bead of caulking added.<br />
<br />
Since the genius who originally installed it DID NOT USE PVC GLUE to hold the pieces together, ground movement separated the supply from the elbow, and 60 psi of water gushed out.<br />
<br />
I repaired (and glued) the elbow to the supply line, added rock for drainage of the weep hole - as well as adding some landscaping cloth to help keep it clear of mud -<br />
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<br />
<br />
I then back-filled it and it's ready to rock.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
Oh, one little thing: Our frost line is 24 inches down. Sure enough, the supply pipe is 24 inches below grade. Cool. The problem is, the weep hole - which allows water to empty from the vertical pipe so it won't freeze and burst - is 9 inches higher.<br />
<br />
So, some time in the future, I'll be doing some digging to re-route the end of the supply line about a foot deeper to get the weep hole below the frost line.<br />
<br />
Hey, I've got nuthin' but time, right?<br />
---<br />
<br />
I FINALLY got two of my raised beds finished (I was hoping to have 4 done, but...). They're made from cinder blocks, and better last a lifetime!<br />
<br />
The blocks are held together with this construction adhesive made especially for masonry.<br />
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<br />
The bottoms and the ends, with the second course staggered for the joints -<br />
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<br />
<br />
I let everything cure for a week, then lined the beds with cardboard (worms love that shit) and 1/4 inch mesh to keep any burrowing critters out.<br />
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<br />
<br />
We filled them up with a raised bed soil made here in Northern Nevada (each holds a bit over a cubic yard of soil). Going forward, I'll "refresh" the beds with my own compost, which I've been making for the past year. If I can get a chipper for less than an arm and a leg, I'll be adding wood mulch on top of the beds.<br />
<br />
The fence to the left in the pictures faces due south, so I get great sun exposure. These pix were taken early in the morning. By 10am or so, they're in full, blazing sun.<br />
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<br />
'Taters in the first bed....<br />
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<br />
Corn, radishes and cucumbers in the second...<br />
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<br />
These were all planted on the 4th of July (Independence Day..... hmmmmm) and everything is sprouting as planned.<br />
<br />
I figured I'd have a couple of more weeks before I'd have to worry about the wild rabbits eating my stuff. I figured wrong.<br />
<br />
I just came back from their noon watering, and some soon-to-be-dead rabbit "removed" a couple of the corn sprouts, a quarter of the radish sprouts, and a third of the cucumber sprouts. Didn't touch any of the potato sprouts. Curious.<br />
<br />
I guess my bed fencing project just got moved up in the queue..... pictures to follow.<br />
---<br />
<br />
Oh, and on top of that, I gave a buddy who's building a log home in the wilds of Northern Nevada, a hand for a couple of days. The first day was sorting the logs. All the first course "A" logs, then all of the second course "B" logs.... all the way to 13 courses.<br />
<br />
Some of these bastards were 17 feet long. I believe they're roughly 8 inches square (they're "D" logs with 3 sides milled, and the outward-facing side left rounded - like the letter "D").<br />
<br />
Damned near killed me! Those bastards were heavy.<br />
<br />
I went back a week or so later, and helped him lay the first course so it was tits-on perfect. Hotter than hell, so we only worked for half a day.<br />
<br />
Over the next couple of weeks, he finished the rest of the walls..... by himself! The guy is a MacGyver kinda guy, and he rigged an engine hoist into a log lifter. Seriously impressive stuff.<br />
<br />
From this.....<br />
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<br />
To this....<br />
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<br />
To this...<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
I believe I'm heading up to see him sometime next week. Can't wait to see his progress.<br />
---<br />
<br />
I've been chompin' at the bit to do a political video rant, but I'm going to wait until some backdrop equipment arrives late next week.<br />
<br />
CNN and MSNBC have fucking lost their minds. This Russia shit is non-stop. I saw on Zero Hedge that CNNs Prime Time ratings were lower than re-runs of 1960's kids TV shows running at the same time. That's gotta hurt.<br />
<br />
These pinheads just don't get it. Other than the left and right coasts, no one gives a shit about any of this fluff and/or fake news they keep spewing.<br />
---<br />
<br />
Back soon(er).<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-413185269157989242017-06-10T17:41:00.001-07:002017-06-10T17:41:57.518-07:00Trump Derangement Syndrome Lives OnThis whole Comey thing has the whack-jobs howling at the moon. Great entertainment for adults.<br />
<br />
Not rated appropriate for Safe Spaces. Sorry, cupcakes...<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Fzd5THCK4Nk?rel=0" width="560"></iframe>
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Interactive LLC. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management and Boomerpreps.com, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Interactive LLC. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-66930137938885185012017-06-09T14:19:00.000-07:002017-06-09T14:19:26.670-07:00The Scam of Licensing and PermitsI'm in the process of making a number of instructional videos with my new Nevada company. I've been playing around with the video editing software, and decided it was time to come out.<br />
<br />
From behind the keyboard, ya pervs!<br />
<br />
On occasion, I will likely do a video entry here instead of typing it out. Below is the first installment.<br />
<br />
Gimme some feedback. Ya like it? Does it suck? Should I hire a hot spokes-model to do the yapping? (Say 'yes' to that, and I swear I'll flash my man-boobs at ya. Neither of us wants to go there, trust me).<br />
<br />
I'm going to work on the back drop a bit. A sheet over my office windows doesn't exude a lot of confidence and professionalism, so there's that.....<br />
<br />
I'll use some of the cooler technical stuff in later editions, but this is what you've got right out of the chute.<br />
<br />
Have at it...<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YCYf-wrP3Wc?rel=0" width="560"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-53594351130264797592017-05-19T13:16:00.001-07:002017-05-19T13:16:27.793-07:00Circus, No Bread IncludedI saw this video and it brought a ray of sunshine into my day, so I figured I'd share it with you.<br />
<br />
I know, I know, I was ranting about Bread and Circuses last post, but I ain't got no bread for ya, and I'm sure as hell not the government trying to melt your mind. So just watch it, and enjoy....<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EmnSm_d2ll4?rel=0" width="560"></iframe>
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-75663658489800118672017-05-14T17:28:00.002-07:002017-05-14T17:28:49.368-07:00Rants and RavesHappy Mother's Day, ya mothers......<br />
---<br />
<br />
Huh. As I write this, our power is out for some reason. It's the first "real world" test of the UPS (uninterrupted power source - battery back-up) system I installed. So far, so good. I have provided power to my internet connection and to my video surveillance system, and everything is working as planned. Our security system has it's own back-up power source (4 days), so I'm good there.<br />
<br />
Yeah, I'm a paranoid sumbitch.....<br />
<br />
I supposedly have power for 2+ hours. My primary reasoning was to give enough juice to my surveillance cameras/NDVR to still capture video of bad guys that cut our power, and to keep my internet connect alive so I can still do some work (my main home work computer is a laptop with an extra-large battery).<br />
<br />
This outage is supposed to last for almost 5 hours (per the email I received because I could still access the internet, <i>ThankYouVeryMuch</i>....), so it looks like I'll get to test the bounds of the system.<br />
-----<br />
<br />
Power update: It lasted 3 1/2 hours. My security back up lasted 2 1/2 hours and the network back up made it through the whole thing. Much lower power draw than the cameras and recorder. Might get a second battery for the cameras...<br />
---<br />
<br />
Serious as a heart attack, WTF is up with these liberals and the Comey firing? What a bunch of whiny, duplicitous sons of bitches. It seems as though everyone on both sides of the aisle agree the guy was a piece of political trash, but it would KILL the Libs if they said or did anything that indicated Trump made a good decision.<br />
<br />
The implication is that by removing Comey, the sinister "Russian Investigation" will end. Seriously, are you soft-heads THAT stupid? Do you actually think Comey himself is out there running down leads and interviewing witnesses? Seriously? The actual investigators are many levels below the Director, and won't miss a beat.<br />
<br />
This is nothing but political grandstanding, writ large, and the liberals in congress, their lackeys in the press, and their apologists in congress with an (R) next to their name, have all lost touch with the actual world. Must be something in the DC air, I swear.<br />
---<br />
<br />
I was reading an interview of Doug Casey where they were discussing "Cultural Marxism". I generally call this, "Identity Politics".<br />
<br />
It's the whole idea where you are supposedly victimized or gain undue power due to things outside of your control. Things like being a woman, or black, or white, or gay, All things over which you have no control whatsoever.<br />
<br />
You're judged not based upon something you've controlled - your education, abuse drugs or not, get pregnant out of wedlock or not, or work experience, or contribution to society - but based upon things you can never change, such as your skin color or race (though Senator Elizabeth "Pocahontas" Warren and Rachel "I identify as black" Dolezal both took a stab at it before getting caught in their lies).<br />
<br />
What a perfect scam! You can never be held responsible for anything in your life because your skin color, gender or sexual preference is considered a protected class. In fact, you get extra free shit and preferences just because of this. And remember, boys and girls (and undeclared), EVERYONE is a protected class except straight white males.<br />
<br />
When I was a kid, THE big thing was the civil rights movement, and segregation. Now, through some warp in the space/time continuum, all of these protected classes now simultaneously demand the right to self-segregate into their own "safe spaces" while requiring "diversity" (unearned quotas) at work and in politics.<br />
<br />
And they're getting it! I'll be damned if schools, big businesses and anything in the public sector don't bend right over, take it in the butt, and say, "<i>Thank you sir, uhm, <b>gender-neutral poker</b>, may I have another?!"</i><br />
<br />
Remember the, "Going Medieval" scene in <i>Pulp Fiction</i>? That's the Cultural Marxist's training video...<br />
<br />
Anyways, this is all about destroying the individual. An individual is self-reliant and acts in his own best interest. It sounds very anti-social, but in practice, it's what has built civilizations. As I succeed, I can hire you to help me out, and now you succeed. You can take the fruits of your labors, and build your own life and success. Repeat, repeat, repeat.<br />
<br />
Instead, they want you to join the collective, 'cause communism has always worked out so well in the past. Do as you're told - and NOTHING else - and you'll be fed, housed, clothed, and liquored/drugged up.<br />
<br />
It's easy to do, so come on and join the club! Once the soft-heads who've joined figure out that they get their freebees whether they work or not, they choose NOT. By then, the wealth re-distributors realize that to keep the votes coming and <u>their</u> gravy train chugging along, they crack open the history books to see what's pacified the masses in the past.<br />
<br />
The Romans figured this out way-back-when with the whole, Bread and Circuses gig. Still works today -<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>A phrase used by a Roman writer to deplore the declining heroism of Romans after the Roman Republic ceased to exist and the Roman Empire began: “Two things only the people anxiously desire — bread and circuses.” The government kept the Roman populace happy by distributing free food and staging huge spectacles. ( See Colosseum.) </i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Note : “Bread and circuses” has become a convenient general term for government policies that seek short-term solutions to public unrest. </i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><i>The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition</i></b></blockquote>
The free thinking, self-reliant individual is a threat to central control, and must be eliminated.<br />
<br />
Sleep tight!<br />
---<br />
<br />
Sometimes, people make my head hurt.<br />
<br />
Our precious metals store does a good deal of business with an eBay site. We've been running it for the last year and a half, and are doing pretty well. We've got over 1800 positive reviews/feedback, with a 99.8% approval rating.<br />
<br />
Last week, it was 99.9%. We just got our second-of-all-time negative review. Seriously, we were shocked.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jnolve3nesE/WRjwVKbYGOI/AAAAAAAAB4M/_UGcn45vwSQEQkJpnpNHP-n7wiD6Tar0wCLcB/s1600/feedback.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jnolve3nesE/WRjwVKbYGOI/AAAAAAAAB4M/_UGcn45vwSQEQkJpnpNHP-n7wiD6Tar0wCLcB/s1600/feedback.png" /></a></div>
<br />
I SOOOOOO wanted to reply that we NEVER, EVER perform foreskin removal surgery on any of our coins. <br />
<br />
Professionalism got the better of me. We've asked eBay to remove it, as the listing didn't say we were selling uncircumcised or even uncirculated coins.<br />
<br />
My guess is this fluffy little cupcake was raised in a household where even when he didn't read the directions or acted impulsively, and the outcome wasn't what cupcake expected, mommy and daddy kissed it and made it all better.<br />
<br />
The only good part of this story is that cupcake WAY over-bid for the collections. If he had read our listing, he could have simply returned the coins within 2 weeks and gotten a full refund, no questions asked.<br />
<br />
Come on, lemme see that boo-boo lip now, cupcake!<br />
---<br />
<br />
A little chuckle for ya.....<br />
<br />
Yeah, mine too......<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/H3VLqLLWxbQ?rel=0" width="560"></iframe>
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-77062445244097861612017-04-24T14:33:00.002-07:002017-04-24T14:33:43.233-07:00Government Charity Is ImmoralSome very good friends of mine had just filled me with food and adult beverages, and the conversation wandered to politics. They brought up an outfit called Prager University, or <a href="https://www.prageru.com/" target="_blank">PragerU</a>.<br />
<br />
I'd never heard of it. It's a site that covers a ton of topics - from a conservative/libertarian point of view - in short, 5-minute videos that they crank out weekly. I decide to go Scratch 'n Sniff for a bit.<br />
<br />
<br />
Over the past week or so, I've dropped by and watched a video or two. This morning, I watched one titled, "<a href="https://www.prageru.com/courses/economics/there-only-one-way-out-poverty" target="_blank">There is only one way out of poverty</a>". I figure I know their answer - <b><i>work</i></b> - and I give it a listen.<br />
<br />
Right out of the box, I blow a blood vessel in my head. Here are the first couple of sentences from the transcripts (highlights are mine, and indicate where the spikes in my blood pressure occurred) :<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>What’s the best way to help poor people escape poverty?</i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Progressives and conservatives have very different answers to this question, but before we explore those answers, let’s agree on this:</i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b><u>Both progressives and conservatives believe that the government has a moral obligation to help those who, through bad luck or unfortunate circumstances, can’t help themselves.</u></b></i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Here’s what a conservative icon, Nobel Prize-winning economist, Frederic Hayek, said on the subject:</i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>“There is no reason why, in a society that has reached the general level of wealth ours has attained, <b><u>the first kind of security should not be guaranteed to all…some minimum of food, shelter, and clothing sufficient to preserve health and the capacity to work.</u></b>”</i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b><u>Whatever the media might tell you, there isn’t a conservative out there who would not agree with Hayek’s statement.</u></b></i></blockquote>
<br />
Well then, I guess I'm not your type of conservative, because it's nothing more than a sentence that may as well have come from Marx, Lenin, Pelosi, Schumer, Feinstein or any of the socialists in our midst. A Conservative Icon? You must be kidding. That sentence is as Marxist as they come.<br />
<br />
Compare it to one from Marx:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><i>From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.</i></b></blockquote>
It sure sounds all warm and fuzzy, but for it to work, it requires taking from one and giving to another. <b>By force</b>. How is this not crystal clear?<br />
<br />
Right off the top of my head, Four Reasons Why Government Charity is Immoral:<br />
<br />
<br />
1. In contrast to the video, I believe it is morally reprehensible to take from one - at the point of a gun - and give directly to another. Morally, all tax dollars taken must be equally accessible by all in the community from which they're taken. Everyone gets to use the police, fire, the parks, the water treatment plant, etc. NOT everyone gets their housing paid for, food paid for, etc. Don't try and tell me that the money forcibly taken from me is going to a good cause. "A Good Cause" is subjective, and <b>stolen money is still stolen money</b>. With a private charity, if they don't perform as promised, I can withdraw my funding, and put it somewhere else. Try that with government charity.<br />
<br />
2. Gov't ALWAYS wants to grow. "The Bar" for inclusion for Other People's Money is continually lowered, so more people are qualified to receive, and more bureaucrats are needed to "serve" the needy. Just look at the numbers of Americans now on some sort of government teat. Regardless of the time period you examine, the numbers are going up, not down. When will people understand that, ONCE A GOVERNMENT PROGRAM STARTS IT NEVER, EVER ENDS, NEVER GETS SMALLER AND NEVER ACCOMPLISHES ITS GOALS?!?!?<br />
<br />
3. Why? Since they are not constrained by a real budget, there is no incentive to spend wisely. Disagree? Show me ONE government poverty or welfare program that has been shown to be a failure based upon its objectives (virtually all of them) <b><u>that has been shut down or had its budget cut.</u></b> They just need to whine to the press that little babies are going to be tossed into the streets if their funding dries up and VIOLA! the money shows up. The only time a program is shut down is when some sort of corruption found. But it never really goes away. The program doesn't go away, budgets are transferred, and the name of the agency just changes.<br />
<br />
Item number 4 is included in the next section.<br />
<br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
Not twenty minutes after I watched the video, I get an email from a local charity my business has helped. Part of their income stream is via a thrift store. When they get donations of jewelry, they'll come in, we'll help them sort our precious metal from costume jewelry.<br />
<br />
These folks, Opportunity House, take homeless people, give them some food and shelter, TEACH THEM LIFE SKILLS, then send them on their way. No drugs or alcohol allowed, and you must meet a set of goals from the program to stay with them.<br />
<br />
As you'll see from the excerpt below, their model has been very successful. As you'll also see, the federal charity cabal has decided they know what's best, and are fucking it all up.<br />
<br />
Again, highlights are mine:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>I regret to inform you that Opportunity House which has enjoyed strong community support over our 25-year history is now in jeopardy. </i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Cash donations to the shelter, purchases and donations at our Thrift Store on Peabody Rd., and our largest annual fundraiser, Festival of Trees, have allowed us to <b><u>operate programs resulting in an incredible 95% success rate in helping our homeless clients back to independent living</u></b>. Vacaville Social Services Corporation (VSSC), a local nonprofit with an all-volunteer Board of Directors, has always emphasized entrepreneurism. Until last year, less than 10% of our budget came from a federal grant and no on-going operating support from either the City of Vacaville or County of Solano. <b><u>But the federal government changed its focus to just sheltering rather than truly dealing with cycle of homelessness</u></b>. <b><u>To receive federal money, VSSC would no longer be allowed to hold our clients accountable for implementing their individual improvement programs or passing a drug test. We opted to maintain our successful model of rehabilitation in a safe and sober environment.</u></b> </i></blockquote>
<br />
Twenty five years of successfully helping 95% of the folks that come through your program gets shit on because <b><u>you're holding someone to a standard of conduct to receive your services.</u></b><br />
<br />
And THAT'S item number 4 as to why government charity is immoral: <b><u>They don't have the ability to discriminate between recipients</u></b>. If you're X percent below the poverty level, you're in. You can drink and do drugs, sit on your ass all day, and basically be a boil on the ass of society. No matter - you're qualified. Here's your money.<br />
<br />
The Catch 22 of the situation is, that's exactly how it should be - no discrimination for government services. Everyone should have equal service access to everything from the county clerk to the chief of police.<br />
<br />
<b><u>This is why the scope of government services must be limited.</u></b> Just what's needed to keep a civil society. Police, fire, courts and common infrastructure. Not much else. Certainly nothing along the lines of the behemoth we've build. As Benjamin Franklin noted -<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>“When the people find that they can vote themselves money that will herald the end of the republic.”</i></blockquote>
LOL, the end is already here, kids.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-6215677390451429832017-04-11T10:48:00.000-07:002017-04-11T10:55:35.524-07:00Getting Stressed Out On The RangeLast week, I had a wonderful lunch (wonderful because they're good folks, and the lunch was was on their dime!) with some friends in Reno. Since I was up in that neck of the woods, I decided to hit one of the indoor pistol ranges. It had been way too long since I'd done any sort of pistol training.<br />
<br />
I brought 3 guns with me, a Glock 19, Glock 26 (my primary concealed carry gun) and a Smith & Wesson M+P Shield (my secondary concealed carry gun).<br />
<br />
My regular routine is to run one magazine through them just to re-acquaint myself with the sights, then go into "stress mode" training. More on this in a second.<br />
<br />
Since it had been a while since I'd been to the range, I put two magazines through each pistol. I did one at 7 yards and one at 10 yards. Everything was in the bullseye or no further out than the 9-ring.<br />
<br />
I'm all, "<i>you a bad, bad man</i>" thinking it had been so long since I was in the range, and I'm still tearing out the center of the target.<br />
<br />
<b>Well, that glow of self-congratulations didn't last long!</b><br />
<br />
It's difficult - ok, impossible - to replicate the stress one would be under if you were using a weapon in self-defense. The best you can do in an indoor range where you can't move around (because of the other shooters) is to add some timed "games" to your practice routine.<br />
<br />
One I was using goes like this: You set a timer on your phone for 5 seconds. Your 2 x 3 foot target has 4 of the 6 inch "Shoot-N-C" targets - one placed in each of the 4 corners of the larger paper target. If you're not familiar with these targets, they have a black background that shows your hits instantaneously. As an example, here's one of their 12 inch targets I used to zero a rifle.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T_9cyD6FGnM/WOzr1P42iGI/AAAAAAAAB2U/yNEJuSM2bvE0SxF69lw0Sv21pSyI3G0KgCLcB/s1600/target.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T_9cyD6FGnM/WOzr1P42iGI/AAAAAAAAB2U/yNEJuSM2bvE0SxF69lw0Sv21pSyI3G0KgCLcB/s320/target.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
When the bullet tears through the target, it instantly leaves a yellow ring so you can see where you hit.<br />
<br />
I load my magazine with 6 rounds. I number the targets 1 through 4, starting with the upper left hand target, and going clockwise.<br />
<br />
First time through, I've got the gun in my right hand pointed down range, I hit the "go" button on my phone with the left hand, and shoot all 4 targets in numerical order within the 5 seconds. If I miss a target (no yellow ring), I must fire again, hitting the target before moving on to the next - and knowing in my mind I only have 2 extra shots.<br />
<br />
Why do this - limiting myself to only two extra shots? Getting in the habit of "spraying bullets" doesn't stop bad guys, and puts any potential bystanders at risk. I want fast, <b><i><u>accurate</u></i></b> shots.<br />
<br />
After successfully doing the shots in 5 seconds, I drop it to 4 seconds, then to 3 seconds.<br />
<br />
I'll then mix up the order: I'll do a "Z formation" - 1,2,4,3. Then a reverse Z - 3,4,2,1. Then an "X", then a reverse X - you get it.<br />
<br />
OK, so I start off with my Glock 26, and get through the drills in fine fashion. <i>Yeah, baby... bad, bad man....</i><br />
<br />
Next up is the Smith and Wesson. <br />
<br />
<b><i>"Humility has just entered the building!"</i></b><br />
<br />
I take the first shot at target 1 and miss entirely. WTF? I take the second shot and hit low-left on the target. I move to target 2, same thing, miss then low left. Buzzer goes off.<br />
<br />
WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?!?!?<br />
<br />
I do the drill again, with virtually the same results. <i>It must be the gun, right? Did I drop it, and mess with the sights? No, no dropped gun. Barrel must be dirty.</i><br />
<br />
I bring in the target, and put on one of the 12 inch Shoot-N-C targets. I load the magazine with 5 rounds, and shoot them all in rapid fire fashion.<br />
<br />
All 5 are down at the 7 o'clock position - lower left side of the target. And then it dawns on me: I'm over-squeezing the grips when I'm shooting under stress.<br />
<br />
To see this for yourself, grab an empty pistol, or anything that is gun shaped, hold it out in front of you, and squeeze your grip. You'll see the muzzle pull down and to the left.<br />
<br />
<i>Wait, wait, wait! Pump them brakes there, cupcake! How come this didn't happen with the Glock?</i><br />
<br />
Hmmm, good question.<br />
<br />
Well, it's all about the grip... and lack of practice.<br />
<br />
First off, here are the two guns in question - Smith and Wesson on the left, Glock 26 on the right.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xqkWvJH52YA/WO0DmZNvpXI/AAAAAAAAB2k/kd-1rrr8KuIsVqsyAud5UHkf1LS-oFMdgCLcB/s1600/side%2Bby%2Bside.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xqkWvJH52YA/WO0DmZNvpXI/AAAAAAAAB2k/kd-1rrr8KuIsVqsyAud5UHkf1LS-oFMdgCLcB/s320/side%2Bby%2Bside.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Size and weight wise, they're just about the same. It's the differences that count.<br />
<br />
The Smith uses a single stack magazine. Each cartridge sits right on top of the one below it. This gives you fewer rounds per vertical inch (which is a negative), but also gives you thinner grips (which is good or bad, depending on your hand size).<br />
<br />
The Glock uses a double stack magazine. Each cartridge is slightly offset from the one below it. This gives you more rounds per vertical inch (good), but fatter grips (same good or bad as above).<br />
<br />
The Smith can carry 8 rounds in the magazine (or 7 if you use the standard magazine) and the Glock holds 10.<br />
<br />
Here's what they look like side by side - Smith on left, Glock on right -<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yAIhd3q39vo/WO0GGruIoCI/AAAAAAAAB24/Fau13yyBeKcsDggwqo_PhfVIwIl4AKecACLcB/s1600/Grip%2Bthickness.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yAIhd3q39vo/WO0GGruIoCI/AAAAAAAAB24/Fau13yyBeKcsDggwqo_PhfVIwIl4AKecACLcB/s320/Grip%2Bthickness.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
It doesn't look like much of a difference, but in the hand, it's very noticeable.<br />
<br />
There's a BIG difference how the grips fit in my hand. First is the Smith -<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R9iIuQix9fA/WO0HALsU-DI/AAAAAAAAB3E/wEfJ4qlRALoMjsUNf3iKqtX7Jg8N9USJACLcB/s1600/grip%2Bsmith.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R9iIuQix9fA/WO0HALsU-DI/AAAAAAAAB3E/wEfJ4qlRALoMjsUNf3iKqtX7Jg8N9USJACLcB/s320/grip%2Bsmith.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
And the Glock -<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UxbwKz28Uco/WO0HIZ4Fn0I/AAAAAAAAB3I/zia_0ECgrrcvNziecB2_Y-xGh4PM9IpmQCLcB/s1600/grip%2Bglock.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UxbwKz28Uco/WO0HIZ4Fn0I/AAAAAAAAB3I/zia_0ECgrrcvNziecB2_Y-xGh4PM9IpmQCLcB/s320/grip%2Bglock.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Notice that the back of the Smith grip nearly fills my entire palm, and the Glock stops at my "life line" (interesting.....). At the front of the grips, my fingers fit well with both guns (it looks like my pinky is off of the Glock, but it is being held by the grip extension).<br />
<br />
At this point, it seems as though the Smith should be giving me better control than the Glock, but the exact opposite is what's happening in the real world.<br />
<br />
I think these pictures explain it. Natural placement of my trigger finger on the trigger. You want the center of the pad at the tip of the finger to be centered on the trigger. First the Smith -<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tw0Tp2WtYvM/WO0PsrMDSdI/AAAAAAAAB30/EBEMiRd_IKgFv0-CK7W68n_nr8ETohMGQCLcB/s1600/top%2Bsmith.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tw0Tp2WtYvM/WO0PsrMDSdI/AAAAAAAAB30/EBEMiRd_IKgFv0-CK7W68n_nr8ETohMGQCLcB/s320/top%2Bsmith.jpeg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
And the Glock -<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gjcxHy35n3M/WO0PxuJXVoI/AAAAAAAAB34/8KkfH4siObsh4sVEPkaGKm9vSrZ3e8gKwCLcB/s1600/top%2Bglock.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gjcxHy35n3M/WO0PxuJXVoI/AAAAAAAAB34/8KkfH4siObsh4sVEPkaGKm9vSrZ3e8gKwCLcB/s320/top%2Bglock.jpeg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
First, compare the angle of the middle knuckle on each hand. The Smith has a sharper angle - more distance between the inner finger surface and the side of the pistol - than the flatter angle of the Glock.<br />
<br />
Then notice the angle of the knuckle at the end of the trigger finger. The Smith is bent inwards, where with the Glock, the finger tip is flat.<br />
<br />
So, aside from the better "fit and finish" of the Glock to my hand, I train like crazy with the Glock. As this "stress test" showed, I must have NEVER done any rapid shooting with the Smith. Just lobbing slow and easy shots down range.<br />
<br />
This seriously pisses me off at myself. I have been semi-regularly concealed carrying the Smith for the past few months ASSUMING I was proficient and accurate with it. We all know about assumptions...<br />
<br />
<b><u>Accept The Challenge</u></b><br />
<br />
Get thee to the range, and do some stressed out shooting. The drills above are even better if you do them with a buddy where he/she randomly calls out the numbers rapidly after each shot. You're getting both the stress of timed shooting AND competition with another person ('cause you KNOW you want to win!).<br />
<br />
Obviously, you can do even more life-like exercises if you're at a range that allows holster draws (most indoor ranges frown on such things), or if you go out into public lands and set up IDPA-like drills.<br />
<br />
More practice is more better!<br />
---<br />
<br />
Oh, and keep the targets small - no larger than 6 inches for pistols. And keep the distances similar to "gun fight" distances - no more than 10 yards or so.<br />
<br />
Lastly, if you're setting up a scenario, be sure that as you're moving from shot to shot, try and incorporate moving away from your targets, not towards them. If you're getting closer to the bad guys, you're making yourself easier to hit. No bueno.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-83599702187141327592017-04-03T18:05:00.000-07:002017-04-03T18:12:45.490-07:00Apples, Rabbits and Cinder BlocksWe've been having some decent weather, so the outdoor jobs are making it into the queue.<br />
<br />
First, though, my last post had to do with this illegal (in my eyes) bill that had been set forth by a socialist Nevada state senator. She wanted to make the entire state a Sanctuary State.<br />
<br />
I wrote the rotten piece of flotsam a letter. Apparently, I wasn't alone.<br />
<br />
Using all of the expected ass-covering language, her bill was withdrawn from consideration. F**ckin' A, the good guys won one!<br />
<br />
Just like the Terminator, though, I'm sure she'll, "be back". Me too.<br />
---<br />
<br />
The current projects:<br />
<br />
In mid-March (a little late) I pruned one of our two apple trees. The previous owners of the property hadn't done squat with them for years and years (this is a recurring theme), and the trees produced shitty little apples. I pruned a good quarter of the growth on the bigger of the two trees to open it up for sunlight, and to get bigger apples.<br />
<br />
The smaller of the two was left as-is. It's over-grown even worse than the other tree, but the fallen apples are like a drug to the cotton tail and jack rabbits on our property. The little guys gotta eat, so they'll get the dropped apples from this one.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4dyEtdDQk5w/WOLlfaop8UI/AAAAAAAAB1I/eAZN7Eh8c1Ik7nUABnSKYEc63zo4r8hwgCLcB/s1600/yard%2Brabbit.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4dyEtdDQk5w/WOLlfaop8UI/AAAAAAAAB1I/eAZN7Eh8c1Ik7nUABnSKYEc63zo4r8hwgCLcB/s320/yard%2Brabbit.jpeg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of our many yard jack rabbits, scratching himself like a dog</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
I think I previously bitched about the tumble weeds when we moved here last July. The previous owner hadn't sprayed the property, and we had over a half acre of tumble weeds to deal with! I was not happy. Had to rent a Bobcat to scrape those bastards up, and burn them.<br />
<br />
The guy told me to contact the county in February, and they'd come out and spray for $300. Money I'll gladly spend.<br />
<br />
Well, February rolled around and we were covered with snow or it was raining most of the month. After things dried out, I called the county, and they were all booked up!<br />
<br />
I cursed.... just a little.<br />
<br />
Well, I'm not going through that crap again, so I've started doing the spraying myself. Three gallons at a time with a hand sprayer. I knocked out 6 gallons worth today, which took care of perhaps 20% of the half acre. I'll hit it each morning we don't have any wind for a couple of hours until it's done.<br />
---<br />
<br />
The old owner - God bless his soul - fancied himself a wood worker. Yeah, not so much. Not even the basic stuff.<br />
<br />
He put up a pair of doors that enclose an 8 foot opening in the woodshop. Well, the doors were not up to snuff. OK, they sucked.<br />
<br />
And now they're falling apart.<br />
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As you can see, the bottom of the door rests directly on the cement floor of the shop. When it rains and snows, the prevailing winds blow right at these doors. Rain/melted snow hit the bottom of the door, and wick up like a mo fo - as you can see from the staining.<br />
<br />
Everything rotted, and the hinge side of the door 2x4 has rotted and split.<br />
<br />
Oh, and he did't do any (decent) cross bracing to stop the latch side of the door from sagging.<br />
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<br />
Oh, and he used shitty, under-sized hinges, which are coming apart.<br />
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<br />
Each door is approximately 4 foot by 8 foot. I've got the wood and the hinges, just need to pick up the skin for the exterior. It will likely be pieces of weather-proof siding - not quite sure yet.<br />
---<br />
<br />
A fun project I'm working on is a desk for my office. I'm making a trestle table/rustic farmhouse table.<br />
<br />
I've got the glue-ups done for the two halves (3 boards each). I'll be gluing them together later today.<br />
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<br />
I milled the rough 1x6 boards to 5 inches wide, then used biscuits to join the individual boards together.<br />
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<br />
When I'm done with the desk, I'll do a post on the whole building process.<br />
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<br />
The last project in the works is for 4 raised garden beds. I had 4200 pounds of cinder blocks delivered today.<br />
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Over the next couple of weeks, I'll be laying out the beds and their exact locations, then my two sons will be up after that to help the old man build them.<br />
<br />
They will be 4 foot by 8 foot by 16 inches high. Bastards will last forever.<br />
<br />
Here's an example of ,"with age come wisdom": So, these 4 beds will take 150 cinder blocks. My first inclination was to take my 3/4 ton truck for a 45 minute trip up to Carson City, buy the blocks and do 2 over-weight runs, or 3 proper-weight runs to get them home.<br />
<br />
It dawns on me that this means I will have to lift every single one of those blocks four times - once off the the store floor onto the cart, once into the truck, once out of the truck, and once putting it into place. Rinse and repeat.<br />
<br />
I'm bitching and moaning about it, and my wife asks, "Don't they deliver"? I check it out, and OH HELL YES they deliver. $79!<br />
<br />
I couldn't spend that money fast enough. I've got an 8 foot gate into the area where the beds will reside, and the guy dropped them off 30 feet from their final destination. He got a nice tip for saving my back and sanity.<br />
<br />
Schwing! See?! There was a benefit to marrying an older woman! (I know, I'm now a dead man...)<br />
---<br />
<br />
And before someone points it out, yes, I have already designed my, "keep the hell away from my garden, you wascally wabbits" barrier system for the beds. I'll share some pix after it's up and running.<br />
<br />
That's all I got. I'm running around like a chicken with it's head cut off (note to self: start redesign process for existing chicken coop....). Updates and some political stuff in the works.....<br />
<br />
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<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-68532312614243279812017-03-15T19:10:00.000-07:002017-03-15T19:13:33.049-07:00I Made A Promise, And I'm Going To Keep ItLeaving California for Nevada was not easy. I was born in Oakland, and lived in the general SF Bay Area my entire life - up until last July.<br />
<br />
I made a promise to myself that I would do everything in my power to stop Nevada from becoming Californicated - becoming a socialist state. I was too busy with work and raising a family - or so I convinced myself - to get involved.<br />
<br />
That complacence bit me hard in the ass when I opened my bullion store in 2010. The burden of the truly Deep State is suffocating. As a consumer, you don't see it quite as vividly, because your cost of living just goes up a bit here and there. As a business owner, I get a butt load of bills each year for shit I can't even begin to list. Most have a comma in them.<br />
<br />
No more.<br />
<br />
This means I will give money to politicians and organizations with libertarian/conservative views and track records. I will attend local political meetings when I see agenda items that support a welfare state. And I'll write a shit-ton of letters.<br />
<br />
For those of you who aren't aware of it, Clark County (Las Vegas) is California-East. It's a shit hole of liberalism. Most of the rest of Nevada is Red State (although Reno is getting more and more Blue State).<br />
<br />
Our state legislators are in session now. They only get together every other year for 120 days to pass all of the laws until the next get together. Only the governor or a vote by 75% of both state houses can call a "special session" for emergencies and the like.<br />
<br />
Well, some soft-headed state senator from.... guess from where?... Las Vegas, has just put through a proposed bill to make Nevada a Sanctuary City.<br />
<br />
Fuck that shit.<br />
<br />
Here's my letter to her, and to my state senator and assemblyman:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14px;">Dear Senator Cancela,</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
<br />
No On SB 223</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
I recently moved from California to Nevada - Gardnerville to be specific (which is why I've cc'd Senator Settelmeyer and Assemblyman Wheeler). I was born and raised (and raised a family) in what I genuinely believed was the best state in the nation - both geographically and (as importantly) economically. Over the past two or 3 decades, I saw the state start to rot from the inside. It is a cancer. Your socialist bill - dressed up as humanitarian outreach - will help to further point Nevada towards the economic cliff upon which California finds itself perched.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
The short-term federal money Nevada would lose is a drop in the bucket when compared to the long-term rot and decay bills like yours would cast upon our state. It's the, "death by a thousand cuts" scenario - a little here, a little there and suddenly, you're economically supporting anyone who can steam a mirror. Not surprisingly, when you offer to "look the other way", or to give "free stuff" to people, they take you up on it!</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
Care to disagree? I suggest you take a trip to San Francisco or Los Angeles or any major California city, to see how this socialist "Welcome Mat" burdens the state to the point of fiscal insolvency. Or perhaps take a trip through California's Central Valley - try Fresno or Stockton. The shanty towns and encampments - full of the illegal aliens you want to shield - are a disgrace.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
But there's no such thing as, "free stuff". California taxes are obscene, along with the license fees, carbon-taxes, add-ons and all of the other ways the state has to figure out how to keep the cash flowing. Businesses are tripping over each other to flee the state. Many are coming to Nevada (we were just voted "the best" by surpassing Texas). For the 12th straight year, California was voted "The Least Business Friendly" state in the nation. The overwhelming reason for this is because of the cost of socialist, "humanitarian outreach" bills such as yours.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
Why would you want to challenge them for that dubious title?</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
Lastly, you swore an oath to uphold the laws of the United States and the State of Nevada. The presence of illegal aliens here in Nevada is, in and of itself, against the law. As a reminder:</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
<i> I, ........................., do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support, protect and defend the Constitution and Government of the United States, and the Constitution and government of the State of Nevada, against all enemies, whether domestic or foreign, and that I will bear true faith, allegiance and loyalty to the same, any ordinance, resolution or law of any state notwithstanding, and that I will well and faithfully perform all the duties of the office of ................, on which I am about to enter; (if an oath) so help me God; (if an affirmation) under the pains and penalties of perjury.</i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
<br />
If you don't like the federal laws, work to change them. Until then, don't propose state laws that would force state and local law enforcement to ignore them.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
Senator, keep your word. You swore an oath you would do so. Withdraw your bill from consideration.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;">
Thank you,</blockquote>
<div>
I'm not holding my breath for a response from the Commissarina, but I'll update you if I do get one...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
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<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
BTW, I started the new business process in Nevada. I had a fully registered and legal entity in ..... 45 minutes! Serious as a heart attack. Did it all online. Another 30 minutes at the county clerk's office for the fictitious business name filing, and I was up and running. I can now do business anywhere in Nevada - you don't need a separate biz license for each county like you do in Cali.</div>
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<div>
To put this in perspective, this process took well over a week's worth of time <u>each time</u> I did it in the past in California.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Oh, and if California does secede from the nation, I'd like to propose a trade: Nevada will give up Clark County in exchange for the State Of Jefferson in Northern California (look it up).</div>
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<br />
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<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-74563222638382855412017-03-13T13:48:00.000-07:002017-03-14T11:00:02.847-07:00Awesome: 6 Chile Chili con CarneBeen busy as hell on the homestead. Will have some posts on a great homemade lox recipe, and one about a farmer's table/desk I'm building out in the shop.<br />
<br />
But this one is about my World Famous (in my mind) chili recipe. Although today it's a balmy 70 degrees, we just went thru a big cold spell. A cold spell dictates one of two foods for me: homemade soup or chili.<br />
<br />
This really is good, folks.<br />
<br />
Oh, and don't give me any lip about what real chili, or chile, or chilli has in it. This is mine, I call it chili. If you don't like it, buy yourself a can of Dennison's.<br />
<br />
It takes two days - at least - if you're using your home prepped and stored beans. By the way, the dried pintos I used in this recipe were dated 5/17/2008. Yeah, they were nearly 9 years old. They had been vacuum sealed with an oxygen absorber in the pack.<br />
<br />
I added a heaping tablespoon of baking soda (as noted in the recipe) during the overnight soak, and <b>they came out as tender as a Harvard student's psyche</b>. Well, maybe not that fragile...<br />
<br />
<u><i>6 Chile Chili con Carne</i></u><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>This chili has a bunch of heat, but won't blow the back out of your head. Great, deep flavor, with a </i><i>heat that dissipates fairly quickly. No tomatoes were harmed (or used) in this awesome chili.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Ingredients:</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>(Lbs = pounds, C = cups, T = tablespoon, t = teaspoon)</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>2 lbs dry pinto beans</i><br />
<i>2 1/2 lbs raw ground pork or beef</i><br />
<i>1 large yellow onion, finely diced</i><br />
<i>4 C beef bullion</i><br />
<i>1/2 C Chile powder</i><br />
<i>1 T black pepper</i><br />
<i>1 T white pepper</i><br />
<i>1 T chipotle powder (powder, not the peppers)</i><br />
<i>2 T minced garlic</i><br />
<i>1 T cumin powder</i><br />
<i>1 T oregano</i><br />
<i>2 T kosher salt</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>1 t red pepper flakes</i><br />
<i>1 t cayanne pepper</i><br />
<i>1 t cinnamon powder</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>Preparation:</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>1. Rinse the dry beans in cold water, and pick out any stones or other garbage. Place the beans in a </i><i>pot or bowl, and cover with at least 2 inches of water. Let them soak over night. If the beans are </i><i>old, add a heaping tablespoon of baking soda to the water to help them rehydrate more easily. Supposed to help with farts, too.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>2. The next day, take your soaked beans, put them in a large soup pot, and cover them with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer on medium heat until they are soft, but still </i><i>intact - about 2 or 3 hours (it takes mine 3 hours since I'm at 5000 feet elevation). Add water as </i><i>necessary and stir (about every 30 mins). Don't burn your damned beans! After they're cooked, transfer the beans and the juice to another bowl. Don't you DARE throw out the juice!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
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<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>3. Take your pork or beef, and over medium high heat, brown it in the large soup pot. Do NOT drain the fat. After slightly browned, toss in your diced onions and the minced garlic and continue cooking until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>4. Toss in all of the rest of the ingredients - beans, bullion, spices - everything. Bring this to a boil. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
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<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>5. Reduce to a simmer at medium heat, and cook uncovered for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until it thickens </i><i>considerably. Check it regularly and give it a stir so it's not burning in your cheap-ass pots.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
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<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>6. Now here's the hard part: Let it cool off to as close to room temperature as you can get it. Hell, </i><i>throw it in the fridge and eat it the next day. You'll be tempted to eat it right away, but hold off </i><i>for as long as you can. It will be worth the wait. When ready to eat, reheat it and serve with a pile </i><i>of grated cheese, some onions and a dollop or two of sour cream. I like mine with either flour </i><i>tortillas or saltine crackers... or both.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OLNaFNH3qPU/WMcDsC37isI/AAAAAAAAB04/laFSRop5hv82ghVV4opMzcP476KMyh8RwCLcB/s1600/20170301_194037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OLNaFNH3qPU/WMcDsC37isI/AAAAAAAAB04/laFSRop5hv82ghVV4opMzcP476KMyh8RwCLcB/s400/20170301_194037.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maybe a bit more than the 1 cup serving size....</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><br /></i>
<i>Note: If you're going to use pre-cooked canned beans, you'll need about 2 1/2 quarts of beans and </i><i>juice. I've got no idea how many cans of what size you'll need. Do the math yourself.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Yield: 16 servings of 1 cup</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Well, if you didn't screw up these simple directions, you'll end up with about a gallon of chili, give </i><i>or take a couple of cups depending on how hot your stove cooks.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Home canning: If I were to home can this, I'd only add 2 cups of the bullion, bring it to a boil, and </i><i>pressure can it. At sea level to 1000 feet of elevation, 75 minutes at 10 lbs weight for pints. Adjust </i><i>per the instructions with your canner for higher elevations.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Since the beans are already fully cooked, you're not going to lose much of the liquid getting sucked up into the beans. Just make sure what goes into your jars has enough fluid so that the center of the jars gets fully cooked. </i><br />
<br />
----<br />
<br />
I can attest that this is great over big ol' hot dogs with a healthy sampling of fresh chopped onions.<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
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<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-45528063219328818252017-02-19T15:06:00.000-08:002017-02-19T15:24:23.924-08:00Dried Teats and Side HustlesI was in my store a couple of days ago, and this man and woman with British accents come in. The guy's accent was so thick, the employee I was working with couldn't understand him!<br />
<br />
So, he wants to know if we've got any foreign currency or foreign coins for sale. Sure do.<br />
<br />
I give him the box of currency, and as he's going through it, we start up a conversation. It seems that this fellow - probably in his mid 60's - has an Australian eBay account. He and his wife travel around the world, picking up things he can sell on his site. On this trip, they're going to be in The States for 5 weeks.<br />
<br />
And he writes his whole trip off as a business expense.<br />
<br />
He's been doing this his entire adult life, (<i>"I was never cut out for a proper job"</i>). He cobbles together a project, makes some bucks, and does it again. A little bit of this, and a little bit of that. <br />
<br />
We talked about the importance of "buying right" - you make your money on the purchase of the goods, not when you sell them.<br />
<br />
When we buy something we will be selling on eBay, for instance, we always buy them at at least 30% below the price we believe the item will sell. That 30% covers our roughly 10% cost of sale between eBay fees and Paypal fees, and a 20% profit.<br />
<br />
When we buy something to sell in the store, it will depend on how long we think it will take to sell. Gold and silver bullion turn over quickly, so our margins are smaller. Jewelry, graded coins or collectibles can take months to sell, so the margins are much higher.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
I'm getting on my high horse again to implore folks to work on establishing Multiple Streams Of Income. I honestly can't put my finger on it, but it seems like there's a, "disturbance in the force" and things are going to slide sideways.<br />
<br />
Maybe it's this "protesting" crap (rioting, actually). Is it going to turn into some serious shit, or will it pass? Maybe it's the tenor of the conversations I have with customers that come to the store. The majority are Trump supporters, or at least <u>not</u> Trump haters, and their buying decisions are about how much precious metals to buy vs ammo.<br />
<br />
Now, I don't want to hear any whining. <i>But, but, but, CHIEF, I just don't have the time/money/inclination to do this!!</i><br />
<br />
Well then, I hope you like living off of the dwindling government teat. Just remember, there are a whole lot of people in front of you - the professional "lifer" teat suckers - who know how to get their squirt of milk before you.<br />
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<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/06/self-made-millionaire-here-are-3-things-rich-people-do-differently.html" target="_blank">Think like a rich guy</a>. You don't have to make a zillion dollars, but the lessons of the rich are awesome studies for all of us.<br />
<br />
A great quote from the article -<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>You can't create the future you deserve while obsessed with the past you resent. Super wealthy people don't waste time focused on the past; they invest time, energy and effort in producing products and services that people want and need.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>They don't contribute to the problems of society. They solve problems for society.</i></blockquote>
YOU are responsible for your lot in life. No one else. Tag, you're it.<br />
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<br />
<br />
See Rule #2 in particular.<br />
<br />
So as not to leave you hanging for ideas, The Art of Manliness website had a great article titled, "<i><a href="http://www.artofmanliness.com/2012/08/15/be-your-own-boss-37-side-hustle-ideas/" target="_blank">Be Your Own Boss: 37 Side Hustle Ideas</a></i>". I guess, "Side Hustles" is what the cool kids call Multiple Streams of Income,<br />
<br />
The article includes a link to a two-part guide on some of the ways for getting off of your ass and doing something about it.<br />
<br />
I'll also recommend a documentary movie on Netflix titled, "<b>Capital C</b>" (<a href="https://youtu.be/_9Nuk1Ym_n0" target="_blank">YouTube trailer</a>). It's about crowdfunding - coming up with an idea or product, and getting people to pre-pay or fund your product or service. What a great way to do real-life market research for a product (HINT HINT). If you don't get funding, you're only out the time and money it took to set up the crowdfunding page and video. You will know in a relatively short period of time if there's an actual market for your product.<br />
<br />
Just do something. How would you cope if your primary source of income - from a job, government pension, IRA or whatever - were to go away? Cover your bases and keep a couple of lines in the water. You never know what you might catch.<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-47588660251295472512017-01-30T11:04:00.001-08:002017-01-30T11:10:33.522-08:00Banning ALL Muslims? Hmmm....I had hoped to post an article on the trials and tribulations of our first homestead winter with frozen ground, frozen pipes, my frozen ass and other new experiences of living in 4-season land. Instead, I'll regale you with cutting edge journalistic inquiry on the current, "All Muslims Are Banned" hyperventilation epidemic being experienced by our domestic snowflakes.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
This near-impossible-to-locate data took a mind numbing tool bag of investigative techniques to unearth.<br />
<br />
I Googled it, and it took (literally) 22 minutes to compile. Apparently, <a href="http://ask.metafilter.com/207313/When-did-the-New-York-Times-become-known-as-The-Gray-Lady" target="_blank">The Old Gray Lady</a> was taking a nap, so I jumped in to help the elderly.<br />
<br />
So, the Snowflake meme on this is that the evil (Not My) President Trump is banning all Muslims from entering the country. Ehhh, not so much.<br />
<br />
Here comes that hard hitting investigative stuff, cupcake:<br />
<br />
There are <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_by_country" target="_blank">1.703 BILLION Muslims</a> in the world. The <b>seven countries</b> involved with this TEMPORARY BAN, account for 205.3 MILLION of those Muslims (<b>Libya, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Yemen, Somalia</b>). If you'll note, the latter number is much, MUCH smaller than the former number.<br />
<br />
In fact, it's equal to a little over 12% of all Muslims in the world. Now, my dear cupcake, while you were in elementary school, I know your mom was doing your math homework for you so you could get your Participation Trophy, but seriously, even someone as indoctrinated in socialist ideology as you must know that twelve percent is not 100%.<br />
<br />
For you Snowflakes that took advanced math, it's about 1/8th of the total. That means that 7/8th aren't included. It's A SMALL FRACTION of the total. Get it? <br />
<br />
I didn't think so.<br />
<br />
But wait, there's more!<br />
<br />
The United States only has 3 countries on its list of <a href="https://www.state.gov/j/ct/list/c14151.htm" target="_blank">State Sponsors of Terrorism</a>. I know this is going to melt you down to a mushy little puddle, but <b>all three of them are also on President Trump's list</b>, too! Shocking, right?!<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FUftoUz1Bzo/WI-B1eBRVoI/AAAAAAAABzU/zz1YuyoI3fEuJLy2fA7M-1e-HZPaqX_MQCLcB/s1600/waaaaaaa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FUftoUz1Bzo/WI-B1eBRVoI/AAAAAAAABzU/zz1YuyoI3fEuJLy2fA7M-1e-HZPaqX_MQCLcB/s400/waaaaaaa.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Yeah, those wonderful, American lovin' folks from <b>Iran, Sudan and Syria</b> make the cut.<br />
<br />
Hold on to <a href="https://www.depend.com/?WT.mc_id=DEP_Paid-Search_Gen15_EN-US_DEP-G&ReferralCode=DEP-GENENU-PA-ORG-201542&WT.srch=1" target="_blank">your Depends</a> for a second, 'cause I still had about 30 seconds left to find a Bad Guy list that the other 4 banned countries were on. Damn if I didn't find it, too.<br />
<br />
The State Department has a page that gives you lists of counties from around the world where you shouldn't go. Unless you don't like your head attached to your body in its current configuration.<br />
<br />
Its called the <a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/alertswarnings.html" target="_blank">Alerts & Warnings</a> list. With the exception of one of the remaining 4 countries (Libya), all of these countries were already on the list BEFORE President Trump took office.<br />
<br />
That Obama fella was such a hater, right?<br />
<br />
Oh, and with regards to Libya (home to Benghazi and other shit holes), this was updated to reinforce to American citizens that are still there, TO GET THE HELL OUT.<br />
<br />
Now, all of you liberals, socialists and Hollywood elites (redundant, I know...) must feel terrible that Mean Old Not My President Trump and his State Department cronies are hurting the tourist travel to these fine destinations. Princess Cruise lines must be in a tizzy not being able to drop by Tripoli on their tour of the Mediterranean. You know, their always-sold-out Rome to Tripoli to Benghazi loop? Ah, the memories.....<br />
<br />
Anyways, you can help these poor people.<br />
<br />
Because of your principled stance on this injustice, you should use this list as a travel planning guide. Yep, instead of going to the south of France, go to Mogadishu in southern Somalia. Think of the good times you and the kids can have!<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
Look at that! They even have a fireworks display! Ahh, magical times for the whole family....<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
Hey Snowflakes, wake the hell up. Like it or not, there are people in all of those countries that would love to chop off your head, and spit down the hole. The only thing that would be better for them, would be if they could do it <b>in the mall where you get your lattes</b>.<br />
<br />
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's all the fault of the US government. Let's say you're right. Trump just became our president a scant 10 days ago, so he didn't have anything to do with it.<br />
<br />
All he's trying to do is make sure your morning caffeine fix isn't interrupted and you can scoot back to mom's basement, a flag burning rally, or your DNC meeting.<br />
<br />
Try using some of those critical thinking skills you were supposed to be developing while in college. You know, stop gulping the drivel served up by the complicit media, and actually run a Google search for yourself.<br />
<br />
Question everything - positive and negative - and you may see that, as in this case, slowing down the migration of folks with a high likelihood of ruining your day, isn't such a bad idea.<br />
<br />
<br />
---<br />
<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2017 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-71221307854282331422016-12-30T13:52:00.000-08:002016-12-30T13:52:09.488-08:00Gold and Silver - Buy or Sell?If you watch gold spot prices, for most of 2016 - February to October - they were in a fairly tight band that ran between $1250 to $1350 per ounce. Silver had a similar tight range as well.<br />
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<br />
<br />
Then in October, all hell broke loose. Prices took a dump, then made a feeble comeback, and have now been all down. This final quarter of the year has seen a drop in the neighborhood of $200 per ounce (it's sitting at $1151 as I push these keys).<br />
<br />
For the year, things aren't too bad. For other time frames, ouch! As of today:<br />
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<br />
So, is it time to abandon gold, and jump into the hot stock market? Maybe into some foreign exchange EFTs as there is a VERY realistic chance that interest rates are going to jump up. Higher rates equals a stronger dollar.<br />
<br />
Are ya in or out? I can tell you, that business at our precious metals (PM) store has been brisk on the bullion side - both buying and selling! Half think precious metals have peaked, and they want out. The other half think we've hit bottom, and are squirreling away PMs like, well, squirrels.<br />
<br />
JUST SO WE'RE CLEAR, I'M NOT AN INVESTMENT COUNSELOR. WHAT FOLLOWS IS WHAT I'M DOING, AND WHY I'M DOING IT. I MAY BE WRONG, I MAY BE RIGHT. YOU NEED TO DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH.<br />
<br />
I don't buy PMs as an investment, per se. I buy them as a hedge against a whole bunch of things - to maintain and protect my ability to purchase things - food, energy, shelter - in the future.<br />
<br />
This is important to understand: The price of gold and silver is basically irrelevant to me. I understand that if gold and silver soar to new heights, my cost of living is likely doing the same - soaring! The converse is true as well.<br />
<br />
I believe that in the short-term future (next couple of years at least), the price of PMs is going to decline. I believe that the Federal Reserve Bank will indeed raise interest rates multiple times next year, making the dollar stronger.<br />
<br />
I believe that Trump will actually do SOME of what he promised during the campaign, and we'll get more jobs created, the economy will come out of its coma, and that too, will make the dollar stronger.<br />
<br />
Despite the dollar (Federal Reserve Notes) being a flaming piece of crap (being able to buy 6 cents worth of what it could buy when it was introduced in 1913) , when compared to most other world currencies, <b>it has big, brass balls.</b> It's absolutely crushing other currencies right now.<br />
<br />
When the dollar gets stronger, PMs get weaker.<br />
<br />
So, despite this belief that PM prices will be declining, every single month, I buy some gold and/or silver. <b>I only spend money that has no short- or medium-term obligations. My bills are all paid, I have a nice emergency cushion, and my income earning investments are funded.</b><br />
<br />
Here are 5 reasons I keep buying precious metals.<br />
<br />
<u><b>1. Maintaining Purchasing Power</b></u><br />
<br />
I use this example when explaining this concept to new customers to our store:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>When I was a kid in 1964, for some reason, I have this memory of being at a Phillips 66 gas station buying gas with my mom, and gas being $0.26 per gallon. Let's call it a quarter a gallon.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Back then, the quarters were made of 90% silver and 10% other metals. One silver quarter has about 0.18 of a troy ounce of pure silver in it.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Doing the math, with spot silver today at roughly $16 per ounce: $16 x 0.18 = $2.88, OR ABOUT THE COST OF A GALLON OF GAS TODAY! The silver maintained its purchasing power.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>So, a dollar in silver quarters would get you about 4 gallons of gas. If you had kept a paper dollar bill from 1964, today you could get about 0.4 gallons of gas. The fiat paper currency dollar has lost its purchasing power.</i></blockquote>
Ya get it? I didn't "make money" by holding the quarter, I simply maintained my purchasing power. Precious metals are money. <i><b>Fiat currencies and bank accounts are representations of money that can be manipulated or confiscated by governments.</b></i><br />
<br />
<br />
<u><b>2. Government Demonetization</b></u> <br />
<br />
You heard what India did at the beginning of November, right? Their two largest bills were "demonetized" - <b>made worthless</b> - over night. Bam!, the paper money wasn't worth squat. You had to go into a bank and swap them out for the new and improved versions.<br />
<br />
The problem - <i>and the plan</i> - was, they didn't have enough of the new bills available for the swap, so you had to put the money into an account, and get your cash at a later date.<br />
<br />
The public reason for the demonetization was the usual bullshit: terrorism and tax evasion. Well, the soft-heads in the government didn't patch up all of the loopholes, <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/all-pain-no-gain-indias-failed-demonetization-is-a-lesson-to-all" target="_blank">and the effect on terrorism and tax evasion was precisely ZERO! </a><br />
<br />
People sold their bills at a discount to money changers. The money changers shipped massive quantities of the bills to some remote tribes or to farmers - both of which are tax exempt - and the old bills were swapped without any consequence at all, other than screwing the guy on the street for the vig he had to pay to the money changers. The people were willing to take a hit in the form of a discount to the money changers instead of paying tax to the government. I love it!<br />
<br />
This is a perfect example of why you shouldn't have "all of your eggs in one basket". You never know what will have value in the future. I keep "money" in gold and silver, cash, other hard assets, businesses and in trade/barter goods, as well as in retirement plans, savings plans and bank accounts. If one or more are devalued or confiscated or made illegal, I'm not flat on my ass broke. I may be hurting for a while until I figure things out, but I won't be broke.<br />
<br />
Along the same lines, I've also got skills, and am continually learning more. As an example, I can turn damned near any sugar source into an alcoholic beverage that you'd enjoy consuming. <br />
<br />
You may be saying, "<i>BFD, Chief! I can head to The Walmart and get all of the hooch I want!</i>". Yeah, you can do that now. But if we were in a situation like they're going through in Venezuela - where the government is so broke it can't release foreign reserve currency so that the largest brewer in the country can make beer, and the brewery closes down! <i>No mas cerveza, amigo mio</i>! How valuable would beer, wine or hooch be in that circumstance?<br />
<br />
I'm now in the process of learning how to grow food on a larger scale. This coming season, I'll be starting with 3 raised beds, all 8x4 foot, expanding to 6 beds the following season if things go as planned. I'll also be putting in a small orchard with fruit trees that thrive here in northern Nevada.<br />
<br />
<u><b>3. Insolvent Retirement Accounts</b></u><br />
<br />
This is a biggee. My wife and I have Social Security accounts, private retirement accounts and 401(k) accounts. Many of you have similar account, including public pensions for government workers.<br />
<br />
Every (and I mean <u><i><b>every</b></i></u>) government-run retirement system in this country is underfunded. Many (most?) are flat broke. Social Security, military pensions, police and fire pension programs, federal, state and local government worker pensions systems simply do not have the cash or assets to pay their retirees what they were promised.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/screwed-over-retirees-dallas-suspends-withdrawals-from-insolvent-pension-system_12092016#" target="_blank">Some of the retirees see the writing on the wall, and are trying to cash out by taking a discounted lump sum payment, and they're being rejected</a>. Why? The plans don't have the cash. <br />
<br />
I would GLADLY take a lump sum check from Uncle Sam for the amount of money that was forcibly taken from me for SSI - <i>no interest, just the principle</i> - and I would forgo any and all future payments. I think many Americans would do the same, because I don't believe I'll ever get back what I put into it, let alone the lost interest I would have accrued on my own.<br />
<br />
In fact, I believe in my lifetime, the Social Security Administration will institute some sort of "means testing" whereby they look at my assets and other retirement/savings plans, and determine how much is "fair" for me to live on.<br />
<br />
So I make my pile of <b>visible assets</b> as small as possible. PMs are one of many ways to do this.<br />
<br />
<u><b>4. I Don't Trust Banks </b></u><br />
<br />
Having been in the banking industry for 31 years - going from the lowest paid clerk to Executive Vice President - I know that banks have turned into de facto agents for the state and federal governments. Banks are no longer there to protect your money and privacy. They are there to do as the federal government tells them.<br />
<br />
That is not hyperbole. There is nothing you can do with your account that can't (or isn't) reported to a government agency. The government granted itself these powers under the assumption that everyone is a criminal or terrorist. If the banks disclose to you that they've disclosed your (formerly) private transactions to the government, they have broken federal law... and they're not going to break federal law for little ol' you.<br />
<br />
This should make you sick to your stomach. You are presumed guilty of .... whatever they wish, but you do nothing about it. Their campaign of, "Only criminals and terrorists have anything to hide from the government," propaganda program has been a success. <br />
<br />
As equally important, they are getting very lazy with the security of your accounts. I don't know if they just don't care, or if they've got so many resources devoted to reporting you to the various agencies, they don't have money left for security.<br />
<br />
The SWIFT system - think of it as wire transfers between banks in different countries - <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-cyber-swift-exclusive-idUSKBN1412NT" target="_blank">has been cracked open like a papier mache piggy bank on numerous occasions in recent months</a>. The hackers hack a small foreign bank, and use its credentials to get into SWIFT, where the real money lies.<br />
<br />
They are successful stealing money 20% of the time!<br />
<br />
A US bank getting hit wouldn't directly affect you, as your accounts are covered by the FDIC. Oh wait... Unless..... the regulators forced a failed bank to pull the "bail in" trigger, and they consider you an unsecured creditor of your bank (which is what you really are), and instead of giving you your money back, they issue you stock in the failed bank.<br />
<br />
Try buying bacon with that.<br />
<br />
<br />
<u><b>5. An Economic Hit or Collapse Is Coming</b></u><br />
<br />
I seriously have no idea when. Next month, next year, next decade. I don't know. I just know that you can't build government programs on borrowings forever. Eventually, the bills (as in Treasury Bills and notes) must be paid.<br />
<br />
The federal government will continue to pay SSI, and pensions, and welfare and all of the other bullshit by either borrowing more money or printing more of it up for as long as it can. Eventually, they won't be able to borrow any longer, <a href="http://news.coinupdate.com/venezuela-high-value-inflationary-denominations-replace-previous-series-of-banknotes/" target="_blank">or the hyper-creation of dollars will make them worthless</a>.<br />
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I believe that paper currency will go away, maybe within the next 5 to 10 years. To me, THAT will be the sign that the serious shit is about to hit the fan. Requiring every single transaction to be recorded electronically (debit card, credit card, Apple Pay, Paypal, etc.) will give government the ability to manage every aspect of your life.<br />
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Every deposit into your account will have a known source. If it's not an approved source, they'll just take it until you can prove you paid the taxes before you received it. You know, like asset forfeiture works right now, only without the happy face. <br />
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Every use will be monitored. <i>"Mr. Chief Instructor, your expenditures on food are significantly below those of your peer group in your region. Why is that? You're not growing your own food without reporting it, are you? An audit will be conducted and until these allegations have been disproved, there will be a reduction in your monthly food stipend from Socialist Security. We'll be in touch. Have a collectivist day!"</i><br />
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In these cases - where the PMs would be illegal - they would be kept buried for my kids or grandkids in the future - like what happened after the 1933 gold grab. Eventually, sanity would return, the socialist/collectivist machine dismantled, and life might return to normal.<br />
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Or they could be used as fishing weights. Ya never know.....<br />
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<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2016 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-66712982874433925632016-11-30T15:20:00.000-08:002016-11-30T15:50:27.068-08:00Of Economics And CharityBeen busy. Sorry. A friend noted how tanned I was getting. Told him I was an unpaid Day Laborer for a bastard of a boss! Will do a couple of posts - shortly, I hope - on our adventures towards self-sufficiency on our new property in Nevada.<br />
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I've been giving a lot of thought to opening a business here in Northern Nevada. My initial scratch-and-sniff market analysis shows that there could be a viable market for what I'm considering.<br />
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And no, it has nothing to do with precious metals or guns. Shocking, right?! No, it's a specialty (kind of) food product. More later if something flies with this.<br />
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Anyways, as I was doing some research on others that have been successful with this type of venture, I ran across an article by Doug Casey. He's a screaming libertarian (my kinda guy) - a self-made millionaire who absolutely HATES government interference in just about anything.<br />
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He was writing about charity, and how in most instances, private charity hurts the recipient. I have long thought this. Like government subsidies and programs, <i style="font-weight: bold;">most private charity</i> <b><i><u>takes</u></i></b><u><i style="font-weight: bold;"> away the initiative</i></u><i style="font-weight: bold;"> of the recipient to better themselves.</i><br />
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Build a food bank that feeds the poor, and you've taken away their initiative to feed themselves.<br />
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Pay for someones college costs based upon their skin color, ethnic origins, sexual preference <b><i>or anything</i></b> <b><i>other than achievement</i></b> (such as scholastic or athletic excellence), and you've taken away their initiative to excel.<br />
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In my book, the only type of charities I even consider are those where some horrible unplanned or unforeseen event occurs. Helping the parents of a kid born with some debilitating disease or condition, would be one example. Things where there is no realistic ability of an individual to afford to pay for their circumstances.<br />
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Along those same lines, I give to injured veterans groups. I'm ashamed of our government, and how it shirks its duty to take care of our vets who come back home, well, destroyed. It's not the vets fault the government signed a contract with each and every one of them, then looked them in the eye and lied.<br />
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Being born poor in America is NOT one of those circumstance. And that means anywhere in America under any economic circumstances <b><i>There is a path out, if you choose to take it.</i></b> If you don't make the right choice, don't expect me to pay for the world of hurt where you find yourself.<br />
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<i>But Chief! Think about the children!</i> No, YOU think about YOUR children, and about what YOU'RE going to do to feed and shelter them.<br />
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And to teach them about self-reliance and personal accomplishment to boot.<br />
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Some day, I'll tell the story of the shit-hole my wife grew up in, and what she did to turn it around. Out of the 8 kids in her family, half made it, half didn't. Two of the latter group are dead. Their standing in life is one-hundred percent because of the choices each individual made while growing up in the exact same circumstances as his or her siblings.<br />
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So, getting back to the Doug Casey article, his point was that most large charitable donation are just for the egos of the givers. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett get to do the cock-strut to show how they're helping a gajillion people live better lives.<br />
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In reality, they're taking away the incentive of those people to better themselves and build pride and self-worth through accomplishment. They're nothing more than a beneficent, elitist socialist leader with a happy face sticker.<br />
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Instead, they should be trumpeting their success so that others will follow their example. Their donation money should instead go towards making their business bigger, and better, so that more and more people can get jobs, learn skills and develop pride for their accomplishments,<br />
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And then it dawned on me that I could do the same, only on a smaller scale (to start!).<br />
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My initial direction in another business was to design it with no employees. Use independent contractors to build whatever I couldn't build myself. This has nothing to do with not liking people. It has everything to do with government regulation. Look at someone the wrong way, or not follow some inane regulation to the "T", and you get sued, you get to pay the "aggrieved" employee some money, and you get to pay a fine to one or more government agencies.<br />
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While this business model will still happen, the idea of a brick-and-mortar business that hires locally may give me the ability to develop another stream of income AND fulfill my desire to give folks the opportunity to develop life skills and a sense of accomplishment at the same time.<br />
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My very first job in high school was washing dishes in an Italian restaurant. I was taught food preps during slow periods, and was a cook within 6 months, but my most important lesson was about getting an education. I worked mostly with grown men in the kitchen. While I'm sure they were making more money per hour than I was, even back in the late 1970's it couldn't have been much to live on. From that first job, I knew I wanted more, and that I'd need an education to get that.<br />
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One of the men I worked with as a cook had a criminal record, but was trying to get going in the right direction. My dad (a lieutenant in the Sheriff department) had actually gotten him the job at the restaurant.<br />
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Being able to do something along those lines holds some interest to me. First jobs, new beginnings, career advancement as the business grows.<br />
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We'll see. At first glance, it appears as though Nevada offers significantly fewer hurdles to getting a business up and running. My worry is that since it has to do with food, the state and federal food police could make it economically unfeasible. I hope I'm wrong.<br />
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One of the businesses that is in my market niche (but outside of my local market!), had a version of this posted on their website. Amen, brutha!<br />
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* You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.<br />
* You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.<br />
* You cannot help little men by tearing down big men.<br />
* You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.<br />
* You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.<br />
* You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money.<br />
* You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.<br />
* You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.<br />
* You cannot build character and courage by destroying men's initiative and independence.<br />
<b>* You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they can and should do for themselves.</b><br />
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<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2016 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-28761026001290163552016-10-07T14:14:00.000-07:002016-10-07T14:14:27.689-07:00Don't Kalifornicate Nevada - No On Nevada Question 1When I moved to Nevada a couple of months ago, it was for two primary reasons: Lower cost of living/taxes and their guns laws - or lack thereof.<br />
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In both respects, Nevada tends to treat its citizens as adults. Unlike Kalifornia, where every time you want to scratch your ass you need a permit, in general, Nevada lets you go about your life with little interference. In fact, when you do have interaction it is..... wait for it... pleasant. <br />
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To date, whether it be our trip to the DMV, getting property tax information from the county, or figuring out the schedules for igniting our burn pile, state and local government employees have been astonishingly helpful. They truly earn their pay.<br />
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It's been very refreshing.<br />
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Until now.<br />
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Billionaire anti-gun zealot Michael Bloomberg and his group, "<i>Wimpering Women Against Guns</i>", or whatever it's called, were able to get a <a href="https://nvsos.gov/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=3440" target="_blank">background check initiative</a> (pdf) on the upcoming ballot. As usual, they're painting this as a, "common sense" law that will keep guns out of the hands of the bad guys.<br />
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Also as usual, they're full of bullshit. It will do little or nothing to keep felons from getting the guns they want. On the surface, the marketing campaign for Question 1 says that all it wants to do is to close the notorious, "gun show loophole" - the ability of private parties to sell guns without a mandatory background check of the buyer.<br />
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<b>But it goes much deeper.</b> It has the aforementioned background check provision, and another that is getting little to no coverage: Limitations on to whom and when you can lend one of your guns. If you lend your next door neighbor of the past 20 years a rifle to for target practice, you have just committed a gross misdemeanor, punishable up to 1 year in jail. Do it again, <i><b>and it's a felony</b></i>, and you're going away for up to 5 years.<br />
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<b>Or maybe you lend a pistol to your girlfriend who is going on an extended backpacking trip. Or your cousin wants to go duck hunting, and you lend him a shotgun for a weekend. Or you lend your co-worker - who you've known for 5 years - a hunting rifle for his vacation during deer season.</b><br />
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This law presumes citizens have no common sense, and someone in state government needs to start making some decisions for you. Was there a recent rash of bad guys buying guns at gun shows or from private parties, and they're shooting up the joint? <b>Or do bad guys STILL get 99% of their guns illegally - by robbery, from other criminals or via strawman purchases?</b><br />
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Like Kalifornia, BOTH PROVISIONS of this new law would turn honest, decent Nevadans into felons - forfeiting their right to own firearms. <br />
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Here are the FACTS - not the fascist propaganda - about Question 1:<br />
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1. "...the right to keep and bear arms shall NOT BE INFRINGED." It doesn't mention, "except when someone doesn't like guns," or "except when someone may use a gun illegally". The second amendment is a guarantee of a God-given right to self-defense. That is NOT negotiable!<br />
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2. Depending on your source, gun show "crime guns" account for around 1% of bad guy guns. A <a href="http://bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/fuo.pdf" target="_blank">2002 US Department of Justice report put it at 0.7%</a> (pdf). A 2006 report, also by the US Department of Justice puts it at 1% (<a href="http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/policecommission/materials/band-readahead.pdf" target="_blank">down from 2% in 1997 - pdf</a>). <br />
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The source of the gun is not the problem. The gun itself is not the problem. <b>The criminal is the problem.</b> <br />
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3. Their retort is always, <i>"If just one life is saved, it's worth the inconvenience."</i> Again, bullshit. I reject the entire premise of this statement. We don't write laws to save a single life. We write laws to protect all of society. <b>This is a law looking for a problem to solve.</b> Restricting access to life-saving firearms in any way is criminal and unconstitutional. <br />
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Does anyone in their right mind think that if this law is passed, it will stop a criminal from getting the gun they want? Of course not. He'll just go to his normal sources where 99% of the guns are bought by criminals. <br />
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All it does is jeopardize the freedom of good citizens. <br />
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In Nevada, of the <a href="https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2014/crime-in-the-u.s.-2014/tables/table-20" target="_blank">169 murders committed in 2014</a>, 94 of them were done with some sort of firearm. That means that 0.65 people are killed by gun show or private party guns (0.7% DOJ stats for gun show purchases x 94 gun murders). And they're going to write a law for this?!?!?!<br />
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Once again, depending on your source, guns in the hands of citizens are used between 235,000 and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Targeting-Guns-Firearms-Control-Institutions/dp/0202305694" target="_blank">2,500,000 times</a> to stop an attack, almost all without firing a shot (bad guy sees gun, pisses pants, and runs). <br />
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Think about that: At a minimum, we have nearly a quarter of a million armed citizens who don't get raped, beaten, robbed or killed, <i><b>each and every year.</b></i> <br />
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4. The "Gun Show Loophole" is a strawman argument. There's no <i>there there</i>. The argument is that millions of guns are sold by private parties at gun shows each year where background checks don't happen, and criminals <b>could</b> buy guns there. As the facts attest in number 2 above, this just doesn't happen with any kind of frequency.<br />
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More importantly, it mixes apples and oranges - Federal Firearms Licensses (FFL) vs. private citizens. An FFL is licensed by the federal government to sell guns in-state and out-of-state. Their <b>business</b> is to sell guns. Anytime and anywhere they sell a gun, they have to follow the same rules, which in this case, includes performing a background check on the buyer.<br />
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In this new law, the "Unlicensed Person" is you and me - private citizens selling our private property. Just as we're an unlicensed person when we sell our sporting equipment at a garage sale to another unlicensed person, our right to sell our private property without government interference is at stake here. <i><b>We're not in business to sell guns or sporting equipment, we're just selling our lawful private property.</b></i><br />
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<i>Chief, holy crap! How can you compare sporting equipment and guns? </i><br />
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Don't scoff at this example. <a href="https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/expanded-homicide/expanded_homicide_data_table_8_murder_victims_by_weapon_2008-2012.xls" target="_blank">Bats, clubs and hammers kill more Americans each year than shotguns or rifles</a>. Should we be required to get a background check on someone who buys our used baseball equipment or our extra roofing hammer? Why not? <b>It might save one life...</b><br />
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This sounds ludicrous, but remember, not too long ago, you could buy a gun from the Sears mail-order catalogue. <b>Ludicrous can become "common sense" in a very short period time.</b><br />
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We are not responsible for the actions of others. If I sell you a gun, a hammer, a bat or a car, and you go out and kill someone with it, I'm not responsible, the object isn't responsible, YOU are responsible.<br />
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And another "feel good" or "at least we're doing SOMETHING" law isn't going to change the facts nor reduce the number of bad guys getting guns. It will simply make more good citizens into criminals.<br />
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Do you see what this type of language does to the psyche of free people? You're "unlicensed" - you can't act without the permission of government. This is a wholly repugnant and unacceptable concept.<br />
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This proposed law also includes an exemption for police. What the hell? Police officers are civilians, and those civilians work for us. I know many people exclude police and fire fighters from the definition of civilian, but they're wrong. The original and true definition has to do with the type of law under which you're judged - <b>military or civilian</b>. Last time I check, police were judged under civilian law.<br />
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So laws like this help to reinforce at least 3 levels of citizenry: Military, Super-Civilians (politicians, police, etc.) and us lowly proletariat citizens. Ironically, in theory at least, the two levels above us are supposed to work for us.<br />
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I'm sick of it.<br />
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<b>Share this post! Click the Twitter, Facebook or Google+ icon below, and let your friends know!</b><br />
<i>Copyright 2016 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8964596045360803212.post-19651481026916526872016-09-26T07:00:00.000-07:002016-09-26T07:00:14.095-07:00Playin' In The DirtThis whole, "homesteading" gig is pretty cool. A TON of work, but very cool. I get up most mornings knowing I'm going to be physically working my ass off, and I love it.<br />
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Right now, I'm in major, "attack the deferred maintenance" list. The previous home owners, to be blunt, didn't do shit to maintain this property for the past couple of years, at least. And the way systems and "stuff" were configured, leaves me scratching my head.<br />
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For instance, we're in 4-season country. While not as cold as much of the northern part of the US, our average temperature during the winter is below freezing, and we get into the teens overnight. We actually have an 18" to 24" frost line, which is a new one for this former Kalifornian!<br />
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They installed a sprinkler system for the property - but didn't include a way to winterize the system by blowing out the lines to keep them from freezing over. To add insult to injury, when the system was installed, they just tee'd it off of the supply line that goes out to the freezeless yard hydrant (these are hydrants that are designed to deliver water to horses/animals during the winter without freezing over).<br />
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So, in winter, when I turn off the water for the sprinkler system, I'll also be turning it off for the hydrant. If I had animals - <b><i>say, in our horse barn</i></b> - I'd have to haul the water.<br />
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We're looking to add some animals next year, so that will need to be dug up and re-routed next spring.<br />
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Done So Far<br />
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> Added exterior surveillance system (thanks bro for running the cable)<br />
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> Added security system<br />
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> Started compost pile<br />
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> Cleared 1/4 acre of thorny SOB tumble weeds (1/4 acre to go). Made a note on the calendar to have county spray next year (previous owners "forgot" to do it this year)<br />
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> Drilled a half-dozen 3-hole ventilation groups in eves to get air into attic - absolutely NO airflow currently into attic<br />
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> Removed pine tree limbs and unknown species limbs from rubbing on roof - really, people?!<br />
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> Pruned 4 of our cottonwood trees of the wild growth on the trunk up to 12 feet.<br />
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And, as you may have guessed from the "after" pictures, I've got a yard full of cottonwood leaves - compost bound....<br />
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> Installed 2, 24 inch risers for septic system access (had to be dug up before each time it was pumped - at a cost of $85 per hole dug)<br />
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Coming Up<br />
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> Next week - rent a Bobcat, move a yard of gravel from one side of property to another, drag railroad ties piled on one side of property to be used as borders in backyard area, level area for planting beds, lay out first course of planting beds (will be raised beds), scrape final 1/4 acre of tumbleweeds. Also, hire a tree trimmer to cut back and top a 35 ft cottonwood that is perilously close to back of house. Terminate a heating duct that was not connected to anything when the previous owners installed a new heater 4 years ago (yes, they'd been warming the crawl space for 4 years). Get chimney sweep out to clean chimney so we can use the awesome fireplace.<br />
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> Mid-October - (or as soon as cool weather hits the Kalifornia foothills) Harvest and split oak firewood (dried deadwood) from relative's property. Also, our well system is a bit jiggy. We commonly get a "wet spot" right at the well head, and have gotten outright pooling one time. Anyone with ideas, PLEASE CHIME IN. (And, no, the water isn't draining from some other surface area.) There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason when this happens. Stumped.<br />
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> Late October - have our first legal burn. Mostly the aforementioned tumble weeds and some tree trimmings.<br />
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> November (or as soon as I can't do stuff outside any more) - get workshop in order (it's just storage now), reorganize prep foods (a total CF after the move), build a Murphy Bed for guests in wife's office<br />
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> January - Prune both apples trees. Doubt if they've ever been pruned.<br />
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> Early April - if ground not frozen, run sprinkler system out to garden beds.<br />
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> Also on the list - relocate a shed from right in front of our view of the Sierras to side of property (or tear it down and rebuild - which ever is cheaper), re-roof horse barn and turn into storage and saloon (a gamey man-cave of sorts), install new flooring in home (currently 2 different types of tile and the most ugly blue carpet you've ever seen).<br />
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Lastly, I've gotten a number of private emails about how I'm doing the "business in California, live in Nevada" gig. It's working very nicely. We've been able to hire two new employees and re-jigger the schedule to where me an my business partner have, shall we say, very favorable in-store hours.<br />
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When I do have to go in, here's what my commute looks like...<br />
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(From my dash-cam. Sorry for the bug guts on the windshield...)<br />
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<i>Copyright 2016 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com</i>Chief Instructorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13604561415860237705noreply@blogger.com1