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Guest Post: Insights Into Cultural Shifts From A Visit To A Hardware Store
Submitted by Pete Kofod of Casey Research
Insights Into Cultural Shifts From A Visit To A Hardware Store
"So this is what it looks like when a society is starting to collapse," the man standing behind the counter at the hardware store said matter-of-factly. The remark had been directed at no one in particular, but generally at anyone standing nearby. As I was among that audience, I looked at him inquisitively, eliciting in return a look indicating that his observation should be intuitively obvious to even the casual observer.
"We should not be this busy," he continued. "People are normally out Christmas shopping for the latest tech gadgets for their kids, but instead they are spending their hard-earned money here." I had to agree with his observation, because the place was packed, and it was obvious that his inventory was disappearing from the glass showcases and from the wall behind the counter quicker than the store could replenish it.
"We have manufacturers that aren't taking any more orders. We even have a manufacturer that has shut down production and furloughed the entire workforce. I guess when we run out, we run out." He excused himself and joined his staff to help restock the shelves as well as operate the register.
As I surveyed the store, I noticed no discernible demographic pattern among the customers. They included elderly ladies, young couples, construction workers, police officers and hipster techies as well as people from virtually every ethnic and socio-economic background. They would have made the perfect tapestry for a politician's campaign stop.
"So this is what it looks like when a society starts to collapse," I reflected on what the man behind the counter had said. As melodramatic as his words were, they would be understood by any student of human history.
But it raised questions in my mind: "Does social decline precede economic decline? Does the decay of social graces, the protocols that define civilized interaction, the written and unwritten laws of the land, precipitate the ruin of a nation, or is it the other way around? Is it a vicious cycle where one feeds the other, and if so, can the destructive feedback loop be reversed?"
Based on what I observed in the store, I'm inclined to believe that people are concerned about social collapse, in whatever form that may take. Publications such as The Casey Report implore its readership to hedge against inflation (as well as deflation) by dividing their portfolio into balanced thirds spread across asset classes and political jurisdictions, but what does the erosion of a fiat currency really mean?
I would suggest that very much depends on where you live. In more resilient communities, in which economic actors all create value, the impact may in fact be little more than a moderate nuisance. Various South American countries have shown that, despite their governments' penchant for destroying the nation's currency at predictable intervals, life can go on. As a result, while people in those countries know that things can periodically get tougher, they also have become resolved to soldiering through the hardships, knowing that the latest challenging period will pass.
By contrast, with their advanced – and leveraged – economies and large urban centers that are highly dependent on government subsidies as well as consumer supply chains that are extended, the social impact of a fiat currency collapse in the US and Europe could be far more profound.
Such an event would likely be even further exacerbated, and significantly so, by the absence of such experiences to most Western nations in recent memory. In the United States, a small but emerging subculture known as "preppers" focus their resources and attention on developing personal resiliency in response to the perceived deterioration of both financial and social infrastructure. While the theories and actions of "preppers" range from the sublime to the ridiculous, it is undeniable that the financial, social and logistical fabric of the United States has been stretched very thin.
This tenuous position in turn manifests itself as a palpable level of stress readily observed in many people. There is no longer a sense that "everything will be OK." In conversations with people, I get the sense that people feel very uncertain about the future, and not in a hopeful way. They see their prospects as having limited upside with virtually unlimited downward risk. There is a prevailing belief that this is as good as it is going to be for a long time. It is this subsurface tension that was palpable among shoppers in the hardware store.
You see, the hardware store I was in was a gun store. What on earth would compel me to visit a gun store so close to the horrible tragedy in Connecticut? As some readers know, firearms played a significant role in my former professional life in the military. The truth is I wanted to get a sense for what's actually going on in the gun industry, as opposed to the manufactured "reality" presented by the mainstream media.
Having returned from serving a customer, the owner of the gun store continued his observations.
"It's different this time. The last time, with the Clinton gun ban, people knew that it would be temporary. The economy was good and people didn't really care. This time… well, it's different." He then elaborated on the reason that one manufacturer had shut down its fabrication facility: Apparently it was unwilling to be stuck with inventory that at a stroke of a pen will become contraband.
In reply to my follow-on question as to what he meant when he said society was starting to collapse, he answered, "People talk about debt, a recession that won't go away and how we are on track to bankrupting the country. This is all true. But they are all part of a bigger problem."
"What problem is that?" I asked.
"Respect," he said, with just a hint of bitterness. "Treating people with disrespect has become a way of doing business, a way of life. When a culture ceases to demand respect for life or livelihood, anything and everything is fair game."
At this point another gentleman joined the conversation, adding, "You know, these tragedies are a politician's best friend. It allows them to take the public's eye off issues like financial woes and cutbacks in benefits."
In my view, the spectacle in the gun store, which apparently has played out nationwide, is a clear indication that people are doing the equivalent of "shorting" social stability. This is clearly concerning, because the extent to which we can plan our future is directly related to the faith we can reasonably place in social stability.
It may be presumptive, but in my view, people who rush out to purchase firearms in anticipation of gun-control measures are not part of the "gun culture." The "gun culture" already has its arsenal stocked up. The "last-minute shoppers" are people who believe that one day they may need a gun and may not be able to buy one. These are the same people who clean out the grocery store before the first big winter storm hits.
As for the logistics of controlling access to firearms, I suspect that in short order, it will prove to be an academic point anyway, perhaps even more futile than the War on Drugs.
The relevant agents include: crypto currency, open-source hardware, 3D printing, and Dark Net exchanges like The Silk Road.
On the topic of technical limitations to keeping guns out of the hands of the citizenry, let me direct your attention to the following article on a gunsmith who "printed" a gun. Is it a good thing or a bad thing? I don't know, but I do know that it is inevitable. The first group that will make a go at it will likely be people who are legally prohibited from owning firearms, yet their livelihood depends on access to weapons; in other words, members of criminal organizations. Shortly behind them will be technically gifted people who, one can only hope, are imbued with decency and respect for human life.
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Between the housing market / bubble / CHMC crisis, and the beginnings of what could be serious indigenous uprisings, things could certainly get exciting here before anywhere else.
If your plan is to leave your children in Canada, there is no point in fighting in the first place.
Uhhh, we might oughtta get closer to those Canadianism personages. They will be the next target of ozone's takeover.
We could wipe out the NWO and have a NA Republic with giant, self-dominion states.
dont worry this guy will save us: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUW3wPKFblE
Hopefully Canadians will be practical, close down the border and let you all kill yourselves off while indulging in a rather large bit of schadenfreude. Karma's a bitch.
thats so naive -1
"If 6 million Americans where killed or wounded in the Civil War with black powder rifles, and we had 50 million people then, what do you think it will look like today??"
It will be a war of logistics. Back in the day, food was local, now its not. The northeast will starve and defeated with very little actual fighting.
Ditto for Cali megaplexes. Those urban dwellers in blue states that have never held a gun will squeal mercy in very short order
Fairweather friends?
oh boy...going to bite my tongue.
We will have our own issues in Canada if things go the way the upper crust of the 'government' and the 'rebels' (who are the same people in my opinion). You want to solve it, grow a pair and get it done. If you want to send kids up here, I can't promise they'll want to go back. When you see the world from a third hand perspective and that perspective is all the adults are complete fucking loons fighting over a dead currency and pensions that will never be paid.
If you were an eight year old kid and shipped over to a safe area and all you heard was everybody is murdering one another, do you think that the same kid at ten could ever look their parents in the eye again. It happens to soldiers all the time. Their kids disconnect and it's a very lonely life for the old soldier. The honour is tin plated and tarnished with another's blood if there was no purpose to it. Come to the legion, talk to old soldiers and find out who won't be coming to their 80th birthday. Happens all the time.
Want to meet really depressing? Talk to an old spook. Their entire careers are under a blanket of lies to everyone in their lives. Most of them die with nobody, occassionally one shows up in a legion meeting. They cry alot. Broken. Completely and totally broken with the full understanding that the only person that gave a shit for them was gone when they buried their own mothers. But when they are young they believe the lies told to them of the promise of a bright career, they don't think that far ahead.
Like all fresh faced boys, their lives are hand to mouth, retirement sneaks up on them. Then eviserates them in a cold, hard, lonely, unconsolible place that anyone they wanted to apologise to in the past is gone and the rest won't even listen. Then they show up to the legion to cry and they tell the same story. Every. single. time.
So before making grand announcement on either side of the argument of why people should be shipping their kids off and shooting each other. Everyone should keep that in mind. Rebels and Empire included. Murder leaves a taint.
Wise words. I'm listening. I suspect not too many others, though. Too many fucking westerns.
"Fulton County (Atlanta) police are patrolling the streets near Estonian Drive in an armored vehicle that looks like something you'd see during war, said south Fulton County resident John Hunter.
"It's a bit much. It's not Afghanistan," Hunter said."
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/armored-truck-patrolling-community-...
Just wait a while and some nasty folks will get details from Al Qaida on how to build IEDs and blow the inhabitants out of that armored vehicle. Baghdad comes to Atlanta. Details at 11.
Idiots voted for this and in 2012 that election was rigged and 2008 probably was as well. Romney was also a NWO candidate - lesser of two evils.
+100
Romney was definitely the NWO candidate... It's easy to tell because that's who they sneak into Bilderberg every 4 years... Oddly though... there's INFIGHTING now [amongst the Zionists]...
~~~
The WORLD is not enough... Remember that... That's how these fuckers behave...
Thanks AJ
1933 Germany? So we can hope for full employment, elimination of class warfare, consolidation of labor unions, nationalization of the central bank, strictly bilateral trade negotiations and a government spending within it's means?
http://www.ihr.org/other/economyhitler2011.html
I agree that this time isn't different. Clinton was the first time the NRA got really involved in politics. Most who have never belonged to the NRA don't realize its a sporting organization promoting hunting, competitive shooting and training, not politics. However, the NRA is also, when focussed, one of the most single minded determined organization on the planet as they showed in the 1994 elections. Clinton targeted FFL dealers trying to put them out of business and had the BATF raid the houses of gun collectors all across the country. It was worse than the current situation. Perhaps you don't remember Randy Weaver and the Waco incidents but people in my circles (I'm talking scientists and engineers) were talking about this all the time with the term fascism quite popular and the gun stores were absolutely swamped with customers. I was very active in shooting sports prior to Clinton, but that was when I bought a majority of my current guns (including my AR15) and all of my reloading supplies. The thought was they would go after ammo and likely magazines so by reloading one could make a few thousand rounds last for a lifetime which is still true in addition to saving money on more expensive ammo like .44 mag and .50 AE. So, I don't really think what is going on now is all that different, but likely due to the internet more publicized.
Guns won't save anyone if society collaspses but if people of skill and ability who know how to do things work together survival of the important founding values of this republic can continue. So, in addition to knowing how to build and fix things, keeping fit etc. its important to practice with your guns and learn how to reload ammo.
Yes, it feels like 1933, but with a polar reversal. You know what happens to abused children?
Watched "Edge of Darkness" tonight with Mel Gibson. Something like that would fit perfectly into an American Crystal Nacht. You just KNOW the bass-turds are up to s/t. S/t big, real BIG. False flag event.
For a while I used to think that they'd crash the Derivatives market via an HFT event, and blame the 'Bad' guys, but the basic physics of time lags and HFTs does not work. You'd have to be in the same building or very close.
It's the copper wire that all the tweekers steal from home Depot.
“Kings built tombs more splendid than the houses of the living and counted the names of their descent dearer than the names of their sons. Childless lords sat in aged halls musing on heraldry or in high cold towers asking questions of the stars. And so the kingdom of Gondor sank into ruin, the line of kings failed, the white tree withered and the rule of Gondor was given over to lesser men. ”
... and the tombs were promptly stripped of anything that wan't nailed down ... and of things that were nailed down, if they were made of something valuable ...
I've thought a lot about the ring of power and what it means to me. I use to think it applied only to those elite fucks with obvious power. Lately though, I've come to realize that we all have a great deal of power and how we chose to act with that power will determine the fate of men.
The Ring represents all the vices of humans; greed, jealousy, hate, fear, malice, conceit, violence, etc. Everyone can cast the ring (their vices) away but the longer they hold those vices the harder it is because it consumes people and becomes part of them. Humanity has always had these vices and few even consider them in their daily lives. What's worse is that people are hypocrites and will tell you about your vices to distract from their own.
"The fate of men" will be as it always was - determined by a minority (men and women) who refuse to be wronged via malevolence of the few or the apathy of the many.
My Preciousss
Agreed. But to distill it to the most simple truth would be to say, 'our Ring of Power is fiat currency'.
50 to 100 corrupt senators and their puppet masters deciding the lives of 310 million people.
In the process of feeling out Julius Caesur after he returned to Rome with his army; a Senator told him, with the idea of selling the status quo ante; complete power of the Senate, "We Senators are the custodians of the people", and he immediately replied, "And who shall be the custodians over these custodians?" this question remains un-answered 2000 years later. They decided on the basis of this response, that he needed to be murdered. Just like JFK; and for exactly the same reasons. Yes, there is a ruling class; and no they're not your friend.
JC had a great contempt for Rome, and crossed the Rubicon.
When he slept with the wives and mothers of the Elite, it was to show his contempt, not his virility.
He later said: "I come not to praise Rome, but to bury it". Funny how Mark Anthony said the same thing about him at JC's funeral. Read Shakespeare's JC sometime.
Let's see now; you have your ring of power, and the well paid and secure feeling air-force pilot who's come to visit your ring-of-power hideout, has an A-10 Warthog with a 30mm chain gun. Hmm. I think I'll read all about it in the New Zealand newspaper if you don't mind.
Last time I checked, The One Ring had a pretty good maintenance to operation ratio. I also think the Ring ran on evil vs jet fuel and my thought is there is a great deal more evil.
Its a silly example
Did not Tolkien warn about reading his pieces as allegorical pieces?
But he was an 'american' and so are so many of his readers...
Did not Confucius say "US citizenism ('americanism') is nothing more than Chinese citizenism looking in mirror"?
Is it now so difficult for you to see that US citizenism is a creation of Confucius?
But Confucius was an 'american' and so now you will condemn him...
I kinda missed AnAnonymous, too.
You dumb fucking byproduct of rat shit and pig semen it would take you all of 1 second to look up
J. R. R. Tolkien - English writer and poethttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._R._R._Tolkien
Please Tylers ban this waste of life from ZH.
Respect?
Well, you got me this time. I'm completely unable to understand either this post, or the response to it. To what does your one word post "Respect" refer? And why are people favoring it. I don't understand.
Here's the source- http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-01-11/guest-post-insights-cultural-sh...
Dude, what you got against rat shit and pig semen?
Nothing. ananonymous tortures, kills, and eats puppydogs. Then squats by the roadside and emits horrific growlers. It is an evil Chicom.
If you don't expect much from persons "educated" in North America, you won't often be disappointed.
Especially applicable to the products of the Ivy League puppy mills.
Can I use that for a song title?
"Ivy league Puppy Mill"
Yep. I'm gonna write that.
When he said not to read his pieces as allegory, he meant that they weren't necessarily analagous to any particular event or sequence of events and shouldn't be taken as such.
That only happens to me when I eat gas station sushi...
...ummm...which is exactly how one should read Revelations... not cite specific human events as the object of prophesy...
True dat, bro.
When did you get this vision that told you that you could do a better job of defining "allegory" than the dictioinary does? Did it come on you suddenly?
Unfortunately, brilliance only comes to me in short, one or two sentence flashes. Afterwards I revert back to being a dumb hick. :-(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._R._R._Tolkien
Tolkien was born in South Africa and moved to England you fucking fool.
Tolkein was pretty sharp and subtle all at the same time.
Prepping......the new 'thing' to do.
I think Self-Reliance is a much better choice of words than "prepping / prepper".
Too many words to simply pigeon hole an action or idea end in "ist" or "er".
ConsumER
PreppER
TruthER
BirthER
TerrorIST
SurvivalIST
here's one that is different:
'American'
-an.
Yet it contains all the others. Impressive.
I guess CommunIST works well, too.
here is one with lameness:
AnAnonymous
...ummmm... self-reliant trustworthiness...
We're not Preppers. We are good Boy Scouts, as we are Prepared. We are into Local Resilience, Pioneering lifestyle. True patriots would ensure Continuity in any and all events, right?
Article could have been written about me! Not a prepper, not a gun guy, but I've been buying lately. Been in more gun stores the last 3 months than in the last 10 years (and man, they are for sure busy). Hi cap magazines are top of my list. They'll be the first thing outlawed.
In other news (good news) my son's elementary school now has an armed security guard. And the township police have one of their own stationed out in the parking lot. Said hi to both of them and thanked them for being there. Said the same to the school Principal.
"Normal-capacity magazines" - please. As opposed to "reduced-capacity magazines." Don't let the antis frame the terms of the debate, because by doing so, you give them power which they do not deserve and should be denied.
Exactly. I was at the range the other day and heard a woman who was teaching a CHL class mention that they also teach an "assault rifle" class.
It made me want to slap her.
I'm 60 and never owned a gun in my life until December, now have 3.
Great, now send $35 to either the NRA or Gun Owners of America to help defend your right to keep them. Write your CONgressmen, too.
FUCK the NRA. Those clowns will roll over like a $2.00 whore. You'll see.
Better than nothing, and the libtards hate them so they have that going for them. I am a GOA member. They are absolutists on the 2nd, which is more in keeping with my views.
asshole-you are now supportive of a complete police state. your next step is to offer to put CCTV cameras in every room in your house with a direct feed to your local POS police chief. fuck the police and big brother. people get what they deserve.
No need to buy CCTV cameras any longer. Just buy a new 'smart' TV and connect it to the internet.
In the USSA the TV watches you!
ROFL. Gold my friend. Pure gold.
"In the US the TV watches you"
Interesting. Orwell had that in 1984. Funny how we always thought he was talking about Soviet Russia. Turns out he was talking about the US.
Thanks for calling me an asshole. Very nice. Must be very easy to call people things like that from across the internet.
Would rather have the police there (I know all of them because they are local and all came over to visit many times when my son was under treatment for cancer). Not staties, locals.
I'm going to invite the security guard over for dinner, too. Get to know him, where he lives, who his family is, etc.
I live in the burbs. My son's school could be Newton, CT. Even looks a lot like it. Not a perfect solution, but having people there I know is a lot better than having no defense for the little ones against somebody I don't know. Home schooling is not an option in our case.
I live in a COMMUNITY around here. We know eachother. We like it that way. We want to keep it that way. I can understand that many places don't work that way and that the police and others in authority are "outsiders" not to be trusted. But it's not that way here. If I was asked to volunteer to protect the school, I would do it. But this is as close to doing it myself as I can get. No government "mandate" was required to do it, either. We decided at the local school board level (which I am also involved in).
I understand your position. I agree with it in general. But this isn't that. Please try to realize that some places still work pretty well and leave them alone to do so. I don't want or need your meddling any more than I want or need it from the government.
Would you soil your pants if I told you that back in 2007, Apple was having a real deep look at LCDs being 2-way? Works as display and fly eye lens camera at the same time. Via pixel aperture sharing.
And, oh yeah, they no longer need bugs. Your smart phone is the bug. But some of you already knew or suspected that.
There's a semi-auto pistol called a S&W model 39; available in 9mm Parabellum. It's extremely easy to conver to full auto. and the feed is so perfect that it very, very, rarely malfunctions. the cycle rate is up around 700-900 RPM. The way you do it is to dis-assemble it and study the operation of the safety; which has a function of lowering the hammer safely from full cock. if you look at this carefully you can see where you need to remove a little metal from the cylindrical pin like body of the safety that normally is inside the frame; after the mod. the safety has two positions; un-safe; which is good enough; and full-auto; which is however, un-controlled. you cock the hammer manually with the safety on and then; after "aiming" which is sort of a relative term in this case, you push the safety lever down; the result is it fires off the whole mag. So your unit of amunition becomes the magazine, rather than the round. you fire a mag. RRRRP. drop it, put in another one, and RRRRP, again, if you wish. I used to carry mine in a Georgia Sheriff's holster; which is slang for a stainless steel spring that installs under the grip and provides a clip like a out-sized ball-point pen clip on the side of the weapon; then you just stick it in your jeans; and the clip holds it; imagine just sticking a sharpie in the back of your pants, (inside), with the little clip over your jeans and you'll get the idea. I believe these are still sold in adverts in the back of magazines; the thing is they're really practical and they really work. I tried it out on a door; like a house door; just propped up in a dump and the splinter channel on t he other side of the door was continuous from about knee height to shoulder height. I called it my "door opener". Just thought you might like to know.
Not to be a prick, but your post is a NFA violation. The FEDs could (if monitoring this website) track you down and prosecute you. Now that I have replied to your post, you are kinda fucked. Anyone who posts on gun websites knows you don't provide or publish information on converting a standard weapon to a class three weapon, duh oh! It is an old ATF entrapment trick used a gun shows to try and bust dealers.
Also sounds like a great way to fuck up a perfectly good S&W 39.
From my 'official' perspective... The entire process was 'step 4 step' in line with a procedure I've seen done with popsicle sticks... It was a HIT at the Boy Scout Jamboree...
Amusing way to waste ammo. But learning how to aim and squeeze the trigger smoothly without flincing from the recoil will be more useful if you actually want to hit anything. I don't think shooting should be a random walk exercise. Even full auto (named select fire) rifles are rarely used in that mode in war-wastes too much ammo while your enemy can just duck until you have to reload.
If you are going to a gunfight you've got to hope the opponent is dumb enough to be carrying something like that, and only that. Instant improvement in your survival chances.
You will probably end up blowing off your own body parts.
Experts only use full auto in short bursts,otherwise its impossible to hit anything
from the recoil drift.Waste of good ammo.
Reach out and touch someone,one round at a time.
I like that...I'm not only "prepping" or "hoarding"...I'm shorting social stability.
Off to buy more kerosene...
"I'm shorting social stability."
good stuff. I'm gonna steal it.
Why would you think that? Rising taxes, falling incomes, more devaluation by THE FED.
http://confoundedinterest.wordpress.com/2013/01/11/more-housing-angst-us...
Say, I had better run to Ace Hardware fast!
When you make owning a semi-automatic rilfe a felony, there is no reason to not convert it to full auto.
If you are smuggling guns to the USA from Mexico, might as well smuggle full auto rifles as semi auto.
The War on Guns will be just as sucessful as the War on Everything Else the government does.
What they try to restrict they get more of. The more they restrict it, the more they get.
Poverty.
Drugs.
You name it.
I think three round burst fire would be better than full auto but never having anything other than semi-auto, I can't be sure.
The "18th" Amendment was a 'roaring' success as well...
The Army thought three-round burst was better than full auto, and converted all their M16- pattern rifles to 3-round burst. Soldiers (you know, the ones who actually fight with the rifles) have found that it was a stupid idea: http://www.militarytimes.com/forum/showthread.php?1572832-Get-rid-off-3-...
I still think the application of 3s is good.
Depends on the environment.
But, I was always cheap with ammo.
If u are trained to fire 3-round bursts, it is devastating.
If you can do it with a guy firing on either side of you on a target line, even better. The hot brass has gone down my back and hit my head, but you have to concentrate....
I think everyone should practice, soon.
Of course it would be better; but it's only available on very expensive weapons. for the poor man's shock and awe weapon, see my post above. Even in England shotguns are legal; if there's anything more lethal than a shotgun at reasonable ranges, I don't want to know about it. You can buy, or load yourself, for that matter; 12ga. 3" shells with OO or OOO buckshot in them. this might not sound very interesting unless you know that an OO shot is a 32cal. soft lead ball and you get to fire nine of them at once. soft lead balls are one of the two most horrible wound producers, eg. most lethal, types of projectile available. For home defense I consider the 12 gauge shotgun the hands down all time winner. And you can buy and own a shot gun anywhere. Most people don't realize how easy it is to miss with a pistol. It's real easy. Shotguns, being long, and easier to point at things; or people, if necessary and obtain the desired result.
I think a War on Guns would progress much differently than the War on Drugs. Drug users tend to sit around and passively accept the war, whereas gun owners might actually fight back.
What war on drugs? Is that like the war on poverty where all we get is more poverty? So in essence all we got was more drugs from the war on drugs.
So extrapolating this I would say we should expect more guns in circulation when they start the war on guns.
Comments??
I totally agree with your expectations Snoopy.
gee ya think? : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUW3wPKFblE
You're not kidding Moe. If the government really wants to get rid of guns they should start a gun subsidy program. Soon, no-one would be able to afford one.
Hey, don't give the creeps any ideas!
...ummm...automatic rifle is 21st century musket... to protect yourselves from 21st century tyranny...
Unfortunately this isn't going to work. In the 18th. century the farmer had the same weapon as the soldier; but ever since WWII; when we were presented with the new concept of Blitzkrieg; one of the most important elements of which was close air-ground support; everything has changed. It's well understood now, that the side who has air superiority has the whole enchilada. So, for unruly mobs; yeah, shotguns, rifles, whatever; for tyranny; no sorry. won't work; because the people who do tyranny, your government, have airplanes.
Quick someone tell the Afghans to surrender... The USA has air superiority.
Vietnamese. Iraqis. North Koreans. Just about anyone we've fought since WWII.
Asymetrical warfare. Look at Syria; only one side has tanks and aircraft. This whole "we're helpless against the amazing power of the government, so let's surrender our arms" bit is nonsense.
These are not biplanes. Keeping them in the air is a very expensive proposition. If there was a Civil War these would rapidly become very large paperweights without a regular diet of parts, time and fuel.
and mechanics. and pilots.
Moe, you are WROANG!!!
They declared war on terrorism and now we dont have any more terrorists!
oh, wait...
One other reason not to convert to full-auto, is that it is pretty useless outside of military combat situations.
Guns & ammo are good. Semi or full won't matter as much as what they will use against you or any foe: IC^3. Intel, Command, Control, Communication.
You will have to get close to that, plus use asymmetric crafts. Else it is all talk, bravado, BS, distractions.
http://westernrifleshooters.wordpress.com/2013/01/07/bracken-dear-mr-sec...
To Hell with all the bastards. Ya'll come to Texas and let's have a republic. Honest money, no government recognition of race, justice based justice system, no regulation on personal arms, and real barbecue.
YEHAW!
Too "brown" for my taste-plus the welfare queen state of TX gets more back in Federal taxes than they put in. and if it weren't for Bernank's cheap $-oil would be $35 a barrel and it would be the 80s for TX all over again
You are absolutely right Otto. Vasa mi culo and stay the hell where you are.
All my EX's live in Texas...
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2011/11/states-federal-taxes-spendin...
You're wrong but we don't need any more racist fucks here anyway.
I always thought that was a hilariously stupid libtard argument anyways. I always respond, "OK guys you're right! Let's make a deal, eliminate the federal taxes, and then you'll win and keep all your money! YOU'LL SHOW US!!"
Libtards are so funny, they always want things both ways.
Well, yes, a lot of changes need to be made in the present Texas; but an independent Texas would have the chance to make those changes. It would also have the chance to make a lot of mistakes; but that;s freedom for ya. I think it's indisputable that a lot of our foreign visitors need to go home and learn about birth control.
I nominate Ron Paul (TX resident) to become the first "President of Texas". He is the only guy I would trust to make the right choices.
I second.
First order of business: Texas annexes the rest of the country
Minus NYC, LA, San Fran and DC.
personally, I'd like to kick Austin out of the Republic, but we'll still need someone to make fun of.
Forget the rest of the Country, let the banksters and the whores of D.C. lead them into the shit abyss.
Just give us Texas, Ron Paul and a Libertarian Constitution to live under.
Ya'll aint invitin' Houston are you? Just take all comers from Spring North on 45!
I hate to say it, but in a lot of ways Texas is more commie than WA state. The police abuses and brutality prevalent in TX would never be tolerated in WA.
I couldn't agree more. Even a practical planning stage for real seccession might force real changes at the Federal Level. Un-fortunately the real reason for the Civil War was to maintain the authority, and taxing ability, of the central government; so it doesn't seem likely. It's the only cause I would be willing to volunteer for, fight for, and die for; but I really don't see how it can be done.
I like my hardware store, the owner is a nice guy.
It is sad to see a hobby I've loved for most my life be taken by a government that takes only from the good guys. I've had years where I've purchased over 20 firearms, which isn't a lot, but it is part of the economy. The people I know with huge gun collections have never had any legal trouble and a no threat to soceity. This are people who like to shoot, collect, hunt, and enjoy one of greatest rights. The thought of taking away any part of this right with the current condition of our soceity and country is the worst idea they could imagine.
I only know one guy with a huge gun collection, and it is huge. Like the ones you know, he has NEVER been in legal trouble and is no threat to society.
Same guy (and his small family) live in the sticks, and are more ready to live in the 1800s than anyone else I know.
You always know which Feds and cops are the cowards. Those are the ones that would rather pick on the law-abiding citizens rather than actually go after the bad guys.
Looks like of the above posters didn't read the actual article, disrespect is indeed on the rise.
Some didn't read to the point where the hardware store is revealed to be a gun shop, but even worse, it was obvious by the second paragraph what kind of hardware the author was talking about.
got to that part later... What was the point in using 'Hardware Store' in the title? (& not revealing the rest until paragraph 12)?... Fucking thing was like trying to read the screenplay to 'Cloud Atlas'...
Off the top of my head I would say that the author is suggesting that guns are tools first and foremost. What will be interesting is to see if this thread which is about guns but doesn't have "gun" in the title will be as widely read and commented on as the other recent gun threads.
If there are a lot of 'comments' here on the thread it will be due to the fact that the lunatics have already taken over the asylum & have been talking about everything from hardware to guns already... The article was completely rambling, touched on too many different things without really making any distinctions, & was highly anecdotal...
"How I Spent My Summer" back to school essays from 5th graders are more succinct than this article...
This is one of the funniest things I've ever read. I had the original issue and I've chuckled about it on occassion for the past forty years. I'm outta here.
"Rewriting Your Way to a PH.D." from Mad Issue #158, April 1973.
http://www.madcoversite.com/mad158_phd.html
I have a customer who I have worked for for 20 yrs(16hr days, nights, weekends including Sundays and holidays in a highly specialized technical field) hire a new manager. New guy decides to start using another company for no reason. When asked about it he says "Don't be offended, but look at it like this, we've been eating at Burger King for 20 yrs, thought we'd try McDonald's instead."
Lol, respect dude.
Sounds like this guy will not be around long. If your management "value add" is switching vendors that are reliable "just because" you are focused on the wrong thing and not fixing actual problems.
Most likely this dude is getting kicked back from the new vendor
You don't expect some Jackass spamming his website on every thread actually READS the articles, do you?
Sounds like the next locale for a psyops stunt
It didn't take 3D printing for there to be DIY firearms. For AKs, the controlled part -- the receiver -- can be made from bending a sheet of sheet metal. This is so common there are multiple online sources of pre-punched sheets (which are not firearms). A small amount of bending and a parts kit and you're there. And zip guns have been around for a really long time, hard to control the distribution of steel pipe, after all. And ironically, those zip guns are most common in gun-controlled jurisdictions, proving that all they do is disarm the law abiding.
very true.
You cannot find any 80% out there right now though. All the AK parts are bought up.
There's still a fair number if sites with reciever blanks for $15-$20 in stock, as well as bending jigs, but clearly the remaining parts kits are hard to come by.
As for zip-guns, there are literally hundreds of these "how-to" videos on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxHVDtD2S5U
Government laws cannot stop the exercise of natural (inalienable) rights.
How about making an AK47 out of a shovel?
http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/threads/179192-DIY-Shovel-AK-...!
Not very practical--he got most of the parts from a de-milled AKM. What would be cool is a home-made Sten-type gun, complete with home-made barrel (rifled) and a magazine.
More consumption, even more consumption.
AnAnonymous said:
Yes, true, your consumptionary consumptivization is blobbing up increasingly.
Soon you do making this trip to roadside:
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=2c9_1328304616
All anecdotal - says nothing - proves nothing
It says, "Don't shop on Saturday".
Does anyone know where one can buy a hammer and nails?
I know some folks would like to hook you up with a hammer and sickle.
I calls it a 'slingblade'.
They can try, but I've broken more hammers and sickles in my day than I care to count.
Hammers do not drive nails. People do.
'Americans' do not drive 'americanism'. AnAnonymous does.
Hammers don't drive nails they smash skulls. Why would anyone need a hammer?
The UK Hammer Murdershttp://www.trutv.com/library/crime/serial_killers/unsolved/hammer_murder...
or you could blame it on this guy
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hellraiserseries.jpg