The Paradox and Absurdities of Carbon-Fretting and Rewilding

Herschel Smith · 28 Jan 2024 · 4 Comments

The Bureau of Land Management is planning a truly boneheaded move, angering some conservationists over the affects to herd populations and migration routes.  From Field & Stream. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently released a draft plan outlining potential solar energy development in the West. The proposal is an update of the BLM’s 2012 Western Solar Plan. It adds five new states—Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming—to a list of 11 western states already earmarked…… [read more]

The Place of Refuge

BY PGF
1 year, 7 months ago

“26 In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. 27 The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.” – Proverbs 14:26-27

In the fear of the Lord, not with or because of the fear of the Lord. Salvation is likewise in Christ, not with Christ. It’s not our might or our grace; it’s His to those that are in Him.

Though your faithfulness to God is required, and though your service brings glory to the Father through His Son, none of your yields are sufficient to merit forgiveness for sin. So very frustrating to hear is the man that claims His duties in service of God as warrant for the grace presented as freely given only by belief in Jesus Christ. To suppose works could save your eternal soul is to remit payment due to Holy God: what a perilous chasm to hang yourself over; God owes no man.

And even if one paid all they had, shall you try to best the crucifixion of Jesus; can you sacrifice greater than He? No outcomes can get you life with God nor keep you heaven bound to stand with Christ forgiven. Cast off your reliance on self and gaze upon the cross with the faith of a child; the strength and confidence of the saved sinner rest solely in the Lord.

Jesus Christ is the propitiation: the favor and goodwill of the Almighty to sacrifice His own Son as payment rendered in blood to appease His perfect law for your sin-guiltiness. Assurance of eternal life comes with peace of mind knowing the safest assumption you’ll ever make is in the superiority of reliance on Jesus Christ.

When looking to your right hand and finding no man, no help or pity or care from this world, and none cared for your soul, cry out unto the Lord, call upon your portion and your redeemer, the bringer and giver of life, the God of salvation. Sing aloud of His power, sing aloud of His mercy in the morning, for He is a strong defense.

Jesus rose from the tomb on the third day, and by His power over the grave, you can depart from the snare of death and hell that pursues every man. Never to see outer darkness and the torment of hell; in Christ Jesus is life everlasting to those that are given by the Father to be His eternal prize. “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” – Psalm 91:2

Buried with Christ through trust in God and raised in a new and Holy Spirit of eternal life, placed in the family of God as His child, having shelter from damnation, nestled snug to His bosom in eternity, kept by the power of God through faith is the sanctuary in the Lord our King.

Though God owes men nothing, yet with one drop of that water, clear as crystal, a fountain of life from the throne of God and of the Lamb, a man may have the gift of salvation so thorough, so complete, that in the fear of the Lord, nothing can pluck you from the Master’s hand. But it’s not one drop; the river of the water of life flows freely to all who seek in confidence the Just One as their new and holy city of refuge.

 

Six Pistol Brace Lawsuits

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

The current count is six pistol brace lawsuits.

Gun Owners of America

Second Amendment Foundation

Texas Public Policy Foundation, et. al.

Firearms Policy Coalition

Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, Veterans

Firearms Regulatory Accountability Coalition

Complaints in the Case of ATF Pistol Brace Rule

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

Source.

More than 20 Republican-led states, along with gun rights groups and a disabled Army veteran, on Thursday sued the Biden administration over a new rule restricting sales of gun accessories known as pistol braces.

In a lawsuit filed in federal court in North Dakota, the states said that the rule finalized earlier this year by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was “arbitrary and capricious” and violated the right to bear arms under the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment.

This case is joined by the NRA.  I guess they arm twisted and pulled enough money out of Wayne’s account for buying suits to assist with the lawsuit.  I cannot locate a URL for the complaint.

Why on earth they’re targeting the state of ND I have no idea.  They’re not likely to be successful there, and the whole goal should be to drive this to the supreme court.  On the other hand, this might be the sacrificial lawsuit to do just that.

A much better chance comes from GOA, and the complaint can be found here.  Friend of TCJ, Stephen Stamboulieh, is responsible for this fine work.  It has been filed in Texas.

6.5 Creedmoor vs 308 Winchester

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

At Outdoor Life.

At close range (i.e., < about 350 – 400 yards), .308 packs a slightly bigger punch than 6.5 Creedmoor, but not by much.  I’ve known this for a long time.

The real advantages of the 6.5 Creedmoor are (a) distances longer than that, and (b) less recoil thus the ability to stay on target with your scope, and (c) the longer profile of the 6.5, meaning that it minimizes free bore and thus avoids bullet deformation, and has less drag.

This videowhile somewhat chaotic at times – shows essentially the same thing.

To me this comes down to intended use and personal preference.

How To Install the Daniel Defense MFR Handguard

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

Since Caleb is demonstrating gunsmithing techniques, I suspect this video will be demonetized by the communists at Googletube very soon.

But I found it interesting.  I would have instinctively taken a torquing pass approach to those screws without having to be told so, just like the torquing passes you take for an engine head.

The 5 Most Modular Weapons On the Market

BY PGF
1 year, 7 months ago

Modularity, interchangeability of parts, and accessorization is a big market with lots of dud entries. Shooting endurance while maintaining accuracy is probably how to find what works. That can be an expensive proposition. Word of mouth can be good, but there are also a lot of bad products that have good marketing. Noticeably absent is the Ruger 10/22, which probably has the most after-market parts and accessories of any weapon platform.

Number one on the list is the AR15.

The easiest mention in our list of modular weapons is the AR-15. Ever since the sunset of the Assault Weapons Ban in 2004, the AR-15 has dominated the market. There seem to be hundreds of companies pumping AR-15s at all price points and in all configurations. Alongside their popularity, an entire industry of accessories and parts has sprung to life. This allows shooters to build the rifle they want from parts and pieces. Users can swap out each and every part of their rifle if they so choose.

The modularity of the AR-15 also makes changing calibers easy. You can swap an upper and change calibers with ease. You can take a Multi-Cal lower and use anything from 5.56 to 9mm, and even .410 shotgun shells. Swapping calibers takes no real work, and at most, you might have to switch out buffers when you swap uppers.

Beyond that level of modularity, you can get pretty crazy with your AR-15 modifications. This year at SHOT, a company displayed a bullpup conversion kit to turn your favorite AR-15 into a bullpup platform. It’s an interesting concept and surprisingly well done. The AR-15 certainly takes the top slot as the most modular weapon on the market.

Concealed Carry: .40 S/W vs. .45 ACP

BY PGF
1 year, 7 months ago

This is one of his older videos and is interesting in that the rounds show similar results. With nearly the same weight in selected ammo, they have comparable velocities. Shooting the cinder blocks, it appears the .40 may even have a slight edge, but concealed carry isn’t for shooting cinder blocks. Watching Mr. Harrell shoot the blocks was a good reminder not to point your weapon at anything you’re not willing to destroy. There are a variety of examinations conducted. One thing is for certain; he’s a pretty good shot.

 

Recent Court Cases and What Gun Control is Really All About

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

Slate is mostly a worthless rag, but this one actually brings to light more than the author realizes.

The Bruen decision was a multi-faceted decision partly because of the way the votes separated.  Sure, it got the votes it needed in the court.  We know that Alito, Thomas and Gorsuch are reliable allies.

Barrett is another story.  Because she hasn’t written much on this, who knows how she will decide when the time comes to make the hard decisions.

Roberts is apparently owned by someone who has pictures.  Kavanaugh is the wild card.

He voted with the majority, but wrote his own decision – there would be no reason to do that unless he’s telegraphing the future to the other justices.

There are some difficult decisions coming up for them.  Bump stocks will come up – and there is absolutely no question about the statutory language there.  A device like that doesn’t meet the definition.

There are other decisions: pistol braces, the 5th’s recent decision on prohibitions for men of questionable moral character, and the most recent of course is the one concerning users of controlled substances.

Jonathan Turley gets it right in his analysis of the use of controlled substances and firearms ownership.

I particularly liked this observation from the court about reading discretion into the amendment to bar those deemed untrustworthy by the government:

[I]t would be odd indeed for the Framers to have incorporated such a trojan horse into the Second Amendment. The purpose of enshrining a right into the Constitution is to limit the discretion of a legislature. But if the United States’ theory is correct and all a legislature must do to prohibit a group of persons from possessing arms is to declare that group “untrustworthy,” then the Second Amendment would provide virtually no limit on Congress’s discretion. The Framers weren’t perfect, but they also weren’t fools.

In the end, none of this is about whether men of questionable moral character should be allowed to own firearms.  The man in the instance of the fifth circuit case committed crimes against others.  Prosecute him for those.  Ownership of a firearm in this case is irrelevant.  If they had removed his firearms and he was still committed to a life of crime, he could have converted to an arsonist.

In the end, none of this is about whether men who use controlled substances should be allowed to purchase firearms (as the judge pointed out).  It’s about the degree of government control over the lives of men, and to what end that goes concerning abuses and exploitation by the government.

Gun control is about control.  Nothing more, nothing less.

 

Are You Using the Wrong Threadlocker?

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

From the comments:

“The guys at Vortex recommend not using loctite on scope bases and rings. They say that loctite acts like a lubricant on the threads and can potentially make you over-torque the screws.”

“PURPLE!!! Purple people!! Purple is for the smaller screws, like you see in firearms. Read the instructions. The blue is rated for certain sizes, as is the purple. So few know purple exist. It will save you many a headache. READ the instructions.”

And finally, this one.

“A vortex customer service representative recommended that I use clear nail polish as threadlocker and I’ve never looked back never had a problem. Handles vibration and heat like nothing and breaks loose with not much torque when actually trying to remove something.”

Nail polish is an interesting take.  I wouldn’t have thought of that.  Any takers here?

Florida Legislature Fails with Constitutional Carry Bill

BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 7 months ago

Readers know I have been closely following this issue.  Here’s an update on the Florida constitutional carry effort this session.

People who carry concealed weapons in Florida must complete a gun safety course, but that could change under a bill that has the backing of the state’s Republican leaders.

“Central to the idea of freedom is the right that we can defend ourselves against physical attack, as well as defend those that we love,” said State House Speaker Paul Renner last week after unveiling a proposed measure to allow “constitutional carry,” which would eliminate the requirement of a permit to carry a concealed firearm.

“All aspects of that permit would go away.”

The bill — HB 543 — would eliminate permitting requirements to carry a concealed weapon. Those include completion of a gun safety course and an attestation that the concealed carry permit is desired for lawful self defense.

If enacted, it would take effect on July 1.

At a press conference announcing the legislation, Renner expressed confidence that the measure wouldn’t pose a serious threat to public safety. “Anybody that’s a gun owner and uses guns knows that safety comes first.”

So this discusses the permitting scheme.  What about open carry?

The bill reads as follows.

… specifying it is not a violation for persons authorized to carry a concealed weapon or concealed firearm without a license to briefly and openly display a firearm under specified circumstances.

Oh, so they’re throwing bones to the dogs who want to openly carry to make them happy, but “the only ones” are the only ones who are permitted to openly carry their weapons.  “Briefly and openly.”  Your shirt or coat tail can accidentally go above your firearm and when the only ones come to arrest you because of that Karen-call down at the grocery store, you can plead for leniency because you really didn’t mean it, and they can take the statement of Karen versus yours and see what a prosecutor will do with it.  You can discuss it with the judge in court.

So they’ve queued up an abject failure as far as I’m concerned.  Open carry is an essential part of constitutional carry.  It isn’t constitutional carry if the state tells you how you must carry your weapons.  The job isn’t complete.  The job has been left undone.

As far as I’m concerned, they failed.  This is a cheap trick to persuade the citizens of Florida that they respect their God-given rights concerning weapons.

I’m not impressed.  I’m disgusted.  Pffft …



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