It did not last long. The Duma had a quorum problem because so many MPs were outside getting free bibles.
Today's weirdness. 1/8/26 Times of London:
The United Arab Emirates is restricting students from enrolling at British universities over fears that campuses are being radicalised by Islamist groups.
Officials with knowledge of the situation told The Times that federal funding was being limited for citizens who hope to study in the UK, citing concerns about the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood among other issues.
This CBS News report includes what the officer saw. You can hear the collision when she struck him.
Police say that a man who was found dead at a construction site in Pomona over the weekend was killed while trying to steal copper wire.
Residents in the surrounding area said they could hear the explosion just moments before thousands of homes lost power on Sunday at around 2 p.m. ...
Police say that the man wasn't a worker, but that he was instead stealing copper wire from the vacant strip mall that was in the process of being demolished.
Today I took several .38 handloads up to the range, along with my Ruger 50th Anniversary Blackhawk chambered for .357 Magnum, and my S&W Model 15-3 Combat Masterpiece, chambered for .38 Special. Here are the results:
All strings below are 10 shots.
From a Ruger 50th Anniversary Blackhawk .357 with 4-5/8" barrel:
.38 Special
21 grains Swiss 3Fg black powder
Missouri Bullet Company 158 grain LRNFP with BP lube
Mixed brass
Servicios Aventuras primers
MV 845.5 FPS
250.9 Ft-lbs.
ES 61
Max 881 FPS
Min 820 FPS
SD 16.7
.38 Special
21 grains Schuetzen 3Fg black powder
Missouri Bullet Company 158 grain LRNFP with BP lube
Mixed brass
Servicios Aventuras primers
MV 655.9 FPS (Weak sauce)
151.2 Ft-lbs.
ES 94.7
Max 712.9 FPS
Min 618.2 FPS
SD 27.8
From a Smith & Wesson Model 15-3 Combat Masterpiece with a 4" barrel:
.38 Special
Lee TL158-SWC, 158 grains
4.7 grains of Unique
Mixed brass
Servicios Aventuras primers
MV 842.5 FPS
249.8 Ft-lbs.
ES 162
Max 906.1 FPS
Min 744.1 (WTF?)
SD 47.8
.38 Special
Lee TL158-SWC, 158 grains
4.4 grains BE-86
Mixed brass
Servicios Aventuras primers
821.1 FPS
236.6 Ft.-lbs.
ES 42.8
Max 842.8
Min 800
SD 14
The BP load with Swiss would be decent for defense. This is probably comparable to the original black powder .38 Special round in muzzle velocity, with the same weight bullte. In contrast the Schuetzen load is so slow it performs closer to the weaker .38 Smith & Wesson round.
I crunched the numbers on the Unique load after dropping the low shot. It gave an average muzzle velocity of 853.5 FPS for 256 Ft.-lbs. of energy. Bumped up to 5.0 grains it averages 925.4 FPS and 301.2 Ft.lbs. of energy. That's a very solid woods or defense load.
The load with BE-86 exceeds most standard pressure 158 grain .38 Special loads in performance. Not bad at all. With a couple extra tenths of a grain it could probably exceed 900 FPS and give .38 +P levels of performance.
These books represent years of painstaking research and labor. The information presented is invaluable and the cost of producing limited run copies is great. [More] Knowledge is power. Those who have it know that.
The post Amazon Cutting Off Second Amendment Author from Being Able to Sell His Book first appeared on The War on Guns.
Hat tip to Gary Hughes for bringing this "Wild Bill Hickok vs. Major Frank North" drill to my attention.
From The American Mercury, October 1937:
"Did you ever see Wild Bill Hickok shoot?"
"Many times."
"Was he pretty good?"
"Yes. But Frank was better.
Even Bill said so."
"Just how well could they shoot?"
You put up a letter envelope ten paces away, and if you could keep all six shots in the envelope you were counted good. One of the sbots had to be in the stamp which was pasted on the back of the en-velope, in the center."
"How big were the envelopes?"
"Five inches square. And the stamp an inch square."
Course of fire:
I shot it today with three of my pistols. I passed easily with the Ruger 50th Anniversary Blackhawk, shooting my .38 Special black powder handloads.
I did not pass this test shooting two of my double action revolvers: my S&W Model 432UC .32 H&R Mag and my S&W Model 15-3 shooting .38 Specials. Shooting double action with only one hand I have a tendency to push the point of impact to the right, which caused shots to lands outside the 5" square. While I can nail these targets shooting two-handed, I need to work on my one-handed double action shooting.
I actually did better with the 432UC J-Frame than the Model 15 K-Frame, but I shot the Model 15 last and had already done a fair amount of shooting by that point. I.e., I was tired.
Give it a try. You may find it more challenging than you think.
Link to the target: https://thetacticalprofessor.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/hickok-v-north-stamp.pdf
Edit: Most likely this is the Major Frank North referred to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_North
This could be our salvation– these psychotics are incapable of moderating their behavior and their actions may end up horrifying a critical mass. Unless psychotics in government beat them at it. [Via Michael G]
The post A Silver Lining? first appeared on The War on Guns.
Newsom Press Office: ‘Activist’ 9th Circuit Judges Want ‘Gunslingers’ in Streets [More] Funny, nobody took me up on my hundred bucks challenge… Via bondmen]
The post DODGE CITY! BLOOD IN THE STREETS OVER FENDER BENDERS!!! first appeared on The War on Guns.
“Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney Stanak, Senate President Phil Baruth, and members of Gun Sense Vermont will gather at the Statehouse on Wednesday to renew their push for a bill banning guns in Burlington bars.” [More] I wonder what text, history, and tradition have to say about that? [Via bondmen]
The post Bar None first appeared on The War on Guns.
Venezuela’s Most Dangerous Socialist Diosdado Cabello Warns They Have ‘Monopoly on Weapons’ in New Show of Strength [More] Yeah, that’s the plan here, too. [Via bondmen]
The post Everycountry, Everytown first appeared on The War on Guns.
Teen charged with 2022 murder claims to have shot 400 people in lifetime [More] I’d suggest my namesake law, but I just found out it’s racist. [Via Steve T]
The post Speaking of Being Overrepresented in the Criminal Justice System… first appeared on The War on Guns.
Newton Grove Police Chief Greg Warren was arrested Wednesday on charges that include secret peeping and indecent liberties with a minor. [More] Life imitates art. [Via Steve T]
The post We’re the Only Ones Peeping Enough first appeared on The War on Guns.
NYC Leftist Protesters Call for Hanging of Kristi Noem and the Execution of ICE Agents [More] Gee, wherever do they get ideas like “an ICE agent murdered Renee Good” from? What J6 rhetoric did they go after Donald Trump for again? [Via Michael G]
The post Speaking of Seditious Conspiracy first appeared on The War on Guns.
Surprise, surprise, surprise! So, why aren’t we hearing this from any “real reporters”? And I could swear DOJ has some forensic accountants and RICO laws at their disposal… [Via Michael G] Related UPDATE Growing List Of Democratic Billionaire Kings & Queens Funnel Millions Into Terror-Tied Nonprofits [More] That won’t turn the tumbrels around. [Via bondmen]
The post Follow the Money first appeared on The War on Guns.
Is it too late to investigate if a vulnerable prosecutor was coerced into dropping the case? Because his “justification” held no water. [Via WiscoDave]
The post Justice Delayed? first appeared on The War on Guns.

Step inside America's infantry museum! Located in Columbus, GA this is one of the must-visit museums.What are we still even doing in the UN? [Via WiscoDave]
The post Thinking Globally, Acting Locally first appeared on The War on Guns.
A Boston police officer is on leave after he was arrested and charged with domestic assault last week, court records show. Ricardo Alexandre is charged with strangulation or suffocation and assault and battery on a family or household member… [More] And that’s after ” “sustained findings … for violations of ‘Conduct Unbecoming,’ ‘Alcohol off Duty,’ … Continue reading "We’re the Only Ones Porcine Enough"
The post We’re the Only Ones Porcine Enough first appeared on The War on Guns.
Man fatally shot, police sergeant injured during standoff in Mass. town… Shots were fired as police attempted to conduct a wellness check on a man who had made a call to the FBI that “sparked mental health concerns,” officials said. [More] Maybe they should have sent in some of those “violence interrupters”… National Threat Operation … Continue reading "We’re the Only Ones Worsening Enough"
The post We’re the Only Ones Worsening Enough first appeared on The War on Guns.
Trump Threatens to Denaturalize U.S. Citizens If They ‘Deserve’ It [More] They say that like it’s a bad thing…
The post It’s Only Natural first appeared on The War on Guns.
Florida Carry invites you to join us for an Advocacy Day Wednesday Jan 28th 2026. We will be meeting with Senators and House Representatives. Our main focus will be regaining the Constitutional Right of 18,19, and 20 year old Floridians to purchase firearms. [More] Moms’ll be there. Will you?
The post A Capitol Idea first appeared on The War on Guns.
It’s from 2017 and there is context. Bull$#!+ context, true… [Via JG]
The post On the Hijab Training first appeared on The War on Guns.
Texas’ homicide rate declined… [More] You’d think with open and permitless carry there’d be blood in the streets.
The post So Much for Dodge City over Fender-Benders… first appeared on The War on Guns.
None of this is done to disparage recognized and deservedly lauded good and unprecedented positions being taken by DOJ that would, admittedly, never have happened under any other administration to date. But that does not require Second Amendment advocates to turn a blind eye to when those positions turn cognitively dissonant. [More] “Friendly fire” can … Continue reading "Gun Prohibitionists Siding with DOJ on NFA Registration"
The post Gun Prohibitionists Siding with DOJ on NFA Registration first appeared on The War on Guns.
Paul Howe is one of the nation’s recognized experts on the use of firearms in life-threating stress situations. Here he talks about the importance of using the manual safety on powerful weapons deployed under extreme pressure. If you’ve never heard of Paul Howe, I’m glad we caught you in time. When this man talks, professionals […]The buoy strategy has already faced legal and diplomatic challenges, with the Mexican government and left‑wing activists arguing the floating barriers endanger illegal crossers and may violate treaty obligations on use of the Rio Grande. [More] They had me at the headline. They didn’t need to sell me. Still, what’s this got to do with … Continue reading "Buoy, Am I Glad to See You!"
The post Buoy, Am I Glad to See You! first appeared on The War on Guns.
Two wounded in Portland shooting involving federal agents after DHS says vehicle ‘weaponized’ against them – Border Patrol agents stopped a vehicle that DHS says was being driven by a Tren de Aragua gang member [More] For some reason, the Alice’s Restaurant line about one, two, three, then 50 people joining in came to mind. … Continue reading "And Friends, They May Think It’s a Movement"
The post And Friends, They May Think It’s a Movement first appeared on The War on Guns.
The post Israeli Mauser K98k Sniper Rifles: Wild Heerbrug & Nimrod first appeared on Forgotten Weapons.
Hattiesburg resident Tristan Young, 25, has been identified as the armed robbery suspect who died after a victim fired in self-defense during a shooting Monday in D’Iberville, according to Harrison County Coroner Brian Switzer.
D’Iberville Police Chief Marty Griffin said officers responded around 7:30 p.m. Jan. 5 to a reported shooting in the 11000 block of Cinema Drive.
Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend. Cold Hits Don’t Lie: Measuring Real Shooting Performance I like starting every shooting session with a consistent drill I shoot cold to track my performance over time. In this article, Tatiana suggests several good […]By Dave Workman New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has announced plans to “strengthen” Empire State gun control laws by, as stated in a news release from her office, “cracking down on 3D-printed and illegal firearms.” Hochul, a Democrat, has her sights set on 3-D printed guns and so-called “ghost guns,” and according to her press […]
The post NY Gov. Hochul Threatens More Gun Control in ‘26 appeared first on Liberty Park Press.
On January 9th, 1580, Francis Drake‘s ship the Golden Hind struck a reef off the Celebes islands. It fortuitously slipped off the reef at high tide the next day and sailed onward to Java, and then around the Cape of Good Hope and back to Plymouth, England. — January 9, 1839: Louis Daguerre demonstrated his ‘daguerreotype‘ photographic process to the French Academy of Sciences. — The 20th Anniversary SurvivalBlog 2005-2025 Waterproof/EMP-Resistant Archive USB sticks are selling rapidly, in pre-ordering. The limited number of them packaged in steel keepsake tins have sold out. But there are still plenty of the standard sticks …
The post Preparedness Notes for Friday — January 9, 2026 appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
(Continued from Part 1.) The next topic is water. I begin with the low hanging fruit of having water stored at all times. It hurts my soul to thoughtlessly parrot the “one gallon per person per day minimum” tripe we have all heard so many times. My recommendation is to store no less than three gallons per person per day or ten gallons each. I follow this up by encouraging each family set a goal of having a five-gallon water jug set aside for last minute filling for each person. For those who lament storage space, I recommend the collapsible …
The post Introducing Your Community to Emergency Preparedness – Part 2, by A.F. appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
After some huge price swings in the last week of the year, the Silver Bull has resumed his charge. As of Tuesday afternoon (January 6, 2026), spot silver was at $82.06 USD per Troy ounce. I expect a few gasps of short-selling today, but $70 seems to be the new floor for silver. I’m holding to my prediction that silver and platinum will continue to outperform gold’s gains. The formerly languishing price of nickel has spiked. Surprisingly, we still have the opportunity to stack Nickels (U.S. 5-cent pieces) at face value. The U.S. Mint recently stopped producing pennies. I believe …
The post Economics & Investing Media of the Week appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
“If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance.” – Samuel Johnson
The post The Editors’ Quote Of The Day: appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
We went to Shreveport this morning to pick up Belle's daughter at the airport. She's going with them on the cruise.
We stopped in Natchitoches for a bit of history and a bite for lunch. Belle's favorite restaurant is closed this week for a thorough cleaning and remodeling. We went around the corner to another restaurant and ate po'boys.
Front street in Natchitoches. Momma's Restaurant. They make a passable shrimp po'boy. The girls will leave here tomorrow, heading for Galveston. They should have a lot of fun.This is the beginning of a new series about what (mostly) non-technical readers can do to lock down their home networks to a decent level of security. I need to start with some caveats here:
So if you're interested in this kind of thing, and are willing to spend a nominal amount of time and money to raise the bar on your home network security, follow along on this series of posts.
Tomorrow's post: What is a Firewall and why do you care?

Getting in and out of the bush isn't always easy, but a good ride makes it a lot easier. For comfort and utility, you can't beat a good Can-Am.Hunting of Ursus Arctos (grizzly bears/brown bears) was banned in British Columbia on December 18, 2017. At the time opponents of the hunting ban warned there would be increasing bear/human conflicts. From British Columbia Wildlife Federartion executive director Jesse Zeman:
“When the hunt was closed, we predicted that over time human-grizzly conflicts would increase, but we also know that bears that learn bad behaviors teach those same behaviors to their offspring,” said Zeman. “This will keep getting worse until science-based wildlife management is reinstated.”
Over the last ten years, ursus arctos/human conflicts in British Columbia have doubled from about 300-500 per year before the ban to almost a thousand per year after the ban. This is the same pattern seen over the world as large predator populations are over-protected. The populations grow and spread and come into conflict with humans. The predators have not learned to be afraid of humans because hunting is banned or severely limited. The aggressive predators are not selected out of the population by hunters. Prior to the attack on a large group of school children in Bella Coola, problems with ursus arctos (grizzly/brown) bears had been increasing for some time. Here are examples: From CityNews.ca:
“And what had happened is that a grizzly — it looks like a sow and her two almost full-grown cubs — had gone in and found the fridge and dragged the fridge actually halfway out and across the bed and everything else.”
The animals had completely demolished the kitchen.
“I’m talking counters, cupboards, drawers, glasses, plates, and everything else,” she said.
The couple also has a trailer on the same property, and Munro says the damage there was even worse than in the house.
The Munro couple were extremely careful about not having bear attractants on their property. They had complained to B.C. official about previous problems. Now they are leaving the area. The BCWF also document these conflicts:
The is the same pattern seen across the United States, in Europe, and in Japan. Large predators are protected and hunting is outlawed or severely limited. The large predator population expands beyond wild areas and start encroaching on rural populations and even some urban areas. Japan doubled the fatalities by bears in 2025 past the previous record from 6 in 2019 to 13 in 2025. Fatal bear attacks in Europe, especially Romania, have increased with increasing bear populations. Florida had its first recorded black bear fatal attack. Arkansas recorded two fatal black bear attacks in 2025, the first in over a hundred years. California recorded its first ever fatal black bear attack in 2024. Fatal mountain lion attacks are increasing. Only 9 fatal attacks were recorded before 1970, with 19 recorded from 1971 to 2026. Human wolf conflicts are increasing with the re-introduction of wolf packs into the lower 48 states.
Analysis: These numbers are fairly small compared to human homicides. The dangers are very low unless you spend time in areas with significant predator populations. Nearly all of these attacks can be prevented if humans take the trouble to arm themselves with modern handguns. Only one human who fired a handgun in defense against bears has been killed in over 200 recorded incidents. No human who was armed with a firearm has been recorded as killed by a mountain lion. No armed human has been killed by a wolf pack in a recorded incident. Several incidents have been recorded of armed humans stopping attacks by mountain lions and wolves. Modern cartridge handguns are exceptionally effective in stopping predatory animal attacks.
The people killed and mauled by predatory animals pay a high price for the animal worship currently pushed by deep-green environmental groups and Neo-pagan nature worshipers. The numbers killed and injured are small and self correcting. As more people are mauled and killed, more people will effectively defend themselves and their property. Those facts will be reported in our disseminated media. The stories are too interesting to dismiss. In the United States, rights protected by the Second Amendment are being restored. As more people arm themselves, more aggressive predators will be killed, and balance will be restored. People who arm themselves in wild areas do much to protect those who use those areas unarmed. Large predators learn humans are dangerous and learn to avoid them.
Fellow humans in Canada, Europe, and Japan are not so fortunate. Expect more stories of fatal large predator attacks on humans in those areas.
©2026 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
On Monday just before 8 a.m., Gavilan entered the City Hall building through a locked back door and went up a stairwell to the fourth floor of the building where he broke out a window within another secure door to enter the office area.
Police said employees recognized Gavilan as an intruder and an on-duty court security officer encountered him, announced his authority and asked him to put his hands behind his back. Gavilan did not comply to the security officer, police said, and instead began fighting the officer.
On January 8, 1297, Monaco gained its independence. Pictured are Buffalo Bill Cody and Prince Albert I of Monaco, in 1913. He was the first reigning European monarch to visit the United States. — On January 8, 1610, German astronomer Simon Marius independently discovered the first four moons of Jupiter, just one day after Galileo‘s lunar discovery. — The 20th Anniversary SurvivalBlog 2005-2025 Waterproof/EMP-Resistant Archive USB sticks are available for Pre-Ordering. This year, we are also offering a limited number of them in steel keepsake tins, with keychains. Both types have been selling very rapidly. Orders should start to be …
The post Preparedness Notes for Thursday — January 8, 2026 appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
Back in 2016, the organizer for a local church’s senior citizen ministry approached me regarding a program she wanted someone to present on family emergency preparedness. In the two previous years our area experienced a “thousand-year flood” and the wind effects from a passing hurricane. Several of the seniors had requested a speaker who could help them think through steps that could be taken to minimize the impacts of another storm or similar short-term disaster. This article is a summary of what that presentation has become after multiple iterations over the past ten years. My hope in sharing is that …
The post Introducing Your Community to Emergency Preparedness – Part 1, by A.F. appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, an increase in fallow farm ground. Georgia Farmer Warns of Fallow Farm Ground Reader Robert W. sent us this: Farmland Shock: Georgia Grower Drops 3,000 Acres, Warns of …
The post The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
“When America’s early pioneers first turned their eyes toward the West, they did not demand that somebody take care of them if they got ill or got old. They did not demand maximum pay for minimum work, and even pay for no work at all.” – Paul Harvey
The post The Editors’ Quote Of The Day: appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
It's not so much that being older makes one less able to learn, short of cognitive issues. It's just that we get used to a certain way of doing things and don't wish to change. My teenage grandchildren would be mortified to know I still have a flip phone. It's not that I can't use a smartphone; the cockpit of an A-320 makes a phone's technology look like something Fisher Price built. But this brick of a phone has survived being kicked, dropped in a puddle, run over by a bike, mawed by a medley of dog teeth, and it just keeps working and has done so for less than $50 plus the monthly fee to keep it connected. It has "the ringing app," the only one I really need, as when the desk computer shuts down, I wish no further electronic leash to the world.
But I notice now that I'm retired, I do tend to get into a routine. Up before 7 each day, the dog out for some exercise with me, coffee and a bowl of hot cereal (the pancake breakfasts are for Saturdays, the rest of the time it's "Honey Bunches of Gruel"). Then, outside of the volunteer work I do 3 days a week and the occasional consult for someone in a suit who will pay big $$ to pick my brain to prep for a trial, my time is my own.
But am I going to take up knitting, put my feet up, and watch my hair go grey? (Something that my hair so far seems reluctant to do, red hair apparently being as stubborn as the rest of me?) No.
I couldn't do that at 30; I'm definitely not going to do it now. No, I will leave my comfortable chair and head out, as inconsequential a move as a bird leaving a trusted branch. Something just draws me out of my solitude, a whisper, the sound of a train, the wind in the trees, and I'm heading out, be it on foot or wheels. Just as it was when I was working, I'm constantly looking all around me, noting the people rushing about, their eyes disregarding the sun, their shadows unaware of the branches that wave over them, chattering with the tweets and calls of life. Rushing about until the days are gone until that last one, where all the words of hope and defiance, of great joy and great risks, which take wing so easily into the free immensity of a living sky, fall wearily into that newly dug grave.
Then I will go home and make some music because that special intensity of existence we think is reserved for the young is calling. For you see, long after my "youth" was gone, I went out and bought a violin.
I was always good on the piano and the clarinet, but as far as the violin was concerned, I had the musical gift of a dyslexic tree sloth, but I tried. My fingers were a bit stiff, but the music was still in me, even if only Barkley was around to be the music critic.
By Dave Workman A writer at Michigan News Source is reporting how anti-gun Democrat lawmakers are “nowhere near finished” pushing restrictive gun control in the Great Lake State, even after passing gun laws steadily over the past few years. Among those measures, according to writer J.P. Isbell, are mandatory safe storage requirements in homes with […]
The post Report: Michigan Dems Not Through with Gun Control; Likewise Elsewhere appeared first on Liberty Park Press.
Bourbon has a number of criteria that must be met before it can be called bourbon. At least 51% corn, distilled in the US, aged in new oak barrels, barreled at no more than 125 proof. Straight bourbon is two years old.
Many of you know my fondness for Evan Willians Bottled in Bond. It's my bouse whiskey, aged at least four years, bottled at 100 proof. It's good hooch.
I also like Buffalo Trace. One of the products of that distillery is Benchmark. It's a bottom-shelf, straight bourbon whiskey. Over the years, I have consumed my share. I was in the liquor store today and found a bottle that they call Full Proof. Bottled at 125 proof, this hooch is not watered down.
For $25 out the door, not a bad deal. I brought a bottle home and we'll try it on in a little bit. If nothing else, it should be a good mixer for cocktails.

The look and feel of a wood stock, the mechanical advantages of a chassis! The new Deadset from Boyds combines the best of both.![]() |
| Before |
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| After. Yes, that's Twitter on the big screen. You've got the head of the CIA in the room and you've got some OSINT Twitter account on the screen. WTF? |
The post Buying W.W. Greener: Tales from the Golden Age of Surplus first appeared on Forgotten Weapons.
On January 3, 2026, a United States force of military personnel, assisting United States law enforcement captured and took into custody Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro. Maduro had taken control of the government of Venezuela, and illegitimately refused to transfer power after losing the last election. An indictment against Maduro had been issued by a New York grand jury in 2020, accusing the Maduros of conspiracy to transport and sell illegal drugs into the United States.
Because the United States does not recognize the Maduro regime as the legitimate government of Venezuela and because of the indictment against Maduro, his wife and others, this was considered to be a United States law enforcement action where the assistance of the United States military and intelligence agencies was required. It is a tribute to the Trump Administration the operational security of the operation was well executed. The American media did not receive leaks of the operation. Congress was not made aware of the operation until it was well underway. Secretary of State Rubio made clear such communication could not be done because of the nature of the operation and mission. President Trump made clear no American lives were lost during the mission.
Because the Maduros and others were indicted of conspiracy to import tons of illegal drugs in to the United States (over more than 25 years!) United States law allows the conspirators to be charged with illegal possession of machine guns and destructive devices. From the Maduro Indictment:
Count Two of this Superseding Indictment, knowingly used and carried firearms, and, in furtherance of such crimes, knowingly possessed firearms, and aided and abetted the use, carrying, and possession of firearms, to wit, machineguns that were capable of automatically shooting more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger, as well as destructive devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(c)(l)(A) and 924(c)(l)(B)(ii).
(Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(0) and 3238.)
In paragraph 37 of the indictment, the United States declares the defendants "shall forfeit to the United States" all firearms and ammunition used in the commission the offenses. It may seem odd that actors who never entered United States territory and whose action occurred outside United States territory can be found guilty of United States crimes. Such law has precedent from piracy and smuggling laws, where organizations involved in such actions stayed outside of the United States.
The action to bring the Maduros into custody, to stand trial in the United States has precedent from the arrest of Manuel Noriega, dictator in Panama, on January 3, 1990, 36 years ago. This correspondent spent five years in Panama under the Noriega regime. The situation was rather similar. The people of Panama did not consider Manuel Noriega and his confederates to be a legitimate government. The invasion of Panama was executed rapidly with overwhelming force. The lost of life was much greater than appears to be the case in Venezuela, but was small in military terms. Manuel Noriega found Jesus in prison in the USA. He was extradited back to Panama custody in December of 2011, where he had been convicted of murder. He died in prison in 2017. The fate of the Maduros is yet to be written.
The ability of the United States military, law enforcement and intelligence agencies to execute such a strike with overwhelming force, speed and precision stands in stark contrast with the bungle of a similar effort by Russia, almost four years ago. In a decapitation strike against the Ukrainian government of President Volodymyr Zelenski, Russian special forced failed to take control of the government. The Russian special forces which survived the decapitation effort were killed or captured. Russia and Ukraine remain in a bloody, stalemated war.
In Venezuela, it seems unlikely there will be much opposition to a United States supervised transition to a legitimate government. Maduro is widely unpopular. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reported much of the security apparatus in Venezuela had been taken over by Cubans. He stated a challenge of transition to a legitimate government will be the removal of Cubans from Venezuelan government and security forces. From the press conference, by Rubio:
One of the biggest problems Venezuelans have is they have to declare independence from Cuba.
President Trump stated U.S. oil companies will rebuild the Venezuelan oil infrastructure. The oil revenue from Venezuela will be used to rebuild Venezuela, to make those harmed by the Venezuelan regime whole, and to benefit the people of Venezuela.
It is to be hoped the right of Venezuelan citizens to possess firearms will be restored in a future government. It seems likely a new Constitution will be written and voted on in Venezuela in the future. The Chavez regime changed the previous Constitution considerably.
©2026 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
Police say they responded to an attempted robbery call at the Quick Check Store, located at 1570 Alcy Road.
Officers were told that a man approached the checkout counter and pulled out a black handgun, which prompted the store clerk to pull out a gun and fire a shot at the suspect, striking him in the upper body.
The suspect then ran away on foot, running northbound on Perry Road and Alcy Road. Police stated that the suspect is known to frequent the area.
On January 7th, 1558, Calais, the last English possession in France, was retaken by French troops under Duc de Guise. (The Pale of Calais had been an exclave and parliamentary borough of England across the Strait of Dover from 1347 to 1558.) The painting above, The Siege of Calais was completed by François-Édouard Picot in 1838. — January 7th, 1610, Galileo Galilei discovered the first three moons of Jupiter: Io, Europa and Ganymede. — And on January 7th, 1930, French physicist Marguerite Perey discovered Francium (Fr), the last naturally occurring element to be found. — Today’s feature article is a guest …
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Editor’s Introductory Note: The alarming trend that is described in this article is also taking place in many other book genres. It is possible that at least one of the author names cited in this article may be genuine, so I’m preemptively stating: Jennifer Rader’s article is an attempt to accurately describe the extent of A.I.-generated trickery in contemporary publishing. If the she has mentioned any actual living human authors by mistake, our apologies. We will be glad to update this article with corrections or clarifications. – JWR — As a preparedness author, the meteoric rise in the number of …
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Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — Federal court strikes down California open carry gun ban as unconstitutional. Here is an excerpt from the article: “A federal court in California on Friday struck down the state’s law that prohibits people from openly carrying guns in most public places, ruling that the state law was unconstitutional because it violated the …
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“The Great Depression, like most other periods of severe unemployment, was produced by government mismanagement rather than by any inherent instability of the private economy.” – Milton Friedman
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