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We obviously don't think it's vital to our national security or else we wouldn't have closed all the bases we used to have there.
I would also point out that ratified treaties, such as the North Atlantic Treaty, have the force of law in the US.
So any order of hostilities against Danish territory is prima facie, de facto and de jure, cut and dried, no two ways around it and any way you slice it, definitionally an illegal order.
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The National Instant Background Check System (NICS) numbers, adjusted by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) have dropped 3.4% below December of 2024 and 4.1% below the adjusted sales for 2024 for the entire year of 2025.
The pattern of adjusted NICS checks is remarkably similar to that of 2024, with slight variations. A minor variation is in 2024, August numbers were higher than in September. In 2025, the numbers climb from a low in July to a maximum in December. From NSSF:
The December 2025 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 1,587,049 is a decrease of 3.4 percent compared to the December 2024 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,642,270. For comparison, the unadjusted December 2025 FBI NICS figure of 2,220,852 reflects a 16.1 percent decrease from the unadjusted FBI NICS figure of 2,647,933 in December 2024.
The annual 2025 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 14,612,314 reflects a decrease of 4.1 percent compared to the 15,239,011 figure for annual 2024.
The chart of annual adjusted NICS numbers show a gradual decline in annual firearm sales from the peak during the tumultuous and hotly contested election of 2020 through most of the first year of President Trump's second term. President Trump has recorded success after success during the past year. Most people in the gun culture are seeing both greater domestic stability and a lower level of international chaos and crises. A form of shaky peace has been imposed on the middle east. Iran has been rendered nearly impotent, as have its proxies, the Houtis, Hezbollah, and Hamas. President Trump has had success in damping down hot spots between Cambodia and Thailand, Kosovo and Serbia, DRC and Rwanda, Pakistan and India, Egypt and Ethiopia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. While peace has yet to break out between Ukraine and Russia, serious talks are occurring.
On the domestic front, Inflation is down, the stock market is up, GDP is increasing and energy prices are down. As the United States enters the new year, prosperity appears to be breaking out and violent crime has been falling. The numbers are not completed for 2025. The trend has been toward 2025 setting the record for the lowest homicide rate ever recorded in the United States. We will not know if a record has been set for another month or two.
An upturn in international and domestic affairs may have reduced motivations to purchase firearms. It is possible greater prosperity could incentivize people to spend more disposable income. Such potential is not showing up in the NICS figures at this time.
When the NICS adjusted figures are compared to the more accurate ATF figures from Firearms Commerce in the United States, the averages have been converging. ATF figures are reported a year and a half later than NICS, to respect manufacturers' property rights. The numbers from 2000 - 2023 show the number of firearms added to private stock to be 90% of the numbers shown in the NICS adjusted figures. When the last decade of available numbers are used, 2014-2023, the ATF numbers are 98% of the NICS adjusted numbers. It seems likely the last two years have added 30 million more firearms to the private stock in the United States. This equates to a total of 540 million firearms in the USA at the end of 2025.
How close is the United States to market saturation? Considerable growth is possible. If growth continues in the USA, a miracle may happen. The debt and budget deficit may be brought under control. Such would seem impossible for any president other than President Trump. It would be impossible if we were not on the brink of incredible technological breakthroughs such as fusion power, autonomous vehicles, breakthrough reductions in cost to orbit, and... even... increasingly powerful artificial intelligence. Any one of these technologies, if widely implemented, has the potential of enormous increases in productivity.
The elimination of the $200 tax on silencers, short barreled rifles, short barreled shotguns, and any other weapons (AOW) in the National Firearms Act (NFA) has the potential to unleash significant demand. Such demand would be multiplied if those items are completely removed from the NFA, as seems possible, but not probable in the next year. Unconfirmed reports show applications for Form 1 and Form 4 from the ATF has reached over 250,000 in the first week of 2026. The table has been set for a more prosperous year in 2026.
©2025 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
According to DPS, the shooting happened when two men, including suspect
Marco Frazier, were inside the house arguing. The caller told law
enforcement that during the argument, Frazier shot the man, causing the
man to shoot back, hitting the woman as well as the infant.
Police say after a security guard broke up a fight inside the club, the suspects returned around 4:30 a.m. and opened fire on him.
According to investigators, two men in a nearby car thought they were being shot at, so both of them started shooting as well.
The security guard was shot in the stomach.
He was taken to the hospital in stable condition.
Police say all of the suspects are in custody.
@grace.bonjibon Made my week. Think I’m gonna frame this in a PINK frame. #dod #goodvibesonly #soldier #canadianbusiness ♬ Piano famous song Chopin Deep deep clear beauty - RYOpianoforte
- We're the Only Ones Disorganized Enough: ICE accidentally extends job offer to Slate reporter
- We're the Only Ones Authoritarian Enough: Cop Used Flock to Wrongfully Accuse a Woman Then Refused to Look at Evidence That Exonerated Her, Body Camera Shows
- We're the Only Ones Warrantless Enough: Federal Agents Used a Battering Ram to Enter a Minneapolis Home Without Valid Warrant, Video Shows
On January 15, 1907, the first 3-element vacuum tube was patented by American inventor Lee DeForest. — This is the anniversary of the 2009 “Miracle On The Hudson” engines-out emergency water landing. — Today is the birthday of Dr. Edward Teller who co-invented the H-bomb and worked on the Manhattan Project. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value), A Peak …
The post Preparedness Notes for Thursday — January 15, 2026 appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
We lived in Mongolia in the early 1990s, for a few years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, during a time when the system had officially ended but its habits had not yet loosened their grip on daily life. I was in my early thirties, married, with two young daughters, trying to build a life far from anything familiar. We were not passing through, and we were not insulated expatriates. We were attempting to function inside the local economy, under local conditions, with consequences that were immediate and personal. At the time, I did not think of what we …
The post Preparedness Lessons From Communist Mongolia – Part 1, by G.K. 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: mutated bird flu viruses. Bird Flu Mutations Cause Concern Reader B.T. sent us this, from The New York Times: Bird Flu Viruses Raise Mounting Concerns Among Scientists. The article …
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“The wild Indian power of escaping observation, even where there is little or no cover to hide in, was probably slowly acquired in hard hunting and fighting lessons while trying to approach game, take enemies by surprise, or get safely away when compelled to retreat.” – John Muir
The post The Editors’ Quote Of The Day: appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
Who would have guessed a hundred years ago that Stanley Baldwin was right?
I dunno - he looks a little Woodrow Wilsonish to me. But if you're right, you're right.
And Nota Bene: it seems that DuckDuckGo can't find the link to that last post. Strangely, Google can. Search sting site:borepatch.blogspot.com best worst presidents on each site. So long, DuckDuckGo, it's been fun. But I can't trust you, and neither should my readers.
I saw this meme earlier and didn't believe it. It was too inane, too fantasy-driven, too problematic to be anywhere close to the truth. Turns out, it is probably true. As it turns out, the first words scrammed by the passenger in the vehicle of the woman shot by ICE, screamed, "Why did you have real bullets?"
Did she think that this was some play-action fantasy?
The problem with these folks is that they cannot differentiate between Instagram reels, TikTok shorts, and the real world. In the fantasy of holding ICE accountable, everyone goes home safe. In the fantasy of video gaming, there is a reset button.
This gal who was killed is not some "white chick George Floyd", as I've seen her described. She is not a martyr to a cause. She is just the latest example of a lethal force encounter going very bad, very quickly.
For my entire police career, as I was getting ready for my shift, I'd look in the mirror and ask myself if I were willing to take a human life that day. We do a job in the real world with real consequences. Thankfully, I never had to take a life. I drew my weapon only four times in the line of duty. I never had to fire. For that I am thankful.
Today's "protestors" don't seem to understand lethal force. That is unfortunate, because the cops understand it very well. There is no reset button. It is forever.
Today I was able to sneak out to the range for a couple hours for Wheelgun Wednesday. I brought two hoglegs with me: A Cimarron Model P in .44-40 WCF and a Cimarron Pistolero in .357 Magnum, shooting .38 Special ammunition.
First I ran two new-to-me handloads through the Model P. Both were loaded in Starline brass with a CCI No.300 primer and 7.0 grains of Winchester 244 powder. The first batch was loaded with a 200 grain lead round nose flat point (LRNFP) bullet, while the second was loaded with a 215 grain LRNFP.
The results were interesting and the opposite of what you'd expect. I.e., the lighter bullets ran slower than the heavier bullets. I attribute this to higher pressure with the higher bullet. I've seen this before with .38/44 handloads, where 5.9 grains of Herco gave ~100 FPS more muzzle velocity with a 178 grain Keith bullet than a 158 grain LSWC.
With the 200 grain bullet I got an average muzzle velocity of 827.1 FPS for 304 ft.lbs. of energy from the Model P's 5.5" barrel.
The 215 grain bullets ran at an average 903.3 FPS for 389.7 ft.lbs. of energy. About a 76 FPS difference. Both strings were 10 shots.
After running the .44s over the Garmin I changed to 10 yards and ran the Hickock-North drill with both guns, and also 6 shots one-handed on a B-8 center, followed by 10 shots fired two-handed on a B-8 center.
The ammo I used in the Pistolero were handloads with a Lee TL358-158 SWC over 4.7 grains of Unique, which ran about 842 FPS from my 4" S&W Model 15 last week. They should be going around that from the .357-chambered but 4-5/8" barreled Pistolero.
Anyway, I need to continue to work on my one-hand shooting and well as file down the front sight on the Model P, which shoots low.
Three girls were rescued by police in Lethbridge from a forced confinement situation in which one of the girls was allegedly drugged and pimped out to several men over multiple days.
The Lethbridge Police Service said on Tuesday it has charged a man with unlawful confinement, sexual exploitation and human trafficking in connection with multiple incidents where vulnerable girls were targeted and sexually assaulted....
Atoa, who police said has been in custody since his arrest in mid-December, was granted bail following a court hearing on Monday. He is anticipated to be released from custody Tuesday on several conditions.
Knowing how to defeat locks isn't just a fun hobby, it's useful information that might help save a life. The post Yugoslav M92: The Serbian 7.62x39mm Pseudo-Krink first appeared on Forgotten Weapons.
An article published on rollingout.com claims to "debunk" myths about guns with "real data". All the "real data" used is from advocates who oppose the ownership of guns. If you skip to the end of the article, the source listed for the numbers used in the article is everytownresearch. Everytownresearch is one of the propaganda arms of the anti-Second Amendment organization Everytown for Gun Safety, financed by Michael Bloomberg, a stanch anti-Second Amendment advocate. To use such a source to "debunk" myths is similar to asking the Flat Earth Society to "debunk" myths about gravity.
The pitch starts with the presumption some nebulous entity called "the gun industry" has "spent decades convincing people that danger lurks around every corner" . This is a peculiar and highly dubious statement. Gun makers are shut out of most major media. You do not see ads for guns on major television shows. You don't see ads for guns at the Superbowl. You hardly see any ads showing guns used defensively against crime. Most social networks vigorously ban advertisements of weapons. To claim otherwise is a Marxian fantasy. The old dominant media often parrot anti-Second Amendment myths. Such dominance is fading.
Having grown up in the gun culture in the decades referred to in the article, there is some truth about the danger of crime to families being overemphasized. It isn't by the "gun industry". It is by the old media, movies, television shows, and the emphasis of media on violent crime. This correspondent recalls many television shows which would have become much shorter if the "victims" were armed.
Yes, the gun culture in the United States has shifted from hunting to personal protection, target shooting, and protection from government tyranny. It is a reasonable shift which goes with the shift from a rural culture to an urban culture.
The society in the USA has become much more affluent and fractured. People are more concerned about safety. The number of firearms in society is not related to the number of homicides and violent crime in society.
A significant number of gun owners see guns as an insurance policy, similar to a fire extinguisher in your home. The Rollingout.com writer notes that violent crimes have dropped in recent years. Crime and risk from crime is highly individual and specific. Violent crime rises and falls. Risk depends on individual circumstances as to whether a firearm is useful or not. Your risk depends a great deal on your circumstances and your neighborhood. As with a fire extinguisher, a firearm for personal protection may never be needed. If it is, the need is often immediate and severe.
The article leans heavily on the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), which does not ask about defensive gun uses. The defensive use of a firearm is only discovered if the defender self-identifies as a victim of a crime. Unsurprisingly, it is an outlier in surveys about how often firearms are used defensively. The author tries to make some point about how most perpetrators of crime are not armed with guns. This is true, but points out exactly why guns are so effective for defense.
The article cherry picks statistics from victimization surveys, and from anti-Second Amendment activists.
Unsurprisingly, the article ignores research which contradicts the narrative that "guns are bad". There is no mention of minority women in crime ridden urban centers benefiting the most from being able to legally defend themselves with weapons. No mention of gun "buybacks" being associated with small, but statistically significant increases in crime. No mention of homicide rates rising in countries where bans on guns are imposed. No mention of suicide rates persisting when gun bans are put into effect, and other methods are substituted. No mention of a correlation with the legal carry of guns and decreased homicide rates. These effects are debated, but there is debate. To ignore these findings is intellectually dishonest.
This correspondent has read most of the academic literature in the debate about whether ownership of firearms has a positive or negative effect on safety. The largest drivers of suicide and homicide rates are cultural. England had much lower rates of homicide than the United States when the United States had stricter gun control than England did, about 1914. The homicide rate in England rose as they instituted more gun control. Gun control in England was about political control, not crime.
The ownership of firearms plays a relatively small role in suicide and homicide rates. Firearms are popular because firearms increase personal power. They can play major roles in individual circumstances. A 100 lb woman with a gun is on par with a 250 lb man. Firearms even out power imbalances created by muscle, mass and age. Firearms are great equalizers for women.
In the United States, the debate about small effects on safety is winding down. It is becoming irrelevant because rights protected by the Second Amendment are being restored. If a person thinks they cannot responsibly handle firearm ownership, the are not required to own a gun. Police officers, who deal with criminal violence on a regular basis, reject this notion.
The Rollingout article ignores the Second Amendment, because the Second Amendment renders their argument superfluous. There are over 500 million firearms in private hands in the United States. Firearm ownership is popular, and becoming more popular. Firearms are fun, firearms are effective, firearms are often used to protect the innocent. The repeal of the Second Amendment is a totalitarian wish, which would render the Constitution toothless.
©2026 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
In a news release, Fort Worth police said the suspect told authorities that the man "aggressively" came toward him, so the suspect fired multiple shots, striking the man an unknown number of times.
The man ran from the scene but collapsed nearby at the intersection of Ave. L and Bishop, which is where responding officers found him lying on the sidewalk, police said.
The suspect told officers he called 911 and requested medical help as he remained at the scene to cooperate.
Fort Worth Police said no arrests have been made at this time, and homicide detectives have taken the lead in the investigation.
On January 14, 1799. American inventor Eli Whitney received a government contract for 10,000 muskets. While his competitors largely produced guns with hand-fitted parts, Whitney became famous as an innovator with his designs that featured interchangeable parts. — And on January 14, 1873: “Celluloid” was registered as a trademark by its inventor John Wesley Hyatt. — I just heard that cartoonist Scott Adams passed away. Rest in Peace. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. …
The post Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — January 14, 2026 appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) In a previous article I had described a possible need for having some form of radio communications receiver in a TEOTWAWKI situation. It is just good policy to have something you can hide, run on very low voltage, and in the case of this radio, a battery that you can recharge using a solar panel to generate a charge into a battery bank. This radio is an AM receiver set only. However, the chip set can work at much higher shortwave (SW) frequencies and I am researching the possibility of using it …
The post The Elenco Two-IC AM Radio Kit – Part 2, by Mike in Alaska appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
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. Pictured above is an old stereo view of the frosted beards of some Klondike miners. — Mike in Alaska wrote: “In the time since December 20th, 2025 and this morning we have had consistent temperatures at or below -35 degrees; in addition we have had 23” of snowfall, and our snow will not …
The post SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
“You know, for most of its life bluegrass has had this stigma of being all straw hats and hay bales and not necessarily the most sophisticated form of music. Yet you can’t help responding to its honesty. It’s music that finds its way deep into your soul because it’s strings vibrating against wood and nothing else.” – Alison Krauss
The post The Editors’ Quote Of The Day: appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
All the best cancer doctors in the country told me that I would most likely be dead by February 2026 if I didn’t treat my metastatic prostate cancer. Although there is still a chance I might randomly die in the next two weeks, I’m going to prematurely announce that all the best cancer […]I expect to resume operations on the 26th. Please hold off on emails, news tips, and comments, which i may or may not be able to approve unless I learn how to do it on my phone, and I really hope to be spending my time differently. I have an AmmoLand article on an Idaho … Continue reading "Gone Fishing"
The post Gone Fishing first appeared on The War on Guns.
I see that the news is awash with the tragic tale of a gal in Minnesota who was recently killed in an altercation with federal ICE officers in Minneapolis.
It's tragic. The death of anyone is tragic.
In 37 years behind the badge, I was regularly trained on Use of Force during my yearly training. It has become stenciled on my brain. Louisiana law mirrors the law in much of the country. Let's take a look at the law, shall we? Louisiana Revised Statute 14:20 says in part:
A. A homicide is justifiable:
(1) When committed in self-defense by one who reasonably believes that he is in imminent danger of losing his life or receiving great bodily harm and that the killing is necessary to save himself from that danger.
There is nothing there that talks about the intent of the deceased. We cannot know what she was thinking, nor the state of her mind at the time of the incident. All that is necessary is the perception of the officer that he was in danger of great bodily harm or death.
Her death is tragic, no doubt. We will never know what might have happened if the officer did not use deadly force. It is a question we need not ask. You might note that in Louisiana, at least, there is no difference in the law between a sworn officer and a common citizen. The justification is there for anyone to use.
I'm just saying.
Upgrading the Springfield Armory Kuna with a new lower from Nexus Firearms! Better trigger, better magazines!Snoop Dogg proves he’s still in Hollywood’s good graces despite Trump controversy – Rapper received applause and cheers from the star-studded crowd while presenting best podcast award at Beverly Hilton ceremony [More] So, I guess the guy’s Teflon on his luring underage girls deal… Understandable.
The post Count Your Lucky Stars first appeared on The War on Guns.
I’ll be out of office for the next two weeks and will post a “Gone Fishing” notice at the end of the work day. I’ll try to get to more news tips today if they’re sent in soon, otherwise, please don’t exert yourselves.
The post Slow Going Ahead first appeared on The War on Guns.
I’ll be curious to see if Go Fund Me allows this to remain— if not, there’s no risk to donors and I’m sure other ways will be tried. [More] Looks like my curiosity’s been satisfied: At least I got the “No Risk” part right: Per Henry’s comment, I’ve suggested GiveSendGo to DeStefano’s friends. UPDATE via … Continue reading "I Guess My Money’s Not Good Enough…"
The post I Guess My Money’s Not Good Enough… first appeared on The War on Guns.
Trump endorses Bruce Blakeman in New York governor’s race after Rep. Stefanik’s exit [More] I somehow missed the whole drama, including her leaving after he sat on his hands. So who is this “Republican conservative” with the Don’s seal of approval? When it comes to gun control, he’s pretty much in lock step with Hochul … Continue reading "With ‘Republicans’ Like These…"
The post With ‘Republicans’ Like These… first appeared on The War on Guns.
Just before Christmas, the even more radical California State Bar imperiously advised the state’s 200,000 lawyers “Read it, declare it, mean it.” That ominous warning introduced the California Supreme Court’s Orwellian Rule 9.7 which requires every lawyer to attest that: “As an officer of the court, I will strive to conduct myself at all times … Continue reading "Making Lemonade Out of Lemons"
The post Making Lemonade Out of Lemons first appeared on The War on Guns.
John Petrolino profiles the major gun groups for Concealed Carry Magazine. [More]
The post Alphabet Soup first appeared on The War on Guns.
Google Tells 13-Year-Olds How They Can Disable Parental Controls [More] But they impose controls themselves if guns are involved. [Via Michael G]
The post Being Evil first appeared on The War on Guns.
As Republicans for the first time outnumber Democrats in North Carolina and as we flirt with the supermajority needed to override anti-gun Governor Josh Stein’s inevitable vetoes, leftists have a new tactic: They are registering as Republicans… If successful, how do you think they will vote on gun bills? [More] Better than dopey old Vichycons, … Continue reading "The Shapeshifter Menace"
The post The Shapeshifter Menace first appeared on The War on Guns.
1 in custody, 1 injured, after shooting on campus of Mott Community College [More] Doesn’t anybody read the rules anymore? Acts Of Prohibited Conduct Include, But Not Limited To … possession or storage of any weapon … on college premises or at college sponsored activities either on or off campus. So, what’s an attackee to … Continue reading "Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before"
The post Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before first appeared on The War on Guns.
An article published on rollingout.com claims to “debunk” myths about guns with “real data”. All the “real data” used is from advocates who oppose the ownership of guns. [More] Meet the “MythBuster.“ Is this anything like the 419 Scam…?
The post Busting the MythBuster first appeared on The War on Guns.
he Florida 2025 black bear hunt has been a flop as an attempt to manage the bear population in Florida. It may have been successful as a trial run on how to manage a bear hunt. Only 52 bears were harvested. To keep a stable population, at least 600 bears should have been harvested, probably 1500. About 15 % of a black bear population needs to be harvested to keep a stable population. From myfwc.com:
There were 52 bears harvested during the 2025 bear hunt, which is a hunter success rate very close to other states with similar hunt parameters. All harvested bears were physically checked by FWC staff and bear response contractors, providing valuable data that will influence future management strategies. Analysis of the data collected is underway, and a full harvest report will be released in the coming months.
In 2024, 295 Florida bears were killed in vehicular accidents. One thing missing from the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) press release is an estimate of the population of bears in Florida. This important number is essential when managing a wildlife population. The last official estimate is from 2014-2015, over a decade ago. An estimate was supposed to be done in 2025. The FWC now says a population estimate may be done by 2029. In 2014-2015, the estimate put the Florida bear population at 4,350 bears. In the 2019 Florida Black Bear Management Plan, the best estimate showed an expected bear population in 2026-2027 of 11,088. This is very close to the estimate of pre-Columbian bear population of 11,500. These estimates do not include cubs.
The estimate of 11,088 bears is for the four largest subpopulations of bears in Florida. The three smallest subpopulations in Florida added another 238 bears in 2014-2015. Those populations have probably doubled in the last decade. Other than vehicle accidents, the largest killer of bears in Florida is the adult male bear. Adult male bears kill (and usually eat) about 1/2 of cubs before the cubs become independent. Boar bears almost certainly kill over a thousand bear cubs in Florida every year.
When adult male bears are harvested by human hunters, they kill fewer cubs. More bear cubs have a chance to become adults. To stabilize a bear population, about 10-15% of the adult bears have to be harvested every year. In Michigan, the bear harvest has been about 15% of the bear population for many years. The Michigan bear population continues to grow. Bear harvests in Michigan average over 1,700 per year, from a bear population of 12,000. We do not know the bear population in Florida, because the FWC has been rather slow in measuring the population. Using the best estimate from the FWC plan published in 2019, there should be over ten thousand bears in Florida. To stabilize the bear population, the harvest should be about 1,500 per year.
Next year, if the FWC decides to stabilize the Florida bear population, they should issue at least 20 times the permit numbers issued in 2025, or about 3,000. If the proportion of success is the same as in 2025, about 900 bears would be harvested. This number is still to low to stabilize the Florida bear population, but it would provide more data to confirm success ratios for bear hunters.
©2025 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
According to Sterling Heights police and county prosecutors, Bradley was attending the house party Saturday night at a residence on 14 Mile Road, west of Ryan Road, when he became involved in an argument with another guest inside the home.
Investigators said the dispute continued outside the home, where Bradley allegedly walked to the end of the driveway and began shooting at the home, striking the three victims.
“Globalization of the intifada“? In Jackson, Mississippi?
If you handed that Pittman kid a Zippo and a jerry can and positioned him in the center of a quadrangle equidistant from a synagogue, a mosque, a Black church, and a gay bar, he’d be as effectively pinned in place as if there were a force field. He’d starve.
On January 13, 1404, The Act of Multipliers was passed by the English Parliament, forbidding alchemists to use their knowledge to create precious metals. (It was feared that if any alchemist should succeed, it would bring ruin upon the state.) — January 13, 1733: British officer James Oglethorpe and 130 English colonists arrived at Charleston, South Carolina — And January 13, 2023, China reported 60,000 COVID-19-related deaths in just over a month, while another report estimates 900 million people have been infected, 64% of the country’s population. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of …
The post Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — January 13, 2026 appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
Introductory Note: I purchased this kit for this article and I do not represent the Elenco Company. They have not paid me or provided any materiel for writing this article. This article is a review on the Elenco Model AM-780K AM radio kit. It was designed for students in an electronics lab class, and when I was working on my associate’s degree in Electronics Engineering the college I was attending issued us both the AM radio kit from this company as well as the AM/FM version of it. The knowledge I want to pass on here is that should you …
The post The Elenco Two-IC AM Radio Kit – Part 1, by Mike in Alaska appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
This weekly column features media from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. Recent Redoubt Links Congrats to gun trainers Clint & Heidi Smith, who are opening a new shooting school at the Cody Shooting complex, near Cody, Wyoming. Video: 15 Wyoming Freedoms That Would Be Illegal Almost Everywhere Else. JWR’s Comment: Interesting… It appears that they sped up the video by 10% or more, to match the short attention spans of some contemporary viewers. Breakthrough: Idaho Lab Produces World’s First Molten …
The post SurvivalBlog’s American Redoubt Media of the Week appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.
“The foundation stones for a balanced success are honesty, character, integrity, faith, love and loyalty.” – Zig Ziglar
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When I built this shop back in the winter of 201-2018, one of the things I built of scrap lumber was a temporary table that we could use as a cook prep area and to use as a serving table. Built from scrap 2x4s and plywood, it was never meant to become a permanent fixture, but it is so damned useful that it keeps being used even today.
A major reason why I got this set is because I think they'll be especially useful with powders that don't meter consistently with small charges, where a difference of 0.1 or 0.2 grains can make a big difference (e.g, Red Dot and Unique).
A few years ago when reloading components were hard to come by, one of the powders that was seen relatively frequently on the shelf was Winchester 244, which is just ahead of Alliant Unique on Hodgdon's burn rate chart. When searching for loading data for Win-244 a common theme is that there is not much to be found.
I picked up a pound in 2024 and loaded a box of .38 Special 158 grain LSWCs but didn't do much with it. I mostly use Bullesye, Titegroup, and HP-38 in .38 Special, with some Unique thrown in for variety.
One thing I like about 244 is that like the other ball powders it meters consistently, so I wanted to find a use for it.
Another cartridge I load for is .44-40 WCF, which I shoot in a Cimarron Model P revolver, a Cimarron 1860 Henry rifle, and a Cimarron 1873 Sporting Rifle (all built by Uberti). Loaddata.com has data for Winchester 244 in .44-40, with 200 grain bullets ranging from 6.8 grains to 7.6 grains, and for 223 grain bullets from 6.5 to 7.4 grains, so today I decided to load some up.
Muzzle velocities for these loads range from around 928 FPS to a bit over 1,000 FPS from a 7" Colt Frontier Six Shooter, according to Loaddata.com. That's in the ballpark of what .44-40 will do with full charges of high quality black powder, e.g., Swiss.
I loaded 50 with a 200 grain RNFP from Desperado Cowboy Bullets and 50 with a 215 grain RNFP from Matt's Bullets, both over 7.0 grains of 244, which I dispensed using the No.9 rotor in my RCBS Little Dandy.
Performance of this should be similar to the Skeeter Load of a 250 grain Keith bullet over 7.5 grains of Unique in .44 Special, albeit with lighter bullets.
I'm hoping to try them out next weekend.
NOTE: Make sure you verify the load data before relying upon it, and if you use a Little Dandy do not rely on what my measure throws. Verify that yourself with a scale and your powder measure.
Here’s a horror story for you, with as happy an ending as the horrendous circumstances allowed. In retrospect, I can say it probably would have ended better if the parents had been able to access a gun. In Massachusetts where it happened, even owning handguns let alone carrying them legally is a hassle, but it […]‘Disgusting’: Same professional protester allegedly found at nearly 100 different protests – ‘Here’s her saying ban guns, not drag. Amazing. This is her telling us that lies have consequences’ [More] As long as reward exceed disincentives…
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This post is the third in a series on how to make your home network harder to attack. Here are links to posts one and two.
Post two introduces the concept of a Firewall which is a device that lets you connect to the Internet without letting the Internet connect to you. Firewall technology comes embedded in your Internet provider's device like a Cable TV modem. A recent article does a comparison on a number of these devices.
If you look at the device it will look a lot like this:
The red colored connection goes out to the Internet, the yellow ones go to your devices (as does the Wifi). This one has a connection for a landline telephone as well (ask your parents, kids).
Installing the device is really simple - red (labeled "WAN") goes to the outside which is untrusted, and yellow/WiFi go to your own devices which are trusted.
Except nothing is as simple as that. Your Internet provider actually owns the firewall device, it's not really yours. Some providers run their own WiFi network for other subscribers who happen to be passing by - Verizon is notorious for this, and you will often find all sorts of WiFi networks called "VerizonXYZ" or some such.
So who is outside the firewall, and who is inside? The question may sound pedantic but it's terribly important. Fortunately there is something you can do about this.
Ships used to sink all the time but this is pretty rare these days. One major reason for this is that they are divided into compartments which are watertight - if the ship hits a rock (or, like the Andrea Doria gets rammed by another ship) only one compartment will flood and the ship can likely make it to port.
_under_construction,_1_April_1940.jpg) |
| USS South Dakota under construction |
The network security analog of this idea is to use more than one firewall. Don't trust your provider's firewall? (and you really shouldn't) Buy your own and hook it up to your provider's firewall. The red (WAN) port on your firewall gets connected to the internal (yellow) connector on the provider firewall. Now anyone that the firewall lets in can't get past your firewall.
And it really is your firewall, although you'll have to buy it with cash money. But your devices connect to your firewall's yellow network connections, or to your firewall's (NOT your provider's firewall) WiFi.
Now you don't have to trust your provider because their device doesn't have access to your internal "watertight compartment".
Linksys, Netgear, and TP-Link are low cost options, running $30 - $70 or so.
The first thing you should do is replace your firewall's operating system with dd-wrt:
DD-WRT is a Linux based alternative OpenSource firmware suitable for a great variety of WLAN routers and embedded systems. The main emphasis lies on providing the easiest possible handling while at the same time supporting a great number of functionalities within the framework of the respective hardware platform used.
Here's a step by step tutorial on how to install dd-wrt on a Netgear device:
[UPDATE: Rick T in the comments says to check the dd-wrt website before buying a device, to make sure that the software supports that particular hardware.]
Why go to this hassle? Product longevity. Consider a $60 Netgear device. The profit margin on this to Netgear is probably $5. You can't pay for a lot of enhancements or security bug fixes with that. DD-wrt is an open source project with a bunch of passionate contributors. I like my chances on having a viable, supported software five years down the road with them. Not so much the device manufacturers.
So now you have a device you can trust for the long term. We're not done yet, because there's all sorts of new tech evil that people want to use - Ring doorbells, Alexa, etc. That's tomorrow.
I've posted in the past about my two Colt single actions clones, a 4-5/8" .357 Magnum Cimarron Pistolero built by Pietta, and 5-1/2" ".44-40 Cimarron Model P built by Uberti. The Model P is built on a "black powder" style frame. I.e., the cylinder base pin is retained by a screw instead of a spring loaded plunger, which was introduced by Colt around 1895, IIRC. The plunger makes maintenance easier since removal and replacement of the cylinder doesn't require a tool.
Pietta below on the left, with the Uberti on the right. The lighting makes the color of the Pietta's frame look lighter than it actually is in normal light.
In the video, Mr. Pearce notes that the Pietta clones feature a removable cylinder bushing and a "Swiss safety," i.e., a two-position cylinder base pin that can be used to prevent the hammer from falling completely. My Uberti Model P, which has Colt-style lockwork rather than a floating firing pin, has both of these features as well. Actually, the cylinder bushing in my Pietta is stuck, and may even been peened in place so I'm leaving it be. There's no need to remove it except for replacement, at which time I'll apply judicious force.
Between the two, the Uberti has a nicer blueing job but functionally the two guns are equivalent. I can't compare accuracy since I've never benched them. That said, I'm able to hit what I'm aiming at with either gun if I do my part.
Ruger's New Model Blackhawk is certainly a more modern design, safe to carry with all 6 chambers loaded, but a well-made Colt-pattern single action is still a fine sidearm when you keep its limitations in mind.
Fears of a midterm blowout could push President Donald Trump into a “Civil War”-like response, a political expert has warned.[More] What “political expert”? Cute, the way they file partisan propaganda under “News”…
The post ‘Top Men’ first appeared on The War on Guns.
Antifa Activist: ‘This Is What the Founding Fathers Gave Us the Second Amendment For’ [More] Guess he didn’t read the bit in the Constitution about “calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions.” [Via bondmen] Tangentially-Related UPDATE Liberals Think Antifa Isn’t Real. But It Is—and It Knows How … Continue reading "What, He’s Agreeing with WHITE SLAVE OWNERS?"
The post What, He’s Agreeing with WHITE SLAVE OWNERS? first appeared on The War on Guns.
Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal — employing hipster slang and evoking a call-and-response chant — on Friday called federal immigration agents “fake, wannabe” law enforcement and claimed their actions violate both “legal law” and “moral law.” [More] Coming from a DEI appointment presiding over a cesspool of corruption and incompetence, that’s rich. That’s the thing about … Continue reading "We’re the Only Ones Real Enough"
The post We’re the Only Ones Real Enough first appeared on The War on Guns.
Bessent Signals Crackdown On Dark-Money NGO Protests ‘Just Like We Did With The Mafia’ [More] A-yup. Tools of the One Percent ought to be a meme for the next No Brains rally. [Via bondmen]
The post Follow the Money first appeared on The War on Guns.
Trump’s Greenland push escalates as GOP lawmaker moves to make it America’s 51st state- Rep Randy Fine, who is introducing the bill on Monday, says he wants the US to acquire Greenland voluntarily [More] We sure giving two senators to 57,000 people raised in an aid-dependent European mindset culture is a good idea? I guess … Continue reading "Greenland with Envy"
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By Dave Workman Everytown for Gun Safety, the Michael Bloomberg-backed gun prohibition lobbying group, is pulling out all the stops in its campaign against H.R. 8, the bill which would make national concealed carry reciprocity a realty. Lately, Everytown has been flooding Facebook with advertising loaded with inflammatory assertions such as, “Our lawmakers should focus […]
The post Everytown’s Over-the-Top Campaign Against H.R. 38 appeared first on Liberty Park Press.
UPDATE: THIS FUNDRAISER HAS BEEN TERMINATED. Stand With Lawrence DeStefano in His Fight for Justice [More] Here are the details. I never ask readers to do anything I’m not willing to do, and I’m willing to spread the word and to pitch in. It doesn’t have to be a lot. Every little bit helps. Are … Continue reading "Our Turn"
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Affordable, packed with features, and not bad to look at! The SAR9 SOCOM offers a lot of bang for every buck.Oregon only has 4 million people. And like 20 percent of their voter registrations were bad? [More] “Our democracy”… So… when do we see the Kraken? [Via Michael G]
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Former DC cop sentenced to decades behind bars for child sex trafficking… Barnhill had previously served seven years in prison for similar crimes involving minors and resumed trafficking after his release… [More] I wonder how many were of Pelosi-endorsed voting age? [Via Steve T]
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