Can You Handle The Truth ?

A lot has been said about the DHS labeling many of us as domestic terrorists but I got to thinking, what are they really afraid of ? While I won't dive into the sewer and pretend to understand what goes through their little shriveled up gray matter I have some ideas which may shed some light on it.
It is kind of odd that the extreme left claims to be big on the 1st amendment but only for themselves. They have no tolerance for conflicting view points. They proudly proclaim their right to free speech but want to stifle your right. I think the reason for this is really simple, you see I can listen to arguments and form an opinion based on fact and common sense. I am not afraid of learning the truth.
Example: In the Travon Martin case, I think from what I have heard Travon was wrong and got shot and killed for acting like a thug but if it comes out that Zimmerman was at fault then I can accept that and move on. The left on the other hand will not be that understanding if Zimmerman is not guilty. They will rant and rave about how Travon was a victim of his skin color and we are all at fault in America. This is just typical of the left's reasoning, they have a set ideal in their head and don't want to be confused by the facts, this I think is one reason they are afraid of us, they are afraid we will convince others of the truth. If you stick a knife in a pig he will squeal, and the truth hurts, just think about that the next time you see some activist protesting and ranting on TV.
Another reason they are afraid of us is we have more guns and are better shots (OK funny answer, but let's explore that) We were given the right to keep and bear arms to protect our other rights.......from government.     When the 2nd amendment was written we had come out of a war against Britain, (which BTW was our country at that time) and we needed force to fend off government tyranny and the founding fathers knew that the right to keep and bear arms was key. It was not because George Washington liked to hunt or because Benjamin Franklin's wife was assaulted in the buggy parking lot at the Piggly Wiggly. 
I think for the same reason the left wants to stifle our free speech so the truth does not come out they want to control our guns so they will have no opposition to their plan to mold this country in their own little twisted idea of utopia. This is why they tell us we don't need a AR-15 to hunt deer, or a 50 BMG to defend our home and we get suckered into the argument. 
OK I am going to make some of you uncomfortable, The second amendment was given primarily to protect ourselves from government.  The ability to hunt and protect ourselves from common thugs (as opposed to elected thugs) is just an added bonus.We don't need 'A well regulated militia' to protect ourselves in our home, if we did I would move to a better neighborhood. 
I am afraid we are at the last major cross road in this country, will we become a foot note in history or will we preserve our freedom ?
There are many writings from our founding fathers concerning out right to keep and bear arms but I leave you with a few to ponder. 

"I hope, therefore, a bill of rights will be formed to guard the people against the Federal government as they are already guarded against their State governments, in most instances."
Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, 1788

"When governments fear the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny.  The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government."
Thomas Jefferson (attributed without source)

"God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion.... And what country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms.... The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.  It is its natural manure."

Thomas Jefferson, letter to William Stephens Smith, November 13, 1787; “The Works of Thomas Jefferson,” Federal Edition (New York and London, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1904-5) Vol. 5

 

"A people armed and free forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition and is a bulwark for
the nation against foreign invasion and domestic oppression."
James Madison  (1751-1836), Father of the Constitution for the USA, 4th US President

"Arms in the hands of the citizens may be used at individual discretion for the defense of the country, the overthrow of tyranny or private self-defense." 
John Adams (1735-1826) Founding Father, 2nd US President  A Defense of the Constitution of Government of the United States of America, 1788

 

Survival Guns and Ammo

A few weeks ago I did a post on Survival Handguns listing reasons I lean toward revolvers most of the time then a few days ago I got an email from Lucky Gunner asking if I would like to review some of their ammunition and what caliber would I like to shoot. I don't need much excuse to throw some lead down range so I agreed.
  There was a trend  back in the 1800's when the cartridge came into use for guns to be chambered in the same caliber, rifle and handgun to save carrying two different types of ammo in the field, I kind of like the idea myself because it would be handy in a survival situation. So when Lucky Gunner contacted me I decided to do a review on the .357 magnum ammo and test it on rifle and pistol, they said that would be a first so it was settled.
The ammo was shipped to my house and received promptly, it was the Magtech  125 gr JHP, from experience I knew this was a first rate ammo and was not disappointed.
For testing I used my stainless S&W model 65 and Marlin lever action chambered in .357 magnum.  

As you see the table is wet, it was raining but that is never an excuse to not shoot so a metal spinning target was chosen in lieu of a paper target.
The ammo performed well at 25 yards, the spinning target was then moved to 100 yards for the rifle test. The ammo fed flawless in the lever action, I use peep sights on the Marlin as it is easier on my eyes and all shots hit solidly on target,  357 ammo is an excellent and proven round for self defense and from experience I can tell you it is effective on deer sized animals out to at least 100 yards and a little beyond. This ammo in the Marlin is deadly on hogs as well at 100-125 yards.
With the trend today being semi autos it is good to get back to some basic weapons and see they are still quite capable of getting the job done, just a reminder you don't need the latest and greatest to be well armed as long as you can shoot well with what you have.


Thanks again to Lucky Gunner for the chance test some ammo.
Looking at their web site they have every type of ammo I could ever need, their service was excellent and emails were answered quickly. These days it is good to do business with a company who places a value on customer service.

Survival Handguns, My Thoughts.

I like revolvers, I think it goes back to watching westerns as a kid but they do have a lot of advantages as well.
A little while ago I was reading Brigid, she had done a guest post  with some advice for newer shooters, especially women and commented how a revolver is an excellent choice for a first handgun. I agree, I am not saying you can't learn a semi auto pistol I just think it takes less to 'sort out' if you know what I mean.
I am not trying to start an argument here but it dawned on me there are people out there who are fairly new to shooting or who are preppers and wondering what kind of guns would be good for them so I will list my reasons for liking them.

First I should point I am referring to good quality revolvers, S&W, Ruger, Colt etc. they can be found for excellent prices if you look around at used models, in fact I think all mine I bought were used so they can be found if you look. 
First I will list the disadvantages I see of revolvers, most only hold 6 shots (some 5) and are a little slower to reload. They also tend to be bulkier and harder to conceal than a semi auto especially if they are a big caliber.
Now for the advantages I see,
 I mentioned most hold only 6 shots, to me this is not an issue because semi auto pistols you usually wait till it is empty to reload but with a revolver I can swing the cylinder out and by partially pushing the ejector rod I can lift out the spent cases and replace them thus leaving me with a full cylinder. Apart from target shooting I have never had a NEED to shoot more than 6 shots in rapid succession and I maintain if you ever find yourself in that situation you have bigger problems than your handgun can solve. Another reason I like revolvers is they tend to be more forgiving to dirt and grime and lack of cleaning which could be important in a survival situation. 

 I mentioned earlier they are (in my opinion) a good first gun choice, the reason for this is there is less to think about if you find yourself in a high stress situation, this is very important because you draw it, pull the trigger and it shoots (double action guns of course) You do not have to worry about removing the safety, wondering if one is in the chamber or racking the slide or wondering if the slide is all the way home.  The magazine release button never gets accidentally pushed thus causing a jamb (I have had this happen quite a few times) In the case of a misfire you keep squeezing the trigger till it goes bang, no need to tap, slap, rack to clear a jamb. I have never had a revolver jamb with factory ammo. The only jambs I have had (very rare) are with very hot hand loads and the primer bulged thus causing a jamb.
This leads me to another reason I love revolvers, I do like to reload my ammo, it saves me a lot of money and I don't have to crawl around on the ground looking for all my brass. I also cast my own bullets which saves a lot of money as well and revolvers love cast bullets. I do reload for my 45 and 9mm but they don't feed cast bullets quite as well as ball ammo and this could be important in a survival situation where you would only have access to cast bullets. In a survival situation reloading components may be hard to get but as long as I had primers I could cast bullets and pack the cases full of black powder and have a good functioning weapon, I don't think most semi autos would feed that well with black powder. In a good strong revolver like a Ruger you could devise all kinds of loads which may be necessary in a survival situation and it would function and with some of the long barrels guns you can even hunt quite effectually with them.
There may be a day coming when reloads are all you can find and I can tell you from experience semi auto pistols are not that fond of cast bullets, dented cases, slightly bulged cases, dis-formed lead, weak loads etc, all of which are possible if you don't have the best to work with. I could take a less than perfect re-loaded round and even if I had to force it into the cylinder of a revolver it would almost always fire without jamming. This is just some of my thoughts on handguns.

OK I know I have opened a can of worms and probably started an argument (it's not the first time) I am not against semi autos, in fact I love my 1911 and others however I would never want to be without a revolver as well, especially in a survival situation which will be a less than perfect world.