Survival Arts

The Surefire G2 Nitrolon high-output flashlight

This last weekend, I bought a Surefire G2 Nitrolon high-output flashlight at a Reno gun show, about $35. It's a very good alternative to the more expensive, earlier metal version, the Surefire 6P. For those of my friends who are getting into defensive pistolcraft for the first time - and who have budget constraints - I recommend this lightweight version.

"Roswell, Texas" by L. Neil Smith and Scott Beiser

Today's QOTD is a bit of background on the graphic novel "Roswell, Texas" by L. Neil Smith and Scott Beiser, which has been serialized in webcomic form on the Bighead Press website. It's a kick, and I recommend it highly.

Cold Steel's "New, Improved" Scottish Dirk

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, I met my friend Dale Seago at the Pleasanton Highland Games this last weekend. Both Dale and our dojo chum Garland were wearing the new version of the Cold Steel Special Projects Scottish Dirk, which Dale reviews today in Swordforum.com. I was deeply impressed, and took Dale's advice to order it from the vendor indicated by Froogle as the lowest price supplier, Premium Knives. Noticing how Garland's unmodified Cold Steel-supplied dirk sheath loop seemed flimsy, I took Dale's advice at the Games to pick up a Scottish Dirk Frog from onsite vendor Ravenwood Leather, for the amazingly low price of $10.

I'm looking forward to receiving the knife in a few days.

L. Neil Smith finally does a real blog

L. Neil Smith finally does a real blog, "L. Neil Smith at Random", with comments enabled. I've long thought that Neil's writing would fit the format, and now I'm sure of it.

A Chinatown sword stand

I picked up a decent sword stand in San Francisco's Chinatown yesterday. It's 23 inches high, $25 (apparently non-negotiable in the store from which I bought it) and comes in four matt-lacquered wood pieces with a set of wood screws. Power screwdriver in hand, I assembled it in a couple of minutes. Here it is with my Bugei Samurai Koshirae Katana:

The base is indented to hold the end of the saya in place, and seems fairly sturdy. They're available in most of the tourist gift shops in San Francisco's Chinatown. Not as common as the conventional over-the-mantlepiece (or in the tokonoma) horizontal stand, but has a nice "shotgun ready rack" aspect to it.

"Radar Scope sees through walls"

I had an offer to get some free stick time in a friend's friend's luxury (pressurized cabin, an aisle between the seats, etc.) airplane for a trip he and the other guy were making to CES in Las Vegas, but I'm getting ready for school on Monday, so I declined. I'm taking in some of the show's highlights by way of reportage, and just saw this on one of the gadget/gimmick blogs:

"Radar Scope sees through walls"

Fascinating, and a bit terrifying at the same time. It's a handheld device for detecting people on the other side of a (presumably radiolucent) wall. The display device looks milspec/ruggedized, and the printed matter pitches to military application, but I'm quite sure they're being pitched to police departments too. I wonder, what are the relevant U.S. laws with respect to using this device in warrantless searches? I believe SCOTUS has already ruled that "standoff" search techniques are not covered under the 4th Amendment.

On bike locks

I just had my suspicions about the security of bicycle cable locks validated: a few minutes ago, I witnessed an acquaintance use a diamond wheel on an angle grinder to remove a Kryptonite CC4 cable on one of my bikes in about 2 seconds.

Day 1, Arnaud Cousergue seminar in Sacramento

I'm just about to crash soon, having come back from the first of a multi-day Bujinkan training seminar by Arnaud Cousergue of Paris (Vincennes, actually) at the Bujinkan Martial Arts Center in Sacramento, a couple of hours' drive from here.

That's Dr. Pete Lohstroh, a UC Davis reproductive biologist, and myself. Pete's interested in medical nanotechology too, by the way, but that's deliberately off topic. I really do meet cool people in this art.

The shiner I acquired Thursday night is even more pronounced in this photo, but it doesn't hurt at all anymore. On a related note, Arnaud ended the day insisting on the use of padded training weapons through the end of the year, for various reasons with which I entirely agree. To that end, on the way back from Sack-of-Tomatoes to Saint Jose, I stopped at the Home Despot near the Sacto dojo and acquired the requisite materials:

- a $1.97 bag of thin 6' bamboo rods from the Garden section
- a $1.97 6' section of 5/8" inside diameter foam copper pipe insulation

I then duct taped 3 pinky-width lengths of the bamboo together at 9-inch intervals, put that inside the foam, and placed styrofoam caps at the ends, duct taping those. I finished by taping the entire thing lengthwise.

Looks surprisingly good, and not at all like a late-night vodka fueled project. I took photos of every step of the project which I will be posting in a few days.

Time to crash now.

A padded training rokushaku-bo is a good idea

A gift from my training partner last night, and proof that padded training weapons are a good idea for some types of waza:

Quote of the Day

FEMA, in fact, is an illegal organization. It's mentioned nowhere in the Constitution (which lists the lawful powers of the government in Article I, Section 8), nor did anybody ever vote about it, neither you nor I, nor even the Congress. It was created out of thin air by Presidential fiat, and given unprecedented power to override, at gunpoint, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the rule of law in general.

L. Neil Smith

Just returned from a 4-day tactical shotgun course

I'm rested now and recovered from last weekend's attendance at the 4-day tactical shotgun course at Front Sight Firearms Training Institute near Las Vegas, Nevada. I surprised myself by making Distinguished Graduate, so I'm now qualified to come back to attend the 4 Day Advanced Tactical Shotgun course. On the second day of training, Greg Carroll snapped this pic of me after the two of us had done our respective runs through the outdoor canyon "clean the hostage takers out" simulator exercise:

The (visible) firearm is my Benelli M1 Super 90, with a nylon tactical sling and a GG&G M3 Tactical Illuminator mounting rail in the 2 o'clock position on the foreend, not the 10 o'clock position GG&G recommends on their website (experience in a previous course having shown me that, as a right-handed longgunner, the 10 o'clock position allows the light to bump on.)

I'd last done a tactical shotgun course about 4 years ago, and so I was quite interested to see how training doctrine had changed in respect of that weapon at Front Sight. The men in the evolution I attended - those 13 in the class who were there for the full 4 days - were all at least previous attendees at another weapon systems class (e.g. defensive handgun, practical rifle) so the class was run at a slightly accelerated pace befitting the audience. Attendees were about evenly divided between cops, active duty military (a Marine heading back to Iraq soon) and private citizens, all of whom were treated exactly the same by the instructional staff, the excellent Chuck Burnett and John Pierson.

One difference I noticed was the much heavier emphasis on incorporating movement, keeping the fight dynamic, and training that way to the limited extent allowed in the "square range environment." I was particularly pleased that, after the Monday (4th day) afternoon skills test, and the "load and go" indoor tactical simulator, I was allowed to do several rounds of 2-man team shooting on the move, with my new friend David L. Loads of fun, and I was pleased to find that a walking skill I'd been cultivating the last few years, walking fast with very short tank-tread heel/toe action to keep the hips and shoulders on level planes, allowed me to get good hits moving both forward and backward, without muzzle bob.

I'm at a level of membership at Front Sight that allows me to take any firearms course free for the rest of my life, much like some golf club memberships. So, I get to take these courses again and again, which allows me not only to revisit, revive, and refine my skills, but also to work out equipment issues. I've discovered I really don't like the Lyman TacStar SideSaddle mounted on the left side of the receiver: it catches on my clothing, when loaded it dampens recoil (and hence reliability) on this recoil-operated weapon, and with the standard provided cross-receiver screw, was coming loose even though I'd installed it properly and Lock-Tited it. I guess a couple of thousand rounds will do that to the Lock-Tite. That, and I'm leery of over-tightening that screw for fear of impeding bolt travel. Oh, and there's the issue of potentially "egging out" the screw holes on the aluminum receiver. My friend David assures me that, should I care to keep the SideSaddle, I can send the weapon to a gunsmith who specializes in Class 3 firearms with aluminum receivers, experienced in setting up weapons to resist receiver failure, but I'm going to switch to keeping my slug rounds on a belt carrier anyway.

Nor am I going to solve the "problem" of having extra ammo by changing out the tube magazine from a 5 to an 8 round capacity. This is my home invasion repellant device... if I can't solve The Problem with what's available in that weapon, then I'm in a very serious situation indeed. I'm more and more preferring lighter, more maneuverable weapons the more I train, with as few bells and whistles as I can get away with. I've heard more than one long arms instructor over the years comment on how students will arrive at a course with their all-singing, all-dancing Space Gun rigs, everything mounted everywhere, only to find themselves quickly shedding equipment after the first day... especially when training in the 105 F degree desert heat. Heh.

Recommendation: check out Estate Cartridge's low-recoil 12-gauge 9-pellet 00 SWAT loads. I've used this buckshot at a previous shotgun course, and had made the decision to attend this most recent course with too little lead time to order more of the same for this class. So, I had a mere few dozen of them to use at various times during this course, instead using a mix of Winchester and Federal buckshot for most exercises. No comparison. At half the price of Federal, the Estate-branded cartridges gave outstandingly tight and nicely distributed (e.g. no annular "donuts of death") patterns, turning heads on the firing line and eliciting a number of "what are you shooting, man?" enquiries.

I had the pleasure of remaking the acquaintance of at least one old friend, who was taking a course on an adjacent range. Additionally, I was happy to have a couple of libertarian friends, longtime (but previously untrained) gunowners, take the full 4 Day Defensive Handgun course on the same weekend. Both men, Alan and Chris, came away from the experience very much more competent than when they arrived.

Quote of the Day

In my opinion, ninjutsu is not a spiritual system (outside the confines of martial training) or a religion. Some may disagree.

Asking for ninjutsu without the martial aspects would be akin to asking some Navy SEAL "I want the spiritual strength and tenacity of a Navy SEAL but I don't want to do any hard physical training."

Jeff Sherwin

On oppressive knife laws

My teacher Dale Seago sent this reference to "Oppressive Knife Laws" to our dojo's mailing list. This summary dates from 1998, but is a nicely written short piece on the key features of this particular type of prohibitionism.

"Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side to Everything"

I recently did some driving through Nevada and California, working remotely from a number of hotels. I loaded up my iPod (which I connect to a Pioneer black box installed behind the dash, itself interfaced with the sound system's head unit) with music, podcasts, and audio books (almost all of it purchased on iTunes,) including an unabridged copy of:

"Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side to Everything," by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.

I thoroughly enjoyed the 6 hours of sometimes humorous, often surprising and counterintuitive anecdote. I highly recommend it: I do enjoy economic storytelling, from Braudel to Postrel to Friedman Jr. and now these guys.

Anyone else encountered this book or its audio equivalent?

I will add the qualification here that the work does gloss over the correlation between concealed carry laws and violent crime, primarily since the authors took John R. Lott as the authority on the matter... which is a double shame, since there's much there to explore, and since Lott seems to have screwed the pooch with respect to the issue of academic integrity.

Curt Howland has pointed me to a relevant blog entry hosted by the Ludwig von Mises Institute.

"Correcting a Steel Mistake"

My friend L. Neil Smith emailed this today:

"Russell --

I thought you and Dale [Seago] might enjoy seeing a project I put together a long time ago, possibly before you came to Fort Collins the first time. As you can see, it's a Camillus Marine Corps knife wedded to a bayonet. It fits my M1 Carbine, the standard issue bayonet for which is a disgrace.

Note the serrated portion at the base of the blade. That was done with a
checkering file. Ahead of my time, I guess."

Here's another:

My Bujinkan teacher Dale followed up:

"Very sweet piece of work -- nicely done!!

BTW, the Marine Corps has adopted a new official-issue bayonet which largely retains the look of the old Ka-bar, but with a longer blade (8" instead of 7"). It's an issue item for Marines, but available commercially for private purchase as well."

This is the new Marine issue item, the "ON3S ONTARIO Marine Bayonet Khaki Brown Handle And Sheath 8" Blade":

Quote of the Day

Cops are armed when civilians can't be, often with weapons civilians can't have. I can't tell you how sick I get of seeing notations in catalogs like Brigade Quartermaster that certain items are for cops only.

Cops live and operate within a strict hierarchy, usually with titles like "sergeant", "lieutenant", "captain", and so forth. Most of them wear military-style uniforms, and an argument can be made that so-called "plainclothes" operations ought to be outlawed. Increasingly, they wear military battledress and carry military weapons.

Cops form a culture all to themselves, like professional soldiers, and usually have little to do with those who are not cops. They do call us "civilians". I never heard this term "little people" before. They also call us "assholes" and say that the public just consists of criminals who haven't been caught yet. I know because I was there at one time.

Yeah, I understand the theory that they're civilians, too. I repeat that it's bullshit. What they are, in fact, is an occupying military force, with strategic bases in every hamlet in the nation -- which is why they and their hangers-on lie to us and possibly to themselves about being civilians, too.

They are the very standing army that the Founding Fathers were afraid of.

And for good reason.

L. Neil Smith
In response last night to a post I made on a mailing list about how cops refer to non-cops as "civilians" when they, too, are in fact "civilians."

Quote of the Day

Indeed, I am opposed even to free market supplied "police" in the conventional sense. The potential - indeed, universal reality - of armed agencies abusing their power is such that I believe that it is foolish for individuals to delegate their use of just force and to rely on third parties. We need an armed citizenry, the "hue and cry", and the use of specialist/expert "martials" for arrest only in restricted cases.

Dr. Chris R. Tame
Excerpted with permission from a recent private correspondance

A quiet moment in Beihai Park

One afternoon last week I rented an electric boat and plied around the north lake in Beihai Park. After returning the craft to the boathouse, I came across this guy doing taijiquan near the shore, practicing a jian form:

When he'd finished several iterations of the same form, he walked over to the bench where a couple of older women had been watching intently. He then started pushing the tip of the jian into the bench near them! What the hell?

Ah... it was a collapsing practice piece, neatly converting into an 8-inch assembly, which he then slipped into the carry pouch his wife held out for him. Neat! I wanted one of those jian then and there, but didn't have time left in the trip to shop for one. Rest assured it's on my shopping list for my next Beijing visit.

"The Costs of Training with the Best"

Speaking of good martial arts training, which I just mentioned I undertook last weekend with Don Angier (and the weekend before with great teachers from my own art), I just stumbled across this Jan 2005 article by Peter Boylan, "The Costs of Training with the Best" author of "Angry White Pyjamas: A Scrawny Oxford Poet Takes Lessons From The Tokyo Riot Police" (which I've read and recommend).

Boylan has some good points to make, and some sad observations to share.

Don Angier aikijiujitsu seminar, 19-20 March 2005, at Aikido of Diablo Valley

I mentioned here a couple of years ago that I attended a seminar given by Don Angier of Yanagi Ryu Aiki Jiu Jitsu. I missed last year's event in northern Californa, but I managed to make this year's event last weekend. I attended both days (as did another Bujinkan practicioner), and met one other Bujinkan student during the Sunday session at Aikido of Diablo Valley.

As has always been the case with Don's seminars, I enjoyed it immensely. Both days were Yanagi-style taijutsu training, no weapons this time (e.g. the jojutsu we did in April 2003.)

The first day, we did 3-man training involving breaking from 2-attacker both-arm wrist grabs (morote in aikido parlance). The second day, we did 2-man Yanagi "kiri dori" with reversals. Both days ended with recap training.

As usual, the training was incredibly useful: the principles of Angier's art are shared with our own, with an interestingly different emphasis on how to convey them. I didn't attend with the intent of "learning their art" - that really only happens with core Yanagi students, in their dojo environment, as is the case with us and our art - but what I do expect, as I've experienced in previous years' training with the Yanagi folks, is that I'll be able to see aspects of our own art from an outside perspective.

One solid claim I can make for training with these guys is that I'm forced to re-examine all the "unclean" (or sloppy) elements in my own movement.

Really, I can't recommend highly enough that Bujinkan students take the time to attend a seminar by this incredible 73 year old practicioner of a rare Japanese family art.

I should also add that the people I trained with, mostly aikidoka, were very good training partners, and incredibly welcoming, which made the experience all the more rewarding.

Quote of the Day

For a martial art to be a martial art, rather than some other form of physical expression (some other "art" entirely), its focus must remain on fighting. A truly accomplished warrior may renounce violence -- but only his or her mastery of violence makes this possible. If the style or system you study leaves you unable to defend yourself in a realistic self-defense scenario, it may indeed be an art -- but it is not martial at all. Its practitioners delude themselves if they believe that it is.

In the same vein, a martial art or martial artist whose attitude towards weapons is one of contempt, mistrust, fear, or condescension tells you volumes about its, his, or her "martialism." Weapons are force multipliers -- tools that perform the same function as hammers, levers, and pliers in that they make it easier to accomplish a specific task. As the purpose of a martial art is to deliver force against another human or group of humans, only the most ignorant of martial artists would dismiss or reject tools that make performing this task more efficient and less risky. There is no such thing as an immoral tool. There are only immoral tool users.

Phil Elmore

Excellent resource on historical Japanese armor

My Bujinkan teacher Dale Seago mentioned this a few days ago:

Some VERY good pages on Japanese armor which give a clearer understanding of why armored fighting methods are the way they are; also sections on historic Japanese clothing & accessories, the design and layout of Japanese estates during the Heian period, etc.

For those with a bent toward Humphreyesque "cultural detective work", there's an essay on "Rape as the First Act of Romance in Heian Japan" which makes it pretty clear that the feudal Japanese viewed some things quite differently from the way we do in our society today... (Whaddaya mean I should wait 'til the 3rd date?!?)

Monica White on Bujinkan training in London

Yesterday, I attended Dale Seago's "Return from Japan" seminar in San Francisco. I'm reminded that my friend Monica attended a Bujinkan seminar in London, and had some good things to say about her training experience.

Anton Sherwood's blog revamped

Anton Sherwood has moved his musings to a blogging system with a commenting facility and much friendlier navigation. No trivial feat, given that he's been blogging (in one place) since February 2002... this meant converting over 1400 postings! Take a look.

Assault Weapons Ban died today

The infamous "Assault Weapons Ban" died today. I wish I had more time to express my happiness about this, but I'm extremely busy.

A shot I didn't expect

By the title, I mean I didn't expect that my friend Andy would be taking a picture of me at this moment:

It was pretty dark in the shade of the shooting stall, in stark contrast with the sunny range, and no fill flash was used. I managed to extract a bit more information using the GIMP.

Firearm was a full-frame H&K USP in .45ACP, firing on a "hostage rescue" metal silhouette at 15 meters. Hard shot, wouldn't want to have to do that for a living. I would never seek to be in such a horrifying predicament, and certainly wouldn't want to have to use a pistol, at relative long range, unsupported, to try pulling it off. Still, one should always train for the unthinkable.

Quote of the Day

You might want to take note of the interconnection between purpose and action in the minimal State. The minimal State does not, for instance, build art museums, because it does not exist to promote art but to enforce agreements and provide mutual defense. In order to build an art museum, the State would need to acquire the resources with which to build it. If people are willing to donate those resources freely, there is no need for the State to build the museum — it could be built privately. If people are not willing to donate the resources freely, then the act of forcibly taking the needed resources turns the purpose of the minimal State on its head — instead of enforcing the decision by the participants to respect each other's lives and property so that their own lives and property will be respected, the State then becomes an agent for some to abscond with the property of others. I may think it is a good idea to build a home for orphans, but if I take your resources against your will to do it, whether I'm an official of the State or a private citizen, I have violated the truce. To obey the truce, I must convince you to voluntarily provide resources for my goals, whether by trading with you or appealing to your charitable instincts.

In short, if the justification of the minimal State is that it exists, at the behest of a collection of sovereign individuals, to enforce a mutually beneficial truce among those who choose to participate in it, and to organize mutual defense against those who choose not to participate by violating the truce, then that justification does not reasonably permit the expropriation of resources for the purpose of projects that are merely laudable.

Note that this view of the minimal State cannot provide a justification for initiating warfare in distant lands which are not a threat its citizens' safety, regardless of how laudable it might be to re-arrange the social structures of those foreign places to suit enlightened tastes. However, by the same token, neither position prevents individuals from engaging in such activities on their own, at their own risk and with their own resources.

Perry Metzger, in "What is the Role of the State?" today

Quote of the Day

I'll tell you what I'd prefer our government's foreign policy to be, assuming we need to have a State at all. My proposal is pretty simple: Swiss-style armed neutrality. That means no invasions, no military threats, no foreign aid, no "covert operations", no military bases outside the country, no attempts to influence the internal affairs of foreign countries whatsoever.

No one blows up bombs in the streets of Geneva. No one from Switzerland gets kidnaped in third world countries to protest the evils of Swiss foreign policy. Wherever they go, at worst, people think of the Swiss as boring — it is rare that anyone feels the need to buttonhole someone from Zurich or Lugano and tell them off for what their government does.

The Swiss are not pacifists, though. They have a very strong militia for defense, and in times past when Europe was less peaceful, it would have been extremely costly for an attacker to invade them. Even if (in the case of particularly strong enemies) an invasion might have ultimately succeeded, it would have yielded very little of value at an astonishing expense.

Perry Metzger

Quote of the Day

If forced to shoot someone in self defence, you should claim that you were robbing him at gunpoint after discovering him in your home.

That way you get out on probation immediately, can buy a replacement firearm off "the street", and serve no jail time.

Kristopher Barrett

Saferoom... or coffin?

Saw this commented on by someone on a mailing list I frequent: the "Quantum Sleeper: the safest rest you've ever had." It's one of the strangest things I've seen in recent times, a bed cum saferoom, very coffinlike. I'm not sure I like it... why not keep a shotgun by the bed instead?

Monica White comments on Neil Smith's "Captain Bligh’s Revenge"

Monica White comments on L. Neil Smith's "Captain Bligh’s Revenge," in which he informs us (I'd not known) that the British government is intent on wrecking the tiny society of Pitcairn Island: stealing their guns and imprisoning those who don't conform to their standards of marriage practice.

Quote of the Day

As Congressman Ron Paul has said, "To many politicians the American government is America and patriotism means working for the benefit of the state." Thus, on a crude level, the draft appeals to patriotic fervor. This, according to Congressman Paul, is why the idea of compulsory national service, whether in the form of military conscription or make-work programs like AmeriCorps, still sells on Capitol Hill. Conscription is wrongly associated with patriotism, when it really represents collectivism and involuntary servitude.

Ronald Reagan said it best: "The most fundamental objection to draft registration is moral." He understood that conscription assumes our nation's young people belong to the state. Yet America was founded on the opposite principle; that the state exists to serve the individual. The notion of involuntary servitude, in whatever form, is simply incompatible with a free society.

Michael Badnarik

Quote of the Day (thanks Thomas Knapp and Mary Lou Seymour)

If we have learned anything over the past 18 months it is this: that the first rule of politics - power must never be trusted - still applies. The government will neither regulate itself nor be regulated by the institutions which surround it. Parliament chose to believe a string of obvious lies. The media repeated them, the civil service let them pass, the judiciary endorsed them. The answer to the age-old political question - who guards the guards? - remains unchanged. Only the people will hold the government to account.

They have two means of doing so. The first is to throw it out of office at the next election. This works only when we are permitted to choose an alternative set of policies. But in almost every nation, a new contract has now been struck between the main political parties: they have chosen to agree on almost all significant areas of policy. This leaves the people disenfranchised: they can vote out the monkeys but not the organ-grinder.

George Monbiot

Quote of the Day

I do not believe that fighting is the primary goal of martial arts in contemporary times. I believe that it has far greater potential. Hatsumi Sensei [says] that it is to produce higher human beings and create peace. Although these may sound like lofty ideals, we have all witnessed the personal evolution of practitioners and seen the spirit of friendship flourish between countries. In many cases, the Bujinkan has created friendships between students even when their home countries were still hostile.

Martial arts provide a model of life. They teach us to be positive and resolved in the face of adversity. They teach us to seek truth (albeit at first through technique), they teach us to seek harmony rather than accord, they teach us cooperation (which is necessary during practice) and they teach us the humility to know that we must act as part of nature not contrary to it. If we must fight, then we should do so with a pure heart. To harm an opponent more than is necessary is savagery and is unbecoming of an artist. It is better that we are judged on our dignity and humanity, rather than by how fearsome we are.

In Japanese martial arts, there is a saying, ‘The sword that kills and the sword that spares’. This is usually taken to mean that the swordsman would have such skill that he could choose whether to kill or spare an opponent. Hatsumi Sensei said that there is another meaning, that one action may have included both. An example of this may have been when faced with no other choice, a samurai would have killed an attacker to prevent him from taking innocent lives. Although regretting the taking of life, his one sword cut would have killed and spared life at the same time. To make such a judgement for the correct reasons, the swordsman needed to have had a highly developed sense of humanity and justice. Taking life cannot be compared with giving life. Hurting cannot be compared to healing and destruction cannot be compared to creativity. We are not just martial practitioners, we are martial artists and we should create beauty through the movements of our bodies and hearts.

Peter King, on "Fighting"

"Fighting," by Peter King

On our dojo mailing list today, sometimes-training-buddy (and all around good guy) Irishman Stephen Ewart forwards this excellent essay, "Fighting," written by the U.K's Peter King, a superb Bujinkan practicioner and teacher with whom my friend Monica White has the privilege of training in London. An excerpt:

Hatsumi Sensei criticised martial artists who act like they are dangerous animals. He said that man has been able to use his intelligence to be able to kill dangerous animals in the world. Such people will be defeated – in a way that they had not expected, because they were outwitted by brain and not muscle. When Takamatsu Sensei was in China he was known as the Mongolian Tiger because of his martial prowess. However on his return to Japan, a friend said that he was more like a Japanese cat. Takamatsu Sensei was happy to agree. He said that, in China, it was necessary for him to be fierce like a tiger, but that now that he was back in Japan it was not. He added that women like cats and would often stroke them. Although said in humour, it illustrates the need to be hard only when needed, and then be able to return to gentleness.

"Guns Are Good For You," by Chris Claypoole

Chris Claypoole has some interesting commentary today inspired by his recent reading of Eric Raymond's essay "Ethics from the Barrel of a Gun."

I had already known that disarming the public was a standard tactic of repressive governments. I have always been a "no compromise" supporter of the right to bear arms, but from the perspective of the right to self-defense. I had not made the connection between bearing arms (not merely gun ownership, but carrying as a normal part of life) and development of a responsible adult. The kind of person that will take responsibility for his/her actions, regardless of the consequences, motives, or lack of full information. Which means that this kind of person tends to think before acting when possible, and act decisively from a sound set of ethical principles when necessary.

This brings me to the tangential epiphany: When Robert A. Heinlein wrote that "An armed society is a polite society," I had always thought he meant that people tend not to act like an asshole if it might get them ventilated. Now I believe that what was also, and more importantly, meant was that people in an armed society grow up polite because they are armed! Knowing that a careless act or moment of unguarded anger could ruin your life and end someone else's will make the vast majority of people act more responsibly.

Extropianism and revisionist history

A few weeks ago, on a mailing list I run, it was reported to me by a good friend that the present management of the Extropy Institute disavows free-market libertarianism as its politico-economic root. As a matter of fact, we're told, extropianism was never about liberty and its deepest ramifications. To those people, I have a large number of examples from the early history of the extropian movement which contradict that claim, such as this reprint of a short declaration by law professor Tom Bell, writing in 1988 as "T.O. Morrow," a piece called "Economics and Politics" (words in brackets below added by me for clarification):

As information processing systems, good economic and political systems must meet the same standards that apply to any of their kind; they must achieve their ends efficiently. Researchers such as Friedrich Hayek have demonstrated that the most efficient economic and political systems are those that exert a minimum of control, allowing spontaneous orders to flourish. Economic and political systems must furthermore advance (trans)human ends. Extropy [magazine] takes the [editorial] point of view that these two qualifications are entirely compatible; the most efficient economic and political systems are those that maximize human liberty. Thus the best economic systems are free market, and the best political systems libertarian. (Libertarians assert that the state, if one is neccessary, should permit all acts except assault, theft and fraud.) Extropy [magazine] will pursue such free market and libertarian analyses of economic and political systems, working toward the day when economic and political systems serve us, rather than we them.

(T.0. Morrow, '88-'98. All Rights Reserved. Please attach this paragraph to all copies. Fully attributed noncommercial use of this document hereby permitted.)

This was, as mentioned, published in the paper version of Extropy magazine (a copy of which I own), and is notated "online version, edited Nov. '96." I plan to publish many more such examples as I run across them, at my convenience. Why? Well, while I do acknowledge that the term "extropian" has been diluted to the extent it's indistinguishable from standard socialist transhumanism - and this is a tragic thing - I will not stand for the historical revisionism being pushed by some of those in the existing "extropian" movement... especially since I've been around that movement from the very beginning, and will not drink the Kool-Aid.

"Ethics from the Barrel of a Gun" by Eric Raymond

An excellent essay by Eric Raymond, "Ethics from the Barrel of a Gun: What Bearing Weapons Teaches About the Good Life." (Thanks to Steve Pegram.)

To believe one is incompetent to bear arms is... to live in corroding and almost always needless fear of the self — in fact, to affirm oneself a moral coward. A state further from the dignity of a free man would be rather hard to imagine. It is as a way of exorcising this demon, of reclaiming for ourselves the dignity and courage and ethical self-confidence of free (wo)men that the bearing of personal arms, is, ultimately, most important.

This is the final ethical lesson of bearing arms: that right choices are possible, and the ordinary judgement of ordinary (wo)men is sufficient to make them.

Armalite's Assault Weapon Ban Sunset Plans

Armalite announces how they'll deal with the AWB sunset (thanks to Steve Pegram): "the ArmaLite® Post-PostBan ™ Rifle Program."

Pink Rifles anyone?

Kristopher Barrett passes along this amusing photolog of colorful AR-15 furniture. Someone should inform the Pink Pistols.

"Why Kerry Should Stand Up for the Second Amendment"

Anton Sherwood has found an interesting advocacy of the right to keep and bear arms... as a campaign issue by liberal Democratic editorial cartoonist Ted Rall, "Democrats for Guns: Why Kerry Should Stand Up for the Second Amendment":

The best argument for coming out as a pro-gun nut relates to the need for an adjustment to the long-term strategy of the Democratic Party. For too long, both parties have treated the Constitution like a Chinese menu. Republicans whittle away at the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and smear opponents who exercise their First Amendment right to free speech. Democrats rail against the states rights expressed by the Tenth Amendment and absurdly argue that the placement of a comma reflects the founders' original intent to limit gun ownership to members of 18th century militias. Aside from its fundamental intellectual dishonesty, our politicians' take-some-leave-others attitude deviates from most citizens' belief that every section of the Constitution holds equal weight.

Quote of the Day

First of all, the Founding Fathers loathed a democracy, calling it a tyranny of the majority. The United States is not a democracy. The United States is a constitutional Republic based on private party and individual rights. In the 1860s we passed the 13th amendment, which presumably eliminated slavery and it took well over 100 years to erase the racial hatred between the whites and the blacks. How does the American government think that they can go into another country and
override thousands of years of culture? It is not our job to export anything except products and services.

Michael Badnarik

Quote of the Day

Security is an important aspect of a good life, but if you live in a society where a government potentate can nullify your citizenship and completely strip you of your rights just because he doesn't like your looks, with no real accountability for his actions, then you are not secure at all.

Self-defense is as basic a bodily function as eating and defecating, and cannot truly be delegated -- unless you want to live life as an effective cripple, or as someone else's property.

Scott Bieser

Quote of the Day

Personally, while I like [L.] Neil [Smith]'s idea in Hope of a "Bill of Rights Party", I think a better idea would be a "Mind your own damned business party":

Don't like guns? Don't own one, and mind your own damned business!
Don't like homosexuals? Don't associate with them, and mind your own damned business!
Don't like pagans? Don't associate with them, and mind your own damned business!
Don't like nuclear power? Don't use it, and mind your own damned business!
Don't like hunting? Don't hunt, and mind your own damned business!

See how easy it is? All the individual has to do is live and let live, follow the basic precepts of ALL major religions, as far as love, tolerance and respect, and mind their own damned business!

Ron Beatty

"Jews and Guns" by Robert J. Avrech

Jackie D at Samizdata reprints a recent article by Hollywood screenwriter Robert J. Avrech, "Jews and Guns":

Ariel [Avrech's recently deceased son] was always amazed at how many Jews - Shomer Shabbos Jews - aligned themselves with the advocates of gun control, in reality a movement to banish the private ownership of guns by lawful citizens. During the Los Angeles riots of 1992, Karen and I, Ariel and Leda were inside a film theatre. Abruptly, an angry mob congregated outside; soon they were trying to break down the doors. Trapped inside, we were all terrified. I held Leda in my arms; she shivered like a frightened rabbit. Karen held Ariel's hand.

"Don't worry," I said with false confidence, "the police will be here soon."

But the police did not arrive that night, nor did they protect the city from arson and widespread looting. In fact, we watched in disbelief as news cameras captured images of police officers standing idly by while looters gleefully committed their crimes.

A few days later, I bought a gun.

I bought a gun because I realized that the day might come again when the people who were sworn to protect us would once again choose not to.

"Terminal Ballistics Comparison in Water Media"

I was told of this by a poster to the smith2004-discuss list, an incredibly meticulous comparison of the performances of a number of common ammunition types: "Terminal Ballistics Comparison in Water Media", a compilation of many years of data generated by 84 year old Carmon Crapson (published by Stephen Ricciardelli.)

Interesting Army report on soldier experiences with weapons and gear

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Steve Pegram passed along a detailed and fascinating online version of a military report generated last summer, "SOLDIER WEAPONS ASSESSMENT TEAM REPORT 6-03". Much of the report is rather dry, given the nature of such a document, but scattered throughout are a great many little observational gems such as this:

...soldiers rank reliability and durability as key weapon characteristics and are not willing to trade them for anything – to include weight. Similarly, soldiers do not consider the weapon as part of their load, but rather as an enabler. They are willing to carry the weight if the weapon or device increases his lethality. This is best illustrated by soldiers purchasing their own magnified optics and the strong desire to carry an additional sidearm or shotgun for defensive and offensive purposes. Lethality is more important to the soldier than any other consideration or factor.

Here's empirical verification of the usefulness of white lights in combat, a point which I've had driven home by anecdotes from trainers at every school I've attended:

Several soldiers were observed with flashlights taped to their weapons and some using the Weapon Flashlight Mount. But all soldiers described using the tactical light for temporary target incapacitation.

Progress toward growing replacement teeth from stem cells

The New Scientist reported yesterday that experimental progress in growing replacement teeth in situ has been made... yet another reason to pressure the federal government into repealing all its vile, stupid laws against stem cell research.

"Saudi: Foreigners can carry guns"

My friend Franklin sent along this ironic bit of news from Saudi Arabia: "Saudi: Foreigners can carry guns."

Bushmaster AR-10 semiclone accepts FN-FAL magazines

Brian Smith informs us that Bushmaster now markets an AR-10 semiclone that accepts FN-FAL magazines (both inch and metric). This is fairly interesting to me, since I've been mulling over picking up a carbine in .308 caliber since I encountered the Springfield Armory SOCOM 16 in a gun store a few weeks ago.

Interesting bit of castle trivia

Steve Pegram passes this on:

Note the name of the castle first build specifically to protect against firearms.

The first castle in Britain to be designed specifically for defense by guns was Ravenscraig Castle located in Scotland. Built in 1460.

Quote of the Day

I have come to the conclusion that the reason people don't just "throw the bums out" and vote for freedom, is that they genuinely are afraid of their neighbors. They fear freedom for other people, thinking that regulation is the only thing that stands between themselves and violent death.

Handguns are an excellent example. Someone who wouldn't think twice about balancing their own checkbook, and "looking both ways" before crossing the street, dreads a handgun because it represents no longer relying on those regulations for personal safety.

They cannot admit that regulations do not provide "safety", so anything that reflects badly on those regulations is itself anathema. They fear what firearms in private hands truly represents.

This adds yet another layer to hoplophobia. It makes it still harder for someone with the condition to admit they are irrational, because they might honestly say they do not "fear" guns.

They fear their neighbors. What an awful fear that must be.

Curt Howland

Quote of the Day

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.

Ronald Reagan

Maybe twitch games *do* help some new shooters

Today's the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion of Normandy. I'm reminded that a couple of weeks ago, a couple of friends of mine and I went shooting at a rifle range in northern California, taking a number of weapons including an M1 Garand rifle which probably saw action in WWII. Here, my friend Andy Chen, a brand new shooter (and 18 y/o college classmate), fires my other friend's Garand:

This was Andy's first time out shooting... and on steel reactive targets set out at 100 meters - after having been briefed on safety and weapon operation - he kept up with us two trained, experienced shooters, at least on the sandbag rests. He's spent his high school years reading military history, and knows an incredible amount of factual data on weapons history. He's also used to playing first-person shooter games - in which I've never been interested, thinking them useless for training - causing me to start to re-think my opinions of twitch games.

An older gentleman at an adjacent shooting stall took some time to discuss the Garand with Andy, pointing out that he had ordered his own Garand (which he was also shooting) from the U.S. federal government's Civilian Marksmanship Program, which I've heard about over the years, though I'd bought my own past two Garands from commercial sources.

I'm encouraging Andy to join a local CMP-affiliated club and shoot a match this summer, so that he can be eligible to buy at least a "rack grade" rifle for as low as $350... shipped Fedex directly to his door (yes, they do that)! I don't see Garands selling at gun shows for less than around $800 nowadays. Here's a very detailed and interesting account, with photos, of the experiences of two CMP participants in the purchase and shooting of their own CMP Garands.

It's especially worth noting, for California residents, that a Garand is "Kalifornia legal", making it an excellent rifle to keep locked in the trunk of one's car... just in case. Also note that a number of companies (such as Smith Enterprises) do "tanker conversions" to shorten the overall length, and one can convert the weapon to .308 caliber.

John Ross on the Abu Ghraib photos

Curt Howland passes on this very interesting piece on the Abu Ghraib incident by John Ross, author of Unintended Consequences:

Those pictures said volumes. They said "We're your worst fucking nightmare: We're Americans. Our women are stronger than your men. Our littlest women will strip naked the strongest men you can muster, and make fun of their puny cocks while enjoying a cigarette. Our women love to get naked, love sex, and revel in the sexual prowess of their American male partners. They'll put impotent "men" like you naked on leashes whenever they want. America is the most powerful country in the world, and guess what? Women control 70% of its money and 100% of its pussy. What are you going to do about it? Behead some Jewish "contractor"? Fat lot of good that's going to do. We'll put on some hearings for show, but you know the truth: we'll do whatever we want whenever we want, and we'll have our women do it. Just for fun. Think we're kidding? Wait 'til you see our beer ads."

C-SPAN archive coverage of the Libertarian Party national convention

I found out from posters to the smith2004-discuss list this morning that C-SPAN keeps video archives of recent shows available for downloading. A search for "libertarian" on their website yields all the video coverage of the recent Libertarian Party nominating convention in Atlanta along with a follow-up interview (which I'm playing now) with the newly nominated presidential candidate Michael Badnarik.

Quote of the Day

Is it moral to carry arms? You bet it is! When I enter your home or your business with a firearm, concealed or otherwise, I am tacitly agreeing to share with you the responsibility for defending your property and your family. When I eat in the same restaurant, I am prepared to shed my blood in your defense. There are survivors of the horror at Luby’s in Killeen, Texas, who would appreciate what I am saying here.

I will never, never need to ask some poor cop to die for me. I value my own life enough to defend it myself. I carry arms proudly, as a free American.

Do you?

Kathryn A. Graham
"Handguns - A Moral Imperative"

Another plug for RKBA.org

Just because I'm feeling like it: a plug for my friend Jeff Chan's Right to Keep and Bear Arms website.

That's why I say, "Hey man, nice shot."

I first heard about this on the local news today or yesterday, and through one of "small world" circuits I've gotten used to since I discovered the Internet in the late 1980's, my friend Steve Pegram forwards me the local news station's coverage of it, "Mountain Lion killed in Palo Alto neighborhood":

The media think this footage is graphic. The officer made a good shot. She used an M4 with an EoTech. Based on my limited knowledge of cat physiology (from reading hunt reports and watching OLN) it appears to be a lung shot. I surmise this from the cat's reaction based on known lung shots I've observed on hunting shows.

Perhaps we should rename the 5.56 Poodle Shooter to Kitty Killer?

The video does go on to say that the shot was lung/heart/lung, which is almost as good as such a game shot can get (additionally breaking one or both scapulae to keep the cat from running would have been even better, and a brainstem shot would have rated "perfect".) The only thing that would have made this better is if the householder had dispatched the threat herself. By the way, I should mention that there have been several recent public accounts of mountain lion attacks on hikers in the nearby Stanford hills (The Farm really is farmland)... good riddance to bad cats.

Quote of the Day

To believe in gun control, you have to believe that it's wrong to make snide, sexist comments about women, unless the comments are about women who own guns.

Bill Hartwell

Quote of the Day

...when I saw Vlad in Carlsbad he patted my stomach and said big (fat) men make great fighters, then smiled and said they can't run away like everyone else so they have to be...

Clayton

Quote of the Day

The objectives of bullies are Power, Control, Domination, Subjugation. They get a kick out of seeing you react. It doesn't matter how you react, the fact they've successful provoked a reaction is, to the bully, a sign that their attempt at control have been successful. After that, it's a question of wearing you down. The more your try to explain, negotiate, conciliate, etc the more gratification they obtain from your increasingly desperate attempts to communicate with them. Understand that it is not possible to communicate in a mature adult manner with a disordered individual who's emotionally retarded.

The Number One rule for dealing with this type of behaviour is: don't respond and don't engage. This is not as easy to do as it sounds. It's a natural response to want to defend yourself, and to put the person right. However, never argue with a serial bully; it's not a mature adult discussion, but like dealing with a child or immature teenager; whilst the serial bully may be an adult on the outside, on the inside they are like a child who's never grown up - and probably never will.

Unattributed

Quote of the Day

Well, it didn't take long for this to happen. We've been "adopted" by a stray dog. This is Pesky.

I found him at our gate, shivering and obviously starving, a couple of days ago. At first, it was a toss-up: have him put to sleep, or try to nurse him back to health. In the end, his sweet disposition won me over. If he's this nice of a dog when he's near death, he must be a genuinely nice dog. I'm keeping a watchful eye on him, however, just in case he starts to show menace. One of the side benefits of being always armed is that I can be comfortable taking controlled risks with something like an unknown dog. In an unarmed society, there would be only one route for dogs like Pesky - some gov-goon would show up and either shoot him on the spot, or lock him up for a few days until he was gassed.

Bob Tipton

Russian Systema Seminar in San Francisco, Saturday 8 May 2004

Last night in the dojo, our teacher Dale Seago inquired as to who might be attending this coming Saturday's Systema seminar to be given by Kwan Lee at Mountain Lake Park from 10am - 3pm. I'd missed the announcement from a couple of weeks ago:

I'm not in the habit of recommending other martial arts' seminars: to date, the only exception has been for those taught by Donald Angier, Soke of Yanagi ryu.

Russian Systema, however, is worth checking out. It's the closest thing I've yet seen outside "the Booj" in terms of movement, concepts, "feeling", and philosophy to what Hatsumi sensei has been trying to get across to us. To get a better sense of what I'm talking about, check out some of the discussions [here].

I'm going to be at this one myself, and I hope to see some of you there as well.

-- Dale

If I'm recovered from a hip bruise I somehow picked up in training last night, I might consider attending myself.

Quote of the Day

Fuck euphemisms. Dammit. Some would have us believe that a woman raped and strangled with her underwear is somehow morally superior to one that put two rounds into the chest of that motherfucker, saving future women from his predation.

Though I suppose the recent photos of abuse in Iraq point out again that people can be abusive, not just men.

God fucking dammit.

Rapists should meet a wall, and at least one .30 bullet. Fuck. My girlfriend was reading a study to me last night on at least one American college campus that had over 60% of the male respondents answer that they might, when "rape" was substituted with "force intercourse", or similar verbiage.

Stop rape. Go armed, and love yourself enough to know that you are fucking WORTH DEFENDING.

John Shirley

Quote of the Day

Wiley Clapp has an article on the BAR [Browning Automatic Rifle] in the current Shooting Illustrated. He sums it up thus:

"The BAR is like a blind date that is a little overweight and not very pretty, but redeems herself with enthusiasm and skill in the activities of the late evening."

Steve Pegram

Serenity: A diary of our family's experience in moving to the country

Apologies for Bob Tipton for not having gotten back to him in email, but I'd like to take the time to announce here that he's launched an interesting new blog, "Serenity: A diary of our family's experience in moving to the country." Included is a review of handgun training at Storm Mountain and other interesting material. Oh, and he does post photos; I'm a sucker for eyecandy, so I like that.

Quote of the Day (thanks Steve)

The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who do nothing about them.

Albert Einstein

Quote of the Day (courtesy Bill Hartwell)

When the Governor-General requested that the Miao be prevented from having weapons, and that Chinese merchants be forbidden to trade with them in such items as lead, saltpeter, and sulfur, I did not grant his request. It was not only that the Miao depend for their livelihood on the game they could kill by hunting with crossbow and fouling piece -- it was also that effective control of them had to depend on the sensitivity of the local officials. Besides which, of course, there was the question of how you can get the common people to hand over their weapons to the government officials at all -- as I pointed out to the Board of Works vice-president Muhelun when he presented his crazy scheme of disarming the people of Shantung province.

K'ang-hsi, Emperor of China from 1661 to 1722, quoted from page 35 of
"Emperor of China: Self-portrait of K'ang-hsi", compiled by Johnathan D. Spence, 1974

Quote of the Day

Anyone ought to be able to sell any kind of gun they choose, anywhere they want. Anyone who chooses to, young, old, male, female, black, white, or green, or any shade between, ought to be able to walk into any store selling guns, pick one out, purchase it with the appropriate ammunition, load it, put in their pocket and walk out, no questions asked.

To the extent that idea frightens you, the anti-gun terrorists have won.

Reginald Firehammer

Quote of the Day

Americans have the will to resist because you have weapons. If you don't have a gun, freedom of speech has no power.

Yoshimi Ishikawa, author of Strawberry Road

Quote of the Day

Any standing military force aside from the Navy is unconstitutional. The Constitution provides for funding of armies only two years at a time – even the typical four-year commitment for ROTC cadets and new enlistees is thus illegal, as presumably it could not be known four years in advance that there would still be a standing Army or Air Force. Many things the federal government does today are unconstitutional, but this is no reason not to continue to consider the Constitution an authoritative document.

Brad Edmonds

Quote of the Day

You know my first impression of this was in fact that the man led her away. She appears to have gone along. Reluctantly, but compliantly. There was no screaming, fighting... nothing. The girl complied as if the man was her father or teacher at school. Yet, we are told, she didn't know him.

...are we teaching our children to be too compliant and docile? Are we teaching them excessive submission to anyone in authority such as any adult? I think collectively we are. As ridiculous as it sounds, I think society is trading the Carlie Brucias away for fear of creating potential Columbine Kids.

Gabe Suarez

Take a woman shooting this weekend

After chemistry class yesterday, I had the pleasure of taking a friend and classmate pistol shooting for the first time in her life, at the excellent Reed's Indoor Range in Santa Clara, California. She did very, very well, and handled my Glock 23 (.40S&W/Liberty) competently. She confirmed my long-standing impression that women learn basic pistolcraft much more quickly then men, on average: they know that they don't know, so they absorb training with intensity and sincerity, no chips on their shoulders.

I always leave the range feeling very good about the world when I introduce a friend, especially a female friend (who's much more likely to need a pistol), to the art of the pistol. I urge you to do the same: take a woman to the range this weekend.

Quote of the Day

If you think you can get away without them knowing who you are, then running from the cops is the right thing to do.

If you think the cops are likely to pound the crap out of you because they don't like who or what you are, then running from the cops is the right thing to do.

If you think there's a chance that the cops might shoot you, then running from the cops is the right thing to do.

If you don't like being treated like a slave, then running from the cops is the right thing to do.

On the other hand, if you're a narc or a stooge, then hey, stick around and say hey. Because, after all, the police are your friends.

Joe Crow

Ohio grand jury indicts Hunter

Ward Griffiths has alerted me to the news today that Jeffrey Jordan has been indicted by an Ashland County, Ohio grand jury. From the article, "New Hampshire man indicted for carrying concealed weapon":

ASHLAND -- A New Hampshire man arrested last month by the state patrol was indicted Thursday on a felony count of carrying a concealed weapon by an Ashland County grand jury.

Jeffrey Jordan, 42, was arrested Dec. 31 by a trooper of the Ashland post of the Ohio Highway Patrol after a traffic stop. He faces a charge of carrying a concealed weapon because troopers said they found two handguns on him.

Jordan is scheduled to be arraigned Monday at 11:30 a.m.

Visual Glossary: the Terminology of Swords

[This entry was originally published on my other, dormant blog 27 April 2003. - Russell]

I had the pleasure of meeting Fred Weissberg today at the Cupertino Sakura Matsuri, and was pointed to several websites of his and his cohorts. For those of you - like me - who are into traditional Japanese martial arts, here's a useful resource: a Visual Glossary of the Japanese sword.

While I wasn't looking...

...Samizdata.net took on a cool new look over the weekend.

Friday at the range with Alan and Genghis

I've been slightly busier than usual the past few days. I did manage to meet up with friends Mark Quon ("Genghis Khan") and Alan Weiss on Friday before Alan's departure for Austin, for lunch and for some indoor shooting at the excellent Reed's Indoor Range in Santa Clara, California. Here's Alan with his EAA Witness in .45 ACP with Wonderfinish coating (he favors the isosceles stance):

Mark Quon aka "Genghis Khan" shooting his Kimber in .45 ACP (Mark favors a variant of the Weaver stance):

Quote of the Day

Firearms and painkilling drugs are among the principle advancements of modern humanity. A sorry crew of US legislators have understood that it is their job to stand between human beings and these advancements made by humanity - no matter if it kills the human beings.

Mary Dolan

While I'm on a picture posting jag

I'm still waiting for permissions to post some more of the pics from last night's Firefly shindig. In the meantime, while I'm waiting, I'll post one of the pics from the set which Fred Moulton handed me on a CD when we met at the event:

That's Anton Sherwood on the left, who was also in attendance at last night's Firefly shindig. I think he's dressed as "The Man with One Brown Shoe." Me, I'm dressed as myself. Really. Or, at least an aspect of myself. And yes, the blades are real. Party was at the home of Romana Machado Reynolds and Dr. Kurth Reynolds, Halloween 2003. Romana has always held cool parties.

Looking for Steyr Scout Owner's Manual in PDF form

I know my paper copy of my Steyr Scout Owner's Manual is around the house somewhere, but I can't find it. Remembering that Steyr's erstwhile U.S. distributor GSI published a PDF version of the manual online, I went looking for it, and discovered it gone from the GSI site, unavailable from the Dynamit-Nobel site... and as a side effect, saw that Steyr is once again changing U.S. distributors!

I went to the Internet Archive Wayback Machine and was delighted to find snapshots of GSI's site from 2 years back... but no stored PDF documents! I've looked all over the Scout-related sites, Googling widely, still no luck. Does anyone know where I can find this file?

CJ Weapons Chamber Maid chamber cleaning system

After several hours of putzing around with my Steyr Scout (after having taken it out yesterday to test functioning with a range of old NATO surplus ammo), trying to figure out how to re-install the extractor (it's a long story), I got everything back together and continued the cleaning job I'd started before the re-assembly odyssey. I pulled out an item I picked up at a gun show a few months ago: a C.J. Weapons Chamber Maid flexible cleaning rod. I originally bought the Chamber Maid with the AR-15/M-16 dual-diameter chamber brush, but I also bought a range of additional brushes, including .308, 12 gauge, and 20 gauge (because it can be used with a 50BMG chamber).

"The Chamber Maid is a special bore cleaning system. Unique brush is actually two brushes in one, utilizing two different bristle materials and diameters. The rod supporting the brush is a flexible steel braid coated with a clear rubber to keep it from scratching your barrel or receiver."

John Ross has a website!

Speaking of content on the AnCap Wiki, Terry Egan just posted a pointer to John Ross, author of "Unintended Consequences," pointing out that Ross does have a personal website.

Bill St. Clair's "AnCap Wiki"

Bill St. Clair announces:

I got to playing with wiki [while] playing with one set up for collecting legal information for Hunter [Jeffrey Jordan]. I set up my own, initially to provide space to mirror that info, but then decided to call it "AnCap Wiki" and devote it to creating, in our lifetimes, anarcho-capitalist societies around the world. Check it out. Contribute if you're motivated to do so. Links to instructions near the top of the page.

Quote of the Day

Bastiat, like many great thinkers, understood that a collective – no matter how you define it – consists of individuals, and ergo the idea of a “collective right” is based on a false premise. A collective right does not exist, because without individuals, the collective does not exist. Individual rights are the basis – the root – the foundation of any just society, because the individual is the basis, the root and the foundation of any society. Individuals create society, and consequently government. Their rights exist apart from governments and aren’t granted by other individuals. Individual rights exist because individuals exist – not vice versa. Bastiat understood this simple concept. Our Founding Fathers understood it even better. It’s only when ignorant, bed-wetting, socialist dullards, who are deathly afraid of an armed populace threatening their seat of power, get a hold of these sacred ideals, that the individual right gets mired in vacuous invective and subjugated to the great whole! Therefore, for any pseudo-intellectual hacks with pretensions to being a body of justice to noisily squawk their “interpretation” of the “collective rights” theory, and worse yet, ascribe that type of idiotic thought to those who founded this great country is ignorant, disrespectful and deceitful.

Nicki Fellenzer

"Friend defends man facing gun charges"

A few days ago, the News Journal in Ohio reported on the Jeffrey Jordan situation in that state, and today follows up with another surprisingly well-reported piece on the situation. In both articles are sidebars which accurately summarize the goals of the Liberty Round Table... with no journalistic venom at all.

EVENT: Support Jeff Jordan (Hunter) Saturday 9am, Ashland, OH

Jeffrey Jordan is back in Ohio to retrieve his stuff from the For those in the area of Ashland, Ohio. If you're in town in the morning (tomorrow, Saturday 10 January), Matt Gaylor invites you to meet Jordan:

For those within driving distance of north central Ohio, please join us for breakfast with Jeff Jordan, Liberty Round Tables' The Hunter. Jeff was recently charged with carrying a concealed weapon by the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Jeff is coming back to Ohio to get his vehicle and belongings back from the OHP. You can show your support for RKBA and Jeff by showing up tomorrow. Please dress respectful, business causal would be good. Everyone who values freedom is welcome to attend.

I spoke to Jeff this afternoon and he will be in Ohio this evening along with DLT.

When: Saturday, January 10th at 9am
Where: Bob Evans Restaurant 1304 E MAIN STREET, ASHLAND OH 44805

Just exit off I-71 at St. Route 250 and head west toward Ashland. The Bob Evan's is on your right about 2-3 miles from the Interstate. Ashland is about 80 miles north of Columbus, just off of I-71.

For a map just go to Mapquest and enter the address above.

We'll meet in the parking lot, and then have breakfast together. Just look for a 2003 Black Ford F-150 Supercab as a rally point. Our presence will mainly serve as a respectful send off for Jeff and to provide moral support. Other details will be provided in person.

For additional info you can contact me on my cell phone at 614-313-5722 or DLT at 608-345-7731.

Regards, Matt Gaylor

Ken Holder's "Another H.E.A.P. Site"

Remember "H.E.A.P." ("Holocaust Education and Prevention") from Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon? Well, Ken Holder maintains an excellent H.E.A.P. site.

"Welcome to Ohio"

Cartoonist Scott Beiser has this to say - or portray - about the Jeffrey Jordan situation in Ohio.

"Concealed weapons compromise is reached" in Ohio

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports today that a "Concealed weapons compromise is reached" in Ohio (as per Matt Gaylor). Note that:

The compromise hinges on allowing broader access to gun-permit records. Under the deal, journalists would be able to get complete lists of permit-holders, rather than single names - but access would still be denied to the general public.

What would you bet one of these journalists will sell his copy of the list to someone who'll leak it to others, say, nosy neighbors? Also, does anyone else besides me object to a government grant of special privileges to the Fourth Estate in this country?

Fox News runs John Lott's "Why People Fear Guns"

I just noticed that Fox News on 3 January 2004 published John Lott's "Why People Fear Guns" on their website.

A long overdue pointer to a SciScoop thread about this blog

A little over a week ago I was sitting in a hotel room in Portland, Oregon, checking my email, when I discovered that Ricky Roberson (whom I'd misattributed earlier as "Ricky James") of SciScoop had written a rather lengthy post on his site entitled "The Toy That's Not For Christmas" expressing his fascination with my ownership of an Armalite AR-50 single-shot .50BMG. I'd mentioned my discovery of his blog a few days before, and he was apparently returning the favor, in spades.

Ricky expresses his apparently sincere and heartfelt belief that if guns are going to exist, then he'd rather be in the group who has access to guns:

...I do unfortunately see the need to kill humans upon occasion - preferably a selected few key enemies instead of massive indiscriminate "shock and awe." An Armalite AR-50 is the best tool out there as far as I'm concerned for accomplishing this grisly task, and if this fearsome rifle is going to exist, I want to be in the group of people who have access to this technology instead of belonging to the group that doesn't.

While I essentially agree with this sentiment, I should point out a few things. First, I don't think the AR-50 is the best tool for that "grisly task". There are better tools for sniper and countersniper work nowadays, e.g. the 300 Winchester Magnum, or the 300 Lapua. Both these and related types are in increasingly common use nowadays by people whose paid jobs require their use as tools. A 700 grain .50 caliber bullet, for long range antipersonnel work, is fast becoming an outmoded approach. The guns are heavy, the ammo bulky, and the ballistics, while impressive, aren't nearly as optimal as the new breed of .30 caliber wonderguns (two of which I just mentioned).

I should also point out that I never got into my main reason for owning such a piece in the first place: it's fun. Period. Besides, I have no need to justify the ownership of any legally acquired property to anyone for any reason. That having been said, I do find this blog followup comment posted by "Anonymous Hero" (funny, the slashdot convention for someone who won't sign his name is the more accurate "Anonymous Coward") a bit annoying:

no extreme is ever good.
having grown up in rural areas where hunting was second nature i'm confortable with firearms.
i also understand that those from more urban areas are not.

i must admitt being less concerned with those people that were going to go out and blast bambi, than those who have no interest in hunting, but seem drawn to fire arms that have no practicle (sic) use in a civilian world...

...there is a place for everything.
be careful with that AR-50, i'd hate to have to read about it on someone elses site.

I'm not sure if this guy is engaging in a classic bit of psychological projection, but:

• I do go out on occasion and "blast bambi"; I love hunting. I use calibers appropriate to the game I'm chasing.
  
• I do not need to justify my ownership of any weapon, regardless of his standard, tired canard about "practical use in the civilian world."
  
• No crime has ever been committed on American soil with a weapon chambered in .50BMG. Period.
  
• Your snide implication that I would aggress against another human is beyond contempt.
  

Ricky generously offers me space on his forum:

And Russell, here's YOUR chance to cut and paste the essence of what your site is about to a few thousand new readers. Just what IS at the root of our anthropological and psychological fascination with violence in general and firearms in particular? Does our current progress in science and technology offer a way to divest ourselves of this in the 21st Century? In a way that is Good? Should we want to?

I really do wish I had the time to talk on these things at great length, but I don't: I'm studying to be a nanotechnologist, and school just re-started for me yesterday. I am, however, sincerely grateful for the offer, and recognize that SciScoop would be a wonderful venue for such discussion, particularly given my personal interests in ethology, anthropology, sociobiology, and evolutionary psychology.

Ricky ends his article thus:

On this topic, gotta end with a link on Bowling for Columbine, of course. Bye, bye, Christmas. Back to reality.

Ricky, you seem like a really nice guy, but if you believe anything Michael Moore says in that "documentary", which has been repeatedly demonstrated to contain lies - lies that Moore has been called on - then I strongly recommend you open your mind and check out MOOREWATCH.com: Watching Michael Moore's Every Move. You're a demonstrably intelligent and benevolent guy, so I'd be surprised if after some research you don't see what I see in him: a black-hearted charlatan.

"Gun-toter has 'Liberty' on his side"

Well this is interesting: journalists at the News Journal in Ohio are going deeper into the Jeffrey Jordan story, in an article today entitled "Gun-toter has 'Liberty' on his side", profiling his involvement with the Liberty Round Table, even including a sidebar with a summary of the group's mission.

"Liberty Action of the Week: Free the Hunter"

Mary Lou Seymour has just published in Rational Review a comprehensive update on the Jeffrey Jordan situation, "Liberty Action of the Week: Free the Hunter."

Matthew Gaylor: "Thoughts On Jeff Jordan, Ohio, CCW and Freedom"

I'd meant to get this out earlier today, but it's been a very, very busy day for me on a number of fronts. Here's the latest today from Matthew Gaylor, reprinted as usual with his explicit permission, on the Jeffrey Jordan situation, told from the first-person perspective; I've added links to his original text, for research purposes:

Hello everyone,

I thought I'd respond in an open letter format to the deluge of comments I've gotten concerning Jeff Jordan's recent arrest for CCW near Ashland, OH this past week.

First I want to thank everyone for the kind words for my helping out Jeff. It was really nothing, albeit my significant other was a little pissed about it being New Year's Eve and all, but I'd want you to help me if I got into a jam. She wasn't all that pissed as she had to work early on the 1st and went to bed early anyhow.

For those who haven't figured it out already Ohio is a state with ample law enforcement, I travel frequently by vehicle all around North American and I can always tell I'm home because the police always seem to be around. The Ohio Highway Patrol has a reputation for being one of the toughest agencies in the nation which make speeding in Ohio a risky proposition. The OHP also are vehemently anti-CCW, in fact our Republican Gov. Bob Taft, who the Cato Institute gave an "F" for fiscal policy, cites the patrol opposition to CCW as his reason for not supporting out right to carry concealed. Ohio's legislator's have passed a CCW bill, but Taft is threatening a veto unless law enforcement friendly changes are made.

In Ashland, which is a medium small town about 80 miles north of Columbus I was favorable impressed with Jeff's attorney. Jim Brightbill is a SAF recommended attorney who practices in the Akron area, but who is from and grew up in Ashland. Prior to working as a criminal defense attorney he worked as a prosecutor. He commented that Ashland is a very conservative town and that the Judge and local prosecutor are members of the NRA, as are many of the residents. He thought a plea bargain would be offered early on, as the politicos won't want a CCW prosecution on their record, especially as Jeff doesn't have a criminal record, is gainfully employed, and wasn't committing a serious offense when charged.

I'm acquainted with a couple of former Ohio prosecutors myself and they have said that they usually offered a lower charge, like improper transport of a firearm in a motor vehicle, or carrying an unloaded firearm, which are misdemeanors for someone who isn't a professional criminal.

Ohio does have a quirky affirmative defense law, which means if you can show good cause why you're armed you can use it for your defense. However such tactics are a crap shoot and depends on your judge and jury. Ohio's Supreme Court recently ruled that Ohioans don't have a constitutional right to carry concealed firearms, in spite of our constitution expressly stating (1.04) "The people have the right to bear arms for their defense and security; but standing armies, in time of peace, are dangerous to liberty, and shall not be kept up; and the military shall be in strict subordination to the civil power."

Having known several people who have been charged with CCW in Ohio, my advice to Jeff or to anyone is to maintain a low profile, and take the plea. When I first met up with Jeff in Ashland I shared Voltaire's famous quote that "It's dangerous to be right when your government is wrong." It's all well and good to armchair quarterback, but it's Jeff's arse on the line and he could go to prison over this.

I think I understand the factors that lead to law enforcement going "ballistic" over this. First we had the heightened Homeland Security threat level, then law enforcement had the unsolved serial Interstate sniper case going on just 80 miles to the South. And lastly, four vehicles where caught on a surveillance tape at a local Columbus gas station just minutes after one of the shootings and one of the vehicles was a Nissan Pathfinder, the same make and model as Jeff's vehicle. Plus there were a couple of participating events, his alleged speed of 80 in a 65mph zone and one other, which was his questioning of the need for the OHP to have his social security number. Jeff's appearance is yet another factor, I had mentioned to him a law enforcement study that I once read that indicated that those who part their hair in the middle and who have long hair, are more likely to use drugs (and no I'm not making this up.) Jeff's not a drug user, but law enforcement gauges how you look in how they deal with you.

Frankly we don't live in a free society and we all would be better off as a general principle looking like businessmen or bible salesmen. The last couple of times I was stopped by The Ohio Highway Patrol, I got off with a warning. Realizing that in a traffic stop, they don't know what they're going to get, I help them feel safer by rolling my window down, turning my dome lights on, placing my hands at 10 and 2 on the steering wheel and greeting the Patrolman pleasantly with a "Good evening Trooper". My true thoughts are masked in civility and genteel behavior.

In this particular case the OHP apparently communicated to the media that Jeff was a Militia person, [Which he isn't] (Reported on Fox News at the bottom of the screen in their ticker tape like section) with video footage of Jeff's FAL rifle and ammunition. BTW, all of Jeff's firearms are legal to own in Ohio. He was just charged with carrying his two pistols concealed. His rifle was stored in a locked box, legal carry in Ohio btw. The showing of his personal belongings that were not involved in his "crime" are suspect. What does the Patrol have to gain by this?

As some of you know a defense fund has been set up for Jeff's defense at Keep and Bear Arms.

They have agreed to accept the funds for Jeff Jordan and manage the account. They'll be setting up a web page soon to take donations online, but folks who would be sending a check can do so already by sending them to:

Keep And Bear Arms
15201 N Cleveland Ave.
PMB # 141
North Fort Myers, FL. 33903-2715
(239) 560-7566

It's being considered what will be the next move, a protest is being considered where a caravan of supporters will escort Jeff out of Ohio. We're thinking of detouring the route to include the area where the serial sniper is active to highlight the fact that Ohio's government leaves it's citizens defenseless. If we clear this with Jeff's attorney details will be forthcoming.

Regards,

Matt Gaylor
Columbus, OH
(614) 313-5722

I would recommend those wanting to understand the situation regarding carry laws in Ohio start by consulting the Ohio information page on Packing.org, a great and active repository of information on the subject.

Article on Jeffrey Hunter's arrest from New Hamphire

Matthew Gaylor forwarded those of us on interested lists a link to the on Jeffrey Hunter's arrest from New Hamphire's Nashua Telegraph, "Area man arrested in Ohio."

Quote of the Day (thanks Matt)

It's dangerous to be right when your government is wrong.

Voltaire

The Valentine One radar & laser detector: don't drive through bandit country without it

This was snapped a few days ago on the way up through northern California on the way to Oregon. In the background is the beautiful, 14,162 foot, potentially deadly volcano people around here call "Mt. Shasta". I have some of these shots from the way out to Oregon, and some taken under snowy conditions on the way back to California, taken yesterday on New Year's Eve... maybe I'll post them sometime, entitled "Thirty-Six Views of Mt. Shasta" under the artist name "The Cowboy Hokusai". Or maybe not.

In the lower right hand corner, in the foreground, is my trusty Valentine One radar and laser detector. Excepting a year I spent in Japan, I've used this thing in three different vehicles - and numerous rental cars - for five years, and am incredibly happy with it. I spent about $450 for it and its accessories, but I'm sure I've saved several times that price in speeding tickets I didn't receive.

Witnessed on "Halls of Montezuma"

I'm watching the 1951 classic "Halls of Montezuma," and noticed a couple of interesting costuming details. Here's one: the character of Lt. Carl Anderson, played by Richard Widmark, carries what looks like a Randall Model 1 knife with a double brass hilt... while the rest of the Marines seem to be carrying standard-issue KA-BARs. While a KA-BAR is a perfectly useful utility knife, a Randall Made Knife would have cost its wearer a pretty penny in WWII. These knives have long been sought after by soldiers and collectors since 1937. I recently sold a Model 16 Special #1 Fighter myself for a premium of almost $100 over retail... since you can't get one from the factory any earlier than summer 2007.

Quote of the Day

If someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun.

The Dalai Lama
May 15, 2001

Another day at the range, this time with the .50

A couple of weekends ago, I finally took out my Armalite AR-50 .50 BMG for a spin. I've owned it for quite a while, but I hadn't gotten around to shooting it: I wasn't yet convinced until recently that I wouldn't break the scope I was hoping to mount on it, a Leupold Vari-X III mil-dot model with a Premier Reticle (3.5-10 x 40mm). Once I was convinced, I mounted the scope and took it out for a bit of fun, using some surplus South African ammo I'd ordered a couple of years ago. No intention of serious zeroing, but I figured it would be fun to get at least a rough zero at the longest range I could manage.

The range was only about 300 meters deep, so for fun I set up to shoot at a vertical paper target, figuring I'd try to adjust for about one foot over point of aim. My first shot, with the elevation and windage on the scope set to "0", resulted in a hit right over the target... 4 feet over. It didn't take me long to get the hits down to roughly where I wanted them. Like I said, this was simply a set of warmup shots (also remembering that the first few shots through a new barrel will change point of impact.)

One of the things that amazed me about this weapon is how light the recoil was... and how loud it was! Both aspects make perfect sense given the combination of the weight of the weapon (37lb/16.8kg) and a well-designed muzzle brake (the size of a Coke can.) The muzzle brake, in the course of doing its recoil reduction job, introduces a lot of noise to either side and back of the muzzle. You do not want to be within 10-15 feet on either side of the weapon when it lights off! Interestingly, in the shooter's position behind the gun, it's much more bearable... but less so 6 feet behind the shooter. Interesting acoustics.

I plan to take this lovely piece back out to the range in the next few weeks, under more controlled conditions. I'll write about it at length, and may even have someone do a video of the firing sequence, so you all can see and hear it in action. This thing is fun!

Technical Video Rental

A member of one of my mailing lists de-lurked today to introduce himself. He runs an incredibly cool and useful website, "Technical Video Rental", which advertises a carefully selected library of tapes, DVDs, and books for the independent-operator machinist. This should be of particular interest to those in the Free Arms Project.

The Free Arms Project

The Free Arms Project just opened today for business, spun off the smith2004-discuss Yahoo Groups mailing list:

"The Free Arms Project is committed to the development of a patentless, Open Source, Open Engineering personal defense weapon."

It'll be interesting to see where we take this. The Weapon Shops of Isher?

Michael Janich Martial Blade Craft Course Review

I just got back from attending Michael Janich's Martial Blade Craft Course Levels 1&2 (MBC) this past weekend (Nov.8/9th). The class itself was hosted by Suarez International and was held at the Angeles Shooting Range just northeast of Los Angeles.

In addition to being an instructor renowned among students of edged weapons, Mr. Janich is also the author of numerous survival/self-defense books and videos published by Paladin Press.

Day/Level 1 started off with the usual (and necessary) mission statement as well as the defining of the overall goals of the classes followed by a short but informative lecture. Soon afterward, we were taught the basics which the rest of the course would build upon i.e. grip, stance, different methods of deploying a folder, Five Angles of Attack, Zones of Defense, and Defensive Responses. Afterward, we pretty much spent the rest of the day drilling on the various aspects of attack and defensive responses. We were also introduced to various drills taken from the Filipino Arts e.g. Largo Mano Flow Drill, Six-Count Flow Drill etc. in order to sharpen our technique, teach us to chain our responses and help develop an appreciation for the ability to perceive an attack and responding in a smooth and instantaneous fashion. In between all this, we were given a lecture on things to look for when choosing a folder and the numerous pros and cons of the various carry locations/positions. Later in the day, we were also given a demo on lethality and effectiveness of the fighting knife against flesh and blood targets as Mike slashed and ripped away at a pork roast (tied around a wooden dowel and wrapped in saran which was in turn sheathed by layers of denim) which was meant to simulate a human limb. The results were quite grisly but impressive.

Day/Level Two began with a brief review of Day/Level One before proceeding onto more advanced concepts/drills such as retraction cutting, Crossadas, Sumbradas, varying your range, etc. In between these comprehensive drills we were taught and given the time to practice both targetting and application for all the techniques we had spent the better part of a day and a half practicing. Towards the end of Day Two, we were also shown how the concepts and techniques that we were taught could also be applied to other contact weapons (canes, sticks, chains, belts) or in some cases, empty handed fighting.

Overall, I found the two day course to be a very gratifying experience. Mr. Janich is a top notch instructor who is not only intimately familiar with the subjects at hand but he also able to present the subjects in such a way that was easily understood and the fact that he had a sense of humor sure didn't detract from the experience.

As for the curriculum itself, I found it to be quite practical and thought provoking. The techniques taught were easy to learn and more importantly easy to apply in a real world situation. I think one of the best things about the concepts-based system of MBC is that by attaining familiarity with just a few basic concepts plus mastery over a few techniques the student is prepared for the entire spectrum of conflict involving contact weapons (or even empty hands) and this aspect of it should be very attractive to those of us who are seeking a simple, direct and highly adaptable fighting system to add to our Combative Skills Composite.

Quote of the Day

I laugh when some trainer advertises his class as “for police only,” as if that phrase somehow makes the class more advanced or the topics more "deadly." Rubbish. The state of the art resides in the private sector salles d'armes, the unofficial shooting schools.

Gabe Suarez

Libertarian Alliance UK mailing list

Not receiving enough email? Looking for yet another mailing list to consume? If you're a libertarian, and aren't familiar with the incredibly prolific pamphleteering of the UK Libertarian Alliance, I recommend joining the Yahoo mailing list libertarian-alliance-forum, if for no other reason than to witness the astounding post rate of my longtime good friend Dr. Chris R. Tame.

Niggling point about historical Mongolian archery

I'm doing homework for my only online college class (the rest are on campus), and I have the TV on in the background for noise. It's the Sci-Fi Channel, and one of the first Stargate SG-1 episodes, "Emancipation", is playing. I had to look up when the Daniel character says the people they're meeting are descendants of Mongols. As soon as I did, I saw one bowman nock and draw an arrow in the Western tradition, with the first two fingers (3 is also sometimes used in the West)! You see, Mongol bowmen never used that string draw technique: they used a very distinctive thumb draw instead.

Back to work now.

Showing the Big Portabella?

Fox News occasionally runs a short commentary segment by American comedian Dennis Miller. While working just now, I heard Miller comment that the U.S. should occasionally test a nuke in the desert for demonstration purposes, calling it "showing the Big Portabella".

That's pretty vivid imagery... can't quite get it out of my head, so I guess I have to write it out.

Quote of the Day

If you carry a gun, people call you paranoid. That's ridiculous. If I have a gun, what in the hell do I have to be paranoid about?

Clint Smith
Director, Thunder Ranch

AR15.COM Forums thread: USMC after-action gear assessment

Thanks to my friend Steve Pegram for passing along this incredibly interesting thread on the AR15.com Forums: "USMC after-action gear assessment". Pay particular attention to the reports on the adequacy of 5.56mm vs 7.62mm carbine/rifle ammunition, and the spectacular satisfaction of operators with their M16 & (especially) M4 carbines.

Especially interesting is a point I've known all along: a lot of issue military gear quickly gets replaced with individually selected commercial "sporting goods" equivalents, e.g. Panoptx goggles replacing the awful issue crap.

Another interesting point: the M9 pistol still sucks. It should be replaced with the Glock or whatever the individual soldier wishes to otherwise carry.

All the Way Down the Slippery Slope: Gun Prohibition in England and Some Lessons for Civil Liberties in America, by Olson & Kopel

Sean Gabb announces today the publication of "All the Way Down the Slippery Slope: Gun Prohibition in England and Some Lessons for Civil Liberties in America" by Professors Joseph E. Olson and David B. Kopel; an excerpt from this long and well footnoted article:

Is it possible for a nation to go from wide-open freedom for a civil liberty, to near-total destruction of that liberty, in just a few decades? "Yes," warn many American civil libertarians, arguing that allegedly "reasonable" restrictions on civil liberty today will start the nation down "the slippery slope" to severe repression in the future.[3] In response, proponents of today's reasonable restrictions argue that the jeremiads about slippery slopes are unrealistic or even paranoid.[4]

This Essay aims to refine the understanding of slippery slopes by examining a particular nation that did slide all the way down the slippery slope.(p.400) When the twentieth century began, the right to arms in Great Britain was robust, and subject to virtually no restrictions. As the century closes, the right has been almost obliterated. In studying the destruction of the British right to arms, this Essay draws conclusions about how slippery slopes operate in real life, and about what kinds of conditions increase or decrease the risk that the first steps down a hill will turn into a slide down a slippery slope.

Sean Gabb, of the UK's Libertarian Alliance, has himself written a number of superb essays on the RKBA over the years. After reading the piece above, visit the LA's site and look for his work.

"Rare Mid to Late 19th Vampire Killing Kit"

Here's something you don't see everyday: "Rare Mid to Late 19th Vampire Killing Kit", on auction at gunbroker.com, the original 19th century text from the enclosing wooden box:

Vampire Killing Kit

The accoutrements for the destruction of the Vampire

This box contains the items considered necessary for the protection of persons who travel into certain little known countries in Easter Europe where the populace are plagued with a peculiar manifestation of evil, known as Vampires... Professor Ernst Blomberg respectfully requests that the purchaser of this kit carefully studies his book. Should evil manifestations become apparent, he is then equiped to deal with them efficiently... Professor Blomberg wishes to announce his grateful thanks to that well known gunmaker of Liege, Nicholas Plombeur, whose help in compiling of the special items, the silver bullets,etc., has been most efficient. The items enclosed are as follows...

1. An efficient pistol with its usual accoutrements
2. A quantity of bullets of the finest silver
3. Powdered flowers of garlic (one phial)
4. Flour of Brimstone (one phial)
5. Wooden stake (Oak)
6. Ivory crucifix
7. Holy Water (one phial)
8. Professer Blomberg's New Serum

Are We Blue Yet?

Eric S. H. Ching passes this along: US Map of CCW Laws.

The Tornedals Knife From Northerner.com

At last night's dojo training, I showed this knife to Russell Whitaker. If you visit the Northerner.com site, you can see they have a few others as well.

The Suomi people would call this knife a puukko. The people themselves live in Finland and the northern parts of Sweden, Norway, and a bit of Russia. (BTW, there is a Tornedalen dialect of Finnish or Suomi spoken by about 30,000 people in Sweden.)

For comparison, here's a pic of another traditional Suomi-style knife with the sheath made from reindeer antler and leather, and yet another using both curly birch and reindeer horn for the sheath. These sheaths, by the way (mine included) are made with a small drain hole on the back side at the bottom, in case water should get into the sheath. Deep pouch-type sheaths are the norm throughout Scandinavia (not just in the Suomi country), to avoid loss of the knife.

Being made without finger guards, the overall design of Suomi knives favors "pulling" or draw cuts (important if you're out in the cold with numb fingers or wearing mittens, etc.), but the size and shape of the Tornedals knife handle also makes it easy to brace into the palm of your hand if you need to use a pushing motion.

I don't know whether the blade of my Tornedals knife is carbon or some sort of stainless steel, but either way it takes an incredible edge. I tried to test the edge last night by shaving a little hair off my arm, but it was hard to measure my success because the hair appeared to be leaping off in terror before the blade could quite reach it.

I'd also recommend checking out the Scandinavian & Lapp knives from various makers here (scroll down the main page).

Y'know, with just a knife like this and a good tomahawk, such as the Rogers' Rangers Field Grade Spike Tomahawk from American Tomahawk Co., I'd feel very well equipped for any situation I might run into in the boonies.

Damn, just wish I had that 'hawk... :-)

The maker is also good about responding to questions:


>--- Original Message ---
>From: "Frank Svandal"
>To: "Dale Seago"
>Date: 4/30/03 2:56:51 AM
>
>Hello Dale,
>
>Thank you very much for sending your feedback to us.
>I will try to pass your feedback on to the craftsman
>who made the knife.
>
>Kind regards,
>
>Frank Svandal
>____________________________________________________
>
>http://www.northerner.com - The World's Largest Scandinavian Shop
>
>My Name: Frank Svandal
>Phone: +46 31 68 1991
>Fax: +46 31 68 1993
>
>Northerner Scandinavia AB
>Hantverksvägen 15
>436 33 Askim
>SWEDEN
>Company Registered in Sweden with Registration Number: 556559-1699
>VAT Number: SE556559-169901
> _________________________________________________________
>
>-----Ursprungligt meddelande-----
>Från: Dale Seago [mailto:dale @ bujinkansf.org]
>Skickat: den 29 april 2003 22:12
>Till: mailbox @ northerner.com
>Ämne: Order Received :-)
>
>
>I just wanted to let you know that the Tornedals knife I ordered
>arrived yesterday, and that I am VERY pleased with it. It is
>beautiful, feels wonderful in my hand, and I know that it will
>be a fine working tool as well.
>
>Thank you!
>
>Sincerely,
>Dale Seago


"How Sean Penn got gun permit"

A friend just sent me a link to this San Francisco Chronicle article: "How Sean Penn got gun permit" in Marin County, California, which is the county just across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco itself.

I'm reminded in the article that Kern County remains a great place to acquire a permit to exercise your fundamental human right to carry, but hadn't known that Shasta County seems to be another good place to acquire that "permission". Alameda County and San Francisco City remain blatant tyrannies.

Dale Seago at Schola St. George Swordsmanship Symposium 7-8 June 2003, Benecia, California

Dale Seago will be teaching at the Schola St. George Swordsmanship Symposium the weekend of 7-8 June 2003 in Benecia, California (near the San Francisco Bay area), bringing a cognate perspective to this historical European martial arts event:

Dale Seago will demonstrate and teach techniques of armoured Japanese combat, and Japanese armoured wrestling.

See Dale's excellent comments of today on SDF on the rebirth of traditional European martial arts.

The Martialist: the Magazine for Those Who Fight Unfairly

Phil Elmore, a prolific contributor to the Self Defense Forums, has his own related site: The Martialist: the Magazine for Those Who Fight Unfairly.

Quote of the day

As I looked at my two young sons, each with his gun, and considered how much the safety of the party depended on these little fellows, I felt grateful to you, dear husband, for having acquainted them in childhood with the use of firearms.

Elizabeth Robinson
The Swiss Family Robinson, by Johann David Wyss
Unabridged version

Visual Glossary: the Terminology of Swords

Posted to my other blog: Visual Glossary: the Terminology of Swords.

"Hi Everybody, My Name is Dale..."

"...and I'm a selfdefenseaholic."

A few days ago, I discovered the Self-Defense Forums, and have been reccommending that high-quality site to a number of people. My teacher Dale Seago has been doing a lot of posting there, including this introductory piece with lots of great photos of Scottish dirks.

Ken Lunde on the new Sig-Sauer P226ST in .357 Sig

I recently bought a new pistol, one that I have craved since it was announced nearly a year ago. It is a Sig-Sauer P226ST chambered in .357 Sig. It is the all-stainless configuration. It differs from the standard P226 in that the frame is made from stainless steel, whereas the standard P226 frame is alloy. It has heft, to the tune of nearly 40 ounces. Shooting it is a dream. The action is very tight, recoil and muzzle flip are reduced by the heft, and delivers outstanding accuracy. It also has the new M1913 Picatinny rail for attaching a light, if desired. It is also available in 9mm and .40 Auto.

Women's Safety Series - The ABC's of Self-Protection

Teri Seago will be teaching "Women's Safety Series - The ABC's of Self-Protection" on Saturday 17 May 2003 at the San Francisco Buyu Center:

This seminar is the first in a Safety Series of workshops for women to learn the basic self-defense skills that will keep you safe in day to day life. It has been created for non-martial artists who want to learn simple concepts, tactics, and movement to improve awareness, confidence, and physical competence. This seminar is limited to women, and taught by Teri Seago.

Highly recommended.

"Self-Defense Forums: For A Fighting Chance"

Another discovery from my server logs: "Self-Defense Forums: For A Fighting Chance".

"War May Redefine Gun Control"

If Wendy McElroy is correct, then there may be a bit of a culture shift happening in the midst of at least one demographic usually opposed to gun ownership.

Quote of the day

Der größte Unsinn, den man in den besetzen Ostgebieten machen könnte, sei der, den unterworfenen Völkern Waffen zu geben. Die Geschicte lehre, daß alle Herrenvölker untergegangen seien, nachdem sie den von ihnen unterworfenen Volkern Waffen bewilligt hatten.

[The most foolish mistake we could possibly make would be to permit the conquered Eastern peoples to have arms. History teaches that all conquerors who have allowed their subject races to carry arms have prepared their own downfall by doing so.]

Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), April 11, 1942, quoted in Hitlers Tischegesprache Im Fuhrerhauptquartier 1941-1942. [Hitler's Table-Talk at the Fuhrer's Headquarters 1941-1942], Dr. Henry Picker, ed. (Athenaum-Verlag, Bonn, 1951)

Don Angier aikijiujitsu seminar, 12-13 April 2003, at Aikido of Diablo Valley

Now that I'm mostly recovered from this weekend's training - though still moving slowly - I'll mention this weekend's training I attended in Concord, California, conducted by Soke Don Angier of Yanagi Ryu Aiki Jiujitsu at Aikido of Diablo Valley, graciously hosted by Rick Rowell and Shari Dyer (who provided the photo below).

Mr. Angier is the only American soke of a Japanese family martial art, Yanagi Ryu Aiki Jiujitsu, an offshoot of the Daito Ryu tradition. He'll be turning 70 this year, and has been doing his art since 1958. He has an interesting story to tell, recounted in the article "'So Sorry! Jiu-jitsu Please, Not Judo!' My Career in Yanagi-ryu Aiki Jujutsu", originally printed in the May 2001 edition of Aikido Journal, and reprinted by the Journal of Combative Sport (an interesting venue, since Yanagi Ryu, like the Bujinkan arts I study, utterly lacks sporting elements).

My American teacher in the Bujinkan, Dale Seago, some years ago strongly recommended that his students take advantage of the fact that Mr. Angier was visiting San Francisco for a weekend seminar on the principles of his art. A number of us did indeed take Dale up on his recommendation, and a small core group of us make a point of training with Mr. Angier on the roughly yearly schedule he visits the San Francisco Bay area.

Don Angier teaches these 2-day seminars with a very small number of very specific techniques, which are vehicles for the important lessons: the principles behind martially effective movement, e.g. commutative locking, finding the opponent's weak lines, taking advantage of hardwired mammalian and reptilian visual responses to misdirection, etc. All physics, all anatomy & physiology.

As is usual at these events, we had a larger (18-20 people) group training the first day, and a small group of about half that size training the second day. Mr. Angier and his direct students Jeremy and Mort (great guys) circulated the room giving intensely minutely specific directions for correcting our movements.

The attendees were predominantly aikidoists, with a much smaller number of Bujinkan students. The purpose of the training was not to make us practicioners of Mr. Angier's art, but rather to take home the lessons of his training to our own arts and our own movement. I can't recommend his training highly enough. At $70 for the weekend, too, it was practically given away free. Train with him, if you have the opportunity.

Zach Lunderville's "Revolt" site

A reader, Zach Lunderville, today posted a comment on a posting of mine from January, a recommendation of the book Unintended Consequences by John Ross. His website, "Revolt", has some excerpts from various training manuals. Check them out.

Quote of the day

Those who do not have swords may still die upon them.

J.R.R. Tolkien
The Two Towers

Article on "The Fictitious Truths of Michael Moore"

Steve Pegram pointed me to this 3-part article in "Film Threat" magazine's on-line edition, "The Fictitious Truths of Michael Moore", which ends with an online petition to have Moore and Michael Donavan's Oscar award for "Bowling for Columbine" revoked.

An excerpt:

The movie uses this tragedy as a springboard into the great gun debate, but the Columbine massacre is obviously about more than guns. A quick look at the story shows these two ghouls were plotting the event for some time and their acquisition of guns was a late bit of fortune for their designs. Along with firearms, this aberrant duo brought with them a propane tank modified into an explosive device, as well as a quiver of napalm fueled pipe bombs. It is doubtful the absence of guns would have stalled their quest for long.

and:

Another target in the film is the NRA, and specifically, its president Charlton Heston. The movie uses creative editing and a fluid timeline to paint Heston as a reactionary, who rushed into towns in the wake of shooting deaths of children to hold pro-gun rallies in an effort to stave off anti-gun sentiments. We get to listen to Heston’s Denver address, in which he sounds like a heartless boor in light of the current events in the region, but what is actually broadcast is a judiciously edited version that also contains segments from another speech that was given across the country, nearly a year later. Heston’s original speech was somber and conciliatory, but the audio cut-and-paste transforms him into a state of bloodlust. Moore not only fails to make this distinction, but he edits the scene with visuals so that the audio sounds to be seamlessly delivered from the Denver podium.

It gets worse.

A better machete: the Kris Cutlery Visayan Pinuti

Last night at the dojo, our teacher Dale Seago held an auction of a number of his blades. I picked up a very nice and extremely stout little Linder (Solingen) skinning knife, and this interesting piece, a Kris Cutlery Visayan Pinuti:

I sometimes go places where a machete could be useful. I really hate standard machetes: flimsy, clumsy, and crude. This piece is much better: attractive and servicable, weighted toward the tip (as befits a bolo), and a good enough practical travel short sword. I agree with Jeff Sherwin who commented to me last night that Kris Cutlery does these types of blades best: quality Filipino blades made in the Phillipines. Interestingly, the Kris Cutlery description mentions that the tang is simply glued in place, which is not true: it's also pinned. Oh, and the pommel as you can see in this picture is a nice, oversized knob: great for striking.

I've also owned one of their 26" Japanese-style katana, which was a great little piece for the price. I eventually sold it when I made the leap to a Bugei Samurai Katana last year, for about $800 more.

Looks a lot like Northern Nevada

Just saw footage of U.S. troops fighting alongside Kurds in northern Iraq. Looked a lot like northern Nevada mountain country, complete with snow-covered peaks! I wonder if they've got something like mule deer out there too... hmmm... I wonder if hunting is good out there.

Speaking of which, I've heard quite a bit about Iraqis being a hunter culture, and gun ownership being a common thing. I'm not thrilled to hear that British forces have been making a big deal of bringing their own special brand of domestic gun control to the population in Iraq. I sincerely hope the Iraqi people have stashed away all those Kalashnikovs they've supposedly been issued.

Don't take this to mean I'm anything resembling sympathetic to the Iraqis' maddog dictator. I'm simply concerned that we recognize the individual rights of Iraqi people. Innocent Iraqis have the right to own and keep weapons too.

Quote of the day

At the Paris Taikai, there was a huge SAS soldier who passed his fifth dan test. He was towering over everyone at the Taikai. But when it came time to take the picture of all the people who had passed, he didn’t stand out at all. He was no taller than anyone else in the photo. It was like he was hiding within a crowd. This ability to protect yourself instinctively is very important. You could learn a lot from this.

Soke Masaaki Hatsumi, via Ben Cole

Night of the Short Knives

Terry Egan passes this along to me; lunacy from the European Union:

The Adam Smith Institute has denounced the latest batch of EU regulations as yet another example of economic illiteracy. It singles out the new requirement, imposed by EU Safety Commissioner Senator Fapirollo, that the maximum length of knife blades permitted within the EU after 1 January 2004 will be 10cm (approx 4 inches).

Even Stalin and Hitler hadn't thought of that little gem of legislation.

NRA weighs in on the Ronald Dixon case

A reader, Roger Bjerke, sent me email today with a record of his interaction with the national NRA vis-a-vis the Ronald Dixon case on which I've commented a couple of times here, here, and here. Reprinted below with Roger's permission.

Here is an email I sent to the DA, which I cc'ed to the NRA, and the NRA's response. Looks like they are ready to help, if asked.

Mr. Hynes,
Just what is going on in that part of the country? Has Hillary's influence clouded common sense? Ronald Dixon should be honored by the city for protecting his family, not persecuted and prosecuted. Whenever I think I've read it all, I come across something so utterly ridiculous that it is on the verge of lunacy. This is one such case.

Roger
North Dakota

Dear Roger,
Thank you for contacting us. We are aware of Mr. Dixon's situation and we offered our help. We will follow the case very closely as it is of great interest to the NRA and to the firearms community. In the mean time, we would gladly consider any requests from either Mr. Dixon or his legal representation, but we would not wish to insert ourselves into his personal situation uninvited. Thank you very much for your support and please feel free to contact us if you ever need anything else!
Best regards,
Don [last name not given]
NRA Member Communications
11250 Waples Mill Rd.
Fairfax, VA 22030

Quote of the day

Dogs could not be used in the streets in the manner many Jews were treated. One circumstance among others put an end to the ill-usage of the Jews. About the year 1787 Daniel Mendoza, a Jew, became a celebrated boxer and set up a school to teach the art of boxing as a science. The art soon spread among young Jews and they became generally expert at it. The consequence was in a very few years seen and felt too. It was no longer safe to insult a Jew unless he was an old man and alone. But even if the Jews were unable to defend themselves, the few who would now be disposed to insult them merely because they are Jews, would be in danger of chastisement from the passers-by and of punishment from the police.

Francis Place, Improvement of the Working Classes (1834) as quoted in Robert Kiefer Webb, Modern England: From the 18th Century to the Present (1970).

Quote of the day

The ultimate in disposing one's troops is to be without ascertainable shape. Then the most penetrating spies cannot pry in nor can the wise lay plans against you.

Sun Tzu
The Art of War, p100

M-16/AR-15 KB ("ka-boom"): learn the signs

Thanks to Steve Pegram for passing along this tale of an M-16 kb. Learn the signs!

This is eerily familiar to my experience with S&B ammo in a Glock 23 a few months ago.

Quote of the day

A typical scene in an American McDojo: a man in fighting pajamas stands in a deep front stance and stares stoically ahead. His arms are chambered down near his waist to ensure that they won't get in the way of anyone attempting to hit his face. Suddenly, he emits a sharp barking sound, lunges forward, and strikes the air in front of him with lightning speed and questionable hand positioning. To the untrained eye, it looks like he has perhaps executed some sort of hugely impractical block or strike. To the learned observer, he has in fact ripped out his opponent's throat, shattered his knee, and smashed him into the pavement. This interpretive exercise is known as "bunkai", which can be remembered as being derived from the root word "bunk".

Lucas Kovar

Pic from recent Bill Atkins seminar

Thanks to Michael Duey for sending me this digipic he captured at a recent training event with Bujinkan shihan Bill Atkins.

I've cropped the face of my victim training partner per request of He Who Must Not Be Named (AKA "Robert"), who's tangled in my training kyoketsu shoge ("ring & dagger"), a most amusing weapon system.

Mariko Kage's review of "The Hunted"

[This is new contributor Mariko Kage's first blog post. Welcome! - Ed.]

I just went to watch "The Hunted", which opened Friday night. I highly recommend it.

The Fandango movie synopsis says: "The Hunted is a suspense-thriller about a deep woods tracker (Tommy Lee Jones) who teams up with a female FBI agent (Connie Nielsen) to hunt down a trained assassin (Benicio Del Toro). The killer remains one step ahead, and escapes into the city."

Tommy Lee Jones plays L.T. Bonham, a Tom Brown-like character and Benicio Del Toro is Aaron Hallam, a former soldier tormented by his experiences in Kosovo where he was an eyewitness to genocide. L.T., a tracker in British Columbia, once trained soldiers like Aaron for secret ops in the U.S. military. He explains to the FBI agent played by Nielsen, who is investigating the murder of hunters: "I trained him to survive, I trained him to kill." The movie is partially based on the life of Tom Brown, who has trained, among others, Richard Marcinko and SEAL Team Six.

One of the tracking scenes take place in Oregon's Cascade mountains, where Aaron hunts deer hunters, armed with only a knife. By the way, he uses a TOPS knife custom-designed by Tom Brown and prominently featured in the movie several times (see cover story in April issue of Blade magazine). I have been told that all the knife throwing in the movie was done by Tom Brown himself (with whom I recently trained).

Those who have trained at his Tracker School would appreciate the shots of Benicio using the hand drill, creating a tinder bundle, forging a knife, camouflaging in wilderness and in urban environments, and the attention paid to the art of tracking in general as well as several scenes of knife fighting. I read a terrible review by the L.A. Times this morning... they just don't get it. I say it's definitely a movie worth seeing again and learning from.

Quote of the day

In the Militia Act of 1792, the second Congress defined militia of the United States to include almost every free adult male in the United States. These persons were obligated by law to possess a [military style] firearm and a minimum supply of ammunition and military equipment…There can be little doubt from this that when the Congress and the people spoke of the militia, they had reference to the traditional concept of the entire populace capable of bearing arms, and not to any formal group such as what is today called the National Guard.

Report by the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution 1982

Quote of the day

Slavery in the modern world implies the absolute deprivation of the individual’s liberty, while possession of weapons and mastery of their use are means to the individual’s liberation. We do not perceive how a man may be armed and at the same time bereft of his freedom.

John Keegan

Quote of the day

The sitting around is the hardest part. They may sit for a year, and then be called to five minutes of all-out action of deadly importance. But they have to be instantly ready for that five minutes the whole year. Quite a strain. I much prefer attack to defense.

Lois McMaster Bujold
Barrayar, pg. 32, 1991
(courtesy of Curt Howland)

Differences in preparedness thinking between Britons and Americans

When I attended the Front Sight firearms academy in Nevada last September, I was struck by the sheer range of what Ignatius Piazza's firm is offering: not just teaching on firearms, but everything about personal safety, right down to avoiding car accidents. What struck me was that in the States, there is more awareness among Joe Public about the need to take responsibility for one's own safety, and this doesn't just include learning how to use a firearm. Even the recent drive by the government to get folk to stock up on duct tape and water, even though it was mocked in certain quarters, bespoke of a certain attitude in the American culture - "We can get through this".

What bothers me is how different this is in Britain. I admit my views are impressionistic and not based on loads of facts, but I just don't get the feeling that learning about survival really bothers the average Briton. Call it our traditional reserve, coolness in the face of danger, or whatever. Even if those cliches about Britons are true (and I have my doubts) I think there is a much greater willingness on the part of Britons to think that well, safety is the State's job, not mine. Maybe 60 years of the Welfare State have contributed to this weakening of civic responsibility.

Of course, I may be proven gloriously wrong if disaster does strike this little island. I hope so.

"The definitive (short) article on the duct tape thing"

Jack W. Boone has some interesting things to say about personal responsibility and survival:

The overseers won't protect us. They never could, they never will. Whether the problem is earthquake, flood, tornado, hurricane, volcanic eruption, or terrorist attack, we are, and must be, responsible for our own survival. I find the popular TV show "Law and Order" instructive. It almost always begins with the discovery of a dead body, after which the overseers find and punish the perpetrator(s). Great, but it doesn't do me much good if I represent the "body".

So everyone is, in the long run, responsible for his own (and his family's) life. Dial 911 and your death will be professionally investigated, when they get time.

I'm really in the mood to think about these things recently, especially after having attended an Alcor Life Extension Foundation Northern California meeting yesterday...

Another pic from Dale Seago's "Guns 'N Blades" seminar

Thanks to "Buyu Kurt" for posting some photos of Dale Seago's "Guns 'N Blades" seminar to the clubbuyu mailing list.

The Racist Origins of US Gun Control

Thanks to the Liberty Belles for the image above. Relatedly, read "The Racist Origins of US Gun Control" by Steve Ekwall, as well as Tim O'Brien's shorter piece.

Oleg Volk's "A Human Right" site

Thanks to commenter Dirk for pointing me to this excellent resource! I highly recommend pointing your friends to this site, Oleg Volk's "A Human Right", especially potential new shooters - females, particularly - and political fencesitters.

Aside from being an excellent source of pro-rights arguments, there are so many superb, powerful images worth reproducing. For fellow Bujinkan practicioners, there's an interesting article by a Texas shidoshi on martial arts & firearms.

Miami Vice "Calderone" Video: amazing gun handling clips

A while back on the Front Sight Alumni site, there was some discussion about a Miami Vice episode a couple of decades ago, called "Calderone", in which a real-life pistol champion plays a character (in this case, a hitman) who executes one of the most spectacular displays of true gun handling ever caught on film and integrated into a fictional narrative.

Apparently the episode aired a couple of nights ago. Video captures are available too... wow. Do check them out.

An ancient Japanese hideout gun

Thanks to fellow Bujinkan practicioner Jeff Sherwin, who knows my interest in firearms, for giving me copies of a couple of photos he took on a recent trip to Japan. Pictured here is what is apparently either a flintlock or percussion blackpowder single-shot pistol, artfully concealed to resemble a tanto. This would be worn in a samurai's obi, even in a castle, where longswords were often not allowed. This is a digital scan of a low-contrast analog photograph, so please forgive the lack of detail:

Here's a blurb from a Japanese tourist guide:

The simple yet magnificent castle has become the symbol of Matsumoto. The 5 tiered 6 storied castle tower is approximately 30 meters tall and is the nation's oldest among existing castles. The dark stairwell leads to a viewpoint of the Matsumoto plains. The moon-viewing turret and all sorts of crenelations for stones, arrows, bullets and such still remain. The battlements and the scarce windows are all parts of the historic war strategies which display the intense power struggle of the times.

On the 2nd floor of the Matsumoto-jo Castle tower is an exhibit of 106 historic guns [emphasis mine - ed.] as well as references regarding modern weapons.

All the times I've been to Japan, and the year I lived there, I never thought to visit this museum near Nagano. I plan to make the trip sometime, and take a very good digital camera with me. Jeff has enticed me with descriptions of grenadier samurai armor and lacquered blackpowder grenades. I really must see this stuff.

Oh, and relatedly, I guess it's about time I get around to writing a review of Noel Perrin's Giving Up the Gun: Japan's Reversion to the Sword, 1543-1879, as I'd mentioned a while back.

A great time had by all at last weekend's "Guns 'N Blades" Dale Seago seminar

I'd meant to post this a week ago, but I just now recovered the digital camera I left at the Bujinkan Stockton dojo in my post-training fatigue.

Those of you who didn't make Dale Seago's Guns 'N Blades seminar at the Bujinkan Stockton dojo last weekend missed a training event worth travelling for.

As had been advertised in the original announcement, and at the request of the Stockton dojo, Dale spent some time talking about the care and maintenance of Western-style blades. Pictured above, Dale speaks about the differences in sharpening techniques between blades with conventional bevelled edges, e.g. most pocket knives, regardless of expense, and the relatively less common convex edge on a blade such as the custom Bowie pictured with Dale here.

I had known about sharpening and honing techniques particular to bevelled edges; I'll remember what Dale had to add with respect to convex blades whenever I own such a specimen. What really surprised me was, when in the discussion of the use of steel rods and leather strops for finalizing an edge to remove the "wire edge" burr created by sharpening, Dale recommended plain cardboard as an alternative strop! I'd not known this before, but cardboard is typically impregnated with silicates (the stuff sand is made of, folks)... which explains why blades dull so easily when cutting it! Finding out these little gems about the "commonplace" of everyday life helps keep one young.

The seminar was held in Stockton, a bit less than 2 hours from Dale's home dojo in San Francisco, relatively close but apparently far enough that the only attendees were regular Bujinkan practicioners. Good for us, but those of you who've not trained with Dale really should take the opportunity to train with him.

I should mention that the very reason I took up the Bujinkan martial arts was that a good friend, Kennita Watson, a bit less than 6 years ago forwarded an annoucement from Jeff Chan's ba-firearms mailing list (since migrated to Yahoo! Groups) to a local extropian mailing list advertising a firearms retention & disarming seminar. I'd been studying a number of other systems in the previous years, and at the time had been studying northern-style long fist kung fu, but had never felt "at home", especially as a gun owner: my training had always felt disjoint in that regard.

Well, the intervening years are history, some of which found me training and living in Japan: I'd been convinced. Last weekend was incredibly interesting for me in light of the fact that I've been through quite of few iterations of Dale's handgun retention & disarming seminars, but this was the first I'd attended which was (by default only) attended only by current practicioners. As Dale noted in a a followup mail to our dojo mailing list, he was able to cover material to which he normally devotes 8 hours... in about 1.5 hours. This is nearly Hatsumi-style pacing.

So, we had time for the pistol-oriented training track, the knife-oriented training track, and the detailed sit-down lecture on Western-style knife maintenance. As was usual at these events, and typical of non-sports oriented old-style Japanese warrior arts systems such as the Bujinkan and a few other surviving systems, training was conducted in a warm, friendly, and incredibly helpful and supportive manner. The people of the Stockton dojo were great hosts, and made everyone feel at home.

"Guns for Tots" segment on The Daily Show, 18 February 2003

Don't miss the airing of the "Guns for Tots" giveaway that Jim Lesczynski bravely attempted a few weeks ago in New York City:

We're getting one last hurrah out of this silliness, when "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" on Comedy Central broadcasts its report on "Guns For Tots" on Tuesday, February 18, at 11 pm eastern. Check your listings for local time and station.

If you don't get the joke after watching it on "The Daily Show", there's not much hope for ever getting it.

Jim Lesczynski

Quote of the day

Unlike its antonym, 'hoplophilia' does not describe an aberration: a man who loves weapons is no more abnormal than a woman who loves babies. Countless millennia of hunting and war fighting have programmed man with the knowledge that a weapon means LIFE. This stark realization repels some - they are the hoplophobes. To us hoplophiles it is a delight.

Paul Kirchner

Women's Safety Series - Weapons Disarming, Teri Seago, 22 Feb 2003 (San Francisco)

Teri Seago will be teaching the 4th installment of her women's safety series on Saturday 22 February 2003 at the San Francisco Buyu Center.

Weapons Disarming is the fourth installation of this popular safety series. For many people who learn self-defense, fighting back is no longer an option when a weapon is involved. If anything, the threat level is increased, adrenalin is pumping, and choices seem more limited. There are still choices, however, and this seminar will address how to remove a weapon and control the person who is attacking.

As I've mentioned before, I highly recommend her to women wanting to learn this approach to self-defense.

Re: "Extended Report on Estate Reduced-Recoil 00 Buckshot"

I stumbled today on this review of Estate Reduced-Recoil 00 Buckshot. and after having myself put several hundred rounds of it through my bedside Benelli a few months ago at a 4-day Tactical Shotgun course at Front Sight, I would say I wholeheartedly agree with the reviewer. It's what I use now.

Trip report: Front Sight 4-day Defensive Handgun course, from new contributor Anton Sherwood

Two years ago at about this season, Russell sold me a half-price voucher for a four-day course in practical defensive pistolry. I didn't schedule the trip until late summer.

The weekend after the Disturbing Events in the East, there was (as every few months) a gun show at the Cow Palace; I had been told to bring 800 rounds of ammo to the course, so I went looking for bargains. I also needed a new hat for Nevada sunshine, so later that day I went to the Berkeley Hat Company.