“The Government will help you.”

Posted on January 17, 2010 by Miguel

Going through the news, photos and videos coming out of Haiti, you cannot help but realize the folly of relying on the Government for immediate help. I am not saying that Big Evil Government will not help, but it is a huge slow animal that will take a long tome to get going and, in the meantime, you are on your own.

And as the bureaucracies slowly churn into action, the regular folk are left to their own devices. Most folk will actually try to recreate some sort of mini-society, a tribe if you please, but some will just become a pack of predators with murder and mischief in their minds.The power of armed roaming criminals is awesome. Not just because they are armed but the level of violence they can inflict is something we are not accustomed to see as civilized people. It feeds its violence on itself and even the most simple and peaceful of men will do things that are unthinkable, the hardened criminal will reach new heights of cruelty. Mobs are nasty and Desperate Mobs are cancerous and unforgiving. The result is that rescue efforts will be delayed or denied because safety cannot be guaranteed just as it is happening in Haiti where medical teams are being pulled out because it has turned too dangerous for them to do their mercy work.

I have lived through a total breakdown of law and order. I’ve seen neighbors turn to neighbors for support and neighbors turning against neighbors in frenzy. I saw people getting killed in very horrific ways and sadly I understood the phrase “Life is cheap” in a very short time. We escaped the mayhem not because the mob suddenly developed a conscience (news flash: Mob Mentality does not include conscience or morals) but because we were ready to inflict serious deadly force and managed to transmit the message in a clear and concise way to the looters. Our property was left alone while the Mob went looking for softer or more rewarding targets and they did. I saw more people getting killed and homes and businesses being painfully stripped of anything remotely of value like a cow under a piranha attack.

And the biggest shock of all was that the mob was not faceless and anonymous. I saw people I knew for short, medium and long time in it. They became animals just going about their wild business no matter what past history they had with the neighbor they were looting. It didn’t matter to them, the “reward,” the immediate satisfaction and the feeling pf power that a mob gives was too intoxicating for them to think coherently about what they were doing.

I don’t think I slept for three days. Things started to “calm down” not because sanity returned but because there was nothing much left to loot and the mobs moved on. It took the local government 5 days to send a semblance of authority to the area and only then people became individuals again. Some were embarrassed for what they did, some didn’t care and I just couldn’t digest all that happened. I have most of it now but there is this sense of “I can’t believe it happened” still in my brain. The old “Be polite, be professional but have a plan to kill everyone you meet” is relevant as sad as it may be.

Stupid Journalism… but I repeat myself.

Posted on December 3, 2009 by Miguel

Found this little pic in DayLife.com which proudly announces that its mission is “organizing and distributing the world’s news.” Yeah right.

You can click on the pic to read the accompanying caption or just read below.

The body of a young man who was shot dead is examined by doctors at the emergency room of a hospital near the Petare slum in Caracas November 14, 2009. Gun laws are lax in Venezuela, where the government estimates there are 6 million firearms circulating among the population of about 28 million. Venezuela’s murder rate is about 8 times that of the United States.

First, to say that the gun laws in Venezuela are lax is akin to say that Mayor Bloomberg and Dianne Feinstein are Pro-Gun and members of the NRA. To legally buy a gun in Venezuela you must be really connected to the Government and have a crapload of money or have a level of patience that would send Job to the Loony House… and still be ready to shell some serious bucks. I am not up to date on gun prizes nowadays but the yardstick years ago was US retail price plus $700 to $1,000 extra for any gun at any of the v ery few, very controlled gun stores. You must submit a long form, background and psychological checks, fingerprints, photos and a letter stating why you want a firearm. Now, the permit to own is only issued to an specific gun so you must buy a gun first but can’t take it with you until the paperwork gets approved (if) and even then the gun does not belong to you but it is sort of leased and subject to recall by the Government at any time. Basically you go through the expense and aggravation to buy a gun for the State. I almost forgot, the choice of guns is very limited to .32 ACP, 38 Special and maybe a double barrel shotgun. 9mm, .45 ACP and other calibers and long guns are Military Weapons forbidden to civilians. Forget about anything full auto.

Second, I am not sure how any “journalist” can actually believe anything coming out of the Venezuelan Government, but Reuters plays along for whatever lazy or sick reason they have. I doubt much that there are 6 million guns in the hands of the rank and file Venezuelan but I do know that the number one provider of firearms to crooks is the own Chavez Government. Chavez has a full fledged campaign against any local law enforcement agency that is somewhat efficient in the prosecution of crime. He has a judge come up with a judicial intervention order and he sends his military goons to take over the stations were the first things to be grabbed are: The guns. That those guns later appear in the hands of crooks is yet to be explained by the Venezuelan Government.

The next two pictures are from the Tupamaros, a very Pro-Chavez group that has applied violence liberally against those who dare oppose the revolution. Do notice the equipment:

Uzis, MP-5s, pump shotguns, FN-FALs, grenades, military radios… yep, you can by those at any local supermarket. These goons literally control vast neighborhoods at gunpoint and the police are pretty much useless and unarmed to compete. There might be 6 million guns out there, but they are all in the wrong hands.

Murder rate in Caracas, the capital city is 108 per 100,000. 98% of all murders go unsolved. People consider that the lack of security is the number one problem affecting the country. The fear of dying at the hands of these animals is so great they are willing to do whatever is necessary including giving up any vestigial remains of Rights they may have left. Gun Control does work but only in favor of those lusting for absolute power.

The “Chopper”, News from England and a Book from Colorado.

Posted on July 8, 2009 by Miguel

Another shooting over the weekend in the Miami neighborhood of Overtown left 12 people injured at a block party. Witnesses say that three males wearing black trench coats opened up with a “chopper” (slang for an AK-type weapon) and possibly two handguns in 9mm. The shooter with the AK-type weapon was seen shooting from the hip, Hollywood style while people ran for cover. Of course, Miami PD Chief Timoney and Mayor Many Diaz once more cried to the heavens requesting the federal renewal of the Assault Weapons Ban which according to the zeal you hear them talk about will eliminate crime, reduce male impotence, bring back the housing market and bring Michael Jackson back to life. Of course, doing some actual law enforcement in that area and in the Miami area in general would be a bit too much to ask to Chief Timoney and Mayor Diaz but that is the politics of the inefficient bureaucrat for you.

But guess what has happened in the Land of Perfect Gun Control? The Daily Mail from the United Kingdom brought us the following headline: The most violent country in Europe: Britain is also worse than South Africa and U.S. How’s that for a kicker? You folks remember how tough Brits got on private posession of firearms and how the politicos went to the extreme of de facto criminalizing any type of self defense (check for references about Tony Martin’s case but not before ingesting you high blood pressure medicine) and promising all British Subjects a more peaceful and human living in the kingdom. Apparently it did not happen and Great Britain has beaten everybody in violent crimes. They even provided a cute little graphic with the stats:

Right under the graphic we find the following statement:

The U.S. has a violence rate of 466 crimes per 100,000 residents, Canada 935, Australia 92 and South Africa 1,609.

Damn, it seems the problem was not the guns as the “intelligentsia” was tired of telling us. Remember when they told us to watch “advanced” countries like UK and adopt their ways so we could live a better life? Well, it seems that not only socialized medicine failed but also the concept of the Nanny State defending you against all evil if you gave up the right and tools to defend yourself. By the looks of it, England’s criminals are having a fair thanks to the government-sponsored nationwide Gun Free Zone.

Let’s see if government types get it this time: By definition criminals choose to ignore the law. Capisce? If you still don’t get it, please order a copy of Guns, Violence, and Criminal Behavior: The Offender’s Perspective by Mark Progebin where he states: “convicts involved in gun-related crimes aren’t deterred by laws designed to limit the availability of firearms.” and “that gun control only affects law-abiding people and not criminals.” Now the research for this book was paid for by the US Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods program with our money. Will the legislators even pay attention? Don’t count on it.

General Barry McCaffrey’s After Action Fantasy?

Posted on March 24, 2009 by Miguel

Making the rounds in the Internet is a report by General Barry R McCaffrey (Army retired) about the Mexican Drug war and the US influence in it regarding the supply of weapons. I won’t dwell on the absurd details and conclusions of the report, instead I’ll leave that in the capable hands of Rich Grassi of Tactical Wire.

Out of curiosity, I decided to do a research on the names that appear on the report. After 2 hours of Internet search, I find out that the report is only mentioned in a couple of small media outlets (which is weird for an event that happened with so many important people) and there is no mention at all in U.S. or Mexican press of the event actually happening at all! I went in deeper doing a news search of each individual member of the Mexican delegation mentioned in the report and although names match with the positions attached to them, none appear in any U.S. or Mexican Media sources before, during or after the dates that the alleged forum occurred.

This is very strange if not very suspicious. If General McCaffrey is telling the truth, how come there is not one single journalistic report on the meeting? You don’t get this many important people for an open meeting of this importance without at least one little blogger finding out and reporting about it. The other possibility is that the meeting was secret and the parties wanted to meet in private to discuss the Mexican situation. But if so, why would General McCaffrey publish it in his website knowing well that somebody would pick it up?

So we either have a beautiful scribbling of fantastic nonsense or a huge breach of security by General McCaffrey. Either way, for somebody who states in his company’s website that “provides strategic, analytic, and advocacy consulting services to businesses, non-profits, governments, and international organizations.” this report is very bad advertisement.

Hugo, Robert and Barrack.

Posted on March 23, 2009 by Miguel

Jesus! What a ride this last 60 days. From being blamed for the drug wars in Mexico to some unknown idiot bureaucrat in the DOD demanding to shred military spent brass to the biggest drop in the economy and the establishment of the bases of a Socialist Republic in the United States.

It is amazing to see that either journalists are too polite or to stupid to realize that when you say that the market drop has been the worst in 30+ years, it also includes the drop after 9-11. Or to call it like it is, President Obama was more effective in bringing down Wall Street than 2 jets crashing into the Twin Towers courtesy of Bin Laden.

The latest in grassroots movements is your local area Tea Party where people sick of the government waste of our taxes are starting to gather in protest. The resurrection of the idea behind the Boston Tea Party is seen by many with derision but so it was the original one. We are headed to a major economic crisis and this is the chance Liberal Socialist in our executive branch are waiting for to enact the death of the Republic.

But Miguel, surely you exaggerate. Well, you may think so, but contrary to what many think, what is happening now is not an unique event but it has been repeated in the past and most recently in Venezuela and Zimbabwe. A highly populist leader is elected thanks to the monies of rich idiots and the blissful adoration of a star struck liberal media. Leader takes power and economy tanks due to his ultra liberal economic policies, disrespect for the capital market and unbridled desire for social engineering. Next you know, economy tank, People enter in panic mode, demand solutions from leader, Leader provides promises of solution IF certain liberties are sacrificed for “The Common Good, People give up Basic Liberties, Leader does not fulfil promises, people are shafted and has no recourse but sit there and take it up the keister. Those were the common characteristics of Hugo Chavez and Robert Mugabe and, so far they are eerily similar to what president Obama is doing. The one that struck me the most was ACORN taking over private property in the name of social reform and defense of the poor which is a faithful copy of Chavez’s Circulos Bolivarianos of Venezuela.

However there is one big difference so far between those Banana Countries (I won’t soil the title of Republic by associating it with those places) with the USA: Armed population. Both Mugabe and Chavez managed to introduce even more draconian gun control laws in countries already “free” from firearms before the final push. Roving bands of criminals and government supporters (and in some cases they are one and the same) now roam freely in cities and countryside terrorizing innocent subjects (no citizens there) and either stealing them of life and property or making sure no dissidence is felt. Unarmed People are just powerless to reclaim the rights the so freely gave away.

Tupamaros: Chavez's shock Troops

Member of the Circulos Bolivarianos

ACORN-Type Chavista activist training to defend the "Revolution."

ACORN-Type Chavista activist in training.

Interesting enough, Chavez ran his first presidential campaign under the banner of Change. Forewarned is forearmed.