A rather silly question. Finland has had a rather volatile history with the Soviets/Russians. In this current mood of “will he or won’t he” in regards to Putin’s movements to gain ‘buffer space’ it makes sense to have a strong defensive posture.

Countries that have been on the receiving end of Russian attention are not only increasing their defensive posture, but some are gearing up in a manner that can only be interpreted as ‘FAFO’. Poland, most notably, Crom love ’em, is dedicating a bigger chunk of their GDP into re-arming more than almost anyone else in Europe. And while Poland has had a sad histgory of being the punching bag in just about every European conflict, they seem to have some fire in them these days. Germany, also not a fan of the Russians, is likewise putting their deutschmarks where their dentures are. Even the tiny nations that, no matter how much they spend, will get steamrollered are making plans to use the ‘porcupine strategy’ of making any aggressor pay a high price (looking at you, Estonia).

The real strategy of these nations is not to beat the Russians, because they simply cannot. Their strategy is to hold out long enough until NATO/US comes to their aid. So while the US may not face the prospect of Russian tanks rolling down the street like in Red Dawn, that doesnt mean were not gonna get dragged into something just as intense.

I have an absolutely craptacular track record when it comes to predicting what the Russians will do. I was quite certain Putin was just blustering and saber-rattling when he staged troops at Ukraine’s border. I guess it was just to hard to grasp that a land war in Europe could really happen again.

Nation states are alot of things but stupid is rarely the case. No nation likes risking their economic health…its bad for business and re-elections. So for some of these nations to suddenly take the economic hit of shifting a larger chunk of their GDP towards defense, or ramping up their debt, would seem to indicate that they believe the risk is high enough, or likely enough, that theyre willing to take the fallout (so to speak) of putting a ding or two in the paint of their economy.

Guess we’ll see what happens. But I suppose the smart survivalist should factor in a coming ‘war economy’ into their plans.

Man, for a demographic that abhors guns, foes of the right sure do shoot at people a lot.

I’ve no doubt this footage will be pulled shortly: https://x.com/safarijournalco/status/1965853249581555855

A string of previously undisclosed break-ins at Tennessee National Guard armories last fall marks the latest in a growing series of security breaches at military facilities across the United States, raising fresh concerns about the vulnerability of US armories to theft and intrusion.

A confidential memo from the Tennessee Fusion Center reviewed by WIRED details four break-ins at Tennessee National Guard armories over a seven-week span. In one incident, thieves made off with night vision goggles, laser target locators, and thermal weapons sights, among other equipment. At others, intruders breached fences, tripped alarms, and gained access to supply rooms discovered in the aftermath to have been unlocked.

Really, this is, IMHO, one of two things – either its a buncha people wanting to gear up for the boogaloo or whatever flavor of upcoming apocalypse they believe in, or its some guys dumping ACOGS and DBALS on eBay. I’m more inclined to believe the former.

This sort of thing happens more frequently than anyone cares to admit, just not usually on a grand or organized basis. Everyone knows ‘that guy’ that stole an ACOG, a lower, a GPS, whatever, while on an exercise. In the case of guns, they usually lock the place down and send everybody out into the field until the item is found. On non-gun stuff…it might be a little less strict but I could be wrong.

Were I of the ‘insurgent’ nature, I’d say my interest would be commo gear above all else…especially the encrypted stuff. But theres a lot to be said for having NODS, IR lasers, and ACOGS in quantity.

I know that in the old days when the military still used commercial vehicles, such as Suburbans, Blazers, etc., a lot of tires and spare motors mysteriously wound up in people’s garages. Nowadays its a different story…I bet they RFID the heck outta that stuff.

But, if the military is serious about investigating this they should troll eBay and some of the exchange forums on the discussion groups. If it turns up there, you know it was done for cash and if it doesn’t turn up there…well….there may be something afoot.

The patron saint of neighborhood defense, Tony Moon, was interviewed about recent unrest in California. The money shot:

“If it’s a riot or if there’s any sort of mayhem, social chaos going on in your neighborhood, invest in firearms,” he said. “I mean, support the Second Amendment. Buy a gun, buy a rifle. I mean, the most easiest weapon to shoot is a shotgun. So invest in something like that and learn how to shoot it and be proficient with it, so that way it becomes part of your defense, whether it’s for your home or your business.”

This man is also active on the various social media platforms and he’s turned his 15 minutes of fame into a real identity. It appears he’s consistently been advocating for dang near 30 years. He’s not wrong though. Most people call 911 after the event, and afterwards is not when you need the cops most. As the man says, “You are your own first responder.”

I’ll bet money that this story is above-the-fold in most preparedness and gun blogs today:

A man with long gun and a handgun opened fire outside a Michigan church Sunday and was killed by two employees who returned fire, police said.

There has been a trend in the last decade or so for members at some houses of worship to be armed to prevent this sort of thing. Unfortunately, some people do not take such steps. I refer you to this post from 2019.

Why attack a ‘house of worship’, which I am just going to blanketly refer to as ‘a church’? Thats where the people are. Small building, lots of quiet and presumably peaceful people, not a lot of police around…no one expects it. Same reason people shoot up schools. Its perceived as a soft target with a certain degree of societal impact when its reported on the news.

We sagely opine to “avoid crowds” but that isnt always possible. I stand on line at the post office, I stand on line at CostCo, I sit at a traffic light with 25 other cars…you can try to avoid crowds but you can’t avoid crowds. What you can do, however, as demonstrated here, is be prepared and vigilant against these sorts of events. Its a wild world, and it shows no sign of getting less wild, so why would you not have a firearm immediately available to you at all times? Throw a spare AR behind the seat, keep the pistol on your belt, and show some situational awareness. Its going to get worse before it gets better…and it may not get better. Best to be ready.

Holy Crom, real life really is made up of…things you can’t make up.

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – Social media posts mistakenly identified a law enforcement-themed Las Vegas ice cream truck as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement vehicle, leading its owner to fear for his safety.

“ICE and Border Patrol don’t use trucks from 1985,” Billy Settlemyers, the owner of Las Vegas Ice Cream Patrol, said Monday.

Last week, a person posted a video of Settlemyers’ black-and-white truck driving into a neighborhood with the caption: “Please be on the lookout for ‘ice cream’ trucks… they play music to get people to come outside… this is actually so sick.”

While I normally have no love for the federal government, I have even less love for parasite illegal aliens…so, I am, generally speaking, on board with the recent uptick in immigration enforcement.

Other than that, this is just an amusing example of people not reading whats right in front of them, and also underestimating the feds ability to be sneaky.