Commander Zero On Avoiding Disasters and Katrina

 "The folks who sat through Katrina had a couple days notice that things were going to get ugly. “Oh, but they were the poor and underprivileged. They had no way to leave!” Sure they did. I guarantee you that if I put a gun to your head and told you that if you cant find $50 in the next three days Im going to kill you, you’ll come up with fifty bucks. Those people could have taken a bus, a train, or just bought a cheap bicycle and gotten far enough inland in three days that they weren’t stuck on rooftops baking in the sun waving at Coast Guard helicopters."

In Honor Of My Favorite Looter

Other looters are trying to get stuff they want but can not afford or would otherwise just rather steal like a new TV or mattress and some others try to position themselves to make a few bucks when things go back to normal by grabbing a dozen expensive watches or laptops or whatever. Not Heineken Man, he shuns such practical looting in favor of getting a big tub full of mid level import beer.

I was reminded of this great pic a couple days ago and have been thinking about Heineken since. Today on the way home I decided to pick up a 22 ounce bottle to enjoy this evening after dinner. While Heineken Man got a whole tub of the stuff for free the bottle I got cost $1.95. One of the bright sides of not drinking that much (been trending generally downward for several months or so and recently cut back some more) is that I can drink basically whatever I want.

Anyway as I enjoy the last of my beer I just want to say, here's to you Heineken Man!

This Is Why I Believe In High Capacity Semi Automatic Rifles

Watch CBS News Videos Online

I think everyone who watches the news has seen all or part of this clip or the picture of those three fellows holding machetes. This is why I am a big fan of guns. One isn't going to deter or stop multiple machete or club wielding goblins [not saying those guys in the video necessarily are, maybe they are perfectly nice and just happen to be carrying all their belongings which includes machetes that they do not have sheaths for and will not fit in their backpacks] without a gun. One guy you might be able to take and maybe you could bluff two guys into choosing an easier target but 3+ and unless you are Beatrix Kiddo you're toast.

Specifically I favor high capacity semi automatic rifles. They are not the cheapest answer but for multiple goblins I believe they are the best answer. 

I like shotguns for very close range (you could debate the actual distance but 30 yards or so is realistic) and specifically home defense. Pistols are just about useless except for concealable defensive purposes. For serious bad situation defense (LA Riots, Katrina, pretty much every other day in Haiti) I would want a rifle.

Surplus bolt guns are pretty useful in the right hands as noted in this article. However I can not help but question the wisdom of working very hard to make a tool serve a purpose it is not ideally suited for. Practicing reloading and cycling a bolt gun for a very long time will not get the speed of target engagement of a Mini 14/ AR/AK/HK91/FN-FAL/ M1A with half the practice, let alone the same amount of it. These more modern firearms are just capable of engaging multiple targets far faster. They also reload a lot faster and hold at least twice as many rounds as the old bolt guns.

Of course an Enfield or a Mosin with a bayonet is pretty fearsome in the right hands. I would take a surplus bolt gun with a bayonet and an empty chamber against a guy with a machete any day, a point beats an edge. However I would really rather have an AR or an AK and just riddle them with bullets. As noted by the Doughboy's it is safer, easier, more effective and just plain smarter to shoot people then to try and stab them to death. Those guys did anything to get their hands on a gun that could rapidly engage targets.

There are reasons one might go with a bolt gun. They are by far the most economical rifles out there so for people on long term low budgets they have a real appeal. While it might fail the common caliber test (close but not quite IMO) 7.62x54R ammo is currently quite reasonably priced which helps one equip those rifles on a lower budget. Ones in good condition can be quite reliable and rugged. Also these rifles have a certain mystique which appeals to folks of certain viewpoints. Having a budget rifle that you can hunt big game with is practical.

 A big bayonet and knowing how to use it effectively (prior military training or get a book and practice with a buddy) is a good start. Having a bayonet and a pistol is probably a better approach. In the past I made some sacrifices to acquire a semi automatic rifle well suited to the role of two legged varmint because I believe it is the best tool for that role. You may or may not choose to do the same but if you don't get a bayonet and a pistol. Practice using the bayonet and also shifting from the rifle to the pistol.

Worst case if you can't afford a pistol get a machete as a last ditch backup.

As a final thought bolt guns are great because you can affordable keep a few extra around to arm your friends.

I think this post might win the award for most labels and pics in a normal post to date.

Thoughts?