If you read the news, it looks like there are more and more reasons to believe we’ll be seeing another post-Obama election style public gun buying frenzy. Only instead of purchases being driven by a potential Obama ban, another reason is shaping up, namely: municipal and state budget cuts are reducing police forces.
People need only look to cities like Oakland, California, which has both a high crime rate and a police force recently reduced by 80-some officers due to budget concerns. Read these quotes from Oakland residents quoted in the link:
“Citizens need to start walking in pairs, know their neighbors and communicate with one another,” Sidebotham, a longtime Oakland resident, said. “They are their own first line of defense.”
Kim Hung and her husband Nghi Van Hung own Kim Hung Jewelry on Franklin Street in Chinatown. Nghi says their store was robbed five years ago and the thieves got away with $50,000 worth of jewelry. After that, he went out and bought a shotgun to store in the shop just in case.
“It’s going to be hell in Oakland,” Williams said. “You don’t think there’s going to be mayhem? You ain’t seen nothing.”
“People are getting worried. It’s the number one talk right now,” Krugar said as he stood in front his store Pizza Rustica.
Reduced police forces are happening elsewhere as well:
Add to this news groups like the Second Amendment Foundation sending out notices with “time for citizens to ‘arm up'” in the subject heading, stating:
This is not a call for anarchy but for a return to reality. Too many in public office have tried to create their Utopian dream on the backs of taxpayers, and at the expense of basic public needs. In the process, they have squandered fortunes on projects that were good for a headline, but didn’t work and accomplished nothing.
There is a saying in the firearms community: “When seconds count, police are minutes away.” This is about to change, in Oakland and elsewhere that police agencies are financially strapped and facing reductions in staff and service. Rural agencies may be hit the hardest. When seconds count, police may be hours away, if they come at all. Faced with that potential, citizens have two choices: submit to victimization or fight back.
And you have the making of yet another public gun buying frenzy. Maybe it’s a good time to buy Smith and Wesson stocks? Over the past year Smith and Wesson Holding Company (ticker symbol SWHC) shares have gone from $6.50 down to roughly $4.00. This could be a good time to bulk up not on GUNS, but on gun company STOCKS ….
– Ranger Man
BTW: Let me say the “behind the scenes” work on the site is making progress, but it has come at a great cost. I had to change the site’s feed address and when I did (oops) I lost roughly 300 RSS subscribers, which really, really sucks. Anyone that had an email subscription survived the SHTFblog RSS apocalypse. It’s gonna take a while to get those people back (if ever), so if you know of anyone that had an RSS subscription, please let them know they should click on the feed directly at this site again.
Also, the “ranger [at] shtfblog.com” email address also had troubles, which have since been fixed. I spent the better part of an evening responding to tons of old emails only to not find any responses the next day. Then I tested it by sending myself an email and it didn’t work. Ugh!
Oh well …. it works now.
19 comments
What is happening in Oakland is a peak at the future. It is a future made by corrupt, lazy, abusive, scumbag Oakland cops and elected officials.
Should it surprise anyone that people are fed up with corrupt, abusive, arrogant, condescending cops and politicians, especially after the domestic racial terrorist Johannes Mehserle executed Oscar Grant cuffed while laying on his stomach? I don’t buy the bullshit that he thought he reached for his taser. There was NO reason to taser Grant either.
San Jose just disbanded their police department because they could no longer get liability insurance due to so many law suit settlements for police misconduct.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704334604575339153865582376.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsTop#articleTabs%3Darticle
Oakland will be following suit soon enough as the city of Oakland yesterday announced their decision to pay out 6.5 million dollars to 104 people in a law suit settlement for police abuse, corruption, and criminal conduct.
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/east_bay&id=7568189&rss=rss-kgo-article-7568189
Examples like the glutunous, blood sucking police chief Randy Adams of Bell California who is now the center point of voter outrage over his $457,000 salary!
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/07/21/eveningnews/main6700234.shtml?tag=mncol;lst;2
Even close to home in my neck of the woods in TN, police and justice system corruption is rampant with cops selling drugs and steroids, not to mention judges illegally expunging convicted felon’s criminal records:
http://www.wsmv.com/news/24343637/detail.html
http://www.newschannel5.com/global/story.asp?s=12769611
If you want to get an idea of just how wide spread, deeply entrenched, and outrageous police corruption, abuse, and TERRORISM is, spend a few hours reading here at Injustice Everywhere.
http://www.injusticeeverywhere.com/
Nationwide, the police have not only become a revenue strong arm corp that is ABOVE the law……they have become the new State Sponsored Domestic Terrorists who’s allegiance is to their police Chief and corrupt politicians instead of to support and defend the Constitution & protect and serve the public.
Ahhhhh……….another one of those “whackjob cop haters” you say or think………think again! At one time, I was among the most ardent supporters of and had the utmost respect for the police. These words come from a retired military officer, decorated war veteran, and disabled veteran. I served the most of my time in the military overseas. Upon returning to the States after many years overseas, I was SHOCKED and outraged at how the once friendly, helpful, polite, and well trained average cop had become a fat, overweight, arrogant, abusive, corrupt, thug that no longer wore a conventional police uniform with low quarter leather shoes………they now wore paramilitary uniforms, with bloused boots, and carried military rifles and side arms instead of the .38, .45, or .357. Some even wore masks and hoods like criminal thugs and terrorists.
After serving in the military for well over 20 years, I had come home to find that my country was gone and now replaced with a paramilitary terrorist police state where the police do whatever they want or feel like, write their OWN search warrants, and only when caught red handed in the most heinous of crimes are they punished but only with suspension or dismissal. VERY rarely are they criminally prosecuted and held to the same standard of justice as the criminals they are sworn to protect the public from. In my case a local law enforcement officer was caught falsifying police reports, coaching drug and stoned witness to commit perjury, as well as physically abusive conduct and was quietly dismissed with NO charges or investigation. After help from the district attorney and a judge’s court order against the local sheriff, some small degree of justice was arrived at.
This is NOT the America I knew. In my opinion, we would be FAR better off without about 90% of the police force…….and even then, those 10% remaining MUST be thoroughly screened, trained, and PROPERLY supervised. Limited immunity should be stripped from police altogether and they should be held civilly and criminally liable for ANY misconduct or criminal behavior or violation of Constitutional rights. In others words……….held to equal justice under law as the Constitution requires.
Something abusive, criminal, and terrorist cops and corrupt elected officials may want to keep in mind:
WE ARE EVERYWHERE III :O) We vote, we watch, and we and many more will remember in the next election. We WILL hold you accountable at the ballot box.
http://sipseystreetirregulars.blogspot.com/2010/04/we-are-everywhere-stickers-laid-out-for.html
http://sipseystreetirregulars.blogspot.com/
http://westernrifleshooters.blogspot.com/search?q=
Sorry for the rant Ranger Man……….you brought up a very SORE spot with me. For me decency, honest, principles, values, and my natural born inalienable rights STILL matter. My once great country, the Unitied States of America, the nation the founding fathers secured for us STILL matters.
Perhaps this reply may stir up the pot……..it NEEDS stirring in my humble opinion. :O)
TFF,
While I can appreciate your service to our country, what do you plan to do, personally to get America back to “normal”? You can rant & rave and use the negative energy to insight a riot but what productive thing will do?
It’s people like you that make me ill because your only solution is to point out of the less than .01% of the negative things like Bell, Ca. & San Jose as models for why we are spinning down the toilet. Personally, I think you are predisposed to seeing everything being screwed up and get odd satisfaction with living a life of self fulfilled prophecy.
Yes, we need change in this country but why not try to be that change instead of pointing fingers, cutting and pasting web sites that support your hopeless, dogmatic views and doing nothing.
Written to you by Shakespeare from Macbeth –
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing.”
Maybe you did not realize the coriolis effect when you suggest stirring the pot – (it went the wrong way).
Wally, many thanks for the non-fact based, clueless, and ill informed presumption. 0.1% you say???? Please kindly show us all where your percentages are derived from? I have a suspicion they were pulled from your rectal region. :O)
Arrogant, condescending, patronizing, smug, and factually illiterate not to mention impaired people like you who instist upon spinning left wing progressive nonfact, nonreality based quasi-Marxist propaganda make me ill as well.
Thanks Wally but I and MANY others have had more than enough of the “hope and change you can believe in”.
Wally……your Benito Mussolini/Saul Alinsky style of pompous, self righteous, euphemismistic, self bloatification achieves little more than confirming what Proverbs teaches us in Proverbs 17:28. Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.
In the shakespeareian sense you play the Prince of Arragon WELL.
Written to you by Shakespeare from The Merchant of Venice –
“Who chooseth me shall have as much as he deserves,” selects the silver casket, and finds therein a picture not of Portia, but of “a blinking idiot,” a “fool’s head,” or dolt.
The coriolis effect worked according to the laws of physics…….the message in the stirring didn’t go the wrong way…….it just went over your head and ability to comprehend.
Have a nice day! :O)
What causes popularity of any item? The perception of scarcity and or need.
There was a big run on guns & ammo because people thought the S was going to HTF by 2009 or the first quarter of 2010. Everywhere you looked people had a common belief that it is time to arm oneself. Obviously the S did not HTF & won’t. We’ve already sustained a bad recession (note the past tense language) and will hit another equally as impactful. We have proven we can survive the economic downturns and will again through the next “event”.
For decades perceptions has created the illusion of many shortages. In 1980 gas prices rose and the supply was reduced to the US causing gas rationing & 30-60 minute waits in line for gas – I know, I was there in line. There was NO shortage of oil in fact, the US could have easily filled in the gap with its own oil/refinery productions yet, it went on and the oil companies benefited huge on our scared little backs.
There are countless examples that prove it out from the pet rock to the Ford Mustang. Like everything else, it’s all meaningless until you make it your reality.
Why is it necessary to dramatize end of the world scenarios? Sure everybody can speculate & extrapolate current events as doom and gloom. Two points about that :
1. Unsophisticated people like you and I will NEVER figure it out or be able to predict anything with reasonable accuracy. Even Gerald Celente cannot predict it on a global scale. He uses events like Spain & Argentina as models for coming attractions in the US but it is like comparing Rolls Royce to a Kia. Sure they have some similarities in that they can get you from A to B and both run on gas but are vastly different. The bottom line to Celente is he earns a great income selling a speculation report.
2. IF, in the extreme unlikely event “it” does happen, you will never know what hit you nor will you know what to do about it because 99% of the population will be out of the Cost-Benefit Analysis loop. In other words, we are in the cart on the roller coaster and should enjoy the ride because there is not much else we can control.
I believe that people today are strangely attracted to becoming fatalists and allow that fear to give them a sense of purpose, and if that’s the truth for the individual, it’s pretty shallow motivation in my opinion.
“I believe that people today are strangely attracted to becoming fatalists and allow that fear to give them a sense of purpose…”
I don’t know, I think rational prepping makes sense, but what really motivates me about prepping is that it’s just plain fun. Zombies, doomsday babes, throwing lead down range and organic gardening? I’ll take it!
Even though you take my quote out of context, I can accept the fun of being prepared but, quite frankly don’t believe your tone of sweet innocence. Why do you call it the SHTF blog and visually display war, destruction, chemical attacks and the rest?
Either you believe the S is going to HTF or it’s just a vogue thing to do & will ride it out until the next thing comes along. Help me understand where you are coming from with your blog.
“Why do you call it the SHTF blog and visually display war, destruction, chemical attacks and the rest?”
If you’re referencing the header image, I agree. Read back a few posts and you’ll see I’m still in the process of giving this site a new design. I’m not happy with the header and it doesn’t convey the intended tone of the site. I will happily take suggestions.
That’s a start but what are you trying to accomplish with your blog & what is your core belief about SHTF? That will dictate the design.
Have fun, make people laugh, promote general awareness and information – in that order.
TFF,
You are amazing & so full of contradiction I cannot stop laughing – did you actually read this before you sent it? I certainly hope not otherwise, I am embarrassed for you.
“Euphemismistic, self bloatification” were a couple of real gems. I’ll bet you are a hit at high school parties.
Not that you can expand your brain enough to understand this but the “Coriolis Effect” was used as a metaphor for stirring something in the opposite direction and was actually quite funny.
You really don’t know what you don’t know & cant wait for your next emotionally charged, psudeo-intellectual response – it’ll make more great material for me.
Oh, lest we forget —-> :0)
A bit emotionally sensitive and touchy aren’t we Wally? :O)
I’ll just pass along some sage advice for you from one of the founders…………
“Life’s tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.”
Oops, that Anonymous post was actually from Wally ~
TFF,
A second look at your responses … you are so far off base it borders on spooky. Where did you dig up the “hope and change you can believe in” belief from my post?
I simply asked “what do you plan to do, personally to get America back to “normal” and “why not try to be that change” instead of shaking your psychotic fist in fury. Your writing would take on a whole new dimension of responsibility but does require more objective thinking – a task you are probably not up to.
And maybe you did not realize that the Merchant of Venice was a comedy which includes comically driven characters.
Here’s a novel idea – try writing within the same context as those you attempt to put in their place and notice, you attack exactly like those Leftist blah, blah, blah you obviously despise.
Let’s see … any anger issues there TFF?
“non-fact based, clueless, and ill informed presumption Arrogant, condescending, patronizing, smug, and factually illiterate not to mention impaired spinning left wing progressive nonfact, nonreality based quasi-Marxist propaganda Benito Mussolini/Saul Alinsky style of pompous, self righteous, euphemismistic, self bloatification”
We can only hope you are not in a position to influence children …
******************************************************
BTW Ranger Man – you may want to rethink TFF’s influence upon other readers in your blog. I don’t think you are striving for a fear based, illogical contributors like him, her or it. And if he attacks this statement, you will know he is a controller who will continue to stomp his little feet.
Good luck …
If you’re suggesting I moderate his comments – nah. People can say what they want here so long as it’s within bounds. Besides, doing so would deprive me of the entertainment of reading you two. 😉
Wally, you apparently have some serious emotional and ego/authoritarian anger disorder issues……..so please allow me to refer you to my reply above offering some sage advice from Ben Franklin.
Probably best not to respond, you are way, way out of your league.
BTW, accusing others from exactly that, which you clearly demonstrate, is classically delusional.
God bless ya Wally! Please get some mental health counciling or stick with it if you already are.
Classic parting shot – expected nothing less.
Not moderate but control the tenor and tempo of those who comment. Remember, you have a silent audience who will decide to stay or go based upon your leadership.