Patriot Express News Letter Edition #45
Fellow Patriots,
Good morning!
We hope you enjoyed a blessed week wherever you may be.
Those of us living in the south and southeastern US of A are still enduring rain....lots of rain. We may get a break tomorrow evening with some snow flurries but more rain to follow. The accumulation of rain is great. The problem is we have had maybe three nights of freezing temps at different times. We have not had enough freezing temps to freeze off the underground critter and skeeter eggs for the third straight year. We had some skeeters flying around our deck on Sunday afternoon. This is not good for the coming growing season.
Thanks to everyone for the emails and communication this week. It is always good hearing from you. I appreciate the sense of humor also. Sometimes we need a good laugh, don't we. It is nice to read your emails in the evenings after a day of work and several hours at the computer doing the website stuff. Festus and I talk about lots of heavy and deep stuff but we always find a way to laugh and keep our feet grounded.
Time is precious so let's move ahead.......
HEALTH ALERT: The Coronavirus should remain on our radar for a while. Even though the media seems to have moved on, the virus is still killing people around the world. Folks located in China are not only suffering from food shortages but also medicines. We are probably going to feel some ramifications as a result of the virus in March and maybe April due to the slowing of production and goods not being manufactured and shipped out of China.
We must make this brief public announcement to protect the innocent.
NOTE: Opinions shared in this newsletter are just that, opinions and nothing more. Read at your own risk. The owner and authors of this site are not responsible for hurt feelings or thin skinned readers. We do our best to show restraint and respect to the best extent possible. We take as many precautions as possible and try to remain as nonpolitical as possible, however, there are times when I just can't help but point certain things out. Just saying. Stay the course, read what you want, and avoid the rest. Avoid fear porn as much as possible and the day will be okay.)
Thoughts for the week -
Does anyone else pay attention or monitor foreign newspapers to get a flavor for what is being said outside the United States? It is amazing how much news is taking place that our national media fails to even discuss or mention. The tensions between Israel and Iran are extremely tense with lots of war rhetoric going back and forth. The continued confrontation and jockeying for position on the Syrian and Turkish border. Why did the student protestors in Hong Kong who seemed to be gaining global attention go silent just before the Coronavirus outbreak. The continued crackdown against the citizens of Venezuela is ongoing. The discussions within the European Union to build a superpower military to stand up to the United States. It goes on and on.
Next...
I had the opportunity to spend several hours with a Hope For Survival contributing author, Gun Smoke, who is a Christian brother, fellow Patriot, retired Army veteran and a master gunsmith at his business location, American Pride Firearms. Gun Smoke shared some exciting news about some upcoming business ventures. We chatted and filmed about an hour of video for an upcoming podcast. It was a very unique setting here in North Alabama with a relaxing atmosphere where we enjoyed a beautiful sunny day. After a tour of A-P-F we settled in to discuss weapons care, firearm and ammunition storage, and weapon maintenance. We also discussed steps in keeping a firearm dry of moisture. We also discussed tactics within the home, weapons of choice and why. Folks, if you have damaged weapons, needed repairs, or modifications you would like to make and need a business to do them for you, contact American Pride Firearms. Gun Smoke treated me to lunch after our podcast filming and we continued our chat further about some future podcast possibilities. Thank you sir for your time and kindness.
Next ...
Do you ever stop and think about what you see around you? Sure, we have disparages in our country that we found at birth and continue having at our current age. The poor remain poor, the middle class continues to maintain life through hard work, taxes, and changes within the government demands on their income. The wealthy politicians grow in numbers as they tells us their plan to make our life better and help others. People spend an entire life striving for hope and a break to be self-supportive without the government crutch. But does it ever change? We have expectations from what we think and where we think things should be. When we drive through a rundown neighborhood or area where lots of homeless have taken up refuge, we reach down to check our door locks and ensure our window is up. The normal reaction in America, right? We have our own perception of norms in America. The numbers go up or down but the foundation is never fixed or changed.
I could tell you many reasons why these things stick out to me. Growing up poor and hungry maybe. Witnessing far too many nations around the world where the starving and homeless in our country live far better than the majority in other third world countries. Maybe it's because my undergrad degree is in Psychology and I focus and believe the mind is the greatest tool in our tool box when used. If you read my book you probably noticed my emphasis on the brain and the importance of knowing who we are and how we tick. You probably have noticed many of my articles posted on the HFS website are about or include something dealing with how we process thoughts and what we detect through our site and thoughts and conclude. A simple example takes me back to childhood playing marbles. The marble is at point A and I had to hit the marble at point B. I would roll the marble and it would go left or right away from Point B or it would hit a undetected bump and bounce. Why? Because I was looking from point A to B. I missed everything in between that could alter my plan. I was in the box and didn't know or understand how to be outside the box. I know Festus would have detected it because he thinks like an engineer. I was a musician most of my early life and my focus was getting on MTV, not seeing the bumps between the marbles or the unlikely chance of being on MTV.
Years later while supporting the US effort in the Balkan States and specifically Kosovo in this case, I was flying aboard a US Army UH-60 Black Hawk from southern Italy across the Adriatic Sea to the port in Durres, Albania and then forward to Tirana, Albania on the ground. At this point I had spent a lot of time in other third world nations on multiple continents. My previous mental baseline for "poor" would be my memories of the WV coalfields in Southern WV. after they closed. Much of what I witnessed was like Romania, Poland, Hungary, Latvia, and Estonia, but worse. Outside the port city of Durres, the bad roads would not be this bad in rural areas of America. The people traveled on buckboards pulled by skinny underfed horses or mules. A few miles up the road, the US military had leased a massive sheep farm and in 72 hours converted it from a muddy field to a functioning military hub/airport to operate military actions across the mountains in Kosovo. It was impressive to see the airfield with all the US hardware for air and ground operations. But what we witnessed between my departure point in Southern Italy and the airfield is what stands out in my thoughts today. The hundreds of people with dirty clothes, dirty faces, and underfed animals used for transportation while the multi-million dollar US airframes whizzed through the air above frightening the animals. The poor expressed hope in their facial expressions in the other mentioned countries, however in Albania, I witnessed little to no hope. It is unknown how many hundreds of millions in dollars the US Government paid the sheep farmers for using the fields but a rocks throw away the poor starving people surrounded this great show of force from the US. This would be a repeated case in many other places around the world.
We came and went, leaving the poor just as poor as before we arrived. Sure, in many cases we airlifted food and supplies to those in need, but when our mission ended, so did the relief flights. The path from Point A to Point B never changed for those riding the buckboard transports yet the advanced technology flying above didn't hit the bumps, ride the buckboards or express depression as their facial view. As much as we wish for change, it never comes without making changes in the individual mind to make the change. Putting hope in the hands of strangers who promise you a better hope or way is often a losing bet. It has been this way all over the globe. Broken promises and busted hopes yet people will still put their faith in the wrong place.
Fellow Patriots, I have been to the other side of the fence many times and in many ways that so many wish to venture for hope and answers. (For more on this statement read Thursdays HFS article I wrote titled (Can you remember what you forgot and forget what you remember). The one thing I can tell you with certainty is from an earthly viewpoint, your best hope is in yourself. YOU can control your outcome far better than putting your hope in the hands of something or someone else to reach the unknown conclusion. You wouldn't drive blindfolded so why follow the unknown blindfolded? Control your destination from point A to B and know everything in between.
Okay, the world awaits us, let's move ahead.
Preparedness News -
1. From Selco Begovic and Daisy Luther - https://www.theorganicprepper.com/power-water-quarantine/ - This is a lot of what we have already talked about in the past two weeks. It's not about the event but what impact it could have on you.
2. From Dan Stevens - Modern Survival Online - https://modernsurvivalonline.com/how-to-turn-salt-water-into-drinking-water/- Ms Lucy and I ran across some "prepper" show last week that was a bit dramatized for me but I glanced at it while doing computer work. I'm not a regular TN watcher. One portion of the show was building a solar desalination system for the homesteading family. It was a pretty simple set up but it worked.
3. From T. Lee - Survival Blog - https://survivalblog.com/dollar-store-prepping-expedition-t-lee/ - This is a fun read and good example of folks trying to help train the mindset of some youthful city dwellers who are starting at ground zero with their preparedness.
4. From Ben Brown - The Prepping Guide - https://thepreppingguide.com/eight-best-military-boots/ - Some folks go cheap on their leather personnel carriers (LPC) until they have a foot problem or feet problems. If you are planning a bug out plan and cover all options for movement, your feet will most likely be a key player. Don't punish your feet by wearing cheap boots.
5. From Bob Rodgers - Prepper's Will - https://prepperswill.com/body-armor-measurement-tips-for-beginners/ - I don't know if you do or don't have body armor on hand, however if you don't you can find some good pricing on armor plates and carriers right now. Just be safe to not get burned on the pricing and quality of equipment.
Other News -
1. From Deborah Franklin - American Thinker - https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2020/02/q_the_silent_war_continues.html - The mystery of Q continues. Amazing the mystery has succeeded for three plus years without being identified or pegged for who the person or group could be. I still have to ask the question, is this intelligence or counter-intelligence at work? To this point, the Q following has been held at bay as followers wait for each clue to the ongoing puzzle of what will be the next move by the Trump Train to bring down the deep state. I don't