Articles by Herschel Smith

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I had never heard this story before about survival after a bear attack.

At Outdoor Life.

Via an email from long time 2A warrior Dave Hardy.

Source.

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Thursday that an Atlanta family whose home was mistakenly raided by the FBI in 2017 can move forward with their lawsuit.

The decision stems from a pre-dawn incident in which an FBI SWAT team broke down the family’s front door, deployed a flashbang grenade, and pointed weapons at Trina Martin, her then-boyfriend Toi Cliatt, and her 7-year-old son, only to realize moments later they had entered the wrong house.

So far, so good.

But the government argued in the Atlanta case that judges shouldn’t second-guess agents doing their jobs. A District Court and the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed the case by finding the agents were immune.

[ … ]

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson agreed with the decision. They noted that courts have struggled to determine what level of “judgment or choice” in a police action should protect officers from lawsuits, but said officials shouldn’t be shielded from “careless” or “unconstitutional” conduct.

“We readily acknowledge that different lower courts have taken different views of the discretionary-function exception,” Sotomayor wrote, but those questions range beyond what the justices were considering in the Atlanta case.

It sounds to me like they’re vacillating and confused. Just make all SWAT raids illegal and this will stop.

Oh, and if they already knew that the lower courts had different interpretations of all of this, why did they allow it to continue?

Pssstt …

I agree with his perspective.

I couldn’t be less interested in what Navy SEAL umpty-so uses for EDC, or what Ranger bad boy carries in his Kydex IWB holster. That matters so little to me that I automatically switch off and find something else to occupy my time. Oh, and I couldn’t care less what the military uses or used. I will never switch to ceramic cartridge cases, and I have nothing that says Sig in my gun locker.

I am an engineer, and I love well-functioning machines, as well as machines that have been made with beauty. I also love that the guns that interest me have a relationship with the history of so many great men and my own country.

That’s why I admire Browning for the 1911 design, and Eugene Stoner for the AR-15 design (the genius of direct impingement putting the recoil in line with the bore axis still amazes me, along with the general reliability of the design), and so many men who contributed to lever action rifles. I want to see my 500 S&W magnum lever action rifle one day without having to spend the money at Bighorn Armory, and I wonder if it will ever happen.

I probably don’t need it because of .444 Marlin and 30-30 Marlin and 45-70 Marlin, but I want one anyway.

Because you can’t have those proles having the means to enforce their vote, can you? Channeling Mike Vanderboegh, if someone comes to your door and demands that you turn over your guns to the government, shoot them in the face.

For those who follow me on X, up until now I’ve just been insistent that they don’t deploy the Marines unless arming orders are issued.

Call me old fashioned, but personally I’m a big fan of peace officers and the Posse, and when more is needed, the unorganized militia. And shooting horse thieves and home invaders.

The problem with the unorganized militia is that it relies on a legitimate government to call it up, unless it self-mobilizes under its officers. You know there is militia in neighboring states that could mobilize quickly.

We’re here because of illegitimate government, and because America no longer believes in the Posse and the Militia.

Well, they're sporting pump action shotguns. I'd rather have a Benelli M4 or Beretta 1301 but whatever. I do wonder if those pouches have bean bags in them or what? What will they be shooting? Maybe pump action because bean bags won't work so well to cycle gas or inertia guns.

— CaptainsJournal (@BrutusMaximus50) June 10, 2025

Outdoor Life.

Lone Star lawmakers recently added aoudads to the list of animals hunters can shoot from helicopters in Texas as part of a management tool to aid in the ongoing fight against the invasive sheep.

Senate Bill 1245, which passed both state legislative chambers and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in May, will go into effect Sept. 1. The bill expands Texas’ aerial wildlife management permit system, which previously only listed feral hogs and coyotes, to include aoudad. Aerial culling efforts have helped Texas with its burgeoning feral swine population. A 2019 USDA study found that helicopter hog hunting, also called “porkchopping,” has successfully reduced hog numbers by at least 31 percent.

Gross. Well, whatever. That’s just my reaction. Do as you wish – I see value in hunting hogs any way you can.

As for Aoudad, I think I’d rather stalk them.

Outdoor Life.

If you’ve been out in the bush long enough, you know the difference between a fire that quietly gets the job done and one that gets you spotted or worse. Whether camping or hunting, a smokeless fire is the mark of true bushcraft skill. Clean-burning fires are cleaner, safer, more discreet and better for your health. Most people make the same common mistakes that cause a smoky mess. Large, smoky fires can result in long-term damage to your lungs. They can also compromise your location in survival scenarios and chase off wildlife. Consider whether you’re making these mistakes in your campfire assembly and learn solutions to help you build a responsible fire pit like a pro.

Yep, I’ve made all of those mistakes, but experience is a great teacher. Also, don’t burn rhododendron. The smoke makes you sick. Ask me how I know.

Source.

The themes of grief sometimes bubble over into righteous rage. In 2018, after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland, Fla., Leckey began working on the song “Can’t Pray to Me.” In the bluesy, boisterous track, Leckey sings from the perspective of Mother Mary. “I am the mother of all children / I am the lady keeping watch,” she sings, imagining how Mary might react to gun violence in the U.S. today. “You can’t pray to me and keep your guns.”

[ … ]

Instead, Hell Gate is “not about being queer in the church — it just is queerness in the church,” she said. “There are so many ways to be Catholic. And being a queer person is inherently creative. God delights in our creativity.”

That last paragraph is a lie. Mary isn’t the person she described, and I’m not Roman Catholic anyway and I only pray to the Father through Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit.

So in a short missive, she missed on all cylinders. I’ll keep my guns, thank you.

Sheesh. How does society produce imbeciles like this?

Nice try, Grace. Come back after you’ve studied a bit and we’ll talk.