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Amen. I think too many people don’t understand what this truly means.

I hope it never goes hot. I just think that realistically we are close to the point of no return.

Stock it deep and make sure it is spread out if you can.

The Dems are trying to buy the votes of the government workers even more. Gotta keep that IV of government money and benefits dripping....

And you as well sir. I would have quoted specific lines in my comment below but I cannot figure out how to do so.

Hah! I bet your friend was a little peeved after that :D I have read about the issues of the M16 in Vietnam and can imagine your hesitancy with the platform. Using that frame of reference I would probably agree with you. I personally plan to run a few setups - AR15, AR10, and AK47. For the latter, if our advesaries do step foot on the US, there will be plenty of spare parts and mags to be had :)

I am tangentially aware of China’s current capabilities but I don’t know if 1) that is enough of what they need to project power egfectively enough, and 2) if at this point they have any desire to do so. Recently a Chinese Admiral said that the best way to defeat the US was to sink two carriers in the South China Sea and they have the anti-ship missiles and hypersonic weapon systems to do so. They said that given that loss of men, the US public will turn against conflict. I think their view is that there is no need to do by force what we are doing through bad economic decisions and emerging cultural faultlines. Thus, I don’t think they risk open conflict.

So we definitely agree about their danger during a societal breakdown but I thing we just differ on the details. I find it had to imagine that they have the ability to maintain those supply lines for that distance, and even with a societal breakdown I think it is too dangerous for them. They are certainly targeting the continental US for propaganda though - American Partisan reported on them buying a radio station right across the Southern Border in Mexico for what can only be assumed as a “Voice of China” style broadcast center. And the Panama Canal piece is why I hate Carter. Now if we get hit with an EMP/cyber attack first, they only have to wait a year for most to die off and then they can sweep right in.

As for your other scenario, I question whether they would realize the danger or if bravado and ego step in and they think they are the baddest mfers in the area. Having a Community Defense Force would help deter them, but I think in a partial breakdown of civil society this may be the more common threat. I don’t believe we will see a full on Civil War but rather a Low Intensity Conflict and Insurgency between radical communist ANTIFA types and the right wing groups. If the $$ and supplies stop flowing though, systems disruptions will take the tinderbox that society currently is and ignite it.

Then again, who the heck knows what is going to happen. For me, I intend on plodding along with food stores and other supplies as I fervently hope none of it comes to fruition. I pray what I fear is coming does NOT come to pass, but I will be as ready as I can be if it does.

Appreciate the chat. I am always open to new viewpoints as it feeds into the brain and helps me either soldify or tweak my positions.

Thank you for the kind words and warm welcome. This place will definitely become a frequent stop of mine. I hope everyone here has a wonderful day!

I do like to talk :)

I will start with the .308 question. I certain don’t dismiss the round at all - it would be nice to be able to out-range your opponent. My first point with it is that people often get caught up in the newest fanciest round that might do some things a tad bit better but require either handloading to keep it economical or that is otherwise uncommon in the area. I prefer the KISS theory when it comes to weapons platforms. The other area where I touch on the .308 is the AR-15 vs AR-10 debate, and in that aspect I believe that it is situationally dependent. I have an AR-10 along side my AR-15s, and they both serve a purpose. If I were doing a walking patrol as a member of a Community Defense Force, I have to balance the extra weight of the rounds and gun vs need (I can already here the “do extra PT arguments from here). If I am a fixed roadblock, gimme an AR-10 to outrange my opponent from a fixed position. Again, I don’t dismiss any round or weapon system - I advocate heavily for the mighty .22LR. My entire point was that you need to consider some of these things before making a decision, and then make your decision.

What do I envision? I think that Matt Bracken’s book trilogy “Enemies Foreign and Domestic” paint one realistic picture of what might come our way. Economics and culture war are my two big fears, and when this thing gets moving in the wrong direction, it will go downhill fast. Assuming a slow grid-up collapse, as the $$ spigots run dry, EBTs start being rejected and the economy grinds to a halt. I don’t mean a 2008 recession - I mean the BIG ONE that will involve discussions around sovereign debt levels. Riots and social unrest will be common, and systems disruptions stemming from our Just In Time delivery systems may occur.

If we are hit with any level of first strikes leading up to the inevitable war with China on critical infrastructure (i.e. electrical or SCADA systems) with cyber attacks (a la STUXNET re-engineering to bite us in the ass) or EMP, all bets are off on civility.

Sure, the authorities will step in - but not initially. And while I certainly see the dangers of China, they have no ability to truly project power yet (though they are slated to supposedly build some nuclear powered carriers by 2035 I believe). They are focused on regional power project within the innermost chain of the islands in the South China Sea (i.e. Spratly Islands). If they ever came here, they would wait some time for the chaos to truly seize and destroy us internally as a country before offering “emergency funding or supplies”.

I did do a previous post on this topic based off of what I read in another article. Given your assertion that any such breakdown of governmental systems would warrant intervention by powerful state actors, you may disagree with my thoughts there as well, and I doubt either would be able to convince the other. I will just say that I think you are overestimating the ability of the “powerful state actors” to maintain the level of control I believe you are suggesting they will.

https://www.americanpartisan.org/2019/01/the-fourth-turning-the-future-as-i-see-it-by-patriotman/

As my tagline states, I am not an expert by any means. My contributions at American Partisan are from the perspective of a not-so-experienced J.Q Public citizen and meant to generate discussion, debate, and hopefully give people stuff to think about as they make their own decisions on some of these choices.

God Bless.

Just for the record, that isn’t the author. I am. Never knew about this forum until someone passed this post along so I figured I would create an account just to clear his name so he didn’t get blamed for such a terrible article :)