Violence in Venezuela

Tell me it isn't so in the socialist workers' paradise that is Venezuela. The Guardian reports that former Miss Venezuela, Monica Spear and her recently ex-husband, Thomas Berry, were gunned down during an apparent roadside robbery.  Their daughter was also injured.

Venezuela has one of the highest murder rates in the world with more killings than the United States and Europe combined, according to one estimate.

Hear that?  There's way too much killing going on in the U.S., but there are 300 million of us, and we are very diverse. 

Apparently what happened was that the car Spear and Berry were in broke down.  While they were waiting for a tow, "opportunistic thieves" approached and killed them when they "offered resistance". 

There's actually no evidence for that.  It's mere speculation on the part of police investigators.  As corrupt as the Venezuelan police probably are, it's just as likely the couple were set up and gunned down without any opportunity to resist. 

Oh, am I being unfair to the police?  If the courageous and self-sacrificing officers of NYC are really a bunch of fraudsters who have no respect for the law, pardon me if I make an assumption about an arm of the failing thug regime currently ruining Venezuela. 

Rural Home Invasion

Fortunately, the victim, a disabled woman, survived.

It sounds as if the perpetrators knew of the victim, watched her and knew what they wanted.

The men had busted into her home and roughed her up; they demanded money and prescription drugs.

Here is someone living alone in a lightly populated area.  Since she is described as disabled, one would assume a certain amount of physical weakness and vulnerability.  She's probably living on a few hundred dollars a month, and she has been robbed of more than $1000.

These thugs need to be hunted down, but it is unlikely they will be caught -- at least not for this particular crime.  They will do it again.

I don't know if this woman had a firearm in the house, though a gun will do no good if a person does not have time to access it.  Did she have her doors locked?  Were they dead-bolted?  Any door can be breached, but home invaders should be forced to make a lot of noise.

Most everyone has a cell phone these days.  Is it quickly accessible?  Does it have 911 on speed or voice dial?

Never open the door to someone unknown and unexpected.  Storm doors can be beneficial.  They won't stop a bullet, but neither will most exterior doors.  They will provide a second or two to shoot the bolt and run.

I don't like indoor animals, but, in a situation like this woman's, I would overcome my prejudice and have a dog in house.  Security alarms would be another option.

It's really sad that we have to protect ourselves against these kinds of threats.  Home invasions in rural areas certainly aren't a brand-new phenomenon.  The events portrayed in In Cold Blood, just to pick one, happened in 1959 out in the boonies of southwest Kansas.  Still, they do seem to be on the rise, and, while we should not live in fear, we are wise to be aware of the potential.  

Ontario AFSK Review

This is the Ontario Pilot or Air Force Survival Knife.  It's been around since the '50s or so and is a tried and tested tool.  I bought this particular one as a Bug-out Bag stocking stuffer for someone else.  For various reasons my plans changed, so I worked the edge over a little and took it out myself. 

First, let me say that saw-back knives may not be exactly what you would expect.

I tried it out on a small hickory limb.  It would work fine for notching but it is not really a wood saw.  Since it is a pilot's knife, it is designed to aid in extracting a person from a downed aircraft, among other things.  I didn't have any aircraft aluminum around to test it on, but I imagine it might serve for that purpose.

On the other hand, a few quick snap-cuts with the main blade took the limb off nicely.  This is well-tempered 1095 carbon steel.  You can get it sharp, and it is thick and stout.  The balance and grip are very good for my average-sized hands.

The butt-end makes a much better hammer than the butt of a cowboy's Colt (don't you always cringe when you see those old shows where a guy drives in a fence staple with his handgun?).

  It's about as famous for its sheath as anything. 

The little hone that comes with it is not bad.  It has what seems like a fairly fine grit on one side while the other side may be slightly more coarse, but that's only by finger-feel.  I used a fine diamond and a strop to polish up the blade.  I considered removing the stone and sticking some "survival" supplies, like fishhooks, tinder, and a firestarter of some sort in the pouch.  That might be a reasonable idea, depending on how one expects to this knife.  If you are including it in a bug-out bag then I'd probably stick with the hone.  Sharp is good.

The sheath has several tie-down points in it like the two holes at the bottom in the metal reinforcement.  My old Ontario Marine Corps bowie sheath has a tie-down hole on the sheath, but it is a 7-inch blade and the sheath is a drop-loop -- so it hangs down lower.  The way this sheath rides on a belt with the 5-inch blade, a tie-down is not only unnecessary but maybe not even a good idea.  However, the ability to carry the knife in other ways is of value.  I put a little paracord through the top holes which, with the cord in the bottom, would enable horizontal carry, strapping to a pack, or even rigging as a shoulder holster.

The first thing I did to the sheath before I took it outside was to saddle-soap it.  Leather and carbon steel work great so long as they are given a little consideration and not excessive neglected.

The swedge did not come sharpened.  I have remedied that to some degree, but it needs a little more work before I'll be happy. 

It's not really a requirement, but if the potential is there, I figure I might as well make use of it.

Overall the blade shape will serve well for most camping and general use chores.  It would be an acceptable defensive tool in a pinch.  

The link above is to Midway, which currently offers the ASFK for $46.49 and includes free shipping.  I paid more at for this one at Bass Pro, but, as I said, it was intended to be a Christmas gift, and I was time-constrained.  It is definitely a quality piece of gear for the price.  You can pay a lot more for very, very good knives -- but most won't be very, very much better.  

Sightings of .17HMR at Bass Pro and Academy

The last couple of trips I've made into town involved short visits to Bass Pro and Academy.  Both had some .17 HMR on the shelves -- no other rimfire, but it is a good sign.

Since I can find ammo, I'm almost tempted to buy one -- especially after reading good ol' Varmint Al's analysis.

We Might Make Zero By Noon

Right now we are still at -1.  The lowest I saw was -9 F about 6:00 am.

I'll be able to go out in my shorts tomorrow.  It will be 35.  The nice thing about below-zero temperatures is that they make you appreciate above-zero temperature.

On Meaningless Statistics

EurekAlert! reports on a University of South Carolina study regarding arrest rates.

The study's key findings include:

• By age 18, 30 percent of black males, 26 percent of Hispanic males and 22 percent of white males have been arrested.
• By age 23, 49 percent of black males, 44 percent of Hispanic males and 38 percent of white males have been arrested.
• While the prevalence of arrest increased for females from age 18 to 23, the variation between races was slight. At age 18, arrest rates were 12 percent for white females and 11.8 percent and 11.9 percent for Hispanic and black females, respectively. By age 23, arrest rates were 20 percent for white females and 18 percent and 16 percent for Hispanic and black females, respectively.

In addition to Brame and Bushway, the research team included Ray Paternoster at the University of Maryland and Michael Turner at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

The study, a representative sample of the larger population, builds on a previous one by the team that was released in January 2012 in the journal Pediatrics. That study garnered national attention for providing the first look since the 1960s at arrest prevalence and for its key finding that one in three people are arrested by age 23.

That's interesting.  Being arrested is NOT the same thing as being convicted.  I would hazard a guess that a lot of arrests are related to driving -- probably quite a few DUIs.  You can be arrested for a misdemeanor as well as for a felony.    

It makes a nice attention-grabbing headline but the results, as presented, are much less dramatic.  Always keep the salt handy when people start quoting statistics. 

Least Likely To Get An Invite to "Dancing With the Stars"

The KC Chiefs are the Chicago Cubs of the NFL.  We're not down as our expectations were already very low.  My 42-year-old nephew has never seen Kansas City play in a Super Bowl.

Meanwhile, my non-football fan wife stayed up to watch every minute of the Cotton Bowl, because she is a fan of Gary Pinkel.  Her nephew is an Okie State alumnus, and she called him to offer condolences before the game started.  I was just glad we were playing OSU instead of OU.

I give Pinkel credit because he does seem to care about his team.  But, Coach, please, what's that supposed to be?  The Brokeback Mountain prance?

Congratulations to Mizzou and to Coach Pinkel on a decent sophomore season in the SEC.