Where's All This Global Warming They Keep Talking About?

Gearing Up For The Big Chill by Eric Power

If you live just about anywhere in the United States, it's probably safe to say that you've noticed a colder-than-typical winter this year. Climates throughout the Midwest and the East have been bitterly cold, and characteristically warmer locales such as the South and Southwest have experienced a very unusual cold snap that has left them reeling in utter confusion, with some locations getting snow and ice for the first time in decades. Southwestern Ohio received a substantial brunt of the Polar Vortex, punishing us with subzero temperatures, even harsher windchill and dumping more snow on our heads than we've seen in quite a few years.

"Never Out of The Fight", Lone Survivor!

My Thoughts on Marcus Luttrell's Thrilling Biopic by Eric Power

The story of Marcus Luttrell and his SEAL brothers is told in a gritty, unrelenting fashion in the movie adaptation of his book from 2007, "Lone Survivor: TheEyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEALTeam 10". I took  my 14 year old son, Alex, to see it on opening night (and then saw it again with my wife, a week later). It was a hard movie to watch, and I admit that I was moved to tears at many points throughout the movie. Before the credits rolled, they played a dedication to all the men who perished in that operation. I am not one who cries easily, certainly not in public. But seeing the sacrifice that these men gave for their country, their loved ones, and their Brothers-in-Arms, in living color on the big screen, was more than I could handle. It was probably a good 10 minutes before I could trust myself to speak steadily with Alex about what we had just seen. These guys have more honor in their left hand than I have in my entire body and I am humbled to know their story, and more importantly, to pass on their story. If seeing his old man in tears helps him to understand that point a little better, then so be it.  

What about BOB's?

The Basics of Bug-Out Preparedness by Eric Power

If you look on the internet these days for pretty much anything, you'll be linked to 2,187,243,539 sites that claim to have exactly the information that you need. This is no less true when you look up Bug Out Bags.

Here's a little background on me: I am a prepper. (sshhh....don't tell anyone OK?) I started getting into the prepping mindset around 2007 when I started hearing about the failing economy.  The general decline of society is something that has concerned me for a while now, as well. I also remember a 4-month period right before Y2K when I started storing gallon water jugs like mad (no extra food, just water!), and prepared a lock-down/security procedure for the two-bedroom apartment that I lived in at the time. Looking back, it all seems silly, but never mind that right now! I could see the writing on the wall and it didn't (and still doesn't) look all that fantastic. So my wife and I started looking into being prepared for whatever might come our way, be it natural disasters, hyperinflation, societal collapse, and/or *GASP* ZOMBIES. And this time, making sure it was done the right way.

Is That a Gun in Your Pocket, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?

The Case For Concealed Carry by Eric Power

My wife showed me a video (Pt. 1) recently that had to do with Concealed Carry licenses. This was a report (Pt. 2) by ABC News that was done a few years ago. It shows their bias against CCW laws pretty clearly, so right off the bat I'm irritated. It was uploaded by a YouTuber with the title "Proof That Concealed Carry Permit Holders Live in a Dream World", so obviously he has his own axe to grind as well. The point of the video, as I took it, was that Concealed Carry permits are useless at best, and dangerous at worst. However, I reject their "controlled experiment" entirely.  They set this test up from their assumption that CCW's are detrimental and useless.  Of course they're going to get the results that they expected!

A Father's Retrospective of September 11th

My Daughter Won't... by Eric Power


Twelve years have passed since that terrible, fateful Tuesday in 2001, when 19 Muslim extremists perpetrated the worst terrorist attack on American soil in the history of our country. They killed nearly 3000 innocent civilians, and brought down or heavily damaged the symbols of economic prosperity, freedom and military might, ideals that have put this country at the top of the list in world history. They may have done more if not for a group of patriots on United Flight 93, who chose to fight and ultimately perish for their country, rather than dying to further the twisted goals of their hijackers. We didn't know it at the time, but the terrorists did something else that day. Whether intentionally or by accident, they set in motion an inexorable change in our nation from which we've yet to recover. Ever since 9-11-2001, our country, in particular our government, has changed to the point where I barely recognize it. What has disappeared in the last dozen years, we may never reclaim.

Know Your Facts Before You Speak

The Emmett Till Reality by Eric Power

Oprah Winfrey used to have my respect. I can't say I ever really agreed with much of what she said, but I had tremendous respect for what she has done in her life. It's waned quite a bit in the last decade but after this recent comment, it has completely evaporated.

She has made a comment multiple times now, while promoting her new movie "The Butler" on the TV talk show circuit, about the Trayvon Martin situation which is just unbelievable.  She equated Trayvon Martin and Emmett Till as being the "same thing." So this intrigued me...who is Emmett Till?  I've never heard the name before. I looked him up. The story of Emmett Till is as horrifying as it is tragic.