Saturday, April 30, 2016

Running Naked With Scissors

When we see a pretty fit woman with an average looking or overweight man we tend to think "I wonder what's wrong with her?" or maybe "He must be rich or scare horses running around in his birthday suit." Perhaps it is none of the above and it's not a matter of something being wrong with her, but something being right. She isn't superficial or judgmental, but sees all that he has to offer just by being who he is.

Many of us strive to be or even claim to be loving and nonjudgmental, but it's not how we live. If it was, we'd have arranged marriages or Tinder would assign us partners without pictures and we'd be ecstatic. Being a janitor would be as good as being a neurosurgeon. In order to be truly honest with others, we must first be honest with ourselves about our beliefs, desires, limitations, and dreams.

We must also recognize that as we age we change. We are not the same person at fifty as we were at twenty or even thirty five. As we gain new life experiences it pays to reexamine who we are and to step away our friends biases, cultural prejudices and expectations, formal education, religious teachings, and out of our parents' shadows and set our own courses.

Until we form our own beliefs, we are slaves of the past and can never be free.


"The unexamined life is not worth living." - Plato

"No generalization is worth a damn, including this one." - Anonymous

Saturday, April 9, 2016

Five Dollar Fingers

One of my favorite sayings is, "If you have five dollar fingers, buy a five dollar knife." I don't think a knife is better, just because it costs more, but you get what you pay for is an accepted truism. I don't want a lock failing and cutting tendons or a poorly heat treated blade snapping off due to a little torque or occasional rough use. Unfortunately, I have an eye for quality. It was very common for me to look in a case with fifty knives at the Blade Show and be immediately drawn to the most expensive one. It wasn't based on flashiness, gimmicks, collector value, or some armchair warrior's blog; it was years of hard firsthand experience and years of watching and picking the minds of great knife makers.
A Mercedes and a Volkswagen might look similar on the outside, but it is what is not immediately visible to the naked eye that makes the difference.
I believe in being prepared short term and long term. That is why I EDC (Every Day Carry) for a SHTF worst case scenario, because I cannot predict when or what that might be. I keep a solid proven fixed blade in each of my family member's Bug-Out-Bag and vehicle's trunk kits as well as other tools, gear, and supplies.
I EDC a couple of knives, a multi-tool, a tactical flashlight all the time (other than in bed or the shower), and a pistol the great majority of the time. I carry quality gear that works and has the lowest probability of failure within my means. I carry what I would want to have in
The more you immerse yourself in the knife world, the clearer quality and value will become. Hang on to your fingers and other irreplaceable body parts. Buy quality. Buy American. Support your local custom knife makers.

Combative Edge PX-41 Tactical Utility folder (designed by myself) shown.



Friday, April 8, 2016

Political Posts

My Dear Friends (and other assorted ruffians, scoundrels, and shitheads), I am sure that you have noticed how many posts I put up about Libertarians and other politics. Many of you are probably sick and tired of it. I ask, what else are you sick and tired of? Why would a seemingly intelligent, rational person care about what happens on the Hill? My answer is this: As much as I absolutely detest politics, I love my country more. The only way for America to reclaim its status as the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave is to strip away the career politicians and bureaucrats who continue to chip away at our liberties at breakneck speed. We must do this at the polls before it is taken to the streets. The conservatives and the democrats are two sides of the same coin with neither offering us honest, experienced, viable candidates. The harder we work, the faster the government spends and the higher it taxes. The American Dream is but a faded memory. In the 1950’s one parent could support an average family by working forty hours a week. Now two rarely can and the cost of living continues to skyrocket. If you are tired of having the government in your bedrooms, wallets, medicine cabinets, gun safes, refrigerators, businesses, schools, gardens, and churches, and want to take control of and PERSONAL responsibility for you and your families choices, to get to know your neighbors, and form true communities, I desperately urge you to check out the Libertarian Party and it's candidates. The establishment wins and we lose if they convince you it is a wasted vote. Don’t vote for the lesser of two evils, vote your conscience. America deserves a better choice and our best efforts. www.theadvocates.org/quiz www.LP.org www.GaryJohnson2016.com www.AustinPetersen2016.com www.McAfee2016.com

Twisted Faces - Caricature Art from Rock Cowles

Twisted Faces - Caricature Art from Rock Cowles
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Caricatures by Rock Kowulz