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I’ve just read Boston T. Party’s Gun Bible and it transformed my thoughts and skills in the areas of liberty and self-defense more than any book I’ve read. William Buppert’s energizing article, Arm Thyself, left me scrambling to obtain a copy and I thank him for setting me on such a fruitful path.

While no beginner to self-defense or liberty my premises and beliefs in these areas were disassembled, investigated and re-assembled into a higher state by reading (And acting on) the authors’ advice.

If you’ve ever tried to improve your golf swing you’ve gone through something similar. Once your golf swing is established its hard to take it apart, improve pieces of it and put it back together. Inevitably, your ‘first shot’ is in the weeds. Although my self-defense ’swing’ was functional this consummate philosophical warrior put me back on the course with newfound confidence, excitement and, dare I admit: Competence.

The book is an entertaining non-fiction reference book (Yes, such a creature exists!) written by a guy with a knack for putting things simply. Take its 848-page size as an indication of its value. The author gets right to the point and covers a lot of ground.

The Basics

Prior to discussing the first rifle (The authors’ passion) there’s a normal size book of material on:

• Safety & Handling
• Self-defense & The Law
• Tactics & Training
• Women & Guns

Reading this ‘introductory’ material its obvious the author is one thorough gun advocate. He takes no shortcuts, every subject is addressed head on and I found myself scribbling little to-do lists in the margins.

Picking a small section out of “Tactics & Training” Mr. Party tells where he believes guns fit on the “Force Continuum”. It should go without saying to this audience that the ‘Force’ Boston is referring to is defensive, not initiated.

Force Continuum

Mr. Party recommends using these tools & tactics (In this order) before using a gun:

1. Avoidance
2. Guile & Wit
3. Verbal warnings & Profanity
4. Sly escape
5. Pepper spray
6. Baton
7. Hand-to-hand combat

If you’ve tried all this and are still facing threat of death or great bodily harm then you’re both exhausted and at the losing end of a series of failures. What reasonable man would question the use of a gun, at this point?

I say the ‘use of a gun’ because it still remains to be seen whether you’ll need to fire it. You should have the skill and resolve to do so, of course. But, most violent crimes prevented by a gun are prevented without the gun being fired. So much for the faulty premise of gun-control (Victim disarmament) statistics being thrown around like facts.

Sure, guns are fascinating. But, Mr. Party’s gun bible has the appropriate use of these tools in perfect perspective. Perhaps this is why his urgent advice to acquire and learn about them is so ‘disarming’.

‘Only Rifles Can Win Wars’

If you need “Boots on the Ground” to occupy and control territory Boston would add that they’d better have rifles (And know how to use them).

With all the high-tech weapons out there a rifile is the primary tool of an invading force. It may also be the primary tool of the opposing force. If so the ‘conquest’ rapidly becomes a giant pain in the arse.

Although I have no expertise in this area I wonder if this point is being proved in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the news stories of the Russian invasion of Afghanistan when I was a kid, it seemed like the Afghani’s got Russia to withdrawal at the point of a bunch of old bolt-action rifles.

Nukes, smart bombs, artillary, tanks, machine guns and grenades wipe out scores of resisters. But, such methods are PR problems. With indiscriminate causualties any moral high-ground is lost and a vehemently aggressive foe is created. Best rely on the precision tool of a rifle if the goal is to, say, remove people from their homes. How much more difficult does that ‘removal’ become if each homeowner resists with whatever rifle he has? What if the homeowners start coordinating with each other from their rooftops?

Mr. Party explains, “A man with just one rifle can effectively control all he can see”. And, “Three coordinated and efficient Riflemen (using .308 MBRs) are more effective than a full squad of enemy soldiers.”

Is an invading force ever as motivated to conquer as those protecting home & family? History tells us the answer to that question is no. Feeing oppressed? Show indications that youself and others that feel the same way have plenty of rifles and the skills to use them and you might get a lot more respect than you think.

Handguns In Perspective

Boston puts handguns in perspective by saying: “A handgun is merely a weapon used to fight your way back to your rifle–which you shouldn’t have left behind.”

Or, how about, “A rifle is what you go to a fight with; a handgun is what you get caught in a fight with.”

Handgun afficianados, take heart. Mr. Party has oodles of experience and advice on handguns and you won’t be disappointed. Boston does recommend having several handguns should you ever get ‘caught’ in a fight without a rifle. But, handguns are pretty far down the list from Boston’s first choices.

The takeaway for me is that when deciding when or how to use a handgun one’s strategy should center around evasion and escape. If that’s not possible . . . . . then. . . you do have a rifle to get to, don’t you?

BTP Optimal Armory

The authors “Shopping List” in section IV is one of my favorite parts of the book. It’s so specific and well thought out it forces you to think about your own choices (Or lack of them). Boston gives comprehensive and specific advice about building your armory. Even if you don’t take his advice there’s much to learn by contemplating the choices of a consummate warrior.

Prior to reading Boston’s book I wrote an article called Your Optimal Armory. Given the authors vast expertise it was gratifying to find many similarities in Boston’s recommendations. Whereas I start with a simple revolver and expand outwards IF you feel the need, Boston recommends a Battle Rifle first (More likely to be banned) and throws in a revolver if you can still afford it.

Boston recommendations come with a thorough background and rationale that few others could articulate. Once you think you’re all set Mr. Party hits you with ideas such as:

• Having a duplicate battery (Like Ripley in Aliens)
• Should you cache anything offsite? What and How?
• What about arming your family, friends or travel companions?
• Do you have spare parts for all weapons?
• Do you have several thousand rounds for each caliber/cartdridge?

Ever thought of these things? Mr. Party has.

M1A and FN-FAL over AR-10

After a detailed review of every worthy battle rifle Boston assigns himself a tough choice on behalf of his readers: Choosing only one. After all, they are expensive and he appreciates that the reader may not have the bucks to start their own militia, though may have to be part of one, someday.

Mr. Party, himself, admits to being taken in by the ergonomics of the AR-10 as a natural follow on to the AR-15. Then, after much field experience he comes out with the M1A or FN-FAL as more reliable. One is betting their life on the reliability of their battle rifle in the circumstances in which one would have to be used.

My article recommends a .308 Battle rifle as the most extreme weapon you’re likely to ever need. My level of expertise at the time was to say that the choice of the .308 cartridge for your battle rifle (Not the .223) is more important than its launch platform (The rifle). Boston’s book gives the rifleman the benefit of specificity and experience in choosing their platform.

.308 over .223

Given the range of choices I was amazed to find Boston’s enthusiasm for the .308 cartridge. If you think that’s all there is to it you’re not appreciating the depth of the authors experience and the benefits of exploring his other favorite cartridges.

Still, I was gratified that with no experience with the .223 I came to the intellectual conclusion of questinging the point of the .223 cartridge. With vastly more knowledge and experience Boston has the same question. His answer is to recommend a battle rifle in .223 for less than 200 yard encounters, city dwellers or “Perfect for the ladies and/or children” who might not like the recoil of the .308. After working through all sorts of volume and weight tradeoffs he also says the .223 may be suitable for long patrols, but, not ones where you know there will be problems. In that case, you’d want to some kind of .308 to bring along.

After weighing the pros and cons (And costs) I’ve decided to skip the whole .223 rifle craze and save the money for something else on Boston’s shopping list. I would not feel at a disadvantage in the theorhetical scenario where others recommend a .223 to have a shotgun and two .40 S&W handguns. Back when the M16 was still unreliable I recall actual troops in Vietnam who dumped it for a pump action shotgun.

Travel Rifle

In keeping with his statement that “A handgun is merely a weapon used to fight your way back to your rifle . . . . ” Mr. Party would advise having a travel rifle. In other words, have a rifle you can get to at all times, even when you’re traveling.

Low key, collapsible stock and powerful enough to be decisive in a jam is the way to go, Boston says. Three cheers for a .44 magnum lever gun next to the spare tire on your next trip to Reno.

I remember putting a shotgun in the backseat for the ride home from work during the LA Riots. We counted 22 plumes of smoke on each side of the freeway, that day. The traffic forced us to take the side streets home. I was glad to have shotgun insurance as well as car insurance for the rest of the week.

44 over 357 Mag

Mr. Party is fond of this cartridge in a revolver and/or lever gun. They outperform the same combination in .357 magnum. I recommend the .357 magnum combo in my article as an extension of using a .357 sp101 as a carry gun. This maximizes utility while minimizing cartridges stored.

I love the simplicity of the 44 magnum revolver/lever gun combo. What a great combo of failsafe trail guns for cougars, alligators, small bears and whatever other bad guys you might encounter camping or fishing. Since there’s no such thing as a concealable .44 mag (At least, not for me) your .44 mag revolver will be an additional gun to keep and maintain should you make this choice.

About the Author

Its rare to find a person with a huge amount of understanding and experience on a subject who can also write simply and well about it.

A well-informed opinion is extremely useful even if you don’t agree with it.

While reading Mr. Party’s Gun Bible I got curious about the author and found a link to an online interview (Sorry, wasn’t able to find it, again). Listening to the interview it struck me how understated and reserved the author is in dialogue.

In the interview with Boston he recalled an exchange with a police officer who asked him, “Why do you have so many guns?”. Boston’s answer was simple, polite, powerful and the great hope of every law-abiding citizen: “You’ll never have to know if you’ll just leave me alone”.

our book did what i would imagine is the ultimate goal of any author: It actually got me to do something. In this case what I did was get myself on the road to becoming a rifleman, fill in the gaps I had in protecting my family, give me the words to express my own stance on the 2nd amendment and tell others about all this.

Thumbing Through the Bible

Think of this article as me thumbing through this Bible and writing 50 words on the verses that caught my eye. Come to think of it, this is probably why I’ve seen recommendations, but, few reviews. Its hard to get your mind around so much material delivered so succinctly. And who ever heard of an entertaining non-fiction reference book?

Add this one book to your bookshelf and you may never need another on the same subject. How’s that for Optimal? Even if you do go further this one will deliver more and more insight as the readers experience grows. Kind of like, say, a Bible.

PART I: THE BASICS 1 Terminology 2 Safety & Handling 3 Self-Defense & The Law 4 Tactics & Training 5 After The Smoke Clears… PART II: BATTLE RIFLES 6 Combat Rifle History 7 Modern Combat Self-Loading Rifles 8 Combat Rifle Cartridges 9 Rating the Combat Rifles 10 Battle Rifles (i.e., at least .308) 11 Battle Carbines (i.e., .223, 7.62×39, etc.) 12 The AR15 13 Dealing with the Post-Ban Blues 14 The .264 Boston & Its Rifle PART III: GUNS IN GENERAL 15 Handguns 16 Shotguns 17 Bolt-Action Rifle Cartridges 18 Bolt-Action Rifles 19 .50BMG Target Rifles 20 Other Rifles 21 pre-1899 Guns 22 Women & Guns 23 Gear 24 Caching 25 Odds & Ends

PART IV: ACQUISITION 26 A Quick Shopping Guide 27 How To Buy, Sell, & Trade 28 You & The BATF 29 “Curios or Relics” PART V: CITIZEN DISARMAMENT 30 Federal “Gun Controls” 31 Politically Corrected Glossary (by Alan Korwin) 32 Letter to a Columbine Student 33 The Real Goal of “Gun Control” 34 Gun Laws in the 50 States & D.C. 35 Creeping Citizen Disarmament 36 Coercive Buy-up Programs 37 Why I Will Not Obey California’s Gun Registration Edict (by Brian Puckett) 38 Confiscation 39 When The Raids Come PART VI: COURAGE 40 Wealth vs. Liberty 41 Preparing for the Worst 42 Patriot Light! 43 Outrage, Then Courage 44 Boston Is Nuts! 45 Sources

It’s been 13 months since we moved my mother in to live with us. She was in a nursing home and it was time to get her out of there. Just prior, my mother and father-in-law moved in to live with us, as well. Five months later Timothy, our first child, was born. That’s five adults, one baby, two dogs spread accross 3 or 4 generations depending on how you define them, all living under one roof.

Our house was large enough, we had a baby on the way, needed help taking care of my mother and my in-laws were looking for a way to decrease their expenses and take life a little easier. For more background on the decision and the story of moving in together see my previous article, Why I Live With My In-Laws. This is an update to that article.

How’s It Going? - Bottom Line

Extremely well, with unexpected benefits (And problems) and unexpected ways to handle each.

Unexpected Benefits

Part of the ‘unexpected’ benefits are how much I didn’t expect to appreciate the benefits listed in my previous article as much as I do. Division of labor, economies of scale, precious time with family, help with mom. It’s one thing to think about these things and its quite another to experience them in your everyday life.

Grandparents for Timothy

This was just an idea last year when everyone moved in. Now, its real. The reality of having Timothy, Martha, Fabio and my mom together in the same house is truly priceless. There are only three people on the planet that love Timothy as much as Isabel and I do. Having them all under one roof is a daily unfolding wonder and blessing. Even now I may not fully appreciate all the many aspects and advantages to Timothy, and all of us, to just this aspect.

And then there’s the babysitting. Are you kidding me? Who ya gonna call? Isabel and I haven’t had to contemplate the tradeoffs, risks and worries of leaving Timothy with a stranger as we run errands or just want to spend some alone time, together.

Productivity at Home

I work at home. With an 8 month old baby it’s a miracle I’m can be so productive out of a home office. Sure, we could drop Timothy off at day care. He spends all day with his grandparents and me in what has to be the ideal environment. Even if we incurred the cost, risk and effort to leave Timothy at day care it would be a downgrade in the quality of his life and ours.

Isabel and Fabio

Isabel and Fabio have a similar temperament: They’re both quick to react and quick to wind down. At first, we all thought they’d be arguing with each other since they’re so similar. Nope. Turns out they’re so in tune with each other that things get resolved almost before they happen.

Isabel and Martha

Isabel and Martha don’t have the same tempermant. But, they are both very feminine and give ideas to eachother in a non-competitive way that motivates them both to do more than they would without each other.

Martha and Terence

Aha!

 

Nerve Center for Family

With five (Instead of two) adults in the same house its easier to keep in touch with more extended family members and friends. That’s more connection for less effort. Since these are people we love and care about that is a very good thing.

All of us enjoy having guests. We have more guests visiting if only because there are more people to visit. And when we have guests, we enjoy them more because we are all pitching in to entertain.

As a single man until the age of 44 I traveled for Christmas for at least 20 years in a row. Now, I’m thrilled to have most of the family here with us so that the traveling burden is passed onto the remaining single members of the family. Or, it could be other family members looking to take a break in wine country and see all of us at once in one Decemeber trip. Either way, I love it.

Circular Effect of Benefits

Everything that benefits one of us loops back around to benefit all of us. Here are some examples of how this plays out:

1. My productivity at home leads to peace of mind and to more abundance brought into our house. That peace of mind is felt by Timothy and sets an example for him that its possible to live a great life and not be stressed out all the time. More abundance leads to the ability to sustain our lifestyle.
2. Isabel is freed up from most of the conventional tasks on a new mother’s list. The way I put it sometimes is that by the time her alarm clock rings in the morning she has accomplished more than most new mothers can in two days.
3. We purchased reclining couches for the living room to make it more comfortable to watch TV. That lead to ‘movie night’ where we all get togethor on Friday night and watch a movie. Movie night is a great excuse for everyone to spend time together. It also saves on the $150 it would cost for all four of us to go to the movie theatre. After coke, popcorn, babysitting and who knows what else

Unexpected Problems

And what about me and my new in-laws? Most people have trouble even with roomates. How about living with two new roomates you’re just getting to know? There had to be problems and arguments and blow-ups, don’t you think? No, again. Sure we’ve had our misunderstandings while getting to know each other, but, they’ve been only that. Once you translate the culture and language our underlying goals are so united that there really is nothing to argue about.

The real surprise was watching Fabio and Martha go through the adjustment of living with each other while spending the whole day together. They’d raised two kids and been married for 30 years, but, had never spent as much daily time together as when they moved in with us.

Space & House Layout

More people means more guests. Guests need a place to stay. Our only ’spare’ room was my office. So, whenever we had guests I had to give up my office. Sure, I could use the computer during the day, but, at least half of my productivity happens at night after everyone is asleep.

But, guests were not the only reason I had to create a new home office. The only room that could hold my filing cabinets, computer, books, reference materials and maybe even room for a meeting with another person was my first office. That was also the only downstairs room available for my mom. As it turned out, using the last remaining bedroom upstairs didn’t work for several reasons:

When guests came I lost night-time use of the office. For me that was about half of my productivity.

The room was not really all mine. Isabel kept her office books, cabinets, lights and reference materials in the room. The closet was half full of her stuff and the other half was an overflow closet used by Martha.

My office was half upstairs and half downstairs. I had to go up and down the stairs three times just to stage the items needed to work on a project. Any doorbell ring or need for additional materials would send me upstairs and downstairs, yet again.

What this all lead to was the need to create another room in the house. The optimal room would be:

• Downstairs.
• Big enough for all the ‘tools’ for my work.
• Not infringe on another mandatory use of space.
• Accessible, but not too accessible to the daily activities of the house.

And so, my friend David and carved out 1/3 of our 3-car garage and made it into an office. It took 2.5 months of back-breaking work. Frankly, it was a study in the drawbacks and benefits of working on only one goal and ignoring all others. One day I’ll write an article on whether or not that’s the optimal approach.

Although I had designed an addition to the house that would have been perfect it was just too expensive to build considering all the other purchases I was making to make sure we’d make it through this terrible downturn in the economy.

Person by Person

In my first article I said there had to be something in it for everyone for the whole multi-generational living to work. Now that we’ve been together 13 months let’s go person by person and look at how its been for each one of us.

Mom

The joy on my mom’s face when she see’s Timothy (Every day) sums it all up, from my mom’s perspective. On her second trip to the doctor, four months after moving in, he couldn’t believe how much she had improved. And that was before Timothy was born. We have lunch every day together and sometimes even a party on the patio. Timothy looks over and screams when mom waves at him and that’s a great ‘conversation’ to watch.

My mom’s health is not well and she does’nt always cooperate with Martha when its time to do her exercise. However, I have my doubts that she’d be with us, at all, if it weren’t for the comfort and care she receieves by living with us.

Martha

aoeu

Fabio

Fabio loves being home.

Timothy

Timothy gets parents who are smiling and not stressed out. He has the priceless attention and love of his grandparents. He feels the support of living in a home where everyone is looking out for each other. He gets far more interaction than would be possible in daycare. He is learning Spanish and will know two languages and will be ready to learn a third by the time most students are even contemplating whether they want to ever learn a second language.

Isabel

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Me

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Alone Time

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Guests

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Noise

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Expenses

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Economies of Scale

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Division of Labor

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Time with Family

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What Happens Around Here

Here’s some things that happen around here:

Everybody’s Got Their Secret Stash

Martha has her sweets, mom’s got her cookies, Fabio has his whisky and I have my figs. Isabel doesn’t have to keep a stash because Fabio keeps it for her for when she comes home from work.

Coverage

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BBQs

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Occasions

Planning

Going

Regimentation

Almuerzo

Movie Night

Cadence of the day

 

The Future

Fabio and Martha have considered selling their home in Orlando and probably would if the market would let them.

If we have another child then the upstairs guest room will become the new baby’s room.

 

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