Book Review: Atlas Shrugged

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (1957) is the fictional story of industrialists vs. socialists in mid-twentieth century America. However, in her novel, the real movers and shakers of society – the very top industrialists, businessmen, inventors, scientists, managers, etc. – decided to shun the socialist government and society that was living off their hard work like a nation of vampires, leading to a national (global?) collapse.

Having heard of it for years, I only just now finally got around to reading the book. Although widely acclaimed, including in some survivalists circles, I was completely underwhelmed by this book; Suburban Survivalist Shrugged. Why? Two main reasons; the characters and the overall philosophy.

The main characters simply were not believable; they were gross caricatures. The businessmen were driven in business but inexplicably could not understand the need to lobby in Washington, a trait rare if not non-existent in truly successful businessmen.

In her story, these genuine heroes of civilization, prompted by none other than John Galt, decide to forsake society until said society appreciates their efforts and stops living off them like remoras. This is also unrealistic; talented others are always waiting to fill any vacuum in such fields. That’s reality.

The socialists characters (mostly government, but some businessmen who inherited their companies) were so stupid as not to understand that a business cannot operate at a loss and still continue to function. While some socialists must indeed be that dense (the early twentieth century was apparently full of such men), these characters simply did not have the ring of reality.

The philosophy Rand expounds upon in Atlas Shrugged is Objectivism. Rand describes it as:

My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute.

To her this also means, as expounded upon in the book and later interviews, an almost anarchist reliance on capitalism, no charity, and the rejection of religion. Neither realistic nor desirable, in my opinion. Of course I’m distilling it down to the bare essence, but it’s still unacceptable to me. It could be termed Calvinism in an anarchy, without God.

I’m a Christian (not the preachy kind, hopefully evident if you read this blog), and believe in charity. Rand rejects religion and the concept of charity completely, which I cannot and will not do. I do reject the government engaging in charity and forcing me to pay for it, however.

Probably the main point could have been made just as well with about half the pages, over one thousand in the 50th anniversary edition paperback I read. Very well written, especially for someone doing so in a second language, but a lot of unneeded detail.

It almost seems if Rand was seeking to establish her own religion/cult of sorts, but without a spiritual – or mystical, as she put it – deity at the center. I get the feeling an adherents to Objectivism would deliver their pitch with that same thousand-yard stare you’d get from someone trying to sell you on Amway or Scientology.

With all that negativity up front, it should be clear that Rand developed and wrote the book while much of Europe was succumbing to socialist ideals after WWII. She also correctly predicted America’s slippery slope into socialism.

My suggestion is read this book, despite the flaws I see (you may not). Borrow it from the library, know what it’s about. Rand makes many very good, if slightly unrealistic, points about the absurdity of socialism.

I’ll close with a key phrase from the book:

Review: Beretta U22 Neos Carbine Kit

Beretta’s U22 Neos .22 LR pistol is an inexpensive but solid semi-auto pistol with a steel and polymer frame. While I don’t care for the looks, the Neos is accurate, reliable, and extremely easy to field strip. The grip is a little small for me, but perfect for my wife. Other pluses are the ambidextrous safety, fully adjustable sights, and built in Weaver rail. For around $250, it’s a bargain.

This year Beretta finally released the carbine kit for the Neos to U.S. consumers. The kit contains a 16.25” barrel to replace the pistol barrel (4.5″, 6″, and 7.5″ lengths), and a reinforced polymer skeletonized stock and grip to replace the pistol grip.

Like the pistol, the carbine barrel has a Weaver rail on top for mounting optics, but also has an orange TruGlo fiber optic front sight and fully adjustable aperture rear sight (peep). According to Beretta, the Neos carbine kit is also approved for sale in California.

I recently obtained and tried out the Neos carbine kit. Overall this is a very good carbine kit with a few drawbacks:

• Pros: Lightweight (3.8 lbs configured as a carbine), compact, accurate, ergonomic, Weaver rail, fully adjustable sights, potential storage space in stock, FFL not needed to purchase
• Cons: Expensive, no high-capacity magazines (10 rounds only), no sling attachment on fore grip, not suitable for single-point sling

Besides being fun to shoot, the carbine is light and perfect for backpacking or a Bug out Bag (BoB). For survivalists/preppers, this allows the kit to be carried in the BoB while the pistol is carried in a holster. Photos below will show the space in the stock could be used to strap in a small pouch containing extra ammunition, magazine, cleaning supplies, etc. I put a few hundred rounds through it on the first trip to the range and found it to be very accurate using an inexpensive optic.

The biggest drawback is the price. I paid $240 for the kit but have seen it for $219. For that much you could add a Marlin Papoose, which breaks down and is only about 3.5 lbs (see the Nutnfancy review). We’ll have to wait to see if higher capacity magazine will be offered, but the sling swivel attachment problem is easily fixed.

There has been discussion about the legality of the carbine kit. The carbine stock contains a warning about configuring the rifle stock with any pistol barrel – doing so would make it a short-barreled rifle, which must be registered or may be illegal where you live. Putting the 16.25” barrel in a pistol configuration should be fine, but check your local laws.

More photos below – click on images for full-size.

Potential Gun Confiscation When Needed Most

A reader recently submitted a question about firearm confiscation during emergencies (the same question was posed to the author of Suburban Survival Blog and answered there a few days ago). Lightly edited:

[I]n regards to your plans for defense and firearms, in the event of an emergency (SHTF or something leading up to TEOTWAWKI) do you *really* believe that you will be allowed to keep your firearms if such an event happens? (emphasis mine)

Remember that after Katrina, New Orleans police confiscated all [legal] firearms and held on to them long after the immediate emergency was over. It wasn’t until the NRA sued and won did people finally get them back.

And if there is social unrest predicated on an severe economic down-turn (as many very credible pundits believe there will be in 2011), government at the local, state and/or Federal level will most likely try a firearms confiscation as they try to maintain order – just at the very time you may need them (even if you don’t leave for your farm). Can’t count on the NRA or the courts to support the 2nd Amendment in the event of such an emergency.

I’m presuming you have purchased them from legitimate sources (not asking, not judging) so they are licensed/registered/etc and easily tracked down.

And even if you don’t leave for your farm but are forced by circumstances to leave your home for ‘official’ shelter like in a school or armory (or stadium as in New Orleans), I doubt you can take your firearms in. After all, it would make a statement to walk into a school gym with a duffel in one hand and a rifle slung over your shoulder!

There are a lot of variables to consider; national vs. state level, changes in gun laws, the nature of the emergency, and so on.

Nationally. A couple years ago I read that there are an estimated 270 million privately owned firearms in the U.S, so almost as many are there are people living here. Under current laws it is unrealistic to think that a) the government knows where they all are; b) has the resources to research where they all are (FFL records) and; c) has the resources to go get them.

Congress responded to the unconstitutional gun confiscations during Katrina with the Disaster Recovery Personal Protection Act of 2006 (H.R. 5013 [109th]), which was signed into law in October 2006. North Carolina banned guns during a bad storm earlier this year and is being sued for it.

States and Localities. The 2006 federal law has major loopholes that leave room for states to confiscate firearms in some circumstances. I’m not a lawyer so won’t attempt to parse all the ins-and-outs, it’s enough to know they can. During major social uprisings, natural disasters, marital law, etc., they could confiscate weapons.

However, a growing number of states are passing “emergency powers” legislation that prevents firearm confiscation during emergencies. Map via the NRA:

Surprise, surprise, my home state of Nebraska doesn’t have such a law, at least yet. Viewing that map also directly affects my bug out plans for driving home when and if things start to fall apart, assuming I haven’t moved much closer by then (which I’m trying to do).

Game Changers. A break down in civil order and high violent crime rates, brought on by a currency crisis and hyperinflation or other event, could cause changes in both national and state/local gun laws and ordinances. Or a string of high-profile mass murders with semi-auto weapons could be enough to turn the tide on gun control, as it did in Australia (remember the Brady Bill?).

Most readers here will recognize that restrictive gun laws leave law abiding citizens unarmed and the criminals with guns, but unfortunately enough lawmakers may not.

Such a change could prompt the federal government to create a national firearms registration system, or the states to require registration (most states do not currently). Once such records are complete, it would be much easier to confiscate firearms if that decision was made. It would still be manpower intensive and expensive, but the most difficult part would be done.

Bottom Line: Right now, with our current laws, I’m not worried about targeted or door-to-door confiscation if things start to fall apart. Might not be able to carry outside the home (even with a permit), but not outright confiscation. That could change but I would expect laws to change first. Even if the laws do change, most law enforcement will be too busy trying to hold back total chaos.

What I am most worried about are checkpoints or roadblocks in states, towns, etc. that would search vehicles and persons for firearms, and confiscate them. If they really want to find them, they usually do. That’s one reason I plan to avoid interstates, major highways, and other main roads if things are getting bad. If things are fairly normal but looking to get bad, might not have to worry about it – too many variables.

Recommendations. 1) Don’t live in states or cities that require firearms registration or permits to buy. Live someplace where you don’t have to go through an FFL to legally purchase firearms. I know, easier said than done, but if it’s worth it to you, move if you live in a restrictive place. Whatever you do, don’t break the laws where you live since that will give “them” the excuse needed, and you may not be able to legally buy again – just not worth it.

2) Get a concealed carry permit. While this puts you on the state police radar for having a pistol, exactly what and how many you have is still an unknown (if you follow #1 above). It may allow you to carry in troubled times when you otherwise could not.

3) If things go south and you need to bug out, (aside from going soon) have a plan for concealing your weapons. If you don’t have a concealed carry permit, lock them in the trunk (or tool box, etc.), but, as the reader said, don’t be walking around with a rifle on your shoulder. While legal in most places, it’s conspicuous and during marital law can only invite trouble.

Check out the NRA gun laws page, and the Wikipedia gun laws page for state gun laws.

Bug Out Navigation: Maps and GPS

Continuing the theme of bug out preparations, this is my navigational plan for traveling the 1,300 odd miles from where I’m living in Northern Virginia to my parents rural Nebraska farm, the “retreat,” should TEOTWAWKI occur.

As mentioned before, a map of population density by county is helpful for seeing how the eastern half of the U.S. is very densely populated. If things are getting chaotic while bugging out, Interstate highways and other main roads may not be clear, and detours could add a couple hundred more miles. Having a way of finding where you are and good maps is critical.

The best case is to just take Interstates most of the way and then take the local roads I know. If I recognized early on that it was time to bug out and only had a couple hundred miles to go, this would probably work just fine. But if late in leaving, and due to the time it would take to get there non-stop (about 22-24 hours, including pit stops), it’s unlikely the path will be that easy.

My main navigational aid while driving is a run-of-the-mill GPS. I have a Magellan but any inexpensive unit ought to do for basic navigation along main roads.

While these are GPS units are great for getting you from point A to point B after you’ve told it where to take you, with main roads potentially closed it’s perhaps better to put small segments of the overall trip in at a time so you can control your route and avoid potential bottlenecks, roadblocks, etc. Good maps of every state you might need to go through are called for.

Enter DeLorme. Most U.S. road atlases aren’t going to offer the level of back roads detail required, but DeLorme Atlas & Gazetteers do. These products regularly receive high marks from those who travel a lot, and are also called out in Bug Out by Scott Williams.

I used online mapping tools to identify the three most likely Interstate routes I would take, and purchased the Atlas & Gazetteer for each state I would or might pass through. At about $20 this came to nearly $300. I’m now in the process of using highlighters to clearly mark the Interstate routes I might take, and different colored highlighters to mark secondary highways, state roads, etc., for alternate routes.

This is time consuming and I won’t be done for awhile yet, but when done will provide me with all the maps I should need while bugging out, already marked (in plastic and stowed in my truck toolbox). If getting off main routes, I would enter segments from my maps for the GPS to guide me. Some GPS units can route multi-point trips as well.

Some GPS units also require a street address (or GPS coordinates) for the destination. To make this process faster, I plan on finding specific addresses (perhaps gas stations, sporting goods stores, etc.) and putting them on Post-It notes in the maps along the routes highlighted. Planning now will make things smoother then.

While those maps are outstanding, should my family and I have to abandon our Bug Out Vehicle (BoV) for any reason, I probably could not carry those paper maps due to space and weight constraints. And a GPS for vehicle navigation would require recharging soon, aside from not having the detail needed. Bugging out on foot is definitely something to avoid, but if it is necessary we will need to navigate (map and compass are nice, but probably not most useful in our case).

I’ve opted for another DeLorme product; the Earthmate PN-60 GPS. Look for it on sale around $300-350 – well worth it.

The PN-60 gets high marks for being rugged and a good battery life (much improved from the PN-40, which I upgraded from), but the primary reason I chose this GPS is that DeLorme includes DVDs with coverage of all of North America.

The 3.5GB of built-in storage isn’t enough for all the states I need to add, but it can also take an SD card of up to 32GB, which will take all the maps included. These are the same detailed maps as the Atlas & Gazetteer series, but on the GPS. With a yearly subscription of $30 you can download additional maps for the PN-60 (or any PN series GPS), including satellite imagery.

Even if you live in or very near your retreat, a bug out plan is needed in the event that location has to be vacated, for whatever reason. Having good local maps and a backup GPS is something I recommend.