History Repeating Itself? Trust But Verify

90’s Concerns

It’s the Summer of 1994, an assault weapons ban had been passed in the House of Representatives in May, and the Senate was going through the motions of passage of the bill. Gun show attendance was at an all time high, and dealers of firearms and military equipment had record sales.

Keep in mind, we had seen a number of things happen, prior to the threat of the assault weapon ban, and that had many on edge. Bush’s Import “Assault Weapon” Ban, Ruby Ridge, Waco, and a lot of “New World Order” talk. The election of Bill “I didn’t inhale” Clinton, just appeared to be the perfect set up for a tyranny to take hold.

One of the things you could buy at many gun shows was info. The internet was not a “Thing”, and to get info, pertaining to what you needed to know, you either bought books or videos. A video that was making it’s rounds, apparently for about a year, was “America In Peril” by “Mark from Michigan”.

Mark Koernke

I had heard about it from a Friend, and bought a copy at the local gun show, when I saw it for sale. WOW, so much info I didn’t know! So many things going on that I was unaware of! The Feds are training, arming and deputizing street gangs! “Mark from Michigan” is at the top of their arrest list! Probably has something to do with being a Mil Intel Analyst, Counter Intel Coordinator, and Commander of two (2nd and 3rd) OpFor Brigades at the time of the video, huh?

Koernke was well spoken, and appeared to know what he was talking about. I can tell you that my Friends and I thought things were bad before we watched that video, but DAMN, we better get on the stick, concerning our firearms and gear purchases, because the gun confiscations are coming in a few months…….according to Mark, and he would know….right?

As I said in the beginning of the video above, many of Koernke’s assertions are exaggerations, if not total fabrications. Although I know a lot of info about Koernke, concerning his beliefs (hearing some of it from his own mouth a few years back), I’ll just point out that his military background (Just adding up the years and timeline, let alone his claimed “Duty Positions”), obviously isn’t what he claims (if anyone can prove I am wrong with a DD-214, by all means, do so, and I’ll retract my statement), and from the article I linked below, he obviously has delusions about who and what he knows.

Here’s a link to a story that gives some insight from people that knew him, growing up and into adulthood and from the military (He was in the 70th Division [Training] US Army Reserve, it remained in Detroit until 1968, when it was moved to Livonia, Mich. The 70th Division [Training] was formally inactivated in Michigan on 15 Nov. 1996.). When you read the linked story above, Koernke kind of reminds you of this guy, but his prison time was for something different. Although he was arrested a few times previously, his 7 year sentence was because he panicked, and ran from the cops after they tried to pull him over as a bank robbery suspect. I’m not gonna judge his actions, because he had his kids in the car, and remember, he “Believes” he was at the top of an arrest list.

Actual Actions Against Us At That Time

Well, the “1994 Assault Weapon Ban” went into effect after “America In Peril”, and it lasted for 10 years. There was no house to house gun confiscation by street gangs, or anybody else for that matter. About the only good thing to come out of the “AWB’94”, was that firearms manufacturers started concentrating on designing and making more compact pistols, due to a 10 round mag restriction. Another thing that happened, was many of us found an appreciation for cheap prices on many firearms accessories. A $20 Glock 21 thirteen round mag was selling for $80 during the ban.

Recent History

I watched a video recently, where some guys were talking about the present situation, concerning our Nation’s proximity to WWIII, tyranny in the U.S., the “Constitutional Militia” and what they’ll do when it “Hits the fan”. The oldest guy in this discussion was in his early forties, and the other two were too young to remember anything from the 90’s, and it showed.

Even the older guy was obviously clueless, concerning any of the gun control and government overreach issues we dealt with during the early to mid 90’s. I heard them mention a few sources that they used to get the info, and over half were total clickbait BS artists, that are easily fact checked.

Concerning the topics of their conversation, yes, I believe we are closer to a true WWIII than we have ever been, especially from a nuclear war aspect. U.S. based tyranny is alive and well, due to the edicts of the Resident, as well as many States and the Administration ignoring recent SCOTUS judgements that enforce the Constitution and empower the People of the United States.

As to the “Constitutional Militia”…. really? You realize, legally speaking, if you call yourself a “Constitutional Militia” and follow the rules for that, set forth in the “1903 Dick Act” (among others), you are subject to the authority of the Governor of your State. I don’t know about you, but there is no way I’d subject myself to the orders and authority of my State’s Governor.

Actions You Can Take When It “Hits The Fan”

Form yourself a Survivalist Group. It would be organized for community sustainment and defense, and would incorporate everyone involved, into positions within the group. Those involved in the patrol elements of the defensive side of the group, would be organized along the lines of Infantry Fire Teams (4 man) or Long Range Surveillance (LRS) Teams (6 man), if you are fortunate enough to have enough personnel for that.

There are two main reasons for organizing them this way. First, if you are serious about patrolling, having a group that is organized down to the Buddy Team (2 man) level is important, even if it’s just for the fire and maneuver portion of a violent contact with bad guys.

Second, if your group becomes part of a larger defensive group or Militia, there is a good possibility their defensive section will be organized in a similar fashion, since there are some hard won lessons that have already been learned and implemented by the military, and “Reinventing the wheel”, is just stupid.

Do your organizing through “Meat Space” encounters, not on the internet. Organize with TRUSTED Family and Friends first. Once that’s established, start to have those members bring others in that are TRUSTED Friends and Family.

The Blessing/Curse Of The Internet

From an info aspect, comparing the situation today to 30 years ago, is no comparison. We have info at our fingertips, but the problem is, like the video from earlier, the level of dis-info and online “Militia Generals” that are legends in their own minds are at an all time high.

There are so many Youtube personalities that put up clickbait titles to get hits, it’s overwhelming. Regardless of the excuse used by the personality, there is no reason to BS the perspective watcher, by putting up a title that isn’t honest. Like Koernke’s claimed list of military accomplishments, that appears to be less than honest, why should you trust info from clickbait youtubers, who are just trying to make a buck from your click on their video.

Find information providers that are clear in the titles of their videos, and give info in plain terms. As an example, Southern Prepper 1 has been supplying good info for years, and put out some seriously important info with his “Boots on the Ground” videos.

There are a number of guys like him out there, just do some looking, but always try to verify the info through another source. The above info equally applies to bloggers and podcasts. Back then, we didn’t know that a lot of the info that Koernke, and a few others like him, were putting out was BS, but today, you have the resources to find that out, where we did not. You might say, “But JC, some of what he said was true.”, and that is true. The best charlatans include a modicum of truth to make the rest of the lies more believable.

I know how pissed a number of us were, when we found out years later that Koernke was BS’n us with a lot of that video’s info. I’d not only like to save you from having to find something like that out later, but help you save the money you’d probably otherwise spend, because you think it’s the last minute, and you feel like you really have “No choice”.

“Trust But Verify”

JCD,

The Bushbastard