Guns in America
043:Arbitrage Andy on the Second Amendment in Modern America
Intro
Andy, I thought you were a finance meme page? Why are writing about guns? I am writing about guns because it is an extremely important topic I am passionate about It will likely be the next hard push by our government alongside ESG Taxes and more recently large divisive issues like Roe V. Wade and free speech. As a young lord in the United States starting a family soon while trying to navigate the madness and chaos of the last two years, I thought it would be helpful for me to shed light on how I think about the second amendment and what it’s true objective purpose is outside providing everyday security for me and my loved ones. Hint! It will piss some people off and ruffle some feathers. But that’s okay, because if I can, at the very least, show you how the majority of responsible gun owners think about this subject, maybe you’ll realize:
a.) it’s futile to argue about if you’re against guns altogether
b.) people sound incredibly dumb using certain arguments
b.) you may change your stance all together based on factual truths
DISCLAIMER - There are some of you who will likely strongly disagree with me no matter what empirical evidence and logic is presented to you, that is okay. I would advise you do not continue to read if for whatever reason you feel strongly against guns. This passage will likely just frustrate you. Amidst the new constant and not at all suspicious strings of mass shootings across the US, we see more highly emotional rhetoric about banning guns. This is especially dangerous because as you’ll see, all throughout history, politicians and leaders use any means necessary to take guns so that they can rule absolutely without fear of reprisal from the populations they oppress..
The Basics
By means of qualification, I am a gun owner. I have several. My family has many. I can take them apart, clean them, shoot them, operate them, and safely store them without issue. I have shot for years. Full auto MP5s and M4s, AR15s, AKs, M14’s, CZ’s, Shotguns, Glocks, WWII Rifles, .45’s, .22’s, the list goes on and on and on. There is still obviously much for me to learn and I am not a veteran, but I am well read on the topic, come from a military family, and have studied not only the constitution, but also war and conflict history exhaustively both in undergraduate and graduate studies, and on my own. Fortunately these concepts are not that hard to understand. Unfortunately, this is inherently a political issue and with the polarization in the United States, those in favor of more government intervention and involvement, typically leaning further left on the political spectrum, will likely be against any guns/gun access.
If you have the ability to think critically and see the big picture of what history has clearly shown us time and time again, you’ll understand pretty simply: don’t give up your fucking guns under any reason or justification.
I’ll give you a couple factual examples:
In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control and confiscations. Stalin’s government proceeded to kill over 40 million people.
In 1970 in Uganda, gun control was established and over the next 9 years nearly 300,000 Christians were murdered by the government.
China established gun control and from 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, were rounded up and exterminated.
From 1975 from 1977 in Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge removed all firearms from private ownership. 1.5 - 3 million Cambodians, including a half-million members of ethnic minority groups, were slaughtered viciously.
In 1911 in Turkey started imposing Governmental restrictions for private gun ownership and between 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians blamed by the government for the war, were exterminated.
Guatemala required expensive, hard-to-obtain permits for carrying firearms: 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, rounded up and exterminated.
These are what many would consider extreme examples. I would argue they’re normal examples. You think the victim groups thought they would ever be exterminated after being rendered defenseless? Instances in which environments became ripe for murder when certain conditions were met (inflation, war, political division, regional tension, political polarization, and ethnic conflict) and incumbent groups sought all out power.
"If the Nazi experience teaches anything, it teaches that totalitarian governments will attempt to disarm their subjects so as to extinguish any ability to resist crimes against humanity." Or, as David Kopel, research director of the Independence Institute, states more succinctly: "Simply put, if not for gun control, Hitler would not have been able to murder 21 million people." (Bernard Harcourt, On Gun Registration, the NRA, Adolf Hitler, and Nazi Gun Laws: Exploding the Gun Culture Wars (A Call to Historians),)
So you see, the core issue here is that once a government can confiscate guns or make them hard to get, there is nothing physically deterring the government from committing vast oversteps of power and potentially committing atrocities against who they deem dissidents (misinformation spreaders in 2022!). Again if you simply don;t believe me when I say it is possible that there could be a situation in our lifetime that merits citizens taking up arms against the government just stop reading. You’re delusional. Look how much power was taken and not relinquished during the pandemic alone! Let’s say the government or ruling class/party simply decides they don’t like what you’re saying online and unjustly come to detain you and your family one morning without documentation or official reason. If you have no guns, you have literally no last recourse to unjust physical tyranny/bodily harm. OMG Andy are you actually suggesting there’s a situation where it would technically be appropriate to make a stand against cops, the government, or FBI agents!?!?!?!
That’s exactly what I am fucking saying and the situation really isn’t that far fetched considering recent developments in the United States.
Let’s start with the Second Amendment. Shall we?
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
Let me be perfectly and absolutely clear. The second amendment is chiefly for defending yourself from and counteracting a tyrannical federal government. Read that again back to yourself and let it dig into your thick skull. It’s not originally meant for hunting, it’s not meant for sport shooting, it’s for fighting and defending yourself from a government that is out of control and threatens your physical well being. The ironic thing is that the former sentence I just typed within this newsletter on substack is likely triggering/flagged in some sort of way for either alphabet agency mass surveillance or social media/google algorithm suppression. You guys realize the goal has always been to monitor who poses a threat to the elite/ruling class right? That’s where we are right now and even the discussion I am having with you is most likely painted or flagged as”radical” or “alt right”.
The Second Amendment, ratified in 1791, was proposed by James Madison to allow the creation of civilian forces that can counteract a tyrannical federal government.
“But Andy, that would never happen nowadays, you sound like a crazy person! Everyone loves each other and everything is ideal. Woke psychotic liberals hate you conservatives to the bone but they would NEVER stand by and watch the government commit atrocities against them or other designated “far right radical” groups! Our government would never do that you say. To which I answer, it already has happened, many many times. It will happen again too. Because people forget history, and are now more than ever easily swayed by emotional and virtue signaling propoganda with sinister end goals in mind.
Most recently I find it ironic and straight up funny that people shamelessly trust the government considering the events of the past two years. This has been quite possibly the strongest reason in all history to own guns. As if we haven’t fallen COMPLETELY under the government’s thumb since 9/11 and progressively more the last 2 years. They cheat you, surveil you, rob you, lie to you, divide you, and hate you.
They government took two years of our fucking lives during Covid with countless lies, gaslighting, and deception. They fucked our currency and economy up beyond repair. Got people fired from their jobs and ruined livelihoods over a common cold because MEH political views. They have canceled half the the country and silenced 70% of us. They watched and did nothing as the country burned for a summer straight under false pretenses and have been implicated not only in the organization of, but the encouragement and likely the facilitation of both January 6th and numerous other domestic “terror plots” against “White Supremacy” “Alt Right” “Trumpers” “MAGA” blah blah blah. All projection and gaslighting against the groups of individuals that all governments fears most, that yes do happen to frequent the right side of the political spectrum. Able bodied males with the physical means and ability to resist and counteract government rule or tyranny.
What I am saying to you is truth. If you’re finding yourself squirming or uncomfortable with this, you’ve likely been the victim of the political left’s campaign and misinformation about the 2A and guns in America. If you disagree with me fundamentally, you’re not going to be swayed because you disagree with me politically.
The History
First things first. The Second Amendment, was ratified in 1791 and proposed by James Madison to allow the creation of civilian forces that can counteract a tyrannical federal government.
I’ve heard the arguments a million times and both are absolutely flawed at the core, not to mention downright daft. “an AR-15 isn’t a musket!”
What you have to understand is that the modern AR-15 is a pretty close equivalent to what the musket was at the time when you compare capability vs. potential opposing forces. American officers with prior military experience had learned the art of warfare under British commanders in the French and Indian War and other North American military events of the time. They employed hit and run attacks and unconventional methods to beat the British strategically. A smaller and less organized force was then able to forge our nation after suffering for years at the hands of tyrants.
Theodore Sedgwick of Massachusetts expressed this sentiment by declaring that it is "a chimerical idea to suppose that a country like this could ever be enslaved ... Is it possible ... that an army could be raised for the purpose of enslaving themselves or their brethren? Or, if raised whether they could subdue a nation of freemen, who know how to prize liberty and who have arms in their hands?" (Wikipedia Quote)
“You really think you’d stand a chance against the government with your AR15!!!?They have tanks and drones and bombs idiot!” Yes. Yes I do friend.
I would point you to the Middle East where the United States has tirelessly spent trillions of dollars losing wars against rebels and shepherds alike armed with dust covered AK-47s and makeshift IEDs. Or to the Vietnam war, where ill equipped and illiterate Viet Cong repelled the entire American military with WWII era rifles and booby traps for years on end. The argument that an AR15 or equivalent rifle wouldn’t be enough to mount effective resistance against an occupying force or government is simply ignorant. The Japanese military is said to have held off on a mainland invasion of the United States during World War II because they knew there would be a gun behind every blade of grass. Ukraine, with it’s gun friendly populace is ensuring the Russians have to pay for every inch of land they try to take.
For the record, citizens in the United States could absolutely mount an effective insurgency against a hostile government or occupier with ease, regardless of modern military capabilities. An AR-15 is the MINIMUM you would want if we ever hit a shit hits the fan or anarchic situation. I won’t delve into specifics on gun parts and capabilities in this edition but for the record AR doesn’t stand for Assault Rifle, a term coined by politicians to ban scary looking modern rifle platforms, it stands for ArmaLite. Bet you didn’t know that. Misconceptions on guns and their capabilities are abundant in America. I’m from California one of the stricter gun law states and I can tell you with certainty that the laws themselves, which try to alter the weapons function, ammo amount, and operation, don’t achieve much at all besides altering the cosmetic appearance of the gun. If I wanted to have a military grade, automatic, and kitted out rifle platform, it could be done in one evening in my garage. As it was nearly done in this instance. Again, criminals and murderers will always find a way.
With the recent rise in mass shootings, there are emotional arguments for stricter gun regulations, laws, and bans. This isn’t a new phenomenon as there have been many pushes to regulate and ban certain gun types after larger and more notorious mass shootings like Sandy Hook or the Vegas Shooting (still no explanation). These events, while gut wrenching and tragic, are not excuses for impeding law abiding citizens from owning certain types of fire arms. Gun laws don’t work on criminals. Why would they? Do you think a mentally disturbed man who eventually killed himself is going to follow state gun laws and not commit crimes? All these laws do is make it harder for law abiding citizens to defend themselves from bad people. Again, kind of comes down to your world view on if people are good or bad.
The vast majority of criminals obtained their firearms through other means, including: [1]
Illegal underground sales
Bought, borrowed, traded, or rented from friends or family
Gifts
Purchased by another individual for them
Theft
From their victims
From the scene of a crime
Criminals who go through illegal avenues to obtain firearms aren't going to submit to background checks while doing so. Why would they lol? Ultimately, only law-abiding citizens would be impacted by expanded background checks and registries (NRA.com)
Does gun control reduce crime? The evidence says no.
In fact, cities with some of the most stringent gun laws, like New York and Chicago, suffer from some of the highest violent crime rates. Shooting and murder rates in Chicago surged 50% in 2020, and that city recorded the highest number of gun-related homicides on record. [9] Gun-controlled Chicago became the most murderous city in the country. Remember - good guys with guns are the only real counter to bad guys with guns. All else simply falls short.
Case Study
While I don’t half enough space in this email to walk through every example I would like to. Let’s take a look at Australia. A modern example of the absolute failure of gun confiscation and control and what it ultimately led to during chaotic times when Covid ravaged the country and the government abused it’s power. This is a modern nation state falling in real time.
During Covid we watched Australia fall into an utterly totalitarian state with Covid as an excuse. In a bid to keep the coronavirus out of the country, Australia’s federal and state governments imposed draconian restrictions on its citizens. One prominent civil libertarian summed up the rules by lamenting, “We’ve never seen anything like this in our lifetimes.” A handful of the actions taken over the last year in Australia, a country you probably think would never have the ability to commit potential atrocities down the line. I assure you they could. Examples of Covid era restrictions in Australia enforced by them military and police. (The Guardian).
Returning travelers quarantining at home will be forced to download an app that combines facial recognition and geolocation.
Intrastate and international travel within and from Australia was severely restricted.
The state texted citizens at random times, telling them they had e 15 minutes to take a picture of their face in the location where they are supposed to be. Should they fail, the local police department will be sent to follow up in person.
In New South Wales, Police Minister David Elliott defended the deployment of the Australian military to enforce lockdowns
Now look, these steps, although Draconian, aren’t genocide or murder. But what you need to understand is all of these and more are typically the first steps in allowing the kind of environment where tragedies and severe abuses of power can and have occurred. many of these same actions were taken prior to tragedies in the countries I mentioned earlier. A government with unchecked power is an extraordinarily dangerous thing. We watched Australia move into the stage of power consolidation and tyrannical action during the pandemic, with Covid 19 safety as the excuse for such infringements. I’d argue the entire pandemic globally, allowed governments to overstep their boundaries. One has to aks themselves, if the guns weren’t confiscated in Australia, would the government have been so fast to commit door to door checks, forced relocations, and locked people down for so long.
Conclusion
Now look. I get that likely more than 50% of you can’t imagine a situation in which you’d take up arms against our government. That’s fine. But what you don’t get to do is limit the readiness or capabilities of of those of us who understand such a situation is conceivable in the next 20 years. Not to mention the possibility of mass civil unrest, food shortages, hyper inflation, supply chain breakdowns, electrical grid shutdowns (from terrorist attacks/cyber attacks), political unrest, and crime. These are serious threats you should prepare for in some way and that’s not tin foil hat talk, that’s just good sense. Don’t put your family or yourself at risk because you chose to view the world through an idealistic lense and ignore the reality of nature and the deteriorating circumstances around you.
Remember this all comes on the heels of the Biden Administrations recent implementation of the “ministry of truth”. This is incomprehensible guys. Biden and this newly formed group are backed by the department of homeland security, who owns billions of rounds of ammunition, countless firearms, and has been purchasing military vehicles now for about 10 years. They are truly a domestic force to be reckoned with, simply waiting for the one who will set them upon civilians or designated “threat” fringe groups. Domestic and home grown threats have been added to military training recently. What does that tell you? Well it tells us that the government likely expects domestic unrest in the coming years. Whether that is the result of failed policies, a tyrannical federal government, food shortages, or a power grid failure remains to be seen, but those instances are all at play.
If the opposition disarms, well and good. If it refuses to disarm, we shall disarm it ourselves.
Understand, I am all for keeping guns out of the hands of those who are not fit to use them (mentally ill, emotional, criminals) but what you all need to understand is that it is a slippery slope. The eventual reason that may be given to you as why you should give up your guns will be highly subjective. From my perspective, 99% of gun laws are unconstitutional. In fact, the entire premise of the government being able to alter or regulate weapons you own is ironic, considering the main reason you own them is to resist the government against tyrannical law, including laws and regulations that alter weapons you would use to counter them in the first place. Make sense?
This entire passage and message makes several assumptions. The first is that you’re an adult capable of critical reasoning and understanding the appropriate role force/physical action plays in our lives. The second is that you understand there are evil people in this world. You can’t view the world through an idealistic lense all the time or you will be prey. There will likely never be a bi partisan agreement on gun control and in my opinion there never should be. Guns made this country and guns will ensure that this country is around in 100 years in some form. I’ll be damned if I am not proficient and skilled in the use of fire arms to protect myself, my loved ones, and the spirit of the country I love. I will defend it from enemies abroad and if necessary, enemies in my own backyard.
With guns, we are ‘citizens’. Without them, we are merely ‘subjects’. Let me know in the comments if you liked this week’s newsletter. As I look to begin providing people with premium content, I will likely continue writing on political/life topics alongside the usual markets analysis. If you guys want a part 2 with more specifics on guns themselves/basic background and tactics happy to drop that as well. Stay sharp kings.
If you’re interested in more reading on these topics, I suggest the links below. Remember it is quite difficult to find pro gun or factual material on the impact of gun control, as the entire subject has bee scrubbed, suppressed, and contorted to fit pro government goals of what they want you to feel on the topic.
Extra Resources
Of Holocausts & Gun Control
How the Nazis Used Gun Control
Arbitrage Andy Store
Arbitrage Andy Twitter
*DISCLAIMER - None of this is financial advice, it is important that you do your own research and make your own investment decisions. I am a former trader and currently work within sales/financial technology/brand building/e comm. I also work to improve all aspects of my life through athletics, self security, and various hobbies.
Because I have built such a massive digital network building Arbitrage Andy & Arb Letter, Arb Letter looks to leverage that information and sentiment for you to make informed decisions that cut through the noise and bias of modern media and news.
Very well stated, sir. We currently don't have firearms but given this I am going to raise the convo again about whether we should (along with training, education, etc).
For context-- we were your typical young, college educated, white collar "moderates" who never grew up in gun-owning families but have been pushed(?) further libertarian & right in recent years due to all the reasons you stated in todays letter, among others. Who knows what the future will hold but we should be prepared.
Always love your letters, keep up the great work.
While I expected differing responses, so far all the folks who disagree or are triggered can't articulate what exactly about this is inaccurate.