Common Sense

That’s right.

It’s not about guns. It’s about freedom.

The recent “boomlet” in gun sales in view of the coming election may reflect uneasiness and worry about the future of the country, but “buying a gun” is not the first answer, nor necessarily the best one.

The best response is to seek to understand why the American people face such a choice of candidates. And then to understand that all the old folk sayings are actually pretty good fountains of wisdom, and the one that says “a people get the government they deserve” might point the way to the solution.

If the American people are not going to continue to face an ever-sliding quality in elected leaders, they are going to have to do something about it.

The current recipe - staying at home on the couch in front of the TV, confident that “someone is doing something about things” - isn’t working - and it isn’t working, big time.

So, first step is to get off the couch.

Second step is to get some foundations, some standards, some guidelines, into place, so you know where you are, what you are about - and what you need to do in the future.

Right now, that’s pretty easy. Follow our analogy of the sinking Titanic. If you’re on the boat, no point in worrying whether the ship’s crew is properly organized, whether the Captain has enough mates to handle the job - no sir, the first thing to do is to bail, to bail like H!

But there’s something you have to do, even before then, as you quickly understand: One person bailing isn’t going to save the ship!

So, you need, before you even start to bail, to get the other passengers out of the deck chairs, and make them understand: the only way to save the sinking ship, is to get everyone bailing, bailing like H!

The first step, then, once you get off the couch, is to get others off the couch.

That, my friends, is the core of what Appleseed is about.

You come to an Appleseed, you find out that our history and Heritage is all we need to guide us, but you also find out that, powerful as one person can be, we aren’t gonna save this country unless we get Mr. & Mrs. America off their couches, and bailing with us.

Which is why you leave Appleseed understanding your trip was for naught (in terms of saving the country) unless you come back, and this time with your friends, your neighbors, your wife, your kids, your relatives, your co-workers - anyone you can get.

And to your shock, you better be prepared: most of them are gonna resist getting off the couch!

Can you really imagine how much our history has changed? It’s like if Paul Revere in his midnight ride found that people, far from getting out of their beds, and marching to the sounds of the alarm bells - it’s like he found them slamming their shutters, locking their doors - and going back to bed!

That’s what you’ll be facing. The fact of it should, far from discouraging you, motivate you even more. “These people call themselves Americans? For shame!”

Now you understand, you’re in this for the grind. As you heard (or will hear) at Appleseed, many times over, “persistence” is key.

The people you are dealing with are really no different from those of two hundred years ago. Just ill-educated, un-informed, and lazy and apathetic, when it comes to anyone but themselves and their own interests.

Inside each of them is a sleeping, inner-American, just waiting to be woke up, just waiting to respond to a call that was made 200+ years ago: “Alarm! Alarm! Muster and March!”

If you get discouraged at the constant rejection, understand three things:

1) Life offers no guarantees. They had no guarantees that the war they started on April 19, 1775 (started defending themselves and their communities, to be sure) would end in victory. And as you read the history of the times, you understand that most of the informed opinion of the day thought that it was a near-miracle that we won… So, no guarantees today, either. We take life as we find it, and there’s no reason for us to expect a guaranteed certainty that we can wake up Americans in time to save their country. Saving a nation is not an easy task. Nor should it be. As Paine said, “heaven knows how to value goods, and it would be surprising indeed if she placed so little value on Liberty” (from memory) and then went on to summarize, in these few words, the essential problem in America today: “That which we obtain too easily, we esteem too lightly.”

Yep, we got our freedom handed to us by prior generations. Given to us. Not many of us have done anything to earn it. And, having paid nothing for it, it’s worth nothing to us. Which is the real reason for all those butts, supine on all those couches, as liberty and freedom disappear down a drain…

2) One person can make a difference, and that one person is you. The American Revolution was about the power and the worth of the individual. They used to teach in history (but not anymore, I bet) that this nation was about the “sovereignty of the individual”. Theoretically, there is no more supreme authority than the individual American, which is why the fight was over “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” - all things central to individual concerns. Over generations, that’s been eroded, and continues to erode, as people continue to sleep. But the founders said that “as long as the American people is alert and informed, Liberty is safe” (from memory) - but who can say, today, that the American people are alert and informed? Clearly, the proof is in the people we are electing to office.

But the good news is YOU can make a difference. One person bailing, while recruiting others to bail. You may only recruit one person - and that one person may recruit 100, or 1000 others - but if you hadn’t been the ONE person to recruit him, that 100 or 1000 would still be in the deck chairs, sleeping or complaining “about the lousy deck service”.

3) Consider the alternative to “doing something” - which is to do nothing. To sit by, while your country slips into the ashcan of history. While the heritage earned by blood of people far better than you is allowed to erode to nothing. There’s an implication here - a strong one - as to what that would say for your worthiness as a human being. What kind of a person would you be, to sit by as your family’s future, your future - along with your heritage - is taken away from you? So, it becomes an issue of personal worth and evaluation - are you an American?

So, in the coming months, “buying a gun” is OK, but it won’t help where help is needed. It won’t help bail the ship, it won’t help save the country.

What will save the ship, and the nation, is getting out of the deck chairs, and getting to bailing.

Coming to an Appleseed.

Reaching inside you, and waking that sleeping American who resides there.

You’ll be glad you did.

And so, ultimately, will be the nation.

Remember, I can’t do it for you.

Only You can do it.

And that’s good. It means the power - the future of the country - is in your hands.

Can you think of better, more trustworthy hands, for it to be in?

On November 8-9, 2008, Appleseed returns to Red Brush Range in Evansville, IN. This is Ditchwater II.

The significance of this event is fun and interesting to many involved in Appleseed, but has some special significance to yours truly.

Appleseed, having its official start in 2006, Evansville was one of the very first stops for this fledgling program. These were the days of no internet promotions, limited exposure, few people ever hearing about the program, and few volunteers to help the program.

Due to the efforts of the Second Amendment Patriots and others in Indiana, the fact that Appleseed shoots were few and far between (only 18 nation wide in 2006), this first Evansville event had over 150 shooters attend!

What an experience! 150 Freedom loving Americans on the line, learning of the Heritage and Traditions of those that have come before them. Sharing a once in a live time event with 150 unnamed friends, the sound of 2 minutes of Freedom at the end of the event. Seeing the spark of an incredible program being fanned into the consuming fire of Liberty. These were quite special times.

Those of us that were on the line that day sure could feel the specialness of the program. I must say that this event was the beginning of a metamorphosis of yours truly, and I dare say many others.

The setting of that weekend has was a scene of what was yet to come in the Appleseed Program. The weather seemed to be a tool used by the forces for and against American Liberty, and we got a very small taste of what the early Americans must have faced, as the future of the weekend looked bleak, with murmurs of putting the shoot off (by those that had not gained the Heart of Appleseed yet). As the day progressed, the forces that are kindly to Appleseed mostly prevailed, but that hints to the end of the story.

Saturday morning saw wind, rain, cold, right up to the time for folks to start showing up. We arrived to an atmosphere of determination, expectation and a hint of hurriedness. As the numbers began to grow, it was obvious to so many of us that this was a special event.

I, and my two friends found our selves a spot on the line. What a line it was, over 60 shooters on the line (the longest single line in Appleseed history?), all the while knowing that there were other lines. We were too busy weighting down our gear, due to the strong winds, getting our ‘range legs’ by meeting our fellow shooters and sorting out which target was ours on that crowded target line. This was not at easy as it sounds as the howls of wind demanded that these targets fly horizontal to the ground from time to time. We knew that this event was going to be a little challenging, but the conditions seemed to conspire to up the ante.

We had been reading Fred’s columns for years, saw the foundations of Appleseed laid out in the pages of Shot Gun News. We had been shooting those mocking 1 inch squares and AQTs, for many months, without the success that was “promised” with persistence. During the drive to the range, we discussed the fact that this level of accuracy may just be beyond our skills, half-hoping that the weather would generate an appropriate enough “excuse” for our poor performance.

The fateful day started with many, many people standing in a group, listening to Fred talk about why were there. He even went so far as to “thank” us for being there? What was this? I was there for myself, to improve my skills, why should he care if I was there or not? As he spoke, as he told me about the men that, without knowing me, picked up their muskets and defended Liberty for me. As I heard about the efforts and sacrifice that the many before me have made on the behalf of Liberty, for me, I slowly began to understand that this was more than a “personal enhancement program”, but rather something bigger than myself.

The remainder of the weekend saw many battles. Battles with the weather, near miraculously clearing and drying up during the shooting hours, but expressing its wrath during the evening hours, threatening the second day. Battles with the wind and targets, often resulting in the targets getting loose and blowing to the firing line. Battles with absorbing the skills being taught, to absorb the vast amount of information that was being passed on by the Red Hats that day. The battles that raged over 200 years ago, for my Liberty and Freedom by brothers yet met.

During the two days, there was little time for “reflection”, it was all business. There were “rumors” of over 100 shooters, maybe 150 shooters. There were new friends that discussed rifles, home, what they were learning, those they knew that were missing this event. The building of Riflemen, despite the weather, horizontal targets, spurts of rain, huge numbers of shooters, continued and succeeded. I was able to learn and persist to earn the new, but soon to be coveted Appleseed Rifleman’s Patch.

Often it is discussed that the time after the shoot, the time when newly forged bonds with fellow Patriots, is some of the most special time of an Appleseed. The line is quite, the sore muscles stiffening up, the instruction and tales of our brothers in Liberty from 230 years ago sinking in, the Spirit of men with tri-cornered hats and muskets can be felt among the discussions of today’s Americans. This time, this realization that the American Spirit links those on the Appleseed lines with those that were on the grounds of the Lexington Green, or the bridge at Concord…..That is powerful stuff.

To say we were “JAZZED” would be an understatement. It was, believe it or not, life changing. Imagine grasping for the first time the Debt you owe to the Founding Fathers, the obligation to the generations to come. Imagine understanding for the first time, that there are more options in preserving this nation than what you knew before. How about the realization that one person CAN make a difference? We immediately began to discuss how we can put our efforts toward helping this one of a kind program, how we can put our force of one, on the line with the many Americans that are dedicated to preserve our Traditions and Heritage.

Since that day in the Spring of 2006, the Appleseed Project has really taken root in this nation. Today, in the Fall of 2008, it will be fun to take stock of where the Appleseed program has gone.

The 2008 Appleseed Tour schedule reveals some interesting facts. From the 18 shoots in 2006, Appleseed has grown to over 130 Appleseed Shoots for 2008 (we are still adding new shoots for 2008, moving us close to 140!). 2009 promises to have well over 200 shoots, some suggesting that the number will be much closer to 300!

Appleseeds has now grown to 37 states, with dozens of new locations. California, who had no Appleseed Shoots until Spring of 2008, will have 14 Appleseed Shoots in 2008.

We had only 18 shoots in 2006. On April 19th, 2008, Patriots Day, Appleseed had 14 shoots nation wide. Now months that have 18 plus shoots are common place. Incidentally, we have plans for 50 Appleseed shoots on April 19th, 2009, but that is looking forward!

Earlier this year Appleseed established State Coordinators for 30 states. This means that we have folks that have stepped up in these states to advance the Appleseed Project in their states, building relationships, setting up new locations, building the Appleseed volunteer teams in their states.

Hundreds of volunteers have stepped up to move Appleseed forward, to bring Appleseed to their area, promote the program, and to work the logistics that are required to keep this all volunteer program growing. There now well over 100 Appleseed Instructors nation wide, dedicated to give their time and efforts to bring Appleseed to Americans all over these fruited plains.

Several national publications have taken notice of the Appleseed Project and have produced articles about the program. These include SWAT Magazine, Small Arms Review, Guns Magazine, Down Range TV-Radio, with a commitment from Down Range for a TV program in early 2009. Not to mention the many local papers (Evansville Courier and Press, April, 2006 starting the process), local radio and TV programs.

The number of shooters that participate has been growing along with the program, from 1000 in 2006, to 4000 in 2008! Though no shoot has crested the record set in April 2006, in Evansville, IN.

This leads us back to the scene of Ditchwater I. What is Ditchwater? Well, some mused that the large turn out on that windy Spring day, at Evansville had to be the result of something in the water, specifically that water in the ditches at the range. With many tempted to bottle that special water, to distribute around the nation, to help that sound of Freedom cover the nation. So, when the discussion of setting up a Regional, semi-national event for Appleseed, to try to best the record number set of shooters at a single event, Ditchwater II came to mine of those that were at that first event.

Ditchwater II, November 8-9, 2008, is set for Red Brush Range, in Evansville, IN. This will be a unique event for Appleseed. It will be the coming together of many old friends, many new friends, and a gathering of those that have worked hard to make Appleseed the fastest growing shooting program in America, today. Those many that have put their shoulders to the Appleseed cart, to push it through the nation, reaching and exceeding the goals set for the years after that first Appleseed year.

Many of the original players will be at this Ditchwater II, most in much different capacity than they held on that 2006 Spring day. So, more than an opportunity to be on the largest Appleseed firing line in history, Ditchwater II will also be an opportunity to meet many of the key workers for the Appleseed Project. A chance for many in the Appleseed Project, to actual meet face to face, as the program has grown so quickly, that many of us have only met via internet and phone.

This will be a grand “Homecoming” for Appleseed. Meeting old friends, new friends, setting the course for the Appleseed Project, not just for the Midwest, but for the nation. This is an opportunity to share the view of Appleseed past and to look forward to Appleseed future of growing Liberty in America.

I would like to invite all to make the trip to this event. Working to make this a very special event for the Appleseed Project. Plan on spending the weekend with good friends, sharing the Traditions and Heritage that has been handed down to us by those on that fateful day in April, that is April 1775, and April 2006.

You can gain more information for this event, here http://appleseedinfo.org/smf/index.php?topic=2121.0

So, how do you build a team?

Find some like minded people, and get yourselves shooting. Soon, you’ll be working closely together, as a team. Shooting together, teaching each other and becoming much more than the sum of the parts.

Sounds too simple, but, folks, it’s just that easy. It does take time, and persistence. Yup, you heard it here. Easy, but takes time and persistence. I know some of you are going to say “Isn’t persistence hard?” Well, not really, the only hard part is not giving up. And, persistence comes EASY, if you truly believe in what you’re doing.

I don’t need to ask you what you think about the direction the country is headed or your opinion on our choices in November. If you were happy with either, you wouldn’t be reading this.

I know, you think I’m crazy, that it just CAN’T be that easy. Well, Nickle has been there and done that already, truth be known, many times over. I’ve done it many times with the military, and I’ve even done it with Project Appleseed. The Northeast Instructor crew is a pretty tight knot bunch. Actually there are currently 3 groups of them, a Massachusetts crew, a Vermont crew and a New York crew. They interact closely with each other, overlapping as need be. The whole group can be counted on to get things done, EVERY time.

The Vermont crew started before Project Appleseed even existed as such. GMB74 and I both were regulars over at FAL Files, and with others, got a yearly get together going, with others from FAL Files, like BykerHD and a few others. Both GMB74 and I had been reading Fred’s columns over the years, and he even got a weekly program going at his local club. Over time, we added ripersnifle from AR15.com and a few others.

The Massachusetts crew started from Crak from the Northeastshooters.com forum, which I was also a member. He and I both started down the path of becoming Instructors, and for a while, were the only 2 in the Northeast area. We expanded people, picking up the Vermont crew after a couple of Appleseeds, and arranged for an Instructor Boot Camp. The VT crew went down to Massachusetts for an Appleseed on Patriot’s Day and we ended up with a couple more hooked (Dwarven1 and Martlet). Kind of odd, a bunch of Green Mountain Boys going to Massachusetts to rekindle the spirit down there, but we did exactly that. Of course, none of that would’ve happened without Crak’s persistence and Mini-Appleseed program, which is the true start down there.

The New York crew just happened over time. One man, kDan, started down the path of being an Instructor, and I have had the pleasure of working with him several times. He went from Instructor-In-Training after a Rifleman Boot Camp in Ramseur to Shoot Boss in just ONE season. As he did NY events with me, we got closer and closer. Now, we are just 2 kindred spirits in the world. We have similar beliefs, just different enough so we aren’t clones. We picked up Zercool and Northbridgewater (and his son) along the way, now NY has a completely autonomous crew, they can run their own Appleseeds without needing outside help.

See, it works. It worked for us, it can work for you. The start?

Get some fellow shooters out shooting, and shooting the AQT, to the standard. Get yourselves to the Rifleman level, and then consider becoming Instructors.

Together, you’ll be afraid to let the others down. Separately, you’ll soon retire to the couch, where it’s comfortable. Folks, you just can’t do this alone. It takes a team, and there’s no “I” in Team.

I know, it just CAN’T be THAT easy. Well, it is, and it’s fun to boot. Go figure.

Mentoring is another thing you should be doing, and may already be doing. Ever help a younger one, like a teen along in life?

If your answer is no, then shame on you, for not mentoring anybody. The young are our future, and we need to help them along. The neighbor’s kid may need help from somebody just like YOU.

If your answer is yes, then you’re already there, just expand your reach and carry on.

It doesn’t need to be a teen or anybody younger than you either.

It could be a fellow shooter that is struggling to shoot well. Maybe both of you are struggling. Believe it or not, you have the answer already to fix the last one. Get BOTH of you to an Appleseed, and soon. The only regret you’ll have is why you didn’t do it earlier.

Funny thing is, it doesn’t need to even be about shooting. Sometimes the neighbor kid just needs help finding his way in life, because he isn’t getting guidance at home. Yeah, I’ve seen that before, and done my part.

To mentor, you should be positive as much as possible, but sometimes, the one you are mentoring needs “a little motivation”. Just don’t overdo that part. Don’t turn them away from the goal. Keep it as positive as you can, but, don’t “sugar coat” it either.

Team building and mentoring, so easy anybody can do it.

The hard part is the training once you’ve built that team. And that’s just fun anyways.

Something Americans seemingly don’t do anymore - if they own a gun. (For some reason, left-wing Americans seem to have no trouble ’steppin up the plate’.)

Now, I’m sure you want to argue the issue, but before you do, I want to caution you that I will be asking you some questions, and some of them may be embarrassing…

Like, are you a member of the NRA? (If so, you’re in the top 5% of gun owners - so the odds are against you saying “Yes”.)

Like, are you doing anything else? (Saying “I voted for Obama” doesn’t count. Nor does “voting for McCain”, if you want to know the truth.)

Simple questions like, “do you know how to shoot a rifle?”

Seems every American man (and woman!) should know how to shoot one. Not simply pull the trigger - no sir, what’s that got to do with anything? - I’m talking about hitting the target - the only reason to ever pull a trigger.

And I’m not talking any super-human, Olympic target accuracy, either - 4 MOA will do fine, for the American tradition. And I’m talking rack-grade rifle - the one over the mantle will do fine - and any ammo you have on hand - nothing special needed…

OK, so do you know how to shoot a rifle?

How far off can you be effective with a rifle? (Trans: three hits on a target, one after the other, at any specified distance is what proves your ability - only one hit could be luck; two could be coincidence - but three, my friend, and I’ll begin to think there might be a touch of skill involved…)

And the “how far” needs to be measured in terms of 300 yards, 400 yards, maybe even - gasp! - 500 yards.

Now, that’s a pretty basic, and a pretty big, question to have to get by or around. But say you do - then how about what else you may be doing?

Do you watch a lot of TV? Play a lot of computer games? “Live” on the internet?

All negatives, when it comes to ‘doing something’…

So, let’s talk positives, not negatives. What are you doing, when it comes to “steppin up to the plate”? Or are you one of the “good” men, the ones who do nothing, as evil prevails?

Please say you’re not one of them - one of the ones who sits by idly while Rome burns. Even fiddles a little, maybe…

Because that’s not consistent with being an American. To stand by (more correctly, to sit on the couch) while your country goes south on you.

So it comes down, as it always must, to some pretty basic stuff: are you an American? Or are you something else? Like a human simply living within the geographic confines of a land referred to, colloquially, as “America”?

And, if the latter - do you even know it? Even recognize it?

You cannot sit by and let your country go to pot, and call yourself an American. (Or, you can, but there would be no truth to the statement.)

Tombstones are wonderful things. Opportunities to trumpet to the world, for all time, your accomplishments during life.

While you may not be thinking of it now, your tombstone may be the only written record to survive you.

What’s it gonna say?

Something stupid - trivial, maybe - and conventional? Like “here lies the beloved father of Susan and John” or some such? Something, to be honest, of no interest to anyone?

Or will it say something better, something more weighty, something like “bailed like H to keep the Titanic from sinking”?

No, that’s too enigmatic.

Something like “lived and died honoring the founders and the American Revolution, and worked to make sure the “Spirit of ‘76″ would never vanish from a great land”.

That’s better, if not perfect. And sure would stand out from all the other meaningless drivel you find chiseled on tombstones. (But not in Mass, at the time of the Revolution. There, they believed in saying what-is-what, and you find tombstones saying “Died April ye 19th, in the year of our Lord 1775, victim of bloody British butchery…”)

Tombstones. What will yours say?

Yes, it does matter.

It’s a weird program. I’ll say that right up front, and get it out of my system.

Not weird bad, of course. No sir, weird good - definitely.

A program that breaks down barriers, a program that allows people to connect on a level they’ve not been able to connect on before.

A program that allows people to meet people like they’ve never met before. Serious people, thinking people, awake people, people you don’t usually find as your next-door neighbor, your co-worker(s), even your family and relatives - much less your friends - but there they are, at Appleseed, the people you’ve been looking for all your life, sometimes without realizing it - serious, thinking, awake, solid, reliable, definitely not fair-weather friends - and if they show up none of those things, they like as not will leave at least like some of them, as the Appleseed magic starts to work…

It’s a weird program. (Did I say that already?)

A program which has adopted a George Washington quote as it’s official anthem: “We have therefore to resolve to conquer or die: Our own Country’s Honor, all call upon us for a vigorous and manly exertion, and if we now shamefully fail, we shall become infamous to the whole world. Let us therefore rely upon the goodness of the Cause, and the aid of the supreme Being, in whose hands Victory is, to animate and encourage us to great and noble Actions– The Eyes of all our Countrymen are now upon us, and we shall have their blessings, and praises, if happily we are the instruments of saving them from the Tyranny mediated against them. Let us therefore animate and encourage each other, and show the whole world, that a free man contending for Liberty on his own ground is superior to any slavish mercenary on earth.” (General Orders, 2 July 1776)

A program that believes that “to remember, is to honor” - and that Rev War vets need to be remembered - and honored. They got little enough honor, and no personal reward - in fact, lost lives, treasure and sometimes future - back then. And were paid, if at all, in worthless script. Now is a good time to bring them once again back to the forefront of the nation, and let the nation remember, and honor them.

Appleseed is a program that adopts the words of the founders to guide us in troubled times (they sure went thru some troubled times), so that history does not repeat itself. And who’s to say that “troubled times” do not lie before us?

Here’s some more words, directly from those men, straight to you, over two centuries later:

“The hour is fast approaching, on which the Honor and Success of this army, and the safety of our bleeding Country depend. Remember officers and Soldiers, that you are Freemen, fighting for the blessings of Liberty - that slavery will be your portion, and that of your posterity, if you do not acquit yourselves like men.” (General Orders, 23 August 1776)

“…acquit yourselves like men”? Is that some good advice? Is that advice you should follow when making decisions, today?

“The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether Americans are to be freemen or slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their houses and farms are to be pillaged and destroyed, and themselves consigned to a state of wretchedness from which no human efforts will deliver them. The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and conduct of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.” - Address to the Continental Army before the Battle of Long Island (27 August 1776)

“Courage”, “conduct”, “choice”, “brave resistance, or the most abject submission”, “resolve” - which of those words are not worthy of being repeated today, and worthy of being used as guidance? Of being used, by you, in everyday life?

As if that’s not enough, consider words that every American should have engraved in his heart:

“These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their county; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny like hell is not easily conquered yet we have this consolation with us, the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is dearness only that gives everything its value.” — Tom Paine

The irony of this devastating and poignant quote brimming over with truth is that Tom Paine could afford to castigate sunshine patriots and summer soldiers, when we’d give our eye teeth for more of ‘em, today. After all, summer soldiers and sunshine patriots are at least off the couch, at least, during fair weather…

“The battle, Sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, Sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable; and let it come! I repeat, Sir, let it come!” — Patrick Henry

“They tell us Sir, that we are weak — unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak, if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature has placed in our power.” — Patrick Henry

Stirring and powerful words - but are they strong enough to motivate couch-sitting Americans today? We don’t know, and we need to find out…

“We fight, not to enslave, but to set a country free, and to make room upon the earth for honest men to live in. In such as cause we are sure we are right…” — Thomas Paine, The American Crisis, Number IV, Sep. 12, 1777

When was the last time you were part of a cause where you are “sure you are right”? Can Appleseed be that cause? It can, but it requires one simple, yet monumental preliminary task: You have to get off the couch, first…

“It is a common observation here that our cause is the cause of all mankind, and that we are fighting for their liberty in defending our own.” - Benjamin Franklin, letter to Samuel Cooper, May 1, 1777

You gotta love BF, and want to know more about the man, and his life. Feel free to go to your local library, and check out a book on him.

“…we will not tamely submit — appealing to Heaven for the justice of our cause, we determine to die or be free ….” - Joseph Warren, American account of the Battle of Lexington, 1775

Upon learning of the death of young Dr. Warren at Bunker Hill, the new nation went into mourning for the loss of a great leader. Like Isaac Davis, he was cut down before he could really make his mark. Do you feel just a slight obligation to repay just a penny or two of the debt you owe these men, who paid with their lives for your freedom?

“Our country is in danger, but not to be despaired of. Our enemies are numerous and powerful; but we have many friends, determining to be free, and heaven and earth will aid the resolution. On you depend the fortunes of America. You are to decide the important question, on which rest the happiness and liberty of millions yet unborn. Act worthy of yourselves.” - Joseph Warren, Boston Massacre Oration, 1775

“…enemies are numerous and powerful”? How is our nation different now from back then? Do we have numerous and powerful enemies, able to cross our borders and bring skyscrapers to the ground?

Do we have American citizens, willing and anxious to bring our great country down, to surrender sovereignty to some “world community”?

Can you come up with a simple program that teaches marksmanship and heritage, without gun owners - gun owners, mind you - coming out of the woodwork to pan the program, to gladly (sometimes, gleefully) tell you why it won’t work - all the while as they sit on the couch, figuratively fiddling while Rome burns?

All you have to do is try to do something, only to face what seem to be hordes of people who’ll say anything to stop you. But this is no different from the societal facts of the Rev War, even if it’s another “forgotten lesson of history” that needs to be relearned.

“I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast; for I intend to go in harm’s way.” - John Paul Jones, letter to M. Le Ray de Chaumont, November 16, 1778

I’m willing to be that when it came time to vocalizing those sentiments, John Paul simply said “Give me a fast ship, for I intend to go in harm’s way.” Simple language often triumphs flowery language.

“…Let us die here rather than retreat.” - Alexander Hamilton at the Battle of Monmouth.

Here’s some simple language from a man with a cold rationalist outlook on life who let his devotion to the Revolution slip out a bit with that comment. An artillery captain who did not hesitate to bring his cannon up to a building full of Redcoats, and start to take it apart with point-blank fire. Name another politician who’s done that, lately.

“We fight, get beat, rise, and fight again.” - Nathaniel Greene, commenting on the war in the South.

Again, simple words - from the man arguably second only to Washington in his value to winning the Rev War (there’s a lesson there, for Benedict Arnolds who put ego before mission, as Benedict could have earned that wonderful accolade for himself…) - and, in their simplicity, expressive of a calm determination that underlies a man committed, absolutely, to the notion of “Liberty or Death!”

“I have not yet begun to fight!” — Captain John Paul Jones, response to a demand to surrender, September 23, 1779

Showing J P Jones could verbalize in direct, simple fashion, with great effect and impact, when needed. His ship was sinking at the time.

“I regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” — Nathan Hale, before being hanged by the British, September 22, 1776

Grit, and iron determination, in those words. When was the last time you saw such in anyone you know? There are many in Appleseed with that same grit and determination about saving their country.

“Posterity, you will never know how much it cost the present generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in heaven that ever I took half the pains to preserve it.” - John Adams

Is it really possible that John Adams could be leaning over Heaven’s balcony, looking down on the country that has, in his opinion, gone to H - but looking closer, seeing Appleseeds across the land - and a little smile flickers across his face, and he starts calling, “Sam [Adams], Tom [Jefferson], Patrick [Henry], John [Hancock] - come see what’s happening! You won’t believe this!” And word quickly spreads…

“As to the history of the revolution, my ideas may be peculiar, perhaps singular. What do we mean by the Revolution? The war? That was no part of the revolution; it was only an effect and consequence of it. The revolution was in the minds of the people, and this was effected from 1760 - 1775, in the course of fifteen years, before a drop of blood was shed at Lexington.” - John Adams, Letter to Thomas Jefferson (1815-08-24), The Works of John Adams

A view of the Revolution you never heard about in school…

“What do we mean by the American Revolution? Do we mean the American war? The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people; a change in their religious sentiments, of their duties and obligations… This radical change in the principles, opinions, sentiments, and affections of the people was the real American Revolution.” - John Adams, Letter to H. Niles (1818-02-13)

“Minds and hearts”? Do you think the American Revolution still, to this day, lives on in the hearts and minds of its people? Do you think we are a better country for having forgotten the past?

“We are in the very midst of a revolution the most complete, unexpected and remarkable of any in the history of nations.” - John Adams, letter to William Cushing, June 9, 1776

And the surprising thing about it is, if you continue reading the founders, the strong emphasis they put on an awake, educated American public as ensuring the continuance of Liberty

With guidance like that, how can Appleseed go wrong? Is it possible that Appleseed is, after all, about awakening the American public and educating them on the value of their heritage - and the need to protect it for future generations?

There are those of us in the program who are continually surprised that an outfit of amateur American volunteers can become as professional as we have, and grown as fast as we have.

Try and organize something today that involves Americans working as a team, and I can about guarantee you that your initial feeling will be that “Chinese fire drill” needs to be changed to “American fire drill”.

But Americans are the “can do” people - at least, they were once. And they can be, again.

Appleseed is proving that.

Here’s some more examples of Appleseed magic:

The Operation Iraqi Freedom vet who came up to me at the end of the big Appleseed in April 2006 in Evansville, IN and said, “Fred, I just want you to know that I got back from Iraq several months ago; and ever since I’ve been back, there’s been some distance, some barrier, between myself and my Jr High daughter which I’ve not been able to bridge. Today, as we spent the day working out sight adjustment problems and focusing on the steps to firing a shot, the barrier disappeared. We are talking, freely, again! Thank you, and thank Appleseed.”

A more recent one: “My 15 year old daughter fired at the New York AS [Appleseed] and as soon as she got home, opened up every thing she could find on 19 April and the Declaration of Independence. Until that moment it was just a class in school. She has her eyes open now.”

We have teenagers who are on the track to becoming instructors. Think that’s reversing the flow, having young teenagers teaching 50 and 60 year old guys how to shoot? Of course, those old guys have grandkids back home that they can teach what they just learned from those teenagers, so the flow is reversed back to normal - thank heaven!

Yet, on April 19th, 1775, the youngest American to die was 13 years old. If you’re old enough to die for freedom, should you not be old enough to teach it?

In Grant’s Pass, OR, an instructor’s 11-yr-old son, who knew his stuff, was put to individually working with two sisters, one 5 and one 7 - and I watched him work with them all day, with them seriously absorbing what he was telling them. It would warm your heart, to have seen ‘em…

And no recitation of Appleseed miracles would be complete without the story of “the reluctant lady’ whose husband attended an AS in CA, was bitten by the AS bug, went home to WI, persuaded his reluctant wife to go to an Illinois AS (showing the nationwide reach of this program). She, not looking forward to laying in the dirt and sun, dealing with sweat, bugs, and other discomfort, made him promise they’d be home Sunday for the birthday parties of their daughter and son-in-law. At Saturday’s end, driving back up to WI, and talking about the day, there was a silence. Then she said, “Do you think we can cancel the birthday parties, and come back to AS tomorrow?”

Since then, she (and her husband) have been active in getting Appleseeds going in WI and Minnesota, and she recently traveled with her husband to Tennessee to teach an Appleseed there. Is there something special about a program that can appeal to - and motivate - women, as well as men?

And last, but certainly not least, the Appleseeder now serving in Iraq, who sent a message back, via his parents: “Tell Fred, it works!”

This past Wednesday September 17th was another anniversary of the adoption of the U.S. Constitution. I had the distinct privilege of being invited to Vincennes University Jasper Campus and participate in a debate of allowing licensed conceal carry on Indiana colleges and universities.

My opponent was a city police officer. I chose to go last. He did a nice presentation on explaining the oppositions stand against campus carry.

I then had my turn. The lecture hall held 90 seats. I think we had about 75 to 80 students and teachers. The audience was a mix of people who had never heard our viewpoint straightforward, others who agreed totally and those who were die hard against us, mostly the teachers and professors.

I cannot emphasize enough how gratifying it is to stand before an audience that contains our opponents and giving a 45 minute presentation of the importance of being able to defend yourself and doing it without tip toeing around about it.

If that’s not satisfying enough then you get 45 more minutes of questions. Some of those questions were information seeking and others were land mines hoping to trip me up. Taking those loaded or irrationally questions and firing back with an answer that sinks their ship is like being the lead car in a race and getting all the clean air.

This is our goal; this is where we may win a convert. It’s nice to be in our comfort zone and surrounded by our friends who are always in agreement with us. But, if we’re to win the battle to preserve liberty, we’ve got to plant our feet square in front of those marching our way.

You don’t need a catalog of statistics or glamorous charts to drive your message home. Shoot from the hip. Present it point blank. When logic meets emotion in these kinks of engagements we should never lose the debate. NEVER! We will not lose these debates.

The session lasted much longer than expected. The first speaker talked about 25 minutes and took about 10 to 15 questions. There were less than 20 in attendance.

When it was my turn the doors opened and the room filled up to near capacity. I don’t know what that was all about, but I was pleasantly surprised. This event was open to the public as well.

I will stress once more how vital it is for all of us to take advantage of every opportunity to get into our opposition’s camp and drill our logical and factual ideologies square in their soil.

You don’t need to be a Harvard graduate to do it either. If you truly believe in what you know is right, then stand on your own two feet, hold your head high and look ‘em straight in the eyes and state your case. Be polite, but firm.

Indiana James

This came from the forum, from fepowered, one of our Instructors in the making.

It’s SO GOOD, I figured it beared posting here. So, I’ll post it for him. Just remember, these are his words, not mine, and words worth reading and heeding.

And, I’ll answer his question, in my case. YES, there’s enough evidence to convict Nickle of being a Rifleman. Enough to convict me of being a Patriot, as well. If the King’s troops had caught me in 1775, they would have hung me on the spot. I put action to my words, as does the author of this.

DO YOU?

—————————————————————————————-

If you were arrested today, set in front of a jury of your peers and facing charges of being a Rifleman, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

First you have to ask yourself “What is a Rifleman?”

On the Appleseed front page, it states this:
In short, a rifleman is an armed American, trained in the tradition of American Liberty. It’s a man who has learned to shoot a rifle accurately — accurate enough to score “expert” on the Army Qualification Course. Until you can do that, you’re considered a “Cook,” unprepared and unqualified to carry a rifle on the firing line of freedom. But after attending an Appleseed AQT shoot, you’ll have the credentials necessary to be a true rifleman, and will understand the critical need for defending freedom in this country.

Here are a few of my thoughts on the subject together with what I agree with that others have already said…

The reality is that scoring a 210 is merely a first step in the initiation process of becoming a true Rifleman. Becoming a Rifleman is a lifestyle and a journey. It is not something you attain, get a shiny trophy for and then sit back to admire past accomplishments. The Appleseed instructors do a fine job of conveying the message of the need for defending freedom, but it takes the mindset of a true Rifleman to act on this message.
To begin to understand the mindset necessary to be a Rifleman you should ask yourself “What am I doing today or am I not doing today that I may have to apologize to my children for in a few years time?” We need to put this in the context of our freedom and liberty.

The things which I feel would cause the greatest inexcusable shame are those things which we failed to do. Riflemen are true Patriots, not Patriots in the popular sense of running around waving the American flag with your head in the sand and going along with whatever your government says or does as long as you are having your sense of entitlement stroked by giving you whatever handout you are looking for this week. This is the mantra of a loyalist. It was Loyalists who were sympathetic to our British oppressors around the time of our fight for independence from them.
Riflemen vigorously support their country and are prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors. This vigorous support includes voting and spreading the message of liberty to other US citizens and to those politicians who need to hear it. Apathy around election time is inexcusable. Allowing a minority of citizens to vote and decide the future of our nation is a gateway to oppression.
True Riflemen need to stand ready to do the same things today that our forefathers did in 1775 and the years following. Fight for our freedoms and unite to keep and safeguard them. Riflemen are independent thinkers who are united in cooperation for a common cause. During the years when the great document we now know as the US Constitution was being discussed and drafted, there was great debate and disagreement. The tension grew to the level of a fist fight over how we should govern our great nation. This showed how passionate they were about their own and future liberties and we now reap the rewards from this grand effort.

Due to the message I have received at the Appleseeds I have attended, I believe these to be some of the measures of a Rifleman.

1. Be able to consistently score a 210 or greater on the AQT.
2. Pass on the skill of shooting at the Rifleman level to others and educate them on the history of the Rifleman which became very exciting on April 19th 1775.
3. Ignite the spirit of the Rifleman in others by speaking and writing the message of freedom and liberty.
4. Become involved in local and national politics and elections (especially voting and encouraging others to do the same) so that OUR government is acting in our best interests and not allowed to waste our country’s great resources and infringe on our Liberties while giving a minority a false sense of comfort and security.

Because there will always be those who threaten our liberties and our freedom, the journey of a Rifleman is a lifetime experience.

I ask again….. If you were charged with being a Rifleman, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

Many years ago I was a Scout for a Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol, ABN Ranger Unit, stationed in Texas. We were not the standard “Kick in the door” Rangers as our mission was an LRRP one with our area of operation, in the event of war, running from about ten miles to one thousand miles behind the forward line of battle, with intelligence gathering as its focus. We were an attachment of an MI Brigade. My buddies there were a great group of guys and I learned a lot about gathering intelligence and its application to the battlefield.

We would regularly train in the National Forests of Texas and in the forests of many other states, as well as on military reservations in many states. On one of these training missions, we were practicing inserting our teams with rubber boats into water from helicopters. We would be inserted (jump out the back holding to the sides of a boat) into the large lake by CH 47, then a waterborne movement to a bridge where we would gather intelligence about the bridge, traffic on the bridge and water and any other intelligence pertinent to the mission and then a waterborne movement to land where we would then travel overland to an extraction point and be extracted by helicopter. A typical LRRP mission.

This mission went just as smooth as it could. We didn’t make a ripple in the lake or any of the goings on there. We gathered our intel and made our way to shore around 0300 hours, where we deflated the boat and hid it in the brush under some dirt, limbs and some trash we picked up at the shoreline. Being the Senior Scout, I was in charge of finding our routes of travel and then scouting the way ahead on our missions. Locating danger areas and then relaying this information to the team leader for decisions on how to proceed.

After removing all traces of our landing, I began a recon of the trails leading away from the shore, and immediately heard voices in the woods, maybe thirty yards or so ahead. LRRP SOP requires that we never be seen or heard. Never do anything which might lead the enemy to know, or even think, that a LRRP team has been in the area gathering intel. Infractions of this rule are forbidden. Once the opposing force is made aware that you have been there, the probability they will change things and or make additional preparations which will compromise most of the data you took such great pains to acquire, is quite likely.

I began working my way towards the voices and as I got closer, I could make out that the the voices sounded strange. Obviously being in Texas, I expected them to be in english, or perhaps, spanish. And while the general sound of the voices were in english, they had a strange quality to them and some words indeed sounded unintelligible or foreign. I made my way to within ten or fifteen feet of a small group of men talking and stopped to listen and watch them. I could only make out vague shapes in the dark. But I could tell that they were in some kind of uniform and were armed, and for some reason, were speaking in bad German accents.

I was just about to break every rule in the LRRP handbook and walk over and find out who they were and what they were doing there, when one of the guys said he had to relieve himself. He walked toward me and stopped right beside me and made ready to begin his project. I took this opportunity to quietly slide in behind him and take him with my Ka-bar. (I used the blunt side) And quietly told him to keep walking. Once far enough away I turned him around and to my astonishment, could see he was wearing a complete German SS Infantryman’s uniform.

I was stunned. We were on a fake mission to gather intel on a bridge in Texas. Had made our way to land and found it occupied by Nazis in SS uniforms. I had one of those weird moments where you question what you are seeing and then your mind races to find a solution to what your eyes are telling you. Dozens of explanations are simultaneously viewed as possibilities, including a momentary,(.0001 seconds), thought that some how, some way, I had crossed through a fold in time and space, and I was actually in Nazi Germany from 40 years ago.

I took a moment, and rejecting most of the theories my brain was presenting, asked him what exactly was going on. It turns out they were members of a WWII Reenactors Group, having a WWII exercise, portraying German units engaged in the Battle of the Bulge, in Belgium, at exactly the same time that we were using the area for gathering intel in the Republic of Georgia, Soviet Union. It is a small world, especially when you lay Western Europe and Russia on top of Texas.

I talked with him a while asking him about his group and its activities, then unceremoniously released him and continued on with my mission. It was my first contact with a Reenactor, or even the idea of reenacting. And I had not thought to ask him a pressing question I have had about the encounter until this day. Why? Not why be a reenactor, that is neither here nor there. People have all types of desires and hobbies and I find this one actually, to be intriguing. But why, I meant to ask him, a Nazi?

There are reenactor groups all over the country, all over the world. Reenacting wars and battles that have occurred since the beginning of time. I imagine the current fascination with cavemen, in insurance commercials and television sitcoms, will spawn a group with the agenda of reenacting early battles between Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens, if they are in fact, not already being fought as we speak.

We count among the members of the Revolutionary War Veterans Association several members I know of who belong to reenactor groups. They take their groups to schools and universities around the states they reside in to teach about the American Revolutionary War and how American Colonials dressed and ate and lived in that time period. I think this is a wonderful and needed function of these groups. But even if all they wanted to do was stage reenactments of Revolutionary War battles, that would be great too. I have no qualms with this and find it very appealing. I have not donned a Revolutionary War costume yet, though I might well do so some day soon and take the program to schools in my area and teach them about our forefathers and their ways and ideas.

However, the fact remains that to stage a battle between two opposing forces from an historical event, you will need troops from both sides. In this case American and British forces. Finding the men to portray American Forces seems rather simple. It would seem that people would be very interested in putting on the costume of one of our American heros. Perhaps a General Washington, a Colonel Barrett, or a Captain Issac Davis. These men were heroes worthy of emulation. But where will you get the British forces? The General Gages, the Colonel Smiths, the Major Pitcairns and the Jesse Adairs? Or, the Banastre Tareltons?

Is there a large population of British exiles in America to draw from? Are these men who represent the British all actually British citizens? And if not, what makes a man decide to become a reenactor on the wrong side of the war? And don’t misunderstand me, I have a great deal of respect for the soldiers of other nations whom we have engaged in battle. The men who fought honorably for their nations deserve the respect of their nations and of ours for their courage and sacrifices in representing their countries honorably on fields of battle. The men who fought dishonorably, on any side, wrapping themselves in their countries flags in order to commit atrocities and crimes against people and property, deserve no respect. And their judgment will come.

And so, there are people who will dress up as Adolph Hitler, tiny little mustache and all, and prance around in Nazi uniforms. People who want to dress as Imperial Storm Troopers and track down Luke Skywalker and drag him back to Darth Vader (who someone else is playing) . People who will want to be German soldiers in reenactment wars, or dress in British uniforms and shoot Colonials in Revolutionary War battles. People who they admire and want to emulate. Fine, no problem.

I am sure you could find people to take any side in any battle that has ever been fought. But, my question remains, how do they decide the role they will play, and why

As a child I remember playing the part of Audy Murphy in the westerns and in his WWII movies. I was always the “Good Guy” sheriff, tracking down desperadoes and outlaws. I was always the American platoon Sargent in the WWII and WWI wars we acted out in backyards across the neighborhoods and schoolyards. Back then it was hard to get anyone to play the bad guys. Usually it turned out to be the smaller kids and kid brothers who wanted to play, but were only allowed to play if they would accept the role of the evil German soldiers or the bad outlaws. They didn’t want to, but they had no choice. Take the assigned part of bad guy, and get bruised and pummeled by the rest of us, or don’t accept it, and get bruised and pummeled by the rest of us.

These days, it seems harder and harder to find children who will stand in the ranks with the Dough Boys and Yanks, than it is to find kids willing to be the “Super Bad Nazi Dudes”, or the “Gangstas”. Of course to kids nowadays, the word Nazi has little meaning and is usually reserved for, or thought to represent, Conservatives/Republicans.

What has happened in America? When I was looking at reenactment groups recently in order to ask some of them to come to Appleseeds and give the attendees some idea of what early American Soldiers Looked like, what they wore and how they acted in ranks, I found dozens of sites that were dedicated to the British born, Banastre Tarleton. A Colonel in the British army who followed a “total war” ideology. Any and all enemies of the British were to be dispatched by any means necessary, including any civilians who gave aid and comfort the the enemy.

Colonel William Tavington, the sinister cavalry officer in the movie, “The Patriot” is based on Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton and his exploits in America during the Revolutionary War. He was the one who herded the civilian population of the town into the church, chained the doors and fired the church. Not a nice man, and yet there are literally hundreds of Americans emulating and praising this British Officer. If they were British citizens I could better understand it, maybe, but I wrote to several of them asking if they were English, and they were not, they were Americans. Or, without trying to qualify what it takes to make an individual an American, their response to my inquiry informed me that they had been been born here to American parents.

But they have chosen to play the role of Banastre Tarleton in their fantasy lives. Every single day, people all over the world play out the roles they have been cast in, or selected. Some roles are better than others. Sometimes we pick our roles and sometimes they are picked for us. But we can always change the roles we play in our lives, we can trade them in for new roles. We can become the heroes we have always dreamed of, we can alter and adapt the roles we play, in real life in a meaningful way, and not just in fantasy.

At Appleseed we have simplified the roles we have selected for Americans, by dividing them into just two categories. We use a “USS America” analogy. We use this analogy quite often in our discussions, and we are casting people for roles in this analogous story every day. The scene we are casting for in our story, shows passengers on an antiquated, but beautiful cruise liner. After a collision with an iceberg, it appears the ship is sinking. Water is rising fast and the decks on this multiple deck ship are rapidly passing under the water one by one.

There is a crowd gathered on the uppermost deck, and they are split into two groups. The first group( the largest of the two by far) has people who are crying and moaning. Some who are ignoring the event altogether and acting as if it were not actually happening and that they were in the midst of a gay evening on the ship, chatting and giggling among themselves. Some are just sitting there glassy eyed and muttering to themselves over and over, “How did this happen? Oh Why!, oh why, and What, oh what, will we ever do?.” But not doing anything, just repeating their mantra over and over again as if it were some catechism that will save them merely by its inane repetition.

The second group is quickly forming work brigades to handle the evacuation of water by bailing it into buckets and then moving the buckets from the ships interiors to the railing where it can be poured over the side and then sending the buckets back for more. Still others are attempting to ascertain the location and extent of damages occurred by the collision. Then gathering supplies in order to make repairs. Still others are seeking medical aid for anyone injured in the collision, in the bailing effort, or by the stampede of the ships crew to get to the life rafts and desert the ship. Some are searching for, finding and preparing food and water for the people who are bailing to eat and drink.

In this scenario, before the volunteers for the “Bucket Brigade” were allowed to volunteer, they had been asked, “Do you believe we can win this battle with the rising water?, and, even if you do not, will you continue to bail even as the water reaches your neck, your chin, your nose?”. If they answered yes they were allowed the honor of volunteering to help. The consensus was that no one would be a whiner or a doubter and no one would be allowed to stand in the hallway or port side doors, bemoaning their fate, and idling away their time while others bailed in their stead.

The second group have committed themselves to a course of action, in order to save themselves and their ship.The first group have committed themselves to a course of action which compells them to do everything and anything but help themselves. The first groups course also requires them to criticize and rebuke the players in the second group for having a love of their ship, and a common cause which unites them, rather than seeking the satisfaction of their own personal “needs” and “feelings” first, which would require them to remain idle until someone satisfied those needs.

As I mentioned earlier, no roles are permanent. A role in the first group where you laugh and idle away your time, listen to the band play on as the ship, which is carrying your wife and children aboard as passengers, slips beneath the waves, plunging to a watery grave thousands of feet below the surface, may be exchanged for a role in the second group, with ease.

Ships may be later constructed which can be christened with the same name, but they will never be the same ship. You may survive the event and some day marry again, perhaps have children again, but they will not replace the wife and children you lost.

At the same time men and women from the second group, the bailing party, may indeed become tired and weary. They may become disenchanted with the constant bailing they are doing which to them, seems to be doing no more than just allowing the ship to sink at a slower rate, rather than any actual gains being made in the saving of the ship.

Because of the few hands doing the job of many, they feel worn and abused and become disheartened and decide that perhaps it is just as well if the ship sinks. Or they may feel some real or perceived slight has impugned their honor,or injured their feelings, and leave in a huff. Vowing to laugh as the ship sinks, even to drill holes in the hull to help scuttle it. Perhaps even puncture the buckets their former mates are using to bail with, vowing that it is better the whole ship go down than their own personal dignity be wounded by a word here or there asking them to hasten the bailing, lest the ship sink beneath their feet. Oh!, how can all the trouble and misery be worth it? And they eventually leave for the first group.

The people we look for at Appleseed, are the people from the “Bucket Brigade” group, who have left their egos at the door when they received a mission of such dire importance, people who will continue to bail even as their heads slip beneath the water. The kind of men George Washington was speaking of when he wrote to congress about the type of soldiers he needed, “The type of men who wil make a brave defense when success is very doubtful and falling into the enemy’s hands is very probable”. And we are finding them every day. Real Americans who are willing to exchange the role they were playing, for one America needs them to play now.

And have no doubts, everyone in America is playing a role in this scenario today. Every single person. Have you thought about which role you are playing? The decision about which group you will belong to is a personal one. No one can make it for you. It is a decision that clarifies your character, illuminates it, and makes it visible to all.

Forget “Who Killed JFK?”

Forget “Is Obama Really a Muslim, and a Citizen of Indonesia?”

Heck, forget “Area 51″, altho it may have some play in what is revealed below.

Forget it all, cause Fred, the guy who first blew the lid on the “.223 M14″, the “.30-06 M14″, the “special double-barrel M14″, and the “Long-barreled M14″ can now bring you another tale you won’t find in those secret government files - the ones that “don’t exist…”

Our tale starts, surprisingly enough, in Kentucky, in 1969, probably at Ft Campbell, when strange events took place that have never satisfactorily been explained - or revealed to the public.

M14 rifles were found to have a virus. Not just any virus, but a virus that was so devastating that the government had to secretly develop a vaccine, to prevent its reoccurance.

No, you haven’t heard this. Just one more example of how Uncle Sam, sometimes, can really keep the lid on things, to keep panic from breaking out.

Now of course you know, by now, that Fred is about truth, and never a claim he’ll make that’s not backed up by physical or other evidence.

Here’s what Uncle Sam doesn’t want you to know: In 1970 a select group of M14 rifles were given a “live virus” vaccine - and so tagged, to identify them. We don’t know what the virus was, what it was named, what the symptoms were (or are). But we do know the rifles were treated and marked, each with an aluminum tag saying:

1970
KENTUCKY
LIVE
VIRUS
18054

Lest you doubt the truth, I have the tag before me as I write this. It appears to be in the shape (silhouette) of a cowbell - roughly rectangular, with rounded corners, wider at the top than at the bottom. Of course, it’s a flat aluminum shape. The significance of the number at the bottom is unknown. The design of the tags and the clip holding each to the rear swivel of the rifle suggest it was the Veterinary Corps which “handled” the problem. Possibly the virus was a mutation from animals, and the concern was to stop it before it mutated again and struck, not M14 rifles, but military personnel.

At any rate, the rifles were ultimately transferred (under proper sanitation and sterilization procedures, no doubt) to Anniston, AL for demilling and scrapping. The stocks were salvaged, and wound up in Fred’s warehouse.

Just one little flaw in that elaborate process: the little silver-colored aluminum tags were inadvertently left on that rear swivel. Such a little thing, so easy to overlook. And enough to blow the lid off a hitherto unknown biologic threat, right here on American soil.

A threat, an “incident”, which has been successfully suppressed for nearly 40 years - until Fred, fearless as usual, now exposes it to the internet.

What other secrets lie hidden in that massive collection of M14 stocks in Fred’s warehouse? What shockers are yet to turn up? What “tomorrow’s headlines” still lie waiting to see the light of day?

Stay tuned on this blog, for you’ll read it here, before you read it on Drudge Report…

Written in anticipation of April 1, 2009

You have to start a new nationwide program to discover the level of doubt, suspicion, and - let’s face it! - paranoia in this country.

Take Appleseed, for example.

We’ve been dissed as ineffective at teaching marksmanship (need I add - by people who have not come to an Appleseed? )

We’ve been told we’re about “making money” by people who’ve never seen our “books” (- and it matters not anyway, as being a 501(c)3, any money we “make” goes right back into promoting the organization and its goals - so it’s good if we do make some money).

We’ve been held up as some secret militia-training program, even tho our program is apolitical, and even tho we teach no military tactics at all (why should we? - they are not part of marksmanship training). But none of that matters to paranoids, who make up exciting stuff that they can then believe in.

We’ve - surprise! - been called a “cult”, even tho we have none of the attributes of a cult (again, the charge is leveled - like all the others - by people who have not sampled the product - nor are likely to).

All this stuff is simply a product of human nature combined with the internet, where anyone with an opinion can see it in “print”.

However, I can confirm now, officially, maybe even to the cheers and jeers of the paranoids, that Appleseed is NOT about what most people would think it is about.

It is not about marksmanship.

In a way, it’s not even about the history, tho most instructors (including Fred) will usually claim the real heart of Appleseed is the heritage of April 19th, 1775.

Appleseed is about something far more important.

Appleseed is about saving a country.

There, the secret is out. And I hope it spreads (the secret) from sea to shining sea.

Saving the country means you reach as many people as possible with the Appleseed message. (If you don’t know what that message is, it is simply that the USS America is sinking, and no real American will continue sitting in a deck chair while it sinks underneath him.)

Therefore, Appleseed is not about marksmanship, except insofar as it sucks people into the heritage and tradition of the rifleman.

Even some Appleseeders don’t understand that statement. They want more marksmanship, more skill development, more practice at 600, 700, 1000 yards. We could do that, as a program - but it would not further the goals of the program, so we don’t. Because we are narrowly focused on numbers, on a series of yearly goals, each of which is designed to further our plan for saving this country - and sidetracks, however tempting, are still sidetracks.

Sometimes it’s an uphill battle to convince Appleseeders that becoming a Rifleman, being able to shoot 4 MOA out to 500 yards, is enough. That once you attain that skill level, your goals shift to teaching them to others, so that our yearly goals are met. A Tradition is passed on. And a country saved.

I tell people at an Appleseed: “If you like Appleseed, you are welcome to come back. But two Appleseeds as a student is the limit. Appleseed is not about being a vehicle for fun and entertainment. Once you’ve been to two, when you show up at the third Appleseed, we expect you to get out of the deck chair and help bail the boat out - by becoming an instructor.”

Strange to say, becoming an instructor is a tougher row to hoe than becoming a Rifleman (a lot of Appleseeders struggling hard to become Riflemen will gasp at that comment).

But it’s true.

You can become an NRA-certified rifle marksmanship instructor is about a day and a half. You do not need to be able to shoot a rifle yourself to do it - at least, not to any set accuracy standard.

But to become an RWVA-certified marksmanship instructor, you first have to know how to shoot a rifle, to the standard of the Rifleman (4 MOA sounds easy when you sitting in the easy chair; get outta that chair, and out on the firing line, and you’ll find out differently) - figure, for most people, two Appleseeds, and hours of dry-fire at home, and practice on their home range, before they make the grade.

Then, if they want to become an instructor, comes the weekend Instructor Boot Camp - 30 hours of learning how to run a safe range, and how to teach marksmanship.

But even then, you’re not done. Upon graduation, you are given, not a Red Instructor Hat, but an Orange IIT (Instructor-In-Training) Hat.

Over the next four Appleseeds, each a weekend long, usually 12-hour days, you’ll be gradually introduced to calling and clearing the line, teaching the fundamentals of marksmanship, telling The Story (of April 19th, 1775) and, finally, doing it all by yourself, under the aegis of a senior instructor.

Man, that’s a lot of work! But if you want to be the world’s finest marksmanship instructor, you can expect it to be not easy, right? You can expect it to require dedication, and commitment at a level unknown to most 21st-century Americans.

But, again unlike NRA-certification (where, in Fred’s limited experience, most prob never actually teach marksmanship), you are immediately sent out to battle on the Appleseed Trail, where in coming months you’ll be training hundreds of Americans in their tradition and heritage.

You’ll be so busy, you may not have time to shoot much, yourself.

But ask any RWVA instructor. They’ll tell you - instructing is more fun than shooting!

Yep, believe it or not.

Has to do with that deeply-satisfying feeling that you are bailing a ship that has to be bailed.

That you’ve finally gotten off the couch, and instead of useless complaining, doing something about it. And it feels go-o-od…

So, you come to an Appleseed, maybe, thinking you’ll be hounded by “barking instructors” (as one Appleseeder recently put it). You’ll find (maybe to your surprise) people there who are genuinely glad you’ve come. Not only that, but respect you, because they know what it takes to get off the couch, and they welcome each new couch-sitting-habit-buster who can do it - actually get off the couch and show up. You’ll find your fellow Appleseeders instant friends, because you’re all there for the same reasons, and you soon understand that you’re all brothers under the skin.

You look up to those instructors with respect. After all, they’re donating their weekends to teach YOU to shoot, and each of them, being a Rifleman, has shown he can master the rifle - the old ‘been there, done that’ seasoned veteran.

Then you find out YOU can become an instructor - in fact, are encouraged by these guys to become an instructor. And you’re not even sure yet you can make Rifleman. But they are sure you can.

It rests in the back of your mind, as you struggle with that bucking bronco that some unknowing souls call “a rifle”.

And who knows, it may ‘take’. You may wind up, in a few months, a seasoned, grizzled RWVA instructor, feeling that deep soul-satisfying feeling of doing the work of the Founders, of working to save the ship they built, so long ago.

And then, you too may agree: Appleseed is not what you think…