Author: Braxton Taylor
I spent thirty years in uniform, much of it in the Pacific, and served as commodore of Destroyer Squadron 15 while embarked on the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan from 2017 to 2019. Buzz Donnelly, who was Reagan’s commanding officer at the time, was a peer, a friend, and an exceptional naval officer.But Buzz’s Trump-approved, Senate-confirmed promotion to vice admiral and command of the Navy’s Seventh Fleet was just rescinded, reportedly because Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth decided that “hosting drag shows” while in command of Reagan during the first Trump administration wasn’t compatible with whatever “warrior ethos” is now required to…
Christensen Arms has recently relaunched its Modern Precision Pistol, a bolt-action, large-format, centerfire pistol that uses an aluminum FS1913A folding stabilizing brace from SB Tactical. The name Modern Precision Pistol is a riff off of Christensen Arms’ Modern Precision Rifle, and this new gun endeavors to keep the same level of accuracy and precision potential as the larger firearm, with a more compact form factor optimized for portability and size. The Modern Precision Pistol is chambered for either the .308 Win. or 6.5 Creedmoor rifle cartridges. These bolt-action pistols include a target-profile 12.5-inch barrel made from 416R stainless steel wrapped…
Phillip Waldron, currently serving as command master chief of the Coast Guard’s Personnel Service Center, has been named the 15th master chief petty officer of the Coast Guard.Waldron, a native of Plant City, Florida, joined the Coast Guard in 1999, enlisting after high school to serve as a machinery technician. He rose through the ranks as an engineering petty officer aboard several cutters, including the inland buoy tender Buckthorn and the patrol boats Wrangell and Adak in Bahrain.While serving in the Middle East, he qualified as a boarding officer and engaged in 40 high-risk boardings — operations that later earned…
For the first time since taking office in January, President Trump has reportedly authorized unspecified U.S. weapons transfers to Ukraine under the Presidential Drawdown Authority, which takes from U.S. stockpiles, Reuters reported Thursday. The possible arms transfer is expected to total around $300 million. Trump also told NBC he will deliver a “major statement” regarding Russia on Monday, the same day his Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, is expected to begin a weeklong visit to the country, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty reports. About those U.S. weapons, Trump told NBC in a phone interview Thursday, “The weapons that are going out are…
Imagine being attacked unexpectedly, right now, out of nowhere. The sudden realization of imminent harm is shocking. Confusion and fear confound our effective response. Unless we’re well-trained and experienced in responding to violence, we will likely react instinctively when psychologically, emotionally and physically overwhelmed. Instinct alone is not a recipe for success. Instinctively, we tend to pull away when grabbed and push back if pushed. We retreat in the same direction as the attacker’s charge. We struggle to stay on our feet even when being overrun. We may begin to draw our handguns well after our attacker begins drawing. These…
The State Department notified employees Thursday evening that widespread layoffs would be taking place “soon,” formally moving to execute plans previously held up by court order. The cuts are part of a reorganization that Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced to eliminate or consolidate hundreds of offices, Deputy Secretary for Management Michael Rigas said in an email to staff, which will include a “targeted reduction in domestic workforce.” “Soon, the Department will be communicating to individuals affected by the reduction in force,” Rigas said. “First and foremost, we want to thank them for their dedication and service to the United States.”Rigas…
Deep within Nepal, nestled against the Tibetan border, five Nepali men stood over a hobbled yak in a stone corral. I watched from my second-story room in the overlooking guest house. The beast struggled on its side, its horns cutting the dirt as its head violently swung back and forth. After about fifteen seconds, everything went silent, and the slaughterer pulled a ten-inch Kukri sword from its heart. Staggered by the events, I grabbed my camera, bribery cigarettes, and ran to the action.Peering over the stone wall, I snapped photos, though the camera shutter felt intrusive and inappropriate. With a…
While public land advocates celebrated the elimination of Mike Lee’s contribution to the One, Big, Beautiful Bill, gun owners cheered a different provision that could pave the way for total deregulation of suppressors and short-barreled firearms.Congress passed–and the president approved–the elimination of the $200 tax stamp on suppressors, rifles with barrels less than 16 inches, shotguns with barrels less than 18 inches, and “any other weapon,” a category of restricted firearms that does not easily fit in the other two categories. The tax remains on machine guns and destructive devices regulated under the National Firearms Act.Gun rights groups praised the…
This week on Rifle Roundup, we have a Franklin Armory Militia AR-10 in .308 Win, topped with a Sightmark thermal optic and an ATN thermal monocular Franklin Armory Militia AR-10 (MSRP: $2399.99) Franklin Armory is best-known for its unique trigger systems and unusual firearms like the Reformation, but they also make some first-rate firearms like the Militia AR-10.The AR-10 has always taken a back seat to the much more popular AR-15, but there is a lot to be said for this larger, more powerful platform. First off is that word: Power. AR-10s typically shoot .308 Win, although other rounds like…
Hosts Spencer Neuharth, Ryan Callaghan, and Mark Kenyon discuss Cal and Mark’s recent trip to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in addition to some recent outdoor legislation, play a round of 1-Minute Fishing with Bradley Pooler (@FindAndFish), wish they could spin that giant wheel in a game of MeatEater Price Is Right, and find out what article of clothing Cal will share with the class in MeatEater Show-and-Tell. Read the full article here