The latest from Zac Fort from the New Mexico Shooting Sports Association:
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Friday, February 3, 2023
Gun and Magazine Ban Bills Scheduled for Committee Hearings
Thursday, February 2, 2023
Bullion and Coin Sales Tax Exemption Prospects In 2023
A big majority of states don't impose sales taxes on bullion and coins where they are considered investments. Unfortunately, the state I live in is New Mexico, who imposes sales taxes on bullion and coins.
The legislature, dominated by left-wing Democrats, are more interested in abortion and harassing gun owners and coming up with all kinds of ridiculous legislation during this legislative session.
Other states are trying to end sales taxes on bullion and coins, but there are some who are putting up roadblocks and tabling bills.
Numismatic News posted an article on the prospects of tax exemptions this year.
They begin it with:
In 2022, the state of Tennessee was the only state to adopt an exemption from sales taxes on retail sales of precious metals bullion, coins and also currency. Beyond that, the state of Alabama extended the expiration date of its existing bullion/coin/currency sales tax exemption from 2023 to 2028. In addition, several state legislatures that had bills introduced to revoke existing exemptions all adjourned without taking action on any of them.
Currently, there are five states that have no state sales tax (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon). There are an additional 36 states that have adopted complete or partial sales tax exemptions on the retail sales of bullion/coins/currency. The state of Nevada, by regulatory action, exempts precious metals bullion and coins that do not sell for more than 50 percent above face value. There are eight states, along with the District of Columbia, that still require sales taxes to be collected on retail sales of such products: Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Vermont and Wisconsin.
In 2022, there were sales tax exemption bills in the legislatures of Hawaii, Kentucky, Mississippi and New Jersey that did not become law.
Now that 2023 is here, there are some renewed efforts to obtain bullion/coin/currency exemptions in several states.
To read more, go here.
Bullets: Size Does Matter
This is the first time buying .357 Magnum ammunition for me. When I was working armed patrol, we were required to use only .38 Special ammunition. So that's what I bought.
Guns chambered for .357 Magnum (as mine is) are able to also use .38 Special ammunition. But guns chambered for .38 Special ammunition are only able to use that caliber. The big difference is the length of the cartidge.
Here's a photo I took of both. The .357 Magnum is on the left.
.357 Magnum Ammo Arrived
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| Above, the box of Barnes Vor-Tex .357 Mag ammo. Photo by Armand Vaquer |
My order of .357 Magnum hollow point ammo arrived yesterday.
I ordered a 20-round box of Barnes Vor-Tex .357 Magnum 140 grain hollow point ammo through MidwayUSA after reading some reviews.
It seems to be a well-regarded bullet for hunting and defense. I decided to purchase a box of .357 Magnum.
During my days of armed patrol, we were required to use .38 Special ammo, so this'll be my first .357 Magnum ammo.
From The Gun Zone:
357 Mag – 140 gr XPB HP – Barnes VOR-TX – 20 Rounds – Best Big Game 357 Magnum Round
If heading out to hunt large game with your 357 Magnum, then stopping power really is essential. The good news is that Barnes has the perfect solution for you. Since 1989 they have placed huge emphasis on engineering hunting bullets and ammunition that they class as the most technologically advanced magnum rounds on the planet.
This reloadable 140 Grain JHP (Jacketed Hollow Point) cartridge comes from their XPB series. Built using Randy Brook’s original X-Bullet rifle design, it is an all-copper bullet. This means there are no concerns about jacket/core separation, which is known to occur in traditional lead core jacketed bullets.
Maximum damage…
With a highly effective copper hollow point design, this bullet rapidly expands to twice its original diameter. The result is that upon impact, it achieves maximum tissue and bone destruction. Upon entry into tissue, the bullet nose immediately peels back into four sharp-edged copper petals. This means with each accurately placed shot; you are achieving quick and humane kills.
Available in boxes of 20, it has a boxer primer. This wickedly effective cartridge design delivers a muzzle velocity of 1265 fps and muzzle energy of 498 ft/lbs. It really is the perfect magnum load for big game hunting. As can be imagined, if it comes to self-defense, there is not much better out there.
To read more, go here.
Punxsutawney Phil: Six More Weeks of Winter
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| Above, Jamestown, New Mexico four days ago. Photo by Armand Vaquer |
This has been a cold winter.
It appears we're in for six more weeks of winter, at least according to Punxsutawney Phil, who has been right 40% of the time. Today is Groundhog Day.
According to 104.5 WOKV:
PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. — (AP) — A furry critter in a western Pennsylvania town has predicted six more weeks of winter during an annual Groundhog Day celebration.
People gathered Thursday at Gobbler's Knob as members of Punxsutawney Phil's "inner circle" summoned the groundhog from his tree stump at dawn to learn if he has seen his shadow — and they say he did. According to folklore, if he sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of winter. If he doesn't, spring comes early.
The “inner circle” is a group of local dignitaries who are responsible for planning the events, as well as feeding and caring for Phil himself.
The annual event in Punxsutawney, about 65 miles (105 kilometers) northeast of Pittsburgh, originated from a German legend about a furry rodent. The gathering annually attracts thousands.
To read more, go here.
El Rancho Hotel Drops Chile Rellenos From Menu
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| Above, El Rancho's chile rellenos last April. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
Yesterday evening, after picking up Larry Lucier from his physical therapy session, he, Russell Azbill and I headed over to the El Rancho Hotel & Motel for dinner. It had been a few weeks since we were last there.
The menu at the restaurant was unchanged, but when I ordered the chile rellenos (Russell was going to order them too), we were told that they were dropped from the menu, despite them still being listed. The waitress said the restaurant manager decided that they weren't selling enough.
I ended up getting chicken enchiladas.
As Larry pointed out, chile rellenos should be considered basic food items along with enchiladas, tacos and burritos at Mexican restaurants, which is what the El Rancho restaurant is. We protested the change, in a humorous way, but we got our point across. It was a dumb move on the restaurant manager's part. They'd sell more if they weren't listed in the back page of the menu.
Larry tried to flag over the restaurant manager several times, but he didn't respond.
Their rellenos, in my opinion, were the best in town. It looks like we'll have to find another place for dinner who has decent chile rellenos.
Gold, Silver Spot Prices Up
Yesterday, the Federal Reserve announced the eighth interest rate increase since the current process started in 2022.
According to CNBC:
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point and gave little indication it is nearing the end of this hiking cycle.
Aligning with market expectations, the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee boosted the federal funds rate by 0.25 percentage point. That takes it to a target range of 4.5%-4.75%, the highest since October 2007.
The move marked the eighth increase in a process that began in March 2022.
In response, gold and silver spot prices rose.
From Nasdaq.com:
Feb 2 (Reuters) - Gold rose to a nine-month high on Thursday on a subdued dollar, as investors held onto the view that the U.S. Federal Reserve would soon end its rate hiking cycle after it announced an expected 25-basis-point increase.
Spot gold XAU= was up 0.2% at $1,954.77 per ounce at 0927 GMT, having hit its highest since April 2022 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures GCv1 rose 1.5% to $1,955.30.
Spot silver XAG= gained 0.9% to $24.19 per ounce, scaling a one-week high.
Wednesday, February 1, 2023
The Stardust and Lido de Paris
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| Above, the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas back in the day. |
Earlier, I saw a story about congress passing a resolution asking the U.S. Mint to mint a commemorative coin in 2026 for the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. The article mentioned that this would coincide with the 250th anniversary of our independence.
It is hard to believe that in three years it would be 50 years since we celebrated the nation's bicentennial in 1976.
My family celebrated bicentennial Independence Day weekend in Las Vegas with my aunt and uncle and a couple of cousins. One of the things we did was to take in the "Lido de Paris" show at the Stardust Hotel. It seemed a little bit weird at the time that our parents took us to a Las Vegas "titty-flop" (yes, there were some topless showgirls) show. But we (my cousins and I) were of age and survived. We had a great time.
The Stardust is long gone. It closed on November 1, 2006, and the two hotel towers were imploded on March 13, 2007.
Those were the days when Las Vegas wasn't crowded, affordable and was fun.
Here's a video about "Lido de Paris":
New Mexico's Legislative Democrat Sh*t Show
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| Above, New Mexico Second Amendment Sanctuary Counties in green. |
The 2023 New Mexico legislative session is really turning into a Democrat sh*t show. So far.
Far left Democrats are passing anti-Second Amendment bills in their controlled committees while tabling Republican-sponsored anti-crime bills without the benefit of hearing the merits or discussion. Those bills would be far more effective in battling crime. But they aren't interested in that, they are only hell-bent on letting felons get off Scott-free, while at the same time, turning responsible gun owners into felons.
From the Republican Party of New Mexico:
House Republicans put out a statement saying, "The Democrat lawmakers persistently moved to “table” (or blocked) every Republican crime bill, sometimes before any lawmaker or member of the public had a chance to digest the legislation, ask questions, or make comment on the proposed legislation.
Rep. John Block:
Dems just killed a bunch of bills in House Consumer and Public Affairs to stop the crime/fentanyl problem seemingly just because they were sponsored by a Republican. Criminals are laughing at us.
Remember, over half of New Mexico counties have declared themselves a "Sanctuary County" against Democrat sh*t show anti-Second Amendment laws.
This is a clear example that stupid people should not be allowed to vote. They are trying to turn New Mexico into a one-party state like Commiefornia.
They are flooding this session with a slew of bad bills. Go here to see how bad things are.
Lunatic voters elected these idiots.
Republican Party of New Mexico Legislative Update
RPNM Legislative Update 1/31/23:
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Bump Stock and Binary Trigger Ban To Be Heard Friday
From Zac Fort of the NMSSA:
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Dollar At ¥130.20 In Tokyo Trading
Today starts a new month and it is time to take a look at how the U.S. dollar is performing in Tokyo foreign exchange with the Japanese yen.
According to Jiji Press:
Tokyo, Feb. 1 (Jiji Press)--The dollar was little changed near 130.20 yen in late Tokyo trading Wednesday as investors took to the sidelines prior to the release of a monetary policy decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve later in the day.
At 5 p.m., the dollar stood at 130.17-18 yen, against 130.14-15 yen at the same time Tuesday.
To read more, go here.
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