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Last time we spoke about the fall of Wuhan. In a country frayed by war, the Yangtze became a pulsing artery, carrying both hunger and hope. Chiang Kai-shek faced a brutal choice: defend Wuhan to the last man, or flood the rivers to buy time. He chose both, setting sullen floodwaters loose along the Yellow River to slow the invaders, a temporary mercy that spared some lives while ripping many from their homes. On the river's banks, a plethora of Chinese forces struggled to unite. The NRA, fractured into rival zones, clung to lines with stubborn grit as Japanese forces poured through Anqing, Jiujiang, and beyond, turning the Yangtze into a deadly corridor. Madang's fortifications withstood bombardment and gas, yet the price was paid in troops and civilians drowned or displaced. Commanders like Xue Yue wrestled stubbornly for every foothold, every bend in the river. The Battle of Wanjialing became a symbol: a desperate, months-long pincer where Chinese divisions finally tightened their cordon and halted the enemy's flow. By autumn, the Japanese pressed onward to seize Tianjiazhen and cut supply lines, while Guangzhou fell to a ruthless blockade. The Fall of Wuhan loomed inevitable, yet the story remained one of fierce endurance against overwhelming odds.   #174 The Changsha Fire Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the summer of 1938, amid the upheaval surrounding Chiang Kai-shek, one of his most important alliances came to an end. On June 22, all German advisers to the Nationalist government were summoned back; any who refused would be deemed guilty of high treason. Since World War I, a peculiar bond had tied the German Weimar Republic and China: two fledgling states, both weak and only partially sovereign. Under the Versailles Treaty of 1919, Germany had lost extraterritorial rights on Chinese soil, which paradoxically allowed Berlin to engage with China as an equal partner rather than a traditional colonizer. This made German interests more welcome in business and politics than those of other Western powers. Chiang's military reorganization depended on German officers such as von Seeckt and von Falkenhausen, and Hitler's rise in 1933 had not immediately severed the connection between the two countries. Chiang did not share Nazi ideology with Germany, but he viewed Berlin as a potential ally and pressed to persuade it to side with China rather than Japan as China's principal East Asian, anti-Communist partner. In June 1937, H. H. Kung led a delegation to Berlin, met Hitler, and argued for an alliance with China. Yet the outbreak of war and the Nationalists' retreat to Wuhan convinced Hitler's government to align with Japan, resulting in the recall of all German advisers. Chiang responded with a speech praising von Falkenhausen, insisting that "our friend's enemy is our enemy too," and lauding the German Army's loyalty and ethics as a model for the Chinese forces. He added, "After we have won the War of Resistance, I believe you'll want to come back to the Far East and advise our country again." Von Falkenhausen would later become the governor of Nazi-occupied Belgium, then be lauded after the war for secretly saving many Jewish lives. As the Germans departed, the roof of the train transporting them bore a prominent German flag with a swastika, a prudent precaution given Wuhan's vulnerability to air bombardment. The Japanese were tightening their grip on the city, even as Chinese forces, numbering around 800,000, made a stubborn stand. The Yellow River floods blocked northern access, so the Japanese chose to advance via the Yangtze, aided by roughly nine divisions and the might of the Imperial Navy. The Chinese fought bravely, but their defenses could not withstand the superior technology of the Japanese fleet. The only substantial external aid came from Soviet pilots flying aircraft bought from the USSR as part of Stalin's effort to keep China in the war; between 1938 and 1940, some 2,000 pilots offered their services. From June 24 to 27, Japanese bombers relentlessly pounded the Madang fortress along the Yangtze until it fell. A month later, on July 26, Chinese defenders abandoned Jiujiang, southeast of Wuhan, and its civilian population endured a wave of atrocities at the hands of the invaders. News of Jiujiang's fate stiffened resolve. Chiang delivered a pointed address to his troops on July 31, arguing that Wuhan's defense was essential and that losing the city would split the country into hostile halves, complicating logistics and movement. He warned that Wuhan's defense would also be a spiritual test: "the place has deep revolutionary ties," and public sympathy for China's plight was growing as Japanese atrocities became known. Yet Chiang worried about the behavior of Chinese soldiers. He condemned looting as a suicidal act that would destroy the citizens' trust in the military. Commanders, he warned, must stay at their posts; the memory of the Madang debacle underscored the consequences of cowardice. Unlike Shanghai, Wuhan had shelters, but he cautioned against retreating into them and leaving soldiers exposed. Officers who failed in loyalty could expect no support in return. This pep talk, combined with the belief that the army was making a last stand, may have slowed the Japanese advance along the Yangtze in August. Under General Xue Yue, about 100,000 Chinese troops pushed back the invaders at Huangmei. At Tianjiazhen, thousands fought until the end of September, with poison gas finally forcing Japanese victory. Yet even then, Chinese generals struggled to coordinate. In Xinyang, Li Zongren's Guangxi troops were exhausted; they expected relief from Hu Zongnan's forces, but Hu instead withdrew, allowing Japan to capture the city without a fight. The fall of Xinyang enabled Japanese control of the Ping-Han railway, signaling Wuhan's doom. Chiang again spoke to Wuhan's defenders, balancing encouragement with a grim realism about possible loss. Although Wuhan's international connections were substantial, foreign aid would be unlikely. If evacuation became necessary, the army should have a clear plan, including designated routes. He recalled the disastrous December retreat from Nanjing, where "foreigners and Chinese alike turned it into an empty city." Troops had been tired and outnumbered; Chiang defended the decision to defend Nanjing, insisting the army had sacrificed itself for the capital and Sun Yat-sen's tomb. Were the army to retreat again, he warned, it would be the greatest shame in five thousand years of Chinese history. The loss of Madang was another humiliation. By defending Wuhan, he argued, China could avenge its fallen comrades and cleanse its conscience; otherwise, it could not honor its martyrs. Mao Zedong, observing the situation from his far-off base at Yan'an, agreed strongly that Chiang should not defend Wuhan to the death. He warned in mid-October that if Wuhan could not be defended, the war's trajectory would shift, potentially strengthening the Nationalists–Communists cooperation, deepening popular mobilization, and expanding guerrilla warfare. The defense of Wuhan, Mao argued, should drain the enemy and buy time to advance the broader struggle, not become a doomed stalemate. In a protracted war, some strongholds might be abandoned temporarily to sustain the longer fight. The Japanese Army captured Wuchang and Hankou on 26 October and captured Hanyang on the 27th, which concluded the campaign in Wuhan. The battle had lasted four and a half months and ended with the Nationalist army's voluntary withdrawal. In the battle itself, the Japanese army captured Wuhan's three towns and held the heartland of China, achieving a tactical victory. Yet strategically, Japan failed to meet its objectives. Imperial Headquarters believed that "capturing Hankou and Guangzhou would allow them to dominate China." Consequently, the Imperial Conference planned the Battle of Wuhan to seize Wuhan quickly and compel the Chinese government to surrender. It also decreed that "national forces should be concentrated to achieve the war objectives within a year and end the war against China." According to Yoshiaki Yoshimi and Seiya Matsuno, Hirohito authorized the use of chemical weapons against China by specific orders known as rinsanmei. During the Battle of Wuhan, Prince Kan'in Kotohito transmitted the emperor's orders to deploy toxic gas 375 times between August and October 1938. Another memorandum uncovered by Yoshimi indicates that Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni authorized the use of poison gas against the Chinese on 16 August 1938. A League of Nations resolution adopted on 14 May condemned the Imperial Japanese Army's use of toxic gas. Japan's heavy use of chemical weapons against China was driven by manpower shortages and China's lack of poison gas stockpiles to retaliate. Poison gas was employed at Hankou in the Battle of Wuhan to break Chinese resistance after conventional assaults had failed. Rana Mitter notes that, under General Xue Yue, approximately 100,000 Chinese troops halted Japanese advances at Huangmei, and at the fortress of Tianjiazhen, thousands fought until the end of September, with Japanese victory secured only through the use of poison gas. Chinese generals also struggled with coordination at Xinyang; Li Zongren's Guangxi troops were exhausted, and Hu Zongnan's forces, believed to be coming to relieve them, instead withdrew. Japan subsequently used poison gas against Chinese Muslim forces at the Battle of Wuyuan and the Battle of West Suiyuan. However, the Chinese government did not surrender with the loss of Wuhan and Guangzhou, nor did Japan's invasion end with Wuhan and Guangzhou's capture. After Wuhan fell, the government issued a reaffirmation: "Temporary changes of advance and retreat will not shake our resolve to resist the Japanese invasion," and "the gain or loss of any city will not affect the overall situation of the war." It pledged to "fight with even greater sorrow, greater perseverance, greater steadfastness, greater diligence, and greater courage," dedicating itself to a long, comprehensive war of resistance. In the Japanese-occupied rear areas, large armed anti-Japanese forces grew, and substantial tracts of territory were recovered. As the Japanese army themselves acknowledged, "the restoration of public security in the occupied areas was actually limited to a few kilometers on both sides of the main transportation lines." Thus, the Battle of Wuhan did not merely inflict a further strategic defeat on Japan; it also marked a turning point in Japan's strategic posture, from offense to defense. Due to the Nationalist Army's resolute resistance, Japan mobilized its largest force to date for the attack, about 250,000 personnel, who were replenished four to five times over the battle, for a total of roughly 300,000. The invaders held clear advantages in land, sea, and air power and fought for four and a half months. Yet they failed to annihilate the Nationalist main force, nor did they break the will to resist or the army's combat effectiveness. Instead, the campaign dealt a severe blow to the Japanese Army's vitality. Japanese-cited casualties totaled 4,506 dead and 17,380 wounded for the 11th Army; the 2nd Army suffered 2,300 killed in action, 7,600 wounded, and 900 died of disease. Including casualties across the navy and the air force, the overall toll was about 35,500. By contrast, the Nationalist Government Military Commission's General Staff Department, drawing on unit-level reports, calculated Japanese casualties at 256,000. The discrepancy between Japanese and Nationalist tallies illustrates the inflationary tendencies of each side's reporting. Following Wuhan, a weakened Japanese force confronted an extended front. Unable to mount large-scale strategic offensives, unlike Shanghai, Xuzhou, or Wuhan itself, the Japanese to a greater extent adopted a defensive posture. This transition shifted China's War of Resistance from a strategic defensive phase into a strategic stalemate, while the invaders found themselves caught in a protracted war—a development they most disliked. Consequently, Japan's invasion strategy pivoted: away from primary frontal offensives toward a greater reliance on political inducements with secondary military action, and toward diverting forces to "security" operations behind enemy lines rather than pushing decisive frontal campaigns. Japan, an island nation with limited strategic resources, depended heavily on imports. By the time of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, Japan's gold reserves,including reserves for issuing banknotes, amounted to only about 1.35 billion yen. In effect, Japan's currency reserves constrained the scale of the war from the outset. The country launched its aggression while seeking an early solution to the conflict. To sustain its war of aggression against China, the total value of military supplies imported from overseas in 1937 reached approximately 960 million yen. By June of the following year, for the Battle of Wuhan, even rifles used in training were recalled to outfit the expanding army. The sustained increase in troops also strained domestic labor, food, and energy supplies. By 1939, after Wuhan, Japan's military expenditure had climbed to about 6.156 billion yen, far exceeding national reserves. This stark reality exposed Japan's economic fragility and its inability to guarantee a steady supply of military materiel, increasing pressure on the leadership at the Central Command. The Chief of Staff and the Minister of War lamented the mismatch between outward strength and underlying weakness: "Outwardly strong but weak is a reflection of our country today, and this will not last long." In sum, the Wuhan campaign coincided with a decline in the organization, equipment, and combat effectiveness of the Japanese army compared with before the battle. This erosion of capability helped drive Japan to alter its political and military strategy, shifting toward a method of inflicting pressure on China and attempting to "use China to control China", that is, fighting in ways designed to sustain the broader war effort. Tragically a major element of Chiang Kai-shek's retreat strategy was the age-old "scorched earth" policy. In fact, China originated the phrase and the practice. Shanghai escaped the last-minute torching because of foreigners whose property rights were protected. But in Nanjing, the burning and destruction began with increasing zeal. What could not be moved inland, such as remaining rice stocks, oil in tanks, and other facilities, was to be blown up or devastated. Civilians were told to follow the army inland, to rebuild later behind the natural barrier of Sichuan terrain. Many urban residents complied, but the peasantry did not embrace the plan. The scorched-earth policy served as powerful propaganda for the occupying Japanese army and, even more so, for the Reds. Yet they could hardly have foreseen the propaganda that Changsha would soon supply them. In June, the Changsha Evacuation Guidance Office was established to coordinate land and water evacuation routes. By the end of October, Wuhan's three towns had fallen, and on November 10 the Japanese army captured Yueyang, turning Changsha into the next primary invasion target. Beginning on October 9, Japanese aircraft intensified from sporadic raids on Changsha to large-scale bombing. On October 27, the Changsha Municipal Government urgently evacuated all residents, exempting only able-bodied men, the elderly, the weak, women, and children. The baojia system was mobilized to go door-to-door, enforcing compliance. On November 7, Chiang Kai-shek convened a military meeting at Rongyuan Garden to review the war plan and finalize a "scorched earth war of resistance." Xu Quan, Chief of Staff of the Security Command, drafted the detailed implementation plan. On November 10, Shi Guoji, Chief of Staff of the Security Command, presided over a joint meeting of Changsha's party, government, military, police, and civilian organizations to devise a strategy. The Changsha Destruction Command was immediately established, bringing together district commanders and several arson squads. The command actively prepared arson equipment and stacked flammable materials along major traffic arteries. Chiang decided that the city of Changsha was vulnerable and either gave the impression or the direct order, honestly really depends on the source your reading, to burn the city to the ground to prevent it falling to the enemy. At 9:00 AM on November 12, Chiang Kai-shek telegraphed Zhang Zhizhong: "One hour to arrive, Chairman Zhang, Changsha, confidential. If Changsha falls, the entire city must be burned. Please make thorough preparations in advance and do not delay." And here it seems a game of broken telephone sort of resulted in one of the worst fire disasters of all time. If your asking pro Chiang sources, the message was clearly, put up a defense, once thats fallen, burn the city down before the Japanese enter. Obviously this was to account for getting civilians out safely and so forth. If you read lets call it more modern CPP aligned sources, its the opposite. Chiang intentionally ordering the city to burn down as fast as possible, but in through my research, I think it was a colossal miscommunication. Regardless Zhongzheng Wen, Minister of the Interior, echoed the message. Simultaneously, Lin Wei, Deputy Director of Chiang Kai-shek's Secretariat, instructed Zhang Zhizhong by long-distance telephone: "If Changsha falls, the entire city must be burned." Zhang summoned Feng Ti, Commander of the Provincial Capital Garrison, and Xu Quan, Director of the Provincial Security Bureau, to outline arson procedures. He designated the Garrison Command to shoulder the preparations, with the Security Bureau assisting. At 4:00 PM, Zhang appointed Xu Kun, Commander of the Second Garrison Regiment, as chief commander of the arson operation, with Wang Weining, Captain of the Social Training Corps, and Xu Quan, Chief of Staff of the Garrison Command, as deputies. At 6:00 PM, the Garrison Command held an emergency meeting ordering all government agencies and organizations in the city to be ready for evacuation at any moment. By around 10:15 PM, all urban police posts had withdrawn. Around 2:00 AM (November 13), a false report circulated that "Japanese troops have reached Xinhe" . Firefighters stationed at various locations rushed out with kerosene-fueled devices, burning everything in sight, shops and houses alike. In an instant, Changsha became a sea of flames. The blaze raged for 72 hours. The Hunan Province Anti-Japanese War Loss Statistics, compiled by the Hunan Provincial Government Statistics Office of the Kuomintang, report that the fire inflicted economic losses of more than 1 billion yuan, a sum equivalent to about 1.7 trillion yuan after the victory in the war. This figure represented roughly 43% of Changsha's total economic value at the time. Regarding casualties, contemporary sources provide varying figures. A Xinhua Daily report from November 20, 1938 noted that authorities mobilized manpower to bury more than 600 bodies, though the total number of burned remains could not be precisely counted. A Central News Agency reporter on November 19 stated that in the Xiangyuan fire, more than 2,000 residents could not escape, and most of the bodies had already been buried. There are further claims that in the Changsha Fire, more than 20,000 residents were burned to death. In terms of displacement, Changsha's population before the fire was about 300,000, and by November 12, 90% had been evacuated. After the fire, authorities registered 124,000 victims, including 815 orphans sheltered in Lito and Maosgang.  Building damage constituted the other major dimension of the catastrophe, with the greatest losses occurring to residential houses, shops, schools, factories, government offices, banks, hospitals, newspaper offices, warehouses, and cultural and entertainment venues, as well as numerous historic buildings such as palaces, temples, private gardens, and the former residences of notable figures; among these, residential and commercial structures suffered the most, followed by factories and schools. Inspector Gao Yihan, who conducted a post-fire investigation, observed that the prosperous areas within Changsha's ring road, including Nanzheng Street and Bajiaoting, were almost completely destroyed, and in other major markets only a handful of shops remained, leading to an overall estimate that surviving or stalemated houses were likely less than 20%. Housing and street data from the early post-liberation period reveal that Changsha had more than 1,100 streets and alleys; of these, more than 690 were completely burned and more than 330 had fewer than five surviving houses, accounting for about 29%, with nearly 90% of the city's streets severely damaged. More than 440 streets were not completely destroyed, but among these, over 190 had only one or two houses remaining and over 130 had only three or four houses remaining; about 60 streets, roughly 6% had 30 to 40 surviving houses, around 30 streets, 3% had 11 to 20 houses, 10 streets, 1% had 21 to 30 houses, and three streets ) had more than 30 houses remaining. Housing statistics from 1952 show that 2,538 houses survived the fire, about 6.57% of the city's total housing stock, with private houses totaling 305,800 square meters and public houses 537,900 square meters. By 1956, the surviving area of both private and public housing totaled 843,700 square meters, roughly 12.3% of the city's total housing area at that time. Alongside these losses, all equipment, materials, funds, goods, books, archives, antiques, and cultural relics that had not been moved were also destroyed.  At the time of the Changsha Fire, Zhou Enlai, then Deputy Minister of the Political Department of the Nationalist Government's Military Commission, was in Changsha alongside Ye Jianying, Guo Moruo, and others. On November 12, 1938, Zhou Enlai attended a meeting held by Changsha cultural groups at Changsha Normal School to commemorate Sun Yat-sen's 72nd birthday. Guo Moruo later recalled that Zhou Enlai and Ye Jianying were awakened by the blaze that night; they each carried a suitcase and evacuated to Xiangtan, with Zhou reportedly displaying considerable indignation at the sudden, unprovoked fire. On the 16th, Zhou Enlai rushed back to Changsha and, together with Chen Cheng, Zhang Zhizhong, and others, inspected the disaster. He mobilized personnel from three departments, with Tian Han and Guo Moruo at the forefront, to form the Changsha Fire Aftermath Task Force, which began debris clearance, care for the injured, and the establishment of soup kitchens. A few days later, on the 22nd, the Hunan Provincial Government established the Changsha Fire Temporary Relief Committee to coordinate relief efforts.  On the night of November 16, 1938, Chiang Kai-shek arrived in Changsha and, the next day, ascended Tianxin Pavilion. Sha Wei, head of the Cultural Relics Section of the Changsha Tianxin Pavilion Park Management Office, and a long-time researcher of the pavilion, explained that documentation indicates Chiang Kai-shek, upon seeing the city largely reduced to scorched earth with little left intact, grew visibly angry. After descending from Tianxin Pavilion, Chiang immediately ordered the arrest of Changsha Garrison Commander Feng Ti, Changsha Police Chief Wen Chongfu, and Commander of the Second Garrison Regiment Xu Kun, and arranged a military trial with a two-day deadline. The interrogation began at 7:00 a.m. on November 18. Liang Xiaojin records that Xu Kun and Wen Chongfu insisted their actions followed orders from the Security Command, while Feng Ti admitted negligence and violations of procedure, calling his acts unforgivable. The trial found Feng Ti to be the principal offender, with Wen Chongfu and Xu Kun as accomplices, and sentenced all three to prison terms of varying lengths. The verdict was sent to Chiang Kai-shek for approval, who was deeply dissatisfied and personally annotated the drafts: he asserted that Feng Ti, as the city's security head, was negligent and must be shot immediately; Wen Chongfu, as police chief, disobeyed orders and fled, and must be shot immediately; Xu Kun, for neglect of duty, must be shot immediately. The court then altered the arson charge in the verdict to "insulting his duty and harming the people" in line with Chiang's instructions. Chiang Kai-shek, citing "failure to supervise personnel and precautions," dismissed Zhang from his post, though he remained in office to oversee aftermath operations. Zhang Zhizhong later recalled Chiang Kai-shek's response after addressing the Changsha fire: a pointed admission that the fundamental cause lay not with a single individual but with the collective leadership's mistakes, and that the error must be acknowledged as a collective failure. All eyes now shifted to the new center of resistance, Chongqing, the temporary capital. Chiang's "Free China" no longer meant the whole country; it now encompassed Sichuan, Hunan, and Henan, but not Jiangsu or Zhejiang. The eastern provinces were effectively lost, along with China's major customs revenues, the country's most fertile regions, and its most advanced infrastructure. The center of political gravity moved far to the west, into a country the Nationalists had never controlled, where everything was unfamiliar and unpredictable, from topography and dialects to diets. On the map, it might have seemed that Chiang still ruled much of China, but vast swaths of the north and northwest were sparsely populated; most of China's population lay in the east and south, where Nationalist control was either gone or held only precariously. The combined pressures of events and returning travelers were gradually shifting American attitudes toward the Japanese incident. Europe remained largely indifferent, with Hitler absorbing most attention, but the United States began to worry about developments in the Pacific. Roosevelt initiated a January 1939 appeal to raise a million dollars for Chinese civilians in distress, and the response quickly materialized. While the Chinese did not expect direct intervention, they hoped to deter further American economic cooperation with Japan and to halt Japan's purchases of scrap iron, oil, gasoline, shipping, and, above all, weapons from the United States. Public opinion in America was sufficiently stirred to sustain a campaign against silk stockings, a symbolic gesture of boycott that achieved limited effect; Japan nonetheless continued to procure strategic materials. Within this chorus, the left remained a persistent but often discordant ally to the Nationalists. The Institute of Pacific Relations, sympathetic to communist aims, urged America to act, pressuring policymakers and sounding alarms about China. Yet the party line remained firmly pro-Chiang Kai-shek: the Japanese advance seemed too rapid and threatening to the Reds' interests. Most oil and iron debates stalled; American businessmen resented British trade ties with Japan, and Britain refused to join any mutual cutoff, arguing that the Western powers were not at war with Japan. What occurred in China was still commonly referred to in Western diplomatic circles as "the Incident." Wang Jingwei's would make his final defection, yes in a long ass history of defections. Mr Wang Jingwei had been very busy traveling to Guangzhou, then Northwest to speak with Feng Yuxiang, many telegrams went back and forth. He returned to the Nationalist government showing his face to foreign presses and so forth. While other prominent rivals of Chiang, Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi, and others, rallied when they perceived Japan as a real threat; all did so except Wang Jingwei. Wang, who had long believed himself the natural heir to Sun Yat-sen and who had repeatedly sought to ascend to power, seemed willing to cooperate with Japan if it served his own aims. I will just say it, Wang Jingwei was a rat. He had always been a rat, never changed. Opinions on Chiang Kai-Shek vary, but I think almost everyone can agree Wang Jingwei was one of the worst characters of this time period. Now Wang Jingwei could not distinguish between allies and enemies and was prepared to accept help from whomever offered it, believing he could outmaneuver Tokyo when necessary. Friends in Shanghai and abroad whispered that it was not too late to influence events, arguing that the broader struggle was not merely China versus Japan but a clash between principled leaders and a tyrannical, self-serving clique, Western imperialism's apologists who needed Chiang removed. For a time Wang drifted within the Kuomintang, moving between Nanjing, Wuhan, Changsha, and Chongqing, maintaining discreet lines of communication with his confidants. The Japanese faced a governance problem typical of conquerors who possess conquered territory: how to rule effectively while continuing the war. They imagined Asia under Japanese-led leadership, an East Asia united by a shared Co-Prosperity Sphere but divided by traditional borders. To sustain this vision, they sought local leaders who could cooperate. The search yielded few viable options; would-be collaborators were soon assassinated, proved incompetent, or proved corrupt. The Japanese concluded it would require more time and education. In the end, Wang Jingwei emerged as a preferred figure. Chongqing, meanwhile, seemed surprised by Wang's ascent. He had moved west to Chengde, then to Kunming, attempted, and failed to win over Yunnan's warlords, and eventually proceeded to Hanoi in Indochina, arriving in Hong Kong by year's end. He sent Chiang Kai-shek a telegram suggesting acceptance of Konoe's terms for peace, which Chungking rejected. In time, Wang would establish his own Kuomintang faction in Shanghai, combining rigorous administration with pervasive secret-police activity characteristic of occupied regimes. By 1940, he would be formally installed as "Chairman of China." But that is a story for another episode.  In the north, the Japanese and the CCP were locked in an uneasy stalemate. Mao's army could make it impossible for the Japanese to hold deep countryside far from the railway lines that enabled mass troop movement into China's interior. Yet the Communists could not defeat the occupiers. In the dark days of October 1938—fifteen months after the war began—one constant remained. Observers (Chinese businessmen, British diplomats, Japanese generals) repeatedly predicted that each new disaster would signal the end of Chinese resistance and force a swift surrender, or at least a negotiated settlement in which the government would accept harsher terms from Tokyo. But even after defenders were expelled from Shanghai, Nanjing, and Wuhan, despite the terrifying might Japan had brought to bear on Chinese resistance, and despite the invader's manpower, technology, and resources, China continued to fight. Yet it fought alone. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. In a land shredded by war, Wuhan burned under brutal sieges, then Changsha followed, a cruel blaze born of orders and miscommunications. Leaders wrestled with retreat, scorched-earth vows, and moral debts as Japanese force and Chinese resilience clashed for months. Mao urged strategy over martyrdom, Wang Jingwei's scheming shadow loomed, and Chongqing rose as the westward beacon. Yet China endured, a stubborn flame refusing to surrender to the coming storm. The war stretched on, unfinished and unyielding.

In This Hour:-- Doug Hamlin, Executive Vice President of the NRA, announces changes to the iconic magazines American Rifleman and American Hunter.--  These sisters continue to win shooting competitions around the world.  A visit with Jalise and Justine Williams, members of the Colt shooting team.--  Another shooter thinks his sights are off, but it's really just his bad shooting.Gun Talk 11.02.25 Hour 2Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gun-talk--6185159/support.

  Episode 262-The Ballot is Stronger than the Bullet Also Available On Searchable Podcast Transcript Gun Lawyer -- Episode 262 Transcript SUMMARY KEYWORDS New Jersey governor's race, Second Amendment, gun rights, voting importance, anti-gun organizations, NRA rating, gun

[00:22:29] – Ghost Guns & State TyrannyKnight spotlights the case of Brooklyn engineer Dexter Taylor, sentenced to ten years for 3D-printing guns he never used or sold. He calls it proof that New York punishes defiance, not danger, and argues the state's real crime is independence from its control. [00:30:04] – NRA vs. New York's Financial CensorshipKnight covers the NRA's First Amendment lawsuit against New York regulators who pressured banks to cut ties with gun groups. He says the case proves the state now weaponizes finance to silence dissent—“Operation Choke Point reborn.” [00:39:56] – SNAP Cuts, Entitlement, & Marxist LootingKnight reviews viral videos of people vowing to steal from stores after food-stamp cuts. He links the mindset to Marxist indoctrination, saying “1619 Project logic” now justifies theft and dependency as moral rebellion against capitalism. [01:11:26] – When the Government Censored Frankenstein & DraculaKnight ends with a historical exposé on Hollywood censorship—how films like Dracula and Frankenstein were once banned for being “too disturbing.” He uses it to illustrate the cycle of censorship, warning that today's “fact-checking” regime is just the modern Inquisition. [01:57:25] – Trump Orders Nuclear TestingKnight exposes Trump's unilateral order to resume nuclear weapons testing—overturning a 1992 moratorium without congressional approval. He calls it an ego-driven stunt that violates the Constitution and risks triggering global escalation. [02:00:51] – SNAP Shutdown & Civil UnrestKnight predicts riots as 41 million Americans lose food stamps during Trump's shutdown. He argues that engineered dependency and welfare chaos are deliberate tools of state control under “America's Great Reset.” [02:25:41] – Epstein Fallout & The Royal FamilyKnight contrasts the British monarchy's expulsion of Prince Andrew with Trump's ongoing defense of Epstein-linked elites. He predicts Trump will pardon Ghislaine Maxwell, calling it proof of bipartisan complicity in sex-trafficking cover-ups. Follow the show on Kick and watch live every weekday 9:00am EST – 12:00pm EST https://kick.com/davidknightshow Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to https://davidknight.gold/ for great deals on physical gold/silverFor 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to https://trendsjournal.com/ and enter the code KNIGHTFind out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-david-knight-show--2653468/support.

[00:22:29] – Ghost Guns & State TyrannyKnight spotlights the case of Brooklyn engineer Dexter Taylor, sentenced to ten years for 3D-printing guns he never used or sold. He calls it proof that New York punishes defiance, not danger, and argues the state's real crime is independence from its control. [00:30:04] – NRA vs. New York's Financial CensorshipKnight covers the NRA's First Amendment lawsuit against New York regulators who pressured banks to cut ties with gun groups. He says the case proves the state now weaponizes finance to silence dissent—“Operation Choke Point reborn.” [00:39:56] – SNAP Cuts, Entitlement, & Marxist LootingKnight reviews viral videos of people vowing to steal from stores after food-stamp cuts. He links the mindset to Marxist indoctrination, saying “1619 Project logic” now justifies theft and dependency as moral rebellion against capitalism. [01:11:26] – When the Government Censored Frankenstein & DraculaKnight ends with a historical exposé on Hollywood censorship—how films like Dracula and Frankenstein were once banned for being “too disturbing.” He uses it to illustrate the cycle of censorship, warning that today's “fact-checking” regime is just the modern Inquisition. [01:57:25] – Trump Orders Nuclear TestingKnight exposes Trump's unilateral order to resume nuclear weapons testing—overturning a 1992 moratorium without congressional approval. He calls it an ego-driven stunt that violates the Constitution and risks triggering global escalation. [02:00:51] – SNAP Shutdown & Civil UnrestKnight predicts riots as 41 million Americans lose food stamps during Trump's shutdown. He argues that engineered dependency and welfare chaos are deliberate tools of state control under “America's Great Reset.” [02:25:41] – Epstein Fallout & The Royal FamilyKnight contrasts the British monarchy's expulsion of Prince Andrew with Trump's ongoing defense of Epstein-linked elites. He predicts Trump will pardon Ghislaine Maxwell, calling it proof of bipartisan complicity in sex-trafficking cover-ups. Follow the show on Kick and watch live every weekday 9:00am EST – 12:00pm EST https://kick.com/davidknightshow Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to https://davidknight.gold/ for great deals on physical gold/silverFor 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to https://trendsjournal.com/ and enter the code KNIGHTFind out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-david-knight-show--5282736/support.

Steve Dulan, professor, attorney, and Second Amendment expert, joins The Steve Gruber Show to break down the latest developments shaking up the firearms community. A new Form 4 proposal could allow for silencers with a $0 transfer tax, marking a major shift in federal firearms regulation. Dulan also discusses the high-profile lawsuit by the NRA, Gun Owners of America, and Firearms Policy Coalition seeking to dismantle parts of the National Firearms Act, arguing that current restrictions violate constitutional rights.

Direktorat Reserse Siber Polda Metro Jaya mengungkap kasus penipuan online atau online scam yang terhubung dengan jaringan Malaysia. Korban dalam kasus ini berjumlah satu orang dengan kerugian mencapai Rp 3 miliar lebih.Kabid Humas Polda Metro Jaya, Brigjen Ade Ary Syam Indradi, menyampaikan bahwa total tiga pelaku ditangkap, yakni RJ, LBK, dan seorang perempuan berinisial NRA. Pernyataan ini disampaikan Ade Ary dalam konferensi pers di Gedung Promoter, Polda Metro Jaya, Jakarta Selatan, pada Jumat siang, 31 Oktober 2025.Modus pelaku adalah menyebarkan tawaran kepada masyarakat berupa link Instagram dan infografis yang disebarkan secara blasting melalui WhatsApp dan Telegram.Kasus ini bermula dari laporan korban yang merasa dirugikan dan melaporkan kejadian tersebut ke Polda Metro Jaya. Selanjutnya, Direktorat Reserse Siber Polda Metro Jaya melakukan penyelidikan secara intensif dan berhasil mengungkap keterkaitan kasus ini dengan jaringan online scam di Malaysia.

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various topics related to gun rights, marijuana laws, and the current political landscape with guest Dave Workman. The conversation delves into the implications of marijuana use on gun ownership, the myths surrounding gun control, and the role of organizations like Patriot Mobile in supporting Second Amendment rights. The episode also highlights the importance of youth engagement in politics and the need for community relationships to counteract misinformation. Takeaways Armed American Radio is a platform for discussing gun rights. The Supreme Court's ruling on marijuana and gun rights is crucial. Gun rights groups are pushing for clarity on the Second Amendment. The relationship between marijuana use and gun ownership is complex. Anti-gun narratives often contradict statistical evidence. Patriot Mobile supports conservative values and gun rights. Youth engagement in politics is essential for future change. The millennial generation faces challenges in understanding political issues. Community relationships can combat misinformation. The NRA plays a vital role in defending freedom and gun rights. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, marijuana laws, Second Amendment, Dave Workman, Patriot Mobile, gun control myths, youth engagement, conservative values, NRA  

NRA Executive Vice President Doug Hamlin joins Cam to discuss the organization's restructuring. The NRA is consolidating its magazine offerings and its Membership, Marketing and Advancement Divisions; moves Hamlin says are part of the NRA's first balanced budget in several years, and steps that will allow additional resources for NRA's Institute of Legislative Action for the 2026 election cycle.

In this episode of Walk the Talk America, Michael Sodini and Kevin Berry sit down with firearms instructor and Firearm Trainer Podcast host Rob Beckman to discuss his candidacy for the NRA Board of Directors and his vision for “NRA 2.0.” Rob shares how the organization is changing under new leadership, how instructors can bridge the gap between gun ownership and mental health, and why collaboration—not division—will shape the future of the Second Amendment.Send us a text Walk the Talk America would like to thank our partners who make these conversations possible and want to highlight our top two partner tiers below! Platinum Tier:RugerArmscorGold Tier:NASGWLipsey'sDavidson's

Lee joins today to discuss in depth his "training course" offered by Bloomberg funded anti-gun group. It's a joke to say the least and a conversation you do NOT want to miss! Enjoy! Everytown for Gun safety, Bloomberg, gun control, gun safety, firearm training, Lee Williams, The Gunwriter, second amendment Foundation, NRA, gun rights, second amendment, 2A, guns

Riding Shotgun With Charlie #240 Buz Mills Gunsite Academy, Owner NRA BOD   I met Buz Mills in passing NRA AM a few years ago. I felt a little in awe knowing he owns Gunsite Academy, the world's premier civilian training school started by the late, great Jeff Cooper. This year at NRA AM, I found myself at a dinner and was introduced to him again.  I'm honored that he was able to take time during the very busy weekend to give me an hour. I've been a fan of Cooper and his books since I became a gun owner so I was excited to take with someone else that has a connection to him. The ultimate question was "when am I coming to Gunsite?"   Before we kicked off the show, we spent about 15 minutes just talking in the car. He's got amazing stories to tell and I was able to get some of them on video. Buz grew up in the era where everyone shot, hunted and took their .22 rifles to school. After school, if he didn't shoot any small game, dinner was going to be vegetable soup. He learned to shoot in the Boy Scouts and participated in the postal matches through the NRA. As a kid, he was able to cash in empty soda bottles for .22 ammunition. There wasn't ammo for misses.    Back in the 1970's, Buz was in sales and worked with electronics and cell phones. He said he's not a fortune teller, but just an observer, telling people that one day, we'd have one number attached to us (our cell phone). He got out of that business in 1999 when he purchased Gunsite. Buz met Cooper in 1980 and was a "frequent flyer" at Gunsite.    Next year is Gunsite's 50th anniversary. They have lots of classes to offer. Besides pistol, carbine, rifle, and shotgun, there are tactical courses, knife courses, responding to active shooter courses, and just about anything you can think you'd need. Probably more than you can think of. This year, they've been building a fifth new building in five years. Since he bought the business back in 1999, it's grown from 165 acres to over 3,200 acres!   You can tell that Buz breathes the Second Amendment and the NRA. We talked a lot about the goings on at NRA when we filmed at NRA AM in April 2025. The NRA was formed to teach the North how to shoot after the Civil War. With the passing of the Gun Control Act of 1968, the NRA got more involved in politics.    Having been on the NRA BOD for a few terms, Buz saw that what they were doing was a textbook version of how to "chase your members" away. Particularly, at the members meeting, if someone spoke out, the Board would shut that person down. This tactic chased off about 40% of the membership, according to him.    Mills and a handful of others have been working hard to get the "Reformers" on the board. Last year, about 75% of those elected were Reformers. This year, there's more of them on the ballot. The BOD does need a variety of members with a wide swath of skills, including people who run successful businesses who can handle the business of the NRA. The NRA is working to get back to some of the things that made it what it was, which is training and education. They also want to increase membership. The Association has been around for over 150 years and needs to be around for another 150 years. It is going to take some time to right the ship as it took time for it to go in the wrong direction.    There's a lot of NRA talk in the show. About Doug Hamlin becoming the EVP and his history with the NRA. About getting rid of some of the law firms that were hired for cases. About finding out how the NRA looks for replacements and knows that someone has a 12 month contract to make changes, knowing that it will take more time to make the changes.    Buz shared a lot of wisdom he's acquired over the years being in the firearms community and running a successful business. Between Gunsite and NRA, he's a very busy and well respected man. And he keeps asking me "when am I coming to Gunsite?" Favorite quotes: "Gunsite is the oldest and largest privately owned tactical firearms training facility in the world." "I'm not a fortune teller; I'm just an observer." "America wouldn't be what it is today without the NRA." "All that's behind us. That's all behind us. No more lawyers, No more lawsuits.  "I have never been to a class that I didn't learn something positive that I can put in my toolbox."   Gunsite Academy https://www.gunsite.com/   Facebook https://www.facebook.com/GunsiteAcademy/   Instagram https://www.instagram.com/gunsiteacademy/?hl=en   YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/1Gunsite   X https://x.com/gunsiteacademy   Second Amendment Foundation https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun    Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms https://www.ccrkba.org/     Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.    US Law Shield Legal Defense for Self Defense. Use "RSWC" as the discount code and get 2 months for free! https://www.uslawshield.com/   Patriot Mobile Use this link and get one month for free! https://patriotmobile.com/partners/rswc

Summary The conversation covers a range of topics related to gun rights, including the NRA's advocacy efforts, the importance of voter engagement in upcoming elections, legal challenges facing gun owners, and a specific self-defense case in Prescott, Arizona. The discussion also delves into the implications of marijuana use on Second Amendment rights, highlighting the complexities and potential consequences for users. The conversation delves into various aspects of gun rights, focusing on the Second Amendment, the implications of red flag laws, and the role of government in regulating firearms. It highlights the ongoing debates surrounding these issues, including the impact of federal laws on individual liberties and the challenges posed by AI detection systems in schools. The discussion also touches on the importance of due process and the need for a balanced approach to gun legislation. Takeaways Gun owners are fired up to vote in upcoming elections. Grassroots mobilization is crucial for protecting Second Amendment rights. Legal challenges are ongoing, particularly in states like California and New Jersey. Self-defense cases can have significant legal and personal repercussions. The NRA is actively working to counter anti-gun legislation. Voter engagement is essential to prevent complacency among gun owners. Marijuana use complicates Second Amendment rights due to federal laws. The importance of having legal representation in self-defense cases cannot be overstated. The political landscape is shifting, and gun owners must remain vigilant. The outcome of the Supreme Court case could have far-reaching implications for gun rights. The Second Amendment is a fundamental right that needs protection. Red flag laws are controversial and often seen as unconstitutional. The role of the DOJ in gun legislation is complex and often criticized. There is a significant difference between state and federal gun laws. AI detection systems in schools can lead to dangerous misunderstandings. The importance of due process in any legal framework cannot be overstated. Florida's use of red flag laws raises concerns about individual rights. The Supreme Court's decisions will shape the future of gun rights. Public opinion on gun control is shifting, with more people advocating for rights. The conversation around gun rights is ongoing and requires active participation. Keywords NRA, Second Amendment, gun rights, self-defense, election strategies, legal challenges, marijuana, voter engagement, advocacy, grassroots mobilization, Second Amendment, gun rights, red flag laws, DOJ, Harmeet Dhillon, Supreme Court, AI detection, Florida gun laws, firearms legislation, self-defense  

Summary The conversation covers a range of topics related to gun rights, including the NRA's advocacy efforts, the importance of voter engagement in upcoming elections, legal challenges facing gun owners, and a specific self-defense case in Prescott, Arizona. The discussion also delves into the implications of marijuana use on Second Amendment rights, highlighting the complexities and potential consequences for users. The conversation delves into various aspects of gun rights, focusing on the Second Amendment, the implications of red flag laws, and the role of government in regulating firearms. It highlights the ongoing debates surrounding these issues, including the impact of federal laws on individual liberties and the challenges posed by AI detection systems in schools. The discussion also touches on the importance of due process and the need for a balanced approach to gun legislation. Takeaways Gun owners are fired up to vote in upcoming elections. Grassroots mobilization is crucial for protecting Second Amendment rights. Legal challenges are ongoing, particularly in states like California and New Jersey. Self-defense cases can have significant legal and personal repercussions. The NRA is actively working to counter anti-gun legislation. Voter engagement is essential to prevent complacency among gun owners. Marijuana use complicates Second Amendment rights due to federal laws. The importance of having legal representation in self-defense cases cannot be overstated. The political landscape is shifting, and gun owners must remain vigilant. The outcome of the Supreme Court case could have far-reaching implications for gun rights. The Second Amendment is a fundamental right that needs protection. Red flag laws are controversial and often seen as unconstitutional. The role of the DOJ in gun legislation is complex and often criticized. There is a significant difference between state and federal gun laws. AI detection systems in schools can lead to dangerous misunderstandings. The importance of due process in any legal framework cannot be overstated. Florida's use of red flag laws raises concerns about individual rights. The Supreme Court's decisions will shape the future of gun rights. Public opinion on gun control is shifting, with more people advocating for rights. The conversation around gun rights is ongoing and requires active participation. Keywords NRA, Second Amendment, gun rights, self-defense, election strategies, legal challenges, marijuana, voter engagement, advocacy, grassroots mobilization, Second Amendment, gun rights, red flag laws, DOJ, Harmeet Dhillon, Supreme Court, AI detection, Florida gun laws, firearms legislation, self-defense  

Summary The conversation covers a range of topics related to gun rights, including the NRA's advocacy efforts, the importance of voter engagement in upcoming elections, legal challenges facing gun owners, and a specific self-defense case in Prescott, Arizona. The discussion also delves into the implications of marijuana use on Second Amendment rights, highlighting the complexities and potential consequences for users. The conversation delves into various aspects of gun rights, focusing on the Second Amendment, the implications of red flag laws, and the role of government in regulating firearms. It highlights the ongoing debates surrounding these issues, including the impact of federal laws on individual liberties and the challenges posed by AI detection systems in schools. The discussion also touches on the importance of due process and the need for a balanced approach to gun legislation. Takeaways Gun owners are fired up to vote in upcoming elections. Grassroots mobilization is crucial for protecting Second Amendment rights. Legal challenges are ongoing, particularly in states like California and New Jersey. Self-defense cases can have significant legal and personal repercussions. The NRA is actively working to counter anti-gun legislation. Voter engagement is essential to prevent complacency among gun owners. Marijuana use complicates Second Amendment rights due to federal laws. The importance of having legal representation in self-defense cases cannot be overstated. The political landscape is shifting, and gun owners must remain vigilant. The outcome of the Supreme Court case could have far-reaching implications for gun rights. The Second Amendment is a fundamental right that needs protection. Red flag laws are controversial and often seen as unconstitutional. The role of the DOJ in gun legislation is complex and often criticized. There is a significant difference between state and federal gun laws. AI detection systems in schools can lead to dangerous misunderstandings. The importance of due process in any legal framework cannot be overstated. Florida's use of red flag laws raises concerns about individual rights. The Supreme Court's decisions will shape the future of gun rights. Public opinion on gun control is shifting, with more people advocating for rights. The conversation around gun rights is ongoing and requires active participation. Keywords NRA, Second Amendment, gun rights, self-defense, election strategies, legal challenges, marijuana, voter engagement, advocacy, grassroots mobilization, Second Amendment, gun rights, red flag laws, DOJ, Harmeet Dhillon, Supreme Court, AI detection, Florida gun laws, firearms legislation, self-defense  

Last time we spoke about the beginning of the Wuhan Campaign. As Japanese forces pressed toward central China, Chiang Kai-shek faced a brutal choice: defend Wuhan with costly sieges or unleash a dangerous flood to buy time. The Yellow River breached its banks at Huayuankou, sending a wall of water racing toward villages, railways, and fields. The flood did not erase the enemy; it bought months of breathing room for a battered China, but at a terrible toll to civilians who lost homes, farms, and lives. Within Wuhan's orbit, a mosaic of Chinese forces struggled to unite. The NRA, split into competing war zones and factions, numbered about 1.3 million but fought with uneven equipment and training. The Japanese, deploying hundreds of thousands, ships, and air power, pressed from multiple angles: Anqing, Madang, Jiujiang, and beyond, using riverine forts and amphibious landings to turn the Yangtze into a deadly artery. Yet courage endured as troops held lines, pilots challenged the skies, and civilians, like Wang Guozhen, who refused to betray his country, chose defiance over surrender. The war for Wuhan was not a single battle but a testament to endurance in the face of overwhelming odds.   #173 The Fall of Wuhan Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the last episode we began the Battle of Wuhan. Japan captured Anqing and gained air access to Jiujiang, Chinese defenses around the Yangtze River were strained. The southern Yangtze's Ninth War Zone held two key garrisons: one west of Poyang Lake and another in Jiujiang. To deter Japanese assault on Jiujiang, China fortified Madang with artillery, mines, and bamboo booms. On June 24, Japan conducted a surprise Madang landing while pressing south along the Yangtze. Madang's fortress withstood four assaults but suffered heavy bombardment and poison gas. Chinese leadership failures contributed to the fall: Li Yunheng, overseeing Madang, was away at a ceremony, leaving only partial contingents, primarily three battalions from marine corps units and the 313th regiment of the 53rd division, participating, totaling under five battalions. Reinforcements from Pengze were misrouted by Li's orders, arriving too late. Madang fell after three days. Chiang Kai-shek retaliated with a counterattack and rewarded units that recaptured Xiangshan, but further progress was blocked. Li Yunheng was court-martialed, and Xue Weiying executed.   Madang's loss opened a corridor toward Jiujiang. The Japanese needed weeks to clear minefields, sacrificing several ships in the process. With roughly 200,000 Chinese troops in the Jiujiang–Ruichang zone under Xue Yue and Zhang Fukui, the Japanese captured Pengze and then Hukou, using poison gas again during the fighting. The Hukou evacuation cut off many non-combat troops, with over 1,800 of 3,100 soldiers successfully evacuated and more than 1,300 missing drowned in the lake. Two weeks after Hukou's fall, the Japanese reached Jiujiang and overtook it after a five-day battle. The retreat left civilians stranded, and the Jiujiang Massacre followed: about 90,000 civilians were killed, with mass executions of POWs, rapes, and widespread destruction of districts, factories, and transport. Subsequently, the Southern Riverline Campaign saw Japanese detachments along the river advance westward, capturing Ruichang, Ruoxi, and other areas through October, stretching Chinese defenses thin as Japan pressed toward Wuchang and beyond. On July 26, 1938, the Japanese occupied Jiujiang and immediately divided their forces into three routes: advancing toward De'an and Nanchang, then striking Changsha, severing the Yue-Han Railway, and surrounding Wuhan in an effort to annihilate the Chinese field army. The advance of the 101st and 106th Infantry Divisions slowed south of the Yangtze River, yet the Central China Expeditionary Army remained intent on seizing Ruichang and De'an to cut off Chinese forces around Mount Lu. To this end, the 9th and 27th Infantry Divisions were deployed to the sector, with the 9th regarded as an experienced unit that had fought in earlier campaigns, while the 27th was newly formed in the summer of 1938; this contrast underscored the rapidly expanding scope of the war in China as the Japanese Army General Staff continued mobilizing reservists and creating new formations. According to the operational plan, the 101st and 106th Divisions would push south toward De'an to pin Chinese defenders, while the 9th and 27th Divisions would envelop Chinese forces south of the river. Okamura Yasuji ordered five battalions from the 9th to move toward De'an via Ruichang, and the Hata Detachment was tasked with securing the area northwest of Ruichang to protect the 9th's flank. North of the Yangtze, the 6th Infantry Division was to move from Huangmei to Guangji, with Tianjiazhen as the ultimate objective; capturing Tianjiazhen would allow the 11th Army to converge on Wuhan from both north and south of the river.  The operation began when the 9th Division landed at Jiujiang, threatening the left flank of the Jinguanqiao line. The Chinese responded by deploying the 1st Corps to counter the 9th Division's left flank, which threatened the Maruyama Detachment's lines of communication. The Maruyama Detachment counterattacked successfully, enabling the rest of the 9th Division to seize Ruichang on August 24; on the same day, the 9th attacked the 30th Army defending Mount Min. The Chinese defense deteriorated on the mountain, and multiple counterattacks by Chinese divisions failed, forcing the 1st Corps to retreat to Mahuiling. The seizure of Ruichang and the surrounding area was followed by a wave of atrocities, with Japanese forces inflicting substantial casualties, destroying houses, and damaging property, and crimes including murder, rape, arson, torture, and looting devastating many villages and livelihoods in the Ruichang area. After Ruichang and Mount Min fell, the Maruyama Detachment and the 106th Infantry Division advanced on Mahuiling, seeking to encircle Chinese forces from the northwest, with the 106th forming the inner ring and the Maruyama Detachment the outer ring; this coordination led to Mahuiling's fall on September 3. The 27th Infantry Division, arriving in late August, landed east of Xiaochikou, providing the manpower to extend Japanese offensives beyond the Yangtze's banks and outflank Chinese defenders along the river. Its main objective was to seize the Rui-wu highway, a vital route for the continued advance toward Wuhan. After the fall of Mahuiling, Japanese command altered its strategy. The 11th Army ordered the Maruyama Detachment to rejoin the 9th Infantry Division and press westward, while the 101st Infantry Division was to remain at Mahuiling and push south toward De'an along with the 106th Infantry Division. This divergent or “eccentric” offensive aimed to advance on Wuhan while protecting the southern flank. The renewed offensive began on September 11, 1938, with the 9th Infantry Division and Hata Detachment advancing west along the Rui-yang and Rui-wu highways toward Wuhan, followed days later by the 27th Infantry Division. Initially, the Japanese made solid progress from Ruichang toward a line centered on Laowuge, but soon faced formidable Chinese defenses. The 9th and 27th Divisions confronted the Chinese 2nd Army Corps, which had prepared in-depth positions in the mountains west of Sanchikou and Xintanpu. The 27th Division encountered stiff resistance from the 18th and 30th Corps, and although it captured Xiaoao by September 24, its vanguard advancing west of Shujie came under heavy attack from the 91st, 142nd, 60th, and 6th Reserve Infantry Divisions, threatening to encircle it. Only the southward advance of the 101st and 106th Divisions relieved the pressure, forcing the Chinese to redeploy the 91st and 6th Reserve Divisions to the south and thereby loosening the 27th's grip. After the redeployment, the 9th and 27th Divisions resumed their push. The 9th crossed the Fu Shui on October 9 and took Sanjikou on October 16, while the 27th seized Xintanpu on October 18. The Hata Detachment followed, capturing Yangxin on October 18 and Ocheng on October 23, further tightening Japanese control over the highways toward Wuhan. By mid-October, 11th Army commander Okamura Yasuji resolved to sever the Guangzhou-Hankou railway to disrupt Chinese lines. On October 22, the 9th and 27th Divisions attacked toward Jinniu and Xianning. By October 27, the 9th had captured Jinniu and cut the railway; the 27th Division extended the disruption further south. These actions effectively isolated Wuchang from the south, giving the Imperial Japanese Army greater leverage over the southern approaches to Wuhan. The push south by the 101st and 106th Infantry Divisions pressed toward De'an, where they encountered the entrenched Chinese 1st Army Corps. The offensive began on September 16 and by the 24th, elements of the 27th Division penetrated deep into the area west of Baishui Street and De'an's environs. Recognizing the growing crisis, Xue Yue mobilized the nearby 91st and 142nd Divisions, who seized Nanping Mountain along the Ruiwu Line overnight, effectively cutting off the 27th Division's retreat. Fierce combat on the 25th and 26th saw Yang Jialiu, commander of the 360th Regiment of the 60th Division, die a heroic death. Zhang Zhihe, chief of staff of the 30th Group Army and an underground CCP member, commanded the newly formed 13th Division and the 6th Division to annihilate the Suzuki Regiment and recapture Qilin Peak. Learning of the 27th Division's trap, Okamura Yasuji panicked and, on the 25th, urgently ordered the 123rd, 145th, and 147th Infantry Regiments and mountain artillery of the 106th Division on the Nanxun Line, along with the 149th Regiment of the 101st Division on the Dexing Line, to rush to Mahuiling and Xingzi. To adapt to mountain warfare, some units were temporarily converted to packhorse formations. On the 27th, the 106th Division broke through the Wutailing position with force, splitting into two groups and pushing toward Erfangzheng and Lishan. By the 28th, the three regiments and mountain artillery of the 106th Division advanced into the mountain villages of Wanjialing, Leimingguliu, Shibaoshan, Nantianpu, Beixijie, and Dunshangguo, about 50 li west of De'an. On the same day, the 149th Regiment of the 101st Division entered the Wanjialing area and joined the 106th Division. Commanded by Lieutenant General Junrokuro Matsuura, the 106th Division sought to break out of Baicha and disrupt the Nanwu Highway to disrupt the Chinese retreat from De'an. At this juncture, Xue Yue's corps perceived the Japanese advance as a predatory, wolf-like maneuver and deemed it a strategic opportunity to counterattack. He resolved to pull forces from Dexing, Nanxun, and Ruiwu to envelop the enemy near Wanjialing, with the aim of annihilating them. Thus began a desperate, pivotal battle between China and Japan in northern Jiangxi, centered on the Wanjialing area. The Japanese 106th Division found its rear communications cut off around September 28, 1938, as the Chinese blockade tightened. Despite the 27th Division's severed rear and its earlier defeat at Qilin Peak, Okamura Yasuji ordered a renewed push to relieve the besieged 106th by directing the 27th Division to attack Qilin Peak and advance east of Baishui Street. In this phase, the 27th Division dispatched the remnants of its 3rd Regiment to press the assault on Qilin Peak, employing poison gas and briefly reaching the summit. On September 29, the 142nd Division of the 32nd Army, under Shang Zhen, coordinated with the 752nd Regiment of the same division to launch a fierce counterattack on Qilin Peak at Zenggai Mountain west of Xiaoao. After intense fighting, they reclaimed the peak, thwarting the 27th Division's bid to move eastward to aid the 106th. Concurrently, a portion of the 123rd Regiment of the 106th Division attempted a breakout west of Baishui Street. Our 6th and 91st Divisions responded with a determined assault from the east of Xiaoao, blocking the 123rd Regiment east of Baishui Street. The victories at Qilin Peak and Baishui Street halted any merger between the eastern and western Japanese forces, enabling the Chinese army to seal the pocket and create decisive conditions for encircling the 106th Division and securing victory in the Battle of Wanjialing. After the setback at Qilin Peak, Division Commander Masaharu Homma, defying Okamura Yasuji's orders to secure Baishui Street, redirected his focus to Tianhe Bridge under a pretext of broader operations. He neglected the heavily encircled 106th Division and pivoted toward Xintanpu. By September 30, Chinese forces attacked from both the east and west, with the 90th and 91st Divisions joining the assault on the Japanese positions. On October 1, the Japanese, disoriented and unable to pinpoint their own unit locations, telegrammed Okamura Yasuji for air support. On October 2, the First Corps received orders to tighten the encirclement and annihilate the enemy forces. Deployments were made to exploit a numerical advantage and bolster morale, placing the Japanese in a desperate position. On October 3, 1938, the 90th and 91st Divisions launched a concerted attack on Nantianpu, delivering heavy damage to the Japanese force and showering Leimingguliu with artillery fire that endangered the 106th Division headquarters. By October 5, Chinese forces reorganized: the 58th Division of the 74th Army advanced from the south, the 90th Division of the 4th Army from the east, portions of the 6th and 91st Divisions from the west, and the 159th and 160th Divisions of the 65th Army from the north, tightening the surrounding cordon from four directions. On October 6, Xue Yue ordered a counterattack, and by October 7 the Chinese army had effectively cut off all retreat routes. That evening, after fierce hand-to-hand combat, the 4th Army regained the hilltop, standing at a 100-meter-high position, and thwarted any Japanese plan to break through Baicha and sever Chinese retreat toward De'an. By October 8, Lieutenant Colonel Sakurada Ryozo, the 106th Division's staff officer, reported the division's deteriorating situation to headquarters. The telegram signaled the impending collapse of the 106th Division. On October 9, Kuomintang forces recaptured strategic positions such as Lishan, tightening encirclement to a small pocket of about three to four square kilometers in Nantianpu, Leimingguliu, and Panjia. That night, the vanguard attacked the Japanese 106th Division's headquarters at Leimingguliu, engaging in close combat with the Japanese. Matsuura and the division's staff then took up arms in defense. In the early hours of October 10, Japanese forces launched flares that illuminated only a narrow arc of movement, and a limited number of troops fled northwest toward Yangfang Street. The two and a half month battle inflicted tremendous casualties on the Japanese, particularly on the 101st and 106th divisions. These two formations began with a combined strength of over 47,000 troops and ultimately lost around 30,000 men in the fighting. The high casualty rate hit the Japanese officer corps especially hard, forcing General Shunroku Hata to frequently airdrop replacement officers onto the besieged units' bases throughout the engagement. For the Chinese, the successful defense of Wanjialing was pivotal to the Wuhan campaign.  Zooming out at a macro level a lot of action was occurring all over the place. Over in Shandong, 1,000 soldiers under Shi Yousan, who had defected multiple times between rival warlord cliques and operated as an independent faction, occupied Jinan and held it for a few days. Guerrillas briefly controlled Yantai. East of Changzhou extending to Shanghai, another non-government Chinese force, led by Dai Li, employed guerrilla tactics in the Shanghai suburbs and across the Huangpu River. This force included secret society members from the Green Gang and the Tiandihui, who conducted executions of spies and perceived traitors, losing more than 100 men in the course of operations. On August 13, members of this force clandestinely entered the Japanese air base at Hongqiao and raised a Chinese flag. Meanwhile, the Japanese Sixth Division breached the defensive lines of Chinese 31st and 68th Armies on July 24 and captured Taihu, Susong, and Huangmei Counties by August 3. As Japanese forces advanced westward, the Chinese Fourth Army of the Fifth War Zone deployed its main strength in Guangji, Hubei, and Tianjia Town to intercept the offensive. The 11th Army Group and the 68th Army were ordered to form a defensive line in Huangmei County, while the 21st and 29th Army Groups, along with the 26th Army, moved south to outflank the Japanese. The Chinese recaptured Taihu on August 27 and Susong on August 28. However, with Japanese reinforcements arriving on August 30, the Chinese 11th Army Group and the 68th Army were unable to sustain counteroffensives and retreated to Guangji County to continue resisting alongside the 26th, 55th, and 86th Armies. The Chinese Fourth Army Group directed the 21st and 29th Army Groups to flank the Japanese from the northeast of Huangmei, but they failed to halt the Japanese advance. Guangji fell on September 6, and while Guangji was recovered by the Chinese Fourth Corps on September 8, Wuxue was lost on the same day. Zooming back in on the Wuhan Front, the Japanese focus shifted to Tianjiazhen. The fortress of Tianjiazhen represented the 6th Infantry Division's most important objective. Its geographic position, where the Yangtze's two banks narrow to roughly 600 meters, with cliffs and high ground overlooking the river, allowed Chinese forces to deploy gun batteries that could control the river and surrounding terrain. Chinese control of Tianjiazhen thus posed a serious obstacle to Japan's amphibious and logistical operations on the Yangtze, and its seizure was deemed essential for Japan to advance toward Wuhan. Taking Tianjiazhen would not be easy: overland approaches were impeded by mountainous terrain on both sides of the fortress, while an amphibious assault faced fortified positions and minefields in the narrow river. Recognizing its strategic importance, Chinese forces reinforced Tianjiazhen with three divisions from central government troops, aiming to deter an overland assault. Chinese preparations included breaching several dykes and dams along the Yangtze to flood expanses of land and slow the Japanese advance; however, the resulting higher water levels widened the river and created a more accessible supply route for the Japanese. Instead of relying on a long overland route from Anqing to Susong, the Japanese could now move supplies directly up the Yangtze from Jiujiang to Huangmei, a distance of only about 40 kilometers, which boosted the 6th Division's logistics and manpower. In August 1938 the 6th Infantry Division resumed its northward push, facing determined resistance from the 4th Army Corps entrenched in a narrow defile south of the Dabie Mountains, with counterattacks from the 21st and 27th Army Groups affecting the 6th's flank. The Dabie Mountains are a major mountain range located in central China. Running northwest to southeast, they form the main watershed between the Huai and Yangtze rivers. The range also marks the boundary between Hubei Province and its neighboring provinces of Henan to the north and Anhui to the east. By early September the 6th had captured Guangji, providing a staging ground for the thrust toward Tianjiazhen, though this extended the division's long flank: after Guangji fell, it now faced a 30-kilometer front between Huangmei and Guangji, exposing it to renewed Chinese pressure from the 21st and 27th Army Groups. This constrained the number of troops available for the main objective at Tianjiazhen. Consequently, the Japanese dispatched only a small force, three battalions from the Imamura Detachment, to assault Tianjiazhen, betting that the fortress could be taken within a week. The KMT, learning from previous defeats, reinforced Tianjiazhen with a stronger infantry garrison and built obstacles, barbed wire, pillboxes, and trench networks, to slow the assault. These defenses, combined with limited Japanese logistics, six days of rations per soldier, made the operation costly and precarious. The final Japanese assault was postponed by poor weather, allowing Chinese forces to press counterattacks: three Chinese corps, the 26th, 48th, and 86th, attacked the Imamura Detachment's flank and rear, and by September 18 these attacks had begun to bite, though the floods of the Yangtze prevented a complete encirclement of the eastern flank. Despite these setbacks, Japanese riverine and ground operations continued, aided by naval support that moved up the Yangtze as Matouzhen's batteries were overtaken. After Matouzhen fell and enabled a secure riverine supply line from Shanghai to Guangji, 11th Army commander Okamura Yasuji quickly sent relief supplies upriver on September 23. These replenishments restored the besieged troops near Tianjiazhen and allowed the Japanese to resume the offensive, employing night assaults and poison gas to seize Tianjiazhen on September 29, 1938, thereby removing a major barrier to their advance toward Wuhan along the Yangtze. The 11th Army pressed north along the Yangtze while the 2nd Army, commanded by Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni, concentrated the 3rd, 10th, 13th, and 16th Infantry Divisions around Hefei with initial aims at Lu'an and Heshan and the broader objective of moving toward the northern foothills of the Dabie Mountains. When Chinese forces began destroying roads west of Lu'an, Naruhiko shifted the 2nd Army's plan. Rather than pushing along a line from Lu'an to Heshan, he redirected toward the Huangchuan–Shangcheng corridor, where more intact roads remained accessible, and Chinese withdrawals in the Huangchuan–Shangceng area to counter the 11th Army's Yangtze advance allowed the 2nd Army to gain speed in the early stage of its offensive. The 10th and 13th Infantry Divisions were ordered to begin their advance on August 27, facing roughly 25,000 Chinese troops from the Fifth War Zone's 51st and 77th Corps, and achieving notable early gains. The 10th captured Lu'an on August 28, followed by the 13th taking Heshan on August 29. The 10th then seized Kushi on September 7. Meanwhile, the 13th crossed the Shi River at night in an attempt to seize Changbailing, but encountered stiff resistance from multiple Chinese divisions that slowed its progress. To bolster the effort, Naruhiko ordered the Seiya Detachment from the 10th Division—three infantry battalions—to reinforce the 13th. Despite these reinforcements, momentum remained insufficient, so he deployed the 16th Infantry Division, which had arrived at Yenchiachi, to assault Shangcheng from the north. After crossing the Shi River at Yanjiachi, the 16th outflanked Shangcheng from the north, coordinating with the 13th from the south; the Chinese withdrew and Shangcheng fell. Following this success, Naruhiko ordered the 13th and 16th Divisions to push deeper into the Dabie Mountains toward Baikou and Songfu, while the 10th and 3rd Divisions moved toward Leshan and Xinyang, with Xinyang, a crucial Beijing–Wuhan Railway node, representing a particularly important objective. The Japanese advance progressed steadily through the Dabie Mountains, with the 10th executing bold maneuvers to outflank Leshan from the south and the 3rd penetrating toward the Beijing–Wuhan railway north of Xinyang, collectively disrupting and cutting the railway near Xinyang in October. An independent unit, the Okada Detachment, operated between these forces, advancing through Loshan before sealing Xinyang on October 12. The seizure of Xinyang effectively severed Wuhan's northern artery from external reinforcement and resupply, signaling a decisive turn against Wuhan as a Chinese stronghold. While the 2nd Army advanced in the Dabie Mountains, another critical development was taking place far to the south. By the end of 1937, southern China became more crucial to the Republic of China as a lifeline to the outside world. Guangzhou and Hong Kong served as some of the last vital transportation hubs and sources of international aid for Chiang Kai-Shek, with approximately 80 percent of supplies from abroad reaching Chinese forces in the interior through Guangzhou. Imperial General Headquarters believed that a blockade of Guangdong province would deprive China of essential war materiel and the ability to prolong the war. As I always liked to term it, the Japanese were trying to plug up the leaks of supplies coming into China, and Guangzhou was the largest one. In 1936 the Hankow-Canton railway was completed, and together with the Kowloon-Canton railway formed a rapid all-rail link from south China to central and northern China. For the first sixteen months of the war, about 60,000 tons of goods transited per month through the port of Hong Kong. The central government also reported the import of 1.5 million gallons of gasoline through Hong Kong in 1938, and more than 700,000 tons of goods would eventually reach Hankou using the new railway. In comparison, the Soviet Union in 1937 was sending war materiel through Xinjiang to Lanzhou using camels, with Chinese raw materials traveling back either the same route or via Hong Kong to Vladivostok. By 1940, 50,000 camels and hundreds of trucks were transporting 2,000–3,000 tons of Soviet war material per month into China. Japanese planning for operations began in early November 1937, with the blockade's objectives centered on seizing a portion of Daya Bay and conducting air operations from there. In December 1937, the 5th Army, including the 11th Division, the Formosa Mixed Brigade, and the 4th Air Brigade, were activated in Formosa under Lt. Gen. Motoo Furusho to achieve this objective. Due to the proximity of Daya Bay to Hong Kong, the Japanese government feared potential trouble with Britain, and the operation was subsequently suspended, leading to the deactivation of the 5th Army. By June 1938, the Battle of Wuhan convinced Imperial General Headquarters that the fighting could not be localized. The headquarters reversed policy and began preparations to capture Guangzhou and to expedite the settlement of the war. During the peak of the battles of Shanghai and Nanjing, urgent demands for aerial support at the Battle of Taiyuan in the north and at Canton in the south forced the Nationalist Air Force of China to split the 28th Pursuit Squadron and the 5th Pursuit Group , based at Jurong Airbase in the Nanking defense sector. The squadron was divided into two smaller units: Lt. Arthur Chin led one half toward Canton, while Capt. Chan Kee-Wong led the other half to Taiyuan. On September 27, 1937, the 28th PS under Lt. Arthur Chin dispatched four Hawk IIs from Shaoguan Airbase, and the 29th PS under Lt. Chen Shun-Nan deployed three Hawk IIIs from Tianhe Airbase. Their mission was to intercept Japanese IJNAF G3M bombers attempting to strike the Canton–Hankow railway infrastructure. The two flights engaged the Japanese bombers over Canton, claiming at least two kills; one G3M dumped fuel and ditching off the coast of Swatow, with its crew rescued by a British freighter, though one of the gunners died of battle injuries. In October 1937, amid mounting demands and combat losses, the Chinese government ordered 36 Gloster Gladiator Mk.I fighters, whose performance and firepower surpassed that of the Hawk IIs and IIIs, and most of these would become frontline fighters for the Canton defense sector as the war extended into 1938. On February 23, 1938, Capt. John Huang Xinrui, another Chinese-American volunteer pilot, took command of the renewed 29th PS, now equipped with the Gladiators. He led nine Gladiators from Nanxiong Airbase on their first active combat over Canton, supporting three Gladiators from the 28th PS as they intercepted thirteen Nakajima E8N fighter-attack seaplanes launched from the seaplane tenders Notoro Maru and Kinugasa Maru. The battle proved challenging: most of the Gladiators' machine guns jammed, severely reducing their firepower. Despite this, five of the E8Ns were shot down, confirmed by Capt. Huang and his fellow pilots who managed to strike the Japanese aircraft with only one, two, or three functioning guns per Gladiator. Chin later revealed that the gun jams were caused by defective Belgian-made ammunition. The combat nevertheless proved tragic and costly: Lt. Xie Chuanhe (Hsieh Chuan-ho) and his wingman Lt. Yang Rutong pursued the E8Ns but were stymied by inoperable weapons, with Lt. Yang killed in the counterattack, and Lt. Chen Qiwei lost under similar circumstances. The 4th War Area Army, commanded by He Yingqin, was assigned to the defense of south China in 1938. General Yu Hanmou led the 12th Army Group defending Guangdong province. The region's defense included about eight divisions and two brigades of regular army troops stationed around Guangzhou, with an additional five divisions of regular troops deployed in Fujian. The 4th War Area Army totaled roughly 110,000 regular army troops. By this time, most regular army units in Guangxi and four Guangdong divisions had been redirected north to participate in the Battle of Wuhan. Beyond the regular army, two militia divisions were deployed near Guangzhou, and the Guangxi militia comprised five divisions. Militia units were typically raised from local civilians and disbanded as the army moved through new areas. Their roles centered on security, supply transportation, and reconnaissance. Guangdong's main defensive strength was concentrated in Guangzhou and the immediate environs to the city's east. Other Chinese forces defended Chaozhou and western Guangdong. Defensive fortifications included the Humen fortress guarding the Pearl River mouth and three defensive lines near Daya Bay. Guangzhou housed three batteries of four three-inch guns, a battery of three 120mm guns, and Soviet-supplied 37mm anti-aircraft guns. The Imperial Japanese Navy conducted an aerial and naval interdiction campaign aimed at China's communication lines to neighboring regions. Japan believed that the blockade would hasten the end of the war, and disruption of the Chinese logistics network was the primary objective in Guangdong province from August 1937 until October 1938. The 5th Fleet's blockading actions extended along the coast from Haimenchen, Zhejiang to Shantou, with the 5th Destroyer Squadron patrolling the coast south of Shantou. At times, units from the Marianas were deployed to support coastal blockade operations in south China, usually consisting of cruisers accompanied by destroyer flotillas. One or two aircraft carriers and fleet auxiliaries would also be on station. Naval interdictions focused on stopping junks ferrying military supplies from Hong Kong to coastal China. The first recorded attack occurred in September 1937 when eleven junks were sunk by a Japanese submarine. Although Japan successfully blockaded Chinese shipping and ports, foreign shipping could still enter and depart from Hong Kong. The central government had established Hong Kong as a warehouse for munitions and supplies to pass through. Aerial interdictions targeted Chinese railway bridges and trains in Guangdong. Starting in October 1937, the Japanese launched air raids against the Sunning railway, focusing on government facilities and bridges in Jiangmen and towns along the railway. By 1938, airstrikes against the Kowloon–C Canton railway became common, with damaged trains periodically found along the line. An air-defense early warning system was created to divert trains during raids into forested areas that offered overhead concealment. In May 1938, the Colonial Office and the Foreign Office approved a Chinese request to construct and operate a locomotive repair yard within the New Territories to keep the railway operational. Airstrikes against rail facilities in Guangzhou were designed to interrupt rail supplies from Hong Kong so Japan would not need to commit to land operations in south China. However, the air raids did not severely impede railway operations or stop supplies moving through Hunan or Guangxi. The blockade in south China also targeted aircraft flying out of Hong Kong. In November 1937, a Royal Navy aircraft from HMS Eagle encountered Japanese naval anti-aircraft fire off the coast of Hong Kong. In December 1937, fifteen Japanese bombers overflew Lantau Island and the Taikoo docks. In August 1938, Japanese naval aircraft shot down a China National Aviation Corporation passenger plane, and two Eurasia Aviation Corporation passenger planes were shot down the following month. Beyond military targets, the Japanese conducted politically motivated terror bombing in Guangzhou. Bombing intensified from May to June 1938 with incendiary munitions and low-level strafing attacks against ships. The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service, operating from Formosa and the carrier Kaga, conducted about 400 airstrikes during this period and continued into July. By the end of the summer, Guangzhou's population had dwindled to approximately 600,000 from an original 1.3 million. From August 1937 to October 1938, casualties in Guangzhou were estimated at 6,000 killed and 8,000 injured. On October 12, 1938, Japanese forces from the 21st Army, including the 5th, 18th, and 104th Infantry Divisions, landed in Guangzhou, launching the operation at 4:00 am with elements of the 5th and 18th Divisions hitting Aotou and elements of the 104th Division landing at Hachung in Bias Bay. Initially totaling about 30,000 men, they were soon reinforced by a further 20,000, and resistance was minimal because most of Yu Hanmou's 12th Army Group had been redeployed to central China to defend approaches to Wuhan, leaving only two regular Chinese divisions, the 151st and 153rd, to defend the region. By the night of October 12, the Japanese had established a 10-kilometer-deep beachhead and advanced inland; on October 13 they seized the towns of Pingshan and Tamshui with little opposition, and on October 15 they converged on Waichow and captured it. The fall of Pingshan, located on the Sai Kong River with a deep, broad river and only a flimsy crossing, and Waichow, where Chinese defenses included trenches and concrete pillboxes, surprised observers since these positions had been prepared to resist invasion; nonetheless, Chinese forces fled, opening the road to Guangzhou for the Japanese. Between October 16 and 19, three Japanese columns pushed inland, with the easternmost column crossing the East River on the 16th and the 5th Infantry Division capturing Sheklung on the 19th as Chinese forces retreated. By the night of October 20, Guangzhou's defenders withdrew and adopted a scorched-earth policy to deny resources to the invaders. On October 21, Japanese tanks entered Guangzhou without infantry support, and a regiment from the 5th Infantry Division captured the Bocca Tigris forts with no resistance. With Guangzhou secured, the Guangzhou–Wuhan railway and the Hong Kong–Guangzhou railway were severed, supplies to Wuhan were cut, Chiang Kai-Shek faced a daunting and depressing task, he had to abandon Wuhan. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Yangtze became a bloodied artery as Chinese and Japanese forces clashed from Anqing to Jiujiang, Madang to Tianjiazhen. A mosaic of Chinese troops, filled with grit and missteps, held lines while civilians like Wang Guozhen refused to surrender. The siege of Wanjialing crowned Chinese resilience, even as Guangzhou buckled under a relentless blockade. The Fall of Wuhan was all but inevitable.

Hello everyone and welcome back to This Week in Guns, brought to you by Patriot Patch Company, FFLPayments, Traditional Arms, and MAF Corporation. This show offers commentary on the latest firearms industry news, information and buzz. I'm your host Matthew Larosiere and I'm joined by the ratman. The End of an Era? The Glock Schism Traditional Arms: Fuddbusters and Ratman The Everytown Fun Safety Program LA Sheriff office gets sued by DOJ for being slow about gun permits MAF Corp: Fudbdusterss Supreme Court Agrees to Take Up Woolford, Where DOJ is Amicus SCOTUS also takes up guns and durgs case FFL Payments Federal Government Shutdown Shits up NFA Forms, Wagies sent back to cagies but other issues remain Patriot patch Co. TWIG10 Highlight on the Adamiak case and update 0:00 Introduction and sponsors 0:24 Ivan's anecdotes and references 0:56 Matt's updates on delays and recent events 1:48 Glock rumors and discussion 3:17 Glock models and market analysis 6:20 Personal gun preferences and anecdotes 7:06 Public and market reaction to Glock changes 13:25 California's impact on Glock and firearm industry 20:29 Glock's new model rollout and associated risks 26:23 California's new gun law and its implications 32:25 Underground market and Glock's legal considerations 37:05 Sponsor: Traditional Arms LLC 37:50 NRA's current status and Everytown's firearm safety program 46:03 Everytown's internal issues and qualifications debate 55:16 DOJ's legal actions and Los Angeles Sheriff's Department case 59:29 Sponsor: MAF Arms 1:00:20 Supreme Court cases on gun rights and government roles 1:06:19 Sponsor: FFL Payment Processing 1:07:17 NFA firearms processing during government shutdown 1:10:02 Sponsor: Patriotpatch.co 1:10:35 Adamiak case update and Seventh Circuit arguments 1:19:07 DOJ's stance and actions in firearm-related cases 1:23:07 Thanks to Patreon supporters

Friday, October 27th, 2023In the Hot Notes: at least 18 people are dead and another 13 injured after shootings in Lewiston Maine; New York Republicans push ahead with a resolution to expel George Santos from the House; NRA revenue is in free-fall after dues and membership plummet; A federal judge has struck down Georgia's congressional and legislative maps ruling that they violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act; Ford and the United Auto Workers Union have reached a tentative deal that includes a record pay raise; Republicans delay more than $1B in HIV program funding; a former healthcare executive is charged for a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme; the DoJ responds to Trump's motions to stay his DC gag order and to alert the court of his advice of counsel defense; the US economy grew at a blistering rate in the third quarter; the Ohio secretary of state has quietly removed 26,000 people from voter rolls; plus Allison delivers your Good News.Dana is out and about.More from our Guest:Anna Bowerhttps://twitter.com/annabowerhttps://www.lawfaremedia.orgSubscribe to Lawyers, Guns, And Money:Ad-free premium feed:https://lawyersgunsandmoney.supercast.comSubscribe for free everywhere else:https://link.chtbl.com/LawGunsMoney Our Donation LinksNational Security Counselors - DonateMSW Media, Blue Wave California Victory Fund | ActBlueWhistleblowerAid.org/beansFederal workers - feel free to email AG at fedoath@pm.me and let me know what you're going to do, or just vent. I'm always here to listen. Find Upcoming Actions 50501 Movement, No Kings.org, Indivisible.orgDr. Allison Gill - Substack, BlueSky , TikTok, IG, TwitterDana Goldberg - BlueSky, Twitter, IG, facebook, danagoldberg.comCheck out more from MSW Media - Shows - MSW Media, Cleanup On Aisle 45 pod, The Breakdown | SubstackShare your Good News or Good TroubleMSW Good News and Good TroubleHave some good news; a confession; or a correction to share?Good News & Confessions - The Daily Beanshttps://www.dailybeanspod.com/confessional/ Listener Survey:http://survey.podtrac.com/start-survey.aspx?pubid=BffJOlI7qQcF&ver=shortFollow the Podcast on Apple:The Daily Beans on Apple PodcastsWant to support the show and get it ad-free and early?The Daily Beans | SupercastThe Daily Beans & Mueller, She Wrote | PatreonThe Daily Beans | Apple Podcasts Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jeff was joined by Monte Bowen and Chris Stone from the Gun Owners (GOA) of America. They discuss why they are visiting Alaska, what the GOA is and their mission, the difference between the GOA and the NRA, their no compromise stance on the Second Amendment, their thoughts on red flag laws, the importance of firearm safety, why some areas have more gun violence than others, and the role mental health plays in the gun debate. 

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses the implications of Glock's recent business decisions and their impact on the firearms industry. Joined by David Codrea, they explore the intersection of gun rights, political strategy, and the responsibilities of gun manufacturers. The conversation emphasizes the importance of constructive criticism within the gun community and the challenges faced by companies like Glock in navigating political pressures while maintaining their business integrity. Takeaways Mark Walters emphasizes the importance of freedom and gun rights. David Codrea discusses the implications of Glock's recent decisions. The conversation highlights the challenges faced by gun manufacturers. Criticism within the gun community is necessary for growth. The impact of political decisions on the firearms industry is significant. Glock's business strategy is questioned in light of recent events. The need for constructive criticism is stressed by both speakers. The importance of consumer choices in the firearms market is discussed. Mark and David agree on the necessity of defending the Second Amendment. The episode concludes with a call to action for listeners to stay engaged. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, Glock, political strategy, firearms industry, freedom, NRA, gun control, business decisions, David Codrea  

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various topics surrounding gun control, the Second Amendment, and the implications of recent legislation. The conversation touches on the symbolic nature of certain gun control ordinances, the ongoing battle against organizations like Everytown for Gun Safety, and the potential impact of Supreme Court cases on gun rights. Additionally, the discussion includes the intersection of marijuana legislation and gun ownership, cultural perspectives on alcohol, and the political climate that may lead to civil unrest. Takeaways The St. Paul City Council's gun violence prevention ordinance is largely symbolic due to state law restrictions. Everytown for Gun Safety is actively working against gun manufacturers like Glock. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on significant Second Amendment cases soon. Marijuana legislation may affect gun ownership rights for users. Cultural attitudes towards alcohol and marijuana influence discussions on gun ownership. Patriot Mobile supports gun rights and is a partner of Armed American Radio. Political polarization is a growing concern in the U.S. The potential for civil unrest is heightened by current political tensions. Gun owners need to be active in supporting their rights through organizations like the NRA. The left's violent rhetoric raises concerns about future political stability. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun control, Second Amendment, Supreme Court, marijuana legislation, civil war, political polarization, Everytown for Gun Safety, Glock, Patriot Mobile  

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses significant developments in the firearms industry, particularly focusing on Glock's recent announcement to discontinue many of its models. The conversation delves into the implications of this decision, community reactions, and the broader political landscape surrounding gun rights and legislation. With insights from Lee the Gun Writer Williams, the episode emphasizes the importance of staying informed about legal matters related to firearms and encourages listeners to engage in the ongoing conversation about gun rights. Takeaways Mark Walters emphasizes the importance of freedom and the Second Amendment. The conversation highlights the impact of legal decisions on gun manufacturers. Glock's discontinuation of models raises questions about market strategy and consumer safety. Community feedback reveals concerns about potential gun control implications. The discussion reflects on the reliability and reputation of Glock firearms. Mark and Lee discuss the political landscape surrounding gun legislation. The importance of staying informed about legal matters related to firearms is stressed. The conversation touches on the role of social media in shaping public opinion on gun issues. Mark encourages listeners to support the NRA and other gun rights organizations. The episode concludes with a call to action for responsible gun ownership. Keywords Armed American Radio, Glock, Second Amendment, gun rights, NRA, firearms news, legal updates, gun control, community reactions, Glock discontinuation  

Summary This episode of Armed American Radio features host Mark Walters and guest Cam Edwards discussing the current political climate surrounding gun rights, particularly in Virginia. They delve into the implications of upcoming elections, the importance of voter turnout, and a controversial school search incident involving a New Hampshire student. The conversation also highlights the legal efforts of the Second Amendment Foundation to protect gun owners' rights and debunk myths about gun registries. Ryan Petty joins the discussion to share insights on school safety and the necessity of armed security in schools, emphasizing the importance of quick response times in emergency situations. The episode concludes with a call to action for continued advocacy in protecting Second Amendment rights. In this conversation, the speakers discuss various themes surrounding political discourse, school safety, media influence, and the polarization of American politics. They emphasize the importance of parental involvement in school safety, the security concerns facing political leaders, and the role of media in shaping public perception. The conversation also touches on the consequences of political rhetoric and the need for engagement in the fight for rights and safety. Takeaways The left thrives on tragedy to push their agenda. Parental involvement is crucial for school safety. The polarization in American politics is deepening. Media plays a significant role in shaping public perception. Security threats against political leaders are increasing. Political discourse often lacks genuine arguments. Engagement in political processes is essential for change. Understanding the safety of children in schools is paramount. The concept of a constitutional republic is under threat. Incitement of violence through media rhetoric is concerning. Key Words Armed American Radio, gun rights, Virginia elections, school safety, Second Amendment, NRA, political commentary, Cam Edwards, Ryan Petty, legal issues, politics, school safety, media influence, gun rights, political discourse, parental involvement, security concerns, American polarization, public perception, political rhetoric

Summary This episode of Armed American Radio features host Mark Walters and guest Cam Edwards discussing the current political climate surrounding gun rights, particularly in Virginia. They delve into the implications of upcoming elections, the importance of voter turnout, and a controversial school search incident involving a New Hampshire student. The conversation also highlights the legal efforts of the Second Amendment Foundation to protect gun owners' rights and debunk myths about gun registries. Ryan Petty joins the discussion to share insights on school safety and the necessity of armed security in schools, emphasizing the importance of quick response times in emergency situations. The episode concludes with a call to action for continued advocacy in protecting Second Amendment rights. In this conversation, the speakers discuss various themes surrounding political discourse, school safety, media influence, and the polarization of American politics. They emphasize the importance of parental involvement in school safety, the security concerns facing political leaders, and the role of media in shaping public perception. The conversation also touches on the consequences of political rhetoric and the need for engagement in the fight for rights and safety. Takeaways The left thrives on tragedy to push their agenda. Parental involvement is crucial for school safety. The polarization in American politics is deepening. Media plays a significant role in shaping public perception. Security threats against political leaders are increasing. Political discourse often lacks genuine arguments. Engagement in political processes is essential for change. Understanding the safety of children in schools is paramount. The concept of a constitutional republic is under threat. Incitement of violence through media rhetoric is concerning. Key Words Armed American Radio, gun rights, Virginia elections, school safety, Second Amendment, NRA, political commentary, Cam Edwards, Ryan Petty, legal issues, politics, school safety, media influence, gun rights, political discourse, parental involvement, security concerns, American polarization, public perception, political rhetoric

Summary This episode of Armed American Radio features host Mark Walters and guest Cam Edwards discussing the current political climate surrounding gun rights, particularly in Virginia. They delve into the implications of upcoming elections, the importance of voter turnout, and a controversial school search incident involving a New Hampshire student. The conversation also highlights the legal efforts of the Second Amendment Foundation to protect gun owners' rights and debunk myths about gun registries. Ryan Petty joins the discussion to share insights on school safety and the necessity of armed security in schools, emphasizing the importance of quick response times in emergency situations. The episode concludes with a call to action for continued advocacy in protecting Second Amendment rights. In this conversation, the speakers discuss various themes surrounding political discourse, school safety, media influence, and the polarization of American politics. They emphasize the importance of parental involvement in school safety, the security concerns facing political leaders, and the role of media in shaping public perception. The conversation also touches on the consequences of political rhetoric and the need for engagement in the fight for rights and safety. Takeaways The left thrives on tragedy to push their agenda. Parental involvement is crucial for school safety. The polarization in American politics is deepening. Media plays a significant role in shaping public perception. Security threats against political leaders are increasing. Political discourse often lacks genuine arguments. Engagement in political processes is essential for change. Understanding the safety of children in schools is paramount. The concept of a constitutional republic is under threat. Incitement of violence through media rhetoric is concerning. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, Virginia elections, school safety, Second Amendment, NRA, political commentary, Cam Edwards, Ryan Petty, legal issues, politics, school safety, media influence, gun rights, political discourse, parental involvement, security concerns, American polarization, public perception, political rhetoric  

Last time we spoke about the flooding of the Yellow River. As Japanese forces pressed toward central China, Chiang Kai-shek weighed a desperate gamble: defend majestic Wuhan with costly sieges, or unleash a radical plan that would flood its heart. Across/Xuzhou, Taierzhuang, and the Yellow River's bend near Zhengzhou, commanders fought a brutal, grinding war. Chinese units, battered yet stubborn, executed strategic retreats and furious counteroffensives. But even as brave soldiers stalled the enemy, the longer fight threatened to drain a nation's will and leave millions unprotected. Then a striking idea surfaced: breach the dikes of the Yellow River at Huayuankou and flood central China to halt the Japanese advance. The plan was terrifying in its moral cost, yet it offered a temporary shield for Wuhan and time to regroup. Workers, farmers, soldiers, laborers—pushed aside fear and toiled through the night, water rising like a raging tide. The flood bought months, not victory. It punished civilians as much as it protected soldiers, leaving a nation to confront its own hard choices and the haunting question: was survival worth the price?   #172 The Road to Wuhan Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Following the Battle of Xuzhou and the breaching of the Yangtze dykes, Wuhan emerged as Japan's next military objective for political, economic, and strategic reasons. Wuhan served as the interim capital of the Kuomintang government, making it a crucial center of political authority. Its fall would deprive China of a vital rail and river hub, thereby further crippling the Chinese war effort. From a strategic perspective, Japanese control of a major rail and river junction on the Yangtze would enable westward expansion and provide a base for further advances into central and southern China. For these reasons, the Intelligence Division of the Army General Staff assessed that the capture of Wuhan would likely deliver the decisive blow needed to conclude the Second Sino-Japanese War.  Recognizing Wuhan's strategic importance, both the National Revolutionary Army and the Imperial Japanese Army committed substantial forces to the city and its approaches. The IJA deployed roughly 400,000 troops, while the NRA fielded at least 800,000. China began the war with an estimated regular force of 1.7 to 2.2 million men, organized into six broad loyalty-based categories around Chiang Kai-shek's command. Directly loyal troops formed the first group, followed by a second tier of soldiers who had previously supported Chiang but were less tightly controlled. The next category consisted of provincial troops that Chiang could ordinarily influence, while a fourth group included provincial units over which his sway was weaker. The fifth category comprised Communist forces, the Eighth Route Army in the northwest and the New Fourth Army forming in the central Yangtze region. The final category consisted of Northeastern or Manchurian units loyal to Zhang Xueliang, known as the “Young Marshal.” The first two categories together accounted for roughly 900,000 men, with about a million more in independent provincial armies, and roughly 300,000 in Communist and Manchurian forces. As commander-in-chief, Chiang could effectively command only about half of the mobilizable units at the outbreak of war in July 1937, which meant that military decisions were often slow, fraught with negotiation, and administratively cumbersome. Division-level coordination and communication proved particularly challenging, a stark contrast to the Japanese command structure, which remained clean and disciplined. Geographically, most of Chiang's loyal troops were located in the corridor between the Yangtze and the Yellow rivers at the start of 1938. Having participated heavily in the defense of Shanghai and Nanjing, they retreated to Wuhan at about half strength, with an already decimated officer corps. They then numbered around 400,000 and were commanded by generals Chen Cheng and Hu Zongnan. The northern regional armies, especially Han Fuju's forces in Shandong, had suffered severe losses; some units defected to the Japanese and later served as puppet troops. After six months of Japanese onslaught that cost the coastal and central regions—Peiping-Tianjin to Shanghai and inland toward Nanjing—much of the relatively autonomous, sizable armies remained from the southwest or northwest, under leaders such as Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi (Guangxi), Long Yun (Yunnan), and Yan Xishan (Shanxi and Suiyuan). Roughly 700,000 of these troops—predominantly from Guangxi under Li and Bai—were committed to the defense of Wuhan. The Communist forces, by contrast, numbered about 100,000 and remained relatively unscathed in bases north and east of Xi'an. In total, approximately 1.3 million men were under arms in defense of Wuhan. In December 1937, the Military Affairs Commission was established to determine Wuhan's defense strategy. Following the loss of Xuzhou, the National Revolutionary Army redeployed approximately 1.1 million troops across about 120 divisions. The commission organized the defense around three main fronts: the Dabie Mountains, Poyang Lake, and the Yangtze River, in response to an estimated 200,000 Japanese troops spread over 20 divisions of the Imperial Japanese Army. Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi, commanding the Fifth War Zone, were assigned to defend the north of the Yangtze, while Chen Cheng, commanding the Ninth War Zone, was tasked with defending the south. The First War Zone, situated to the west of the Zhengzhou–Xinyang segment of the Pinghan Railway, was responsible for halting Japanese forces advancing from the North China Plain, and the Third War Zone, located between Wuhu, Anqing, and Nanchang, was charged with protecting the Yuehan Railway. Following the Japanese occupation of Xuzhou in May 1938, they sought to expand the invasion. The IJA decided to dispatch a vanguard to occupy Anqing as a forward base for an assault on Wuhan. The main force would then advance north of the Dabie Mountains along the Huai River, with the objective of eventually capturing Wuhan via the Wusheng Pass. A second detachment would move west along the Yangtze. However, a flood from the Yellow River forced the IJA to abandon plans to advance along the Huai and instead to attack along both banks of the Yangtze. Despite Chinese numerical superiority on the Wuhan front, roughly a 2:1 advantage, the offensive faced several complicating factors. The NRA was a heterogeneous, fragmented force with a variety of tables of organization and equipment, and it lacked the unified command structure that characterized the IJA. Historian Richard Frank notes the broad diversity of Chinese forces at the outbreak of the war, which hindered cohesive mobile and strategic operations: “Chiang commanded armies of 2,029,000 troops of highly variegated capability and loyalty. His personal forces included an elite cadre of three hundred-thousand German-trained and eighty-thousand German armed men. A second stratum of the Chinese armies, numbering roughly 600,000 included various regional commands loyal to Chiang in the past that generally conformed to his directives. These troops were better armed and trained than the rest. The third category encompassed a million men who were neither loyal nor obedient to Chiang”. The NRA faced a significant disadvantage in both quantity and quality of equipment compared to the Japanese. The disparity was stark in artillery allocations. An IJA infantry division possessed 48 field and mountain guns, whereas a German-equipped Chinese division had only 16. In terms of regiment and battalion guns, a Japanese division had 56, while a German-equipped Chinese division possessed just 30. Of roughly 200 Chinese infantry divisions in 1937, only 20 were German-equipped, and merely eight of those met their paper-strength standards. Many Chinese divisions had no artillery at all, and those that did often lacked radios or forward-observation capabilities to ensure accurate fire. These deficiencies placed the NRA at a clear disadvantage in firepower when facing the Japanese. These equipment gaps were compounded by poor training and tactical doctrine. The NRA lacked adequate training facilities and did not incorporate sufficient field maneuvers, gun handling, or marksmanship into its program. Although the 1935 drill manual introduced small-group “open order” tactics, many formations continued to fight in close-order formations. In an era when increased firepower rendered close-order tactics obsolete, such formations became a liability. The NRA's failure to adapt dispersed assault formations limited its tactical effectiveness. Defensively, the NRA also faced serious shortcomings. Units were often ordered to create deep positions near key lines of communication, but Chinese forces became overly dependent on fixed fortifications, which immobilized their defense. Poor intelligence on Japanese movements and a lack of mobile reserves, there were only about 3,000 military vehicles in China in 1937, meant that Japanese infantry could easily outflank fixed NRA positions. Moreover, the Japanese enjoyed superiority in artillery, enabling them to suppress these fixed positions more effectively. These realities left Chinese defenses vulnerable, especially in the war's first year. The leadership deficit within the NRA, reflected in limited officer training, further constrained operational effectiveness. Chiang Kai-shek reportedly warned that Chinese commanders often equaled their counterparts in rank but did not outmatch them in competence. Only 2,000 commanders and staff officers had received training by 1937, and many staff officers had no military training at all. Overall, about 29.1 percent of NRA officers had no military education, severely limiting professional development and command capability. With the exception of the Guangxi divisions, Chinese units were hampered by an unnecessarily complex command structure. Orders from Chiang Kai-shek needed to pass through six tiers before action could be taken, slowing decision-making and responsiveness. In addition, Chiang favored central army units under direct control with loyal commanders from the Whampoa clique when distributing equipment, a pattern that bred discord and insubordination across levels of the Chinese field forces. Beyond structural issues, the Chinese force organization suffered from a lack of coherence due to competing influences. The forces had been reorganized along German-inspired lines, creating large field armies arranged as “war zones,” while Russian influence shaped strategic positioning through a division into “front” and “route” armies and separate rear-area service units. This mix yielded an incoherent force facing the Japanese. Troop placement and support procedures lacked rationalization: Chiang and his generals often sought to avoid decisive confrontation with Japan to minimize the risk of irreversible defeat, yet they also rejected a broad adoption of guerrilla warfare as a systematic tactic. The tendency to emphasize holding railway lines and other communications tied down the main fighting forces, around which the Japanese could maneuver more easily, reducing overall operational flexibility. Despite these deficiencies, NRA officers led roughly 800,000 Chinese troops deployed for the Battle of Wuhan. On the Wuhan approaches, four war zones were organized under capable if overextended leadership: 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 9th. The 5th War Zone, commanded by Li Zongren, defended north of the Yangtze to protect the Beijing–Wuhan railway. Chen Cheng's Ninth War Zone defended south of the Yangtze, aiming to prevent seizure of Jiujiang and other key cities on approaches to Wuhan. The 1st War Zone focused on stopping Japanese forces from the northern plains, while Gu Zhutong's 3rdWar Zone, deployed between Wuhu, Anqing, and Nanchang, defended the Yuehan railway and fortified the Yangtze River. Japan's Central China Expeditionary Army, commanded by Hata Shunroku, spearheaded the Wuhan advance. The CCEA consisted of two armies: the 2nd Army, which included several infantry divisions under Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni, and the 11th Army, advancing along the Yangtze's northern and southern banks under Okamura Yasuji. The 2nd Army aimed to push through the Dabie Mountains and sever Wuhan from the north, while the 11th Army would converge on Wuhan in a concentric operation to envelop the city. The Japanese forces were augmented by 120 ships from the 3rd Fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy under Koshirō Oikawa, more than 500 aircraft from the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, and five divisions from the Central China Area Army tasked with guarding Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou, and other key cities. These forces were intended to protect the back of the main Japanese thrust and complete the preparations for a major battle. The Kuomintang, led by Chiang Kai-shek, was acutely aware that Japan aimed to strike at Wuhan. Facing Japan's firepower and bold offensives, Chiang and his commanders pursued a strategy of attrition at the Wuchang conference in January 1938. Central China would be the primary theater of China's protracted struggle, distant from Japan's existing center of gravity in Manchuria. Chiang hoped Japan's manpower and resources would be exhausted as the empire pushed deeper into Central China. Eventually, Japan would be forced either to negotiate a settlement with China or to seek foreign assistance to obtain raw materials. The mountainous terrain to the north and south of the Yangtze presented natural obstacles that the Chinese believed would hinder large-scale concentration of Japanese forces. North of the Yangtze, the Dabie Mountains provided crucial flank protection; to the south, rugged, roadless terrain made expansive maneuvering difficult. In addition to these natural barriers, Chinese forces fortified the region with prepared, in-depth defenses, particularly in the mountains. The rugged terrain was expected to help hold back the Japanese offensive toward Wuhan and inflict substantial casualties on the attackers. The Yangtze itself was a critical defensive factor. Although the Chinese Navy was largely absent, they implemented several measures to impede amphibious operations. They constructed gun positions at key points where the river narrowed, notably around the strongholds at Madang and Tianjiazhen. Specialized units, such as the Riverine Defense Force, were deployed to defend these river fortifications against amphibious assaults. To reinforce the Riverine Defense Force, Chinese forces sank 79 ships in the Yangtze to create obstacles for potential Japanese naval advances. They also laid thousands of mines to constrain Japanese warships. These defensive measures were designed to slow the Japanese advance and complicate their logistics. The Chinese aimed to exploit stalled offensives to strike at exposed flanks and disrupted supply lines, leveraging terrain and fortified positions to offset Japan's superior firepower. On 18 February 1938, an Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service strike force comprising at least 11 A5M fighters of the 12th and 13th Kōkūtais, led by Lieutenant Takashi Kaneko, and 15 G3M bombers of the Kanoya Kokutai, led by Lieutenant Commander Sugahisa Tuneru, raided Wuhan and engaged 19 Chinese Air Force I-15 fighters from the 22nd and 23rd Pursuit Squadrons and 10 I-16 fighters from the 21st Pursuit Squadron, all under the overall command of the 4th Pursuit Group CO Captain Li Guidan. They faced a Soviet Volunteer Group mix of Polikarpov fighters as well. The 4th Group fighters claimed at least four A5Ms shot down, while the Soviet group claimed no fewer than three A5Ms. Both the Japanese fighter group commander, Lieutenant Kaneko, and the Chinese fighter group commander, Captain Li, were killed in action during the battle. A largely intact A5M downed in the engagement was recovered with a damaged engine; it was the second intact A5M to be recovered, repaired, and flight-tested in the war, following the first recovered-intact A5M credited to Colonel Gao Zhihang during an air battle over Nanjing on 12 October 1937. On 3 August 1938, 52 Chinese fighters, including 20 I-15s, 13 I-16s, 11 Gloster Gladiators, and 7 Hawk IIIs, intercepted at least 29 A5Ms and 18 G3Ms over Hankou. The Guangxi era pilots Zhu Jiaxun and He Jermin, along with Chinese-American fighter pilots Arthur Chin and Louie Yim-qun, all flying Gladiators, claimed at least four A5Ms shot down on that day. The Wuhan Campaign began in earnest when the Imperial Japanese Army's 3rd and 13th Infantry Divisions advanced north of the Yangtze River. Central China Expeditionary Army commander Hata Shunroku designated Shouxian, Zhengyangguan, and the Huainan coal mine as the objectives for the 3rd and 13th Infantry Divisions. Meanwhile, the 6th Infantry Division, part of the 11th Army, advanced toward Anqing from Hefei. The 6th Infantry Division coordinated with the Hata Detachment, which launched an amphibious assault from the river. The 2nd Army's sector saw immediate success. On June 3, the 3rd Infantry Division seized the Huainan coal mine; two days later, it captured Shouxian. The 13th Infantry Division also secured Zhengyangguan on that day. The 6th Infantry Division then made rapid progress immediately north of the Yangtze River, taking Shucheng on June 8 and Tongcheng on June 13. These advances forced the Chinese 77th Corps and the 21st and 26th Army Groups to withdraw to a line spanning Huoshan, Lu'an, and Fuyang. More critically, the Hata Detachment crossed the Yangtze River and landed behind the Chinese 27th Army Group's 20th Corps. The sudden appearance of Japanese forces in their rear forced the two Chinese divisions defending Anqing to withdraw. The fall of Anqing represented a major Japanese success, as they gained control of an airfield crucial for receiving close air support. After battles around Shucheng, Tongcheng, and Anqing, all three cities and their surrounding countryside suffered extensive damage. Much of this damage resulted from air raids that indiscriminately targeted soldiers and civilians alike. In Shucheng, the raids were reportedly aided by a Chinese traitor who displayed a red umbrella to guide daylight bombing on May 10, 1938. This air raid caused substantial destruction, killing or wounding at least 160 people and destroying more than a thousand homes. The town of Yimen also endured aerial destruction, with raids killing over 400 people and destroying 7,000 homes. Yimen and Shucheng were among many Chinese towns subjected to terror bombing, contributing to widespread civilian casualties and the destruction of livelihoods across China. The broader pattern of air raids was enabled by a lack of quality fighter aircraft and trained pilots, allowing Japanese bombers free rein against Chinese cities, towns, and villages. While the aerial assaults caused immense damage, the atrocities committed in these cities were even more severe. In Anhui, where Shucheng, Anqing, and Tongcheng were located, the Japanese brutality was on full display. The brutality can be partly understood as an attempt to destroy China's will and capacity to wage war, yet the extremity of some acts points to a warped martial culture within the Japanese Army, which appeared to encourage murder, torture, rape, and other crimes. Indeed, the Army eventually enshrined this brutality in its doctrine with the so-called “three alls”: kill all, burn all, loot all.  These acts, and more, were carried out in Anhui during the summer of 1938 as the Japanese advanced up the Yangtze River. In Anqing, the Hata Detachment killed at least 200 people without compunction. A further 36 civilians on a boat were detained and killed by Japanese marines, who claimed they were potentially Chinese soldiers. The countryside around Anqing, Shucheng, and Tongcheng witnessed continued atrocities. In Taoxi village of Shucheng County, the Japanese burned over 1,000 houses and killed more than 40 people. At Nangang, Japanese soldiers killed more than 200 people and committed numerous rapes, including many victims over 60 years old. Tongcheng also became a site of forced sexual slavery. The Japanese atrocities, intended to terrify the Chinese into submission, did not achieve their aim. Chinese resistance persisted. After a brief withdrawal, the 20th Army held stoutly at Jinshan for four days before retreating to Xiaochiyi and Taihu. These withdrawals, while costly, lured the Japanese deeper into the interior of China. As the Japanese advanced, their flanks became increasingly vulnerable to counterattack. On June 26, 1928, the Chinese 26th Army Group attacked the flanks of the 6th Infantry Division at Taihu. The 26th Army Group was supported by the 20th and 31st Armies, which attacked from the front to pin the 6th Infantry Division in place. The 6th Infantry Division was ill-prepared to respond, suffering a malaria outbreak that left about 2,000 soldiers unfit for combat. Fighting continued until June 29, when the Japanese withdrew. The focus of operations north of the Yangtze shifted to Madang, a key river fortress protected by obstacles and river batteries. Roughly 600 mines were laid in the Yangtze near Madang, and the fortress was largely manned by the Riverine Defense Force, with a small garrison; including stragglers from the 53rd Infantry Division, the Madang garrison totaled roughly 500 men. Initial expectations had Madang holding, since Japanese ships could not easily remove obstacles or suppress the batteries. On the dawn of June 24, however, news reached Madang that Xiangkou had fallen to the Japanese, enabling a land threat to Madang, and many Madang defenders, including most officers above the platoon level, were absent at a nearby ceremony when the attack began.  On 24 June, Japanese forces conducted a surprise landing at Madang, while the main body of the Japanese Eleventh Army advanced along the southern shore of the Yangtze. The Chinese garrison at the Madang river fortress repelled four assaults, yet suffered casualties from intense bombardment by Japanese ships on the Yangtze and from poison gas attacks. Compounding the difficulty, most of the Chinese officers responsible for Madang's defense were absent due to a ceremony at a local military school by Li Yunheng, the overseeing general. Consequently, only three battalions from the second and third Marine Corps and the 313th regiment of the 53rd Division took part in the defense, totaling no more than five battalions. When the 167th Division, stationed in Pengze, was ordered by War Zone commander Bai Chongxi to move swiftly along the highway to reinforce the defenders, divisional commander Xue Weiying instead sought instructions from his direct superior, Li Yunheng, who instructed him to take a longer, more navigationally challenging route to avoid Japanese bombers. Reinforcements arrived too late, and Madang fell after a three-day battle. Chiang Kai-shek promptly ordered a counterattack, offering a 50,000 yuan reward for the units that recaptured the fortress. On June 28, the 60th Division of the 18th Corps and the 105th Division of the 49th Corps retook Xiangshan and received 20,000 yuan, but made no further progress. As the Japanese army pressed the attack on Pengze, Chinese units shifted to a defensive posture. Chiang Kai-shek subsequently had Li Yunheng court-martialed and Xue Weiying executed. After the fall of Madang, the broader Wuhan campaign benefited from Madang as a foothold along the Yangtze, as the river continued to function as a dual-use corridor for transport and amphibious landings, aiding later operations and complicating Chinese defensive planning. The rapid capture of Madang demonstrated the effectiveness of combined arms, amphibious insertion, and secure supply routes along a major river, while Chinese defenses showed weaknesses such as reliance on rough terrain, underestimation of Japanese amphibious capabilities, and delayed reinforcement, which, coupled with gas warfare, produced a swift loss. The fall influenced subsequent Chinese fortifications and defensive doctrine along the Yangtze and affected decisions regarding garrison allocations and riverine operations. After Madang fell, Japan's 11th Army pressed toward its next major objectives, Jiujiang, Huangmei, and Xiaochikou. It took nearly three weeks for the Japanese to clear the waterway around Madang of mines, costing them five minesweepers, two warships, and a landing craft full of marines. Jiujiang stood out as the most important due to its status as a key river port and railway junction. To defend these targets, China deployed the 1st Army Corps to Jiujiang, the 2nd Army Corps to cover the area west of Jiujiang, and the 4th Army Corps to defend Xiaochikou. Despite these reinforcements, the Japanese continued their advance.  The Japanese initially captured Pengze but met strong resistance at Hukou, where they again deployed poison gas during a five-day battle. During the breakout, there were insufficient boats to evacuate the auxiliary troops of the defending 26th Division from Hukou, leaving only a little over 1,800 of the more than 3,100 non-combat soldiers able to be evacuated, and the majority of the more than 1,300 missing soldiers drowned while attempting to cross the Poyang Lake. On July 23, they conducted an amphibious operation at Gutang, with the Hata Detachment landing at Jiujiang shortly thereafter. These landings south of the Yangtze represented another step toward Wuhan, which lay about 240 kilometers away. The Chinese responses consisted of relentless counterattacks, but they failed to dislodge the Japanese from their bridgeheads. Consequently, the Japanese captured Xiaochikou by July 26 and Jiujiang by July 28, with a note that poison gas may have been used at Jiujiang. North of the Yangtze, the 6th Infantry Division moved forward and seized Huangmei on August 2. Despite stubborn Chinese resistance, the Japanese had gained considerable momentum toward Wuhan. Soon after the fall of Jiujiang and surrounding areas, the local population endured a renewed surge of war crimes. The Imperial Japanese Army sought to break China's will to resist and its capacity to endure the onslaught. Male civilians were executed indiscriminately, along with any POWs unable to retreat in time, while women and children were subjected to mass rape. In addition, numerous urban districts and suburban villages were deliberately razed, including the city's ceramics factories and its maritime transportation system. The widely documented “three alls” policy proved devastating in the Yangtze region: in Jiujiang alone, as many as 98,461 people were killed, 13,213 houses destroyed, and property losses reached 28.1 billion yuan. Yet numbers fail to convey the brutality unleashed in Jiujiang, Hukou, and Xiaochikou south of the Yangtze. On July 20, the Japanese confined 100 villagers in a large house in Zhouxi village, Hukou County, and erased them with machine guns and bayonets. Tangshan village witnessed similar brutality on July 31, when eight people were drowned in a pond and 26 houses burned. That September, learning that children and the elderly at Saiyang Township were taking refuge in caves on Mount Lushan, the Japanese proceeded to bayonet defenseless civilians, many beheaded, disemboweled, or amputated. These acts, among others, were carried out on a mass scale south of the Yangtze, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths around Jiujiang. Despite the enormity of these crimes, Chinese people did not surrender. Among those who resisted was Wang Guozhen of Wang Village in Pengze County. Upon learning of the Japanese approach to Pengze on July 1, Wang, a teacher, led women, children, and the elderly into mountains and forests to seek safety. However, Wang and his followers soon encountered Japanese troops who attacked them, instantly killing over 20 people. Wang denounced their actions as the Japanese took him captive and had him whipped for over an hour. They had hit him so hard his skin was peeling off and he had broken his left thigh. They then demanded he collaborate with them, but to this Wang responded “a common man cannot resist the enemy for his country and he will only die”. After hearing these words, the Japanese simply stabbed him with a bayonet in his left eye and in his chest area, ultimately killing him. Wang's small act of defiance would earn him a plaque from the KMT that states “Eternal Heroism”. Even though Wang's heroism was commendable, bravery alone could not halt the Japanese advance along the Yangtze. After securing Jiujiang, Xiaochikou, and Gutang, the 106th and 101st Infantry Divisions carried out amphibious operations further upriver. The 106th Infantry Division landed on the Yangtze's east bank, pushing south of Jili Hu. Concurrently, the Sato Detachment, two infantry battalions plus a field artillery battalion from the 101st Infantry Division, landed east of Xiaochikou and concentrated on the east side of Mount Lu. The Japanese advance soon faced firm Chinese resistance despite these early gains. The 106th Infantry Division encountered the in-depth defenses of Xue Yue's 1st Corps. These defenses formed an isosceles triangle with Jiujiang at the apex and the Jinguanqiao line at the base. Although Jiujiang was abandoned in late July, the triangle's base at Jinguanqiao remained strong, with the 8th, 74th, 18th, 32nd, 64th, 66th, 29th, 26th, 4th, and 70th Armies concentrated in the Jinguanqiao area. These forces inflicted heavy losses on the 106th Infantry Division, which saw nearly half of its captains killed or wounded during the fighting. To aid the 106th Division's breakthrough near Jinguanqiao, the 11th Army deployed the 101st Infantry Division to the area east of Xiaochikou in mid-August. From there, the division pushed toward the east side of Mount Lu, aiming to seize Xingzi in an amphibious assault via Lake Poyang. The objective was to outflank De'an and the nearby Nanxun Road. On August 19, the 101st Infantry Division executed the plan and landed at Xingzi, where they faced strong resistance from the 53rd Infantry Division. However, the division found itself isolated and thus vulnerable to being outflanked. By August 23, the 53rd Infantry Division had withdrawn to the east. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. In 1938 Wuhan stood as China's fragile beacon. Wuhan's defense hinged on a patchwork of war zones and weary commanders, while Japan poured in hundreds of thousands of troops, ships, and air power. The Yangtze became a deadly artery, with river fortresses, brutal bombings, and mass casualties. Yet courage endured: individuals like Wang Guozhen chose defiance over surrender.

Guest Doug Hamlin, Executive Vice President of the National Rifle Association, joins to discuss the NRA reboot 2.0, hunting season, educating the next generation in gun safety, battling gun restrictions across the nation, and more.  Another weekend of "No Kings Day Protests" across the nation. Where is the king? Discussion of Democrats desperate for a bit of control, battling for socialism, and elected officials ramping up the rhetoric against Trump. 

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various political topics, including the importance of the NRA, the political climate in cities like Atlanta, and the rhetoric surrounding current political figures. The conversation also touches on personal anecdotes about winter preparations and the significance of gun rights in America. Throughout the episode, Walters emphasizes the need for active participation in the fight for freedom and the importance of being informed about political issues. Takeaways The NRA plays a crucial role in advocating for gun rights. Atlanta's political climate is viewed negatively due to its leadership. Rhetoric in Washington is intensifying, especially between parties. Democratic policies are critiqued for coddling criminals and illegal immigrants. Media influence shapes public perception and political narratives. Membership in the NRA offers significant benefits and discounts. National reciprocity for gun laws is a pressing issue. Engagement in political issues is essential for citizens. Personal anecdotes can provide relatable context to political discussions. The importance of self-defense and legal representation is emphasized. Keywords Armed American Radio, NRA, political commentary, gun rights, media influence, winter preparations, national reciprocity, Carolyn Levitt, Hakeem Jeffries, Atlanta politics  

Katie Porter says she's sorry (sort of), Prop 50 could blow up California's redistricting rules, the state cracks down on Big Tech with kid-focused laws, and the NRA fires back over a Glock ban.

El Gobierno prepara una ley para frenar los anuncios de pisos turísticos ilegales, con multas de hasta un millón de euros para aquellas viviendas que se anuncian en plataformas sin número de registro (NRA). En su intervención en Capital Intereconomía, Amadeo Navarro Medina, cofundador de Homely Capital Group, analiza el impacto de esta normativa en el mercado inmobiliario español y compara la situación con lo que ocurre en ciudades como Nueva York, donde una regulación similar transforma por completo el sector. “Hasta 200.000 pisos desaparecerán de las plataformas turísticas en España debido a las multas por la ley del código registral único”, afirma Navarro. El cofundador de Homely Capital Group destaca que la legislación se vuelve cada vez más estricta y limita las posibilidades de los pequeños propietarios para mantener viviendas destinadas al alquiler turístico. Ante este escenario, Navarro explica la estrategia que ofrece Homely Capital Group para seguir invirtiendo en el sector de forma segura y sostenible. “No se trata de ir en contra de la ola. La tendencia es clara: la normativa continúa enriqueciéndose. La alternativa pasa por unirse a los grandes jugadores e invertir en proyectos sólidos, como la adquisición de edificios completos o complejos turísticos con licencia”. El invitado además destaca que “desde Homely Capital Group nos adelantamos a este cambio y creamos vehículos de inversión que permiten adquirir y explotar hoteles y apartamentos turísticos, siempre con licencia.”

En Capital Intereconomía hemos repasado las claves del día y la evolución de los mercados en Asia, Wall Street y Europa, en una sesión en la que el Kospi surcoreano marcó récords impulsado por el optimismo comercial, Wall Street prolongó las subidas pese a las tensiones con China, y el Ibex 35 se quedó a las puertas de los 15.600 puntos, consolidando su mejor racha del trimestre. En el primer análisis de la mañana, Araceli de Frutos, asesora del fondo Alhaja Inversiones FI, ha valorado el contenido del Libro Beige de la Reserva Federal, que apunta a un repunte de la inflación en EE.UU. justo antes de una reunión clave sin datos de IPC actualizados. La experta ha explicado cómo la tensión comercial con China podría justificar futuras bajadas de tipos, al tiempo que ha destacado el buen comportamiento de los mercados y el impulso del sector tecnológico, con Samsung en máximos históricos. También ha analizado la nueva hoja de ruta de la Unión Europea en materia de defensa, que podría abrir oportunidades en empresas del sector industrial y tecnológico dentro de su cartera. En la entrevista empresarial, hemos hablado con Amadeo Navarro Medina, cofundador de Homely Capital Group, sobre la nueva ley que prepara el Gobierno para frenar los anuncios de pisos turísticos ilegales, que contempla multas de hasta un millón de euros para los anuncios de alquiler turístico sin número de registro oficial (NRA). Navarro ha explicado las soluciones que ofrece su compañía para invertir de forma legal y transparente en vivienda turística, asegurando la trazabilidad de cada proyecto y cumpliendo con toda la normativa autonómica. Además, ha adelantado los detalles de un evento exclusivo de Homely Capital Group en el que presentarán nuevas oportunidades de inversión inmobiliaria, dirigido a inversores particulares y profesionales interesados en activos con alta rentabilidad y seguridad jurídica.

Blue State Keith Ellison, NRA, Shutdown & Demonic Content. Silk breaks it down. Tonight at 10pm ET on Lindell TV. #DiamondandSilk http://DiamondandSilkMedia.com Use Promo Code: DIAMOND or TRUMPWON 1. http://DiamondandSilkStore.com2. https://thedrardisshow.com/shop-all/?aff=123. http://PatchThat.com4. https://cardiomiracle.com/?ref=DIAMOND5. https://MyPillow.com/TrumpWon6. https://DrStellaMD.com7. https://www.Curativabay.com/?aff=18. http://MaskDerma.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kimber Firearms is back with a vengeance. In this exclusive episode of Gun Talk Nation, host Ryan Gresham sits down with Everett Deger from Kimber to explore the brand's evolution, innovation, and resurgence across handguns, rifles, and revolvers.From their iconic 1911s to the groundbreaking 2K11 double-stack, and even a return to legacy rifles, this conversation is a deep dive into Kimber's DNA and future. Topics include:Why Kimber is more than just 1911sThe origin and innovation behind the 2K11 seriesDetails on Kimber's coatings: DLC, PVD, Cerakote, and KimProThe return of Kimber rifles and what to expectThe sleek CDS9 and its "Classic" carry-ready versionKimber revolvers and their standout K6XSWhat's next at SHOT Show and beyondWhether you're a lifelong Kimber fan or curious about what they've been up to, this is the inside look at one of America's most recognizable firearm brands you don't want to miss.This Gun Talk Nation is brought to you by Hodgdon Powder, NRA, Safariland, EOTECH, and Range Ready Studios.About Gun Talk NationGun Talk Media's Gun Talk Nation with Ryan Gresham is a weekly multi-platform podcast that offers a fresh look at all things firearms-related. Featuring notable guests and a lot of laughs. Gun Talk Nation is available as an audio podcast or in video format.For more content from Gun Talk Media, visit guntalk.com or subscribe on YouTube, Rumble, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Catch First Person Defender on the new Official FPD YouTube channel. Watch Gun Talk Nation on its new YouTube channel. Catch Gun Talk Hunt on the new dedicated YouTube Channel. Listen to all Gun Talk Podcasts with Spreaker, iHeart, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find podcasts.Copyright ©2025 Freefire Media, LLCGun Talk Nation 10.15.25Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gun-talk--6185159/support.

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various topics related to gun rights, including live show preparation, Florida's gun purchase age legislation, and updates on Second Amendment rights from Harmeet Dhillon. The conversation also addresses misinformation within the gun rights community and features a guest appearance by AWR Hawkins, who shares insights on the current administration's stance on gun rights. The episode emphasizes the importance of unity among gun rights organizations and encourages listeners to stay informed and engaged. Takeaways Mark Walters introduces the show and its purpose. Live show prep is conducted, focusing on gun control topics. Discussion on Florida's proposed legislation to lower the gun purchase age. Harmeet Dhillon provides updates on Second Amendment rights and legal cases. Misinformation in the gun rights community is addressed, emphasizing the need for clarity. AWR Hawkins joins the show to discuss the administration's pro-gun stance. Listeners are encouraged to support gun rights organizations. The importance of unity among gun rights groups is highlighted. Mark emphasizes the need to verify information before sharing. The episode concludes with a call to action for listeners to stay engaged. Keywords Armed American Radio, Second Amendment, gun rights, Harmeet Dhillon, misinformation, Florida gun laws, AWR Hawkins, NRA, live show prep, gun control  

(October 15, 2025)NRA sues California over alleged Glock ban aimed at illegal machine gun ‘switches.' Dr. Jim Keany, Chief Medical Officer at Dignity Health St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach, joins The Bill Handel Show for 'Medical News'! Dr. Keany talks with Bill about kiwis for constipation, more L.A. deaths tied to Kratom, a liver disease breakthrough, and FDA clearing a bloodtest for Alzheimers.

The New York Times is whining that judges are confused by the Supreme Court's decisions. I'll tell you these judges have no business being judges. Los Angeles has found another reason to waste tax payer money and no one seems all that upset by it. And California has decided to trash the Second Amendment. Luckily, there's the NRA.   Watch the video supplements to the podcast: https://rumble.com/user/DumbassesTalkingPolitics?e9s=src_v1_cmd Visit the Dumbasses Talking Politics web site for all show notes, videos, and links: https://rumble.com/user/DumbassesTalkingPolitics?e9s=src_v1_cmd Subscribe for free to Gene's Substack (Dumbasses Talking Politics): https://dumbassestalkingpolitics.substack.com/?utm_source=global-search  

在本期「贝望录」中，Bessie 终于聊到一个“憋了三年”的话题：美国为何一直无法解决枪支泛滥的问题。她邀请到来自播客「飞天胡说」的嘉宾——英国纪录片导演罗飞、德州长大的美国人罗一天，从各自国家的亲身经验出发，深度对比了美国与英国在枪支文化、法律、政治与社会心理上的巨大差异。美国拥有超过 4 亿支枪，每 100 个成年人手中几乎就有 120 支枪。相比之下，英国合法私人枪支仅 190 万。为何有如此差异？大家从1966 年德州大学塔楼枪击案谈到 NRA 的政治游说，从宪法第二修正案到“冷却期”与枪展漏洞，再到英国 Dunblane 屠杀案后的快速立法反应，本期节目带你理解枪支背后盘根错节的历史与政治。节目中也讨论了“被发明的传统”如何影响公众认知，ICE 私人武装的隐忧，以及社交媒体如何放大治安焦虑等问题。Bessie和两位嘉宾的亲身经验和深度对谈，希望让你对“枪支问题”不再抽象。【本节目由Withinlink碚曦投资协作体出品】【嘉宾】罗飞 Arthur飞天胡说主播，英国纪录片导演罗一天 Paul飞天胡说主播，电影行业从业者【主持】李倩玲 Bessie Lee广告营销行业资深从业者，商业观察者【本期内容提要】[01:44]美国与英国在枪支数量上的惊人差距[06:21]德州大学1966年塔楼枪击案与案件背后的精神健康问题[10:21]美国枪支管控漏洞：枪展“无审查“、“冷却期“政策争议与共和党NRA的政治立场[13:53]宪法第二修正案与“自卫权“[21:20]NRA政治游说逻辑是用“持枪传统“塑造公众认知，“被发明的传统“如何影响政策走向[26:19]Dunblane屠杀案与英国枪支立法转折点[30:35]英国打猎文化 vs. 美国民间持枪文化[33:55]英国枪支数量与刀具犯罪的连锁反应[37:27]NRA起源于英国，为何在英美走出完全不同的发展路径？[39:14]电影《Civil War》展现出美国当下社会的紧张感[41:13]ICE私人武装的权力边界与的潜在风险[45:29]恐惧感如何被政治操作利用，社交媒体又如何加剧治安焦虑[46:58]枪支、政治、文化的三重纠缠，为何单一政策无法解决美国枪支困局[48:37]英国政党的“立法共识“与美国的”政治极化“10月24日Bessie要来香港和大家在线下见面了！10月24日在香港有两个活动：1）在香港大学参与MCCC speaker series，主题为Sounding out China： advertising，Authenticity，&the rise of podcast culture。详细安排和报名二维码详见下面海报。2）贝望录香港站的线下听友见面会，大家可以通过shownotes中的活动链接报名参加。我们11月9日见啦！ 【收听方式】推荐您使用Apple Podcast、小宇宙APP、喜马拉雅、荔枝播客、网易云音乐、QQ音乐、Spotify或任意泛用型播客客户端订阅收听《贝望录》。【收看方式】B站：贝望录播客官方账号小红书：李倩玲【互动方式】微博：@贝望录微信公众号：贝望录+商务合作：beiwanglu@withinlink.com

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various pressing issues surrounding gun rights, including the ongoing Tate-Adomniak case, which highlights concerns about judicial fairness and the ATF's actions. The conversation also delves into California's recent Glock ban and the legal responses from major gun rights organizations. Throughout the discussion, the importance of activism and awareness in the fight for Second Amendment rights is emphasized. Takeaways Mark Walters introduces the show and highlights its purpose. The Tate-Odomniak case raises serious questions about judicial fairness. The appellate court's decision on Tate's case is mixed, with some convictions overturned. Concerns are raised about the evidence not being allowed in the original trial. The conversation emphasizes the importance of activism in the gun rights movement. California's Glock ban is a significant issue for gun owners. Legal responses to the Glock ban are being spearheaded by major organizations. The importance of understanding legal implications in gun ownership is discussed. Mark Walters expresses frustration with the judicial system's handling of gun cases. The episode concludes with a call to action for listeners to support gun rights. Keywords Armed American Radio, Second Amendment, gun rights, ATF, legal news, Glock ban, Tate-Adomniak case, judicial system, freedom, NRA  

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various pressing issues surrounding gun rights and legislation with guests including Alan Gottlieb and AWR Hawkins. The conversation covers Everytown's political hypocrisy, legal challenges to firearm regulations, the NRA's response to California's gun laws, the implications of red flag laws, and the recent decision by Publix to allow open carry in Florida. The episode emphasizes the ongoing battle for Second Amendment rights and the importance of staying informed and engaged in the fight against restrictive gun laws. This conversation delves into various aspects of firearm laws, mass shootings, and the media's portrayal of gun violence. Mark Walters discusses Florida's firearm regulations, the myths surrounding mass shootings, and the importance of legal representation for gun owners. The dialogue also touches on the political rhetoric surrounding gun rights, corporate policies affecting gun ownership, and the implications of recent legislation in California. Throughout the discussion, the speakers emphasize the need for responsible gun ownership and awareness of local laws. Takeaways Everytown's hypocrisy is evident in their political endorsements. The NRA is actively challenging California's gun laws. Red flag laws are an invitation for tyranny. Open carry policies are gaining traction in Florida. Gavin Newsom's gun control agenda is politically motivated. Legal challenges to the NFA could reshape gun regulations. The Supreme Court may take on more Second Amendment cases soon. Public awareness of gun rights is crucial in the current political climate. Misinformation about gun laws can lead to public confusion. The fight for Second Amendment rights is ongoing and requires vigilance. Florida law allows concealed carry in certain establishments. Mass shootings occur globally, not just in the U.S. Media often misrepresents gun violence statistics. Legal representation is crucial for gun owners. Political rhetoric can escalate tensions around gun rights. Corporate policies can influence public perception of gun laws. Understanding local gun laws is essential for responsible ownership. California's recent gun legislation raises concerns for gun owners. The importance of fighting for Second Amendment rights in a polarized environment. Responsible gun ownership includes knowing when not to carry. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, Second Amendment, NRA, Everytown, gun control, legal challenges, red flag laws, open carry, Gavin Newsom, Florida firearm laws, mass shootings, media narratives, gun rights, legal representation, political rhetoric, corporate policies, gun laws, California gun legislation  

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various pressing issues surrounding gun rights and legislation with guests including Alan Gottlieb and AWR Hawkins. The conversation covers Everytown's political hypocrisy, legal challenges to firearm regulations, the NRA's response to California's gun laws, the implications of red flag laws, and the recent decision by Publix to allow open carry in Florida. The episode emphasizes the ongoing battle for Second Amendment rights and the importance of staying informed and engaged in the fight against restrictive gun laws. This conversation delves into various aspects of firearm laws, mass shootings, and the media's portrayal of gun violence. Mark Walters discusses Florida's firearm regulations, the myths surrounding mass shootings, and the importance of legal representation for gun owners. The dialogue also touches on the political rhetoric surrounding gun rights, corporate policies affecting gun ownership, and the implications of recent legislation in California. Throughout the discussion, the speakers emphasize the need for responsible gun ownership and awareness of local laws. Takeaways Everytown's hypocrisy is evident in their political endorsements. The NRA is actively challenging California's gun laws. Red flag laws are an invitation for tyranny. Open carry policies are gaining traction in Florida. Gavin Newsom's gun control agenda is politically motivated. Legal challenges to the NFA could reshape gun regulations. The Supreme Court may take on more Second Amendment cases soon. Public awareness of gun rights is crucial in the current political climate. Misinformation about gun laws can lead to public confusion. The fight for Second Amendment rights is ongoing and requires vigilance. Florida law allows concealed carry in certain establishments. Mass shootings occur globally, not just in the U.S. Media often misrepresents gun violence statistics. Legal representation is crucial for gun owners. Political rhetoric can escalate tensions around gun rights. Corporate policies can influence public perception of gun laws. Understanding local gun laws is essential for responsible ownership. California's recent gun legislation raises concerns for gun owners. The importance of fighting for Second Amendment rights in a polarized environment. Responsible gun ownership includes knowing when not to carry. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, Second Amendment, NRA, Everytown, gun control, legal challenges, red flag laws, open carry, Gavin Newsom, Florida firearm laws, mass shootings, media narratives, gun rights, legal representation, political rhetoric, corporate policies, gun laws, California gun legislation  

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various pressing issues surrounding gun rights and legislation with guests including Alan Gottlieb and AWR Hawkins. The conversation covers Everytown's political hypocrisy, legal challenges to firearm regulations, the NRA's response to California's gun laws, the implications of red flag laws, and the recent decision by Publix to allow open carry in Florida. The episode emphasizes the ongoing battle for Second Amendment rights and the importance of staying informed and engaged in the fight against restrictive gun laws. This conversation delves into various aspects of firearm laws, mass shootings, and the media's portrayal of gun violence. Mark Walters discusses Florida's firearm regulations, the myths surrounding mass shootings, and the importance of legal representation for gun owners. The dialogue also touches on the political rhetoric surrounding gun rights, corporate policies affecting gun ownership, and the implications of recent legislation in California. Throughout the discussion, the speakers emphasize the need for responsible gun ownership and awareness of local laws. Takeaways Everytown's hypocrisy is evident in their political endorsements. The NRA is actively challenging California's gun laws. Red flag laws are an invitation for tyranny. Open carry policies are gaining traction in Florida. Gavin Newsom's gun control agenda is politically motivated. Legal challenges to the NFA could reshape gun regulations. The Supreme Court may take on more Second Amendment cases soon. Public awareness of gun rights is crucial in the current political climate. Misinformation about gun laws can lead to public confusion. The fight for Second Amendment rights is ongoing and requires vigilance. Florida law allows concealed carry in certain establishments. Mass shootings occur globally, not just in the U.S. Media often misrepresents gun violence statistics. Legal representation is crucial for gun owners. Political rhetoric can escalate tensions around gun rights. Corporate policies can influence public perception of gun laws. Understanding local gun laws is essential for responsible ownership. California's recent gun legislation raises concerns for gun owners. The importance of fighting for Second Amendment rights in a polarized environment. Responsible gun ownership includes knowing when not to carry. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, Second Amendment, NRA, Everytown, gun control, legal challenges, red flag laws, open carry, Gavin Newsom, Florida firearm laws, mass shootings, media narratives, gun rights, legal representation, political rhetoric, corporate policies, gun laws, California gun legislation  

NRA-ILA Director of Litigation Joseph Greenlee joins Cam to discuss the latest in the legal challenges to New Jersey's plethora of "gun-free zones" and prohibitions on so-called assault weapons and large capacity magazines, as well as a recent amicus brief filed by NRA and other 2A groups in support of a non-violent felon's attempt to regain his Second Amendment rights.

On Today's Episode –Retired Col. Rob Maness is back to talk about the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk, and its lasting ramifications. Tune in for all the Funhttps://x.com/RobManesshttps://www.stripes.com/opinion/2025-08-12/keep-artificial-intelligence-out-government-18742200.htmlhttps://gatorpac.com/ Retired Colonel Rob Maness has a lifelong record of providing dedicated service to the nation. He made the decision as a 17-year-old high school senior to enlist in the United States Air Force and serve in uniform as the country faced multiple crises around the world.Having worked his way up from the enlisted ranks to full colonel, he retired from active duty in 2011, ending his military service of more than 32 years. Following military retirement Rob returned to Louisiana to work as an executive in a Fortune 500 energy corporation. He is currently founder and the owner of Iron Liberty Group and resides in Gulfport, Mississippi.Rob has proven his competence at the local, state, and federal levels of government with his demonstrated leadership and effectiveness as a steward of our citizen's tax dollars. He has broad experience working at the Louisiana State Legislature, in the national budget process, national emergency response decision-making, law enforcement, successful community relations with governments at all levels, and working directly with citizens to meet today's challenges. He has provided direct, executive oversight to local schools in coordination with elected school boards, working to make them secure and more effective to meet the needs of America's military children. His leadership and combat experiences give him a unique perspective when considering how national action impacts our American families.During his military service, Colonel Maness led numerous combat operations, including as a bomber squadron commander in Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Colonel Maness served as an enlisted bomb disposal technician in three assignments countering terrorism before being commissioned and selected for flight training. As a Joint Chiefs of Staff operations officer he was on duty in the National Military Command Center located within the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attack. In the ensuing months, he directly assisted the United States national security team with creating, synchronizing, and executing the campaign plan for the global war on terrorism. Colonel Maness authored the first theater nuclear war plan and designed decision-making tools for the Presidential nuclear decision handbook strengthening U.S. extended strategic deterrence policy in European and Pacific regions. Colonel Maness served as the Vice Commander of America's largest Airborne Intelligence Wing conducting strategic and battlefield intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations against America's enemies. He went on to command Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, NM, the sixth largest U.S. Air Force Base encompassing 53,000 acres and 22,000 employees, housing our nation's most critical assets.After running for the U.S. Senate on this America First Platform, Rob founded GatorPAC and its Veterans Leadership Fund, a Federal political action committee. The PAC educates grass roots political activists on the most effective ways to influence their elected officials, get a candidate elected, or to fight for a cause. It advocates for policies that protect your liberty, fight for limited government, and ensure prosperity. He has also served as a board member at Military Veterans Advocacy, Inc., a veteran's advocacy group fighting for veteran toxic exposure benefits, committed to preventing veteran suicides, and ensuring military families have equal access to benefits. He has served as a non-voting board member of the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and Hispano Chamber of Commerce in his role as Commander of Kirtland AFB. As president of his local chapter of the Military Officers Association of America, he led a team that created an annual scholarship fund for graduating high school students. Rob is a Life Member of the NRA, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, and the Military Officers Association of America. He is also a member of the Louisiana Military Order of Foreign Wars and the Society of the Sons of the Revolution. Active in the community, Rob served as an elected member of the Republican Party Executive Committee representing St. Tammany Parish Council District 1 for two terms and served on the board of the only Republican Men's Club in Louisiana. He Currently serves on the Harrison County and Gulfport Mississippi GOP Executive committees.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses various topics related to gun rights, misinformation about firearms, political commentary, and the ongoing challenges faced by the firearms industry. He addresses rumors about CZ firearms, shares personal experiences related to political violence, and highlights the importance of the NRA in supporting gun rights. The conversation also touches on recent lawsuits against the firearms industry and the implications of political actions on gun rights. Takeaways CZ is not confiscating firearms in Canada. Misinformation spreads rapidly online, especially about firearms. Political commentary often intersects with personal experiences. Gun control advocates are increasingly supporting violence. Lawsuits against the firearms industry are on the rise. The NRA plays a crucial role in defending gun rights. Industry events like the SHOT Show are significant for networking. The left's efforts to undermine gun rights will continue. Public figures often make irresponsible statements about violence. Personal anecdotes can illustrate broader political issues. Keywords Armed American Radio, gun rights, CZ firearms, political commentary, misinformation, gun control, lawsuits, NRA, firearms industry, personal experiences  

Last time we spoke about the Nanjing Massacre. Japanese forces breached Nanjing as Chinese defenders retreated under heavy bombardment, and the city fell on December 13. In the following weeks, civilians and disarmed soldiers endured systematic slaughter, mass executions, rapes, looting, and arson, with casualties mounting rapidly. Among the most brutal episodes were hundreds of executions near the Safety Zone, mass shootings along the Yangtze River, and killings at improvised sites and “killing fields.” The massacre involved tens of thousands of prisoners, with estimates up to 300,000 victims. Women and children were subjected to widespread rape, mutilation, and terror intended to crush morale and resistance. Although the Safety Zone saved many lives, it could not shield all refugees from harm, and looting and arson devastated large parts of the city. Foreign witnesses, missionaries, and diary entries documented the extensive brutality and the apparent premeditated nature of many acts, noting the collapse of discipline among troops and orders that shaped the violence.    #169 Nanjing has Fallen, the War is not Over Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Directly after the fall of Nanjing, rumors circulated among the city's foreigners that Tang Shengzhi had been executed for his inability to hold the city against the Japanese onslaught. In fact, unlike many of his subordinates who fought in the defense, he survived. On December 12, he slipped through Yijiang Gate, where bullets from the 36th Division had claimed numerous victims, and sailed across the Yangtze to safety. Chiang Kai-shek protected him from bearing direct consequences for Nanjing's collapse. Tang was not unscathed, however. After the conquest of Nanjing, a dejected Tang met General Li Zongren at Xuzhou Railway Station. In a brief 20-minute conversation, Tang lamented, “Sir, Nanjing's fall has been unexpectedly rapid. How can I face the world?” Li, who had previously taunted Tang for over-eagerness, offered sympathy. “Don't be discouraged. Victory or defeat comes every day for the soldier. Our war of resistance is a long-term proposition. The loss of one city is not decisive.” By December 1937, the outlook for Chiang Kai-shek's regime remained bleak. Despite his public pledges, he had failed to defend the capital. Its sturdy walls, which had withstood earlier sieges, were breached in less than 100 hours. Foreign observers remained pessimistic about the prospects of continuing the fight against Japan. The New York Times wrote “The capture of Nanking was the most overwhelming defeat suffered by the Chinese and one of the most tragic military debacles in modern warfare. In defending Nanking, the Chinese allowed themselves to be surrounded and then slaughtered… The graveyard of tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers may also be the graveyard of all Chinese hopes of resisting conquest by Japan.” Foreign diplomats doubted Chiang's ability to sustain the war, shrinking the question to whether he would stubbornly continue a losing fight or seek peace. US Ambassador Nelson Johnson wrote in a letter to Admiral Yarnell, then commander of the US Asicatic Fleet “There is little left now for the Chinese to do except to carry on a desultory warfare in the country, or to negotiate for the best terms they can get”.  The Japanese, too, acted as if Chiang Kai-shek had already lost the war. They assumed the generalissimo was a spent force in Chinese politics as well, and that a gentle push would suffice to topple his regime like a house of cards. On December 14, Prime Minister Konoe announced that Chiang's losses of Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and now Nanjing, had created a new situation. “The National Government has become but a shadow of its former self. If a new Chinese regime emerged to replace Chiang's government, Japan would deal with it, provided it is a regime headed in the right direction.” Konoe spoke the same day as a Liaison Conference in Tokyo, where civilian and military leaders debated how to treat China now that it had been thoroughly beaten on the battlefield. Japanese demands had grown significantly: beyond recognizing Manchukuo, Japan pressed for the creation of pro-Japanese regimes in Inner Mongolia and the north China area. The same day, a puppet government was established in Japanese-occupied Beijing. While these demands aimed to end China as a unitary state, Japanese policy was moving toward the same goal. The transmissions of these demands via German diplomatic channels caused shock and consternation in Chinese government circles, and the Chinese engaged in what many regarded as stalling tactics. Even at this late stage, there was division among Japan's top decision makers. Tada, deputy chief of the Army General Staff, feared a protracted war in China and urged keeping negotiations alive. He faced strong opposition from the cabinet, including the foreign minister and the ministers of the army and navy, and ultimately he relented. Tada stated “In this state of emergency, it is necessary to avoid any political upheaval that might arise from a struggle between the Cabinet and the Army General Staff.” Although he disagreed, he no longer challenged the uncompromising stance toward China. On January 16, 1938, Japan publicly stated that it would “cease henceforth to deal with” Chiang Kai-shek. This was a line that could not be uncrossed. War was the only option. Germany, the mediator between China and Japan, also considered Chiang a losing bet. In late January 1938, von Dirksen, the German ambassador in Tokyo, urged a fundamental shift in German diplomacy and advocated abandoning China in favor of Japan. He warned that this was a matter of urgency, since Japan harbored grudges against Germany for its half-hearted peace efforts. In a report, von Dirksen wrote that Japan, “in her deep ill humor, will confront us with unpleasant decisions at an inopportune moment.” Von Dirksen's view carried the day in Berlin. Nazi Germany and Hirohito's Japan were on a trajectory that, within three years, would forge the Axis and place Berlin and Tokyo in the same camp in a conflict that would eventually span the globe. Rabe, who returned to Germany in 1938, found that his account of Japanese atrocities in Nanjing largely fell on deaf ears. He was even visited by the Gestapo, which apparently pressed him to keep quiet about what he had seen. Ambassador von Dirksen also argued in his January 1938 report that China should be abandoned because of its increasingly friendly ties with the Soviet Union. There was some merit to this claim. Soviet aid to China was substantial: by the end of 1937, 450 Soviet aviators were serving in China. Without them, Japan likely would have enjoyed air superiority. Chiang Kai-shek, it seemed, did not fully understand the Russians' motives. They were supplying aircraft and pilots to keep China in the war while keeping themselves out. After Nanjing's fall, Chiang nevertheless reached out to Joseph Stalin, inviting direct Soviet participation in the war. Stalin politely declined, noting that if the Soviet Union joined the conflict, “the world would say the Soviet Union was an aggressor, and sympathy for Japan around the world would immediately increase.” In a rare moment of candor a few months later, the Soviet deputy commissar for foreign affairs spoke with the French ambassador, describing the situation in China as “splendid.” He expected China to continue fighting for several more years, after which Japan would be too weakened to undertake major operations against the Soviet Union. It was clear that China was being used. Whatever the motive, China was receiving vital help from Stalin's Russia while the rest of the world stood on the sidelines, reluctant to upset Japan. Until Operation Barbarossa, when the Soviet Union was forced to the brink by the German Army and could no longer sustain extensive overseas aid, it supplied China with 904 planes, 1,516 trucks, 1,140 artillery pieces, 9,720 machine guns, 50,000 rifles, 31,600 bombs, and more. Despite all of this, all in all, China's position proved less disastrous than many observers had feared. Chinese officials later argued that the battle of Nanjing was not the unmitigated fiasco it appeared to be. Tang Shengzhi had this to say in his memoirs“I think the main purpose of defending Nanjing was to buy time, to allow troops that had just been pulled out of battle to rest and regroup. It wasn't simply because it was the capital or the site of Sun Yat-sen's mausoleum.” Tan Daoping, an officer in Nanjing, described the battle “as a moderate success because it drew the Japanese in land”. This of course was a strategy anticipated by interwar military thinker Jiang Baili. It also allowed dozens of Chinese divisions to escape Shanghai, since the Japanese forces that could have pursued them were tied down with the task of taking Nanjing. Tan Daoping wrote after the war “They erred in believing they could wage a quick war and decide victory immediately. Instead, their dream was shattered; parts of their forces were worn out, and they were hindered from achieving a swift end”. Even so, it was a steep price was paid in Chinese lives. As in Shanghai, the commanders in Nanjing thought they could fight on the basis of sheer willpower. Chinese officer Qin Guo Qi wrote in his memoirs “In modern war, you can't just rely on the spirit of the troops. You can't merely rely on physical courage and stamina. The battle of Nanjing explains that better than anything”. As for the Brigade commander of the 87th division, Chen Yiding, who emerged from Nanjing with only a few hundred survivors, was enraged. “During the five days of the battle for Nanjing, my superiors didn't see me even once. They didn't do their duty. They also did not explain the overall deployments in the Nanjing area. What's worse, they didn't give us any order to retreat. And afterwards I didn't hear of any commander being disciplined for failing to do his job.” Now back in November of 1937, Chiang Kai-shek had moved his command to the great trinity of Wuhan. For the Nationalists, Wuhan was a symbolically potent stronghold: three municipalities in one, Hankou, Wuchang, and Hanyang. They had all grown prosperous as gateways between coastal China and the interior. But the autumn disasters of 1937 thrust Wuhan into new prominence, and, a decade after it had ceased to be the temporary capital, it again became the seat of military command and resistance. Leading Nationalist politicians had been seen in the city in the months before the war, fueling suspicions that Wuhan would play a major role in any imminent conflict. By the end of the year, the generals and their staffs, along with most of the foreign embassies, had moved upriver. Yet as 1937 slipped into 1938, the Japanese advance seemed practically unstoppable. From the destruction of Shanghai, to the massacre in Nanjing, to the growing vulnerability of Wuhan, the NRA government appeared powerless against the onslaught.  Now the Japanese government faced several options: expanding the scope of the war to force China into submission, which would risk further depletion of Japan's military and economic resources; establishing an alternative regime in China as a bridge for reconciliation, thereby bypassing the Nationalist government for negotiations; and engaging in indirect or direct peace negotiations with the Nationalist Government, despite the failure of previous attempts, while still seeking new opportunities for negotiation. However, the Nanjing massacre did not compel the Chinese government and its people to submit. On January 2, Chiang Kai-shek wrote in his diary, “The conditions proposed by Japan are equivalent to the conquest and extinction of our country. Rather than submitting and perishing, it is better to perish in defeat,” choosing to refuse negotiations and continue resistance.  In January 1938 there was a new escalation of hostilities. Up to that point, Japan had not officially declared war, even during the Shanghai campaign and the Nanjing massacre. However on January 11, an Imperial Conference was held in Tokyo in the presence of Emperor Hirohito. Prime Minister Konoe outlined a “Fundamental Policy to deal with the China Incident.”The Imperial Conference was attended by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe, Army Chief of Staff Prince Kan'in, Navy Minister Admiral Fushimi, and others to reassess its policy toward China. Citing the Nationalist Government's delay and lack of sincerity, the Japanese leadership decided to terminate Trautmann's mediation. At the conference, Japan articulated a dual strategy: if the Nationalist Government did not seek peace, Japan would no longer regard it as a viable negotiating partner, instead supporting emerging regimes, seeking to resolve issues through incidents, and aiming either to eliminate or incorporate the existing central government; if the Nationalist Government sought reconciliation, it would be required to cease resistance, cooperate with Japan against communism, and pursue economic cooperation, including officially recognizing Manchukuo and allowing Japanese troops in Inner Mongolia, North China, Central China, and co-governance of Shanghai. The Konoe cabinet relayed this proposal to the German ambassador in Japan on December 22, 1937: It called for: diplomatic recognition of Manchukuo; autonomy for Inner Mongolia; cessation of all anti-Japanese and anti-Manchukuo policies; cooperation between Japan, Manchukuo, and China against communism; war reparations; demilitarized zones in North China and Inner Mongolia; and a trade agreement among Japan, Manchukuo, and China.  Its terms were too severe, including reparations payable to Japan and new political arrangements that would formalize the separation of north China under Japanese control. Chiang's government would have seventy-two hours to accept; if they refused, Tokyo would no longer recognize the Nationalist government and would seek to destroy it.  On January 13, 1938, the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Chonghui informed Germany that China needed a fuller understanding of the additional conditions for peace talks to make a decision. The January 15 deadline for accepting Japan's terms elapsed without Chinese acceptance. Six days after the deadline for a Chinese government reply, an Imperial Conference “Gozen Kaigi” was convened in Tokyo to consider how to handle Trautmann's mediation. The navy, seeing the war as essentially an army matter, offered no strong position; the army pressed for ending the war through diplomatic means, arguing that they faced a far more formidable Far Eastern Soviet threat at the northern Manchukuo border and wished to avoid protracted attrition warfare. Foreign Minister Kōki Hirota, however, strongly disagreed with the army, insisting there was no viable path to Trautmann's mediation given the vast gap between Chinese and Japanese positions. A second conference followed on January 15, 1938, attended by the empire's principal cabinet members and military leaders, but without the emperor's presence. The debate grew heated over whether to continue Trautmann's mediation. Hayao Tada, Deputy Chief of Army General Staff, argued for continuation, while Konoe, Hirota, Navy Minister Mitsumasa Yonai, and War Minister Hajime Sugiyama opposed him. Ultimately, Tada acceded to the position of Konoe and Hirota. On the same day, Konoe conveyed the cabinet's conclusion, termination of Trautmann's mediation, to the emperor. The Japanese government then issued a statement on January 16 declaring that it would no longer treat the Nationalist Government as a bargaining partner, signaling the establishment of a new Chinese regime that would cooperate with Japan and a realignment of bilateral relations. This became known as the first Konoe statement, through which Tokyo formally ended Trautmann's mediation attempt. The Chinese government was still weighing its response when, at noon on January 16, Konoe publicly declared, “Hereafter, the Imperial Government will not deal with the National Government.” In Japanese, this became the infamous aite ni sezu (“absolutely no dealing”). Over the following days, the Japanese government made it clear that this was a formal breach of relations, “stronger even than a declaration of war,” in the words of Foreign Minister Hirota Kōki. The Chinese ambassador to Japan, who had been in Tokyo for six months since hostilities began, was finally recalled. At the end of January, Chiang summoned a military conference and declared that the top strategic priority would be to defend the east-central Chinese city of Xuzhou, about 500 kilometers north of Wuhan. This decision, like the mobilization near Lugouqiao, was heavily influenced by the railway: Xuzhou sat at the midpoint of the Tianjin–Pukou Jinpu line, and its seizure would grant the Japanese mastery over north–south travel in central China. The Jinpu line also crossed the Longhai line, China's main cross-country artery from Lanzhou to the port of Lianyungang, north of Shanghai. The Japanese military command marked the Jinpu line as a target in spring 1938. Control over Xuzhou and the rail lines threading through it were thus seen as vital to the defense of Wuhan, which lay to the city's south. Chiang's defense strategy fit into a larger plan evolving since the 1920s, when the military thinker Jiang Baili had first proposed a long war against Japan; Jiang's foresight earned him a position as an adviser to Chiang in 1938. Jiang had previously run the Baoding military academy, a predecessor of the Whampoa academy, which had trained many of China's finest young officers in the early republic 1912–1922. Now, many of the generals who had trained under Jiang gathered in Wuhan and would play crucial roles in defending the city: Chen Cheng, Bai Chongxi, Tang Shengzhi, and Xue Yue. They remained loyal to Chiang but sought to avoid his tendency to micromanage every aspect of strategy.  Nobody could say with certainty whether Wuhan would endure the Japanese onslaught, and outsiders' predictions were gloomy. As Wuhan's inhabitants tasted their unexpected new freedoms, the Japanese pressed on with their conquest of central China. After taking Nanjing, the IJA 13th Division crossed the Yangtze River to the north and advanced to the Outang and Mingguang lines on the east bank of the Chihe River in Anhui Province, while the 2nd Army of the North China Front crossed the Yellow River to the south between Qingcheng and Jiyang in Shandong, occupied Jinan, and pressed toward Jining, Mengyin, and Qingdao. To open the Jinpu Railway and connect the northern and southern battlefields, the Japanese headquarters mobilized eight divisions, three brigades, and two detachments , totaling about 240,000 men. They were commanded by General Hata Shunroku, commander of the Central China Expeditionary Army, and Terauchi Hisaichi, commander of the North China Front Army. Their plan was a north–south advance: first seize Xuzhou, a strategic city in east China; then take Zhengzhou in the west along the Longhai Railway connecting Lanzhou and Lianyungang; and finally push toward Wuhan in the south along the Pinghan Railway connecting Beijing and Hankou. At the beginning of 1938, Japan's domestic mobilization and military reorganization had not yet been completed, and there was a shortage of troops to expand the front. At the Emperor's Imperial Conference on February 16, 1938, the General Staff Headquarters argued against launching operations before the summer of 1938, preferring to consolidate the front in 1938 and undertake a large-scale battle in 1939. Although the Northern China Expeditionary Force and the Central China Expeditionary Force proposed a plan to open the Jinpu Line to connect the northern and southern battlefields, the proposal was not approved by the domestic General Staff Headquarters. The Chinese army, commanded by Li Zongren, commander-in-chief of the Fifth War Zone, mobilized about 64 divisions and three brigades, totaling roughly 600,000 men. The main force was positioned north of Xuzhou to resist the southern Japanese advance, with a portion deployed along the southern Jinpu Railway to block the southern push and secure Xuzhou. Early in the campaign, Chiang Kai-shek redeployed the heavy artillery brigade originally promised to Han Fuju to Tang Enbo's forces. To preserve his strength, Shandong Provincial Governor Han Fuju abandoned the longstanding Yellow River defenses in Shandong, allowing the Japanese to capture the Shandong capital of Jinan in early March 1938. This defection opened the Jinpu Railway to attack. The Japanese 10th Division, under Rensuke Isogai, seized Tai'an, Jining, and Dawenkou, ultimately placing northern Shandong under Japanese control. The aim was to crush the Chinese between the two halves of a pincer movement. At Yixian and Huaiyuan, north of Xuzhou, both sides fought to the death: the Chinese could not drive back the Japanese, but the Japanese could not scatter the defenders either. At Linyi, about 50 kilometers northeast of Xuzhou, Zhang Zizhong, who had previously disgraced himself by abandoning an earlier battlefield—became a national hero for his determined efforts to stop the Japanese troops led by Itagaki Seishirō, the conqueror of Manchuria. The Japanese hoped that they could pour in as many as 400,000 troops to destroy the Chinese forces holding eastern and central China. Chiang Kai-shek was determined that this should not happen, recognizing that the fall of Xuzhou would place Wuhan in extreme danger. On April 1, 1938, he addressed Nationalist Party delegates, linking the defense of Wuhan to the fate of the party itself. He noted that although the Japanese had invaded seven provinces, they had only captured provincial capitals and main transport routes, while villages and towns off those routes remained unconquered. The Japanese, he argued, might muster more than half a million soldiers, but after eight or nine months of hard fighting they had become bogged down. Chiang asserted that as long as Guangzhou (Canton) remained in Chinese hands, it would be of little significance if the Japanese invaded Wuhan, since Guangzhou would keep China's sea links open and Guangdong, Sun Yat-sen's homeland, would serve as a revolutionary base area. If the “woren” Japanese “dwarfs” attacked Wuhan and Guangzhou, it would cost them dearly and threaten their control over the occupied zones. He reiterated his plan: “the base area for our war will not be in the zones east of the Beiping–Wuhan or Wuhan–Guangdong railway lines, but to their west.” For this reason he authorized withdrawing Chinese troops behind the railway lines. Chiang's speech mixed defiance with an explanation of why regrouping was necessary; it was a bold public posture in the face of a developing military disaster, yet it reflected the impossible balance he faced between signaling resolve and avoiding overcommitment of a city that might still fall. Holding Xuzhou as the first priority required Chiang Kai-shek to place a great deal of trust in one of his rivals: the southwestern general Li Zongren. The relationship between Chiang and Li would become one of the most ambivalent in wartime China. Li hailed from Guangxi, a province in southwestern China long regarded by the eastern heartland as half civilized. Its people had rarely felt fully part of the empire ruled from Beijing or even Nanjing, and early in the republic there was a strong push for regional autonomy. Li was part of a cohort of young officers trained in regional academies who sought to bring Guangxi under national control; he joined the Nationalist Party in 1923, the year Sun Yat-sen announced his alliance with the Soviets. Li was not a Baoding Academy graduate but had trained at Yunnan's equivalent institution, which shared similar views on military professionalism. He enthusiastically took part in the Northern Expedition (1926–1928) and played a crucial role in the National Revolutionary Army's ascent to control over much of north China. Yet after the Nanjing government took power, Li grew wary of Chiang's bid to centralize authority in his own person. In 1930 Li's so‑called “Guangxi clique” participated in the Central Plains War, the failed effort by militarist leaders to topple Chiang; although the plot failed, Li retreated to his southwest base, ready to challenge Chiang again. The occupation of Manchuria in 1931 reinforced Li's belief that a Japanese threat posed a greater danger than Chiang's centralization. The tension between the two men was evident from the outset of the war. On October 10, 1937, Chiang appointed Li commander of the Fifth War Zone; Li agreed on the condition that Chiang refrain from issuing shouling—personal commands—to Li's subordinates. Chiang complied, a sign of the value he placed on Li's leadership and the caution with which he treated Li and his Guangxi ally Bai Chongxi. As Chiang sought any possible victory amid retreat and destruction, he needed Li to deliver results. As part of the public-relations front, journalists were given access to commanders on the Xuzhou front. Li and his circle sought to shape their image as capable leaders to visiting reporters, with Du Zhongyuan among the most active observers. Du praised the “formidable southwestern general, Li Zongren,” calling him “elegant and refined” and “vastly magnanimous.” In language echoing the era's soldiers' public presentation, Du suggested that Li's forces operated under strict, even disciplined, orders “The most important point in the people's war is that . . . troops do not harass the people of the country. If the people are the water, the soldiers are the fish, and if you have fish with no water, inevitably they're going to choke; worse still is to use our water to nurture the enemy's fish — that really is incomparably stupid”.  Within the southern front, on January 26, 1938, the Japanese 13th Division attacked Fengyang and Bengbu in Anhui Province, while Li Pinxian, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the 5th War Zone, directed operations south of Xuzhou. The defending 31st Corps of the 11th Group Army, after resisting on the west bank of the Chi River, retreated to the west of Dingyuan and Fengyang. By February 3, the Japanese had captured Linhuai Pass and Bengbu. From the 9th to the 10th, the main force of the 13th Division forced a crossing of the Huai River at Bengbu and Linhuai Pass respectively, and began an offensive against the north bank. The 51st Corps, reorganized from the Central Plains Northeast Army and led by Commander Yu Xuezhong, engaged in fierce combat with the Japanese. Positions on both sides of the Huai shifted repeatedly, producing a riverine bloodbath through intense hand-to-hand fighting. After ten days of engagement, the Fifth War Zone, under Zhang Zizhong, commander of the 59th Army, rushed to the Guzhen area to reinforce the 51st Army, and the two forces stubbornly resisted the Japanese on the north bank of the Huai River. Meanwhile, on the south bank, the 48th Army of the 21st Group Army held the Luqiao area, while the 7th Army, in coordination with the 31st Army, executed a flanking attack on the flanks and rear of the Japanese forces in Dingyuan, compelling the main body of the 13th Division to redeploy to the north bank for support. Seizing the initiative, the 59th and 51st Armies launched a counteroffensive, reclaiming all positions north of the Huai River by early March. The 31st Army then moved from the south bank to the north, and the two sides faced across the river. Subsequently, the 51st and 59th Armies were ordered to reinforce the northern front, while the 31st Army continued to hold the Huai River to ensure that all Chinese forces covering the Battle of Xuzhou were safely withdrawn. Within the northern front, in late February, the Japanese Second Army began its southward push along multiple routes. The eastern axis saw the 5th Division moving south from Weixian present-day Weifang, in Shandong, capturing Yishui, Juxian, and Rizhao before pressing directly toward Linyi, as units of the Nationalist Third Corps' 40th Army and others mounted strenuous resistance. The 59th Army was ordered to reinforce and arrived on March 12 at the west bank of the Yi River in the northern suburbs of Linyi, joining the 40th Army in a counterattack that, after five days and nights of ferocious fighting, inflicted heavy losses on the Japanese and forced them to retreat toward Juxian. On the western route, the Seya Detachment (roughly a brigade) of the Japanese 10th Division crossed the Grand Canal from Jining and attacked Jiaxiang, meeting stiff resistance from the Third Army and being thwarted, while continuing to advance south along the Jinpu Railway. The Isogai Division, advancing on the northern route without awaiting help from the southeast and east, moved southward from Liangxiadian, south of Zouxian, on March 14, with the plan to strike Tengxian, present-day Tengzhou on March 15 and push south toward Xuzhou. The defending 22nd Army and the 41st Corps fought bravely and suffered heavy casualties in a hard battle that lasted until March 17, during which Wang Mingzhang, commander of the 122nd Division defending Teng County, was killed in action. Meanwhile, a separate Japanese thrust under Itagaki Seishirō landed on the Jiaodong Peninsula and occupied Qingdao, advancing along the Jiaoji Line to strike Linyi, a key military town in southern Shandong. Pang Bingxun's 40th Army engaged the invaders in fierce combat, and later, elements of Zhang Zizhong's 333rd Brigade of the 111th Division, reinforced by the 57th Army, joined Pang Bingxun's forces to launch a double-sided pincer that temporarily repelled the Japanese attack on Linyi. By late March 1938 a frightening reality loomed: the Japanese were close to prevailing on the Xuzhou front. The North China Area Army, commanded by Itagaki Seishirō, Nishio Toshizō, and Isogai Rensuke, was poised to link up with the Central China Expeditionary Force under Hata Shunroku in a united drive toward central China. Li Zongren, together with his senior lieutenants Bai Chongxi and Tang Enbo, decided to confront the invaders at Taierzhuang, the traditional stone-walled city that would become a focal point of their defense. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Nanjing falls after one of humanities worst atrocities. Chiang Kai-Shek's war command has been pushed to Wuhan, but the Japanese are not stopping their advance. Trautmann's mediation is over and now Japan has its sights on Xuzhou and its critical railway junctions. Japan does not realize it yet, but she is now entering a long war of attrition.

Summary In this episode of Armed American Radio, host Mark Walters discusses significant developments in gun rights, including a recent court ruling that affirms the right to carry firearms in post offices. He emphasizes the importance of joining organizations like the NRA and SAF to support these rights. The conversation also touches on the evolution of gun laws, community responsibility, and the contrast between gun owners and those who oppose them. David Codrea joins the discussion, providing insights into current events and legislative updates affecting gun ownership. Takeaways The recent court ruling allows firearms in post offices for members of SAF and FPC. Joining gun rights organizations is crucial for advocacy and support. Gun owners are often the most peaceable members of society. The left often initiates violence while blaming gun owners. Community engagement is essential for responsible gun ownership. Historical perspectives show that gun rights have evolved significantly. Legislative changes are happening, and gun owners must stay informed. Support for gun rights is a collective effort that requires unity. The importance of understanding the criteria for restoring gun rights is paramount. Current events in Canada reflect trends that could affect U.S. gun rights. Keywords Second Amendment, gun rights, Armed American Radio, Mark Walters, David Codrea, NRA, firearms policy, community engagement, gun ownership, legislation  

Stay safe out there guys! Summary In this conversation, Mark Walters discusses various themes surrounding gun rights, personal responsibility, and the implications of leftist aggression. He shares personal anecdotes, particularly about a confrontation his daughter faced at a Chipotle restaurant, highlighting the dangers of political hostility. The discussion also touches on the state of gun laws in Florida, the importance of being prepared for potential threats, and the role of organizations like the NRA in advocating for gun rights. The conversation emphasizes the need for vigilance and self-defense in today's society. Takeaways These people are very, very dangerous. Preparation, avoidance, and awareness are crucial. Confrontations can escalate quickly; be prepared. The left's aggression is a growing concern. Gun rights are essential for personal safety. Open carry laws in Florida are a hot topic. Personal experiences shape our views on gun rights. Family dynamics play a role in understanding responsibility. The NRA is a key player in defending gun rights. Stay vigilant and aware of your surroundings. Keywords gun rights, personal responsibility, leftist aggression, Florida gun laws, family dynamics, confrontation, self-defense, NRA, open carry, conservative values    

Summary The conversation covers the recent Gun Rights Policy Conference, highlighting key insights from speakers like Alan Gottlieb and AWR Hawkins. The discussion shifts to the tragic shooting incident in Michigan, analyzing the implications for gun rights and the media's role in reporting such events. John Lott joins to discuss the importance of understanding the motivations behind mass shootings and the need for armed security in vulnerable locations. In this conversation, Mark Walters and his guests discuss the ongoing issues of gun violence, the importance of the Second Amendment, and the need for personal responsibility in ensuring safety, particularly in places of worship. They explore the societal implications of recent shootings, the role of faith in combating evil, and the necessity for communities to prepare for potential threats. The dialogue emphasizes the urgency of addressing these challenges and the call to action for individuals to take a stand for their rights and beliefs. Takeaways Gun violence continues to be a pressing issue in society. The Second Amendment is crucial for personal and public safety. Individuals must take personal responsibility for their safety. Recent shootings have shifted public perception on gun rights. Churches need to implement security measures to protect congregants. Evil exists in society and must be acknowledged. Faith plays a significant role in combating societal evils. There is a perceived war on Christianity in America. Communities must prepare for potential threats to safety. The time for action is now; complacency is not an option. Keywords Gun Rights, Policy Conference, Second Amendment, Alan Gottlieb, AWR Hawkins, Michigan Shooting, John Lott, NRA, Armed American Radio, Gun Control, gun violence, Second Amendment, personal responsibility, public safety, church security, evil in society, faith, Christianity, self-defense, preparedness  

Summary The conversation covers the recent Gun Rights Policy Conference, highlighting key insights from speakers like Alan Gottlieb and AWR Hawkins. The discussion shifts to the tragic shooting incident in Michigan, analyzing the implications for gun rights and the media's role in reporting such events. John Lott joins to discuss the importance of understanding the motivations behind mass shootings and the need for armed security in vulnerable locations. In this conversation, Mark Walters and his guests discuss the ongoing issues of gun violence, the importance of the Second Amendment, and the need for personal responsibility in ensuring safety, particularly in places of worship. They explore the societal implications of recent shootings, the role of faith in combating evil, and the necessity for communities to prepare for potential threats. The dialogue emphasizes the urgency of addressing these challenges and the call to action for individuals to take a stand for their rights and beliefs. Takeaways Gun violence continues to be a pressing issue in society. The Second Amendment is crucial for personal and public safety. Individuals must take personal responsibility for their safety. Recent shootings have shifted public perception on gun rights. Churches need to implement security measures to protect congregants. Evil exists in society and must be acknowledged. Faith plays a significant role in combating societal evils. There is a perceived war on Christianity in America. Communities must prepare for potential threats to safety. The time for action is now; complacency is not an option. Keywords Gun Rights, Policy Conference, Second Amendment, Alan Gottlieb, AWR Hawkins, Michigan Shooting, John Lott, NRA, Armed American Radio, Gun Control, gun violence, Second Amendment, personal responsibility, public safety, church security, evil in society, faith, Christianity, self-defense, preparedness  

In This Hour:-- Randy Luth was instrumental in making the public aware that the AR-15 was a great hunting rifle.  Now he's running for the board of directors of the NRA.--  The AR-15 platform turns 70 next year, making it an older design.--  Tom chases down a problem with his hunting rifle.Gun Talk 09.28.25 Hour 2Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gun-talk--6185159/support.