Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — July 22, 2025

On July 22, 1916, a timebomb was exploded by radicals at a Preparedness Day parade in San Francisco, killing 10 people and injuring 40 others.

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July 22, 1298: The English defeated the Scots at the Battle of Falkirk.

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And on July 22, 1489, the Treaty of Frankfurt wassigned between Maximilian of Austria and King Charles VIII of France.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  2. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  3. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  4. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels, plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com.
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

Preparedness Primer for an Uncertain Future – Part 1, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: This young man is prayerfully seeking a wife. He is offering an after-marriage gift of up to $50,000 to whoever introduces him to his bride with $18,000 after their marriage and another $16,000 to the individual who provided the introduction after the first two births of healthy children born to him and his wife, for a total potential gift of $50,000. For further details, see this link to his article posted on July 13th, 2025: My Quest for a Wife: I’m Willing to Move.

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During the height of the most recent tensions in the Middle East, my family and I were having a discussion about a potential way people could start preparing today given a relatively large amount of money and to give them a possible path, so that is the genesis of this article series. The amount of money that I set as a budget for one of these levels is the same that I offer for success of a reader introducing me to my future spouse.

In my earlier article series, I wrote about Preparedness in the New Golden Age or Grimy Age. Since it has been over three months since then, I wanted to give readers a brief overview of where I see our country in its current historical cycle, provide a historical perspective to assist in understanding the current environment, to give readers insight into different levels of preparedness, and to give commentary on various items that could be useful to individuals who are beginning or on their preparedness journey. This is again a very future oriented piece, so please do not take anything I write as advice as this is only speculative. Consider this to be at best another Gedankenexperiment — a thought experiment. I may be very wrong in my conclusions.

Bottom Line Up Front: The country is still going broke (we recently surpassed 37 Trillion dollars in National Debt), deportations are nowhere near the level necessary to bring us back to pre-2021 levels (if there are only ten million individuals who needed to be deported currently in the country, then deportation would need to be over 200,000 people per month and currently is nowhere near on an annualized basis after nearly six months. Some estimates suggest that double or even triple that number of people need to be deported who arrived in the last four years just to return to pre-2021 levels), and our Republic is only one critical event away from foundering.

I want the nation to succeed, but imitating “Pollyanna” is not a valid path to surviving the future. The golden age is a lot grimier than is being advertised. I see increases in unemployment (in the high paying technology industry, companies are laying off American workers at the same time I have seen reports of them requesting and sponsoring cheaper foreign born individuals to be imported into the country as workers), international tensions that are not abated waiting to emerge like a “jack in the box,” and technological issues are especially troubling with the growth of generative artificial intelligence (AI). That surface that you think is gold is likely gilding and it appears to be getting grimy.

Study and Learn From History

It is critical for readers to be able to have historical appreciation. Since you cannot live forever, experience everything, and live to tell the tale and learn the lesson, you have to be selective in your experiences. The human lifespan is relatively short compared to a sequoia tree which can live for 3,000 years. Unlike the immovable sequoia, a human can move around, to find safe places.

A lot of young people today talk about “life hacks” meaning a way to do things more efficiently, especially those things that are done in an unconventional fashion. Whenever I hear about “life hacks,” it brings a chuckle in that most of these life hacks are just common sense. Common sense is in fairly short supply, so these seems like nuggets of incredible wisdom. In the next few days, maybe you will discover some “life hacks” for smoother sailing on your preparedness journey.

In this blog’s Preparedness Notes on Sunday June 22nd and Monday June 23rd, Jim Rawles mentioned: “My e-mail inbox has been full of queries from readers about the USAF bomber strikes on Iranian nuclear weapons development sites. Folks want to know if this might mean WW3.” I want to applaud readers who have the foresight to know that something important was occurring. The major problem is that if you do not have a farm/retreat and live in a major metropolitan area, you will not likely survive a nuclear war. Having a pre-established retreat plan with appropriate transportation is the second-best option with the best is of living full-time at your farm/retreat. I am not one to sugarcoat things. Developing a retreat or even a retreat plan for those beginning this journey is difficult, but with enough effort it can be accomplished. I have seen many families be able to become successful, living in the country. I encourage people to deurbanize themselves, decentralize, and ruralize (if they are not already rural) to have the greatest opportunities for themselves to survive the future.

Surviving in the city is not a realistic path in most long-term scenarios. I understand many readers are reading this article series from cities, but cities are a historical aberration. Cities are not sustainable and require massive imports of food, fuel, and are just one major event where the thin veneer of civilization will be torn off. Having a retreat or even the ability to retreat can be an excellent option, but all of this requires excellent timing to avoid getting caught in the maelstrom that will likely be occurring during a widespread chaotic evacuation during a time when order is breaking down.

Alarming Power Failures

My family has a large collection of survival books and materials from decades ago and when I was recently doing some reading, I noticed a discussion of the concept of power drop alarms to alert to potential local or national grid issues. My family has been running various alarm systems to detect intrusion or environmental events such as power loss or temperature issues for decades. Currently, we have over five separate power drop alarms that ring in the event of a power outage. We also have an alarm that uses a cell phone that calls us in the event the power goes out. I can be anywhere with cellular or satellite phone service and know that the main power is out with many critical components are on standby backup power all of the time. When I am home at the farm and the power drops, it is often a series of alarms going off in a cacophonous tone alerting us that something is wrong. It would be extremely difficult to sleep through more than five separate alarms ringing discordantly. That sounds means “Get up: something is happening.” Often, I know that there is a storm and then I would analyze nearby outages. I can flip various switches moving to alternative power without having to leave our home or shelter and turn on a generator. This is a distinct advantage in a lightning storm.

Years ago, people were rightly concerned that they could sleep through the opening stages of what Pat Frank wrote in his novel Alas, Babylon known as the “kickoff.” If an exchange happened at 2 AM inside of a target area, you probably would go from a deep sleep into a permanent sleep. You literally only have minutes to make a decision if you are near a target and the Third World War has turned hot. If you are within a target area of a nuclear weapon, you probably will not survive if you do not access within a very short time to a 200 psi blast shelter which would potentially allow you to survive a multi-megaton nuclear weapon arburst or within a few miles as a surface burst. Surface bursts are overall more destructive to a hardened target, but they are wasteful in terms of energy because there is not as much destruction of population centers. Given the mathematical probabilities, given that countries do not have unlimited megatonnage for strikes, it is reasonable to assume that most nuclear weapons would be utilized for airbursts to maximize destruction. Surface bursts would be reserved for hardened targets such as command and control bunker complexes or ICBM silos.

Every day that we are not six feet below ground is a good day. Some of us can put six feet or more of dirt and concrete over our heads and live to tell the tale in a proper blast shelter.

Since readers wanted to know if we are in World War Three, here is my historically informed answer:  We are probably in the opening stages of the Third World War. A careful study of this analysis, much prayer, and then carefully looking at your own situation are three initial steps that you could begin to take at this time.

(To be continued tomorrow, in Part 2.)

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, news about Montana’s cattle population.  (See the Montana section.)

Idaho

This 42-inch lake trout just broke a state record.

o  o  o

Inside Idaho’s only maximum security prison where Bryan Kohberger may spend the rest of his life.

o  o  o

Rexburg man convicted for wildlife violations.

o  o  o

Boise’s biggest Basque festival returns after 10-year absence.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day: 

“The extravagant expenditure of public money is an evil not to be measured by the value of that money to the people who are taxed for it.” – President Chester A. Arthur, October 5, 1829 – November 16, 1886 — Our Twenty-First president, 1881–1885. (A Daguerreotype by Rufus Anson, with applied color.)

Preparedness Notes for Monday — July 21, 2025

July 21, 1404:  The Battle of Shrewsbury: The Army led by the Lancastrian King of England, Henry IV defeated a rebel army led by Henry “Harry Hotspur” Percy of Northumberland. This ended Percy’s challenge to the throne. This was the first battle in which English archers fought each other on English soil.

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July 21,1904: After 13 years of construction, the 4,607-mile Trans-Siberian railway was completed.

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In honor of the birthday week of Samuel Colt, we are running a special sale at Elk Creek Company. Many antique and percussion replica gun prices have been reduced — including all of our Colts — and I’ll include the bonus of an autographed hardback copy of my novel Expatriates with the first 10 orders. The sale will end on Saturday, July 26th, 2025.

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Today’s feature piece is by SurvivalBlog staffer Tom Christianson.

Armasight Thermal Optics, by Thomas Christianson

I stepped out my door with the dog on a leash, ready to go for a walk. A glance toward the woods on the other side of the driveway did not reveal any signs of life. I was carrying an Armasight Thermal Monocular in my right hand. I turned it on, put it to my right eye, and glanced at the same patch of woods across the driveway just to make sure that the monocular was on. Much to my surprise, I saw a herd of a half dozen or so deer looking back at me. What was easy to miss with a casual glance from the unassisted eye was glaringly obvious with a casual glance through the monocular. Armasight’s motto “Stop Looking. Start Seeing.” suddenly became more than just words.

The Bottom Line, Up Front

I tested two Armasight thermal optics: a Sidekick 640 1×19 Thermal Monocular, and a Contractor 640 3-12x50mm Thermal Weapon Sight. I found both optics to be rugged, reliable, versatile, and eye-openingly clear.

Technology this sophisticated doesn’t come for free. At the time of this writing, the monocular cost $2,999 and the sight cost $4,999 at Armasight.com.Continue reading“Armasight Thermal Optics, by Thomas Christianson”

Recipe of the Week:  Baked Hamburger Zucchini

The following recipe for Baked Hamburger Zucchini is from SurvivalBlog reader Ellen H.

Ellen’s Preparation Notes

A.) Be sure that the zucchini is well-drained. I press mine through a sieve, to remove moisture. Skipping this step will probably make it soggy.

B.) The required baking time may vary. If you have a wide and shallow baking time, then the baking time may be less.

C.) This is a main course that recipe serves six adults.

Ingredients
  • ½ lb. lean ground beef
  • ½ of a 2″ diameter onion, finely diced
  • 3 ½ c. shredded zucchini, drained
  • 1 c. Bisquick (or homemade equivalent)
  • ½ c. shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 4 large eggs or 5 medium eggs
  • ¼ c. canola oil
  • 1 tsp. parsley
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. basil (or less, to taste)
  • ¼ tsp. garlic powder (or less, to taste)
  • ¼ tsp. black pepper (or less, to taste)
  • tomatoes, thinly sliced
Directions
  1. Brown the ground beef and diced onion, together.
  2. Preheat your oven to 350° F.
  3. Mix all ingredients except zucchini and tomatoes in a bowl.
  4. Stir in zucchini and pour into a greased 2 ½-quart to 3-quart baking dish.
  5. Top with a scattered layer of tomato slices.
  6. Bake at 350° F for 40 to 50 minutes. (Check at 40 minutes. You’ll know that it is properly baked if the center is well-set and the top is lightly browned.)
SERVING

Serve it hot.

STORAGE

This stores fairly well if refrigerated overnight, uncovered. (Covering it can make it soggy.)

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Do you have a well-tested recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long-term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven recipes, slow cooker recipes, and any recipes that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic: Map of Lead Service Lines per Public Water System. (Graphic courtesy of Reddit.)

The thumbnail below is click-expandable.

 

 

 

 

Reader Robert W. had these comments:

“Pretty good fit, eh? This needs a real scientific study. The correlation is just too strong to be coincidence. It’s been long asserted that Romes decline was due in part to its lead pipes, so there’s considerable precedent. Could lead poisoning/brain damage lead to half the voters being disqualified for medical cause? Maybe the real reason cities lean democrat is because of lead poisoning.”

Also see this map: The Real Reason Cities Lean Democratic.
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Please send your graphics or graphics links to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Life and liberty are secure only so long as the right of property is secure. All property is an extension of a person’s life, energy, effort, and ingenuity. Therefore, to destroy or confiscate such property (and every person has a ‘property’ in his own ‘person’) is, in reality, an attack on the essence of life itself.” – Mark Skousen

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — July 20, 2025

On July 20, 1793, Scottish explorer Alexander Mackenzie completed the first European east-to-west crossing of America north of Mexico. Here is a quote from his biography:

“Emigrating at a young age from his native Scotland, Mackenzie began working for a trading company aligned with the North West Company, the big rival to the Hudson Bay Company.

In 1788 Mackenzie travelled to and later took charge of a trading port at Lake Athabasca (in modern Alberta). Tasked with discovering a river route to the Pacific Ocean, Mackenzie set out in 1789 and became the first to traverse what is now called the Mackenzie River, at 1,025 miles long (1,650 km), which led him not to the Pacific, as had been predicted, but to the Arctic Ocean.

In 1792 he set out on his second major expedition west to the Pacific travelling by bark canoe and overland to the Pacific, careful to take the advice of local Indians along the way. There he inscribed his name on a rock on the Pacific shore in July of 1793, becoming the first to journey across North America, north of Mexico. Within a few months he and his companions had returned safely.

Back in London he published an account of his travels in “Voyages from Montreal … to the Frozen and Pacific oceans” in December 1801 to acclaim. He then became an MP for Lower Canada briefly before moving back to the United Kingdom and retiring in Scotland. He was knighted in 1802.”

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I just heard of the death of famed theologian Christian orator John MacArthur, at age 86.  His expository preaching was excellent, and through his broadcast sermons he undoubtedly helped countless thousands come to saving faith. Doctrinally, he was a quasi-Calvinist, and he believed in a pre-Tribulation rapture. To his credit, he was never swayed by popular opinion, the mass media, or faddishness. He first published the MacArthur Study Bible in 1997.  The various editions include more than 20,000 interpretative notes.

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In honor of the birthday week of Samuel Colt, we are running a special sale at Elk Creek Company. Many antique and percussion replica gun prices have been reduced — including all of our Colts — and I’ll include the bonus of an autographed hardback copy of my novel Expatriates with the first 10 orders. The sale will end on Saturday, July 26th, 2025.

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Today’s guest article was written by A.C. of the Stakeholder Prepping Podcast. Because he is a SurvivalBlog advertiser, he is not eligible to write for our writing contest.

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We still need some entries for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

 

Some Hidden Threats to Critical Infrastructure, by A.C.

In an increasingly interconnected world, the security of critical infrastructure, particularly power grids, is paramount. While geopolitical tensions often dominate headlines, there are some extremely concerning threats that aren’t getting as much play as they should: the potential for foreign actors to exploit vulnerabilities in seemingly innocuous imported components. In the essay, we’re going to chat about some recently uncovered instances of undisclosed communication devices embedded in critical infrastructure components, such as solar inverters and port cranes, highlighting the severe risks these “backdoors” pose to national security and even you as a private citizen (prepper or not). We’re also going to outline practical, actionable steps individuals can take to enhance their personal resilience and mitigate the impact of potential grid disruptions. Remember: Preparedness over panic.Continue reading“Some Hidden Threats to Critical Infrastructure, by A.C.”

JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR:

Meme Text:

Now We Are Told That There Are Indeed Epstein Files, But We Will Only Get To See The “Relevant” Ones
So… Will “Relevant” Mean Seeing Any Trump Kompromat Revelations?

News Links:

Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks!

Permission to repost memes that I’ve created is granted, provided that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:

And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.

And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;

Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.

And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.

And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” – Luke 18:1-8 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — July 19, 2025

On July 19, 1881, Lakota Sloux Indian Chief Sitting Bull surrendered to US federal troops at Fort Buford in the Montana Territory.

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July 19th is coincidentally the birthday of handgun designers Samuel Colt (born 1814) and Gaston Glock. (Glock was born in 1929 and passed away in December, 2023.)

In honor of the birthday week of Samuel Colt, we just started a one-week sale at Elk Creek Company. Many antique and percussion replica gun prices have been reduced — including all of our Colts — and I’ll include the bonus of an autographed hardback copy of my novel Expatriates with the first 10 orders. The sale begins today (Saturday, July 19th, 2025 and will end at 9 PM Pacific Time, on Saturday, July 26th, 2025.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  2. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  3. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  4. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels, plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com.
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

Setting up a Command Post for TEOTWAWKI, by 3AD Scout

As a young Private in the U.S.Army, I had wondered what happened inside the company Command Post (CP) or Tactical Operations Center (TOC). I had the opportunity to work in our unit’s Headquarters Platoon, including working in the TOC. Before my personal experiences working inside the TOC, I believed the TOC was where all the officers went to keep warm, get hot coffee, and sit around. After working in the Company Headquarters Platoon, I got reassigned to the Battalion Headquarters Company in the Scout Platoon. These experiences allowed me to grasp how situational awareness is gathered by scouts, analyzed, and acted upon in a TOC.

Fast forward sox years after the military and I was working in a County Emergency Operations Center (EOC). One of my primary goals was the readiness of our emergency operations center (EOC) to be able to activate and operate for any emergency. When I started the job, I had a few copies of the county’s written plan, some EOC position handbooks, some pens and paper, and lots of phones. Our EOC operations budget was very slim, as in zero, as our county “leaders” did not view emergency management or disaster preparedness as a high priority or any priority for that matter. Being able to establish and operate a Command Post, Tactical Operations Center or emergency operations center where information is collected, analyzed, synthesized, and shared with other key leaders/staff and where decisions are made is important. That actionable intelligence can be communicated to your family, Mutual Assistance Group (MAG), or your neighborhood.Continue reading“Setting up a Command Post for TEOTWAWKI, by 3AD Scout”