Month: June 2007

Letter Re: Advice on Bear Protection?

Sir: I read your blog every day but I fell behind when I took a long weekend fishing. If I am not hunting with a rifle, I carry a [Colt Model] 1911 or Glock 10mm for brown bear protection in Alaska. I’m not trying for a one shot stop, I just want to change the bear’s mind to not touch me. The gun you are carrying is 100% more effective than the elephant thumper [that you left behind] in the gun safe. If the gun on your hip is too big then it inhibits the work you are trying to …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Two different readers have mentioned this book catalog. Lindsay’s Technical Books. An assortment of unusual books with tinkering “how to” information. They should be a SurvivalBlog advertiser! o o o Police bust coin melting racket in Kolkata (West Bengal)



Note from JWR:

Today we present another article for Round 11 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The writer of the best non-fiction article will win a valuable four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate. (Worth up to $2,000!) Second prize is a copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, generously donated by Jake Stafford of Arbogast Publishing. I will again be sending out a few complimentary copies of my novel “Patriots” as “honorable mention” awards. Round 11 runs for two months, ending on the last day of July. This article is a bit long, and some of you may …


Reverse the Public School Brainwashing and Keep Your Kids Safe, by Captain Dave

The recent school shooting at Virginia Tech demonstrates a huge underlying societal problem that many of us are either ignoring or are ignorant of. Because society has spent much of the last several decades trying to stamp violence out of schools and out of our children, we end up with kids who are made-to-order victims that will line up to be shot execution style rather than fight back. The answer to school violence is not to arm the campus police, have campus SWAT teams, or class rooms that can double as fortresses, it is to teach our children to protect …


Letter Re: Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina and Indiscriminate Weapons Confiscation

Dear Jim and Family, Some months ago, our president signed into law a bipartisan bill that protects Americans from gun seizure during a disaster. In theory, every emergency worker (including police and National Guard) knows they cannot take guns from citizens, period. In theory. In practice its far more likely that we can all expect: the worst case scenario. This is uncomfortable as you have no idea if the cop down the street is honest or a bully who’s taking guns because he can, or because he’s been ordered by by his boss, or a buddy on the force with …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Harvey J. sent us a link to a web site that ties in nicely with our recent posts about utility uses for bicycles: Hauling Cargo by Bike   o o o We’ve recently added two new Affiliate Advertisers: 1.) TotalVid. They provide a wide range (thousands) of instructional videos via high speed Internet download. Many of these videos are for practical do-it-yourself skills. They offer a free trial subscription. Check them out. And, 2.) KeepYouSafe. They provide off-site backup of crucial documents for both businesses and families. Oh, and speaking of our Affiliates, I should also mention that Nashbar …



Note from JWR:

There are now just four days left in the special two week “Patriots: Surviving the Coming Collapse” Six Pack Sale. For any orders postmarked on or before June 30th, I’m offering a box of six autographed copies of my novel “Patriots“, packed in a well-padded USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate box, for $93, postage and Delivery Confirmation tracking label costs paid, to any US or APO/FPO address. That is just $15.50 per copy! And again, I pay the postage! Make sure that your order is postmarked on or before June 30th. See my original post for ordering details.


Weather Forecasting the Old-Fashioned Way, an Important Skill for WTSHTF

One thing that we take for granted in our modern age is ready access to sophisticated weather forecasting, complete with satellite imagery. But when the Schumer Hits the Fan (WTSHTF) and the power grid and Internet go adios, those will no longer be available. Under these same circumstances, gardening, hay cutting, and small scale grain raising will be crucial. You will need to be able to predict the weather with some accuracy. If you cut your hay at the wrong time–just before the advent of a wet summer weather system–you could end up with a moldy hay crop. And if …


Letter Re: Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina and Indiscriminate Weapons Confiscation

Dear Mr. Rawles, First off, I would like to thank you for writing the novel “Patriots” and starting SurvivalBlog. My dad sent me your book in the mail and told me to read it. Being a fan of Tom Brown-ish survival literature, I decided to give it a try. I read it in one night, starting at about 8 pm and finishing at 3 in the morning. Truly, my world view has changed. I have immediately started making preparations—getting my Bug Out Bag together, my Bug Out Routes planned and starting to practice some of the skills sets I’ve let …


Odds ‘n Sods:

This news story caught my eye. Buffalo Man Lives in Underground Bunker. On a somewhat related note, the folks at Walton Feed have an interesting web page titled: “The Granddaddy Of All Underground Storage Areas “   o o o Home Sales in US Hit Slowest Pace in Four Years. Don’t say that I didn’t warn you. This “downturn” may very well be the beginning of a housing market collapse that will last a decade.    o o o Commentary from the International Herald Tribune: Finding doomsday asteroids.    o o o From WorldNetDaily: Untreatable Tuberculosis threat ‘apocalyptic scenario’


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong in the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry." – Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms



The Bear Stearns Bears–The Near Collapse of Two Real Estate Hedge Funds Sends Economic Shock Waves Around the World

Last week’s big economic news was that two Bear Stearns hedge funds worth $20 billion are teetering near collapse. These two Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO) funds–ironically named the “Bear Stearns High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund” and the “High Grade Structured Credit Strategies Fund”–are in trouble because of their heavy exposure to sub-prime mortgages. A well-publicized rescue plan involving Merrill Lynch fell apart. At one point Merrill Lynch–one of Bear’s credit backers–said that they planned to seize about $850 million worth of collateral assets from Bear Stearns and sell them on the open market. Reuters reported Bear Stearns injected …