Odds ‘n Sods:

H5N1 in the British Isles? Yes, it’s official: Outbreak of lethal bird flu confirmed in Britain.

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Just in time for holiday travel: Pump price to jump 20 cents in next 2-3 weeks

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Thanks to RBS for sending us this article from Forbes: Empty Houses Home to Crime As Loans Fail. Here is a quote: “In the Franklin Reserve neighborhood of Elk Grove, Calif., full of subdivisions with half-million dollar homes, homeowners are fighting inner-city problems like gangs, drugs, theft and graffiti. During the boom, the suburb just south of Sacramento sprouted 10,000 homes in four years, attracting investors from the San Francisco area. Now many houses stand empty, weeds overtaking lawns, signs lining the street: ‘Bank Repo,’ ‘For Rent,’ ‘No trespassing – bank owned property.’ A typical home’s value has dropped from about $570,000 to the low $400,000s.”

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The folks at AlertsUSA (one of our new advertisers) mentioned a special offer for SurvivalBlog readers: They have set up a special promo code which, if entered at the time of purchase, will add three additional months of service free with the purchase of a one year subscription. In other words, 15 months for the price of 12. The promo code to use is: survival07