Odds ‘n Sods:

With credit to SHTF Daily (one our favorite sites) comes this tale of housing market woe: Bargain houses largely unsold Courthouse-step auctions offer 1,336 properties in foreclosure — 17 are sold

   o o o

Great Britain bans samurai swords. I suppose that the British citizenry will soon be down to just butter knives, cricket bats, ASBOs, and harsh language for self defense.

   o o o

SurvivalBlog reader Mary R. forwarded us this odd notice from the US Treasury: Annual Purchase Limit For Savings Bonds Set at $5,000. Could the Treasury have been warned that the Fed plans to further lower interest rates, potentially making even low-yield savings bonds more attractive? We live in strange times, dear readers.

   o o o

I heard from Bruce at Best Prices Storable Foods that from now until Dec. 31, 2007, they are offering 20% off all the Mountain House freeze-dried foods they have in stock. Please check their web site for availability. On the phone, mention the End-of-Year special. With their shopping cart, use Coupon Code: MH20off (meaning “Mountain twenty percent off”.) Note that this sale price lasts only until December 31, there is no free shipping offered for these sale items, and the sale is limited to just what they have on hand.