Year: 2007

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Roger S. sent us an article by David McWilliams in Ireland: World’s financial community gives two fingers to the US. One note of clarification, however: The June 12th auction was of Treasury Bills, not Treasury Notes. The Auction on the 15th was Treasury Notes.   o o o From The Motley Fool’s UK edition, by way of SHTF Daily: It’s Heading For Crunch Time…    o o o Rob at Green Mountain Gear mentioned that he is continuing his special on HK91/G3 Alloy magazines in new, unissued condition. He has just a few 20-packs left. Rob notes: “Some of …



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 ends on July 31st. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival will have an advantage in the judging.


My Adventure in Growing Wheat, by Carl in Wisconsin

Some time about June of 2006 I decided after long months of listening to James, the editor of The Bison Newsletter talk about storing wheat that I would try to grow some in an exercise in Post-TSHTF Farming/Gardening. On page 172 of the Readers Digest Back To Basics book it states that a 10’ by 109 ‘ foot plot would grow about 100 pounds of wheat, enough for a family of 4 for a year. I figured that a plot twice that size would be perfect for two people and a dog and a cat. I also question if 100 …


Low Power Amateur Radio Transmitters and Transceivers, by David in Israel

I have been playing with my ham radio stuff for years but I wish I had started out in high-school with a high frequency (HF) low power (QRP) radio kit instead of playing with 2 meter handhelds and repeaters. I would have had a better grasp on circuit and antenna design and gotten into Morse code more quickly. For about $15 or less a transmitter kit around the size of a silver dollar can be made that can be picked up by a larger station sometimes hundreds or even thousands of miles away. Moving up form there are transceivers which …


Letter Re: On Spring and Well Water, and Some Water Treatment Basics

Mr Rawles: You are dead on with the advice on water on July 19th. Even a fairly small spring is a great resource. We have used ours for 25 years now, even though I had a well drilled last year as a backup. Sometimes in the fall, our spring gets down to less than a pencil sized stream of water output. Several other points to mention for springs. For gravity feed, figure about 1/2 pound of pressure on the output end for each foot of elevation between the spring and the output. Also, run at least a 1″ line if …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Matt B. forwarded us a link to the new White House Fact Sheet: Implementation of the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza   o o o Jericho Convention in Kansas: Oakley officials hope nothing shy of nuclear bomb will keep ‘Jericho’ fans away. If you can attend, there is an opportunity to give a presentation and/or be a preparedness panelist at “Jerichon”. Send an e-mail to: Stacey.Adams@guardiansofjericho.org. OBTW, let me know if you definitely plan to attend and I’ll be happy to send you a free SurvivalBlog t-shirt to wear while you are there, as a conversation starter.    o …



Note from JWR:

The high bid is now at $300 in the SurvivalBlog benefit auction for a brand new Big Berkey water filter, kindly donated by Ready Made Resources. They are one of our most loyal advertisers. The auction ends on August 15th. Just e-mail us your bid.


On Spring and Well Water, and Some Water Treatment Basics

Plentiful fresh drinking water for drinking, cooking, washing, and gardening is the most critical resource for all societies. The vast majority of the residents of First World countries are dependent on grid power to supply their water. When the grid goes down for more than a few days, water towers will soon be drained and huge numbers of people will be forced to draw water from open sources. Thankfully, there are streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds in walking distance of most homes. Rainwater from roof downspouts can also be used. But the logistics of hauling water will just by itself …


Letter Re: With Inflation Ahead, Why Be Debt Free?

Jim, I was wondering, as perhaps some other readers are, why you advocate paying off your fixed rate mortgage in preparation for inflationary bad times ahead. It would seem that, short of Zimbabwe-style economic collapse, leaving your money in investments that more or less track inflation, and using those increasingly deflated dollars to pay off a fixed rate, constant dollar mortgage that will become increasingly cheaper with time, is to your benefit (and very much not to the bank’s). What am I missing? Regards, – Lou P JWR Replies: I advocate being debt free for several reasons. The first and …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Coutrtesy of SHTF.com, and also recommended by SurvivalBlog reader KB, comes this article about Zimbabwe from The Economist: How to stay alive when it all runs out   o o o Zuke in Iraq sent us this one: Two Bear Stearns hedge funds are now worth nearly nothing. We read further details in The Daily Reckoning: “Last week, all three rating agencies – Moody’s, Standard and Poor’s, and Fitch – announced downgrades of subprime linked debt. And this week, Bear Stearns said investors in one of its hedge funds that bought CDOs on a leveraged basis would get none of …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"False is the idea of utility that sacrifices a thousand real advantages for one imaginary or trifling inconvenience; that would take fire from men because it burns, and water because one may drown in it; that has no remedy for evils except destruction. The laws that forbid the carrying of arms are laws of such a nature … laws not preventive but fearful of crimes.:" – Beccaria



Consumer Credit in America: Winding Up The Big “No Joy” Buzzer

I recently read a piece in The New York Times, (linked at SHTF Daily) titled Somehow the Spending Doesn’t Stop. The author made some astute observations on consumer spending. But he didn’t go on to analyze some underlying phenomena. I have observed that here was a subtle yet profound shift in the psychology of indebtedness that took place in the late 1990 and early Aughts: Somehow the average American gradually stopped thinking about the total amount that he owes his creditors, and instead started focusing on his minimum monthly payment. Consequently, consumer spending soared. For more than a decade, Americans …