Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"I am one of those who do not believe that a national debt is a national blessing, but rather a curse to a republic; inasmuch as it is calculated to raise around the administration a moneyed aristocracy dangerous to the liberties of the country." – President Andrew Jackson (1767-1845), (from a letter to T.H. Colman, 26 April, 1824)




Note from JWR:

Congrats to Matthew B., the high bidder in the recent SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction. Today we begin a new auction. This one is for two cases (12 cans) of Mountain House freeze dried foods in #10 cans donated by Ready Made Resources, a course certificate for a four-day Bushcraft & Survival Course valued at $550, 25 pounds of green (unroasted) Colombian Supremo coffee courtesy of www.cmebrew.com, and a set of 1,600 U.S. Military Manuals, Government Manuals, and Civil Defense Manuals, Firearm Manuals on two CD-ROM disks. The opening bid is just $50. Details on this new auction will be posted soon. …




Letter Re: Recommendations on Body Armor

Mr. Rawles: I’ve seen your advice on guns and commo gear, but what do you recommend for bulletproof vests? Should I have one for concealment, and a separate [heavier] one for a stand-up fight in the worst case? Or is there a compromise thickness? Also, what do the [NIJ vest rating] “Levels” stand for, exactly? Thank Ye Much, – Arnie V. JWR Replies: I forwarded your questions to Nick at BullterProofME.com, since his knowledge of body armor dwarfs my own. Here is his response: Dear Arnie: Your questions are very well put.  The most basic question of Body Armor is …




Letter Re: Request for Investing Advice

Mr. Rawles: After reading “Patriots” last year, much like Mr. H., I was decidedly ready to act, but largely unprepared logistically. It can be overwhelming and the feeling that “I had a long way to go” was ever present (it still is and I suspect always will be as my education never ends). I’d just like to remind the author to not worry, you’ll get the stuff; you’ve already taken the first step and done something. But preparedness is more than material, the mindset is most important. Start to live right, be frugal, be healthy. Don’t be reliant on outside …




Odds ‘n Sods:

Larry in Cincinnati spotted this sobering Banking Times article: Central bank body warns of Great Depression. Gee, have they been reading SurvivalBlog?    o o o Jack B. flagged this from Scotland: Petrol supplies dwindling as tanker drivers’ strike fuels panic buying    o o o If you are wealthy and want to own the ultimate “Get Out of Dodge” vehicle, I noticed that there is an U.S. Army/ARVN configuration Cadillac Gage V-100 Commando wheeled armored personnel carrier listed for sale at Dave Uhrig’s site. It make the up-armored Ferret Mark 4 that I once owned look wimpy, by comparison. …







Note from JWR:

The SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction ends tonight (Sunday, June 15th), at midnight, eastern time. The high bid is now at $1,110. This big auction is for any of you that are gun enthusiasts. It includes 17 items: A four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate, which was kindly donated by Naish Piazza of Front Sight (worth up to $2,000), a $200 gift certificate from Choate Machine and Tool Company (the makers of excellent fiberglass stocks, folding stocks, and shotgun magazine extensions), $450+ worth of full capacity magazines from my personal collection including five scarce original Ruger-made 20 round Mini-14 magazines …




Florida at the Precipice of Depression, by Mike Morgan, J.D., CRS, GRI

I was going to call this “Banks March Us Into Depression,” or maybe more fitting is . . . “Complete Collapse of US Banking System.” Folks, that is what we are looking at. I don’t see any way around it. What we’re seeing here in Florida, is your crystal ball. And what happens here, is coming to a town near you . . . soon. This past week I didn’t write anything, because what I am seeing unravel is disturbing to the point I had to question what I was seeing and hearing. So I decided to take as much …




Letter Re: E85 Ethanol Compatible Vehicles

Sir; I saw 85% Ethanol (E85) for the first time around me at a gas station for $3.49. Plus or minus the lost gas mileage, I will still be paying the same per mile. If I should choose to equip my vehicles with something like FlexTek, which is an electronic module that changes how long the fuel injectors fire, do you think it would be worth it? In other words, do you think ethanol will go up or down compared to gasoline? If the gap continues to separate to more than 50 cents difference, E85 becomes a real option, do …







Odds ‘n Sods:

RBS sent us the link to an editorial posted at Numismaster: U.S. May Be on Brink of Financial Crisis    o o o There are just two weeks left in BulletProofME.com’s special sale on Interceptor Body Armor and Kevlar helmets, just for SurvivalBlog readers. They only rarely offer prices this low, so don’t miss out!    o o o Mary R. mentioned this news story from New Zealand: Four weeks until power cuts    o o o “If Americans feel they are being pick-pocketed by inflation, they should take a look overseas” writes Richard Benson in With Inflation There’s No …







Note from JWR:

The SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction ends tomorrow (Sunday, June 15th.) The high bid is now at $920. This big auction is for any of you that are gun enthusiasts. It includes 17 items: A four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate, which was kindly donated by Naish Piazza of Front Sight (worth up to $2,000), a $200 gift certificate from Choate Machine and Tool Company (the makers of excellent fiberglass stocks, folding stocks, and shotgun magazine extensions), $450+ worth of full capacity magazines from my personal collection including five scarce original Ruger-made 20 round Mini-14 magazines and five scarce 20 …




Two Letters Re: Some Observations on Recent Flooding in the US Midwest

James, I got this from a friend in Indiana: All is well at our house but the town is suffering. Here are a few comments for your edification. – Small rivers come up fast with 10 inches of rainfall. Unknown to me, but if I had delayed another 30 minutes in going home, I would not have been with my family where I was needed. – This was the first time other than snow events when I could not leave town. All roads underwater, including interstates and state highways. – My Chevy 4WD pickup will go through deeper water than …




From David in Israel Re: Some Preparedness Implications of Rapidly Escalating Fuel Prices

James We are all seeing the rise in fuel prices affecting food prices. I would like the readers to do a acres of farm to miles traveled evaluation of their plans when planning for a world with sparse petro-fuels. The current option is to ignore the prices and continue to fuel large SUVs and pickup trucks even for for “pick me up milk” runs. A fuel efficient car or motorcycle makes more sense depending on the number of passengers travelling. Bio-diesel or ethanol from your field rarely makes sense for anything other than a few very important drives per year …