Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 20 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The contest prizes include: First Prize: The writer of the best contributed article will be awarded two transferable Front Sight  “Gray” Four Day Training Course Certificates. This is an up to $4,000 value! Second Prize: A three day course certificate from OnPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing Round 20 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. …




A Low-Cost Route to Earning a Bachelor’s Degree, by V/Rs

For many, the cost of a college education can be prohibitive; however the necessity of having a degree can be crucial when a job seeker is looking for work. Oftentimes, a college degree is used as a discriminator in the hiring process. Those with years of experience and talent may not even be considered for a position simply because they haven’t “filled in the blocks” required by a human resources department. Even if the degree is in an unrelated field, it is usually enough to get a person through the initial hurdles of the interview process. However, even the costs …




Letter Re: Seattle Area Isolated Because of Flooding

Hello Jim: Well, the weather hits for the Pacific Northwest keep on coming and lessons still need to be learned. As I type this, the entire Western Washington region is cut off. That’s right! All three open passes across the Cascades to the east have been closed due to avalanche and flooding concerns, flooding has cut off I-5 between Portland and the state capitol of Olympia and Western B.C. is cut off from blocked passes in that region. All official roadways have been closed in Western Washington key areas due to flood and washout concerns. The news is reporting that …




Letter Re: The SurvivalistBooks.com Groups Match-Up Page is Back On-Line

Hi James! Happy New Year and a belated Merry Christmas! I’ve just returned from a ‘holiday’ working on my retreat and found that over the holiday break my e-mail server fell over. I have added those messages I could recover to my Groups Listing page – but I know I have lost at least a couple of postings . As a significant number of people access this page [from the link at the Finding Like-Minded People in Your Area page] at your site, [I’d like to] explain what has happened and ask anyone who doesn’t see their listing to resend …




Letter Re: CNN to Air I.O.U.S.A. Today and Tomorrow

James, This coming weekend, CNN will broadcast a program called I.O.U.S.A. It’s a documentary about the United States debt – which is out of control, an expose on just how bad our current economic crisis is. Karen and I believe that becoming educated about what is possibly the biggest problem in our lifetimes – is critical. So we write this email to you today hoping you’ll watch this program and get involved. If we sit idly-by and watch from the sidelines as our Federal Government continues to spend our hard earned tax dollars – in an out of control fashion, …




Odds ‘n Sods:

A SurvivalBlogger in the southeastern US might find this “RV” of interest. I’ve noticed that retired armored trucks don’t get sold on the open market very often–most get re-engined umpteen times and simply passed around between armored transport companies. (Thanks to Chester for the link.)    o o o Trent and FloridaGuy both sent us this: Merrill Lynch predicts $1,150 gold by June    o o o As usual, here’s the latest economic news and commentary from Cheryl, but the first item was suggested by Redclay: Numbers show economy in near free fall — World Stocks Drop as US Unemployment …