Month: April 2009

The Mexican Flu and You

In the past 24 hours I’ve received dozens of e-mails from SurvivalBlog readers about the emerging Mexican Flu. Some news stories have included cryptic comments from heath officials, implying that the mechanism of infection makes this particular virus “very difficult to contain.” This leads me to conclude that those infected have a long latency period during which they are infectious, yet, they do not display frank symptoms. This does not bode well for any hopes of containing the spread of the virus. Then we hear a CDC official stating: “The swine flu virus contains four different gene segments representing both …


Letter Re: Atheism and Choosing Your Neighborhood

James: I am a new reader to SurvivalBlog and a big fan of “Patriots” ., I have been reading all the archives and old posts, and I would just like to clear one thing up. I am an atheist. I don’t believe that there is sufficient evidence to prove the existence of a supreme power. This does not make make me a bad person. There have been some posts about choosing your neighbors that have said Christians and Jewish people make best neighbors because they are “God fearing” etc. Just because I don’t believe in a god does not mean …


Letter Re: Learning the Details of Self-Sufficiency

Jim, I’d like to add an additional perspective on the letter on “Learning the Details of Self-Sufficiency” — the conscious competence learning model. I’d like to pull back the shade a bit on why ‘just buying stuff’ and reading books isn’t going to cut it when the balloon goes up. Many folks are ‘buying things’, reading books, searching the internet with the thought that when the time comes, they will begin living the self-sufficient lifestyle in the country. The aforementioned letter points out the folly of this approach. I just want to take a step back and look at why …


Economics and Investing:

Herb Dennenberg of the Philadelphia Bulletin warns: US Marches Toward a Financial Disaster Worse Than Anyone Thinks. (A tip of the hat to “The Other Jim R.”) GG flagged a Forbes column by Steve H. Hanke, warning that inflation will roar back with a vengeance: Fed Up Items from The Economatrix: Rush to Universities to Escape Recession GM to Default on $1 Billion Bond Payment IMF Predicts World Recession Will Deepen Morgan Stanley Reports Four-Month Losses of $1.47 Billion Geithner: Worst Trade Bust Since WWII Soaring US Budget Deficit Will Mean Billions in Bond Sales “Millions of lost jobs mean …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Hawaiian K. spotted this at Wired News: The Great Brazilian Sat-Hack Crackdown    o o o Ben M. mentioned that the NTIS is having an unusual clearance sale on some government publications.    o o o Reader G.K. sent this link: Army Sharpshooters to Get SEAL Sniper Rifle. Gee, if the US Army had adopted the AR-10 some 40 years ago, they wouldn’t now be reinventing the wheel. (It’s too bad that the AR-10 wasn’t a more mature design by the time of the T44/T48 trials.)    o o o Be sure to bookmark www.GunBlogs.org. They do a great job …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but …


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 22 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The contest prizes include: First Prize: 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 22 ends on May 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for …


Upgrades to Your Bug Out Vehicle, by Nickey C.

There have been several excellent articles in SurvivalBlog on Bug Out Vehicles (BOVs), but there may be a few gaps to fill. A REPAIR MANUAL for your model vehicle. A shop manual from a dealer can be quite expensive, but a Chilton’s or Haynes manual available from most auto parts stores is usually less than twenty dollars and is a wealth of information. [JWR Adds: I recommend buying a full length service manual and a maintenance code reader. If you do some searching on Amazon and eBay, you can often find a used factory service manual for just a bit …


Letter Re: Question of Sealing Primers and JWR’s Notes on AR-10 Magazines

Sir, I want to thank you for your advice to obtain a 308 battle rifle. Last year I held off on buying one until December as I felt my AR-15s were “good enough”. I paid around $1,600 for an Armalite AR-10. That same rifle model now sells for more that $2,000 (if you can find it). I have also acquired another AR-10 lower that I am building for a “longer range” 308 rifle. I have also been purchasing a lot of Lake City once fired brass and 147 grain FMJ components and slowly reloading my ammo supply. Here is my …


Economics and Investing:

From GG: Borrowing puts UK’s AAA rating in danger after Budget 2009 Also from GG: China reveals huge rise in gold reserves JWR’s comment: Well, “huge” is a relative term. The population of Switzerland is 7.5 million, and the population of China is 1.3 billion. Yet, at 1,054 tons of gold, China’s gold horde is only slightly larger than Switzerland’s. Methinks China will be a big gold buyer in the decades to come, probably in excess of their domestic production. Items from The Economatrix: How Low Could the Stock Markets Go? 10 Charts Showing a Prolonged Global Recession Retirement Dreams …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Several readers sent links to articles about a new H1N1-series variant swine flu, including this AP wire service article: Flu epidemic prompts Mexico City to suspend all school, university classes, as strain studied. The death count in Mexico is now up to 61. A follow-up article included this troubling tidbit: “Scientists said the virus combines genetic material from pigs, birds and humans in a way researchers have not seen before.” If the number of reported cases expands geometrically and the fatality rate is significant, then take the appropriate precautions. Of course, most SurvivalBlog readers already have deep larders and are …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Everyone carries a part of society on his shoulders; no one is relieved of his share of responsibility by others. And no one can find a safe way out for himself if society is sweeping toward destruction. Therefore everyone, in his own interests, must thrust himself vigorously into the intellectual battle. No one can stand aside with unconcern; the interests of everyone hang on the result. Whether he chooses or not, every man is drawn into the great historical struggle, the decisive battle into which our epoch has plunged us." – Ludwig von Mises, Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis, …


Notes from JWR:

Thanks to everyone that ordered copies of my novel “Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse” on “Book Bomb” Day. You placed so many orders that you totally wiped the copies that Amazon.com had on hand by 6 a.m. on April 8th. Amazon currently has 13,000 copies on order from the publisher, 10,000 of which should get to them sometime early next week. So most of you should have your books by late next week, and an unfortunate few of you possibly as late as June 26th, depending on when you placed your order. Again, thanks for your …


Letter Re: Save Money, Get Prepared, and Eat Healthier with Intermediate Term Food Storage

Jim, Thanks for posting Travis A.’s letter regarding food storage. He makes some good points but I’d like to chime in with some thoughts of my own. I see an emergency food storage program as having two conflicting goals: The first is to allow you to eat “normally” after a disaster, because “different” food will just add to the stress of the situation. The second is to provide basic food that will merely keep you alive but will store long-term. I believe a hybrid storage plan that meets both goals is best, at least for my lifestyle. To meet the …


Letter Re: America Stone Knife Sharpeners

Dear Mr. Rawles, I am an everyday reader of your blog and greatly appreciate the information posted there. That said, I’d like to thank you for your recommendation of the America Stone. I do a lot of wood hand carving, most of which is small and intricate work. I have a few wonderful and reliable knives, but I’ve usually been disappointed with most sharpeners. Either they are too rough on the blades or are a pain to use. The America Stone is the most wonderful tool I’ve used since I can’t remember when. It puts an excellent edge on a …