Day: June 25, 2009

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 23 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. First Prize: A.) A course certificate from OnPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day OnPoint courses normally cost between $500 and $600, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried foods, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. Second Prize: A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $350. Third Prize: A copy of …


Avoiding Bugging Out, by Steve M.

One core tenet of the Survival and Preparation (S&P) culture that is often misunderstood, misapplied and has a high probability of failing, and that is “the bug-out”.  I am prompted to write this after reading so many S&P-related books, blogs and forums where individuals are indicating that their primary plan, and the focus of their preparations, is bugging-out.  The common discussion topics of bug-out vehicles (BOV), bug-out bags (BOB), bug-out land, etc, and the overall S&P lexicon confirm the importance placed on the bug-out concept.   Although well organized and executed, a 1,600 mile bug-out is portrayed by some of “The …


Letter Re: A Retreat Property Shopping Trip — Three States in Six Days

Mr. Rawles, At one time or another I have driven every mile of the trip as you described in your reply. Like you, I have encountered those who [are unfamiliar with the driving distances in the western US]. I’ve even met folks that cannot discern the difference in scale on a road atlas from switching the pages between Montana and Massachusetts. I see this regularly with Army inspectors who call me and say that they want to fly into Billings, inspect Army Reserve units in Billings, Butte, Helena, Great Falls, Missoula & Kalispell all in two days and then fly …


Two Letters Re: Cost Comparison: Factory Loads and Reloaded Ammunition

James, Grandpappy isn’t comparing apples to oranges correctly. His reloaded ammo pricing is for premium self defense bullets, which cost $150 or so per thousand. Most people are going to reload cast lead, which would cost $50 or 60 per thousand for a .40 S&W for example. If you price new premium self defense ammo, like Doubletap, it is going for around $700 a case. If you purchased new brass (why?) Hornady or Speer premium SD bullets, you would still be able to build your own (which we supposedly should not due to legal concerns) SD ammo for half the …



Economics and Investing:

GG spotted this article: The Real Crisis Is Food: Beginning of the Bull for Agriculture Udo sent this: U.S. Home Prices Drop [Another] 6.8 Percent in April as Foreclosures Rise. JWR’s Comment: We are nowhere near the bottom! I don’t expect that for another four to seven years. With the exception of retreat properties, it is best to stay on the sidelines and rent, while you are waiting for the market to bottom. Then you can buy for perhaps 25 cents on the dollar. Reader HPD liked this piece by Mish Shedlock: US Approves IMF Gold Sales; What Does It …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Cheryl flagged this: North Korea’s Strong New Threat    o o o Reader Kevin A. suggested this piece over at LewRockwell.com: Survival Training: Be Armed, Store Food, Use Real Money, Secede    o o o Kevin also noted that his regional newspaper, had a “how to” feature on building rainwater catchment barrels. Kevin’s comment: “While it focused more on the possible conservation aspects of using such a device, it’s becoming more and more evident that many preparedness tactics are entering the mainstream.”