Month: February 2010

Odds ‘n Sods:

Loren sent this: Is This the Safest House in the World? [JWR’s Comment: No, it isn’t! To start with, its in Los Angeles… Talk about an OPSEC nightmare!]    o o o EliteT sent us a link to an interesting New York Times piece about a home aquaponics experimenter. (Be sure to click on the link to the YouTube video But don’t get too excited.. Just think how many PV panels it would take to run those pumps, 24/7. Traditional pond aquaponics are more suitable for preppers. )    o o o Thanks to RVL for this article link: What …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 27 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 assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A HAZARiD Decontamination Kit from Safecastle.com. (A $350 value.), and D.) A 500 round case of Fiocchi 9mm Luger, 124gr. Hornady XTP/HP ammo, …


Children in TEOTWAWKI, by J. Woo

Even if you do not plan to have children at your retreat, they will eventually find you. Kids are survivors and they always find a way to make it – it is the human condition. My wife and I lived in East Africa and we have seen street kids endure things that no child should ever experience. Despite the horrendous circumstances, they move ahead and children in this country will also move forward. We are all planning for the worst, and for some of you, the worst would be lots of children hanging around your retreat. If you are not …


Letter Re: Start with Good Boots and Warm Socks

Dear Mr. Rawles: I recently had an experience that allowed to me confirm a basic lesson: Start with good boots and warm socks. The weather forecast for my north eastern city was for 2-4” of snow. Anyone with half a lick of common sense knows that this means anything from blue skies to a foot of ice. By the time I left work at the end of the day, the snow was falling very heavily, but the warm-ish temps quickly converted it into wet muck. My usual commute involves the combination of a subway ride and then a bus, but …


Economics and Investing:

GG sent this: Federal deficit at $430.69 billion through January GG also sent us the link to some commentary by Josh Lipton: What to expect from the commercial real estate crisis Courtesy of SurvivalBlog reader LT: Greece loses EU voting power in blow to sovereignty The Friday Follies continue: Four more US banks are closed. Items from The Economatrix: Premiums Jump 14% on Private Medicare Plans Asian Markets Drop On Surprise Fed Rate Hike “Crisis of Confidence”: Risks of US Defaults are Very Real Credit Markets Flash Hottest Warning Signal Since Crisis


Odds ‘n Sods:

The latest recommendation on heart attack CPR: 100 press-per-minute continuous chest compressions.    o o o I heard from my editor at Penguin that they are going back to press in March for another 10,000 copies of my recent nonfiction book “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It: Tactics, Techniques, and Technologies for Uncertain Times”, which will bring the total in print to just over 70,000 copies. Thanks for helping to spread the word, folks!    o o o “Cowboy” sent us this from The Los Angeles Times: ‘Survivors’ on BBC America–The British are so …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 27 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 assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A HAZARiD Decontamination Kit from Safecastle.com. (A $350 value.), and D.) A 500 round case of Fiocchi 9mm Luger, 124gr. Hornady XTP/HP ammo, …


Incremental Preparedness: The Good, Better, Best Approach, by Jeff B.

For many, the idea of preparedness seems like an impossible undertaking. The amount of equipment and supplies needed is staggering. When I first came to the realization that I was under prepared, the gap between what I had and where I needed to be was too much for my public servant’s paycheck to bear. I would spend a lot of time discussing preparedness with a group that I would go shooting with, and all of these meetings would always gravitate to “which weapon do you plan for X meters?” or “how many rounds do you think I need for X …


Two Letters Re: The Home Foundry, Metal Casting

Mr. Rawles, First thanks for a great blog. I’ve been a regular reader for a year or so now. I’ve read with interest the entries by Dan in Oklahoma on the home foundry. I learned the foundry trade from my father by helping him in a small bronze foundry. I’ve learned the pattern making trade from my father and by jumping in with both feet and making patterns. I’ve since moved on to my own business casting aluminum parts for the WW2 aircraft restoration industry and hope to add magnesium castings to my capabilities. I have one bone to pick …


Four Letters Re: Survival Fire Safety

Sir, Mr. F. has written a very good article on a subject often neglected by many. As a fire service professional working for one of the largest municipal agencies in the country, I must warn against the use of candles whenever possible. Paranoid? Not after seeing burned up children, loss of property, etc. If you must, please place them well away from any combustible materials, and never carry one when lit. – SplitHoof. JWR Replies: I generally discourage the use of candles, but if and when they are used, my advice is to: 1.) Never let them burn unattended, and …


Economics and Investing:

SurvivalBlog’s “George Gordon” (GG) suggested this article: Five Million Workers to Exhaust Unemployment Benefits by June. Also from GG comes the link to this Seeking Alpha piece: The Municipal Bond Crisis Is About to Begin Yishai sent us a link by way of Glenn Reynolds (at Instapundit): International Monetary Fund to sell another 191 tons of gold. This is panic-driven market manipulation, folks! Items from The Economatrix: Low Inflation Gives Fed Room to Keep Rates Down Fewer People Falling Behind in the Home Loans Stocks Edge Higher as Fed Eases Bank Supports Oil Prices Up 12% in Two Weeks


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Rick V. recommended a piece by Nadia Arumugam in Slate magazine: Expiration dates mean very little.    o o o The Marines are Looking for a Few Good Rounds: Corps to use more lethal ammo in Afghanistan    o o o Travis H. sent us this link: Smuggled guns used in cartel hits. What the liberally-biased CNN journalists don’t mention is that the vast majority of guns used by the drug cartels are either stolen from the Mexican Army, or smuggled in from Mexico’s southern neighbors. Their U.S.-sourced guns are the small minority of what they have, and many …