Month: March 2010


Garden Defense — Repelling Four-Legged (and Two-Winged) Pests, by Jason

Finally building a cabin in the woods close to nature can be a dream come true.  But if you are a gardener like me, the morning after the first midnight garden raid by pests unknown can be a real nightmare.  Garden pests never attack the day after harvest or when the plants are young.  They always seem to attack my garden the day before the big haul.  A garden full of just ripened fruit and veggies must look like a neon all-you-can-eat sign to a hungry deer, or rabbit.  There are ways to effectively turn that sign off but it …


Letter Re: Advice on Pre-1899 Revolvers for Self Defense

Dear Jim, I have had the pleasure of reading your blog and archives on a regular basis and have purchased and enjoyed both the “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course and your latest book. My questions relate to the availability, safety and durability of the Colt Model 1892 double action (DA) .41, which you recently recommended. I have contacted some of the dealers and auction sites you mention on your web site, but have not yet found one for sale that is in acceptable condition. If you know of someone that would be willing to sell one or two, I …


Economics and Investing:

U.S. Is Riskier Than Euro Zone; So Says CDS Market. (A hat tip to Yishai for the link.) GG sent this: Central Banks Stashing Away Gold at Brisk Pace. Items from The Economatrix: Commentary from Dan Denninger: Housing Sales: Forget It! How the Middle Class Slowly Evaporated Over the Past 40 Years States Look Beyond Borders to Collect Taxes Owed Stocks Give Up Steep Gains on Renewed Greece Woes Bernanke: Record-Low Rates Needed to Aid Economy Watchdog Blasts Obama Loan Relief Plan Natural Gas Prices Reach Record Low


Odds ‘n Sods:

North American Bees Are in Even More Trouble After a Bad Winter. (Thanks to Damon for the link.)    o o o SurvivalBlog’s Editor At Large Michael Z. Williamson sent us this: This Turk shows one good way of defending oneself against multiple attackers, when unarmed. “Mike’s comment: Nice movement. Keep them coming singly and hit hard, while keeping a good block up.”    o o o Chester wrote me about RJR’s recommendation on Gentex 1030A active hearing protectors. (“Wolf Ears”). Here is a review of several types of hearing protection that Chester found on the net.    o o …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Political tags — such as royalist, communist, democrat, populist, fascist, liberal, conservative, and so forth — are never basic criteria. The human race divides politically into those who want people to be controlled and those who have no such desire. The former are idealists acting from highest motives for the greatest good of the greatest number. The latter are surly curmudgeons, suspicious and lacking in altruism. But they are more comfortable neighbors than the other sort.” – Robert A. Heinlein, “The Notebooks of Lazarus Long“


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 27 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will include: 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 …


Infant Feeding For Your Emergency Preparedness Plan, by LizzyQ

As a mother of two young children, including an infant, I have considered the possibilities of emergency preparedness when it comes to how my baby will be fed in times of emergency. I’ve decided that breastfeeding your baby from the beginning is the best and safest option for parents when planning for their emergencies based on economic cost, the quality of nutrition, and the safety of breast milk when water quality is questionable. I have experience as a breastfeeding counselor and help mothers learn and prepare for nursing their babies on a daily basis. I have made a list of …


Letter Re: Concealing Gender in a G.O.O.D. Situation?

James, As a wife and mother of a pre-teen daughter, how important is it to hide the fact that we are female in a G.O.O.D. scenario? In considering this idea I realize that in the “flee natural disaster” situation it would be less of a concern. Perhaps it only applies to a bad TEOTWAWKI evacuation. What are your thoughts, ideas on this? When would it be necessary, how far would we need to go to disguise our female appearance, etc? We have thought of everything from mildly sticking to athletic/hiking clothing that are form fitting but don’t show skin, to …


Economics and Investing:

Damon sent this: Impasse Over Derivatives Slows Senate Banking Bill Also from Damon: U.S. health insurers’ Credit Default Swaps widen after reform From G.G.: Sales of New U.S. Homes Dropped in February to Lowest on Record Items from The Economatrix: Stocks Fall After Agency Cuts Portugal’s Debt Rating New Homes Sales Hit a Low; Durable Goods Orders Up Oil Settles Below $81 on Jump in US Crude Supplies US Has Lost 2.4 Million Jobs to China The Tipping Point at Zero


Odds ‘n Sods:

SurvivalBlog’s Editor At Large Michael Z. Williamson forwarded this: Record numbers now licensed to pack heat; The “right-to-carry” movement has succeeded in boosting the number of licensed concealed-gun carriers to about 6 million. Mike’s favorite quote from the article: “Because the gun death rates parallel an overall drop in crime, Hemenway suspects that the decline ‘has nothing to do with concealed-carry laws.’” Mike’s comment: “Did a PhD actually say that?”    o o o Attention Coloradans: Reader P.M. in Colorado suggested a “private party” sales venue where he has both sold and purchased guns. Note that interstate sales of post-1898 …



Note from JWR:

Reader Jeff D. mentioned that he noticed that SurvivalBlog is now in the top 7,500 US web sites’ traffic ranking, on Alexa. Thanks for making the blog such a great success! Every link helps. — Today we present another entry for Round 27 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will include: 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 …


Kids and Sleep During a Crisis, by AK. in Texas

We live in Tornado Alley which means we’ve had more than a few opportunities to break out the 72 hour kits and find out what works and what doesn’t. However, one thing we were surprised to find was that we hadn’t figured out what to do when the crisis extends through bedtime, or when it occurs while the kids are asleep. If you have to “hunker down” during a crisis, it’ll take a while for you or the kids to get sleepy. For the adults, this isn’t that big a deal, but when children miss sleep, they have a tendency …


Two Letters Re: Semi-Anonymous Internet Access

Sir, Introductory Note: Some of the activities suggested in this letter may not be legal in your country or your US State. Please ensure that you are familiar with any related laws before attempting any of the methods outlined below. They are therefore provided for information only: With regard to the recent article on semi-anonymous Internet access and the use of wi-fi, by Jeff T: I agree with many of the suggestions in this article, but also wanted to expand on these and identify a number of possible additional risks associated with using wi-fi connectivity. Ben from Tennessee is quite …