Month: September 2010

Course Review: OSP Shooting School, by Michael Z. Williamson

The sport of Sporting Clays involves a variety of size and color clay targets thrown in high arcs, low fast passes, rolled along the ground, and in pairs overhead, which are good simulations of real animal movements. Besides being a good way to tune reflexes, it’s a lot of fun. This is a sport that translates well to both survival hunting and defensive shooting against surprise, moving targets. I shot trap a couple of times about 20 years ago. Since then, all my shooting has been rifle, pistol or riotgun at pop up or fixed targets. This was effectively a …


Letter Re: Why a Practice Garden?

Hi James, Concerning garden soils. Most of the bags sold as topsoil are really not top soil. Top soil occupies only on the top 6 to 12 inches of soil at best. It is called the ‘A’ horizon. What customers are getting is the deep ‘B’ horizon soils usually free of any rocks. ‘B’ horizon soils are found immediately under the ‘A’ horizon and can be any where from 20 inches to 10 feet deep. Mostly they are 2 to 6 feet deep depending on the parent material from which they have developed. Steer manure from a feedlot is most …


Economics and Investing:

More, more, more MOAB: Bernanke Says U.S. Economic Growth Too Slow Even With Fed Bond Purchases. Gee, if the Fed just buys lots and lots of stocks and bonds, we’ll all be multi-trillionaiares, just like those wealthy Zimbabweans. SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson sent this from Zero Hedge: Debunking The Great Myth Of US Consumer Deleveraging, Or Why The US Economy Will End Not With A Whimper But A Bang K.T. mentioned: 15 Bone Chilling Signs That Part Two Of The Double Dip Housing Crash Has Begun Revisiting option ARM data – Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and …




Johnny Carson TP Syndrome–This Time, The Rush Begins at Midnight

On December 19, 1973, American late night talk show host Johnny Carson made a joke that had some far-reaching unintended consequences. In his opening monologue, he quipped: “You know what’s disappearing from the supermarket shelves? Toilet paper. There’s an acute shortage of toilet paper in the United States.” The next morning tens of millions of his viewers went out and each bought dozens of rolls. This buying created a shortage, which lasted several weeks. More than just a bit of trivia, the 1973 toilet paper shortage illustrates the herd-like instincts of consumers, and just how easy it is to create …


Letter Re: Getting Started in Self-Reliant Living

Editor’s Note: The following letter, suggested by a SurvivalBlog reader, is reprinted with permission of Backwoods Home magazine–which was one of my favorite print publications, even a decade before they became SurvivalBlog advertiser. Dear Jackie, I have to disagree with your Ask Jackie column answer to Joe Leonetti’s questions about getting started in self-sufficient living in Issue #124 (July/Aug 2010). They missed all the most important points that a “city” person would have to master first. Here are my own suggestions: Joe, forget thinking “self-sufficient” and start thinking “frugal;” if you have the consume-and-spend mindset so prevalent today you’ll need …


Three Letters Re: The “Plan B” Map

Dear Editor: How does T.L.F. (the author of “The Plan “B” Map”) plan to get that bottled water, sports drinks and other suppliers from the dentist office, gym and hobby store? Surely not by breaking and entering or burglary. In the scenarios that are mentioned it is highly unlikely that these kinds of places would be open for regular “legal” business. I hope the author was not advocating looting or taking without paying. That would just add to the chaos and confusion of an already bad situation. I do not want to become one of the Golden Horde. – M.E.P. …


Economics and Investing:

Unemployment Could Remain High Until 2013. JWR Adds: To be more accurate, I would have written: “…Until 2023.” Yale Economist Robert Shiller Warns Seven Years of Economic ‘Bad Times’ in Store for US L.J. sent some more bad news from England: Mortgage lending plummets to 10-year monthly low as housing market remains ‘exceptionally’ weak. From the Wall Street Journal‘s Australian bureau: Silver looks ready to rip. (Thanks to Bob G. for the link.) Russian crop misery spreads to world’s supermarkets. Items from The Economatrix: California Attorney General Asks GMAC to Stop Foreclosures Economy Heading Toward “Catastrophic” Collapse They Are Printing …


Inflation Watch:

The Reality of Inflation Food Inflation: Coming to the USA? Interview: Dr. Marc Faber on the Federal Reserve and Hyperinflation Larry T. sent us this bit of stupidity: In Praise of Inflation. Our Editor at Large Mike Williamson sent this photo link: Those incredible shrinking paper towel packages. Get Ready to Pay More for Tires


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Craig K. found a handy web site that gives step-by-step instructions to create a generator out of spare parts that many of us have laying around the shop. It contains links to other important topics as well.    o o o RFJ flagged this: Convert Your Bike Into a Cargo Bike with an Old Bike Frame    o o o SurvivalBlog readers in southwestern Oregon should check out Umpqua Survival. They are located in Roseburg, Oregon. They have strong expertise is with generators and photovoltaics. They are licensed dealers for both Generac and Kohler generators and they have a …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 30 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 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 500 round case of …


Dealing With Diarrhoeal Diseases, by Nomad Medic

The recent news of confirmed cases of cholera after the massive flooding in Pakistan highlights a potential threat that anyone could be faced with after a disaster. While cholera has been cited specifically, there are several other diarrhoeal diseases that have similar symptoms and can also kill. These include such pathogens as Rotavirus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi (responsible for Typhoid Fever) and Shigellosis (dysentery). These illnesses are responsible for a huge number of deaths every year. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that there are approximately two billion cases annually. Diarrhoeal diseases account for the deaths of 1.5 …


Letter Re: Growing Poppies for a Long Term Societal Collapse

Sir: The letter about opium poppies (P. Somniferum) had too many oversimplifications for safety. While poppies are easy enough to grow to enjoy the big flowers, it’s not so easy to get good pods or sap, and the quality of the drug depends a good deal on growing conditions, i.e., where you live. There’s a reason why so much opium comes from the middle east, and you may note that the poppies in pictures from the regions are 3′ high at least and lavender, not Chinese red. This doesn’t mean there’s no drug in other poppies – there is – …