Note from JWR:

Today we present two entries for Round 31 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 …




How We are Making Changes, and Our Lessons Learned, by K-Dog

After college (in the early 1990s), I was educating myself about finance even though I was not employed in that industry, I felt that if I was going to be responsible for my own financial well being during life I better start my education. I learned quite a bit, but failed to act on any of the information.  I was constantly seeking more and more info, then I had a series of jobs changes and got married, our first house and hence missed the “dot com” stock rally on all levels. Looking back I associate this with information paralysis. Lesson:  …




Lessons Learned From a Rainy Day, by John G. in Southern Pennsylvania

After a 19 day dry spell, we were hit with one heck of a storm here in southern Pennsylvania last week. I thought I would share with Survivalblog readers the lessons to be learned from this event. The first 29 days of September had been warm and lovely here, with only about 3 inches of the normal 21 inches of rain we should normally see by the end of September. On the last day of September we received the missing 18 inches. With the long period of dry weather preceding the storm, the ground was incapable of absorbing much of …




Keeping Cool: People and Food by P.J.

I’m writing from the Mid-West – the sea of corn (mostly) and other grains. As of this writing we are getting some relief from the humidity. “Hearsay” says corn is a guilty culprit for contributing to our high humidity. Corn is in high demand for purposes of food and fuel. Besides corn syrup, a byproduct is humidity, and perhaps, rain – which eventually leads to the subject of this letter – ice. Something that I think will be tremendously missed, is refrigeration – either for food or humans. Having stated the obvious, think of keeping leftovers at a safe temperature, …




Economics and Investing:

Susan H. sent this: The Real Horror Story: The U.S. Economic Meltdown Swiss Finish Sets New Standard for Global Bank Regulation Run over by the Grain Train Bernanke sees case for more Fed easing G.G. sent this: Dollar fall sparks stability warnings From K.A.F.: How High Will Corn Prices Go Before Usage is Rationed? Items from The Economatrix: Debt Market Strips US of Triple A Rating No Shock: 85% Angry About The Economy Expiration of Bush Tax Cuts: How Will It Affect You?