Today we present an article written by one of our long-time foreign correspondents, David in Israel. David was born and raised in the United States. Even before emigrating to Israel, he had a diverse background in forestry, firefighting, mountaineering, emergency medicine, and commercial Kosher food inspection. One of his life-long hobbies has been amateur radio. He is currently a Torah student.
One problem that most preppers fail to take seriously is communications. To most First Worlders communications are something that comes out of the wall like water or electricity, so why should the magic ever end? While not as high a priority as an inexpensive firearm for security, food, water, cooking fuel, non-motorized transport, or shelter, in a safe area communications with those you care about keeps you from going on unneeded health and welfare checks especially during dangerous times. Typically I would suggest a 100 watt+ multi-band HF radio for vehicle or base use and a QRP 40meter set and/or …
Dear Mr. Rawles, We live in southern Middle Tennessee, about an hour south of Nashville, and we are watching the news coverage of this weekend’s record-breaking flooding in the Nashville area. It is confirming our conviction not to live in a metropolitan area as we see how people are affected by this natural disaster. All three interstates going through Nashville–I-65, I-24, and I-40–have been shut down for long periods of time yesterday and today. The cars and trucks stuck on I-40 as I write this stretch for over five miles, and the drivers have no way of backing up, turning …
Two Letters Re: Removing Orthodontia Braces, Post-TEOTWAWKI James, In response to the letter about removing braces, I am a dentist and due to the economic situation in my part of the world, I have de-banded many people who could no longer afford to continue orthodontic treatment. Fortunately this particular problem is not too difficult, but before do-it-yourself de-banding seriously consider leaving everything in place, until things hopefully come around again, or at least try to find a dental professional. There is an increased risk of tooth decay and gum irritations with braces, but there usually is no orthodontic problem with …
El Jefe Jeff E. sent this frightening news on price inflation: US inflation up 2% in March. I’ve already warned you: As the Treasury monetizes its way out of the recession, be ready for mass inflation, folks! Jon in Wyoming sent this: Euro Sales Extend as Morgan Stanley Mulls EU Breakup Also from Jon: Roubini Says Rising Sovereign Debt Leads to Defaults Yishai suggested this piece by Ronald Bailey of Reason magazine: Peak Everything?; Forget peak oil. What about peak lithium, peak neodymium, and peak phosphorus? Items from The Economatrix: Analysis from Dan Denninger: Bernanke is Getting Scared Goldman’s Shares …
Fears for crops as shock figures from America show scale of bee catastrophe; The world may be on the brink of biological disaster after news that a third of US bee colonies did not survive the winter. ( A hat tip to OSOM, for the link.) o o o EMB suggested this Lifehacker article: Top 10 Hard Drive Upgrades and Fixes. (I don’t normally post computer tech article links, but this one has a some preparedness and OPSEC implications…) o o o Reader “Mr. 47” sent a link to a company that makes some clever bullpup conversion stocks.
"One of the greatest delusions in the world is the hope that the evils in this world are to be cured by legislation." – Congressman Thomas Brackett Reed of Maine (1839-1902), writing in 1886
EMB mentioned this amazingly useful, and aptly-named web site: Radio Reference. o o o Since early 2007, I have warned SurvivalBlog readers about the perils of “kanban” inventory control. Here is a bit of confirmation: Volcano Throws Off Ash, Just-in-Time Efforts. (Thanks to Chad S. for the link.) o o o Lee C. flagged this: Fat Americans are a national security threat, warn generals o o o RBS sent this: Copper thieves blamed for dangerous power surge. A comment from RBS: “Here is what could be considered another classic example of the fragility of our Inverted Technological …
JWR: Thanks for your site, and all that you and your family does for the thousands of loyal readers! Before I approach my child’s orthodontist I thought I would throw it out to you, because I know there are others thinking the same thing. How can I safely remove my child’s braces [in the event of a societal collapse where access to an orthodontist might be impossible.] Thanks again, – Eric W. JWR Replies: That question goes beyond my expertise. Perhaps an orthodontist in the SurvivalBlog readership could comment. Thanks!
James: In looking at your blog on survival it revealed to me a major problem with safes with digital combo locks. If there is an EMP, those locks would most likely be fried and one could not get to guns, funds, et cetera! Do you know of a process or method of guarding against this? Is there some shielding that can be put around the combo unit that will protect the electronics? Thanks. – R.C. JWR Replies: This blog topic seems to pop up just as regularly as dandelions. I’ve mentioned the following several times in SurvivalBlog, but it is …
James Wesley: I appreciate your survival ideas over the years. Here, in the Caribbean, we use cisterns for water recovery quite a bit. I’ve had occasion to make a cache lately from one of the smaller plastic cisterns, such as this one. The tanks that come here (Cayman Islands) are black and configured somewhat differently, but same basic idea. They employ a screw-top opening, which can be weatherproofed against all but profound water pressure. I set mine — a 750 gallon tank — in the sandy loam and made sure that the bottom third was all clean fill, especially under …
James, I just read [Chet’s article in] the blog on urban and suburban gardening. I wanted to suggest something because I’ve been seeing people want to be more self sufficient by growing their own gardens. I don’t want to come off as a salesman for these two products made by the same person. I’m not someone that sells these items. But to give credit where credit is due, I’m impressed with buying both of these items. I picked up a DVD from Linda Runyon about a year ago, and bought her “Wild Cards” card set for identifying wild plants. The …
Note the fait accompli tone of this NPR article that of course inevitably leads to the conclusion that there will be either massive tax increases, or mass inflation in the near future: The Federal Debt: How To Lose A Trillion Dollars. (Thanks to Gedan for the link.) Frequent content contributor Chad S. flagged this important article over at Zero Hedge: Treasury Redeems A Gargantuan $643 Billion in Treasuries in April. Want a good belly laugh? If so, then read this item from Chad S.: Corporations ride a consumer spending spree to better earnings as recovery gains steam. Here is Chad’s …
By special request from a SurvivalBlog reader, the folks at Shelf Reliance have kindly extended the 10% discount on their Food Rotation Systems. Use coupon code: SBM10. (The special discount price is not shown at their web site.) This offer now ends June 4, 2010, so order soon. o o o Yet another local disaster shows the fragility of civility: Crews race to fix break in Boston’s water supply after major main breaks. Here is a quote: “There also were economic and social concerns: Restaurants in suburban Lexington shut down Saturday night, unable to wash dishes or serve customers …
“What’s the point of [gun control legislation], other than to inconvenience the honest citizen who follows the rules?… I can assure you that the guys I met in the nine prisons I served my sentence in did not get their guns at the gun store. ” – G. Gordon Liddy, as quoted in People magazine, January 10, 1994