Year: 2011

Musings From a Novice Gardener, by Mike in Western Pennsylvania

Last year I planted my first home garden in my adult life. I am 46 years old and grew up most of my years in suburban America so I had little experience with the nuts and bolts of a family garden but I did spend twenty years in the Marine Corps so I do have a level of self-sufficiency that I garnered over the past 20 years during my service in the Marines. I will also add that my Dad did a little family gardening in the 1960s and 1970s but by the 1980s we were a complete suburban family …


Precious Metals–When to Begin Reducing Your Holdings

I often get e-mails and letters from readers about precious metals, and most of them are wrong. Many of them were about silver: In 2001, when I formally called the bottom, for silver, I got taunting letters. Those naysayers claimed that silver was heading down further, perhaps to $3 per ounce. In 2005, I started getting whining “I missed the boat” letters. That was when the silver bull was still just a calf. People have continued whining, ever since. In 2008, when silver was $9.80 per ounce, I got my first “this is the top for silver” letter. I’m still …


Economics and Investing:

Do you remember my warnings about “creative” ways that legislators might find to solve budget crises? Brace yourselves. CBO: Taxing mileage a ‘practical option’ for revenue enhancement. (A hat tip to J.H.B. for the link.) My cousin in England sent this: Proof That Gold Is Not a Bubble Gonzalo Lira: How Likely is QE-Three? (Lira thinks either that there will soon be be either more monetization or seizure of IRAs and 401(k)s. G.G. flagged this: Morning Note: Gold Replacing Dollar as World’s Reserve Currency? Also from G.G.: Buffett Warns: The Dollar Will Decline Items from The Economatrix: Stocks Falter Despite …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Free city lots offered for modern-day homesteaders in the Midwest.    o o o K.A.F. flagged this: Nine Best Canned Foods. For what its worth, JWR‘s favorite, canned salmon, tops their list.    o o o Wow! I just noticed that the 1950s novel “Atlas Shrugged” just jumped to #130 in Amazon’s sales rankings. No doubt renewed interest (above and beyond its perennial following), is due to the upcoming release of the feature motion picture. (Appropriately, the release date is April 15th.)    o o o Shortages of scarce natural resources coming, warn chemists. (Thanks to C.D.V. for the link.)



Move to the Mountain States–The American Redoubt

(Note: This essay launched The American Redoubt movement. It was first posted in 2011. It was last updated on May 17, 2017) To begin, I recognize the fact that “all politics are local”. I also recognize the international readership of SurvivalBlog.  Therefore I de-emphasize politics in my blog. However, an article got my blood boiling: Motorists illegally detained at Florida tolls – for using large bills! So, not only are Federal Reserve Notes not redeemable “on demand” for specie, but effectively they are now no longer “…legal tender for all debts public and private.” It is often hard to pinpoint …


Pat’s Product Review: The Saiga 12 Shotgun

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Awesome! That’s the best word I can come up with, to describe the Saiga 12, 12 gauge shotgun. Most people believe that only full-auto assault rifles, machine guns or submachine guns can offer-up “fire-power.” Well, I’m here to tell you that the Saiga 12 shotgun, can hold its own against many full auto guns – at least, given the limited range of a shotgun. Right now, the Saiga 12, is one of the hottest selling firearms across the country. There are several reasons for this, first of all is that, this is one fantastic shotgun for self-defense. Secondly, the BATFE, …


Four Letters Re: The Struggle for Meat After TEOTWAWKI

Dear Mr. Rawles, The picture provided by N.N.R. just doesn’t seem sustainable. He or she does realise that most Americans get whatever they want whenever they want it, and that this is a problem, but seems unwilling to do anything about it in his or her own family as a means of preparedness. Most of us – as preppers – should understand that our lifestyles are going to change in the scenarios we all talk about. As a society, we are far too focused on dietary meat as a right and necessity. We don’t need meat for every meal, every day, every week or …


Letter Re: Sailboats as Alternative Bugout Vehicles

Sir: In response to Richard O., he may not need to build his own boat for a bugout vehicle, although more power to him if he does. He could instead convert a work boat into a sailboat. Having grown up along the Carolina coast, I am familiar with a type of boat we just call a “shrimper” or trawler. The basic design should be familiar to anyone who saw the movie Forrest Gump. Older ones can easily found for relatively low cost, in the range of 54 to72 feet long. The forward wheel house models usually already having a galley, …


Economics and Investing:

G.G. sent this: End of the Dollar? Some severe gloomage, over at Zero Hedge: The Dollar Will Collapse Within 3-4 Months Dr. R. highlighted this item: Connecting the Dots … Grain Shortages & Food Inflation Quietly Accelerating Due to Perfect Storm Greg C. flagged this: Fears rise that Japan could sell off U.S. debt Items from The Economatrix: Of particular interest to SurvivalBlog readers in the hinterboonies: Postal Service to Cut 7,500 Jobs, Close Offices   Asian Shares Higher After Wall Street Closes   US Experiencing Uneven Job Growth Across States   Oil Hits Highest Levels Since Recession   Private …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Steve S. liked this piece by Patrice Lewis: Tangible investments … that lick your hand    o o o F.G. sent this: The emergency internet bunkers. “Nik Rawlinson investigates the impregnable underground bunkers that will keep the net running during wartime…”    o o o Dave B. write to mention that Texas is one step closer to legal open carry.    o o o Chad S. pointed me to a great site written from a Christian perspective: StockingUp.net



Note from JWR:

Today we present another three entries for Round 33 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round 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 $795, and B.) Two cases of Alpine Aire freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $400 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady …


The Struggle for Meat After TEOTWAWKI, by N.N.R.

Every day most of us in the U.S. have access to whatever we desire to eat whenever we want to eat it. We eat eggs for breakfast, chicken at any meal, and beef or pork as our dinner, nightly. There is no work or sacrifice in ordering a burger or chicken fingers. It would be very different after TEOTWAWKI. One of the hardest things to do in a homesteading situation will be getting enough protein. We live in a meat eating society. Do the math on your daily intake of meat.  We eat two eggs and bacon or ham for …


Your First Step into Gardening with Raised Beds, by H.R.

Up until last year, I had never had a garden or even worked in one for that matter.  I decided to start one because of the rising problems with chemicals and pesticide risks that are being put on vegetables, not to mention how much the cost going up.  We started off small with one raised garden box. (The soil is harsh here).  What I mean by small is that we started with a 4 ft x 8 ft x 14 in. deep bed.  By going 14 inches deep we could ensure that we would have plenty of good soil to …