Year: 2011

Economics and Investing:

Along The Watchtower reports on the COMEX‘s severe shortage of physical silver for delivery, amid strong open interest (OI) for March contracts: Wow! If a higher than normal percentage of buyers demand delivery, then the market will implode. There is already short squeeze in progress. The COMEX governors are likely to resort to drastically raising margin requirements to near 100% in an attempt to cool the market. (As precedent, they did this back during the Hunt Brothers silver short squeeze, three decades ago. Silver was then approaching $50 per ounce, and the COMEX hit the brakes hard.) A repeat of …


Inflation Watch:

Reader C.D.V. mentioned this: Inflation: It’s Here. “This is an important topic because with an expanding money supply, one would expect to see price inflation, yet the official statistics reveal no substantial price increases. And that begs the question: Why not?” Deutsche Bank on the Imminent Inflationary Outbreak in America. (Thanks to G.G. for the link.) Why Are Food Prices Going Crazy? Cotton hits $2 a pound Cotton values surge owing to increased demand Following Beijing’s lead, news from Taipei: Prosecutors Office vows to crack down on food hoarding. (Hmmm… Could it be that double-digit inflation is on the horizon?)


Odds ‘n Sods:

A major failure in family OPSEC, up in Canada: Chilliwack man shaken after home invaders take $750,000 in silver. It doesn’t rhyme, but remember: Loose Lips Invite Home Invaders!    o o o Ol’ Remus mentioned a useful web site that will calculate the magnetic declination for most locales. Since the magnetic north pole has been shifting rapidly in the past 20 years do not trust the declination diagram that is printed at the bottom of your handy-dandy USGS or Ordnance Survey map, even if the map is just a few years old. It is most likely out of date! …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry 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 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 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP …


Thoughts on Medical Training For TEOTWAWKI, by Lumberjack

Many people both on this blog and elsewhere in the prepping community have advocated some form of professional medical training prior to encountering a disaster situation.  While I agree with this sentiment, this article is meant to discuss the limits of some medical training for lay persons in a post-TEOTWAWKI scenario, as well as review the options and advantages of the various training programs available for lay people.  That my qualifications may be known, I am an emergency room RN, an EMT, and an instructor of the Wilderness First Responder and Advanced Wilderness Life Support curriculum, with experience in wildland fire …


Letter Re: List of Countries by Real Population Density

James,   I love the work you are doing, keep it up!  I know since the early 1990s when we first communicated via e-mail I have turned hundreds of people on to your writing and your work and yours is still the most comprehensive and easiest to understand approach for newcomers to the prepping community.   I really enjoyed the “Real Population Density” chart (List of countries by real population density (based on food growing capacity) link posted in your blog. But i would like to point out a couple of things that people need to keep in mind.   …


Letter Re: Free Heirloom Seeds

Dear Mr. Rawles, First again thanks and kudos for your interesting and illuminating blog. I would like to remind you and your readers about a web site that SurvivalBlog has mentioned before concerning seeds. I checked the web site Wintersown.org and I sent them a [self-addressed] envelope with two ounces postage (by the way, they mention using two 44 cent stamps, but you only need one 44 cent stamp and one 23 cent stamp for the additional ounce). So, for about a dollar (including the stamp to send the [self-addressed] letter to them) here is what they sent to me: …


Economics and Investing:

From Peak to Valley. Dr. Housing Bubble reports: Beverly Hills real estate selling for 1989 price levels. Home sold for $920,000 in June of 1989 and has a pending sale at $920,000 in 2011. [JWR Adds: So much for oft-touted “buy and hold” strategy! Oh, by the way, how much did the owner(s) of that house cumulatively pay in mortgage interest, property taxes and insurance, for those 22 years? Doubtless somewhere north of a million bucks. And how much has the purchasing power of the Dollar declined in those 22 years? So… Cui bono?] J.B.G. sent this: Government Has Borrowed …


Odds ‘n Sods:

F.G. sent us a list of some regions not to live in: The 11 Most Dangerous Cities. Reading that list should make folks yearn to relocate to truly safe places.    o o o Mark Levin Goes Nuclear Over Obama Destroying the Country. (Our thanks to John R. for sending the link. This might be a good link to forward to your congrescritter’s office.)    o o o At Clinton Speech: Military and CIA Veteran Bloodied, Bruised and Arrested for Standing Silently. And how would have the JBTs reacted if fifty people in the audience had simultaneously done the same …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“These six [things] doth the LORD hate: yea, seven [are] an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness [that] speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.” – Proverbs 6:16-19 (KJV)


Notes from JWR:

A Beta Glitch. 🙁 We’ve discovered that some of the 47 beta testers of the SurvivalBlog 2005-2010 Archive CD-ROM may have been accidentally mailed blank CD-ROMs by the publisher. Yikes! If your v0.5 Beta CD-ROM was blank, then please e-mail our archival guru, and we will put you on the list to get a free replacement copy. Our apologies! We are hoping to have the Version 1.0 CD-ROM orderable by everyone on or before March 10th. Thanks for your patience. — Today we present another entry for Round 33 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round …


Review of the USSA Tactical Shotgun Course, by Bubba Man

Here is my review of the USSA Tactical Shotgun #220 course, conducted in December, 2010. I started out with about 850 rounds of #7 bird shot, 150 rounds of 9 pellet 00 Buck and 50 slugs. I should have brought more slugs as I wound up borrowing about 10 from one of the other students. When I was done, I had about 200 rounds of #7 birdshot and 50 rounds of 00 Buck and no slugs. First let me get this out of the way; Those of you who know me, know that I am currently a fat, out-of-shape, somewhat …


Letter Re: Preparedness on a Tight Budget

Mrs. R.J., I rejoice to read of your plans to prepare. It’s good to know you’re in Arkansas. The Christians at Ark Haven believe that is a protected area for many reasons, physical and spiritual. Three generations on one piece of property is definitely getting back to the old ways. Two acres is great — focus on compact crops and animals; Jeavons lists crops by square foot yield and calorie count so you can be sure you’re getting the correct amount in his book “How To Grow More Vegetables” (read it free here). (And yes, it appears this free book is …


Two Letters Re: Investing in Nickels, in Quantity

Jim, Thanks for the blog. I’m a huge fan, and your blog is literally a rock-solid anchor for me and my family during all this turmoil. I took “Rick in Kentucky’s” claim that he could get $190 worth of nickels into an ammo can as a challenge. My ammo is flat green can has yellow paint on it which reads as follows: “200 CARTRIDGES, 7.62 MM, NATO 0 M80…” I took out a full can that I have where the coins are arranged laying down, dumped out the rolls, and started stacking vertically as described by Rick. It was quite …