Year: 2011

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 …


The Earthquake in Haiti: First-Hand Lessons From Disaster, by Dr. L.F.

I’m a neurosurgeon, and I had the opportunity to spend a couple weeks in Port Au Prince, Haiti last year, arriving just two weeks after the earthquake in February. This was a great opportunity to serve people in need, but I also benefited from seeing WTSHTF firsthand. I brought in a team of three doctors and two nurses , along with one former Marine turned pastor (for security). When a missionary flight company said: “We can get you in if you can be here day after tomorrow, but we can’t guarantee you a flight out,” a wiser person might have …


The Nitty Gritty on Nickels

As I’ve mentioned before in SurvivalBlog, U.S. Five cent pieces (“Nickels”) should be considered a long-term hedge on inflation. I recently had a gent e-mail me, asking how he could eventually “cash in” on his cache of Nickels. He asked: “Are we to melt them down, or sell them to a collector? How does one obtain their true 7.4 cents [base metal content] value?” My response: Don’t expect to cash in for several years. I anticipate that there won’t be a large scale speculative market in Nickels until their base metal value (“melt value”) exceeds twice their face value (“2X …


Letter Re: The Ethics and Methodology of Sniping after TEOTWAWKI

James; I am glad that something has posted such a thoughtful essay on the merits of and moral questions involved in sniping after a collapse. I am not a sniper, but I regularly compete in High Power shooting events and have learned a lot. The first thing I learned is my .308 is marginal at 1,000 yards.To get there I use very expensive Berger bullets and my groups are twice as big as the guys using 6mm or 6.5mm bullets. At a 1,000 yards some of the favorite cartridges are .243, .308, 6.5 Creedmoor, 6.5×287, .287, .260 Remington, 6.5 Lapua, …


Economics and Investing:

The Daily Bell ran this interview: Richard Maybury on the Collapse of the Anglo-American Empire and What It Means for You Eric K. sent this: China Raises Rates to Counter Accelerating Inflation. Eric’s comments: “Three things of note in the article: 1.) They mention a report due next week that will show a 5.3% increase in January for consumer prices. 2.) They are starting a campaign to crackdown on speculation and hoarding. 3.) The Chinese inflation is largely driven by rising food costs. Their formula for calculating their inflation is different to the one used to calculate ours. For one, …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader J.B.G. sent this: 18 Cities Whose Suburbs Are Rapidly Turning Into Slums    o o o Frequent content contributor C.D.V. sent this: We Are Witnessing the Collapse of the Middle East. “If Egypt should fall, it will mark the beginning of the end for what little remaining stability there is in the Middle East.” Can you imagine an enormous Lebanon-like Zone of Chaos, all the way from the Sudan to Tajikistan and from Morocco to Pakistan? I can. It seems that the $55 Billion+ that that we’ve “invested” in stability in Egypt since 1974 sure didn’t buy much, did …



Notes from JWR:

Today, February 8, 2011, marks the 10th anniversary of when I fairly accurately called the bottom of the silver market. That was when silver was $4.55 an ounce and I stated that it might bottom at around $4.25 per ounce before the inevitable rally. The actually bottom was at $4.18 per ounce. Since then, silver has been in a confirmed bull market cycle, increasing in price by more than 610%. (When I last checked, spot silver was at $29.35 per ounce.) For those that took my advice, congratulations. And for those who have been dragging their feet, don’t worry: The …


The Golden Hours, by Brad H.

The three main factors in determining who lives and who dies WTSHTF are situational awareness, overcoming inertia, and dumb luck. The first two you have some control over. The third is always going to be beyond your control, except for Divine intervention, so don’t worry about it. If you are at mid-span on the Golden Gate Bridge when Al Qaeda sets off a nuke in San Francisco, or “The Big One” hits. In such cases, acceptance of God’s will is all you have to do to prepare. For those who are lucky enough to not be killed immediately when disaster …


The Backup Plan to a Backup Plan for Telecommuters, by Tamara W.

Assumption: “If it snows or storms, I can work from home and telecommute.”  Assumptions are not always correct. The major ice storms at the end of January and start of February 2011 prompted creating this plan for my husband and myself. (Or first backup plan was alternate transportation routes.) Lessons learned day by day: Day 1 When power goes out at the house, such as during the first day of the storm for about 6 hours, the only way you can work from home is by using precious generator  fuel or laptop batteries. Due to my husband’s higher pay rate, …


Letter Re: Earthquake Hazard, Risk, and Mitigation

James: Thank you for your interesting and informative web site and mission.  Just a few short thoughts on earthquake hazard, risk, and mitigation, since it’s a pet interest of mine for some time and I come at it from a slightly different background than some.  I’m a southeastern US resident in an area about 300 miles give or take from the New Madrid fault zone.  My community is actually located in the second most seismically active area east of the Rockies, so I do have some personal investment in the topic.  Additionally, I have more than 20 years’ experience in …


Letter Re: The Hard Truth About Starting Your Survival Homestead

James: That was great post [by Mitch M.], many thanks to all who share their experiences on your blog. Nothing beats mentoring, even by internet!  However, I would like to share that RoundUp is a dangerous product and should not be used anywhere you plan to grow plants for food.  The following is an excerpt from an article at The Institute For Responsible Technology web site: “Monsanto used to boast that Roundup is biodegradable, claiming that it breaks down quickly in the soil. But courts in the US and Europe disagreed and found them guilty of false advertising. In fact, …


Avalanche Lily’s Bedside Book Pile

I heard that Mark Harrison (the husband of Erin Harrison, who produced the excellent Homesteading for Beginners DVD series) was just involved in a freak accident that nearly cost him his life. While attaching some siding on a building under construction at their farm, a co-worker slipped and accidentally put an industrial staple into the back of Mark’s head, stapling his hat to his head. The prongs of the staple penetrated one inch into his skull. One brain surgery later, it looks like Mark has a good chance of making a complete recovery. Please keep Mark and his family in …


Economics and Investing:

John R. flagged this: Egypt’s Super-Rich Begin Moving Their Money to Switzerland Also from John comes a bank run news article: Egyptian Banks Open, And The Government Is Forced To Use Cargo Planes Full Of Cash Mal sent us this: Why You Need to Own Nickels, Right Now Reader M.B. highlighted this one: South Korea must prepare for food crisis Bob Chapman: Almost a Total Dollar Devaluation By The Fed In his video blog, Peter Schiff warns of rapidly-rising bond yield rates. Andy A. suggested this: Silver in complete backwardation


Odds ‘n Sods:

Hillary Clinton calls historic meeting of ambassadors. Wow, 260 ambassadors and counsels in simultaneous transit! Something is afoot, folks. The bottom line is that the world’s governments can print unlimited supplies of currency, but they can’t print food. I anticipate that a regional war or perhaps even global war is just around the corner.    o o o Why America Should Be Driving on Natural Gas    o o o Ms. M. sent this article about “Generation Rx”: Pharmacies Besieged by Addicted Thieves    o o o I just heard about an interesting new product, made here in the U.S.: …