Year: 2011

Economics and Investing:

G.G. flagged this bit of government spending orgy news: Federal budget deficit on track to eclipse $1 trillion for third year. How long do they think they can continue to do this without destroying the U.S. Dollar? L.M.W. sent this: Why We Are Facing an Inflationary Depression Hathaway Confirms Gold to Trade in the Five Digits An interesting piece over at FOREX Crunch: We Have A Volunteer For Greek Losses Items from The Economatrix: Example How Gold Can be a Debt Protection China Warns US Debt-default Idea Is Playing With Fire US Hurtles Toward System Failure Death By Debt Global …


Odds ‘n Sods:

NASA Internal memo: Family/Personal Preparedness Plan    o o o I heard from CPA Mara Helland that now that tax season is over, she now has the bandwidth to accept just a few more clients. I have been very satisfied with her work on my taxes for the past three years, and I highly recommend her. She is based up in Montana, but has clients in many states. I can vouch that she handles long-distance clients wonderfully.    o o o Carolina Readiness Supply is hosting the “Sensible Mountain Preparedness Seminar” on June 18th in Clyde, North Carolina. (Near Asheville …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 35 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 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo , and …


Bug In, or Bug Out?, by H.C.

I am a double transplant recipient who is 50 years old and in fairly good health but with restrictions as to what I am physically able to do.  My household consist of myself, my wife, and our 8 year old son. I also have a grown daughter that lives three hours drive to the west but she is not a major factor in emergency plans. I don’t say this to be heartless or imply I love my daughter less but,  from my standpoint, she is now on the periphery of my planning as is any other family member who is …


Letter Re: Extreme Coupon Prepping

Jim, I’d like to share my recent experience with grocery discounts using the controversial discount cards that stores issue. First of all, I’ve never filled out a customer-information form for any such card, and since I pay cash nobody knows who I am. So since my name is not connected with the discount cards, I gladly use them to take advantage of every possible discount. There are three Kroger stores in my area, and one day recently I was on the canned vegetable aisle and noticed a tag that said that a certain brand of diced tomatoes was priced at …


Letter Re: Beyond Outdoor Survival

James,     As someone who has taken multiple week-long backpacking trips in the Rocky Mountains, I noticed a couple of things in this article that I would like to address.  The first is the author’s advice on mountain shelters.  First of all, if you do decide to pick a cave for shelter please be aware that mountain lions are plentiful in the mountains and one may have already decided to make that cave its home.  I have literally walked within feet of a mountain line that was laying in its den in the middle of the day, a very unnerving …


Economics and Investing:

I predicted seeing ads once the base metal value of nickels hit two times their face value (“2X face”), but not this soon: BoxOfNickels.com. I’m confident that you can expect to see more such nickel entrepreneurs in the near future–especially once the base metal value exceeds 1.5 times face value. (7.5 cents for a nickel.) Speaking of changing valuations (in this case, deflation), have you seen the chart showing the change Bitcoin values in the past three months? It now takes more than $15 USD to buy one BTC and in a brief spike the rate got up past $30. …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Washington residents warned of ‘bloodthirsty’ dog pack    o o o Reader K.A.F. mentioned Quizlet, a web site with free downloadable flash cards and a study games. Great for homeschoolers!    o o o These had me laughing…    o o o Courtesy of Kevin S.: Deadly Fungus Strikes Joplin Tornado Survivors, Volunteers    o o o I heard that Camping Survival just received a large new supply of Yoder’s canned meats, including some canned bacon. They also have canned cheese and butter available. Camping Survival is presently offering a 5% off sale on every order, with coupon code “june2011promo“.  …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward [is] with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed [are] they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into …


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 35 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 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo , and …


Retreat Security Myths, by Grandy

The following are some of my thoughts about our planning when it comes to preparing retreat defenses.  Some will work, others maybe not as well, but I intended it to be motivation for SurvivalBlog readers to start thinking about these issues.  This is written mainly from a TEOTWAWKI standpoint and not your typical short term SHTF event.  But some of these concepts apply to both situations. #1:  The Location Myth More often than not, our retreats are in a somewhat secluded location.  Rural areas are typically the norm and the further away from built up urban areas the better.  But …


Letter Re: Too Late for Precious Metals Investing?

Mr. Rawles: Is it too late to invest in precious metals? Do you still recommend Northwest Territorial Mint? In Christ, – Karen F. JWR Replies: No, it is not too late to invest, but you should watch the market carefully and buy during price dips. Yes, Northwest Territorial Mint is trustworthy.  But I’ve heard that they can develop a backlog of several weeks when the precious metals market is in a particularly frantic period.  Summers are typically slow for the precious metals market, so it is a good time to buy, both in terms of price and no worries about …


Three Letters Re: On Surviving Hot Climates and Relocation

James: This is in response to Deep South Charlie’s comments about the heat in the South. I live in the Deep South, and yes, it is hot, but there are ways to cope. It’s been over 100° F. every day for over a month now, and there has been no rain until recently. But I am not going anywhere. This is my home, and I love it. I believe that the benefits of living in the South far outweigh the drawbacks. First off, there are ways to deal with the heat. People have done it for thousands of years. In …


Economics and Investing:

Several readers sent this piece, highlighted at The Drudge Report: China ratings house says US defaulting: report. “In our opinion, the United States has already been defaulting”. It is beginning, folks: German Rating Agency Feri Downgrades US Government Bonds: AAA to AA! George C. suggested this commentary from Doug Casey: Our Economic Future: From Best to Worst Case Sterling and Euro Fall on Economic Concerns – Gold Rises to Record £950.81 British Pounds an Ounce B.B. sent this: US Is Nearing Even Worse Financial Crisis: Jim Rogers Some other recent quotes from Jim Rogers: “Bernanke Is A Disaster” Who Will …