Day: July 12, 2012

Notes from JWR:

I will be the keynote speaker via teleconference this coming weekend at Charlotte PrepCon. This is an event for North Carolina and South Carolina preppers. The conference will be held on July 14, 2012 in Ft. Mill, S.C. (near Charlotte, N.C.) Phone: (800) 704-1862 for details. — Today we present another two entries for Round 41 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian …


Extending Battery Life, by D.P.

Many preppers believe that batteries should play a prominent part in their preparations. For a variety of reasons, they are probably correct in that assumption. From what I have read on this blog they also generally believe that their batteries will reach end of life (or at least have a greatly diminished capacity) after 3-5 years. This is understandable but not necessarily correct. Since deep cycle batteries are not cheap its also an expensive assumption. This submission deals with how to extend the useful life of various types of rechargeable batteries. There will be an emphasis on DIY [from very …


Residential OPSEC With Utility Workers, by Gonzo in Virginia

I want to warn and educate my fellow SurvivalBlog readers about a growing trend of people impersonating utility workers and other people in authority to gain entry to people’s homes.  My awareness of this was recently heightened when just such an attempt was made on my home against my wife. I was truly surprised, after all the talks we have had about security, just how unprepared she was for this situation. Several days ago a man came to our door saying he needed to look at our gas meter. This man was driving a white pickup, which he had parked …


Letter Re: A Different Kind of Silencer

James: The Problem Sleep Apnea has been a recent topic in the blog.  My wife and I both use one of “the machines”.  And although it is true many people just simply cannot get use to using them, others like us can no longer get a good nap or full night’s sleep without one. So, what do we do if some yahoo hits the pole in route to his (with your permission Mr. Rawles) “hid-e-hole in Idaho”. Our choices were to stay up all night waiting for the power to come back on or …. Nothing!  Sleeping without “the machine” …


Economics and Investing:

Reader B.D. sent this: Spain Will Have to Cede Most Control of Banks: WSJ Terry in Idaho recommended: The Libor Scandal: History’s Largest Market Fraud? Did someone say $800 trillion? The future of futures is uncertain: PFG Collapses Amid Fraud Allegations B.B. sent this over at Noisy Room: Nations will be Nations: ‘Euro Zone Fragmenting Faster than EU can Act’ 21% sales tax! Spain Deepens Austerity Under European Pressure. (Thanks to K.A.F. for the link.) Also from B.B.: Austerity, American Style: Scranton City Employees’ Wages Reduced to $7.25 per Hour – This Is Your Future America A clash of generations …


Odds ‘n Sods:

“Bear” over at the TMM Forums mentioned: “I just ran into this over at 4x4ham.com. It’s a short tutorial on how to use Google Earth to generate terrain profiles. In the context of ham radio, it can help you determine whether you can hit a repeater from a particular point or not. Also, if you are looking at a gulch property, you can determine where it can be seen from.”    o o o C.D.V. sent this news: Freight train derailment, explosion in Ohio prompts mile-wide evacuation. C.D.V.’s comment: “One good reason to always have Bug Out Bags ready.”    …