“When the chips are down, however, survival involves something more than run-of-the-mill ingenuity. Something extra is called for, an extra degree of imagination and a concern that seems groundless at the time, the ability in the midst of abundance to prepare for famine.” – by John E. Pfeiffer, The Creative Explosion: An Inquiry into the Origins of Art and Religion
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 courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for …
Many Americans have never experienced the death of someone close to them, and our current system of dealing with death makes sure that family and loved ones have as little contact as possible with the dead, and often very little with the dying. Our culture reacts to the topic of death much like the Victorians reacted to the topic of sex. We avoid even using the word “died” or “dead”, preferring euphemisms such as “passed”. With the more widely spread use of hospice and palliative care teams, families are learning that helping their loved ones through the dying process can …
An introduction of personal circumstances always seems necessary, so I’ll get that out of the way first. My husband and I, along with our three children, moved from a moderate sized Texas town of 200,000 to a small spread out community of about 1.500. That population of 1,500 lives in an area of about 40 square miles. Our location, of which Mr. Rawles would not approve, is hot and dry. We are learning new ways in all areas of our lives to make this living situation work. We and our 3 teen-aged children love our community and the new freedom …
Good Morning James, The recent coronal mass ejection (CME) began interacting with the terrestrial magnetosphere earlier today. Though initially that interaction was rather subdued a rapid fall-off in the proton particle counters is actually leading to some rather elevated readings over at the Rice.edu monitor site. Polar convection, density and velocity are all registering in the yellow band, while the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) magnitude, angle and the dynamic pressure are all passed up into the red zones. It is worth remembering that a CME consists of hot, charged particles (ionized hydrogen primarily) and as such the situation is similar …
As a formerly disabled person I would like to share some ideas to help make survival more likely or at least less treacherous: * Keep a heavy duty luggage cart for bug out bags. They are versatile and can be used for many other things like hauling water. Wheeled backpacks with roller blade wheels will not be as durable and versatile. * Adult tricycle bikes are quite stable can help many get around easier and quicker while carrying some supplies too. These can be used by others as well to carry water and heavier supplies. * Foot-care should be …
Mr Rawles, I have a few comments after reading the guest article by Max Velocity on small team tactics. I realize the author’s perspective is colored by his time in Afghanistan and Iraq, but there are some issues I have with his article. The first is the Explosively Formed Penetrator (EFP) is not the same IED he described in the Off-route section. The EFP is formed by the Miznay-Chardin effect, not the Munroe effect. The EFP (Miznay-Chardin) is a solid slug or can be fragmented by various means, but is not a molten jet of metal (Munroe). The Munroe effect, …
I am gauging interest in what might become a new weekly column with news from the American Redoubt region. It will feature news about events, business opportunities, Radio Free Redoubt, local bloggers, local vendors, demographics, and more. o o o Musicians will find this of interest: PrairiePsaltery.com o o o Another Sustainable Preparedness Expo will be held on September 30, 2012 in Spokane, Washington. o o o One of the largest and best gun shows in the Redoubt region is scheduled for August 3-4-5, 2012, in Missoula, Montana. (This is Montana’ oldest and biggest show, organized by Hayes Otoupalik–an expert …
Those pesky derivatives: How Jamie Dimon hid the $6 billion loss The latest from Yohay at FOREX Crunch: US Gained Only 12,000 Jobs in May According to Bernanke’s Highlighted Indicator Steven M. sent this: It’s Not Just Free Cell Phones… The Government Is Handing Out Free Air Conditioners Too. JWR Adds: Oh, and to make it even worse, the LG Global Electronics brand air conditioning units they are giving away are made in China. (“Your tax dollars at work.”) Items from The Economatrix: Jim Willie: Extreme Danger Signposts Gold 22% Rally to Record Seen by Eric Sprott: Commodities Buffet Says …
Following up on the recent derailment and evacuation in Ohio, SurvivalBlog reader Lee M. found a handy railroad map of the U.S. [JWR Adds: More detailed maps can be found if you do a search for each particular railroad, such as Burlington-Northern-Santa Fe.] o o o Ian R. sent this: Emergency responders turn to expired drugs as key lifesaving medicine supplies run low o o o Getting in on the act: Reader Tracey A. noticed that Costco’s mailorder arm is now offering a special package price on 12-pack Gamma Seal Lids and 6-gallon Buckets with 12 Mylar Liners …
“We never know the worth of water ’til the well is dry.” – Unattributed English Proverb
The mainstream news outlets are still proclaiming an ongoing “recovery”. Headlines in the Washington Post warn that the “recovery may be slowing.” Meanwhile The Economist calls the American economy “The Comeback Kid.” The stock and bond promoters at Parker Financial had the temerity to begin their latest cheery report (dated July 9th) with: “The economic recovery that began in June 2009…” The BBC, quoting International Monetary Fund officials, more realistically describes it as a “tepid recovery.” In my estimation all of these pronouncements are nothing but hyperbole. Any movement in economic indicators has not been a result of any genuine …
Although my body is growing older, my mind is still stuck at age 27 – and at times, my mind is even younger than that. I hope this never changes, once the mind grows old, then the body will grow even older – faster! While I can’t do the things I used to do (physically) when I was much younger, there’s still a lot of “fun” left in me. I grew up in Chicago, and like most kids at that time, and in my neighborhood, we were pretty poor, except back then, we didn’t know we were poor. We …
In the introduction to this series of article I gave a brief outline of the medical skills that a layman should acquire when preparing for TEOTWAWKI. One of the most needed skills is suturing and other forms of wound closure. Lacerations are frightening, especially to young children. One’s sense of wholeness is violated, often out of proportion to the actual injury. Even adults view minor cuts as emergencies, when the truth is, most would heal (though perhaps with more scarring) with little intervention beyond cleansing and bandaging. Pain and fear may cause as much discomfort as the actual wound. The …
I have been a soldier for all my adult life: infantry, special operations and as a civilian security contractor. More recently, I have got into prepping for the survival of my family. I have been working slowly at it, and reading and researching a lot of the publications and related blogs. Given my background, I have a head start in the security area, but many have huge head starts over me in the other desired and required skills that will be essential to survival. I have a lot to learn and a lot to catch up on. However, I would …