Day: August 14, 2012


Essential Medical Skills to Acquire: Part 2, Suturing, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

In Part 1 of Suturing I discussed several aspects of wound closure, including goals of treatment, common lacerations, alternate wound closure techniques, types of suture to purchase, wound cleansing, sterile field, needle size, proper instruments, correct suture placement, and aftercare. In Part 2 of Suturing I will address common mistakes to avoid. Wound closure is not rocket science, and any adult of average intelligence can learn the basic techniques.  Anyone who has sutured has learned from their own mistakes and those of others.  The following advice will help you skip a few errors and should make you look like a …


Letter Re: Army Scout Field Manual Available Online

JWR, I thought I’d take a minute and recommend an Army Field Manual (FM) that I don’t see referenced too often here. It’s FM 7-92 (“The infantry reconnaissance platoon and squad; airborne, air assault, light infantry”) with Chapter 9 for MOUT/urban operations. This version is a little hard to find, so here’s the link.  Just don’t ask why I had to go to Marines.mil to find it. This version dates back to the late 1980s and early 1990s, so the emphasis less on mechanized reconnaissance, technology, and general eye candy – unlike a majority of the scout FMs in current publication. …


Letter Re: A Flooded Basement and Rusting Canned Foods

Hello Mr. Rawles, Regarding the man who found his canned food rims rusting in his basement. I can recommend OSPHO, which is a liquid which will upon application changes the rust to a more stable compound. I was in the Merchant Marine and we used it on the ships and it works very well. You can get OSPHO through Amazon.com or at a ACE hardware store. It is basically phosphoric acid [suspended in a coating.]   He may also want to invest in a tabletop buffer or wire wheel to quickly remove surface rust before applying the OSPHO which improves the …


News From The American Redoubt:

Radio Free Redoubt has uploaded an after-action podcast about the the first T-REX (TEOTWAWKI Readiness Exercise) that was held August 10th, 11th & 12th.    o o o Yet another great video from Ttabs: Flying Elk River to Deary to Juliaetta to Craigmont, Idaho    o o o The Redoubt states are absent from this list: Traveling Soon? Top 10 U.S. States Plagued by Exotic Diseases    o o o Here are the Best Places to Live–in 2032. As usual, the Redoubt states are in the top half of the list.    o o o A trade group says it’s …


Economics and Investing:

Deutsche Bank Proclaims Western Currencies Worthless Long live the debt ceiling – approaching the fiscal cliff by spending $1 trillion more than is being taken in. A breakdown of government spending and revenues. Sentinel ruling may hurt MF Global clients. Here is a key quote: “Futures brokers are required to keep customers’ funds in dedicated accounts to protect them from being used for anything other than client business. However, Thursday’s ruling suggests that brokerages can use customer funds to pay off other creditors…” [JWR’s Comment: When stealing a client’s money effectively becomes legal for futures brokers (and possibly for bankers), …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Adam B. suggested this: Amish enjoy unexpected boom in numbers    o o o More in the Mayor Tony Mack saga: Woeful Trenton Sees Mayor Add Insult to Injury. So yet another member of Mayor Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG) may soon do the perp walk and pose for a mug shot. Oh, and in case you missed it, Mayor Felix Roque was arrested in late May. And former Detroit Kwame Kilpatrick’s trial on additional corruption charges is scheduled to begin on September 6, 2012. Both of them are also MAIG members. Statistically, Bloomberg’s crack team of “crime fighting” …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“We are locked into an unimaginably complex predicament and a system of dependency whose future seems at growing risk. To avoid catastrophe we must prepare for failure. We are entering a time of great challenge and uncertainty, when the systems, ideas and stories that framed our lives in one world are torn apart, but before new stories and dependencies have had time to evolve. Our challenge is to let go, and go forth. Our immediate concern is crisis and shock planning. It should now be clear that this is far more extensive than merely focusing on the financial system. It …