Day: August 29, 2012

Notes from JWR:

Today we wish a happy birthday to Medal of Honor recipient Gary Beikirch, formerly of the 5th Special Forces Group. (He was born August 29, 1947.) Now that you are 65, Gary, you can finally draw your full retirement. God knows, you’ve earned it, along with the deep gratitude of our nation. I salute you. — Today we present another two entries for Round 42 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 …


Practical Handgun Carry, by Sarah in Texas

Five years ago, I got my Concealed Handgun License. Here in the Great State of Texas, concealed carry is the only legal kind for the average citizen; without the permit, you can’t carry in public. (Your vehicle and home do not count as “public,” incidentally.) Last week, my new CHL arrived in the mailbox, meaning that I’m good to carry for another five years. In a post-SHTF environment, being armed everywhere you go is a good idea. We can’t predict exactly what our society will be like, but we know that violent people are not going to decide that they …


Practical Non-Martial Arts Training and Learning How to Survive, by OMK

All too often those of us who have been in the martial arts leave behind the non trained person in our conversations and training advise. I would like to highlight a few areas for those that have no formal training and how they might approach a fist to fist conflict. This is not intended to be all inclusive for no article can cover every aspect of a fight; what I do want to cover is a few make are break concepts for those that have never trained or are just beginning to train. The motivation to write this article comes …


Three Letters Re: Lentils: The Super Food of the Prepper

JWR: I have a couple of comments on the recent lentil article. Brad mentioned: “Mannaharvest.net sells 25 lb. for $24.70” Restaurant Depot (which I learned about on SurvivalBlog) sells 25 lb bags for about $13. They also have 25 lb bags of many other beans for similar prices. JWR mentioned: “Lentils can harden in long term storage, just like beans. This limits their practical shelf life to about eight years.” Since we store what we eat and eat what we store, using up lentils before they harden is not a problem. We empty the large bags into quart canning jars …


Letter Re: Advice on Refinancing

James, I’d like to respond to our friend who asked if refinancing from 5.2% down to 3.88% is a good idea. To answer that, consider what we just did. We refinanced our house from 4.5% down to 3.75% and borrowed a further $40,000, from equity. The result is that we still pay $100 less each month in mortgage payments. While we have more debt, now we also have more equity in the house in the form of $33,000 worth of solar panels and battery backup that we had installed. We also squared away most of our remaining important preparations and …


Economics and Investing:

Analysts fear euro-zone capital flight might snowball. (Thanks to Jon M. for the link.) Why a Gold Crisis Looms? G.O. recommended this: Fed Up With the Euro? Start Your Own K.W. sent a link to some dubious predictions: Food prices continue upward. Given the recent jump in corn and other grain prices, I have serious doubts that we will see just a “2.3% to 3.5%” increase. Several good articles from ETF Daily: Our Economy Has Been Collapsing, It Continues To Collapse, and The Collapse Is Going To Accelerate Dramatically   Eric Sprott Cautions Investors To Fear The Financial System   …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Seniors Arm Themselves In Record Numbers    o o o Reader H.L. alerted us to the latest from Nanny State Britannia: Animal rights group calls for Shooting Times and The Field to be classed alongside porn. Meanwhile, in Nanny State Nebraska: Grand Island Deaf Preschooler Asked to Change the Sign for His Name in School. (Thanks to Mike Williamson for the latter link.)    o o o G.G. sent this video link:Wal-Mart Status 48 Hours Pre-Hurricane    o o o I had to chuckle when I saw the Bourne Legacy Shoulder Tote Bag is now a “featured item” on eBay. …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"It is alleged by men of loose principles, or defective views of the subject, that religion and morality are not necessary or important qualifications for political stations. But the Scriptures teach a different doctrine. They direct that rulers should be men who rule in the fear of God, able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness…" – Noah Webster. Value of the Bible, 1834, #302