Month: March 2013


Note from JWR:

The Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course is available again, via digital download, and selling at a brisk pace. Because of the efficiency of digital delivery, it now available at just a fraction of the price that had been charged for the original hard copy binder edition. The course was designed for beginning and intermediate preppers, with this premise: Could you prepare your family for a major disaster, with just one or two trips to your local COSTCO or Sam’s Club store? In the course I describe exactly how to do that. One of the most useful course appendices is …


Islands in the Darkness: Some Local Power Utilities Have Prepared to Go It Alone

Many readers will recall that my 2011 novel “Survivors: A Novel of the Coming Collapse” was partly set in and near Farmington, New Mexico. I chose that region because it has a particularly resilient power grid. In the novel I described how Farmington Electric Utility System (FEUS) has made contingency plans to immediately reconstitute a local power grid, in the event of a western power grid collapse. This was not just literary license on my part. It was based on a face-to-face interview with a FEUS manager that I conducted in 2009, as I was researching locales for the novel. …


Single Scope Tyranny

I recently heard from one of my readers who holds a Top Secret clearance and who has SCI access. His clearance was up for a Single-Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) periodic reinvestigation (PR). These SSBI-PRs are standard practice for anyone who holds a Top Secret clearance with access to Special Access Programs (SAPs), Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI), or nuclear (“Q Access”) programs. He told me that he was the subject of an “Expanded Reinvestigation” and in the course of that investigation he was challenged by investigators about his loyalty. The challenges, he discovered,were based upon his e-mail history and the assortment …


Pat’s Product Review: Springfield Armory Champion Operator 1911

Over the years, I’ve received hundreds of e-mails, always asking me if I had to pick just one gun, for the rest of my life, what would it be? Of course, there is no easy answer to this question, and thankfully, I don’t have to make that choice – right now. And, depending on how I’m feeling at the time this question is asked, then my answer has changed over the years. There is no one gun solution , at least not in my mind. I said for years, that I’d pick some kind of 4-inch barrel, stainless steel .357 …


Three Letters Re: .300 AAC Blackout Uppers for AR-15s

Jim. An additional point or two on the viability of the 300BLK. While I agree that the primary concern should be to have your standard calibers covered, the 300BLK has the additional advantages. Because it is made from 223/5.56 brass, and uses any 30 caliber bullet, it will be easily reloaded in a SHTF situation. Another advantage is the ability to use the round suppressed (using subsonic rounds)with as close to “Hollywood” results as you will get. Although the advantages of using silenced weapons in a SHTF situation has been touched on in this forum I believe the subject could …


Recipe of the Week:

Linda H.’s Quick-n-Easy Red Beans and Rice   2 tbs. olive oil 3/4 c. chopped green pepper (about 1 medium green pepper) 3/4 c. chopped onions (about 1 small onion) 2-3 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 lb. cooked smoked sausage (such as Hillshire Farms), cut into 1/2″ half-rounds 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained 1 can (14.5 oz.) red beans, rinsed and drained 1/4 tsp. dried oregano 2 bay leaves 1/2 tsp. hot red pepper flakes (or to taste) salt and pepper, to taste hot cooked rice   In large saucepan heat olive oil and saute green peppers, onions and garlic …


Redoubt Retreat Consultant Offers Discount For Gun Law Refugees

Taking note of the recent passage of The Firearms Safety Act in the Maryland Senate, New York’s SAFE Act, and other legislation that appears very likely to be enacted, Todd Savage of SurvivalRetreatConsulting.com has announced a 20% discount for “gun law refugee” clients. He is now extending the 20% discount to residents of California, Colorado, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York who identify themselves as gun law refugees. I predict that the American Redoubt will soon have a large influx of residents hailing from states with draconian new gun laws. I was glad to hear that Todd Savage is helping …


Economics and Investing:

Some Daily Bell analysis: Italy Founders While Greece Subsides: Is Austerity Over? Not So Fast … Bitcoin deflation! It is interesting to note that One Bitcoin (“BTC”) is now worth around $34 USD. Please support the Bitcoin movement. If we can use mechanisms like Bitcoin and traditional barter instead of the banking system, then we will starve the banksters and regain some of our economic freedom and our privacy. ‘Dilbert’ Creator Alleges Vast Conspiracy — Predicts 20% Market Collapse Items from The Economatrix: Jobless Claims Rise Sound Money Campaign:  “Economists Love To Hate Gold” The Tooth Fairy:  Double-Digit Growth A …


Odds ‘n Sods:

What do USAF PJs carry in their trauma rucks?    o o o Montana definitely started something. Oral arguments for the MSSA v. Holder case are scheduled to be heard on March 4, 2013 in the Ninth Circuit Court    o o o The re-make of Red Dawn will be released in a DVD and Blu-Ray combo on March 5th. Just on the strength of pre-orders, it is already in Amazon’s Top 200 movies. (FWIW, I still prefer the original John Milius film.)     o o o Reader Matt L. sent this CalGuns thread: I Prototyped My Own Polymer Lower! …



Notes from JWR:

My congratulations to Mac Slavo, the editor of the excellent SHTFPlan blog. His site now has a higher web traffic ranking than SurvivalBlog’s. When I had checked for competitor stats last year, SurvivalBlog was ranked #1 and Mac’s blog was #2. But now we are in the #2 position, and SHTFPlan is ranked #1. OBTW, I should mention that some of our visitor traffic is now directed to our dotted quad address (95.143.193.148) and therefore the aggregate traffic is not reflected in the site rankings. Congrats also to The Survival Podcast, presently traffic ranked #3 among preparedness-oriented web sites. SurvivalBlog …


Surviving Snowmageddon, by Lugknut32

In January, 2012 Washington State went through what the locals called Snowmageddon. My family and I had just returned from being stationed in Germany for the preceding nine years. Some of our belongings were still packed up out in the garage. Mostly my “camping” things. Having just started at the new assignment, I had not yet taken the time to unpack everything. I had bought some heavy duty shelves for the garage (in anticipation of unpacking my gear). While in Germany, I was stationed in Bavaria (Schweinfurt and Graffenwoehr specifically). I had been raised in the Midwest, so I was …


Some Alaska Outdoor Survival Experiences, by M.C.R.

Preparedness is a mental state and  where I live it is extremely unforgiving if you are not ready. I travel the bush in the state of Alaska as a telecommunication technician which means I travel mostly in small commercial planes or in bush planes along with helicopters, boats and once in a while via snowmobiles (called “snow machines” here) to get to the native villages. This happened to me in the mid-1980s when Exxon was drilling in Arctic Ocean on a drilling rig called a Concrete Island Drilling Structure (C.I.D.S.). Exxon had chartered a helicopter company to fly supplies and personnel …


Letter Re: Emergency Bags for Your Vehicle

Dear James, I wish to make a comment about the article on preparing an emergency bag for your car. This is a prudent and good idea. I currently have one for each vehicle I own. The only problem with the article is the choice of food. I have a tendency to leave my emergency bag in my car. The problem arises in the summer when the outside temps start to rise. With the outdoor temp at 100 degrees F the car’s inside temperature is 120 to 130. The MRE entrees only have a shelf life of 30 days at 120 …