Month: June 2013

Odds ‘n Sods:

By way of Mac Slavo’s SHTFPlan blog: September 6, 1984: Ron Paul Warns of Surveillance State    o o o A reader e-mailed me: “I have seen it all, now: Storage Food for Your Cat.” It is amazing what you can buy at Costco. The practicality of car storage food is debatable, but nonetheless Costco can be great. Stocking up on storage food and other items for your family’s survival stockpile at warehouse stores is described in “Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course.” (Now available inexpensively via digital download.)    o o o The aging robot: Arnold Schwarzenegger Signs Up …



Notes from JWR:

Please contact your legislators and insist that they vote against the pending Immigration (Amnesty) Bill. For among other reasons, the Campaign For Liberty warns us that : “…buried deep within the bill are plans to develop a National ID Database of every American citizen, linked with birthdates, Social Security numbers, biometric information – like photos and retinal scans – laying the groundwork for full-scale tracking of every aspect of our lives.” This legislation clearly fails Joe Huffman’s “Jews In The Attic” test, so it must be stopped! — Today is the 60th birthday of Pastor Doug Wilson (born 1953.) He …


Sample Chapter From My Upcoming Novel “Expatriates”

Introductory Note: My upcoming novel opens with a prominent disclaimer that includes: “This is a work of fiction.  All of the events described are imaginary, taking place in the future, and do not represent the world as we know it in the present day. It does not reflect the current geopolitical situation, governmental policies, or the strategic posture of any nation. It is not intended to be commentary on the policies, leadership, goals, strategies, or plans of any nation. This novel is not intended to be predictive of the territorial aspirations tactics of any nation or any planned use of …


News From The American Redoubt:

The ultimate in politically incorrect ammo: Jihawg. (Made in Idaho, of course.)    o o o I recently watched a few episodes of the murder mystery television show Longmire, via Netflix. The show is supposedly set in Wyoming. But the timber just didn’t look right to me. So I did some checking and it turns out that they actually film the show in and around Las Vegas, New Mexico. (Coincidentally, the same town where the original Red Dawn movie was filmed.) And I learned that the leading man (Robert Taylor) is actually an Aussie! (His American accent is flawless.) FWIW, …


Economics and Investing:

I noticed that spot price of silver has gone into its usual summer doldrums. Silver was under $22 per ounce, the last time I checked. Low points like this are an advantageous time to buy. It really doesn’t matter whether you buy pre-1965 junk silver, or one ounce American Redoubt silver coins, or some other sort of bullion silver, if you look at this on a macro scale. In the long run there will simply be a few prescient people with real money, and a much larger number of people who will be holding worthless paper. Yes, be a silver …


Odds ‘n Sods:

I just learned that RepackBox.com has expanded their line to include pistol ammunition boxes. These are made with the same high quality as their rifle ammo boxes, and are ideal for both handloaders and for folks who buy their ammo in bulk, but who want to store it in standard cardboard boxes. (20 rounds for rifle cartridges, and 50 rounds for pistol cartridges.) And BTW, they will also soon be selling brand new, un-issued .50 caliber full mil-spec steel ammo cans. Be sure to check out their web site. As I’ve mentioned before, they sell more than boxes. Their other …



Notes from JWR:

June 17th is the 84th birthday of physicist Dr. Hans Mark (born June 17, 1929.) He and my father became friends at LLNL, back when the facility was known as Lawrence Radiation Laboratory (LRL.) Conversationally, it was often known locally as just “The Rad Lab.” This also the birthday of musician Red Foley. (Born, 1910, died September 19, 1968.) His patriotic song Smoke on the Water topped the music charts for 13 weeks in late 1944 and early 1945, and was on the charts for 24 weeks. That song–which describes the doom of fascist tyrants–would be considered quite politically incorrect, …


Betsy’s Book Review: The Dog Stars by Peter Heller

Publisher: Vintage Books, New York. Copyright 2012 ISBN: 978-0-307-95047-5 A National Best Seller Spoilers ahead. If you don’t like to know details about a novel before you read, you might want to skip this review. I picked up The Dog Stars by Peter Heller while waiting in an airport, and frankly I enjoy fiction, but only if its intelligent and well-written, which this one is. The world has been decimated by a flu pandemic, and it’s a few years post-apocalypse. The survivors have arranged themselves into small enclaves of existence. Told in the first person by Hig, two men with …


Pat’s Product Review: The Echo Sling

When I was younger I didn’t give much thought to a sling on a rifle or shotgun. When hunting afield, I simply carried my rifle or shotgun at the “ready” position – ready to shoulder it and fire on game. When I went into the military in 1969, I sure appreciated a sling on my M14 in Basic Training. In Infantry School, we were issued M16s, and while quite a bit lighter than the M14, I still appreciated a sling on the gun for long road marches. Over the years, I’ve tried all manner of sling on long guns, and …


Letter Re: Wearing and Carrying Safety Gear, At All Times

Dear JWR, I am an avid motorcyclist. (I’ve logged more than 300,000 miles, and I’m 40 years old.) I recently noticed a trend on bike blogs regarding ATGATT, spoken as”At-Gat.” This acronym stands for All The Gear, All The Time. In other words, if you believe a helmet (or leather jacket or good sturdy boots) to be a good idea at any time, you should wear them all the time. Personally, I wear a helmet, leather jacket, good boots, gloves, etc. whenever I’m on the bike. I usually wear them when I’m not on the bike as well, out of …


Letter Re: Rapid Progression of the Geomagnetic North Pole?

Jim: Is it true, what the rumors have been saying about the [magnetic] north pole shifting 161 miles in just the past six months? can that be true? Is it possible that there will be a pole reversal in the next few years? Should I be worried? – Elaine T. JWR Replies: This topic has been discussed before in SurvivalBlog, but mostly vis-a-vis the need to keep maps updated with current magnetic declination data. (The difference between magnetic north and true north.) The geomagnetic north pole moves laterally because of shifts deep in the Earth’s core. It is presently in …


Secure Storage Facilities Planned in The American Redoubt

Todd Savage of Survival Retreat Consulting is developing two secure storage projects in the American Redoubt–one in north Idaho and one in Northwestern Montana. The facilities will give private members access to several storage options to store their preparedness gear until they can relocate. The undisclosed locations will feature various sizes of climate controlled vaults and safe rooms, featuring underground bunker construction and redundant security features. These facility can eliminate a prepper’s quandary: having all their crucial preps stored in one location with no ability to move it to their safe haven quickly. A retrofitted facility should be available for …


Recipe of the Week:

C. in Florence’s Hippo Valley Moon-Dae Here is an old Rhodesian home cooking recipe that some might find enjoyable. I have changed it by removing brand names from Rhodesia. i.e. Daribord Royal and also (other than in the title,) Hippo Valley Citrus. Sadly those companies no longer have meaning that they once did in my life.)   Hippo Valley Moon-Dae 3 large eggs (Separate) 3 tablespoons honey 1 tablespoon gelatine 1/4 cup cold water 1/2 cup cream 1 tin of grapefruit segments (or 1 cup grapefruit juice  and one peeled segmented grapefruit chopped up)   Beat together egg yolks and honey …