Year: 2013

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) 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 …


My Five-Step Plan to Ban Guns in the US Within 10 Years, by Jason H.

I currently provide consulting services to major global corporations. One effective way to do battle with a competitor is to place yourself in their shoes and plan out your own demise – exactly what I will do here today. Below is my concise strategy to completely ban firearms in the US within 10 years. I am not alone here, rest assured there are many groups that have paid tidy sums to have the same roadmap developed and are currently rolling it out in a very deliberate manner. Step 1 – Divide to conquer. We know there were not enough votes …


Letter Re: Building Cabins on a Shoestring Budget

Dear CPT Rawles, Thank you for SurvivalBlog, and best wishes to all of you at the Rawles Ranch.   My wife and I have written to once before about retreat locale recommendations, and you were so very helpful.  We are, I guess what you could call “late preppers” because we’ve only been working on this for about the last year, & part of that with admittedly a certain skepticism. Time has proven you right however, & now we are doing all we can.  It’s tough to prioritize when you need so much, and everything is like an emergency right NOW …


Economics and Investing:

Burke C. suggested: America The Fallen: 24 Signs That Our Once Proud Cities Are Turning Into Poverty-Stricken Hellholes Jim Rogers: It Pays To Be Worried, and To Be Skeptical Albert Edwards: Stocks Will Crash, Hyperinflation Will Come, And Gold Will Go Above $10,000. (Thanks to Jim W. for the link.) Items from The Economatrix: Prof. William Black: Felons in Charge of Financial Institutions – Banking System Meltdown Coming? Inflation Is Very, Very Low.  Time to Worry? Three Reasons the Housing Recovery May Not Last


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader J.B.G. mentioned this from Michael Bane: The Great Ammo Drought of 2013. Michael has some good advice. OBTW, to compensate for the current high cost of ammunition, we are doing more practice with our SIRT laser training pistol.    o o o K. recommended the tips included in The American Civil War Account of Harriet Cobb Lane. The comments about the coffee substitute that later became known as Postum were interesting, and worthy of some experimentation.    o o o Seed For Security is now featuring their Four Grain Collection. Included in this collection is: 2 pints of Winter …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) 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 …


Wealth From a Prepper’s Perspective, by DocLiberty

Many (if not most) people seek wealth, yet few can define it.  There are many practical definitions.  One author defines wealth as having sufficient assets to provide the cash flow necessary to meet your monthly living expenses.  That’s a great definition for normal times, but having a bunch of rental houses when the dollar is worthless and the hungering hoards are loose upon society won’t do you much good. If you are at all familiar with the concepts promoted in this blog you know what you need to have for basic survival.  I will not spend space and electrons reviewing …


Letter Re: Jurisdictional Issues and Modern Statutory Law

Dear Sir: Many are dismayed by the recent Colorado law restricting firearms. But a cursory reading shows that the law only applies to “persons liable” and not the people at large. Regarding any new law, tax or regulation, remember to ask servant government: [ ] Whose endowed rights are being secured by this ? [ ] How and when did I give consent to be bound by this ? [ ] What privilege is the subject of this tax ? Because the Declaration of Independence states that Job #1 = secure rights, and Job #2 = govern those who consent. …


Economics and Investing:

TPC: Distribution of the Tax Burden in Obama’s 2014 Budget H.L. sent: Putin Demands Proposals to Stem ‘Alarming’ Economic Slowdown B.B. suggested: These are Perilous Times Jim Rogers Items from The Economatrix: Dave Hodges: Economic Armageddon Is Imminent There is a Run on Physical Gold and Silver, that’s why the Feds are Attacking It! This is the first time in human history in which all the world’s major currencies are collapsing together! Jobless Rates Plummet In States With Housing Recovery


Odds ‘n Sods:

F.G. suggested: Have hired guns finally scuppered Somali pirates?    o o o I noticed that LPC Survival has added American-made Emberlit folding stoves to their product line    o o o J.B.G. sent: Japanese police want to ban Tor, stop anonymous browsing    o o o Seven Rules for Recording Police. (Thanks to F.G. for the link.)


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Let us consider, brethren, we are struggling for our best birthrights and inheritance, which being infringed, renders all our blessings precarious in their enjoyments, and, consequently trifling in their value. Let us disappoint the Men who are raising themselves on the ruin of this Country. Let us convince every invader of our freedom, that we will be as free as the constitution our fathers recognized, will justify." – Samuel Adams, A State of the Rights of the Colonists, 1772


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) 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 …


Make Yourself Worth Saving, by John G.

The end of the world as we know it (TEOTWAWKI) has probably crossed your mind lately. It might have been just a brief news flash about a silly Mayan prophecy, or maybe you have an uncle who still thinks the Russians are gonna nuke us. More likely in our generation, our societal bonds could disintegrate thanks to erosion of our financial system. If you have not given this situation much thought, it is high time to start. The first step is to take the possibility seriously. If you cannot handle this basic prerequisite, well, Devil take the hindmost. Once you …


Letter Re: A Dual Ring Village

Mr Rawles, thank you for the service you provide. A comment on the dual ring village concept. If it is advanced as a defense tactic, I would urge remembering that the walled-town versus siegecraft dynamic is thousands of years old, and the survival of walled towns and cities is only possible if they are: 1. Provisioned to last longer than the besieging force, which is of course free to forage and be resupplied 2. Fireproof 3. Relieved by a friendly force from outside. They are also utterly obsolete since the development of artillery bombardment, still more so since the airplane …