Month: May 2014

Letter Re: Lessons Learned

This article is not be representative of many insurance policies. I am a insurance agent. First, I am sorry they had to go through such a horrible tragedy. People need to remember insurance policies vary from state to state and policy to policy. For the policies that I manage, these are the issues that are different: First auto policies are not replacement cost. They are blue book value (aka NADA), less your deductible. You could very well end up upside down, meaning you could still be paying payments on a destroyed vehicle, where you owe more than it’s worth. The …


Letter: Cashing Out a 401k

Dear Mr. Latimer, I would value your opinion on the following. I currently have three separate 401k accounts (5K, 40K, and 8K). I have not rolled them into one account because I thought it would be safer to have them spread out. I have this idea that, despite penalties, it would be better to cash them in to apply to my mortgage to pay it down or get a smaller home and have no mortgage by using these funds. My reasoning is that we will have a crash similar to 2008 soon (7 year cycles). I feel that I would …


Economics and Investing:

The Size Of The Derivatives Bubble Hanging Over The Global Economy Hits A Record High – H.L. o o o Items from The Economatrix: Here’s The Real Reason Why Gold Is Sliding To A New Low This Gave Durable-Goods Data A Big Boost Top CEOs Get 400% Raises, But For You … 2.9% Gas Prices May Fall Soon Consumer-Confidence Rise Masks Housing Caution


Odds ‘n Sods:

Are Americans Ready For A Revolution?. – H.L. o o o This is an incredibly disturbing revelation: The (Non)Finality of Supreme Court Opinions. – PLC o o o Is Operation Choke Point a harbinger of big-government activism to come? Operation Choke Point a harbinger of big-government activism to come?. – G.P. o o o Chicago mayor pushes plan requiring all gun sales to be videotaped. – T.J. o o o Candidate for Fla. Governor Gets Self Arrested to Fight REAL ID. – J.W.



Notes for Wednesday – May 28, 2014:

Today we present another entry for Round 52 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $11,000+ worth of 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), 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, Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value), A $300 gift …


Total Loss Disaster and Lessons Learned, by R2

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We experienced a total loss fire in January of 2014. All life, minus a few fish, made it out okay. Praise God! This story is a summation of lessons learned regarding insurance, rebuild/replacement options, storage preps, fire-proof safe survival, OPSEC, and much more. I hope you can learn and make adjustments based on this experience. We had a three story colonial home with brick front, vinyl siding, and an asphalt roof. We poured a concrete foundation with a walk out basement, and we had a well, septic system, propane heat, and electric air conditioning and appliances. Our OPSEC was compromised. …


Letter Re: Grain Mills

Hugh, The author expressed little concern for his WonderMill’s tendency to heat the flour it milled, on the grounds that the flour was about to go into an oven anyway. This logic certainly makes sense; however, heated flour can be a problem in some cases. We once had a mill, whose brand I’ve forgotten, that heated its flour quite a bit. We make a fair bit of sourdough, and our starter quite noticeably failed to thrive when fed flour from this mill. Of course we let the flour cool before feeding, so latent heat wouldn’t kill the starter outright, but …


Letter Re: Thoughts on Memorial Day

I just read your thoughts regarding Memorial Day. I’ve had the opportunity to live in both a very large megaplex city area (the LA/Orange/Riverside County area) and a very small town about half way between Sacramento and the Lake Tahoe area. I’ve noticed a major difference of behavior in the two areas regarding Memorial Day. Even in the area I lived in “down south” in south Orange County (a somewhat conservative area amidst other, more liberal areas), Memorial Day was seen far more as “a day off,” with little thought generally given to thoughts about the sacrifices of our veterans. …


Economics and Investing:

A global crisis of young adult unemployment: 12 countries in Europe have an unemployment rate of 20 percent or higher for adults ages 25 and younger. o o o Items from The Economatrix: Who Gets Your Digital Fortune When You Die? 50 Best Employers For Boomer Workers George Soros Tells America To Take Their Money Out of the Banks Before It Is too Late James Rickards-Financial Collapse And Massive Shortages In Gold Coming


Odds ‘n Sods:

The Retail Death Rattle Grows Louder. – H.L. o o o Glenn Greenwald to publish list of U.S. citizens that NSA spied on. – H.L. This is a list that I am very interested to see. o o o “Nobody Needs.” The Media Attempts To Grant “Absolute Moral Authority” To The Gun Control Movement. – B.B. o o o Now, the police don’t even need a predator drone to kill an American. The police are authorized to shoot until the alleged perpetrator is dead, even if the danger is over. What is even more disturbing is the lack of a …



Notes for Tuesday – May 27, 2014:

After faithfully serving SurvivalBlog for almost seven years, Cheryl N. (aka The Economatrix) will be capping her editorial pen, so that she can concentrate on writing her doctoral thesis. We thank her for volunteer service to the blog. She has undoubtedly helped wake up many thousands of people to the economic realities (and perils) of the present day. For that, we cannot thank her enough! With Cheryl’s upcoming departure, we are now actively seeking a replacement. This is a volunteer position. You would only be in it for the glory–plus a few free books and a nice birthday present each …


A Simpleton’s Guide To Preps: The Best And The Overrated, by B.H.

The Best: Become a faithful, obedient Christian. Why? Because we’re thinking long-term. Prepping doesn’t exempt death; it just postpones it (maybe). If you believe in prepping for the few decades you have on this earth, doesn’t it make sense to prep for the eternity that follows? Develop a long-term attitude in all your preparations. Why? At various gun-shows and events I attend, I occasionally see a small patch for sale that reads, “Embrace the Suck.” How true this could be. Simply giving-up during bad times will most likely kill more folks than anything, including smoking unfiltered cigarettes or running with …


Letter Re: Generators And Their Proper Implementation During TEOTWAWKI/Disasters

HJL, I’ve passed this along many times to JWR when the subject of generators and transfer switches come up. It is a more versatile solution than a transfer switch. It is a product named Generlink. It installs at your pole and allows you to choose which circuits to power via your breaker box, instead of having to wire specific circuits with a transfer switch and is a less expensive solution than a transfer switch. Generlink has been approved by my electric co-op and many others. Check it out at generlink.com, I have no financial interest in it. Regards, Keith o …