Year: 2014

Multi-Species Rotational Grazing to Maximize Food and Income in a TEOTWAWKI World, by J.B.

When new preppers begin planning their retreat or bug-out location they often first visualize an abundant garden, overflowing with fruit and vegetables, and focus their food production efforts on learning to garden. This is a wise approach indeed, but perhaps a disproportionate level of attention is paid solely to the labor-intensive task of annual gardening, which produces primarily carbohydrates, versus the less labor-intensive task of livestock grazing, which produces a perennial supply of primarily protein, fat, and pelts (if desired). Also, unlike most plants, protein derived from animals is complete and includes all nine essential amino acids (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complete_protein). Now, please …


Letter: Ebola and Hajj

Last year more than two million Muslims from all over the world performed hajj, or travel to Mecca, to participate in the Muslim rituals there. People are in close contact, often shoulder to shoulder and even stepping on each other, for several days as they go through several rituals of hajj. When the hajj is over, these people return to their homes in dozens of countries across the globe. This year 70,000 Nigerians will travel to Mecca, despite that country having more than a dozen confirmed cases of Ebola Zaire, with over 300 suspected of exposure to the deadly virus. …


Economics and Investing:

The NEXT Reserve Currency o o o Why King Coal Will Keep Its Crown. – J.S. o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: Fed Officials Predict Fed Funds Rate to Rise to 1.375% End-2015 Fed Keeps ‘Considerable Time’ Pledge as Growth ‘Moderate’ Europe’s Winners and Losers from Russia Trouble Food-Stamp Enrollment In Illinois Outpaces Job Creation By Nearly 2-to-1


Odds ‘n Sods:

Ol’ Remus at WoodpileReport.com noted: “In the dull light of the woods, crisp new cammies are easier to spot than the somewhat faded cammies typical of military surplus. And Flecktarn may be slightly less visible than Woodland.” JWR Adds: But be careful not to buy any camouflage uniforms that have ever been starched, since that makes them reflective to infrared (IR.) And likewise, it is best to launder your field clothing with a mild detergent such as Woolite, since using a detergent with any “whitening” or “brightening” will make you stand out quite noticeably to users of FLIRs and night …



Notes for Wednesday – September 17, 2014

Today, September 17th, we celebrate Constitution Day in these United States. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 54 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $12,100+ 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, DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet …


Two Forever Foods, by Northern Forager

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Disclaimer: The author and SurvivalBlog take no responsibility for the information or use of information resulting in or from the following article. This article is intended for informational purposes only. There is a world of food that exists outside of the supermarket– types of food that people who only get their food from stores never see or learn about. In my effort of sustainable and self-reliant living, I have become an advocate and convert to the idea of eating local plants in the area where I live, even to the point of eating “weeds”. Doing the same will greatly improve …


Letter Re: What Retail Might Look Like at TEOTWAWKI

Dear Sir, I feel like I have some insight to add to Jacob’s post about what retail may look like post disaster. I manage a warehouse for a DSD (direct store delivery) company. Here’s just a little bit of insight into what that is, since not everyone knows how stores get their merchandise: Many items are not stocked by the stores themselves. They never go through their own distribution network. Instead, companies (bread, snacks, soda, beer, pizza, et cetera) manage their own distribution and have their own trucks go to the store. We handle our own product from raw materials …


Economics and Investing:

Poor Americans carry a record level of debt leverage o o o The Irrational Fear Of Deflation o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: Draghi Prods Euro Area to Ready Ground for Economic Boost Scotland Prepares For Bank Runs; ‘Quietly’ Sends Millions Of Banknotes North The War on Poverty Has Been a Colossal Flop The Fed’s Muddied Message Causing Market Mess – When your equity markets are dependent on two words, you know you’re in a heavily manipulated, fragile market.



Odds ‘n Sods:

SurvivalBlog reader K.A. sent us a link to a video of some pro-Russian irregulars of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR/DNR) skirmishing in the village of Vergunka near Luhans’ka, Ukraine. (Note: Please ignore the lewd pictures and links at the LiveLeak website. Sorry, but I could not find another video aggregation site with the same video clip.) This video provides a great case study on how NOT to operate as a small guerilla unit: Pitiful noise discipline (plenty of “smoking and joking”); marginal command and control; suicidally poor dispersion of patrol members (at many times they were bunched so close together …



Notes for Tuesday – September 16, 2014

September 16th is the birthday of “Mad Jack” Churchill (1906-1996), who was a true eccentric. He went to war in WWII armed with a broadsword and a longbow. (The latter was successfully used to dispatch several German soldiers.) He later became a devoted surfer. What a guy. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 54 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $12,100+ 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 …


The Real Threats, by R.S.

There is a lot of conjecture as to what the event will be that “ends it all” and sends the world into complete chaos, causing Americans to go into “survival mode”. Every corner you turn you hear another theory about how it’s “going to go down”. People’s answers include terms like E.M.P., H.E.M.P., nuclear, biological, chemical, economic meltdown, foreign invasion, global natural disaster, space alien invasion, zombie apocalypse, or all the above (for the real dooms dayers). So, what is the more likely or more plausible scenario or scenarios for having to go into real survival mode? Let’s look at …


Letter Re: Time Out

Hugh, The author discourages Seiko watches, although I have found them to be one of the best watches I have ever purchased. It is an auto wind and needs adjusting once every several months, which is usually when it gets 10 minutes fast and I just turn it back. My Seiko 5 mechanical watch has been diving, truck driving, shooting, and taken all sorts of abuse. I bought my first one in Sharjah UAE on my way to Iraq. It served me well through the war, from Baghdad to Djibouti, to Manila, to China and all over. Finally, it started …