Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from regard to their own interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our own necessities but of their advantages. Nobody but a beggar chooses to depend chiefly upon the benevolence of his fellow citizens.” – Adam Smith




Notes for Monday – November 23, 2015

FLIR is offering huge manufacturer’s rebate on many thermal imagers they make through November 30th. In addition, JRH Enterprises has put these popular models on sale as well. The very popular Scout II 240 model is on sale as well as having a $500 rebate (from FLIR). Weapons mountable Thermosight models like the RS32 are also on sale for $500 OFF and FLIR is offering a $1,000 Rebate on that model. Other FLIR models on sale with rebates at JRH Enterprises.




Pat Cascio’s Product Review: Driven From Our Homes (DVD)

There has been a few short mentions on SurvivalBlog.com and other websites about the DVD and companion book, Driven From Our Homes that is being sold by Infidel Body Armor. I have been dealing directly with IBA owner, Chad Cooper, since he started the company, and I’ve tested many of his products extensively. To be sure, IBA doesn’t produce any junk! It’s simple as that. When Chad contacted me about his new DVD and companion book, I couldn’t wait to get it. Before it arrived, Chad was kind enough to give me access to their website so I could watch …




Obsoleting Sodium Hypochlorite – The MSR SE200, by Hugh Latimer

In 2004, the devastating Southeast Asia Tsunami stimulated charity from all over the world. Fresh drinking water was one of the prime concerns in this disaster and MSR (Cascade Designs) had been specializing in back country water purification for years. They lept into action, delivering many of their water purification devices to the area. Unfortunately, they learned some hard lessons along the way. In their own words, they admitted that the philanthropic effort, though well intended, was humbling. The logistics were complicated, so delivery of the devices was hindered, and once there they discovered that the size of the devices, …




Recipe of the Week: Quick Chili Con Carne, by T.M.

Instructions: 1lb lean ground beef 1 small onion, chopped 1 tsp salt 1 to 2 tsp chili powder 1 bay leaf 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 2 (8oz) cans tomato sauce 2 (16oz) cans kidney beans, drained Directions: In a skillet or slow-cooking pot with a browning unit, break up beef with a fork and cook until lightly browned Pour off excess fat. In a slow-cooking pot, combine meat with onion, salt, chili powder, bay leaf, Worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce, and kidney beans. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours. Remove bay leaf. Makes 6 to 7 servings. …




Letter Re: An Alternative to Calcium Hypochlorite, by TLS

Gentlemen, I just read the excellent article written on chlorine usage for water disinfection. As a long time analytical chemist, it was a pleasure to read such an articulate article on the subject. I wanted to add a caveat to the article. One must keep in mind that when using chlorine, a minimum contact time of one hour is required to kill organisms, and you should maintain a residual of chlorine in the water. Contact time is the length of time the chlorine is allowed to work. And since the chlorine reacts with the organic molecules composing the undesirable organisms, …




Economics and Investing:

A very interesting read on the coming economic disaster: Is This How the Next Global Financial Meltdown Will Unfold?. Sent in by GJM o o o The Future of Money – Banking without a bank in Kenya. – C.L. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: Next Crisis in the Making: David Stockman Points to the $4.6T Leveraged Loan Market (Contra Corner) ECB Policymaker Says Monetary Policy Risks Becoming Ineffective in a Low Growth World (Reuters) China’s $1.2T Debt “Ponzi Scheme” Could Trigger Financial Crisis (Breitbart) Container Freight Rates Plummet 70% in 3 Weeks (Zero Hedge) Investors Warn of Greater …




Odds ‘n Sods:

From SurvivalBlog reader S.H. – While I don’t make a habit of watching PBS, this caught my attention. Though the technical aspects were mostly over my head, the ramifications were not. This type of terrorism vastly widens the threat to the power grid along with other infrastructures. Cyber War Threat o o o Real Danger Is Violence and War-Catherine Austin Fitts This is in-line with what I have been saying for quite some time. There is a huge economic crises coming, yet TPTB will keep kicking the can down the road, watching the crises grow larger and larger until some …




Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“What manner of men had lived in those days…who had so eagerly surrendered their sovereignty for a lie and a delusion? Why had they been so anxious to believe that the government could solve problems for them which had been pridefully solved, many times over, by their fathers? Had their characters become so weak and debased, so craven and emasculated, that offers of government dole had become more important than their liberty and their humanity? Had they not known that power delegated to the government becomes the club of tyrants? They must have known. They had their own history to …




Notes for Sunday – November 22, 2015

Today is remembered as the birthday of the late Eugene M. Stoner (born 1922, died April 24, 1997.) He was the designer of the AR-7, AR-10, AR-15, AR-180, the Stoner 63, and several other firearms. (The AR-10 was the basis of the AR-15, which in turn spawned the very widely used M16 and all of its variants including the M4 Carbine). It has been estimated that as many as 3.7 million rifles from the AR-15 family are owned by civilians in the United States, and military production M16 variants well exceeds 8 million rifles. o o o Today, we present …




Our Family’s Journey to Preparing For an Extended Grid Down Event- Part 1, by Old Man

To paraphrase an old saying, prepping is not a destination but a journey, or rather it’s a lifestyle. In this article I would like to share some highlights of our family’s journey to preparing for an extended grid down event, including what we found works and didn’t work for us. Hopefully, this might help some folks avoid the mistakes we made and stir some ideas for others. When I was a youngster, I joined the Boy Scouts. It was there that I was first bit by the prepping bug. I took to the Boy Scouts motto of “Be Prepared” like …




Letter Re: A Solid Solution On Securing Home Defense During A TEOTWAWKI Situation, by B.M.

Good morning, Hugh, I’ve been following the discussion on “indoor concertina wire” and agree wholeheartedly; it’s a poor decision. A recent writer pointed out that concertina wire, barbed wire, and tanglefoot should be secured to posts of some sort; I concur, and would like to elaborate on that topic. When I build fences I install a 4 foot wide hinged walk-through gate that, on closing, latches to a removable post. There is also an 8-foot hinged gate that latches to that same removable post, allowing a 12-foot entry for equipment should it be needed. Depending on the fence, and requirements, …




Economics and Investing:

Caterpillar sales drop for the fourth year in a row because of China: Those good years won’t come back. sent in by RBS o o o Sent in by B.B. – Fed To Hold An “Expedited, Closed” Meeting On Monday “As we are sure to be told: ‘It’s probably nothing!’ “ – Uhh, sure… o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: Auto Loans and Mortgages Push Household Debt to Highest Levels Since 2010 (Bloomberg) Baltic Dry Index Drops to Record Low (Bloomberg) Iron Ore Price Craters (Mining) Lifetime Cost of Refugee Settlement: $55B (Breitbart) Resettling Middle Eastern Refugees Costs Taxpayers …




Odds ‘n Sods:

First we are told they will disrupt the under-sea fiber communications. Now: Suspicious Russian Mission Aimed At Disrupting U.S. Submarine Monitors – D.S. o o o From SurvivalBlog reader A.L. – This is an excellent essay in response to a rabid gun-grabber: “Tap dancing in a minefield blindfolded.” o o o The hacking group “Anonymous” has released a statement claiming ISIS is planning Sunday terror attacks in U.S., worldwide – D.S. o o o SurvivalBlog reader T.L. sent in this little lump of coal: First Amendment under siege: Government should ban speech that offends minorities, millennials say it looks like …