Pat Cascio’s Product Review: Kershaw Knives Emerson Launch 5

When I think back to my childhood in Chicago, IL, I can’t help but smile about how good we had it back then. We had a tiny black and white TV, which had maybe half a dozen channels to choose from. My grandparents, who raised me, even had a coal stove for heat for many years. Remember, this was Chicago! My grandparents never even had a key for the front door to their apartment. Kids growing up in the 1950s really had it good with no computers, no video games, no MTV, nor any of that stuff that kids today …




Recipe of the Week: Summertime Salsa

Reader J.C. presented this modified recipe, which originated at Old World Farms Garden Ingredients 35 tomatoes (preferably Roma, along with whatever tomatoes are harvested that day) 3 green peppers 2 sweet red peppers 3 medium onions 6 cloves of garlic 4-5 various peppers of your choice to add sweetness and/or heat **I used 3 cajun belle and 2 jalapenos 1 handful of cilantro 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon garlic salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/2 cup lime juice 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (or eliminate the lime juice and put in 1 cup of vinegar) Instructions Peel tomatoes – …




Letter Re: Storing Cash at Home

Hugh, Every small fire resistant safe I’ve found has a warning that the fireproofing material emits moisture, and they recommend putting papers in plastic to protect against mildew and rot. They also recommend airing the box out periodically, which might be difficult if it’s cached someplace. We use our Foodsaver to protect against this. Just wanted to mention it in case someone doesn’t read the instructions that come with the safes. Regards, – P.T.




Economics and Investing:

U.S. national debt is more than all the world’s physical cash, gold, silver, and bitcoin combined. – B.B. o o o Central Banks May Choose Helicopter Money Over Negative Rates o o o Case For -2% Rates, Banning Cash? Jim Grant Blasts Lunatic Proposals – DSV o o o An Explosion of Global Debt. Excerpt: “Whether we talk about Greek, Spanish, French, Italian or German banks, their balance sheets are all lumbered with billions of toxic assets with the only buyer being the ECB. This is why the current ECB printing program will not end in March 2017 but instead …




Odds ‘n Sods:

By way of Commander Zero’s blog (Notes From The Bunker) I heard that the New York Times surprisingly ran a piece about EDC gear: Multitools Make the Man. o o o In a recent video, Wranglerstar reviews a great “game changing” knife sharpening system from Russia: A Box From Russia Changed My Life o o o New ransomware pinpoints your location with Google Maps. I can’t help but notice in the demonstration that Windows 10 gave multiple warnings that had to be overridden in order for this ransomware to be installed. Link sent in by DSV o o o A …