Year: 2016

Notes for Tuesday – July 05, 2016

On July 5, 1810, P. T. Barnum, the great American showman, was born. He died on April 7, 1891. He is often credited with the phrase “There is a sucker born every minute.” While the actual attribution of the quote is suspect with many versions of the story abounding, the concept remains valid, especially when one considers the economic state of the entire world. Only in a world of fools could the economy of entire nations, indeed the vast majority of the world, be driven solely off of debt.


Guest Article: SHTF Intelligence – Getting Started- Part 1, by Samuel Culper

This is the first article in a series about using intelligence for preparedness. I’m starting from square zero in order to introduce a new crop of Americans to the concept of using intelligence, to prove that there’s a need for intelligence and to get readers quickly up to speed on how to incorporate it into their security planning. After getting caught up to speed, if you’d like to read more in-depth and put theory into practice, a book entitled SHTF Intelligence will show you the way forward. You can find a small homework exercise here. Why do I need intelligence? …


Letter Re: Dry Canning

Hello Hugh and Sarah, Do you sterilize your jars before using when dry canning? Do you boil or use dry heat (oven)? Wonderful articles! I’m converting. I’ve had too many reservations about the mylar bags. Have done a lot with them but some don’t seem to pull a vacuum. It makes me question whether they are truly sealed. In fact, I wonder about whether I should repackage everything in jars. Yikes. We’re talking a 300-400 half gallon bags. – P.B. HJL Comments: We don’t use water bath canning as a general rule so we don’t worry too much about sterilization. …


News From The American Redoubt:

I heard about a business consultant named James Baker in eastern Washington who is enthusiastic about helping would-be Redoubters relocate to the Inland Northwest through career searches and job placement. He mentioned that both Healthcare and Manufacturing are booming along the I-90 corridor and employers can’t find enough talent to fill positions. Here are his contact details: Business Services Consultant, WorkSource Spokane 130 South Arthur, Spokane WA 99202 (509) 532-3015 office (509) 532-3035 fax E-mail: JBaker@esd.wa.gov o o o Headline from Idaho: Athol couple scraping up extreme diet (Thanks to Jeff M. for the link.) o o o Sheriff: Grizzly …


Economics and Investing:

In Gold We Trust Report 2016 (Gold Eagle) o o o Commercial Short Positions In Gold & Silver Hit All-Time Record! (King World News) o o o Elizabeth Warren Turns a Blind Eye to the Central Bank (Mises Institute) o o o Brussels Looks to Expand Into Middle East and Africa – UKIP MP: ‘EU Wants an Empire’ – H.L. o o o SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.


Odds ‘n Sods:

Army veteran rescues bald eagle dangling upside down from a rope in 75-foot tree by ‘mowing down the branches’ with his rifle – G.G. o o o While the Dad/son duo fight the FAA over their right to mount a flame thrower or a pistol on a drone a couple of Finnish farmers have attached a chain saw to one. – T.P. o o o WikiLeaks: Says “We Have Upcoming Leaks About Hillary” o o o Judge Jeanine: Does Loretta Lynch think we’re stupid? – M.T. o o o Along those same lines of thought comes this article on Town …



Notes for Monday – July 04, 2016

As Americans go through the motions of celebrating the remnants of our once preciously cherished liberty whilst in the throes of presidential election campaign, we are reminded that it is high time to pluck a few chickens and warm up the tar pot. Independence Day is also the birthday of Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) and of General Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807–1882) – JWR


Pat Cascio’s Product Review: Benchmade’s H&K Entourage

I’ve known many of the folks at Benchmade Knives for more than 20 years. It is a credit to the company that there isn’t a very big turnover in those folks that I’ve worked with over the years. At some companies it seems like the turnover is like a revolving door. I’ve been friends with Benchmade’s own Les d’Asis for more than 20 years now, and he’s one of the nicest guys around. One thing I’ve often commented about with Les is that he isn’t a suit and tie type of guy, like me. Last time I put my suit …


Coping With California’s Six New Gun and Magazine Ban Laws

This year’s Independence Day celebrations have been muted by news of the enactment of six tyrannical new gun, ammunition, and magazine laws in California. California’s leftist legislature in now crowing about how they “did something” in response to the Islamic terror attack in San Bernadino last year. Six of 10 new “Gunmeggddon” laws that they passed were just signed into law by Democrat Governor Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown. Courtesy of the NRA-ILA, here is a summary of Governor Brown’s actions: SIGNED BOTH– Assembly Bill 1135 and Senate Bill 880 will make changes of monumental scale to California’s firearm laws by reclassifying …


Recipe of the Week: Beef and Potatoes

Ingredients: 2 lbs lean ground beef 1 tsp salt ½ tsp pepper ¼ cup finely chopped onion 1 can condensed tomato soup 5 to 6 medium potatoes 1 cup light cream Directions: In a large skillet brown the beef, breaking up large chunks with a fork. Pour off excess fat. In a small bowl, mix together salt, pepper, onion, and undiluted soup. Peel and slice potatoes. In a slow-cooking pot, arrange alternate layers of potatoes and meat (with the potatoes on the bottom). Pour the soup mixture over, then cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. Turn …


Two Letters Re: Toilet Wipes

HJL, How about the eBay Bidet. It not only rhymes, it completely solves your bum washing problem. You install it on your toilet in 20 minutes. I found out about this using a process of elimination. – M. o o o Hi Hugh, This idea may have already been mentioned, but I connected a kitchen sink dish spray hose and nozzle to my toilet water supply as a homemade bidet using a pipe tee, 1/2-inch valves, and some reducing adapters. It takes a little experimenting to know how far to crack open the valve to keep from spraying water everywhere. …


Economics and Investing:

Retailers are closing faster than you think (NYPost) – G.G. o o o WATCH OUT If Silver Breaks Through This Threshold Next Week (SRSrocco Report) o o o Fed Fails to See No Pent-Up Demand Is Left (Real Money) What is amazing is the government and the sheeple think this is a good idea. Gold is the safe haven as the article says. – R.H. o o o US economy is like Botox, looks fine only on the outside (RT) – T.P. o o o SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Video: Has The Government Put You On A Terrorist Watchlist? o o o California governor signs stringent gun bills, vetoes others. The article begins: “[Democrat] Gov. Jerry Brown signed six stringent gun-control measures Friday that will require people to turn in high-capacity magazines and mandate background checks for ammunition sales, as California Democrats seek to strengthen gun laws that are already among the strictest in the nation.” The outright ban on 11+ round magazines flies in the face of American jurisprudence, because it has no grandfather clause, and even bans previously-grandfathered magazines. This represents an unconstitutional “taking” without compensation. And …