The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Morals, including especially, our institutions of property, freedom and justice, are not a creation of man’s reason but a distinct second endowment conferred on him by cultural evolution – runs counter to the main intellectual outlook of the twentieth century. The influence of rationalism has indeed been so profound and pervasive that, in general, the more intelligent an educated person is, the more likely he or she now is not only to be a rationalist, but also to hold socialist views (regardless of whether he or she is sufficiently doctrinal to attach to his or her views any label, including …




Preparedness Notes for Wednesday – November 07, 2018

November 7th is the anniversary of the death of actor Steve McQueen (born March 24, 1930, died November 7, 1980). The many well-publicized exploits in his tempestuous life and his enduring persona are well known. However, the end of his life is actually the most noteworthy part of his legacy, even though it seldom gets much publicity outside of Christian circles; he came to Jesus after he had been diagnosed with mesothelioma. He died with his forefinger pointing to his key verse in his Bible– Titus 1:2.




Guest Article: Fall Chores, by Patrice Lewis

Editors’ Introductory Note:  This post first appeared in the excellent, long-running Rural Revolution blog. We recommend bookmarking it! We also recommend Patrice’s books. o  o  o Until a few days ago, October was a very dry month for us. Thankfully some much-needed and very welcome rain is moving in. While it’s delightful to walk outside and sniff the fresh moist ground, we weren’t idle during the dry weeks. Among other chores, we focused a lot on firewood, a chief preoccupation for many people this time of year. Summer before last, we had a neighbor come in with some huge equipment and clear …




Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on investing in Graveyard Plots (See the Tangibles Investing section.)   Precious Metals: Eric Reed at The Street: Investing in Silver: Four Ways to Invest and Why o  o  o Gold, Silver Pressured By Firmer USDX, Rally In U.S. Stock Market Economy & Finance: Robert Shiller: …




JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. This week the focus is on DIY home projects. (See the Instructional Videos section.) Books: Wranglerstar’s book published last year deserves a second mention: Modern Homesteading: Rediscovering the American Dream. o  o  o Home Workshop Setup: The Complete Guide (Home Woodworker Series) o  o  o Practical Woodshop Projects: 24 No-Nonsense Projects to Improve Your Shop o  o  o The Home Blacksmith: Tools, Techniques, and 40 Practical Projects for the Blacksmith Hobbyist   Movies & Television: The 12th Man.  An amazing true story of a …







Preparedness Notes for Tuesday – November 06, 2018

Today in 1977, the Toccoa Falls Dam in Georgia gave way and 39 people died in the resulting flood. The dam was an earthen dam constructed across a canyon in 1887 and had a 55 acre lake that was 180 feet deep. The dam had recently been inspected and approved, but in the early morning hours it gave way. Water flooded down the canyon at speeds approaching 120 mph. Below, residents of the Christian and Missionary Alliance College had no time to evacuate as the small community was wiped out.




Preparing to Survive Riots, Terrorist Attacks, or a Civil War

Of all of the “worst case” possibilities that we prepare for, near the top of my “most dreaded” list is a second civil war.  This falls in the category of a “highly unlikely, but profoundly inimical if it were to occur.”  In this essay, I will discuss a full spectrum of threats, including contingency preparations for surviving riots, terrorist attacks, or a civil war. I believe that the United States has entered a period of great instability, born of political divisiveness. The sharp differences between liberals and conservatives are now profoundly felt.  Virtually every topic and issue has become heavily …




SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

Here is SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt. This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. We also mention companies of interest to preppers that are located in the region. The emphasis this week is on American Redoubt coffee roasters. Many of these companies also do mailorder/Internet sales of their beans and ground coffee. I know that a lot of SurvivalBlog readers order their coffee from Black Rifle Coffee Company in Tennessee. But those of us who live here in the Redoubt can now support local businesses. And I have a suggestion that …




The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “HJL”. The public Schools continue their morphing into communist indoctrination centers. Voting Today is the mid-term voting across the nation. Get out and vote! Reader DSV sent in this statement from The Truth About Guns blog that should send a shiver down your spine: “The momentum is with us, the NRA is on its heels and we think that it’s an opportunity to keep redrawing the map.” – John Feinblatt, president of Everytown …







Preparedness Notes for Monday – November 05, 2018

On this day in 1979, student followers of the Ayatollah Khomeini sent shock waves across America when they stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran. The radical Islamic fundamentalists took 90 hostages. The students were enraged that the deposed Shah had been allowed to enter the U.S. to seek medical attention. Just a few days later, the provincial leader of Iran resigned and the Ayatollah Khomeini took full control of the country. Two weeks later, all non-U.S personnel as well as female and minority Americans began to be released. The remaining 52 hostages were held for 14 months until the election …




Cold Steel Bush Ranger, by Pat Cascio

In a most fitting tribute to Jim Bowie, Cold Steel recently came out with the Bush Ranger. This is a folder that sure does remind one of the Bowie fixed-blade knife, with its deep clip-point blade. Cold Steel Always In Demand Anyone who has been around the cutlery field for any length of time surely knows the name “Cold Steel” and their outstanding line of knives. To be sure, the Cold Steel line-up is always in demand, and quite often they will be out-of-stock on many of their knives. It is difficult for them to keep up with supply and …







Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on Palladium (See the Precious Metals section.)   Precious Metals (Palladium): The spot price of palladium is still looking strong. But if you see the global economy start to turn downward, it would probably be a good time to cash in and take your profit on …