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Preparedness Notes for Saturday – December 22, 2018

Posted By Hugh James Latimer On In Note | Comments Disabled

December 22nd is the anniversary of the death of SP4 James T. Davis, the first uniformed American combat casualty of the Vietnam War, in 1961. This ASA soldier (of the 3rd Radio Research Unit) was killed in a Viet Cong ambush on a road outside Saigon.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today features another entry for Round 80 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest [1]. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses [2], excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper [3]. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees [4] in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product [5] from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses [6].

Second Prize:

  1. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 [7] Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord [8] (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of [9] Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections [10], a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 80 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail [11] us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

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Comments Disabled To "Preparedness Notes for Saturday – December 22, 2018"

#1 Comment By John Hoffman On December 22, 2018 @ 1:24 pm

When you mention to civilians and other soldiers that you served in the ASA they just kind of look at you with blank eyes not having a clue as to what ASA was all about.

#2 Comment By James Wesley Rawles On December 22, 2018 @ 3:04 pm

I’m proud to have been an ASA officer. When the Army transitioned to MI CEWI TO&Es and our unit lost its “ASA Company” designation was a very sad day for me. (We were one of the last “ASA” units. The formerly organic 519th ASA Company is now Company D, 373rd MI Battalion.) But in my heart, “ASA Lives!”

#3 Comment By JBH On December 22, 2018 @ 3:23 pm

So what is ASA?

#4 Comment By To Cor On December 22, 2018 @ 3:36 pm

My first assignment out of OBC and the 9640 school: 313th ASA Bn (airborne), Fort Bragg NC, ’75-’77, and 332nd ASA Co, Korea, 1980. Incredible mission. The biggest mistake the Army made was to give Artillery (Fires Domain) the Electronic Warfare equipment and mission.

@JBH Army Security Agency

#5 Comment By Lt. Mike On December 23, 2018 @ 1:33 am

I joined the Army in 1967, served with Special Forces s a medic and cross trained in Commo; this last February I retired as a 2nd Lt. with the Alaska State Defense Force commanding the 3rd Signal Detachment. My last deployment in that 52 year period was to command the JISCC (Joint Incident Command Communications ) in the rescue / recovery phase of hurricane Maria after the Island of Puerto Rico was devastated by the storms.

I first earned my merit badge in CW in 1965, I’m still a ham operator, love comms. The JISCC is basically a mobile communications detachment and ASA established the fundamental operations plan for our mission capability; the foundation laid by ASA is the foundation for today’s modern electronic and other warfare systems. We’ve come a far way from the PRC-77 days … a long way. I really miss the challenge of the mission … and the guys; some ded, some dying … some just getting on in years like me. Can’t explain the feelings …

#6 Comment By VT On December 24, 2018 @ 8:07 am

Lt. Mike,did you see they have started auctioning off supplies from the P.R. hurricane relief? Would like to hear a first hand after action on that,were the supplies there and not distributed,were the supplies not there as some claim,was it a cash grab by locals for other ends? I have noted that no real investigation was even proposed that leads me to my own conclusions.

#7 Comment By Lt. Mike On December 24, 2018 @ 8:14 am

Haven’t heard of any auctions … corruption is rampant on the Island so it would not surprise me. A lit of stuff was exposed to the rain and mold so I think anyone buying anything should be very careful. Is there a link to an auction??

#8 Comment By Lt. Mike On December 24, 2018 @ 7:09 pm

If you go to [12] and search for Puerto Rico you’ll find some Humvees and a used motor for sale out of military surplus. I would think the cost of shipping would be very high, and the condition of the equipment poor if it has been setting in DRMO for any length of time. I couldn’t find any other auctions of any relief supplies .

Food and water would have been distributed out to people, any other supplies of the humidity didn’t cause mold or damage I cannot imagine it not being distributed. There would be a lot of office supplies available from FEMA, we found it very difficult to keep printer paper due to humidity and mold. Toner was almost useless in the JISCC due to humidity, and printer ink cartridges were not to be had anywhere on the Island during our deployment.
Batteries of any kind were virtually impossible to buy, no ATM was available so cash was king for several weeks early on. As a military unit we were fully supplied for our mission, but the civilian population was profoundly affected by the storms.

We took test samples of raw water from pools, rivers, creeks, and springs; every sample tested positive for e coli. To shower we stripped, soap, stand outside in the rain at 0300 hours in the dark and rinsed. The rain was warm, not contaminated, and torrential.
I keep praying for the people, crime and corruption is the lot of their lives, and politics hasn’t helped them much either. If TEOTWAWKI is like Puerto Rico then God help us ..