The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

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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 “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at the demise of the Federal Solar Tax Credit.

Hydro-Powered Idaho Retreat – Reduced

I just heard that there was a recent $60,000 price reduction on the home on 13 acres with hydro power near Clark Fork, Idaho that I first mentioned this property last week.) It is an amazing, affordable property.

How Bureaucrats Ruin Everything

I noticed this linked over at Claire Wolfe’s great Living Freedom blog: How Bureaucrats Ruin Everything From Dishwashers To Gas Cans To Cars.

All Hangs on the 2nd Amendment

A “must watch” video from John Lovell of Warrior Poet Society: All Hangs on the 2nd Amendment.

Staying Safe When a Flash Mob Descends

Frequent content contributor DSV sent this: How To Handle Yourself In A Flash Mob Looting

UK Stabbings Still Increasing

Tim J. sent this from Fox News:  UK knife crime rises by 8 percent to record high as London mayor blames ‘austerity’ for sharp increase.  JWR’s Comment:  I can only ask: How many of those “austerity”-stricken “young people” who are stabbing and slashing people are recent immigrants?

Berkeley Bans New Natural Gas Hookups

Reader Lynn G. spotted this: Berkeley becomes first US city to ban natural gas in new buildings. JWR’s Comments: The “Carbon Neutral” Nanny State mentality in California is breeding dependence on the power grid. Californians now have some of the most expensive electricity rates in the country. How would you like to heat your home with electricity, there? And this is the same state where people often call the police to report neighbors who heat their homes with firewood. Notably, since 2015 it has been illegal to install a wood burning stove or fireplace in any new home in the San Francisco Bay Area. A similar has been on the books in the San Joaquin Valley since 2003. Just give them time, and doubtless they’ll get around to banning the use of existing wood stoves and fireplace inserts.

Did DoD Release Weaponized Ticks?

Reader T.P. sent us this from Newsweek: Pentagon May Have Released Weaponized Ticks That Helped Spread of Lyme Disease: Investigation Ordered. Here is a pericope:

“Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives quietly passed a bill requiring the Inspector General of the Department of Defense (DoD) to conduct a review into whether the Pentagon experimented with ticks and other blood-sucking insects for use as biological weapons between 1950 and 1975.

If the Inspector General finds that such experiments occurred, then, according to the bill, they must provide the House and Senate Armed Services committees with a report on the scope of the research and “whether any ticks or insects used in such experiments were released outside of any laboratory by accident or experiment design,” potentially leading to the spread of diseases such as Lyme.

The amendment was put forward by Rep. Chris Smith, a Republican from New Jersey, who was “inspired” by several books and articles claiming that the U.S. government had conducted research at facilities such as Fort Detrick, Maryland, and Plum Island, New York, for this purpose.

However, some Lyme disease experts are warning that Smith’s claims should be viewed with plenty of caution. They include Phillip Baker, Executive Director of the American Lyme Disease Foundation (ALDF), who says Smith has been “terribly misinformed” with “false and misleading information.”

One of the books that Smith refers to—called Bitten: The Secret History of Lyme Disease and Biological Weapons—was published earlier this year, authored by Stanford University science writer and former Lyme suffer Kris Newby. It features interviews with late Swiss-born scientist Willy Burgdorfer—the man credited with discovering the bacterial pathogen that causes Lyme disease—who once worked for the DoD as a bioweapons specialist.

“Those interviews combined with access to Dr. Burgdorfer’s lab files suggest that he and other bioweapons specialists stuffed ticks with pathogens to cause severe disability, disease—even death—to potential enemies,” Smith said during the debate on the House floor.

“With Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases exploding in the United States—with an estimated 300,000 to 437,000 new cases diagnosed each year and 10-20 percent of all patients suffering from chronic Lyme disease—Americans have a right to know whether any of this is true,” he said. “And have these experiments caused Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases to mutate and to spread?” Smith asked.”

Federal Solar Tax Credit Will Taper in 2020

The folks at Iron Edison just e-mailed a reminder to their customers:

“To be eligible for the 30% federal tax credit, your solar project should be fully installed and paid for in 2019.
The tax credit is currently 30%, however, starting January 1, 2020, the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is set to decrease.

Outlined below is the ITC step-down structure for the years to come:

  • 2016-2019: Owners can deduct 30% of the cost of the system from federal taxes
  • 2020: Owners can deduct 26% of the cost of the system from federal taxes
  • 2021: Owners can deduct 22% of the cost of the system from federal taxes
  • 2022 and Beyond: Only owners of commercial solar systems can receive a 10% tax credit. Residential owners will no longer be eligible to receive any tax credit for solar.”

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You can send your news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail of via our Contact form.) Thanks!


22 Comments

  1. Read “Bitten” and “Lab 257” and decide for yourself. I long ago have. I live in LYME, CT and know what Plum Island became. I KNOW how many doctors are NOT self-educated on the many physical symptoms that are REALLY Lyme. Just search out Kris Kristofferson, famous singer/composer/actor/Rhodes Scholar, and learn that for decades he was suffering, then supposedly got Alzheimer’s, BUT his smart wife suspected Lyme. Sure enough – found a smart doctor, got treated and reversed MOST of his “Alzheimer’s”. Our Government has for generations run “secret” labs to explore weaponizing lethal germs such as Anthrax, etc. Just like most other governments do. We MAY not use them on other nations, but we have them. Lyme was first diagnosed here, but it has spread like wildfire! Educate yourself, read the books, and much information on the great “Fooler” Disease because many people are told they have something else, but it is really the Lyme hiding in your body. It is a spirochete just as is syphilis, and they “hide” somewhere in human body, and often, break out and cause other symptoms, especially in older folks and those with compromised immune systems. More and more different ticks are carrying it, so all of the USA is experiencing Lyme and its several related conditions. There is NO reliable blood test to 100% diagnose it, so doctors have to be detectives and at least try a course of the antibiotics to see if there is a moderation of symptoms. If Government wants to help, they can take some of the $$$ they waste and research a reliable blood test. Until then thousands of old and young will suffer, and YES it does KILL.

  4. UK Stabbings Still Increasing- I just returned Sunday night from the UK. I can tell you JWR that you are spot on with immigrants. They are unbelievably disrespectful to everyone waking down the street. They try to start something with just the random person walking down the street. We were walking down a street and they just started something with the man beside me. Unfortunately for them, the chose the wrong guy. They quickly realized this and ran off. I would not recommend going to England to anyone, unless they just have to.

    1. Not sure where in the UK you were, but I returned last week from being there (England) for nearly a month. I stayed out of London, visited the smaller cities and had a great trip – no issues at all. Here in the US I carry a firearm nearly every day, didn’t miss it during my visit there. Well, maybe a little . . . . but there were no concerns during my trip.

  5. All Hangs on the 2nd Amendment
    Yes. Guns is the test. All that matters, and I mean ALL that matters is what a politician DOES about guns. It tells you everything you need to know about that person, as a man or woman. Words mean nothing. Those who compromise on “…shall not infringed.” even a little bit are after full and total control of you and all that you have and/or they have fully submitted themselves to another and false god, and YES, they are agents unknowing, and some with full knowledge, of the devil sent to make you helpless, defenseless and at the mercy of their god, the State. The LORD our God would NEVER leave you defenseless by your own submission to evil. This is not the God of our dominion over His creation. It’s literal and actual Voodoo to suppose that the inanimate object in the form of a gun changes ones behavior or any aspect of their sentient being. This is idolatry and devil worship, plain and simple.

    You can learn ALL you need to know about a man by whether he thinks you ought to be free to go armed.

    This is not an understatement, get it through your head; Guns. Is. The. Test.

  8. Re. How Bureaucrats Ruin Everything
    Bureaucrats won the war on liberty. Ask Americans, ‘Are you free?’ and you’ll get a resounding ‘YES!’ Ask them to explain laissez-faire free-market capitalism and you’ll be looking at deer in the headlights.

    Comrades, the indoctrination is nearly complete. Now if we could just get access to those homeschooling hold-outs….

    1. Oooh, bingo! Great point and well said. Not only are they not free, but they still think that they are. They are being poisoned, brainwashed, and dumbed down and they don’t know it because they are being poisoned, brainwashed, and dumbed down.

    1. It would make sense to do this and would be derelict to not do it. Do you think Russia or China would never use biological or entomological weapons? If they do how would we counter them if we never experimented with them ourselves? War isn’t about being the nicest guy to show up it is about wining and only wining. If Russia and China start WW III tomorrow I would hope we fight it to win, don’t you?

      Ask yourself who benefits when a newspaper story or a youtube video is published that denigrates the U.S. or the military. And if you know the answer to that then why would you choose to take their side?

      1. This interview is direct from the horse’s mouth and does not denigrate the U.S., but shows that our government is quite willing to do experiments that put us all at risk and not just our enemies. I would hope that is an understandable and valid point.

        1. Well, developing a bomb that spreads the plague or other pathogens is something that is pretty awful. For those people who think our government is any different in regards to weapons development and that they would never do anything to their own citizens their naivety is showing and hopefully hearing from a renowned Doctor of Entomology will wake people up to that fact. If you view it as “denigration of our government” than that is up to you. My suggestion is when we put government and doctors on pedestals as being the end all, we are making a mistake. You are mixing apples and oranges with your comparison of “cures and vaccines” to the development of weapons.

  10. The state of Maryland is going through a rush to ensure that all drivers have a “true” drivers license. They charge you also for the new license. When mine came in the mail it says “VETERAN” which I am. My question is if I’m stopped now by a trooper, will I be asked if I have a weapon? In the car or at home? How many? Are they registered and kept in an approved container? What should I answer? Almost any answer can land someone in a rabbit hole that you don’t want to be falling into. Md is not a gun friendly state.

    1. Answer every question with a question; “why would you ask that?”

      Another answer would be to give him the name of your lawyer and tell him to ask your lawyer. About the only response the police could give to that would be “why should I ask your lawyer…? Your answer to that is simply, because he told me to not answer any questions I am not required to answer by law without consulting him first. And that will likely end the conversation.

  11. Re: Lyme Disease

    It is a very serious disease. If I look for and if I see what remotely resembles the symtoms, I will self medicate. There are several braod spectrum antibiotics that can knock it out if treated with in the first two weeks. Again, highly recommend Dr. Joe Alton’s 300+ page book available at Survival Medicine.com, Alton’s Antibiotics and Infectious Diseases ( for austere times…). I have a signed copy ordered directly from his web site. I read it in one long sitting. It is written for the layman. Using a PDR, or a Merck manual is not for the layman, but are good references for difficult infections. Another bargain is the 700+ page Survival Medical Handbook. Combined, these books far exceed the scope and instruction of Where There is No Doctor, as it directly address the typical preppers concerns and abilities, anticipating austere times that we expect. Alton sets a new standard in medical self help books. He also has a fun pod cast on Blog Talk Radio.

    1. Healing Lyme, 2nd edition, by Buhner is extraordinarily good. His knowledge of modern scientific studies, Chinese, Indian, Native American, and earlier American uses of herbs are a little mind-numbing. He tells you what to use for what, what not to use, what to combine or not combine with what, and how to deal with each of the various symptoms of Lyme.

      I got his book because a friend would not shut up about it, and I see why. Looking through it, I noticed that hawthorn flowers cure arrhythmia. That’s interesting, I thought. A few years later it was rather more than interesting, my heart was bouncing around like a tennis ball, and I remembered the book. I tried it. No more arrhythmia.

      It is ONLY the flowers that work. I took hawthorn berried by mistake, and relapsed. Took the flowers again, and was fine. It took a while, but I no longer need it at all.

      All of Buhner’s books are worth buying and keeping on your medicine book shelf. His orientation is slightly woo-woo at times, but that does not interfere with his facts.

      1. Thanks! With the good Lord’s intervention, I have so far survived 7.5 heart attacks with minial damage. Part of the reason, may or may not have been due to the blood thinning properites of certain herbs. The blood thinning evident was apparently effective, it was almost too effective in fact, as during the last surgery they had trouble stopping the bleeding. Herbs can be a power tool.

  13. For Jim yesterday….. The Palmetto sale JWR mentioned ending was with OD green furniture. Today they have the same special with gray furniture. Complete upper $179.99, complete lower $99.99. Don’t forget to use JWRs link to Palmetto.

  14. Let’s not just focus on the diseases, but on the vector itself as well. As a boy here in northern New England decades ago I was all through the woods and never, ever got a tick on me. The same with all of my friends and people at work of a similar age. Now, I get them in places where there is absolutely no foliage at all. I have seen them attempt to drop onto me from the roof of a small shed. There are moose and deer that die from the loss of blood due to the tens of thousands of ticks attached.

    I honestly believe that this is what 2 Chronicles 7:14 refers to. As the nation descends further into spiritual wickedness, the land seems to be cursed. Coincidence?

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