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 “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 Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus.

Zimbabwe’s Capitol City Cuts Off Water Supply

Reader Tim J. spotted this: Zimbabwe’s capital city cuts off water supply, 2M residents affected.

New Oxygen-Tight Food Packaging Developed by WSU

C.B.  suggested this article: Getting mac and cheese to Mars. A snippet:

“Currently, can keep food safe at room temperature for up to twelve months. The WSU researchers demonstrated in a recent paper in the journal Food and Bioprocess Technology they could keep ready-to-eat macaroni and cheese safe and edible with selected nutrients for up to three years.

“We need a better barrier to keep oxygen away from the food and provide longer similar to aluminum foil and plastic laminate pouches,” said Shyam Sablani, who is leading the team working to create a better protective film.”

Earth-Bermed Retreat in Idaho

I noticed a couple of interesting new listings over at SurvivalRealty:  An earth-bermed retreat in Idaho, and a nice property in Washington that set up for cattle and horses.

Uptick in Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus

A hat tip to W.W. for sending this: Uptick seen in rare mosquito-borne virus in some US states. A quote from the article:

“The number of U.S. deaths and illnesses from a rare mosquito-borne virus are higher than usual this year, health officials report.

Eastern equine encephalitis has been diagnosed in 21 people in six states, and five people have died. The infection is only being seen in certain counties within a small number of states.

The U.S. each year has seen seven illnesses and three deaths, on average.

It’s not clear why numbers are up this year, but for some reason cases seem to spike once every several years, Dr. Mark Fischer, an expert at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Wednesday.

Most infections occur in the summer, so health officials do not think it will get much worse.

Massachusetts has eight cases, followed by Michigan, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey and North Carolina.

In Rhode Island, there are three cases, including one death. “This is an extremely unusual year,” said Al Gettman, head of the state’s mosquito control program.

The other deaths were in Massachusetts and Michigan.”

South Africa’s Xenophobic Crisis

Reader Mike C. sent this: South Africa’s Xenophobic Crisis

New Orleans Considering Cancelling 56,000 Arrest Warrants

Reader G.P. sent this article from Law Enforcement Today: City considering wiping out all 56,000 arrest warrants – causing “psychological trauma” to criminals. JWR’s Comments: There are clearly too many statutory jurisdiction  “crimes”. But for a city to simply wish away all pending charges for both victimless crimes and  crimes against persons and property is absurd. This would simply reinforce the attitude that petty crime is acceptable behavior.

A Vlogger Punished for Wrong Think

A recent video from Vincent James: I Was Punished for Wrong Think and Put in Time Out

There is No Climate Emergency

Reader A.D. in Belgium sent this: Letter from 500 European Scientists to UN Secretary-General Guterres. Here is a quote from the letter:

There is no climate emergency.

A global network of more than 500 knowledgeable and experienced scientists and professionals in climate and related fields have the honor to address to Your Excellencies the attached European Climate Declaration, for which the signatories to this letter are the national ambassadors.

The general-circulation models of climate on which international policy is at present founded are unfit for their purpose. Therefore, it is cruel as well as imprudent to advocate the squandering of trillions on the basis of results from such immature models. Current climate policies pointlessly, grievously undermine the economic system, putting lives at risk in countries denied access to affordable, continuous electrical power.

We urge you to follow a climate policy based on sound science, realistic economics and genuine concern for those harmed by costly but unnecessary attempts at mitigation. We ask you to place the Declaration on the agenda of your imminent New York session.”

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




15 Comments

  1. A couple of thoughts on getting “ready to eat Mac an Cheese” to Mars. Better packaging is always a good idea but ready to eat food just isn’t going to Mars. Keep in mind that water is recycled in space due to it’s weight and the cost of lifting it. Excess weight in ready to eat foods is cost and weight prohibited for long term flights. This is the problem; fuel to lift excess weight has to be lifted also, larger rockets have to be made to carry this excess weight, more fuel is needed to lift the larger more powerful rocket, thus the worm that eats it’s tail is in operation, all for the sake of Mac and cheese, Sorry guys but freeze dried is as good as it is going to get on the way to Mars. As far as use for MRE’s our troops deserve the best we can do for them. A ball of sticky rice 3 times a day just isn’t going to keep them in the mood to do a good job.

    1. Also the first person on Mars will be a woman. It has to be!

      Again, men design 91% of US patents, construct all buildings/homes pave all roads laying all conduit plumbing et al., and 85% of the military is comprised of men.

      Men design everything, build everything, and fight all our wars, but women [feminists] take all the credit as the first so-n-so…

      I liked it better when we had family equality and not gender equality.

      Just saying.

      1. Tell that Heddy Lamar, it´s no Argument that men did 90% of patents if Woman weren´t allowed to develop patents instead being only “allowed” to be Pin Up Girls.

        The ability to pave a road is Zero qualification for being a mars Explorer or tell me how many miles Buzz Aldrin had paved?

        1. ThoDan:

          [There are] differences in biology. Ann Coulter answered the 40 year long question by feminists “how come men are so advanced in mathematics than women “. Well after countless studies with Brain scans during the “subject” figuring a complex math problem the answer was given.

          A woman’s brain has all four quadrants talking to each other. A mans brain is doped with testosterone in the birth canal causing the hemispheres not to connect.

          So during the brain scan and during calculating complex math the mans brain lights up in the upper left quadrant only. The place where complex math is calculated. A woman’s brain circled around to all four quadrants repeatedly and is why she didn’t derive the correct answer.

          Please stop blaming manhood for women not being exactly equal to men. I believe that fault is on intelligent design through our Creator. And is on purpose. If God wanted women to be exactly equal to men he would’ve mad them all men or all female. Not make them men and female as Genesis says.

          1. @Rosie the Riveter

            Can you give me these countless scientific studies?

            Explains absolutly how so many officers wives filled the Navigation Slot on board of the Tea Clippers.
            That Marie Curie needed to leave Russia and go to the Sorbonne has nothing to do with it ?

            God made Eva from Adams Rib, afaik Church doctrine These represented that both are equal in HIS eyes

    2. Throw in a fish head and that will do it,they are always complaining anyways(don’t shut off the hot sauce or you will have mutinies). You are partially correct there is a point of diminishing returns,a system to grow food in space is what is needed(hydroponics? aquaculture?)

      1. I don’t have an account and went to sign up with my email [that is impossible to tie to me], then YouTube said they need a GMAIL account. Went to sign up for Gmail and they need my birthday and my cell phone [to send a text to me]. Not going into happen in this lifetime.

        Sorry folks… Can’t wait to hear the news that Conservatives are no longer being deplateformed by YouTube and Google and the bunch of Silicon Valley moguls to allow free speech.

        God bless.

    1. For o p sec reasons, if a sign in is required, I pass on viewing content. I’m not sure if it’s any different than any typical tracking, but to my small brain, it seems to make good sense.

  2. Basically it is the black South Africans who dislike and discriminate (and beat and kill) black immigrants. It is ironic because 20 plus years ago it was the white South Africans who didn’t like the waves of black immigrants into their country. But don’t expect the world and famous Hollywood stars to object to THIS xenophobia because it is blacks against blacks so that is untouchable.

  3. Concerning the uptick in EEE- EEE was found very close to our home in a turkey. Definitely taking more pre-cautions when outdoors. I’m not a fan of Deet but I would much rather deal with the impacts of Deet use verses EEE.

  4. Re: Uptick in Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus

    It has also been found in counties in SE Pennsylvania, unfortunately. And an awful lot of equestrian activity goes on there.

  5. The article on dismissing warrants was very illuminating on the view of thugs with badges as you and me as sheeple to be abused and harvested for as much as possible. Timely as a group of off duty thugs were not prosecuted for murdering a CCW who was protecting his family during a funeral procession that had been attacked by a racist mob of off duty thugs. The weapon was not legally owned by thug(should have been 10 years in jail just for possession)

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