Month: October 2020

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — October 31, 2020

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As Christians, our family does not celebrate the pagan Halloween. Since October 31st is also Reformation Day, that is what we celebrate, here at the Rawles Ranch. — The Clock is Ticking: The big Pre-Election Sale at Elk Creek Company will end in just three days. Consider this: Pre-1899 guns are the last bastion of firearms ownership privacy, since they are entirely outside of Federal jurisdiction. These are guns that you can buy and that you can later simply hand to your children or grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or whomever, across state lines, with no paperwork whatsoever. (Whether it is a …


Guest Post: The Tripwire, by D. van Oort & J.F.A. Davidson

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Editor’s Introductory Note: The following essay on censorship was posted nearly 20 years ago, in The Resister. I miss that site. This article is re-posted with permission.  – JWR “How we burned in the prison camps later thinking: What would things have been like if every security operative, when he went out at night to make an arrest, had been uncertain whether he would return alive?”– Alexander Solzhenitzyn, The Gulag Archipelago What would be the tripwire resulting in open rebellion? Examining the Bill of Rights, and considering existing laws only, and not failed attempts, you will find that every clause …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. Note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion: whoso provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul. It is an honour for a man to cease from strife: but every fool will be meddling. The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing. Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out. Most men will proclaim every one his …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — October 30, 2020

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October 30th, 1735 was the birthday of President John Adams. (Other sources cite his birthdate as October 19, 1735.) He died on July 4, 1826–just a few hours after the death of Thomas Jefferson. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 91 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any …


Making Dosa – Indian Fermented Bread, by E.P.

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Dosa is a fermented bread from the southern region of India. I eat dosa daily, and I can tell a difference in my well-being if I don’t have my daily dose of dosa. I started eating dosa after I met my wife of almost 30 years. Her parents are from northwestern India. Although she was born and raised outside of India, in a country where South Indians are more common. I am an American with ancestry from Europe and Scandinavia. Dosa dough is normally made in a machine called a wet grinder. It can also be made in a blender, …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

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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. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at the poor long-term prospects for private cryptocurrencies. (See the Forex & Cryptos section.) Precious Metals: Silver price to push above $30 an ounce in 2021 despite short-term turbulence – Metals Focus. o  o  o Jim Curry: Key Message for Gold & U.S. Stocks o  o  o SBTV: Gold Outperformed …



Preparedness Notes for Thursday — October 29, 2020

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October 29th is the birthday of fighter pilot Vermont Garrison, an American who fought in three wars – WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. He was born in 1915 and died on February 14th, 1994, in Mountain Home, Idaho. — A new listing, over at SurvivalRealty.com: 34 acres, off-grid, surrounded by BLM land — near Drummond, Montana. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 91 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model …


Range Report: Browning BAR Mk3 in .243 – Part 3, by The Novice

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(Continued from Part 2.  This concludes the article.) Johnny Come Lately Two weeks after the scope arrived, and one week after the rings I ordered from Amazon arrived, a package was delivered from Leupold with the Quick Release Rings to match the Quick Release Mounts they had sent with the scope. They must have belatedly noticed their omission. I appreciated the gesture of sending the rings. Better late than never. But I was quite happy with the rings I had bought from Amazon, so I just left things well enough alone. The Remington 742 Next, I tuned up my Remington …


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 a variety of emerging threats and trends, starting with a piece about a planned escape from New York: An Escape From New York Before the Election? First up, H.L. was …



Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — October 28, 2020

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This is the birthday of Eliphalet Remington (October 28, 1793 – August 12, 1861), who designed the Remington rifle and founded what is now known as the Remington Arms Company. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 91 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, …


Range Report: Browning BAR Mk3 in .243 – Part 2, by The Novice

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(Continued from Part 1.) The First Cleaning About a week later, the muzzle guard arrived, and I settled down to clean the gun. There was even more rust preventative compound in the barrel and on the other steel parts than I had initially noticed. The bore required extensive scrubbing using kerosene as a solvent before a patch finally came out clean. In the process I spilled my bottle of kerosene on the kitchen table, filling the room with fumes. This created a dramatic scene that disturbed the domestic tranquility for a time. Fortunately, the finish on the table was not …


JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

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Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. The focus is usually on emergency communications gear, bug out bag gear, books, and movies–often with a tie-in to disaster preparedness, and links to “how-to” self-sufficiency videos. There is also an emphasis on links to sources for storage food and a variety of storage and caching containers. You will also note an emphasis on history books and historical movies. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This week, we feature a book by Alaskan pioneer Richard Proenneke. (See the Books section.) …