Month: November 2020

Preparedness Notes for Monday — November 23, 2020

6

On November 23rd, 1980, a 7.2-magnitude quake struck southern Italy killing more than 3,000 people. The casualty toll was probably so high because the tremor struck during Sunday night mass, as many residents sat in churches that crumbled in the quake. The quake was centered in Eboli, south of Naples. In nearby Balvano, children were preparing to receive their first communion at the 1,000-year-old Conza Della Comapgna church. The church was demolished and killed dozens of people, including 26 children. — Please keep in mind that I will be traveling for the month of December, so if you want to …


Taurus G2C and G2S, by Pat Cascio

20

A quick test: Who is the largest maker of handguns in the free world? Nope, you’re wrong if you guessed anyone except Taurus Firearms. Most people would have probably guessed Ruger, Smith & Wesson, SIG-Sauer, or take your pick. However, Taurus produces more handguns than any other gun company in the world. Then we have the gun buyers who complain that Taurus doesn’t produce good or reliable firearms – and they would be wrong, once again. Look, every gun maker, no matter how good of a company they are, has some “lemons” sneak out the door – it just happens …


Recipe of the Week: St. Funogas DIY Sweet Cornbread Mix

20

The following recipe for a DIY Sweet Cornbread Mix is from SurvivalBlog reader “St. Funogas”. This should more properly be called D**n Yankee Cornbread Mix since no self-respecting Southerner would put sugar in their cornbread. Adjust ingredients as needed. I make this mix in batches large enough to fit a two-quart mason jar, which makes 10 servings in the microwave in a 5” x 7” Pyrex dish, or 5 servings of 8 x 8 cornbread in a conventional oven. This recipe will work after the grid goes down since the ingredients (or substitutes) will still be home-produced by many preppers. …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

42

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 further examine suburban and rural relocation. (See the Tangibles Investing section.) Precious Metals: An interview with Dave Kranzler: The Economy, Gold, Silver And Mining Stocks o  o  o Degussa sees gold price rising to $2,500 by mid-2021 as central banks continue to print money Economy & Finance: David Morgan: Quantitative Easing Our …



Preparedness Notes for Sunday — November 22, 2020

10

Today is remembered as the birthday of the late Eugene M. Stoner. (Born 1922, died April 24, 1997.) He was the designer of the AR-7, AR-10, AR-15, AR-180, the Stoner 63, and several other firearms. (The AR-10 was the basis of the AR-15 which in turn spawned the very widely used M16 and all of its variants including the M4 Carbine.) It has been estimated that as many as 18 million rifles from the AR-15 family are owned by civilians in the United States, and military production M16 variants worldwide exceeds eight million rifles. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we …


Seed Saving Tips – Part 3, by St. Funogas

28

(Continued from Part 3. This concludes the article.) Some seeds such as zinnias weigh as much as the chaff so I don’t even try to separate the two. Other seeds are both super tiny and very lightweight, such as chamomile, so these also are not worth trying to separate. In Photo 14, some of the actual seeds are circled in yellow while many more are hidden beneath the chaff. When I plant zinnias, I direct sow by tossing out handfuls and lightly raking them in.         PHOTO 14 – Zinnias (Mixed with Chaff) Photo 15 demonstrates how …


JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

12

The latest meme created by JWR:                                 Please contact your U.S. senators and congressman, and urge them to stop this unconstitutional “Taking”. If we don’t speak up, we can kiss goodbye all of the four million+ arm braces now in private hands!   To share this, you can find it here: https://kapwi.ng/w/04TmZtNy   Meme Text: Brace Yourselves! Biden Wants to Ban Them Pray for Court Intervention — Or at Least a Grandfather Clause


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

1

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — November 21, 2020

5

On November 21, 1916, Britannic, the sister ship to the Titanic, sinks in the Aegean Sea, killing 30 people. In the wake of the Titanic disaster, the White Star line had made significant modifications to the design of the ship, but on its way to pick up wounded soldiers near the Gulf of Athens, it was rocked by an explosion causing even more damage than that which had sunk the Titanic. Many of the dead were from some of the crew who attempted to launch lifeboats while the Captain tried to run the ship aground. The lifeboats were sucked up …


Seed Saving Tips – Part 2, by St. Funogas

14

(Continued from Part 1.) The first step in processing harvested seeds is to remove them from whatever the plant has stored them in. Many seeds are encased in small dry seed pods, or fine seed heads, either of which can be rubbed between your hands to separate the seeds out. This creates a lot of dust and detritus which must be removed by using some of the equipment mentioned above or other various methods. Larger dry pods, like beans and peas, can often be opened and the seeds easily stripped out while the pods are tossed aside. Seeds from many …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

108

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:

1

“In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — November 20, 2020

5

National Sovereignty Day (Spanish: Día de la Soberanía Nacional) is a national public holiday in Argentina, celebrated each year on November 20th. It commemorates the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado, when a small Argentine army stood against an Anglo-French navy that broke into the Paraná River, against the will of the Argentine Confederation. Although the battle itself ended with an Argentine defeat, the losses of Britain and France in the whole military campaign were so high that both countries were forced to the bargaining table and signed a treaty with Juan Manuel de Rosas. The day was enacted as a …


Seed Saving Tips – Part 1, by St. Funogas

27

This is not a how-to article, but rather a few tips on what I do to save seeds each year. I’m hoping we all can share ideas in the comments section to help us all become more proficient seed savers. My first experience at saving seeds happened when I was nine years old. I grew lots of sweet corn in my little garden and decided I better save some seed for the next year. I let it dry enough so I could remove the kernels from the cob then stored them in a green candy tin. A few months later …