Month: April 2021

CRKT M40-03 Knife, by Pat Cascio

I couldn’t tell you, dear readers, just how many knives have passed through my hands in the last 28 years, as a writer. However, I’m sure it has been several thousand knives. And, I can only write about a very few of them. So, I’m very particular about which knives I choose to test and write about – and it is only the best of the best, for the most part. But every now and then, I’ll get a knife that is so poorly made, that I feel the need to let folks know about it – and to steer …


Recipe of the Week: Braised Leg of Lamb

The following recipe for Braised Leg of Lamb is from The New Butterick Cook Book, by Flora Rose, co-head of the School of Home Economics at Cornell University. It was published in 1924. A professional scan of that 724-page out-of-copyright book is one of the many bonus items included in the latest edition of the waterproof SurvivalBlog Archive USB stick. The second production run of the 15th Anniversary Edition (2005-2020) USB stick should be available for ordering in late May. Ingredients 1 leg lamb Cracker-crum stuffing 1/2 onion 1 carrot 1 turnip 1/2 bay leaf 1 sprig each of thyme …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

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 Bill Hwang (pictured) and the huge Archegos margin call debacle. (See the Economy & Finance section.) Precious Metals: Back in 2016, I advised SurvivalBlog readers to buy Rhodium. It was then at about $670 per ounce.  I just checked, and it is presently selling for $25,000 per ounce. Not …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Of course, states will be reluctant to invoke nullification but the alternative would be to watch our constitutional rights be trashed by leftists.  The MAGA movement in the Red States needs to became active in urging legislators and governors to start reclaiming their constitutional powers and begin nullifying illegal Federal law. Once states are engaged in nullifying federal laws, I believe we will witness what I call the ‘great migration” in which conservatives will leave blue states to live in red states and vice-versa.  And yes, this could lead to a peaceful balkanization of America in which the Red states …


Preparedness Notes for Sunday — April 4, 2021

On April 4, 1968, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., 39, was shot to death in Memphis, Tennessee. — For those of you who celebrate Easter, we wish you a joyful Sunday, in sober consideration of Christ’s death and resurrection. He is risen indeed! — Today’s feature article was too short for judging in Round 94 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. Round 94 ends on May 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail 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.


Food for Diabetic Preppers, by S.F. in Oregon

Prepping for diabetics presents a unique challenge. What I’m not discussing how to store insulin, as that has already been discussed at length inSurvivalBlog. Nor am I going to go into the oft-mentioned differences between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Rather, I’m just talking about food choices. Rice, hard wheat, and noodles all have something in common. They have what is called a high ‘glycemic index’. That is the ‘octane’ of a given food. Glycemic index is the speed at which any given food will metabolize into sugar in the blood. People with blood sugar problems have compromised abilities …



The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Am I am not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord. If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am to you: for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord. Mine answer to them that do examine me is this, Have we not power to eat and to drink? Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas? Or I only and Barnabas, …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — April 3, 2021

This is the birthday of Washington Irving, an American author, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for short stories like Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but he also wrote several biographies and served as the US Ambassador to Spain from 1842 to 1846. — Congratulations to our readers in Iowa!  As a result of your grassroots lobbying efforts, Iowa just became the 19th State to re-assert Constitutional Carry. (Permitless concealed carry.)  That law will take effect on July 1st, 2021. SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry …


My Perspective on Bug-Out Field Gear, by H.H.

You can throw a couple of items in a backpack and say “I’m prepared”, but are you really? For everything you do to prepare, think through all the things that can go wrong. My wife says I’m too pessimistic, but being an engineer, I’ve been trained to think about what can go wrong. You don’t want the plane to fall out of the sky or the bridge to collapse. The first rule is always have more than one way of doing something. I had heard (maybe attributed to Army Rangers or SEALs) “Two is one and one is none.” If …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

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.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those –or excerpts thereof — in this column, in …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. God is known in her palaces for a refuge. For, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together. They saw it, and so they marvelled; they were troubled, and hasted away. Fear took hold upon them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail. Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with an east …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — April 2, 2021

Today is the birthday of Sergei Ivanovich Mosin (Apr 2, 1849 – February 8, 1902) was a Russian military officer, engineer, and a designer of the Mosin–Nagant rifle. This is the birthday of Émile François Zola, a novelist and essayist. He is most often remembered as the author of “J’accuse” (I Accuse!), his lengthy open letter to president Félix Faure, which accused the French government of anti-semitism. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 94 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest …


U.S. Military Field Phones, by Ken in Michigan

If you are looking for a secure communication system for your farm, ranch, or retreat, then look into a military phone system. You can create an ideal communication system, any size, from two positions overnight to multiple positions in a large permanent retreat. Military Field Phones (“MFPs”) do not require external power. They are designed to operate in adverse conditions and most importantly, do not emit any electronic signal. MFPs cannot be overheard by radio scanners or radio direction finders. MFPs keep your location undetected by electronic surveillance, unlike today’s radio communications that can be overheard and DF-located using today’s …


Economics & Investing For Preppers: The Biden-Harris Years

Introductory Notes: Today’s column is a special edition. In lieu of our usual economics and investing news items and commentary, today I’m posting my analysis of the Biden-Harris administration’s policies and plans. In particular, I’ll be covering their planned economic, domestic surveillance, Second Amendment, and environmental policies, and their impact on commerce, interest rates, currencies, and economic liberty in the United States. The following analysis reflects my personal views. Your views may differ. If you dislike rants, then skip reading this. To begin, I should clarify that I’ll be referring to the Biden-Harris administration with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris …