This weekly column is a collection of short snippets: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters.
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And then they felt an immediate backlash: PayPal Reverses Course, Says Company Will NOT Seize Money From People for Promoting ‘Misinformation’. JWR’s Comment: Their prevarication was both a public relations disaster and a financial disaster for PayPal. Few folks will ever again trust their intentions. They’ve revealed their long-term goals: It reminds me of the punitive sanctions included in Mainland China’s notorious Social Credit Scoring system.
Update: The $2,500 Liquidated Damages clause is at last report still included in their contract terms.
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You may be familiar with Bill Buppert’s ZeroGov blog. That site went dark in March of 2021. But I have some good news: The first episode of Bill Buppert’s new Chasing Ghosts podcast on irregular warfare is now available for free download. Episode 2 just went up on Monday. I’m hopeful that this will be a lengthy series. Bill’s new podcast is available through a wide variety of podcast provider websites. Oh, and for some interesting background reading, the archives of the ZeroGov blog are still available.
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Taiwan: Former admiral calls for citizen defense force.
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Sheila S. wrote:
“I have been a long-time fan of SurvivalBlog and have learned much from the site. We live in NE Florida and thought it would be helpful to others to relay what we learned from experience with Hurricane Ian.
We have been prepping for almost 15 years and have built a significant storehouse of supplies and knowledge. As Hurricane Ian approached, we felt pretty good about our level of preparedness. Even so, there were surprises that show the voids in our preparedness. We continue to learn!
Our surprises centered around two themes – the supplies couldn’t be easily found or had been used up and not replaced. Due to a lucky location on the grid, we seldom lose power. (We are the same trunk as a major street.) But when the power eventually went out, we could easily find the flashlights, they stay next to our beds in case we have unexpected visitors at night. But finding the lanterns? Another story. We’ve moved twice and reshuffled the house three times to accommodate folks temporarily living with us. We checked all the possible locations and eventually found them within half an hour. We decided to store them all in the same location, in a marked box, for the future.
In the same vein, we found that the thermometer for the fridge with the external display could not be found. We try to maximize the fuel for the generator by only attaching the fridge when it’s getting too hot for food safety. Thus, the need to externally monitor the temperature inside. When we couldn’t find the thermometer, we had to avoid opening the fridge and watch the time. In previous experiences, we note that it took about two hours for the fridge to heat up.
Finally, we use the one-pound propane tanks to power the Coleman stove. When rounding up the equipment we would need the next morning to cook breakfast, we discovered the one-pound tanks had been used up in the effort to burn weeds. Of course, none were available for sale at the point we discovered this. I did find an adapter to attach the 20-pound tank to the Coleman stove. The lesson learned was to do a better job of replacing supplies as we go.
Overall, it seems that while we have expanded the garden, added livestock, and many other good steps, we forgot a few things along the way. Always a learning experience! Thanks for publishing such a great site!”
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We saw this coming: How criminals are using jammers, deauthers to disrupt WiFi security cameras.
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Mike in Alaska wrote:
“I’d like to tell you of an event that happened to me a while ago in reference to your article about Boers
“Beyond 500 yards, 6.5CM, or 6.5×55 that are essentially ballistically identical, would be the better choice. These 6.5 cartridges make hitting targets out at 600 yards, and beyond, relatively easy, and allow new shooters to be successful at these and actual longer ranges of 1,000 yards and further, relatively quickly.”
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ATF posts open letter on their new “definition of firearm” final rule.
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Sarge in Great Falls wrote:
“I would advise caution to the person thinking of sticking license plates from a wrecked vehicle over-top of his real plates using magnets. I expect Police are now using license plate scanners and are driving up and down the rows of parked vehicles at a gun show scanning all the vehicle plates. An expired plate that does not match the vehicle it is displayed on will only attract more attention from the Police. The best advice was already given: park elsewhere and walk to the gun show or take a taxi/Uber ride. The county sheriff may not believe in using license plate scanners, but there is always the City of Great Falls Police Department, Montana Highway Patrol, and other various Federal Agencies interested in collecting “data” on who is at the gun show. Malmstrom AFB has had license plate scanning cameras installed at the main gate and back gate for several years now.”
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Stadels: The age-old barns that fed the Alps. (A hat tip to Cindy W. for the link.)
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Charlie S. suggested this piece over at The American Mind: The Specter of “Fascism”.
And Charlie also mentioned this article, with a semi-related tangential theme: The Left is absolutely Horrified of Kari Lake.
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K.S. mentioned this useful information: How To Download All of Wikipedia onto a USB Flash Drive in 2022.
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Reader C.B. forwarded this news link: Electric vehicles are exploding from water damage after Hurricane Ian, top Florida official warns.
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Tim J. suggested this Fox News piece: Jeep Wrangler Rubicon FarOut is the brand’s last diesel SUV.
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Reader Sean B. had this comment:
“I wanted to provide a counterbalance to the recent Odds ‘n Sods entry regarding an explosion of an LNG tanker.
Although an explosion of a LNG tanker would be a terribly destructive disaster, a correlation to the explosion of an atomic weapon as done in the Matt Bracken article is not appropriate. The energy equivalent of 15 kilotons of TNT released during the Hiroshima detonation was almost instantaneous. In virtually the blink of an eye 15 kilotons of energy was released from a single point in space. LNG (as well as propane) are not high explosives that quickly release their energy. LNG and propane burn rather than explode. The appearance of an explosion relates to both the container holding the liquified gas acting as a pressure vessel and a rapid burn of the gas in the air. Actually getting the proper mixture of flammable gas and oxygen can be a challenge to both ignition and continued burning. Do an internet search of “Mythbusters exploding propane tank” and you will get an entertaining lesson on the difficulty in getting a propane tank to “explode”. So, if any SurvivalBlog readers live in the vicinity of an LNG or propane storage facility, do plan for a potential explosion coupled with a “big honkin’ fireball”, but not a 775 kiloton nuclear explosion.”
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Will they Go Full Zimbabwe? South Africa May Start Taking Land from White Farmers without Compensation.
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Over at Newsmax: Florida Surgeon General: Uptick in Cardiac Deaths in Young Males Tied to Vax.
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Another link from C.B.: Orthodox Jews sue New York over gun law banning concealed carry in houses of worship.
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F.J. sent this new item: Phoenix man seriously burned after group loads grocery bags of gasoline into car, causing fire.
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And, lastly, reader D.S.V. suggested this article: CDC Data Shows Constitutional Carry States Have Fewer Total and Gun-Related Homicides.
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