Month: August 2023


Preparedness Notes for Sunday — August 20, 2023

August 20, 1935 was the birthday of former Congressman Ron Paul. He retired from the House in 2013. Dr. Paul is to be commended for fighting the good fight for many years. — August 20th, 1866 is the day that president Andrew Johnson formally declared the Civil War over. — Today’s feature article is a review written by SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Tom Christianson. — We are seeking entries for Round 108 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $840,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for …


Ruger Precision Rimfire in .22 WMR, by Thomas Christianson

Last Spring, our church had a range day in conjunction with our Mission Conference. We knew our missionary speaker liked to hunt and shoot. We created an opportunity for people in our church family who also like to hunt and shoot to hang out with the missionary in an informal setting. There they could enjoy some shooting together prior to a short message from God’s word. My friend “Welly” brought his Ruger Precision Rimfire in .22 WMR to the range day. I was really impressed by some of his shooting. It seemed like Welly just could not miss. A few …


JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: Truth Be Told, Both Of Them Are “Rich Men North of Richmond” Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks! Permission to repost memes that I’ve created is granted, provide that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.  


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. Receive us; we have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we have defrauded no man. I speak not this to condemn you: for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die and live with you. Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you: I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation. For, when we were come into Macedonia, …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — August 19, 2023

On August 19, 1960, American pilot Francis Gary Powers was sentenced to 10 years’ confinement by the Soviet Union for espionage following the U-2 Affair, but in 1962 he was later released in exchange for the Soviet spy Rudolf Abel. — August 19th is also the birthday of Philo Taylor Farnsworth (1906-1971). Farnsworth was an American inventor who is best known for his image pickup device that formed the basis for the fully functional and complete all-electronic television system. Among his many other inventions was the Farnsworth-Hirsch fusor, a small nuclear fusion device that remains a viable source of neutrons. …


Lessons From A Hard Disk Crash

In place of another feature article that I had planned for today, I’m posting a recap of a recent laptop computer problem, with some lessons learned. To start, I should mention that I’ve been a Macintosh user for my home computers since 1986. My first Mac was a Macintosh Plus, purchased just after I got off of active duty as an Intelligence Corps officer. This was before I was ever married.  I’ve owned a whole succession of improved Macs since then.  Since the turn of the century, most of those have been alloy-case MacBook laptops. I’ve always been fairly good …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both 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 the Odds ‘n …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together, …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — August 18, 2023

On August 18, 1896, at least according to lore, more than 200 outlaws from regional gangs gathered at Brown’s Hole (near the intersection of the borders of Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah), where Butch Cassidy (aka Robert Leroy Parker, pictured) proposed to organize a Train Robbers’ Syndicate, which became familiarly known as the Wild Bunch. August 18th is also the birthday of Meriwether Lewis, an American explorer, soldier, politician and public administrator that is best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 108 of …


Basics of Wound Care – Part 2, by D.C.

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) Another aspect of wounds to consider is whether or not necrotic (dead) tissue is present. Necrotic tissue is “dead” or non-viable tissue that delays the progression of healing. There are a few types you may find. Eschar is black or brown and described as hard or leathery. It firmly attaches to the wound bed and obscures the depth of the wound. Gangrene is tissue decay secondary to an interruption of blood flow to a specific area of the body. This is most seen in the distal extremities, but it can affect muscles …


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. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at the slowdown in house construction. (See the Economy & Finance section.) Precious Metals: At Gold-Eagle.com: Only a Retail Gold Standard Could Dethrone the Dollar. o  o  o Is the world on the cusp of Bretton Woods 3.0, 52 years after Nixon closed the gold window? Economy & Finance: Linked over at the Whatfinger.com news …



Preparedness Notes for Thursday — August 17, 2023

On August 17th, 1999, a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck near İzmit, Turkey, killing more than 17,000 people and leaving some 500,000 homeless. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 108 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, or three-day course (a $1,095 value), Two cases of …


Basics of Wound Care – Part 1, by D.C.

This article is intended to provide readers with a simple overview to wound care and a general understanding of related terms. I am a licensed Physical Therapist Assistant who spent time training in wound care as it relates to that specific healthcare discipline. Physical therapy’s role continues to expand when it comes to wound observation, treatment, and patient education. Much of this information will be valuable to “preppers” due to the assumed lack of easy access to medical care. It will hopefully give readers confidence in recognizing and treating certain common wound types and provide a better idea of what …