Year: 2023

JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR:   Meme Text: The Rationality Venn Diagram: Kamala Harris Outside of Reason, Logic, and Observable Truth News Links: NBC News poll: Kamala Harris hits record low for VP net favorability. SkyNews Australia:  Kamala Harris’ laugh is the ‘biggest, destructive, negative force’ in American politics ever. Kamala Harris doesn’t even understand why she is unpopular. Harris bashed for bragging that Biden has lowered electricity and heating bills: ‘Alternate reality’. Kamala Harris Just Can’t Stop Laughing (And Scaring People) The most awkward and embarrassing Kamala Harris ‘word salads’ of 2022. — Note From JWR: Do you …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — July 1, 2023

On July 1st, 1997, the crown colony of Hong Kong officially reverted to Chinese sovereignty, ending 156 years of British rule. There have been sporadic protests by locals there, ever since. July 1st, 1535, Sir Thomas More went on trial for treason for refusing to accept King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England. And on July 1st, 1863 is the anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War Battle of Gettysburg. — Several of our affiliate advertisers, including Brownells, Ready Made Resources, GunMag Warehouse, Palmetto State Armory, and Federal Premium are running Independence Day sales, until July …


Bugging Out: Some Realities, by Mr. Zipph

I recently relocated from a rural suburb in a purple state to a much smaller community in a very red state. I had long-term plans to make this move, but an unexpected career change enabled me to move sooner than expected. While my new home is not a compound deep in the woods, it does provide me with more security, more privacy, the ability to expand my gardening efforts, the option of raising some chickens and/or rabbits in the future, abundant wildlife, and a smaller community where people go to church and value their freedom. When making our relocation decision, …


June 2023 in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance and the factors that affect gold prices. What Did Gold Do in June? Central banks, inflation, and diverging economies around the world magnified the usual summer weakness in gold for June. COMEX gold futures topped out early, hitting $1,995.50 on June 1st. Prices oscillated lower through the rest of the month, bottoming $78 lower at $1,917.90 on the 29th. Spot gold followed much the same trajectory in June, notching a monthly high of …


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:

“Ye shall give three cities on this side Jordan, and three cities shall ye give in the land of Canaan, which shall be cities of refuge. These six cities shall be a refuge, both for the children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for the sojourner among them: that every one that killeth any person unawares may flee thither. And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. And if he smite him with throwing a stone, wherewith he may die, and …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 30, 2023

June 30th is the 10th anniversary of the tragic death of 19 hotshots in the Yarnell Hill Fire, in 2013. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 107 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 Mountain …


Fitness and Preparedness – Part 3, by N.C.

(Continued from Part 2. This concludes the article.) Getting started: Red flags, Resources, and Equipment Let’s assume if you’re reading Part 3 that you actually want to get started laying in a supply of fitness alongside your beans, bullets, and band-aids. Good. It’s one of the most neglected aspects of preparing in a society where well over 40% of us are obese. Not overweight. Obese. Less than 25% do regular exercise. You adding a daily exercise routine will put you ahead of people who don’t, simple as that. Adding daily exercise bumps you to a “C”. Not great but not …


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 American consumer debt. (See the Economy & Finance section.) Precious Metals: Some market analysis by Frank Holmes: Gold SWOT: Barrick Gold has become noticeably fixated on copper. o  o  o Kelsey Williams, at Gold-Eagle.com: It Was Never About Gold – Always About the Dollar. Economy & Finance: Living in the red: Average American …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“The great sorting is the way forward. There is no national cultural consensus. In fact, the moral visions of red [state] and blue [state] America are now diametric opposites that cannot coexist. Permanent Washington is so thoroughly corrupt and broken that no one, not even a capable leader like Ron DeSantis, will likely be able to repair it. Many have discussed the possibility of national divorce, which I think is unlikely in the near future, but the great sorting can happen now and is happening now. The left has made it impossible for red America to exist in blue states …


Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 29, 2023

During a performance of William Shakespeare‘s Henry VIII on this day in 1613, the Globe Theatre was destroyed within an hour after its thatch was accidentally set aflame by a cannon marking the king’s entrance onstage. Shown is a model of the theater and surrounding buildings, circa 1612. The original theater building is now thought to have been a 20-sided polygon. — Federal Premium (one of our affiliate advertisers), is beginning an Independence Day Sale, with some great discounts on their ammunition — rifle, pistol, and shotgun. Federal offers free shipping on orders over $149. They even have a custom …


Fitness and Preparedness – Part 2, by N.C.

(Continued from Part 1.) Goals and principles A real-world example: The Shaolin monks The origin story of the acrobatic kung fu the Shaolin monks practice is that it was developed for two reasons: Self-defense and general health. Meditation is a sedentary pursuit and the acrobatic kung fu allowed (and allows) them to pack in the flexibility, power, and cardiovascular training they needed to maintain health in a smaller frame of time. This is very much what we in the developed west face: a generally sedentary lifestyle that needs to be balanced with enough exercise to keep our general health up. …


The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is 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. In today’s column, we look at plans for a universal digital passport. The Everything Passport: DHS Outlines Digital ID Initiative A recent headline: DHS Outlines Digital ID Initiative For “Travel, Immigration …