Year: 2023

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — March 4, 2023

On March 4, 1789 the U.S. Constitution went into effect as the governing law of the United States, the date having been established by Congress. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 105 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 …


A Call to Arms Toward Thriving – Part 1, by PrepperDoc

I am hardly an expert compared to so many who’ve had articles published here in SurvivalBlog, on so many aspects of survival. I have to make apologies in advance that my concerns may be misstated. Yet I hold them and would like to share some suggestions for how the prepper community might advance. I served 30+ years as a physician, still serve in charity work, and I’m also an electrical engineer, and I’ve written simple techniques to mitigate the impact of EMP. (The DHS has well-written levels of protection that are worthy of studying.) Now in my retirement, I’m a …


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:

“But Nineveh is of old like a pool of water: yet they shall flee away. Stand, stand, shall they cry; but none shall look back. Take ye the spoil of silver, take the spoil of gold: for there is none end of the store and glory out of all the pleasant furniture. She is empty, and void, and waste: and the heart melteth, and the knees smite together, and much pain is in all loins, and the faces of them all gather blackness. Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feedingplace of the young lions, where the lion, …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — March 3, 2023

Today is the birthday of bluegrass musician Doc Watson. (He was born in 1923 and passed away in 2012.) His guitar work was phenomenal. This is also the birthday of Alexander Graham Bell. And it is also the birthday of actor James Doohan, in 1920. He played Montgomery Scott in the Star Trek television series and films. He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia. He passed away on July 20, 2005. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 105 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power …


A Medic of Last Resort – Part 4, by Tunnel Rabbit

(Continued from Part 3. This concludes the article.) Antibiotics, Antibiotic ointments, and Antiseptics Antibiotics, antibiotic ointments, and any antiseptics will be worth their weight in gold, because these can save lives when nothing else will. If I were just starting to acquire a supply of medical goods, I would first begin by buying all the oral antibiotics that I could afford at the time, and then later fill the rest of my list.  It would be wise to learn about the latest medical advice about how and what to use to keep a wound from becoming infected.  And how the …


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. Most of these items are from JWR’s “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective. Today, we look at increasing new car and truck prices for the 2024 model year. (See the Inflation Watch section.) Precious Metals: SMM Forecast for Platinum and Palladium Demand in 2023. o  o  o Updated Silver Price Forecast For 2023. o  o  o Gold price predictions for next 5 years: Will gold continue rising amid weaker …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“The earth can shake the sky come down The mountains all fall to the ground But I will fear none of these things Shelter me lord underneath your wings Dark waters rise and thunder pounds The wheels of war are going round And all the walls are crumbling Shelter me lord underneath your wings Shelter me lord underneath your wings Hide me underneath your wings Hide me deep inside your heart In your refuge – cover me The world can shake But lord I’m making you my hiding place The wind can blow the rain can pour The deluge breaks …


Preparedness Notes for Thursday — March 2, 2023

On March 2nd, 1836, Texas declared its independence from Mexico. Today is coincidentally also the birthday of Sam Houston. Today is also the birthday of Moe Berg, an American baseball player and clandestine agent. (He died in 1972). His biography The Catcher Was a Spy is fascinating reading. And this is the birthday of libertarian economist Murray Rothbard (born 1926, died 1995) His book For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto is highly recommended. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 105 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: …


A Medic of Last Resort – Part 3, by Tunnel Rabbit

(Continued from Part 2.) Category #2, Group Medical Supplies for Wilderness/Retreat Locations Emergency Medical Supplies for Wilderness Situations are for stabilizing the injured at a remote location for the purpose of transporting the injured to where they can be properly cared for.  This is a compact kit sized for the number of persons, and designed to handle the most common injuries.  With broken bones, a simple fracture that could become a compound fracture where the bone could sever a vein or artery and protrude from the skin, and therefore be potentially life-threatening. There can also be ankle sprains, burns to …


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. Today’s column begins with some praise for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. The Man Who Saved the Second Amendment Linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site, there is this article …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“No tyrant or usurper can ever invade our rights so long as we are united. Let Mr. Lincoln attempt it, and his party will scatter like chaff before the storm of popular indignation which will burst forth from one end of the country to the other. Secession or revolution will not be justified until legal and constitutional means of redress have been tried, and I can not believe that the time will ever come when these will prove inadequate.​” – Sam Houston


Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — March 1, 2023

Yellowstone National Park was established by the U.S. Congress as the world’s first national park on March 1st, 1872. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 105 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 House …


A Medic of Last Resort – Part 2, by Tunnel Rabbit

(Continued from Part 1.) Learning As We Go Without the basic knowledge and skills to use our supplies, that first aid kit is actually a ‘last aid’ kit. By shopping shrewdly and avoiding items that we do not know how to use, one might acquire a larger store of items that we can actually use. Given the possible savings that result from shopping hard and long for bargains, and limiting ourselves to the basics, we can then purchase more of the basics supplies that are needed most of the time.  And we should strive to continually improve our knowledge and …


February 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 affected gold prices. What Did Gold Do in February? Gold gave back all of January’s gains in February in choppy trading, ending the month down about $10 for the year. Things started off badly on February 2nd, when the Fed, ECB, and Bank of England all hikes rates and announced that rates would be moving higher for longer than previously estimated. This sent gold down $34 to $1,916 an …