Month: December 2024

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — December 31, 2024

On December 31, 1564 William I of Orange demanded freedom of religious conscience for his subjects in a dramatic speech to the Dutch Council of State. — December 31, 1776: Rhode Island established wage and price controls in a failed attempt to curb inflation. The state limited daily wages to 70 cents for carpenters and 42 cents for tailors. — Today’s feature article was written by SurvivalBlog’s founder and Senior Editor James Wesley, Rawles (JWR). — We are in need of entries for thr second month of Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $935,000 worth of …


Demographics, Dollars, and Our Destiny

The United States and many other Western nations are facing a demographic disaster. As I’ve mentioned before in SurvivalBlog, birth rates have fallen below the population replacement rate. In this essay, I will spell out some root causes of these demographic shifts that might surprise you, as well as some practical solutions. The primary cause of the current negative societal trends goes even deeper than a liberalized academic system, an activist mass media spouting progressive blather, entrenched D.C. “Swamp” politicians and bureaucrats, and uncontrolled illegal migration. The taproot of the pernicious weedpatch of our societal problems is monetary.  It all …


SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, news that some avalanche watches are in effect.. Region-Wide Owyhee protection bill passes U.S. Senate. The article begins: “The Owyhee Canyonlands are one step closer to gaining federal protection. On a Friday voice vote, the U.S. Senate passed the Malheur Community Empowerment for the Owyhee …



Preparedness Notes for Monday — December 30, 2024

December 30, 1865 was the birthday of Rudyard Kipling. December 30, 1903: An electric arc lamp set fire to the Iroquois Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, leaving 602 dead in one of the deadliest single-building blazes in American history. December 30, 1933: A low temperature of -50°F (-46°C) was recorded in Bloomfield, Vermont. (A state record.) — Ready Made Resources is running a big End of Year Night Vision Sale is here! From now until midnight Central Time on December 31st, you can take advantage of some great deals. Stock is extremely limited, so don’t wait—secure your gear today! Plus, every …


Tyrant Designs TDC 001 Folding Knife, by Thomas Christianson

The Tyrant Designs TDC 001 Folding Knife is a rugged everyday carry (EDC) knife with outstanding fit and finish. The durability of the materials and the quality of the craftsmanship make it superior to the average EDC knife. The 3-inch, saber-ground, tanto blade is made of D2 steel and is 0.33 inches thick. The black nitride finish on the blade is unusually resilient. The blade opens easily by rotating around a ball-bearing pivot. The dual thumb studs are more robust than those on any other knife I have used. The aluminum handle is a convenient shape, and the textured durameter …


Recipe of the Week: No-Alcohol Eggnog

The following recipe for No-Alcohol Eggnog is from SurvivalBlog reader T.W. in New Hampshire. Ingredients 6 egg yolks ½ cup sugar 1 cup heavy cream 2 cups milk 2 cinnamon sticks 2 cloves ½ teaspoon nutmeg ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 30 mls Lyre’s American Malt (optional) Whipped cream for topping (optional) Whipped cream and cinnamon for topping (optional) Directions Whisk the eggs and sugar together until the mixture lightens a little in color and goes creamy. An electric beater makes this easier but a traditional handheld whisk works fine. Place cream, milk, ground nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves in a saucepan …


SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic is a map showing The Loss of Local News: America’s Growing News Deserts. (Graphic courtesy of Reddit. This map was created by Taylor Maggiacomo, Local News Initiative, Northwestern University.) The thumbnail below is click-expandable.       — Please send your graphics or graphics links to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.



Preparedness Notes for Sunday — December 29, 2024

On December 29, 1812: Under the command of Captain William Bainbridge, the USS Constitution captured the HMS Java off the coast of Brazil, after a three-hour battle. — A December 29, 1911 proclamation restored the marking “Dei Gratia” (“By God’s Grace”) on Canada’s coins. — And on December 29, 1937 Pan Am began flying boat service between San Francisco and Auckland, New Zealand. — Today’s feature article is a guest post by Brandon Smith, a friend and frequent content contributor to SurvivalBlog.com. — We are in need of entries for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than …


Unidentified Drones In America’s Skies? Smells Like A False Flag, by Brandon Smith

The term “False Flag” gets thrown around rather haphazardly these days and it’s important to recognize that a real false flag requires a particular end result – The public blaming the wrong culprit for an event that someone else (usually our own government) perpetrated. When it comes to the increasing fervor over major drone activity across the US, I have very little doubt that what we are witnessing is a false flag scenario. First, let’s outline what has happened so far: Drone sightings have exploded across the country involving a wide variety of devices – but the incidents that concern …


JWR’s Meme Of The Week: 

The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: This Week I Made A New Year’s Resolution Clean Out My Refrigerator… But Then I Found The Box Of Salad Greens That I Misplaced Back In November of 2023 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, provided that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — December 28, 2024

On December 28, 1537 French king Francis I issued a decree to booksellers and printers requiring them to deposit a copy of each of their works in the King’s Library. This was the world’s first legal depository requirement. — December 28,1944: Dutch Resistance fighter Corrie ten Boom was accidentally released from the Ravensbrück concentration camp. She lived on another 39 years to speak and write of her experiences in The Hiding Place.  She died in 1983 at age 91, in Placentia, California. — Today we present a short guest article.  It is not part of the judging for Round 116 …


Another Look at Listeroid Engines, by Graham Sliecker

Editor’s Introductory Note: The following is a guest post, rather than a writing contest entry. The author is with Bolton Power Equipment. They have been importing Listeroid engines since 2014. For long service life, in my opinion, nothing beats a low-RPM engine. Small, high-RPM engines have practical engine llfespans that are often measured in just thousands of hours.  But larger, low-RPM engines with flywheels have practical engine llfespans that are often measured in tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of hours. Listeroid engines have been discussed in SurvivalBlog since our early days. See, for example: Lister Low RPM …