On June 26, 1794 the Battle of Fleurus was a major victory by forces of the First French Republic under General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan over the Coalition Army (Great Britain, Hanover, Dutch Republic, and Habsburgs). It marked the first use of a military reconnaissance balloon.
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June 26th is the birthday of Marine Corps Lt. General Chesty Puller (born 1898, died October 11, 1971). Perhaps America’s finest-ever maverick officer, Puller was part of what I call the Even Greater Generation.
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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest
Today we present another entry for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest [1]. The prizes for this round include:
First Prize:
- A Gunsite Academy [2]Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course [3] (a $1,095 value),
- A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” [4] variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources [5] (a $350 value),
- American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) [6] is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses [7]. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course [8].
- HSM Ammunition [9] in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.
Second Prize:
- A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training [10], that has a combined retail value of $679
- A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle [11]. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels [12], plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com [13].
- Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord [14] (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com [15] (a $287 value).
- A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company [16], toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!
Third Prize:
- A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters [17] (a $305 value),
- Two sets of [18]The Civil Defense Manual, [19] (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
- A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC [20] that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
- A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company [16], toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.
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More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail [21] us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics [22]. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.