Preparedness Notes for Friday — August 1, 2025

On August 1, 1781, the British army under General Cornwallis occupied Yorktown, Virginia. Cornwallis eventually surrendered at Yorktown (pictured), effectively ending the American War of Independence. — Today is the anniversary of the Warsaw general uprising against the German occupation, in 1944. Like the Warsaw Jewish Ghetto uprising in April of 1943, it was doomed to failure. The uprising was eventually crushed, with massive civilian casualties. There was no support provided by the Allies. The advancing Soviet Red Army–just a few miles to the east–merely waited and watched. It was in their best interest to stand by and witness the …




Memoirs of a Disaster Survivor – Part 1, by AppComms

I am a prepper who has survived three natural disasters. That doesn’t mean I am special by any means. I feel my experience is nothing more than a testimony of God’s Amazing Grace. As a retired Pastor and soon-to-be retired employee of North Carolina’s Prison system, I write to you as a southern Appalachian hillbilly with some prepping experience that may benefit you. This article is a firsthand account of my personal survival experience with three natural disasters that have affected me during my lifetime. To begin with, you should be familiar with the region where I live. I was …




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 modern-day alchemy. (See the Precious Metals section.) Precious Metals: Gold And Silver Coin Premiums – How Low Can They Go? o  o  o At Gold-Eagle.com: Gold’s Days of Extreme Volatility. o  o  o Turning mercury into gold? Nuclear reactors may revive ancient dream of alchemy. JWR’s Comment: What the author of this …