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 the end of traditional dial-up internet service.
AOL Discontinuing Its Dial-Up Internet Service
Several SurvivalBlog readers wrote to mention this news: End of an era: AOL to discontinue its dial-up internet service after 30 years. JWR’s Comment: Like a lot of other folks, by the late 1990s we received so many unsolicited AOL CDs in the mail that we hung them up in our garden, to scare off birds.
The Latest Ransomware and Cyber Attacks
Reader “Neo” sent us this:
Farmers’ Almanac Predicts a Cold, Snowy Winter Across US
And, speaking of AOL reports: Farmers’ Almanac winter forecast for 2025-2026: A long season of cold, snow across US. (Our thanks to H.L. for the link.)
The Targets of New Police “Noise” Cameras
H.L. sent this from the WSJ: New Noise Cameras Pit Drivers of Fast Cars Against Their Neighbors.
“Wearables” = Government Surveillance
Reader D.S.V. sent this: The Wearables Trap: How the Government Plans to Monitor, Score, and Control You. A pericope:
“Under the guise of public health and personal empowerment, this initiative is nothing less than the normalization of 24/7 bodily surveillance—ushering in a world where every step, heartbeat, and biological fluctuation is monitored not only by private companies but also by the government.
In this emerging surveillance-industrial complex, health data becomes currency. Tech firms profit from hardware and app subscriptions, insurers profit from risk scoring, and government agencies profit from increased compliance and behavioral insight.
This convergence of health, technology, and surveillance is not a new strategy—it’s just the next step in a long, familiar pattern of control.
Surveillance has always arrived dressed as progress.”
Trump Deploys National Guard to D.C.
Over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: Trump is Invoking the D.C. Home Rule Act, which puts cops under federal command. “This is Liberation Day in D.C. We’re taking our capitol back.”
Finally, A President Is Standing Up To Woke Banks
Finally, A President Is Standing Up To Woke Banks. The article begins:
“On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that will finally put an end to banks’ discrimination against conservatives, Christian groups, and other organizations.
The order requires that federal banking regulators eliminate references to reputational risk and similar concepts in their guidance and examination procedures. Additionally, it directs the Small Business Administration to compel financial institutions to take steps to restore access to services for current or prospective clients who were previously denied services due to an illegal debanking policy.”
JWR’s Comments: FYI, I was de-banked in February, 2022 by my bank in Nevada, without any warning or explanation. I had never bounced a check. I kept the account quite active, with monthly deposits (by mail) and checks written. I always kept a positive balance of at least $2,000, on a non-interest bearing account. I was a perfect customer, but someone there decided to treat me like Kryptonite. I did some research and learned that my bank’s branch manager was a Democratic Party activist. I have no doubt that the banker’s motivation was political.
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