On January 3, 1521, Martin Luther [1] was excommunicated by Pope Leo X from the Roman Catholic Church for failing to recant parts of his Ninety-Five Theses, which started the Protestant Reformation.
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January 3, 1749: Benning Wentworth issued the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont.
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On January 3, 1892, English author and scholar J.R.R. Tolkien [2], who was perhaps best known for his richly inventive epic fantasy The Lord of the Rings [3] (1954–55), was born in South Africa.
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January 3, 1944: Top US flying ace Major Pappy Boyington [4] was shot down in his USMC Corsair by Japanese Captain Masajiro Kawato flying a Zero. He survived, but spent the rest of the war as a POW.
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Please pray for conservative cartoonist Scott Adams [5], who is terminally ill with cancer.
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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest
Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest [6]. The prizes for this round include:
First Prize:
- A Gunsite Academy [7]Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course [8] (a $1,095 value),
- A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” [9] 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 [10] (a $350 value),
- American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) [11] is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses [12]. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course [13].
- HSM Ammunition [14] in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.
- Harvest Guard [15] is providing a 200-Piece Bulk Mix Pack of their Regular and Wide-Mouth Reusable Canning Jar Lids & Gaskets. This is a $161 + shipping value.
Second Prize:
- A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training [16], that has a combined retail value of $679
- Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord [17] (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com [18] (a $287 value).
- Preparedness author Jennifer Rader [19] is offering a $200 purchase credit for any of her eight published food storage and medical preparedness books, including the
- A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company [20], 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 [21] (a $305 value),
- Two sets of [22]The Civil Defense Manual, [23] (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
- A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC [24] 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 [20], toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.
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More than $978,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 122 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail [25] 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 [26]. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.