Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. Pictured above is world travel adventurer Karl Bushby.
—
First up, in The New York Times: After 28 Years Walking Across the Globe, He’s Almost Home [1]. A brief excerpt:
“Earlier this month, he swam across the English Channel, arriving in his home country after spending half his life away. His trek began in southern Patagonia, Chile, in November 1998, when he was 29, and he plans to reach his mother’s house in Hull, England, sometime next week. He will be 57.
The journey, he said, has taken him through some of the world’s harshest landscapes, from the jungle of the Darién Gap to the tundra of Siberia. He has been arrested, deported, broke, lost, and written off more times than he can count. His expedition has also been interrupted — by wars, economic collapse and a pandemic. When forced to stop, he would typically decamp to Mexico until he could figure out a way to continue from wherever he left off.”
Update: He made it home [2].
o o o
A reader mentioned an Instagram posted on Sunday, October 25th, about a plan that has been in the works since 2025 [3]:
“The Pentagon has announced today [plans] for every major US military base to prepare and operate for at least 90 days without outside electricity, fuel, water, or supplies, anticipating a major war that could cripple power grids, break global supply chains and threaten critical infrastructure on US soil. the plans include portable nuclear reactors, large-scale battery storage and microgrids able to disconnect installations from the civilian electrical grid entirely.”
o o o
A Vice Video: Are the Ultra-Rich Really Building Doomsday Bunkers? [4]
JWR’s Comment: In the second segment, at the 30:49 mark, note the Rhodesian Ridgeback dog. For some inexplicable reason many of my readers and consulting clients have Ridgebacks.
o o o
in The Washington Post: Why headlights seem more blinding than ever.
o o o
Many SurvivalBlog readers have heard me interviewed by podcaster “Dunagan Kaiser” (a pseudonym of Lee Johnson), on his Liberty and Finance [5] show. He recently suffered a home flood, and his experiences are detailed here: The Disaster I Never Saw Coming [6]. He has established a GoFundMe page [7], under his legal legal name Lee Johnson. Please help, even if it is just a few dollars. Thanks! – JWR
o o o
Astronomers discover a giant new dwarf planet candidate hiding beyond Pluto [8].
o o o
Ken Schumacher, an old friend and fellow technical writer at Grass Valley Group in the 1990s contacted me last week. He has just published his first novel on Amazon/Kindle: “TM, Book 1 – Plausibility [9]” by Kenneth Schumacher. It is a techno-thriller that looks behind-the-scenes of the tech business world, with humor and satire, and also follows the personal lives of folks residing there. It has an AI theme, so it is quite timely. Take a look!
o o o
To build up our parts inventory at Elk Creek Company [10], I’m looking to buy (or trade silver, knives, bayonets, etc.) for some pump-action shotgun barrels. I prefer to buy barrels without ventilated ribs. They can be of any length and can be either blued or Parkerized, but they must be in nice condition. (A worn finish is fine, but no dents nor deep pitting.) It is okay if they have been shortened and/or have had adjustable chokes or screw-in chokes installed. Note that I am not looking for barrels for semi-autos — only for pump actions. Perhaps you have a spare barrel, or even a “barrel of barrels” sitting around. In particular, I’m looking for these barrel types:
- Mossberg 500, 590, 600, or 390, 12 Gauge or 20 Gauge
- Maverick 88, 12 Gauge
- Remington 870, 12 Gauge or 20 Gauge
- Remington Model 31. 12 Gauge or 20 Gauge
- Winchester 42, .410 Bore
- Winchester 97, 12 Gauge
- Winchester Model 12, 12 Gauge or 20 Gauge
- Winchester Model 1200, 12 Gauge or 20 Gauge
- Winchester SXP, 12 Gauge (camouflage finish is okay)
- Ithaca 37, 20 Gauge or 12 Gauge
- Stevens 520 or 520B, 12 Gauge
- Savage Model 1921, 12 Gauge
- Browning BPS, 12 Gauge
- High Standard Flite King, 600AT, Western Field, 21, K121, K1200, K1211, or 910 (or re-branded Mitchell, J.C. Higgins, or Wards), 12 Gauge
Let me know what you have available, and let’s trade! Thanks, – JWR
o o o
Video: Trump’s Greenland Deal Is Bigger Than You Might Think [11].
o o o
Lastly, a video to remind folks: Be careful with Tannerit [12]e.
Please Send Us Your Snippets!
Please send your snippet items for potential posting to JWR [13]. or AVL [13]. You can do so either via e-mail or via our Contact [14] form.