Odds ‘n Sods:

For thousands of years, populations have dealt with governments that did not represent their interests. How do they do it? Separation In Place – A.L. o o o If You Did Vote, Don’t Complain o o o SurvivalBlog reader J.C. sent in this article for 19 Off-Grid Survival Uses For A Plain Old Tarp o o o After two decades of testing and experimentation, the author has published his plans for a Solar Food Dehydrator that is cost effective and efficient. Sent in by T.Z. o o o Wondering how you are going to use an oven when you don’t …



Notes for Saturday – February 06, 2016

Today is the birthday of “The Gipper”. Born on this day in 1911, President Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th president of the United States. The nickname came from his portrayal of George Gipp of Notre Dame University in Knute Rockne – All-American, a film about the legendary football coach during Reagan’s previous career as a movie actor. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 63 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact …


Letter Re: Making the “Last Run”

Hugh, This is excellent advice. You can’t prep for everything, but a black swan may arrive. A few thoughts follow: The first decision is whether you need to bug-out, bug in NOW, or do a final run. If for whatever reason I lose electricity, it is bug-in. If Yellowstone blows and I’m looking at a Pompey/Herculaneum situation, it’s pedal to the metal. Prep for the white swans, bug-out for the black. The gray swans? It depends on what the “last run” means. If you are a long distance from fuel and don’t have a large supply prepped, can you get …


Economics and Investing:

California renter apocalypse: Why the rise in housing values is a reflection of a disappearing middle class. California rents up 5.7 percent last year. o o o Will Lehr: Jim Willie Interview o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Fed’s “Accommodation” Outrun by Tightening Credit (Reuters) Excerpt: “Judging by recent market action and what’s happening in many economies around the world, it is an appropriate time to take recession risks seriously….” The Cozy Relationship Between the Treasury and the Fed (Mises) Excerpt: “Since the Fed does not exist to generate profits, some may be confused as to how …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Mitch Beaudoin from the Burntroot Broadcasting podcast in Canada recently posted his interview (Part 1 and Part 2) with James Wesley, Rawles. This is an excellent interview for those who are just now getting in to the survival/prepper frame of mind as it covers the basics and some history. o o o I just noticed that we are rapidly approaching the milestone of 80 million unique visits. Thanks for making SurvivalBlog such a great success. Even after 10 years, there are still some folks who are still unaware of the blog’s existence. So a link in your blog, web page, …


Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“Thus saith the Lord; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.” – Jeremiah 33:20-22 (KJV)


Notes for Friday – February 05, 2016

On February 5th, 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt announced his plan to expand the Supreme Court to as many as 15 Judges. This unconstitutional move was in response to the hostility that the court held towards his “New Deal”, itself an unconstitutional expansion of government authority. Roosevelt was flushed with his landslide victory in 1936, so Roosevelt pressed his advantage. In April of that year, two justices conceded the high moral ground and capitulated to his demands allowing for a narrow victory on the New Deal. The reorganization was now unnecessary and in July the Senate struck it down, but the …


Pat Cascio’s Product Review: Springfield Armory EMP 4

3

When the first Springfield Armory EMP series of shrunk down 1911s came out, I took a wait and see attitude before requesting a sample for an article on SurvivalBlog.com. I was really impressed with that little gun. It was darn near the perfect packin’ pistol, as my long-time friend and fellow gun writer, John Taffin, has been searching for all his life. The little EMP sample I had was in .40 S&W, and it was a very snappy pistol in the recoil department, very snappy! There wasn’t much I didn’t like about it. Last December, my super-secret contact at Springfield …


Letter Re: Bug Out Boats

Hugh I have spent many hours thinking about using a vessel as a bugout vehicle and the many pros and cons involved, and it’s a topic I constantly revisit in my mind. What type of boat to use? What kind of weapons and armor? How to provide provisioning and storage? Where to bug out to? I just generally run different scenarios through my head, and there are way too many to address without being long-winded, so I’ll just share some of my background and try to give some opinions and thoughts. I’ve spent my entire life on the water and …


Economics and Investing:

Ann Barnhardt on a Personal Update and Negative Interest Rates: Highway to a Cashless, Statist Hell. o o o ‘New Money’ Powers PayPal’s Super Bowl Push – another step in herding the sheep towards a cashless society. Submitted by RBS. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News The Velocity of Money (American Thinker) An interesting conversation about the velocity of money and its implications for the economy. I would add that in addition to an unwillingness to spend through the system at the level of the individual consumer or household, there are structural constraints also in play. Excerpt: …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Victoria Sharp’s Testimony on the Highway 395 Shoot-In (Video) (Scroll forward to 35:45) o o o Stewart Rhodes interviews Oath Keeper SWAT Officer About the LaVoy Finicum Shooting – This is an interesting read on the FBI released video from the perspective of an active SWAT. While I disagree with his assessment of the FBI itself (They don’t call the HRT the ‘Hurt Team’ for nothing), his take on the events surrounding the takedown of the vehicles, the roadblock, and the subsequent shooting of Finicum as well as the arrest of the others is well presented and eye opening. o …



Notes for Thursday – February 04, 2016

On this day in 1789, George Washington became the first and only president to be unanimously elected by the Electoral College. This was repeated again on this same day in 1792. Because of the way the early American voting procedure worked, the electors cast two votes with no distinction for president or vice president. Washington was chosen by all of the electors and is considered to have been unanimously elected. Of the others on the ballots, Adams had the most votes and thus became the vice president. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 63 of the …


Letter Re: Bug Out Boats (Inflatables) and Folding Bikes

Dear Editor, I notice you have been running a lot of comments regarding Bug Out Boats. Overlooked in the discussions is any mention of small inflatables. If a person has a folding bicycle and a small inflatable, they have an option of being able to travel by land or water very quietly. If you do some research, it is very possible to find a small freshwater river or lake that has a small island or inaccessible shore line that can be used as a place to stay in case of widespread civil unrest. If a person went to the area …