Odds ‘n Sods:

Internal War Is Now On The Horizon For America – B.B. o o o Max (of Max Velocity Tactical) wrote in with a link of his view in the Malheur situation. Incidentally, Max also has a new book out – Patriot Rising: The Unbroken available both as a paperback and a Kindle version. o o o SurvivalBlog reader J.B. sent in this interesting take on “North Korea’s H-Bomb: The Lesson You Haven’t Thought Of” – Certainly something to chew on as this election cycle heats up. o o o Cyber-Attack On Ukraine Proves US Power Grid Is Vulnerable Photo of …



Notes for Thursday – January 07, 2016

This is the birthday of several notables: Senator Rand Paul (born 1963); Cresson Kearny (born 1914, died December 18, 2003); and Bent Faurschou-Hviid, known as The Flame (born 1921, died October 18, 1944). The Flame was a red-haired Danish resistance fighter in the Holger Danske Group during World War II. His exploits were dramatized in the movie Flame and Citron. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 62 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. …


Letter Re: The Grid Will Never Be Down in the Way You May Think! – Part 2, by X-liberal

HJL: This is a well thought out article and a new way of looking at “the grid”. I have to disagree with one point though. In the paragraph entitled “The Pattern” the last sentence says: “Now it is run by Liberal Democrats, and sadly, discrimination is the key to its access.” I humbly submit that it is not just the Liberal Democrats but also the elitist establishment Republicans as well. Truly, you cannot tell one from the other. – LL in Idaho


Economics and Investing:

Saudi Arabia is running out of money The cash crunch is so bad in Saudi Arabia that the government just hiked the price of gasoline by 50%. Yep, you read that right. Instead of paying the equivalent of $0.64USD for a gallon, they will now have to pay a whopping $0.96USD per gallon. – P.S. o o o Petro Currencies Under Fire As Oil Keeps Sliding o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News U.S. Shale Companies: Bankers are Quietly Tightening the Liquidity Noose (Zero Hedge) Watch out for the effects of possible liquidity triggers like this one. Excerpt: …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Attorney KrisAnne Hall makes a solid case, supporting to goals of the Constitutionalist group that is occupying a Federal building in eastern Oregon. HJL Adds: It is important to remember that while we agree that the underlying principles that brought this mess in Burns, Oregon to a head are very important and that abuses have, are, and continue to be propagated by the Federal government, the methods and tactics employed by the Bundys and militia leave much to be desired. Bob Wright has written a letter titled “Why Bunkerville was so right and Burns is so wrong” that outlines our …



Notes for Wednesday – January 06, 2016

Today, we present another entry for Round 62 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 starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $1,700 value), A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value), A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. …


Letter Re: Some Harsh Lessons of Beekeeping, by Keith K.

Hugh, Regarding the Harsh Lessons of Beekeeping, I began raising bees five years before relocating to the Redoubt from SC. I was stung often back East. One hive came with us in a trailer with the “mountain useless” motorcycles. When I purchased five nuc hives to build out our bee population the following spring, I was stung and had a dramatic trip down the mountain to the ER. The second year, while working the frantic hives in spring (six died and six were near starvation, suffering from bad weather), and I was stung AGAIN and went to the ER again. …


Economics and Investing:

This may be a little hard to grasp, but it’s important to understand. Please read and take necessary precautions to protect your savings. Unimaginable 247 Trillion In Derivatives Could Trigger “Financial Armageddon”. Warren Buffett referred to derivatives as “financial weapons of mass destruction”… – L.G. Items from Mr. Econocobas: China Stocks Rout on First Market Day of 2016 Trips National Trading Halt China’s Seven-Minute Selling Frenzy That Shook Global Markets The Year Nothing Worked: Stocks, Bonds, Cash Go Nowhere Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Puerto Rico is Greece and These Five States are the Next to Go (Zero Hedge) …


Readers’ Recommendations of the Week:

J.M. wrote in: I recently re-read Leon Uris’ Exodus and can highly recommend it. o o o SurvivalBlog reader R.S. suggested “The Big Short”, which released Dec 23, is an amazing, funny, horrifying, and astounding “true story” look behind the curtain of the banking sub-prime mortgage fiasco. While rated a hard R, it is definitely worth seeing without the kids. It uses almost a documentary style taking complicated banker lingo and mindset, then translating into concise, understandable concepts (those are the horrifying parts) what actually happened inside the financial industry between 2005 and 2008. Highly recommend, but WARNING, it will …


Odds ‘n Sods:

It appears that one of President BHO’s new executive orders (due to be signed on Wednesday) will expand the definition of “engaged in the business” selling guns, and this will hurt gun collectors and our gun shows. It appears that they are going to try to corral more INTRAState transactions of used merchandise into Federal jurisdiction, via the Commerce Clause, which is all about INTERstate commerce of newly-manufactured merchandise. They can “hope and change” this all they want, but it is unconstitutional. And we all know what Marbury v. Madison says about unconstitutional laws: We can ignore them. (“Lex malla, …


Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“The Union was formed by the voluntary agreement of the States; and these, in uniting together, have not forfeited their Nationality, nor have they been reduced to the condition of one and the same people. If one of the States chose to withdraw its name from the contract, it would be difficult to disprove its right of doing so.” – Alexis de Tocqueville


Notes for Tuesday – January 05, 2016

January 5th is the birthday of the late John Pugsley(born 1934, died April 8, 2011), libertarian and economics author. Pugsley was well known in preparedness circles as the author of The Alpha Strategy. (The book is out of print, but a PDF is available for free download.) It is also the birthday of General Courtney Hodges (born 1887 – January 16, 1966). Kicked out of West Point for low math scores, he enlisted as a private but soon became a maverick officer and went on to a distinguished career. o o o Now that a month has elapsed, many SurvivalBlog …


December in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran of Gainesville Coins

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover the price action of gold and examine the “what” and “why” behind those numbers. What Did Gold Do in December? Every December is a time of thin volumes in all assets. One good-sized sale or purchase can move prices. All this was exaggerated by the Fed’s December 16 interest rate hike. Gold jumped $20 an ounce multiple times this month, only to see the gains slowly eaten away each time. December 4th was a strange …