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 …


Inflation Alert and Book Review from TM in Arkansas

First, a price increase is coming to your favorite bookseller. One of the premier book printing and distributing companies in the world has announced a 10% price increase in their print-on-demand and handling fees effective February 8, 2016. Additionally, products shipping from the UK will see freight charges increase by 3-4%. The freight charges will be determined based on service level at the time of order. This printing increase is on top of the 5% rate increase announced by UPS effective December 28, 2015 and a similar price increase by FedEx effective in January 2016. The USPS has a full menu …


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

To the Editor; Keith K. was absolutely correct in that if one is considering keeping bees as a TEOTWAWKI pollinating vector and food supply (honey), there should be an innate interest present before devoting time and effort to the project. I fully realize that there should be more initial motivation than just consideration of a cost/benefit analysis before entering into the hobby of beekeeping. Specifically, the overall homestead health and sustainability must be considered to see whether beekeeping would be a good fit for daily life and upkeep. We will all respond in relation to our own skills and gifts …


News From The American Redoubt:

Here is just one more reason why it is inevitable that Eastern Washington will ask for partition from the Left Coast. o o o Once again, the American Redoubt States rank well. o o o The falfiles.com has a post with a decent background on what’s going on in Oregon right now. o o o More background on the conflict in Oregon: Where there’s smoke – B.B. Militia takes over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters – B.B. TalkNetwork.com’s Pete Santilli streaming LIVE from the Hammond family constitutional crisis event in Oregon – RBS And, of course, the liberal/progressive point of …


Economics and Investing:

Saudi-Iran Dispute Won’t Cause Lasting Oil Price Rally o o o Wall Street Journal: 7% Fall in the Chinese Market Triggered Closure for the Day – T.A. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Rand Paul: Here’s Why We Should Audit the Fed (Business Insider) Excerpt: “It is no secret that the Federal Reserve’s unchecked printing press causes recessions and increases income inequality. Allowing the Fed to inflate our money supply will artificially keep interests rates low, but at what cost? Their acts can no longer go unchecked…” The Rise of the Zombie Earmark (Taxpayers for Common Sense) …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Doctors can report some mentally ill patients to FBI under new gun control rule – JBG o o o Reader P.S sent in this link to a “Graduation-rate Estimator”. For communities that are fairly well in the middle, it does a pretty good job of estimating graduation rates from high school. However, as you move towards the ends of the spectrum, it has trouble. It is possible on the estimator to get better than 100% graduation simply by paying your teachers more than anywhere else. Nonetheless, if you are looking for a tool to help you decide where to relocate, …



Annual Reminder: The Ten Cent Challenge

I only post one reminder each year about Ten Cent Challenge subscriptions, and this is it. Unlike the whining leftist hand-wringers at PBS, I don’t do endless pledge drives. I depend on my readers to help pay the bills to keep SurvivalBlog up and running. Our web hosting on a dedicated server costs $650 per month, and our local ISP bill is $135 per month. We also have a salaried Managing Editor, a paid Product Review Editor, and other expenses including liability insurance, phone bills, computer hardware, software, accounting, subscriptions, writing contest Honorable Mention prizes, and so forth. My appeal …


Notes for Monday – January 04, 2016

January 4th is the birthday of George Hyde, who was born “Heide” in 1888, in Arpfingen, Germany. He was the chief gun designer for the Inland Division of General Motors (GM) in Dayton, Ohio during World War II. Hyde was best-known as the co-designer of the M3 “Grease gun” SMG and the Liberator pistol, but he also designed the Bendix-Hyde Carbine and the M2 Hyde submachinegun. He immigrated to the United States in 1927. A gent at the Nitro Express Forumsmentioned some details on his life before World War II: Before 1935 Hyde was the shop foreman and metal man …


Pat Cascio’s Product Review: MagPul D60 AR Magazine

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I’ve seen it, not a few times and not a hundred times but thousands of times, while in gun shops all over the country. A person will lay down a large sum of money for a high-end firearm of some type and then ask the clerk behind the gun shop counter, “Do you have any cheap magazines for this gun?” Are you kidding me? The same goes when it comes to buying a holster for that new 1911 that cost a guy two grand. He’ll buy a $20 generic nylon holster to go on his ultra-thin dress belt! I just …


Recipe of the Week: Minted Grape Juice with a Tart Lime Accent, by T.A.

Ingredients: 1 large White Grape Juice, usual large plastic container 1 generous handful mint leaves, coarsely chopped 3 medium juicy green Limes, sliced thinly Directions: Pour off about 1 cup of the grape juice to make room to add your coarsely chopped mint leaves. Add thinly sliced limes. Replace the cap and then rock your grape juice bottle back and forth to circulate the juice in and around the mint leaves and lime slices. Refrigerate overnight to incorporate the flavors. Pour into serving cups or pitcher through a screen sieve that’s fine enough to catch the mint leaves and lime …


Letter Re: Windstorm

Jim/Hugh After the 17-Nov windstorm, we lost power for five days, having similar damages and drama in the article by ShepherdFarmerGeek! Thank you UTAH Power for driving 40 hours to help Avista out! Now we keep two turkey fryer pots of water on the woodstove for hot water and extra radiant heat between firings. Oh, we leave our tin can of used chicken egg shells on the stove instead of the kitchen window so they dry crispy and are easy to crush. We installed a Lux Bidet on the toilet two years ago, which has cut our TP usage by …


Economics and Investing:

FUTURE MONEY TRENDS: Silver Will Break $50 In 2016 o o o New Year begins with record number of men not in the labor force: Those not in the labor force increased by 1.9 million last year while the labor force increased by only 1.1 million. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News New Year Begins with a Record Number of Men NOT In the Labor Force (My Budget 360) Excerpt: “Employment, income, and financial prosperity are the most important issues for Americans. It is ironic that in 2008 the election was driven largely by the economy. It …


Odds ‘n Sods:

More details are beginning to emerge on the Oregon situation: Reader A.L. sent in this link to Mike Vanderboegh’s blog: No more free Wacos. Reader Joe K. sent in the link to Oathkeepers official statement: The Hammond Family Does NOT Want an Armed Stand Off, and Nobody Has a Right to Force One On Them. o o o A very good article about collectivism and freedom: One American’s Rage Spills Over: Dear Liberal… Here’s Why I’m So Hostile – L.A. o o o Those who have tangled with the American justice system know that it should not be confused with …


Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“It is in the free market that self-interest finds its finest expression; that is a cardinal point in individualism. If the market is regularly raided, by robbers or the government, and the safety of property is impaired, the individual loses interest in production, and the abundance of things men live by shrinks. Hence, it is for the good of society that self-interest in the economic sphere be allowed to operate without hindrance.” – Frank Chodorov