Letter Re: Cottage/Local Manufacturing After SHTF

I am a former dressmaker, with considerable experience in making clothing, and I appreciated the article on doing this for barter. However, there are problems. The first is fabric. Presumably the sensuously idyllic pleasures of going to the fabric shops in the garment district of New York City will no longer be an option. Too charred. Apart from that, while there are a few scattered fabric stores here and there, they are steadily going out of business, as fewer and fewer people sew. For the most part, assuming you can get there and assuming they are intact, they carry mostly …


Economics and Investing:

A trend to working fewer hours and low wage labor: Is America looking at becoming a low wage nation in a race to the bottom? 1 out of 4 people working are in jobs paying $10 an hour or less. o o o The Economy Is Deteriorating Fast – RBS o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: Price of Beef and Bacon Reach All-Time High High Gasoline Prices Push Up U.S. Consumer Prices- Or How About Just All The Money Printing?? New College Grads Hit By Slow Wage Growth: Fed Study



Odds ‘n Sods:

One more reason I refuse to watch TV. Video: Sarah Palin Drives Stake Through Heart of ‘True Blood’ Producers . – P.M. o o o A restaurant with a silly name but some plain sense. Another Restaurant with a “Guns Welcome” Sign at the Entrance. – J.W. o o o SilencerCo Announces First Commercially Available Shotgun Suppressor. – B.B. o o o 20 Examples of What Liberalism REALLY Is. – J.C. And the strange thing is that we keep letting them define the conversation and getting away with this garbage. o o o Subscribe Left’s Latest Lunacy: “You Want More …



Notes for Tuesday – July 22, 2014

If you are looking for NBC equipment for children or elderly or you just need the ability to sleep while wearing yours, check out Ready Made Resources. They just received positive air pressure units that fit into a standard NATO 40mm filter. o o o Today we present another entry for Round 53 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $11,000+ worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course (a $1,195 value), A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the …


Cottage/Local Manufacturing After SHTF, by S.T.

Post-SHTF America will see the end of the current modern centralized-style of mass manufacturing and all of the poor-quality foreign imports. However, it will also see the rise of the new, local, home-based and small-scale manufacturing of local, functional, non-electric, and reusable items that will replace all of the electric, disposable, and toxic items that are purchased and used now. Unless you have a group that includes two doctors (a doctor cannot operate on himself), two dentists (a dentist can’t fill his own teeth), a nurse, a pharmacist, and a herbalist, as well as the teens to act as apprentices, …


Letter Re: Potential Bioterrorism Agent Found in Colorado

Hugh, In the 19 July 2014 entry by Dr. Koelker, she brought up the potential for use of weaponized plague. Many years ago when I was in the Air Force, my tattered old shot record says I was inoculated against “Plague”. Is there currently any vaccine available that works to prevent pneumonic and/or bubonic plague? And how long is/was my ancient (1968) inoculation effective? Thank you for the excellent heads-up, Doc. BUFF Driver Cynthia Koelker, MD Responds: In my recent article on pneumonic plague I stated that no vaccine is available, but to answer this reader’s question, let me address …


News From The American Redoubt:

Police investigate officer shooting of black lab. – RBS o o o Related to the above: Threats pour into Coeur d’Alene for officer who fatally shot lab. – RBS o o o Now, federally-issued money is apparently no longer able to pay debts. City limits coin payments to $2 The justification given for the limitation is that customers would leave large amounts of coins and then walk away with their bills underpaid. They seem to be unable to carry the underpayment amount on to the next bill, or even demand that the customer count the coins.


Economics and Investing:

What Recovery? US Macro Suffers Longest Streak Of Weakness Since Lehman – H.L. o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: 20 Signs The Epic Drought In The Western United States Is Starting To Become Apocalyptic Here Is The Source Of “More Than 95% Of The Market Rally In Q2” The Head Of ‘The Central Bank Of The World’ Warns That Another Great Financial Crisis May Be Coming


Odds ‘n Sods:

Armed bandits demand water in dry northern India – JBG o o o Possible Epidemic? The Chikungunya Virus Is Starting To Spread In America. – B.B. o o o Living in the age of video and Internet can be problematic. Student who sought injunction to remove online video faces legal costs of over €1m. – T.P. o o o Notice how well the American Redoubt, mountain states, and southern states did: Happiest Americans Are (And Are Not). – H.L. o o o 5 Things To Remember Before You Say, ‘Screw It, I’m Done With America’ – B.B.



Notes for Monday – July 21, 2014

July 21st is the birthday of Ernest Hemingway. He was born in 1899 in Oak Park, Illinois. He committed suicide in July 2, 1961 in Ketchum, Idaho, after being diagnosed with haemochromatosis, and after electroshock treatments failed to lift him from chronic alcoholic depression. We see a sad life but a great writer. o o o Today we present another entry for Round 53 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $11,000+ worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course (a $1,195 value), A …


How to Plan for Survival on a Small Budget, by N.G.

It’s no secret that being prepared takes time and money. These days, with the questionable economy, most people believe that they have to win the lottery or inherit a small fortune to begin preparing for an unforeseen disaster. Since I am married to a wife who is a full-time student and we have a small child and combined income of thirty thousand dollars per year, I also thought it was impossible to get started. However, whether it be supplies, equipment, training, or home modifications, anyone can get started just by starting on a smaller scale. The key is to minimize …


Scot’s Product Review: Malkoff

Thanks to all of the folks who are writing me about products to review. It really helps. One common thread in several letters is to test affordable stuff, and that’s going to be a priority. Please keep the ideas coming! They really help. Malkoff might be another word for light. It is all thanks to Gene Malkoff going out one night to protect his chickens and realizing he needed a better flashlight. The Enterprise, Alabama man tried an LED light but just wasn’t happy with it. He decided he could come up with something better. After some hard work, he …