Letter Re: A Low-Cost Method of Storing Tinder in Your Field Kit

Dear Mr. Rawles, I just began reading your second novel and in some ways find it even more fun to watch the beginning of the action knowing some of what lies in store in terms of “future history.” But the purpose of my e-mail today is to describe a simple container I’ve been making to transport a variety of items including doses of medicine and fire starters.  As many of your readers know cotton balls saturated with vaseline make really good fire starters.  But how to transport them and keep them fresh?  This is my method: Get two plastic 20 …


Two Letters Re: How to Defend a Retreat Against Wheeled Vehicle Threats

Mr. Rawles, Thank you for all you do in educating those of use who have been slow to see. After I read B.W.’s How to Defend a Retreat Against Wheeled Vehicle Threats I had to tell about an idea I have been playing with. Taking the anthill and flower trough concepts and combining them. To build this in imagination we will go in reverse order to what you would do in real life. First build the ant hill. They should surround your building spaced less than a cars width apart. Build another ring outside of that but put the anthills …


Economics and Investing:

Cities Where Homes Will Not Sell EW.B. sent this article about a Nevada town: End of Empire: Tough economy closes mining town. (JWR’s Comment: This illustrates the importance of avoiding relocating to towns that are depended on a single employer.) HOLY BAILOUT – Federal Reserve Now Backstopping $75 Trillion Of Bank Of America’s Derivatives Trades. (Thanks to Steve S. for the link.) John R. flagged this: WOLF: Liberalism’s unwashed last stand–The hippie-critical new faces of the Democratic Party On a similar note, The Daily Bell‘s editors ask: Elite Control of OWS Protests Increasingly Obvious? Items from The Economatrix: The Global …


Odds ‘n Sods:

A foreshadowing of a post-collapse threat? Lions and Tigers and Bears! Deputies Hunt Exotic Animals on the Loose in Ohio. (A tip of the hat to Mary F. for the link.)    o o o K.A.F. sent this: Reid signals government jobs must take priority over private-sector jobs    o o o K.A.F. also sent a link to a scheme of genius from the Mickey Mouse State: San Francisco plan would offer tax break for hiring felons. (Yes, but will they take the next logical step and use taxpayer funds to provide free insurance for all the toner cartridges, laptops, …



Notes from JWR:

Note from JWR: Safecastle’s big 25% off sale on Mountain House canned long-term storage foods, with free shipping and additional buyer’s club incentives, ends today (Wednesday, October 19, 2011). Be sure to get your order in by midnight, eastern time. — Today we present another entry for Round 37 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and B.) …


Some Thoughts on How to Live in Times of Hunger, by ShepherdFarmerGeek in Spokane

We prep in large part to keep ourselves (and those we love) from going hungry in the event of a disaster or crisis.  Yet there’s no way of knowing in advance what kind of crisis we will face, nor how long our supplies will last. Even the most prepared among us could find their supplies wiped out in a fire, in a raid or natural disaster. And our plans for gardening or hunting could be completely disrupted by any number of things. What this means is that at least some of us are going to go hungry, and its possible …


Two Letters Re: How to Defend a Retreat Against Wheeled Vehicle Threats

CPT Rawles: From a former Army Combat Engineer’s perspective, I would disagree with some of the information about anti-tank ditches and agree with other points raised in the article; How to Defend a Retreat Against Wheeled Vehicle Threats, by B.W. in Pennsylvania.   In the U.S. Army we would build a ditch at least 1 meter deep and typically closer to 2-3 meters deep with D7 bulldozers.  The ditch would be right around a blade width wide.  The most effective method is a dozer team with one digging it out and the other coming perpendicular to push the spoil to …


Letter Re: A Mutated Viral Threat of the Computer Variety

James, I recommend reading this article: ‘Son of Stuxnet’ virus could be used to attack critical computers worldwide. It talks about a recently discovered variant of Stuxnet (possibly) that poses significant risk to infrastructure. Whereas Stuxnet specifically targeted Iranian nuclear processing capabilities, Duqu (the name of this variant) is much more general but does appear to be targeting infrastructure, or as the article says, “industrial command and control systems.” Zero Day, a recent novel by Mark Russinovich, a technical fellow at Microsoft and one of the authors of the excellent Winternals utility suite, deals with the potential harm such an …


Odds ‘n Sods:

This map originally posted in April is enlightening: Where to Live to Avoid a Natural Disaster. It also squares nicely with my American Redoubt locale recommendations. (A tip of the hat to Bill in Phoenix for the link.)    o o o J.B.G. sent this: Thieves, Seeking Quick Money, Steal X-Ray Film From Area Hospitals    o o o Submachine Guns, Pistols Stolen From LAPD SWAT Training Site    o o o Joe The Peacock reports: I Went To Occupy Wall Street. This Is What I Saw. (Thanks to Tim R. for the link.)    o o o Architecture Contest …



Notes from JWR:

It’s official: “Survivors” is #3 on the New York Times bestseller’s list (for fiction hardbacks.) Ditto over at Publisher’s Weekly. Thanks for making the novel such a great success. Among other things, your strong orders have driven the price down to $12.39. Many thanks! Your brief reviews of “Survivors” at the Amazon.com and the Barnes & Noble web sites would be greatly appreciated. It is notable that there have been a few reviews posted by racists that have skewed downward the book’s ratings average. For the record: I’m a Christian and an anti-racist. The Great Commission directs us to share …


How to Defend a Retreat Against Wheeled Vehicle Threats, by B.W. in Pennsylvania

I recently finished JWR’s latest novel “Survivors”and have read it predecessor, “Patriots”. I have realized that there were some things that the retreat owner could do to better prepare the land to prevent or slow down vehicles from entering your ground. Although the offsetting of obstacles works well in funneling, this does not stop vehicles. I think of my own retreat and how I plan on defending it, I thought back to my former MOS when I was in the service. Although I can block the roads into the farms that sit on the lane, there is a power line …


Letter Re: Uses For Discarded Satellite Dishes at a Retreat

Hello Jim, and Readers: Recently I was looking for a way to record some long distance sounds, and thought of a solution for Listening post observation posts.  I discovered  an old Dish Network or Direct TV dish will work fine with a microphone mounted to it. Using a UHF or N type bulkhead RF connector mounted to the point where the old  antenna LNB was mounted I drilled a hole large enough on the front of the antenna mount with a step drill for the base of the  RF connector, and 1/8th holes for the flange mount of the connector, and mounted …


Economics and Investing:

G.G. flagged this: The Austerity Myth: Federal Spending Up 5% This Year Greece Faces ‘Hellish Week’ as Debt Crisis Tests Nation. (Thanks to Alice C. for the link.) Also from Alice: Berlin tempers summit hopes, banks under pressure Items from The Economatrix: 10 Essential Fiscal Charts Demonstrating America’s Disastrous Condition Wall Street Lower As Banks Drag On Germany, Earnings Lowe’s Closes Stores, Lays Off 1,950 Workers