Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — May 13, 2026

On May 13, 1916 the Lafayette Escadrille, a volunteer American air force unit under French command saw its first combat at the Battle of Verdun. — May 13, 1958: The trade mark “Velcro” was registered. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 124 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. This is the final round of the contest. There will not be a “Round 125”! The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value). American Gunsmithing Institute …


SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — Video: Rep. Chip Roy: Government-Mandated Kill Switch in Cars Violates the Fourth Amendment. o  o  o For those of you with Smart Phones, I heard about an interesting new inventory control app for preppers: PPantry. o  o  o



Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — May 12, 2026

On May 12, 1215, English barons served an ultimatum on King John. This eventually led to the creation and signing of the Magna Carta. –– May 12, 1942: A German U-boat sank a American cargo ship at the mouth of the Mississippi River. In 1942 and 1943, German submarines sank 56 ships in the Gulf region and damaged another 14. To prevent panic, the U.S. Office of Censorship limited press coverage of the sinkings. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 124 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. This is the final round of the contest. …


SurvivalBlog’s American Redoubt Media of the Week

This weekly column features media from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. Redoubt News Links Yellowstone’s first bear attack of 2026 leaves two hikers injured and a swath of the park in lockdown. Glacier National Park’s First Fatal Bear Attack Since 1998 Underscores Anomaly of Lethal Encounters. JWR’s Comments:  Folks often ask me if I carry Pepper Spray when I leave my ranch house. Yes, sometimes I do. But I far more often carry Lead Spray. Thankfully, open carry and …



Preparedness Notes for Monday — May 11, 2026

On May 11, 1910, Glacier National Park was established. — In the second week May of 1921 a solar storm began, dubbed The Great Geomagnetic Storm of May 1921. — Starting June 2nd, we will be switching to a weekly posting format for SurvivalBlog, with most posts on Tuesdays. — There are just 20 days left in THE FINAL ROUND of the SurvivalBlog Writing Contest. This is your last chance to get your entry in and win a prize.  After Round 124 ends, we will only be posting staff-written articles and guest articles from readers.  


Recipe: Lemon Marinated Pork

The following recipe for Lemon Marinated Pork is from SurvivalBlog reader Mrs. Alaska, who writes: In a one-gallon zip-loc bag, combine the following: Zest of one large (or two small) lemons, juice of one  or both lemons, ½ cup olive or other oil, one tablespoon each of two herbs of choice, such as thyme and rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper or cayenne, five cloves of garlic, chopped. To the marinade, add less than two pounds of pork chops or pork loin, cut into steaks.  I generally use 5 or 6 pieces of 1/2 inch meat for this …


SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

The week’s graphic shows the results of a US opinion poll on which rights someone would rather lose. (Graphic courtesy of Reddit.) JWR’s Comments: This poll illustrates two things: 1.) The visceral reaction of liberals, and 2.) The failure of liberals to realize that we can always “vote from the rooftops” (or, more tactically, vote from behind the treelines.) The thumbnail image below is click-expandable. — Please send your graphic ideas to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.  


The Editors’ Quote:

“They can think for themselves. They can decide how to do a task, which may be different than what you intended. They can grant privileges to each other. They can decide that they want to access something that you didn’t want them to access just because they need it to complete a task. They’re doing it with your credentials or your identity.” – Avihay Nathan, Senior Vice President of CyberArk, describing agentic A.I. risks


Preparedness Notes for Sunday — May 10, 2026

On May 10, 1775, the Green Mountain Boys captured Fort Ticonderoga, New York. The Green Mountain Boys were led by Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold. They surprised and captured the fort’s small British garrison. The cannons and other armaments captured at Fort Ticonderoga were later transported to Boston by Colonel Henry Knox and used to fortify Dorchester Heights and break the standoff at the siege of Boston. — May 10, 1837: New York City banks failed and unemployment reached record levels. (The Panic of 1837.) — And on May 10, 1971 US special delivery rates were increased from 45 …


A Change of Pace for SurvivalBlog

After more than 20 years of making daily SurvivalBlog posts, I am nearing the point of exhaustion. I realize that I have been spending far too much time online. My editing pace simply has to change. So, after some prayer and deliberation, I have decided to switch SurvivalBlog to a weekly posting schedule. Henceforth, you can expect to see: Starting on or about June 2, 2026 SurvivalBlog will be posted on Tuesdays, and perhaps the occasional Thursday, if the Tuesday posts get too crowded. So you can expect to see SurvivalBlog “Fresh Every Tuesday.” (Echoing the late, great Ol’ Remus.) …


JWR’s Meme Of The Week: 

The latest meme created by JWR, with wording and a photo suggested by SurvivalBlog reader Mike R.: Meme Text: I Demand That President Trump… Immediately Opens The Straight Vermouth Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks! Permission to repost memes that I’ve created is granted, provided that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.


The Editors’ Quote Of The Day:

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — May 9, 2026

On May 9, 1754, the first newspaper cartoon was published in America. It depicted a divided snake with the words “Join or Die” by Benjamin Franklin. It was published in The Pennsylvania Gazette. — May 9, 1916: A wind-blown fire in Ellendale, North Dakota destroyed three blocks of businesses, a church, and 21 homes. — Today’s feature article is a guest post from our friend Brandon Smith, the editor of the Alt-Market.us blog, which we highly recommend bookmarking. – JWR — We still need entries for Round 124 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $984,000 worth of prizes …