Preparedness Notes for Saturday — December 21, 2024

The Winter Solstice has finally arrived. Those of us who are gardeners can now look forward to longer days and a Spring planting date.  Patience, folks! — On December 21, 1784, John Jay became acting US Secretary of State. He served in that office from 1789 to 1790. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him. I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — December 20, 2024

December 20, 1192: On his way home from the Third Crusade, English King Richard the Lionheart (Richard Cœur de Lion) was captured near Vienna by troops of Leopold of Austria. He was released 1194. — On December 20th, 1606, the Virginia Company loaded three ships with settlers and set sail to establish Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, another look at Equities markets. (See the Equities section.) Precious Metals: On Wednesday (December 18, 2024) “the bell rang” when spot silver dipped down to below $30 per Troy ounce. To restate my position from my recent investing columns: Silver is a bargain, anywhere below $30.50.  So stack it deep! – JWR o  o  o …



Preparedness Notes for Thursday — December 19, 2024

On December 19, 1732, Benjamin Franklin, under the pseudonym Richard Saunders, began publication of “Poor Richard’s Almanack”. He produced an annual issue for the next 25 years. — December 19, 1972: Apollo 17 — the last of Apollo manned Moon landing series — returned to Earth, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean, southeast of Samoa. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model …


The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, a further examination of the mysterious New Jersey drone swarms. Mystery Drones Could Be Trying to Find ‘Radioactive Material’ Over at Newsweek: Mystery Drones Could Be Trying to …



Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — December 18, 2024

On December 18, 216 BC, in the Second Punic War: Battle of the Trebia. Hannibal’s Carthaginian army defeated Roman forces on Roman soil. — December 18, 1777: The first national Thanksgiving Day, commemorating British General Burgoyne’s surrender. — December 18th is the birthday of Charles Wesley (18 December 1707 – 29 March 1788). He wrote more than 1,700 hymns. — Today is also the birthday of Jørgen Haagen Schmith (born December 18, 1910, died October 15, 1944). He was better known under the codename “Citron” and was a famous Danish resistance fighter in occupied Denmark. His biographical sketch at Wikipedia …


SurvivalBlog’s Annual Disclaimers, Provisos, and Public Notices

Fulfilling my annual duty… SurvivalBlog, a private information service, is obliged to post some disclaimers and provisos, annually. These notices are current as of December 17, 2024 and remain in force unless later specifically revoked or modified by the Editor. Advertising and Reviews Per FTC File No. P034520: SurvivalBlog accepts cash-paid advertising. We also have affiliate advertising  relationships. To the best of my knowledge, as of the date of this posting, none of our advertisers that sell the products mentioned in this blog have solicited SurvivalBlog or our staff to write any reviews or endorsements, nor have they provided me …


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. — Jordan Peterson Flees “Totalitarian Hellhole” Canada For U.S. Due To Censorship, Taxes. The  article begins: “There were a number of celebrities claiming they’d move to Canada if President Trump was re-elected, but now there’s one Canadian who’s doing the opposite. World famous psychologist Jordan Peterson has said Canada is turning into a “totalitarian …



Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — December 17, 2024

On December 17th, 1718, France, Britain and Austria declared war on Spain. (War of the Quadruple Alliance 1718–1720.) — December 17th, 1905, was the birthday of Simo Häyhä, who was the world’s most successful sniper. Using an iron-sighted Mosin–Nagant in Finland’s Winter War, he had an astounding 505 confirmed sniper kills. He died April 1, 2002. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the …


SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements 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. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, we focus on Bureau Of Land Management (BLM) control of western lands.   (See the Region Wide section.) Region-Wide An update: In August, Utah and 12 other states filed a suit, challenging BLM control over western lands:  ‘Without merit’: Feds respond to Utah’s public land lawsuit. …