Social Networking for the Survivor, by Joshua R.

Social Networking for the Survivor, by Joshua R. It used to be called a ‘couple of buddies’, a ‘circle of friends’, a ‘community’, a ‘neighborhood’…now we have a ‘social network’.  But whatever you call it, we humans are social creatures and surrounding yourself with like minded individuals is enriching to every aspect of life.  As preppers or survivalists (or whatever term helps you feel cozy), we seem to constantly buck the trends of our naïve society and end up feeling a bit lone wolfish.  Through the last two years, as my mentality shifted to one of preparedness and sustainability, I’ve …


Letter Re: Question on Burying a CONEX

Dear Mr. Rawles,   My husband and I live in rural North Central Florida.  We have been working on our food storage and supplies for years.  I keep everything in my house but my husband and I are frugal and we keep the air at 80 degrees in the summer and 68 – 70 in the winter.  Not ideal for long preservation.   We have been discussing a storage shelter for years and I would like your readers and your input on an ideal that I’ve been kicking around.  I was thinking of purchasing a steel freight CONEX container, coating …


Economics and Investing:

B.B. flagged this piece at Zero Hedge: Nordea’s Chart of the Week – Collapsing US Import Demand AmEx (American Ex-pat) sent this bit of gloomage $2 Trillion debt crisis threatens to bring down 100 US cities Over at the It’s All About MunKnee blog: The U.S. Dollar: Too Big to Fail? Items from The Economatrix: Bernanke Denies Printing Money.  Mogambo Not Convinced.   Will Congress Delete Mortgage Deduction?   Higher Gasoline Prices May Linger Into 2011   Oil Prices Climb Amid Cold Snap  


Odds ‘n Sods:

Larry C. wrote to note that Patrice Lewis wrote about the “Golden Horde” in a recent World Net Daily article. Hopefully more WND readers will wake up and start prepping.    o o o Our friend Bob G. sent: 2010’s world gone wild: Quakes, floods, blizzards    o o o J.B.G. sent a link to an article in The Telegraph: Shops hit by snow chaos and panic buying    o o o Ferdinand mentioned this project: Solar Powered DIY Portable Hot Spot    o o o Nature Girl wrote to say that she found a very interesting map tool that …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 32 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge …


Make Your Own Colloidal Silver, by Bob S.

Silver has been known for thousands of years as a killer of pathogens.  The early Greeks noticed that the wealthy people (who used silver utensils) seemed to never get sick as did the common folk.  In the middle ages, the royal families used exclusively silver dinnerware, and in the mid-1800s in this country, pioneers kept silver coins in their water barrels to guard against pathogens picked up from the trail watering holes. My own grandma placed a silver dollar in the milk can to keep the milk from clabbering in the summertime. There is absolutely no known bacteria, virus or …


Letter Re: Low Power D.C. Lighting

Awhile back I put up several strings of same color strings of  LED Christmas tree lights from Inirgee. They have been just wonderful to deal with over the years. The blue strings work great in the outhouse at night because you don’t lose your night vision. Outside around the house, I tried the cool white but the warm white strings worked much better outside under the eaves. They make a very nice non-obtrusive lighting around the house at night and they are extremely conservative on power. They really make it nice on the driveway and walks. Then I found a …


Letter Re: ATVs for Preppers

JWR: There are some aftermarket mufflers that just about silence the ATV’s.  I use one on my Yamaha when I choose to take my ATV hunting.  While it does not get rid of all the sounds, I would say that it quiets the ATV by about 80%.  ATVSilencer.com is one such vendor of many.  This is the one I use and it wasn’t too bad for me (a computer guy) to install.  The only other issue I have with the ATV bugout scenario is the effects of EMP on ATV’s.  I am in the process of designing and fabricating a …


Economics and Investing:

KAF sent us this: Facing Closure, U.S.’s Largest Sleeping Bag Maker Seeks Relief From Free Trade Loophole. (JWR Adds: Meanwhile, Wiggy’s, a sleeping bag manufactures that produces all of their products in the U.S. at their small Colorado soldiers on, seeking no handouts or special treatment. This SurvivalBlog advertiser deserves your business!) Reader R.M. sent this: Moody’s slashes Irish debt to three grades above junk. Ouch! So what will a Punt be worth, if Ireland is ejected from the Euro circle? And what does this tell us about the indebtedness of the U.S. government? John R. recommended this piece over …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Gregory C. suggested this piece by Gerald Celente: 10 Trends for 2011    o o o Andrew sent us some news from England: Farmer accidentally shot burglars. (And of course who did the constables immediately arrest? The land owner, not the trespassing dope growers. In Wyoming, he’d get a commendation.)    o o o F.J. mentioned a little $12 item that might be a good addition to your EDC key chain: The Split-Pea Lighter.    o o o Chalk up three for the good guys: Houston Jeweler Kills Three Armed Robbers. (Thanks to J.S. for the link.)    o o …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 32 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge …


Emergency Preparedness, Two Liters at a Time, by Roy P.

My son handed me a book to read this Thanksgiving titled “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” by James Wesley, Rawles. He had a stack of them and gave them to all his ‘important people’. The title intrigued me. Although I never really considered myself a Survivalist in the way that the media might portray one, I have stored food and supplies for emergencies throughout my life. The book was well written and easy to read, as I read it in two days and it has inspired me to once again get serious about …


Avalanche Lily’s Bedside Book Pile

Here are the current top-most items on my perpetual bedside pile: I just finished reading One Second After by William R. Forstchen, with a foreword by Newt Gingrich. This is a novel based on the the after-effects of a high altitude EMP blast that wipes out North America’s power grids one spring afternoon. It focuses on the aftermath in a small town in western, North Carolina. It was written with the literal intent to inform and raise the awareness of the American public to the very real danger our country could face from an EMP attack. The storyline was intensely …