Economics and Investing:

“Crisis is an Opportunity”: Engineering a Global Depression to Create a Global Government From The Telegraph: Greece reignites Europe debt woes And Harry is so humble, too: Reid: But for Me, We’d Be in Worldwide Depression Brett Arends: Warning: Retirement Disaster Ahead Items from The Economatrix: Durable Goods Orders Rise, Business Spending Cools Stocks Fall Amid Questions About Fed Plan Northfolk Southern 3Q Profits Soars As Shipments Rise Gerald Celente: The Economy, Wars, What’s Next? Night Of The Living Fed China Ministers: Dollar Printing Out Of Control


Inflation Watch:

The Monetization of Lumber National 17.5%, California 22% Global Food Crisis Forecast As Prices Reach Record Highs Fed looks set for new round of monetary easing From Zero Hedge: A Quick Glance at Real World Inflation The chart says it all. The official hedonic-adjusted inflation figures are laughable. Federal Reserve Asset Buying May Reach $2 Trillion, Goldman’s Hatzius Says


Odds ‘n Sods:

Electromagnetic pulse impact far and wide. (Thanks to Chet for the link.)    o o o I’ve been mentioning Peak Oil in SurvivalBlog since 2005. Here is a scary bit of confirmation that oil supplies may indeed reach their limit in this century: Alaska’s untapped oil reserves estimate lowered 90 percent    o o o F.G. liked this one: The Toyota Pickup – Why U.S. Special Ops Units Prefer it



Note from JWR:

I must address a Federal Regulation. Consider this my annual statement: Per FTC File No. P034520, I state for the record that I accept cash-paid advertising. To the best of my knowledge, as of the date of this posting, none of my advertisers have solicited me or paid me to write any reviews or endorsements, nor have they provided me any free or reduced-price gear in exchange for any reviews or endorsements.


Back to the Basics–Heating, Cooling, and Water All in One, by Mike C.

Description A quick “how to” system that will gather air on one end, run it underground, and output it to another system that collects the moisture from it in order to produce drinking water while altering the temperature of a living structure to a level that can sustain life.  Please note that every house, landscape, and geographical location can be vastly different than the next and it’s therefore impossible to give a thorough how to, independent research must be conducted by the reader. Introduction Preppers have the amazing talent of separating need from want in life, and the need factor …


Guest Article: Expired Medications–Are They Safe? Are They Effective? Part 2, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

In Part I of this series, I explained the definition of pharmaceutical expiration dates and ‘do not use beyond’ dates, and how both are determined. Additionally, I reviewed information from the Shelf Life Extension Program (SLEP) database, which led to a temporary Emergency Use Authorization in 2009, permitting the use of certain Tamiflu products (to treat H1N1 influenza) for up to an additional five years beyond the imprinted expiration date. (See Part I of this series for more information. ) Part II will examine the data regarding use of common antibiotics beyond their expiration dates. The following is excerpted from …


Two Letters Re: Our Experience with a Chimney Fire

Mr. Rawles: Regarding the reader who had the chimney fire and put it out with a 10 pound bag of baking soda: We were told by our fire chief that some insurance companies will refuse to pay for damage done in an “undocumented” chimney fire. How do you “document” a chimney fire? You have to call the fire department, and then it becomes a matter of record. In addition, putting the fire out in the firebox does not guarantee that a smaller fire isn’t burning somewhere up in the attic or the eaves. So you might be embarrassed, but even …


Economics and Investing:

Dollar Selloff Is Going ‘Too Far, Too Fast’: Strategist. (Thanks to Susan H. for the link.) Greece Likely to Default Within Three Years, El-Erian Says Seal Beach home from a price listing of $2,900,000 to selling for $900,000. Chasing the housing market down. Could someone be expecting a market crash? Watch the smart money: Insider Selling Volume at Highest Level Ever Tracked. (Thanks to Jonathan C. for the link.) Items from The Economatrix: Stocks Eke Out Gains On Mixed Earnings Consumer Confidence Rises Only Slightly in October Steel Industry’s Outlook Gloomer on Slower Growth Foreclosures Push Home Prices Down in …


Inflation Watch:

TIPS Inflation Bonds Get Negative Yield for First Time Bernanke Asset Purchases Risk Unleashing 1970s Inflation Genie Germany Calls Out Geithner’s Hypocrisy, Says Money Printing Is FX Intervention Dollar At Risk Of Becoming “Toxic Waste” Oil Could Hit $100 Barrel Soon, Says JPMorgan Coffee at 13-Year High, Sugar Surges Rising Cost of Kimchi Alarms Koreans Global food crisis forecast as prices reach record highs


Odds ‘n Sods:

Jason in Central New York mentioned this PDF from the NRC : High-Impact, Low-Frequency Event Risk to the North American Bulk Power System (regarding the risks posed by Cyber or Physical Coordinated Attacks, Pandemics, and Geomagnetic Disturbance / Electro-magnetic Pulse.    o o o The folks at J&G Sales in Arizona noted in their latest e-newsletter: “Starting the end of January no ammo dealers including J&G Sales may continue to ship handgun ammo to individuals that live in California. This is a new law, now passed and signed by Governor Arnold [Schwarzenegger] called AB962. All handgun ammo sales in California …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 31 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 between $500 and $600, 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 500 round case of …


A Rude Awakening, by Ruth E. in Hawaii

Power outages are quite common here in Hawaii. It seems like a couple of times a month, the lights flicker, get dim, and then go out. Sometimes they stay out for an hour or longer. We recently had a blackout on one whole side of our island, which truly woke me up to the possibilities of an endless blackout (worse-case scenario). Usually I come out of an anxiety session unscathed, but since I currently belong to an emergency preparedness group, I have been reading tons about the many scenarios that could happen to our island home including tsunamis, earthquakes, flooding, …


Letter Re: A Closer Look at Bank Closures–Failed Banks Without Buyers

James Wesley, You recently posted this article: Seven banks closed in Fla., Ga., Ill., Kan. Remember something we’ve been trying to focus on? Watch closely for banks for which the FDIC cannot find a buyer. Read closely… in that article there were a couple banks that were only partially purchased by other banks. The FDIC held on to some of the liabilities of some of the banks. The real zinger is the First Arizona Savings bank – completely shut down, no buyer, no more bank. The FDIC is sending checks to those customers (hope you didn’t have more than $250,000 …