Letter Re: Avoid Using Anti-Bacterial Soaps

Mr. Rawles, I’d like to respond to the Cleanliness article by P. J. W.. The author recommended “lather (with anti-bacterial soap).” Readers should be aware of how unnecessary anti-bacterial soap is and how it’s loaded with negative side effects. Although anti-bacterial soap is best at reducing bacteria during hand washing, the use of non-antibacterial soap and water alone are most effective at removing viruses. See this YouTube clip. Also see this Mercola article. (You may need to register to read, though registration is free.) Studies have shown that people who use antibacterial soaps and cleansers can often develop a cough, …


Economics and Investing:

From The Daily Bell in Switzerland: The West’s Pending Paper Money Implosion M.B. sent this: Here Are The Next Countries to Announce a Currency Intervention Also from M.B.: The Real Underemployment Figure is 22.5% Why California is About to Fall Off Into an Ocean of Unpayable Debt Items from The Economatrix: Martin Weiss: G-20 Heads Up: Losing Battle To Stem Currency Wars Tab For Fannie, Freddie Could Soar to $259 Billion Jobless Claims Fall to 452,000, But Remain Elevated Mortgage Rates Rise to 4.21% From Decades Low Natural Gas Prices Tumble as Supplies Grow America’s Bright Future After US Treasury …


Odds ‘n Sods:

G.H. highlighted this article: Hunger & Starvation to Visit Humanity: Into the Ashes.    o o o Observations from Gabe Suarez: The General Purpose Combat Rifle    o o o Bob G. mentioned: Medicinal Herb Uses and Picture Gallery    o o o New to my Blogroll: ModernSurvivalOnline.com



Notes from JWR:

I’m happy to report that “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” will soon be published in Russian. There are now seven foreign publishing contracts in place, for editions in six languages. — Today we present two entries 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 …


The Forgotten Skills, by Andrew C.

First please allow me to give you a little background on myself. I have been preparing for TEOTWAWKI for about nineteen years but I have focused (until recently) on wilderness survival. I even managed to get a book published on how to survive when you get stranded in the middle of nowhere (it is called What We Forgot a lesson in survival). About a year ago I heard about this site while I was listening to Coast to Coast one night and I was so thrilled to find out that I was not alone in my thinking. Since then I …


Cleanliness–Maximize Your Productivity and Protect Your Investment, by P.J.W.

Your preps are complete, your house is bomb proof, you run on alternative energy, and you are on the top of a mountain surrounded by a moat… Who can defeat you? Yourself! It doesn’t matter how extensively you have prepped, how secure your retreat is, or how well you are prepared for a TEOTWAWKI situation, if you let it all fall apart from the inside! So what are some simple things that you can do to set yourself up for success? We’ve all heard the proverb “Cleanliness is next to Godliness” and most of us have heard the expression “Don’t …


Guest Article: Future Chaos: There Is No “Plan B”, by Chris Martenson

Note: This article builds on my recent report, Prediction: Things Will Unravel Faster Than You Think. It explores the coming energy crunch in more detail by looking at existing government planning and awareness, and the implications of what international recognition of Peak Oil as early as 2012 might mean. The hard news is that there is no “Plan B.” The future is likely to be more chaotic than you probably think. This was the primary conclusion that I came to after attending the most recent Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas (ASPO) in Washington, DC in October, …


Three Letters Re: Keeping Secrets in Suburbia–Constructing Our Hidden Basement Room

James Wesley: In the article “Keeping Secrets in Surburbia–Constructing Our Hidden Basement Room, the author describes the difficulty they had removing hard-packed dirt with the consistency of dried concrete, and using an air chisel to break it up for removal and excavation. I’ve faced a similar problem with an underground excavation of a basement and egress tunnel in the granite and sandstone beneath the foundation of my own retreat home in the Western US. My answer came in the form of a good deal on a slightly used Bosch #11304 “Brute” breaker hammer electric jackhammer, suitable for use either with …


Economics and Investing:

J.B.G. sent this: Officials hint Fed on the verge of more easing. Thanks to S.M. for sending this bit of confirmation to an earlier report: China Said to Widen Its Embargo of [Rare Earth] Minerals Sue C. sent: 11 state pension funds that may run of out money Items from The Economatrix: Gerald Celente: “We Are Living On Borrowed Time” Reaching For Yield In The Bond Market (The Mogambo Guru) Dollar Declines for Fifth Straight Week on Prospects of More Monetary Easing By Fed Say Good-bye To Traditional Free Checking Silver On The Move Silver Shipments From China, Biggest Exporter, …


Odds ‘n Sods:

K. in Montana sent this: Demand for Guns, Food Stamps Indicates Uncertainty    o o o Cyber attack threat ‘could be next Pearl Harbor’    o o o End of the Earth Postponed. (Thanks to Ian for the link.)    o o o Rob H. highlighted this: French Fuel Depots Forced Open Amid Strikes



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 …


Keeping Secrets in Suburbia–Constructing Our Hidden Basement Room, by A.

A year ago our preparations had grown to a point where it was becoming noticeable to the guests who visited our home. Our ability to keep our tin foil hat craziness under raps was becoming increasingly difficult. Aside from the fact that we have teenage boys and a daughter and all of their friends regularly tromping through our house, for security reasons alone, all of our assets were virtually displayed in our basement and needed to be hidden. Yes, our guns are in safes, but the last thing we need is some parent freaking about ammo cans, reloading equipment or …


Letter Re: Evacuating Wisely — With Livestock

James, Growing up and living on the Gulf Coast, for about 50 years, has given a lot of evacuation experiences to me. The most educational evacuation for us was Hurricane Rita. We thought Rita was coming inland way south of us. A family had evacuated to our house. Got a early morning call, that Rita had grown and was heading right at us. Visitors were sent on their way and we began loading up. Now loading up is a major logistics operation, as we have a farm. We successfully evacuated 4 equines, 3 dogs, 3 people and 3 vehicles. 7 …