Fire Suppression for the Present, and for Post-TEOTWAWKI, by Keith H.

In the various TEOTWAWKI scenarios there will probably be no organized fire companies to help out the survivors with timely a fire suppression response. Here are some simple and low cost solutions that individuals can do to suppress and fight fires that are type A fires such as paper, cardboard, wood, cloth, plastics etc. Do not fight other fire types with water . Search engine “fire extinguisher types” to learn more. [JWR Adds: You should keep at least two 10+ pound A-B-C fire extinguishers in your home, for fighting grease, chemical, and electrical fires.] In many homes there is currently …


Letter Re: An Alternative to COSTCO for Storage Foods

Dear Mr. Rawles, I have just ordered your preparedness course. I can’t wait for it to get here. I’ve been reading your blog for about a year now and it has changed the way that I look at everything. My husband is slowly getting on board with the preparedness thing, but he has a long way to go. Our house burned down over 2-1/2 years ago and we have been fighting the insurance company and contractors ever since. We still live in a trailer so I don’t have much space for storage. But, we have found many places to hide …


Seven Letters Re: How Can I Make and Store Dog Food?

Mr. Rawles, My husband’s grandmother often told about her busy days during the depression, raising seven kids with almost nothing. At the end of her busy day, while cooking supper for her family, she had to make two or three pans of cornbread to feed her husband’s hunting dogs. The dogs were valuable because they helped her husband bring in rabbits and squirrel which sometimes were the only meat the family ate. I’ve always figured if I could no longer afford dog food, I would try Grandma’s cornbread solution. – S. in Indiana Sir, One way to feed your dogs …


Economics and Investing:

Ben M. mentioned a recent Wall Street Journal article: World Tries to Buck Up Dollar B.B. sent us the link to a television segment with Peter Schiff, in which he suggested gold might rise to $5,000 per ounce. “There is not top [for gold], because there is no foreseeable bottom for the dollar.” GG suggested this: China facing risk of debt-fueled crash Items from The Economatrix: Single US Banking Regulator Proposed Financial Crisis Made in West Hits East Hardest Dollar Falls to 15-Month Low Despite US Support UK: BofE Government Dampens Recovery Outlook NY State: We’ll Be Broke Before Christmas …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader “Sharp Shepherd” highlighted this article: Rental Goats Clear Brush Better, Beat Cosmonauts in Space Race    o o o Bridget sent this, about the ever-encroaching Nanny State Britannia: Every phone call, email and internet click stored by ‘state spying’ databases    o o o The folks at Directive 21 (one of our advertisers) are having a special on Royal Berkey water purification systems. The regular price is $275, but for a limited time they are $262.50. The sale will end when their small on-hand stock of the filters runs out, so don’t hesitate. OBTW, because of state certification issues, …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

Nothing is more certain than that a general profligacy and corruption of manners make a people ripe for destruction. A good form of government may hold the rotten materials together for some time, but beyond a certain pitch, even the best constitution will be ineffectual, and slavery must ensue. – John Witherspoon, The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men, 1776


Letter Re: How Can I Make and Store Dog Food?

James, I read the blog regularly and have noticed people mentioning the value of having a large dog on a property–for protection, extra set of ears, etc. Having recently purchased a German Shepherd puppy and seeing the costs of dog food rising, plus the looming dangers of hyperinflation and disruptions of supply chains, I’m wondering if anyone out there can share the recipe for a nutritious food for a large breed puppy/dog–especially a food that can be made from common items and stored. Otherwise, when the storm hits I may have a great dog, and no suitable food for her. …


Wound Irrigation in Austere Environments

TEOTWAWKI will result in a lot of wounds, including not just lacerations but scrapes and burns as well.  These will happen regardless of if the injury is the result of a disaster or if post-crash efforts lead to injury.  This is bad enough, but you could be in even more trouble if infection sets into one of these wounds.  A lot of preparedness/survival-types focus on suturing, including having access to suture material and instruments to allow for laceration repair. While this is all well and good, you shouldn’t focus too much on actual wound repair without first being sure that …


Influenza Pandemic Update:

Andre sent this from Radio Nederland: Madagascar! Slovakia closes borders with flu-hit Ukraine Bobbi-Sue mentioned that respected surgeon and fiction author Robin Cook thinks a mix of avian and swine flu could be the next global plague on the scale of the Black Death. In a piece in Foreign Policy magazine, he details why. Belarus Has 1/4 Million Swine Flu Cases Suspect H1N1 Death in Romania on Border With Ukraine US Pandemic Options Include Crippling Home Modems WHO Silence On Ukraine Sequences Raise Pandemic Concerns “In the days post shipment, cases in Ukraine have quadrupled to over 1 million and …


Economics and Investing:

Reader O.J.W. spotted this: Why the price of gold is rising Ryan mentioned this: Report: 10 states face looming budget disasters Jason H. and “Oxy” were the first of dozen readers to mention this article: Peak Gold? Barrick shuts hedge book as world gold supply runs out Items from The Economatrix: Fed Officials Warn Weak Recovery Won’t Spur Jobs Why Gold is Shining Brighter Gold Bars Selling Like Hotcakes at Harrod’s Gold Hits New Record, Now Eyes US $1200 Jim Willie: Ultimate Conditions for Recovery Failure Written into “Too Big” Policy Job Openings Remain Close to Record Lows FDIC Boss: …


Odds ‘n Sods:

D.F. in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula suggested this solar homesteading and woodworking web site: ManyTracks    o o o Jimmy suggested a YouTube clip on inexpensive heat and light: A Common Man’s Grease Lamp. It uses Australian beeswax and petroleum jelly mix, sold under the brand name Murray’s Beeswax. Buy a jar for each of your survival kits. OBTW, it will likely melt in a hot car trunk, so be sure to store each jar in two thicknesses of Ziploc bags. Or, if you live in a hot climate, perhaps re-pack your supply in a small water-tight container with an o-ring …



Letter Re: It Takes a Village for Perimeter Security

Jim: I’ve been reading your blog for some months and went out and purchased “Patriots” as soon as I learned about it. Good job, I very much enjoyed it and will probably read again and again as I often do with books I enjoy. After reading your ‘Precepts’, I thought I would drop you a note. because I have always appreciated anyone that agrees with me. First, I am a retired cop and a retired soldier so I have studied people in one career and weapons and equipment in another. I have been to a number of Third World countries …


Letter Re: The List of Lists

Jim: I’m writing this to thank you for your blog, novel and preparedness course. Reading those has revitalized my prepping efforts, which had gone dormant since Y2K fizzled. Since then, I had the nagging feeling that I should be preparing, but I wasn’t–until I stumbled across your novel in a local bookstore. Then I got back on track. (BTW, it was mis-shelved in with the “how-to” books! Or maybe it wasn’t mis-shelved, since its a novel that doesn’t fit any mold!) And it wasn’t until I read through your “Rawles Gets You Ready” course that I had any real sense …


Letter Re: Why I Began to Prepare

James Wesley, In September 2008 a chain of events began which got me thinking about food storage and survival. Living in a small bedroom community to a moderately large city we’ve always had food, water and electricity, except for an occasional day or so when we have a storm. However things changed when Hurricane Ike rolled through the Ohio Valley (along the Ohio river). We had power outages and destruction city-wide of the magnitude of what you would normally see from a tornado that hits part of the town. But in this case a city of 1.5 million was without …