Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 23 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. I think that you’ll find this one both informative and quite entertaining. 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 foods, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. Second Prize: A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with …


The Jump Kit, by Skyrat

Inside the trunk of my vehicle is a near duplicate of the “jump kit” or “Green Bag” used in my days with the Detroit Fire Department’s Emergency Medical Service Division. When I come across a roadside collision before the local medics, everything I need to start patient care is in the green canvas bag I sling over my shoulder. The supplies in my personal vehicle are very much like those I carried in my street medic days, and reflect a strong basic life support/trauma bias. Basic life support includes those interventions that do not go past the skin, and generally …


Letter Re: Societal Collapse: The Albanian Experience (Circa 1997)

Mr. Rawles, I’m a new SurvivalBlog reader, and your blog goes along a lot with many of my own thoughts and precautions; things many people these days consider ridiculous, but that an old instructor of mine (from a gov’t agency that shall go unnamed) would probably call “maintaining a healthy level of paranoia”. In browsing your blog and its archives, I have been surprised to find no mention of the Albanian crisis in 1997. I believe that it offers a strong example of how quickly and unexpectedly a (relatively) advanced society can descend into chaos, and how drastic the consequences …


Letter Re: Feedback on The American Empire is Bankrupt

JWR: I was puzzled by the piece by Chris Hedges (The American Empire is Bankrupt, from truthdig.com) that you linked to in Friday’s SurvivalBlog. There are two huge, crucial, inestimable, incredibly fundamental flaws in Hedges’ article: * One is his assessment of the primary cause of the American national bankruptcy, * The second is his conclusions as to who will be causing the greatest social disruption in our nation as that bankruptcy starts impacting our daily lives. First, the fundamental causes of the American bankruptcy. Hedges quotes heavily from an article from & interview by The Financial Times’ Michael Hudson. …


Economics and Investing:

Harry Schultz warns Bob Chapman’s newsletter readers of a possible upcoming “bank holiday.” From KAF: A Fake Financial Fix Glenn M. recommended this article and the accompanying video clip: Thirty Years of Inflation Coming, But “Deflation Scare” Not Over Yet, Cycle Maven Says Karen H. sent this: Derivatives Get Second Look From U.S. Congress That Didn’t Act. I warned SurvivalBlog readers almost four years ago about the threat posed by derivatives.(Please take tee time to re-read that article.) The frightening thing is that we have not yet seen the derivatives bubble fully implode–just one sector.. Also from Karen: States Turning …


Odds ‘n Sods:

From frequent contributor KAF: This gardener grows enough to share    o o o Pets Pass MRSA Superbug to Humans (Thanks to Jim F. for the link.)    o o o Sam L. sent an interesting article about potential catastrophic earthquakes in Southern California    o o o Reader Susan K. flagged this: In a St. Paul lab, scientists race to defeat a wheat famine ‘time bomb’



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 23 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. 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 foods, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. Second Prize: A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $350. Third Prize: A copy of …


Going the Extra Mile in Amateur Communications, by Extraman

I really enjoyed reading the great novel “Patriots”. In reading it, I picked up lots of good tips along the way. But I felt it really had very little contemporary information about communications, other than the chapter “Radio Ranch” which finally touched on an individual with a serious interest in radio communications. The use of Single Sideband (SSB), Citizens Band (CB) 27 Mhz radios, along with slightly modified “old” style low cost hand held “cheapo” radios really leaves a lot to be desired regarding how it could be done, on a fairly low budget. It is my sincere belief that …


Letter Re: Cuban Spy Ring Arrests Raises Concern of Ham Radio Restrictions

Jim: This article concerns me: Cuban spies’ shortwave radios go undetected: Low-tech transmissions no big deal for U.S. intelligence. The journalist mentions: “The International Amateur Radio Union said there are more than 700,000 amateur radio operators in the United States.” I hope the governmental paranoia does not try to constrain the best method of rural emergency communications. – KAF JWR Replies: Without mentioning anything classified, I can safely say that they are describing clandestine operatives in in the US. receiving the old-fashioned HF “Numbers” broadcasts from Cuba. These are typically code groups of five numbers, read aloud by a woman, …


Letter Re: It Will Be Skills, Not Gear That Will Count in TEOTWAWKI

JWR, Skill is critical, parts and tools can be improvised. While I agree with C.A.Y.: “… the combination of skills plus tools plus parts is what’s needed”, there are important exceptions. In some south asia villages, a highly skilled artificer [with a few assistants] can create a self-loading pistol, per day, without parts, and only the most primitive tools of drills, belt sanders and files. The steel is recycled from wrecked cars and trucks. The skill is what makes this possible. This town near the Khyber Pass makes one thousand guns per day. Look at minute marks 3:33 and 3:46 …


Five Letters Re: Escape From (Fill in Your City Here), 2009

Jim, I live in a rural farming area east of the Mississippi and can tell you that cutting a gate or fence would be a very bad choice (in this area).  In 99% of the cases you would already be on private property, so cutting the fence or gate would be considered a “hostile” act.   Most of the folks I know would shot first and ask questions later . . . these folks all hunt, so they are not likely to miss . . . and trust me they know when someone is on their property.   When the police are …


Influenza Pandemic Update:

E627K Acquisition In Swine H1N1 Raises Pandemic Concerns “The acquisition of E627K creates concern that the virus will evolve into a more lethal agent that will be associated with an increased case fatality rate in previously healthy young adults, as was seen in the 1918 Pandemic.” The first death from swine flu in Australia Old People May Be Immune to Swine Flu


Economics and Investing:

KAF found this one: Standard & Poor’s cuts ratings on 18 banks Also from KAF comes this item from Foreign Policy: What Does the End of the Recession Look Like? Another week, another three banks bite the dust: North Carolina, Georgia, Kansas Bank Seizures Cost $363 Million. (Thanks to Karen H. for the link.) Dr. Gary North on Inflation Versus Deflation. (Thanks to OSOM for the link.) Another from Karen H.: Port of Los Angeles Inbound Shipping Container Traffic Down 18% Krys in Idaho sent this: Is this the death of the dollar?