Odds ‘n Sods:

Cheryl sent us a link to a PDF from Brookings: Which Path to Persia: Options for a New American Strategy Toward Iran    o o o Reader “MysteryMeat” mentioned this New York Times article: It’s Now Legal to Catch a Raindrop in Colorado    o o o SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson recommended two John Campbell (The Arizona Bushman) outdoor survival videos available on YouTube: The Hand Fire Drill and a Field Expedient Bow    o o o The folks at Directive21 (one of our newest advertisers) have expanded their product line to include stainless steel Berkey water …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Inflation is a special concern over the next decade given the pending avalanche of government debt about to be unloaded on world financial markets. The need to finance very large fiscal deficits during the coming years could lead to political pressure on central banks to print money to buy much of the newly issued debt.” – Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, from commentary in The Financial Times, June 26, 2009


Note from JWR:

The new “Best Defense: Survival” television series starts on The Outdoor Channel on July 1st. The series is hosted by Michael Bane and features Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large) in short segments of each of the 10 episodes, covering disaster preparedness. The details that Mike Williamson will cover are water, food, economic preparation and communication–before a disaster, while evacuating from a disaster area, and during long-term crises. Be sure to watch this very informative and useful show!


Reader Survey: What Are Your Favorite Preparedness and Self-Sufficiency Books?

I am seeking input from SurvivalBlog readers: What are your favorite non-fiction books that relate to Preparedness, Self-Sufficiency, and Practical Skills? Just e-mail me a list of your top five book titles, with the authors’ names. Oh, and if any of them are obscure or likely out of print, then please include the publisher’s name, city, and year of publication. I plan to post the results of the survey in the blog, in roughly 10 days. Thanks!


Letter Re: Avoiding Influenza When Traveling Overseas

James, My work forces me to travel frequently – 80 to 90% of the time. And it’s not to fun places like Miami or Rio but rather third world locales (just coming back from a swing through the ‘stans – Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan — where I have a large telecommunications project). As such I get exposed to every imaginable sort of illness. I finally found a doctor I could work with when he started to ask where I had been lately rather than what the symptoms were. As such I have a larger than normal medical kit …


Letter Re: Medical Corps Offering a Field Dentistry Class in August

Jim: I thought that SurvivalBlog readers might be interested in a Dental class being conducted by Dr. Loomis (DDS) in Tennessee. Tom Loomis has been teaching at our classes for almost as long as we have had the school. On August 14-15 he will be teaching a Field Dentistry class near his office in Tennessee. The student will get the unheard of chance to fill cavities, replace broken or missing crowns, extract teeth and use a high speed dental drill. The drill is the same type used in any dental office. Several years ago I asked him if he could …


Two Letters Re: Last Minute G.O.O.D. Versus Well-Considered Early Relocation

Jim: The figure [cited by “Feral Farmer”] of 100 square miles per hunter-gatherer can’t be correct. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers (9,540,000 square miles). So, at 100 square mile per hunter gatherer, would only support 95,400 natives. Considering that large chunks of the Arctic and desert are minimal in their resources, not to mention Greenland, this figure (100 sq mi) can’t be correct. Here are a couple of online references: Agricultural practices and policies for carbon sequestration in soil By John M. Kimble, Rattan Lal, Ronald F. Follett and, Food, Energy, and Society By David …


Influenza Pandemic Update:

CDC Eyes 600 Million Doses of Swine Flu Shots “Health officials said that a swine flu vaccination campaign could be only a few months away, and that as many as 60 million doses could be ready by September.” [JWR Adds: With the current rapid rate of mutation, one can only wonder about the efficacy of this “rush job” vaccine.] Oregon’s Second Swine Flu Death “The child was younger than 5 year old [and] had ‘no known underlying medical conditions and a two-day history of fever,’ and was not hospitalized, officials said.” Drug-Resistant Swine Flu Seen in Danish Patient The BBC …


Economics and Investing:

The Federal Reserve and the U.S. Treasury are cooking the books! Read between the lines in this Wall Street Journal article: Is Foreign Demand as Solid as It Looks? (Thanks to GG for the link.) Once a nation’s treasury starts “creative accounting” and debt monetization, then the handwriting is on the wall. The death spiral for the US Dollar has already begun. It just won’t be obvious to everyone for another 6 to 12 months. That is when mass currency inflation will likely begin, and once it does, barring a miracle, there will be nothing that can stop it. F.G. …


Odds ‘n Sods:

A report on Field Day: Ham radio operators not yielding to future. (Thanks to KAF for the link.)    o o o Kevin A. mentioned: The Day that Guns Came to Church in Louisville    o o o North Korea Threatens to Shoot Down Japanese Spy Planes    o o o Switchblade law opponents cut in Hill fight (Thanks to GG for the link.)



Note from JWR:

Some great news! Because book sales have remained strong, Amazon.com placed a huge-re-order for thousands of copies of my novel “Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse”. The economies of scale allowed them to drop their price to just $6.96. (They had previously sold it for more than $10, and its official cover price is still $14.95.) If you are planning to buy a few copies for birthday and Christmas gifts, then this is now your chance to get some for under $7 each!


Letter Re: An Outward Bound Prepper’s Perspective

Hi Jim, I’m new to your site and books but not to the concepts and precepts. My dad had a survivalist/self-sufficient mindset with a cool mix of Native American philosophy and know-how. I didn’t eat store bought meat or baked goods until I was 10 or 12 and thought processing shoulders of venison in the kitchen was the norm. We had a huge garden and fruit tree orchard. My mom was a master at canning; although I think it should be called “jarring” because you’re putting it in jars, not cans. He collected, traded, and rebuilt guns and amassed quite …


Five Letters Re: The Survivalist’s Guide to Martial Arts

Jim, I agree with your writer that Muay Thai and Grappling (wrestling, BJJ, etc.) are essential fighting skills. I even admit that my two black belts in traditional arts were not worth much compared to a good grappler or kick boxer. However the idea that avoiding the ground is rule #1 is not necessarily true. A grappler can control a situation very effectively on the ground and it is often then case that you can’t avoid going to the ground in a fight. Further, people of smaller stature (women especially) who cannot run from an encounter have an advantage on …


Letter Re: Transcript From a Colorado Flu Pandemic Meeting

Sir, The June 25, 2009 InfraGard meeting was on the pending pandemic. The speakers were Robin K. Koons, Ph.D., epidemiologist for the Colorado Emergency Preparedness and the Director of FEMA for the State of Colorado. This InfraGard meeting was non-restricted, so these notes may be shared: [begin transcript] It is anticipated that 30% of the working population, 42 million people, will become ill. 70% of the working population, 150 million people, will not get ill, and will have to run the country. In 1918 out of the 30% that became ill, 2% died. Infrastructure may not meet human needs. Supply …