“You do not rise to the occasion in combat, you sink to the level of your training. Do not expect the combat fairy to come bonk you with the combat wand and suddenly make you capable of doing things that you never rehearsed before. It will not happen.” – Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, On Combat
Today marks the birthday of Eli Whitney, (1765–1825) the inventor of the labor-saving cotton gin, several firearms, and dozens of other mechanical devices. He was the first to demonstrate the advantages of fully interchangeable parts, in firearms manufacture. — We are in great need of entries for Round 104 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $750,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 104 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for …
JWR’s Introductory Note: This article is an update and substantial expansion to a piece that I wrote back in December of 2005. — The majority of SurvivalBlog readers that I talk and correspond with tell me that they live in cities or suburbs, but they would like to live full-time at a retreat in a rural area. Their complaint is almost always the same: “…but I’m not self-employed. I can’t afford to live in the country because I can’t find work there, and the nature of my work doesn’t allow telecommuting.” They feel stuck. The recent Wu Flu pandemic proved …
SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at the North Carolina Substations Attacks. Netherlands to Shut Down 3,000 Farms First up, SurvivaBlog reader D.S.V. found this piece at Australia’s SkyNews: ‘War against humanity’: Netherlands to shut down 3,000 …
“The possession of unnecessary implements makes difficult the collection of taxes and dues and tends to foment uprisings.” – Toyotomi Hideyoshi, during Japan’s Great Sword Hunt
On a Sunday morning, in 1941, America was caught sleeping. Then, six decades later, there was that September morning, in 2001. Let’s pray that nothing like those days ever happens again. – JWR — The 2600 Upgrade PVS-14 night vision monocular/weapons sight sale at Ready Made Resources will end on Thursday, December 8, 2022. With this sale, you will save $400 off normal retail and receive what is normally a $200 upgrade to a 2600 FOM unit. They are in stock and ready to ship, at $3,595. — Special Note: Today’s feature article is a review written by our Field …
This weekly column is a collection of short snippets: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — We’ll start out with this, at Brushbeater: The Guerrilla’s Guide To The Baofeng Radio Is Out!! Canadian Provinces Refuse to Assist in Trudeau’s Gun Grab. o o o North Carolina power substations taken out by gunfire: sheriff. JWR’s Comment: Time correlation does not necessarily mean causation. o o o What Americans Must Do …
“I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” – Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
Today is the birthday of RAF and RCAF fighter ace George Frederick “Buzz” Beurling. He was born in Verdon, Quebec on December 6, 1921 and killed in Rome Italy, on May 20th, 1948. There are a few books about him and one worth mentioning is his autobiography Malta Spitfire which he wrote in 1943 during a Victory Bond tour in Canada. He left the RCAF in April,1944 with 31 aerial victories, most of them during the siege of Malta in the summer of 1942. — Today is the birthday of “claymation” artist and filmmaker Nick Park (born, 1958.) He is …
This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, a few more details on the Idaho stabbings that have attracted national news attention. (See the Idaho section.) Idaho More about the unusual Moscow, Idaho stabbings from CBS: What we know so far about the investigation into the Idaho college student murders. o o o …
“This country has a mental health problem disguised as a gun problem, and a tyranny problem disguised as a security problem.” – Joe Rogan
On December 5th, 1964, the first Medal of Honor awarded to a serviceman for action in Vietnam was presented to Captain Roger Donlon of Saugerties, New York. Captain Donlon and his Special Forces team were manning Camp Nam Dong, a mountain outpost near the borders of Laos and North Vietnam. Just before two o’clock in the morning on July 6, 1964, hordes of Viet Cong attacked the camp. He was shot in the stomach, but Donlon stuffed a handkerchief into the wound, cinched up his belt, and kept fighting. He was wounded three more times, but he continued fighting–manning a …
The following recipe for Salmon Croquettes is from SurvivalBlog reader Mrs. Alaska. It can be made with salmon or any other canned (or fresh) fish. The versatile recipe below can be made completely with long-storage foods — or with fresh ingredients. The patties or croquettes can be deep fried, pan fried, or oven baked, and served as appetizers or entrees. Ingredients 1 can of salmon, oysters, clams, or tuna / or about 6 oz fresh (use the oil, too. If the fish is canned in water, measure and use it to reconstitute the onions) ¼ cup dried onions, reconstituted / …
Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at some more grain crop yield and price forecasts. (See the Commodities section.) Precious Metals: Central banks maintain their appetite for gold. o o o Michael Ballanger: We’re at the Home Stretch. Economy & Finance: BofA Warns of Looming Unemployment Shock, Recommends Selling Stock Rallies. o o o America’s Insolvency …
“Government is force, pure and simple. There’s no way to sugar-coat that. And because government is force, it will attract the worst elements of society – people who want to use government to avoid having to earn their living and to avoid having to persuade others to accept their ideas voluntarily.” – Harry Browne
