Odds ‘n Sods:

I noticed that the spot price of silver dipped below $12.70 per ounce for the first time in many moons. Given the pitiful intrinsic value of the US Dollar, in my opinion silver priced anywhere south of $13.50 is a bargain. Buy on the dips!    o o o Reader “MGB” flagged a web site that illustrate which countries to avoid for offshore banking: This US IRS page shows the countries that have “transparency” via tax treaties And MGB recommend the Sovereign Society web site as a resource for comparing banking privacy of various nations.    o o o Naish …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“The amount of gold in existence is finite. It cannot be increased any faster than by 1.6% per annum (the rate at which mines are producing gold). Whereas the amount of money in circulation is currently expanding at double-digit levels, on a worldwide basis, the U.S. M3 money supply back in 1980 was 1.8 trillion dollars. Today, according to economist John Williams, the U.S. M3 money supply has ballooned to almost 15 trillion dollars. Some of that extra money has the potential to move into gold.” – Peter Degraaf, in Is the Price of Gold Artificially Depressed?


Notes from JWR:

The high bid in the SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction is now at $350. The auction for a mixed lot that includes: Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried foods in #10 cans, (donated by Ready Made Resources–a $320 value), a NukAlert radiation detector, (donated by KI4U–a $160 value), a Wilson Tactical COP tool, (donated by Choate Machine and Tool Company, a $140 value), a DVD of 480 E-books on Alternative Energy (donated by WK Books–a $25 value). The auction ends on September 15, 2008. Please e-mail us your bid. Today we present another entry for Round 18 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction …


Survival Medicine and Ditch Medicine, by Josh in Montana

There may come a time when we are no longer afforded the luxury of dialing 911 to receive prompt emergency medical care within minutes. You yourself may be faced with a sick or injured loved one, having nobody to turn to but you and your skills as well as inventory of supplies to provide critical interventions. My lively hood is emergency pre-hospital medicine. Having earned a degree in Paramedicine in 2002, I have worked and currently still work as a full time paramedic for a department that sees over 4500 runs a year. I myself serve as lead medic or, …


Letter Re: Some Storage SNAFUs

Jim: Why do the incredibly robust “cheap” imported AKs have chrome lined bores , yet some of the expensive and finicky American-made ARs not chrome lined? Well, if you live in a humid climate, it makes a difference. I made the classic error of storing my guns in gun cases. In fact, that’s the worst way to store them as the humidity accumulates inside. One of them had nearly rusted solid in three years. Thanks to the ministrations of another firearm enthusiast, all my guns are being de-rusted, dipped in preservative oil and mylar bagged along with oxygen absorbents, rust …


Odds ‘n Sods:

KAF recommended this: Documentary shows tough reality of doctors in war. (Warning: Not for children or for the squeamish!)    o o o Cheryl N. sent us yet another raft of economic news and commentary: Stagflation Becoming Economic Reality, FDIC Admits Short-Term Loans Might Be Needed, The Building Storm: Gold, the Dollar and Inflation, WAMU The Killer Bank, US Thrifts Lost $5.4bn in 2Q, Second Largest Ever, Bankruptcy Filings Near 1M in Past 12 Months; Up Almost 30%, Economic Depression: Who Will Suffer Least?, Credit Crunch: It’s Just The Beginning Of The End, Private Foreign Investors Dump US Debt, and …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Depression, especially in a highly leveraged world that is accustomed to prosperity, would likely result in serious civil strife. Politically, it must be avoided no matter what the economic or financial costs. Despite ‘spin-talk’ to the effect that the Fed is pursuing a dual mandate to both fight inflation and promote growth, in reality they are simply trying to promote growth pure and simple. This is the reality that few market analysts or journalists dare to mention.” – John Browne


Notes from JWR:

It appears that tropical storm Gustav may be gaining force to hurricane strength, and is aimed at the coast of Louisiana. I trust that SurvivalBlog readers are well prepared and will be able to help out any friends or relatives, and even strangers that are displaced. As a Christian, I believe that charity is not just an arbitrary option depending on our moods. It is our duty. The folks over at The Oil Drum, have posted some speculation: Hurricane Gustav, Energy Infrastructure, and Updated Damage Models. If there is indeed damage to the oil industry, we can expect a spike …


Letter Re: The Shenandoah Valley as a Retreat Locale?

James: “Doug Carlton” makes many salient points for those currently searching for retreat locations. Might I add a couple more that helped me in finding our place in southwest Virginia. For every region of interest to me, I gathered a century worth of census data, available online. If you want to get a good picture of a community, this is an excellent place to start. Second, I read Mark Monmonier’s “Cartographies of Danger.” Monmonier is a bit of an odd duck in the professorial geography/mapping community. I have no idea of his world view, but everything he writes is engaging …


Letter Re: Night Operations

James: Regarding Pete C.’s article on night operations: The great (but now sadly defunct) magazine “Coevolution Quarterly” had a great article about night vision development sometime in the 1980s (I’ve got a copy of it hanging around here somewhere, if only I was organized enough to lay my hands on it) that gave a brilliant method for training night sight via peripheral vision. The technique involved taking something like a lightweight brazing rod and attaching it [off-center] to the bill of a baseball cap. On the end of the rod, you attached a small white ball or disc, which you …


Letter Re: Amaranth–A Weed You Can Eat

Sir, I have been organic gardening for 50 years. At one time I had the largest organic produce gardens in northern Ohio. I’m good at it. Some years ago, some people staying with me asked if they could plant a little Amaranth in one of my gardens. They related how Amaranth may be the most consumed food in human history. It is super productive, and very nutritious. I allowed them to plant some. That was a big mistake. If you are not really careful to harvest every seed, it will spread like wildfire. Within a year or two, it will …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Eric sent us this tale of unintended consequences: Wind Energy Bumps Into Power Grid’s Limits    o o o Some interesting demographics: The study is a bit dated, but a 2001 survey showed Wyoming as the state with the highest rate of gun ownership: The top three states were Wyoming (59.7%), Alaska (57.8%), and Montana (57.7%). Following close behind—all at around 55%–were Idaho, South Dakota, Mississippi and West Virginia. By the way, a neighbor told me that when a gal in Wyoming gets serious about finding a husband, all she has to do is switch her perfume to Hoppes #9, …



Two Letters Re: Amaranth–A Weed You Can Eat

James, I just wanted to let you know that this plant ([considered] a weed) is usually killed off as a pest, yet is more nutritious then wheat. It grows all over the place and if it was planted on purpose it might help a lot for people looking to survive. Deane’s site is packed full of plants worth looking in to for food! (A good source of info while the power is up! YouTube really does have everything!)’ – Fitzy in Pennsylvania   James Wesley; In response to the person setting up a Michigan retreat, I saw mention of Amaranth …


Letter Re: Reusing Restaurant Food Ingredient Containers

Mr Rawles, I’ve been thinking a lot about storing food like grains in the olive containers that get thrown out at the restaurant where I’m currently working. There made of what I assume to be food grade plastic (olive storage) and looks like they store about 7-to-8 liters. The lid is made of two pieces and has a rubber seal. If I were to wash these off a bit do you think they would serve as long term food containers? Thanks, – Paul from Canada JWR Replies: Those containers should be fine, since they are doubtless made of food grade …