Note from JWR:

SurvivalBlog has now been up and running with daily posts for three full years. I’m pleased to report that there are now more than 5,000 archived SurvivalBlog articles, letters, and quotes of the day. These are all available for free, unlimited access. I hope that you find these resources useful and inspirational. My special thanks to the 2% of readers that have become 10 Cent Challenge subscribers. These subscriptions are entirely voluntary, and gratefully accepted. Your subscriptions and your patronage with our advertisers make it possible for me to continue to publish SurvivalBlog every day, without fail. (I haven’t missed …


Letter Re: Holster, Sling, and Web Gear Recommendations

Dear Mr. Rawles, I just read “Patriots” and “Tappan On Survival“. Both were greatly helpful and entertaining as well. Can you recommend any type of web gear to have ammo, handgun and rifle at the ready, both at home and on the farm? I see our military forces with all kinds of web equipment configurations, most notable is the hand gun in a thigh mounted holster. Front Sight taught me to shoot from a belt mounted holster and discourages shoulder holsters. It seems to me that a shoulder holster has a place, especially in a vehicle. Any thoughts on tactical …


Four Letters Re: What Will We Eat as the Oil Runs Out?, by Richard Heinberg

Jim: What scares me [in Heinberg’s article] is the use of words like “policy,” “regulations,” “controls,” “comprehensive plan,” etc. At the least, this is government control of the economy. At the worst, of our personal lives. (Population control.) He may have some technical points, but he is a bad sociologist. And a bad economist. A free economy may not be the most efficient, but it works very well when the social side is considered. There are all ready farmers of multi thousand acre places on the Great Plains, both US and Canada that are growing a few hundred acres of …


Odds ‘n Sods:

New SurvivalBlog reader Brad H. mentioned the old farmer’s standby product: Bag Balm. It is a medicated petroleum jelly that is marketed towards livestock but works wonders for dried skin on humans Brad notes: “Working winters in construction, my hands constantly become cracked. After a few days of using the balm, the crack is healed. I also use it for abrasions and small cuts and shortens the healing time. Most Agway [and other feed] stores carry the product.”    o o o Costa Rica Jones flagged this: Diesel-Powered Mitsubishi Racing Lancer Fulfills Every Post-Apocalypse Fantasy Ever, Has 480 Lb-Ft Of …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Self-sufficiency isn’t a sexy idea. At best, people who say they’re interested in being self-sufficient are stereotyped as dour, old-fashioned rural types. At worst, they’re seen as fanatical survivalists planning for an apocalypse. Economists also tell us that self-sufficiency is an anachronism. Instead, it is specialization that produces wealth, and economies – including the world economy – produce the most wealth when everyone, including countries, specializes in what they do best and then trades their products for the other things they need. The more specialization, the more connectivity among specialists, and the more trade along those connections, the better.” – …



Stock Market Suckers, by Vox Day

Suckers! Many conservatives are aquiver with excitement that George Delano is daring to brave the third rail of American politics, the much-beloved welfare program set up by his philosophical predecessor, FDR. It is true, of course, that Social Security is nothing but a government-run Ponzi scheme, that there is no trust fund, that as an investment it is a complete rip-off, that it rewards white women at the expense of black men and that it is an outrageous violation of the Constitution of the United States of America. But this does not mean that the Bush administration’s plan to allow …


Stabilized Gasoline From Three Years of Abusive Storage Performs Well

Jim – Last week, I rotated some gasoline that was put into storage ont he 1st of March, 2005. It was in plastic fuel cans with Sta-Bil added, per the directions. They sat in a storage garage subject to midwest summer temps for one year, in an un-cooled basement garage the other years. I poured the fuel into a 1/3 tank of gas in my car. No noticeable difference in starting or running of the engine. Almost 3.5 years – not bad – just wish I could have replaced it for te same cost I originally filled the cans for![It …


Two Letters Re: A Do-It-Yourself Denture Adhesive Formula

Jim: In answer to the recent query in SurvivalBlog about denture adhesives, Sea-Bond is an all natural wafer with [a very long shelf life–] no expiration. It sells for $5.99 for three boxes of 15 wafers each. It is the only thing I could find that would do. I’d stock up on these for long term use. – TD   Mr. Rawles, This formula comes from a book that I have in my arsenal of survival books, entitled “Formulas, Methods,Tips and Data for Home and Workshop” by Kenneth M. Swezey (I can’t tell you how many times over the years …


Odds ‘n Sods:

FerFAL (SurvivalBlog’s correspondent in Argentina) recently posted some interesting comments on resisting violent crime, in his personal blog    o o o The WRSA has another “Grid-Down Medical Course” scheduled in Everett, Washington, September 12th to 14th. Their training is inexpensive, and highly recommended.    o o o Pauly from Canada recommended the National Geographic documentary “Guns, Germs, and Steel” to add some historical perspective to Richard Heinberg’s recent article.    o o o Update: I spoke too soon yesterday when I mentioned that Detroit’s Big Three Auto makers are courting Congress for a $25 billion bailout. “Photo Tom” sent …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“We are not only headed for a Depression, but a violent Depression that will be far worse than [the one that started in] 1929. Some experts believe the United States will fall into the chaos, bedlam and anarchy that tore apart Yugoslavia. I am not going that far, but I know our morals and ethics are not the same as they were in 1929. Moreover, we are a far more violent society and totally dependent upon a well oiled system for delivery of food and basic services.” – Mike Morgan



What Will We Eat as the Oil Runs Out? (Pt. 2) , by Richard Heinberg

Impact of Biofuels One factor influencing food prices arises from the increasing incentives for farmers worldwide to grow biofuel crops rather than food crops. Ethanol and biodiesel can be produced from a variety of crops including maize, soy, rapeseed, sunflower, cassava, sugar cane, palm, and jatropha. As the price of oil rises, many farmers are finding that they can produce more income from their efforts by growing these crops and selling them to a biofuels plant, than by growing food crops either for their local community or for export. Already nearly 20 percent of the US maize crop is devoted …


Richard Heinberg: Conclusion and Footnotes

To conclude, let me simply restate what is I hope clear by now: Given the fact that fossil fuels are limited in quantity and that we are already in view of the global oil production peak, we must turn to a food system that is less fuel-reliant, even if the process is problematic in many ways. Of course, the process will take time; it is a journey that will take place over decades. Nevertheless, it must begin soon, and it must begin with a comprehensive plan. The transition to a fossil-fuel-free food system does not constitute a distant utopian proposal. …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The latest news is that Detroit’s Big Three Auto makers are courting Congress for a $25 billion dollar bailout. This will make the $1.2 billion in loan guarantees to Chrysler in 1979/1980 seem small, by comparison. Just as I had warned, the Mother Of All Bailouts (MOAB) continues to expand in both size and scope. It seems that Congress knows no bounds when it comes to plunging their hands into our wallets.    o o o Cheryl N. flagged this: US Still Naked to EMP Threat    o o o Cheryl also sent us this raft of economic articles and …