Letter Re: “ZIPSkinny”–A Tool for Gathering Intelligence on Potential Retreat Locales

Greetings Jim, Here is a link for gathering statistical intelligence on an area one may want to relocate to for a retreat or to use to plot an escape route. This site gives a quick thumbnail reference of demographics, economic and social indicators etc. for further research or to locate areas to avoid that you may not be familiar with. Plug in the ZIP code for the area of interest and you will get information on the area as well as adjacent area ZIP codes along with an additional tool to compare up to twenty other ZIP codes of your …


Two Letters Re: Betavoltaic Batteries

Jim, Here is an article describing the challenges associated with betavoltaic batteries. The recent buzz over the 30 year battery, while intriguing, is overly optimistic. As stated in the article I linked to, betavoltaics currently have low efficiency, require heavy shielding, and the energy absorption media tends to degrade due to the high energy bombardment. I think it would be great if they could overcome these issues, but it looks like it may be 30 years before we see anything like a 30 year battery. – Mark D. in Utah Mr Rawles, Firstly I would like to say that after …


Weekly Survival Real Estate Market Update

Realities and Compromises While Retreat Shopping Over the summer I was blessed to meet a lot of fellow SurvivalBlog readers here in north Idaho. Most, if not all, made several drastic changes to their retreat shopping list either during or right after their trip here. Most notably, the changes made most often were: Distance to a sizeable town/economic base, the parcel size (acres), and access to the parcel. It’s important to realize that once you take in the enormity of the locale you have chosen to relocate to that these factors become the number one issue in a search. There …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Pending Home Sales Index Hits Record Low   o o o From Newsweek‘s Daniel Gross: There’s No Inflation (If You Ignore Facts)    o o o Green Mountain Gear has found a limited supply of some more original German HK91/G3 alloy magazines. This new batch is in new-in-the-wrapper condition. These are in the original factory wrappers, with factory labels and anti-corrosion paper strips on the followers. (Just as they left the factory in the 1960s.) They don’t come any better than this.    o o o DV and David L. both suggested this article: Dollar’s double blow from Vietnam and Qatar



Note from JWR:

After my recent gun show trip to Montana, I have added a few new items to my catalog page, including a scarce special order takedown Winchester Model 1894 .30-30 short rifle that was made in 1896, and a scarce special order 5″ barrel S&W Safety Hammerless (“Lemon Squeezer”) Third Model .38 S&W revolver that was made around 1891. For residents of most of the United States, both of these antique guns can be shipped directly to your doorstep, with no FFL paperwork!


Letter Re: Why Physical Gold Versus Gold Stocks?

Mr. Editor: Why on earth do you place such a strong emphasis on gold “in hand” as opposed to gold [mining] stocks? From what I’ve read, gold may soon double or triple [in price], but gold mining stocks like Barrick and Newmont are set to go up 5x to 7x. I think that you’ll be missing the boat as this bull market in [precious] metals continues. I feel sorry for you, pal. – Pete in Tampa JWR Replies: I recommend buying (and personally holding) physical gold rather than gold stocks for three reasons: safety, safety, and safety: The first “safety” …


Letter Re: Advice on Finding a Preparedness-Minded Spouse

Dear JWR, I am a middle-aged female, single and have no children. I recently relocated to an area that I believe to be “safer” than where I had been living previously. I had hoped to meet others who were awake to the realities of life once I settled here, but much to my disappointment and amazement the natives seem to be “clueless.” So I find myself in a very difficult if not dangerous situation. I may likely find myself alone when the SHTF. I have searched endlessly for a message board or the like in which I could communicate with …


Letter Re: Underground Storm/Fallout/Vault Shelters

Mr. Rawles: Utah Shelter Systems sells pre-fab shelters built inside culvert pipe. At $38,000 for a 10×25 pipe based shelter, it’s not cheap but it is a complete solution including two entrance/exit ways with blast doors, ventilation, bunks, shelving, lighting, and so on. The bunks, flooring system, and other furnishings all seem designed to maximize storage space. – BR JWR Replies: There are a number of approaches for hard shelters that work well. Buried galvanized culvert pipe shelters are just one of them. Other folks say that they like underground poly or steel tanks, while others insist on reinforced concrete. …


Letter Re: Digitized Data for Your Bug-Out Bag

James: JN is absolutely right about TrueCrypt, it’s an excellent tool. Be aware, however, that you can be compelled to disclose your encryption keys in the UK legally, and you can always be compelled to do so via extra-legal means. If you have any data that you truly wish to keep secret, a good start is to use a second TrueCrypt volume containing important data inside the primary volume which contains data that is less crucial. Regards, – PH


Odds ‘n Sods:

The Chartist Gnome chided me in a recent e-mail, after I had mentioned that after having dropped decisively through the 80 level: “Some analysts suggest 75 or perhaps even 72 as the next support level for the US Dollar Index.” He said that I was being overly optimistic. By his calculations, “the next logical support level for the USD Index is 72 and then if that fails to hold, we can expect a step off the cliff with no support until 42.” Lest you think that this is some wild-eyed exaggeration, Jordan Roy-Byrne (editor of The Trendsman) came up with …



Note from JWR:

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U.S. Foreclosure Numbers are Up–Some Retreat Property Possibilities?

There has been a lot of news in recent weeks about real estate foreclosures in the US. Foreclosure.com (one of SurvivalBlog’s Affiliate advertisers) just published the following US residential real estate foreclosure statistics: National Highlights: * Foreclosure activity increased 36 percent from July * Foreclosure activity increased 115 percent from August 2006 * REO (“Real Estate Owned”)s increased 59% month over month, the biggest increase of any of the three foreclosure categories (Default, Auction, REO) State and Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Highlights: * Nevada, California and Florida posted the top three state foreclosure rates * The states with the most …


Letter Re: Digitized Data for Your Bug-Out Bag

Sir: Regarding the SD card idea, I have been doing something similar but with a few improvements: 1. Instead of a camera flash card, get a USB keychain drive [also known as “thumb” drive or “jump” drive]. These are cheap, available in at least 4GB [capacity] and are darn near impossible to break. The USB models can be read by nearly any PC or Mac. For encryption, I recommend using True Crypt. This program is free and has been well-tested in the computer security community, as its code and design are open source. One nice thing about this program, is …