Letter from David in Israel Re: On Eating Insects, by Maui Mike

James, In reference to eating bugs: Jews who settled in Yemen after the destruction of the first Temple and stayed there until the 1960s had the tradition of eating and identifying the kosher locusts. My Temani (Yemeni) friend in Kollel did not know what the identifiers were. As for kosher and survival, I quote my old Rav from Portland, Oregon “If someone held a gun to my head and said ‘Eat that pork chop!’ my answer would be ‘where’s the catsup?’” Your Maker and Keeper wants you to live so you can glorify him, the mitzvah of saving a life …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Cathy Buckle’s recent letters from Zimbabwe are “must reads.”  Have you ever considered the prospect of hyperinflation in the future?  Some folks are living through it in Zimbabwe right now. Here are two brief quotes from Cathy’s letters in March: “In March 2005 a loaf of bread was four thousand eight hundred dollars. In March 2006 that same loaf is sixty six thousand dollars. Unless something dramatic happens in the next few weeks and assuming prices continue to rise at their present rate, a loaf of bread in March 2007 will be nine hundred and eight thousand [Zimbabwean] dollars. Imagine, …



On Eating Insects, by Maui Mike

On Eating Insects, by Maui Mike In an TEOTWAWKI scenario, securing a renewable source of protein and fat is vital. While previous postings have discussed how family chicken farms have kept people alive during the last depression and the viability of rabbits, I’d like to add my two cents in. It started with my learning about hydroponics. Hydroponics is the growing of plants in nutrient enriched water without soil. Then I learned about aquaponics. In this instance fish are raised in tanks (aquaculture) and plants are raised hydroponically and the systems are merged. In this way, the nitrogen rich excrement …


Letter Re: Test Sources for Radiation Meters–The Cesium Source

James: RE: > I also didn’t buy the use of a smoke detector to test a CDV survey meter so I checked it out. Didn’t show squat since that meter is relatively insensitive. Oh, I also tried a smoke detector with my Digilert-100 from http://www.seintl.com . This detector reads Alpha, Beta, Gamma and X-rays. Nada. BTW, the Digilert has available some neat software that I use to track background radiation on a daily basis. Normal background here in Colorado is between 20 and 39 counts per minute. The unit also has an alarm level that can be set to any …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The Mogambo Guru (Richard Daughty) thinks that the “Two Trillion in Fresh Cash rumor is unfounded.    o o o From the London Telegraph: British Government Makes Secret Preparations for “Waves” of Asian Avian Flu Pandemic Exceeding Six Months    o o o I just heard that Gun Parts Guy is having a big clearance sale on some assorted FAL and L1A1 parts. (Carriers, slings, top covers, carry handles, scope mounts, flash hiders, sights, et cetera.) Please mention SurvivalBlog if you place an order. The sale ends on April 17th.    o o o Bush Administration Contingency Plans for War …



Two Letters Re: Test Sources for Radiation Meters–The Cesium Source Already in Your Home

Mr. Rawles, I’m very suspicious of the information from “Ole Rad” that you could test a Civil Defense field survey meter with the radiation that comes from a smoke detector. Several things in his post don’t add up: 1) Smoke detectors use Americium-241 as their source and the radiation at 1 meter distance is “less than 1/1000th of that from background radiation” (source: http://www.arpansa.gov.au/is_smkdt.htm). 2) The CDV-777-2 is the radiation detection kit which contains a field survey meter, dosimeters, and a dosimeter charger. The kit might also contain a CDV-700 geiger counter, but that has it’s own beta check source …


Letter Re: Too Good to be True? Nationally Advertised Radiation Detector for $60?

Hi James, Regarding the post from Wednesday about the old rad meters for $60, they were about the only thing easily available before Y2K. At that time the conventional wisdom, (which I am almost certain goes back to Bruce Beach, since he was selling piles of old Canadian ones for 50 bucks) is that the ionizing chamber can deteriorate over time and to be safe you must multiply by a factor of four when using it. If it reads 5 R, figure it is 20 R. If it reads 20 R, figure it is 80 R. This should definitely keep …


Rebuttal Letter from Spencer Feldman, Re: Suggestions for the Acute Management of a H5N1 Pandemic

In rebuttal to the letter posted by Dr. BCE on Saturday, April 8, 2006: Dear Dr. BCE: My article is entitled “Suggestions” not answers to the Avian flu. We are currently in the process of testing the product on H5N1 patients in Asia. Time will tell if it works and to what degree. Dr. BCE, if you think you have a better idea of what to do, then by all means post it. I don’t mean this in an adversarial way, I’d really like to see another protocol, any protocol. Until I see someone else step up to the plate …


Odds n’ Sods:

The $44 Trillion Mountain of Debt    o o o SurvivalBlog reader RBS recommended a site with some very revealing reading on what your bank might consider a “red flag”, at the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering InfoBase.    o o o Does anyone have anything more substantial than “a confidential source” or “According to our sources in the U.S. Treasury” about the rumors swirling around Washington D.C. that the Federal Reserve is printing an extra Two Trillion U.S. Dollars in cash? (Also repeated at OSS.net.)  These kind of rumors drive me crazy.  In the past …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"It is He who got out the Unbelievers among the People of the Book [Jews and Christians] from their homes at the first gathering (of the forces). Little did ye think that they would get out: and they thought that their fortresses would defend them from Allah! But the (wrath of) Allah came to them from quarters from which they little expected (it) and cast terror into their hearts so that they destroyed their dwellings by their own hands and the hands of the Believers. Take warning then O ye with eyes (to see)!"  – Surah Al-Hashr Ruku 1 (A.Yusuf …


Note From JWR:

My heartfelt thanks to all of the folks that have sent “10 Cent Challenge” contributions. The steadily expanding base of subscribers will allow me to quit my “day job” at the end of March. (Deo volente.) I will then have the time to cover topics in greater depth. SurvivalBlog subscriptions are voluntary. All that we ask is ten cents a day–but only if you feel convicted to do so. If what you read here is not worth ten cents a day to you, or if you are on a tight budget, then you can pass. And for those of you …


Note from JWR:

Today we welcome two new advertisers: First, a gentlemen in Colorado, who is selling the most elaborate underground retreat house that I have ever seen. Even if you aren’t currently looking for real estate, be sure to look at his web pages. You are bound to learn a lot about retreat architecture! Something tells me that given the “niche” readership of SurvivalBlog that this property will not be on the market long! OBTW, unless you are a serious potential buyer, please do not pester the owner with questions! Second, Bear Basin Outfitters, one of the nations’ premier optics dealers. I …


Letter Re: Test Sources for Radiation Meters–The Cesium Source Already in Your Home

Mr. Rawles: The following is an excerpt from an interesting string of conversation on Survival Forum about calibrating a survey meter. I don’t know this as fact, but if true. It would useful info. I should say that the poster that posted this has been reliable in the past, and well-documented. I asked Ole Rad ’bout the calibration of me CD 777-2 survey meter. Says he– “1 microcurie of Cesium 137 should cause a defection.” Purty cool, huh? Turns out 1 microcurie source of Cesium 137 is a common smoke detector— that only took me two days ta find out. …