Note From JWR:

Congratulations to T.H. of Louisiana, the high bidder in the recent SurvivalBlog benefit auction for a fully stocked M-17 Advanced Medical Bag/Rucksack. Many thanks for your generous $275 bid. And our special thanks to the fine folks at Ready Made Resources who kindly donated the kit. Meanwhile, we have launched another benefit auction, courtesy of the fine folks at the RWVA and Fred’s M14 Stocks.This one is for a “Super Shooter’s Package” including two shooting jackets and two admissions to a RWVA match. Please submit your bids via e-mail. This auction ends on the last day of July.


The Danger of the Armchair Commando Mindset

I’ve stated much of the following before, but it bears repeating: Don’t make the mistake of slipping into the “Armchair Commando” mindset. It is what my friend Keith in North Idaho calls the”Tommy Tactical” mindset. You know the type: your overweight friend with the big gun collection, but hardly any stored food. He is the same guy that will spend hours debating the finer points of exterior ballistics or starlight scopes, but that hasn’t even taken the time to zero all of his guns. He is too busy collecting guns, talking Schumer, and reading Soldier of Fantasy magazine. Armchair Commandos …


Letter Re: Advice on Selecting a Battle Rifle

Jim, I have been stocking up on surplus 308 as it seems it is drying up. After all with nearly every nation switching to 5.56mm, it makes sense that it would dry up sooner or later. AIM Surplus has South African 308 in battle packs, but the price continues to climb every time I check their web site. I too, have looked and continue to debate over choice of MBR. Boston’s Gun Bible has been insightful but as FALs evolve it makes this choice harder. We had initially settled on M1As, but I too have been looking at the FAL …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Marty Weiss comments on the “upright spike” of global population, presaging its implications on the markets and currencies. Based on what Mr. Weiss has to say, it appears that economic trouble is on the way, sooner or later. Best to stock up. If you aren’t certain exactly what you’ll need to get your family prepared, then get a copy of my “big box” preparedness course.    o o o Freeze Dry Guy reports brisk sales of their scarce U.S. Army Long Range Patrol (LRP) rations. They are now sold out of LRP Beef Stew, but we still have LRP Beef …



Note From JWR:

Today we present another article for Round 5 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The writer of the best non-fiction article will win a valuable four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate. Second prize is a copy of my “big box” preparedness course, generously donated by Jake Stafford of Arbogast Publishing. If you want a chance to win, start writing and e-mail us your article soon. Round 5 ends on July 31st.


The Great Disconnect, by “IRVM”

The recent SurvivalBlog letters regarding wolves illustrate something that has interested me for a while. This is a phenomenon that might be called “The Great Disconnect”. “The Great Disconnect” is defined as the increasing number of people who lack the ability to distinguish between reality and their own beliefs. These are people who reject out of hand anything that conflicts with their internal world-view, no matter how out of touch with reality that view may actually be. I have no idea what percentage of the population falls into the ‘disconnected’ category, but judging from what I see on the Internet, …


Letter Re: Shocking Facts About Wolves, by Steven UP

Dear Mr. Rawles, I would like to point out an error in Bonehead’s letter posted on SurvivalBlog on 6/30/06. He states that one ton of red meat is equivalent to two elk, which is false. Let us assume that the average bull elk weighs 1000 pounds (an optimistic assumption, but let’s run with Bonehead’s numbers), the average cow weighs 600 pounds, and the average calf weighs 300 pounds. Roughly 40.1 percent of an elk consists of edible muscle so that the average bull would provide 401 pounds of meat, the average cow 241, and the average calf 120. Thus one …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The EIA projects energy consumption will increase by 71% by 2030. SurvivalBlog reader John Adams asks: “Think there will be enough to go around?”    o o o Wiggy’s (one of our first and most loyal advertisers) has put their famous Pack Boots on sale at 25% off, for as long as they last. They currently have sizes 7 to 15 in stock. They also have their new summer weight sleeping bags on sale for just $100, with a compression stuff sack. These bags weigh just two pounds and stuff to just a 6″ by 7″ space. They are the …




Letter Re: James Kunstler at Midwest Renewable Energy Fair

Jim, As a regular reader of Survival Blog, I thought others might like a “field trip” report from the Midwest Renewable Energy Association’s (MREA) Energy Fair held this past weekend. This is an annual event hosted in central Wisconsin and it has had a growing number of attendees; last year’s fair drew over 10,000 and this year it was expected to draw ~17,000 people over its three days. In my mingling, I encountered people who had traveled from as far as New mexico, southern Oklahoma, Kansas, and many from Wisconsin and bordering states. The fair is a collection of vendors, …


Letter Re: Self-Winding Watch Recommendation

James, I’ve been living with a Seiko 5 military style mechanical movement (self winding) action watch for about 6 months now. I and am convinced they are one of the better deals going right now in a quality, metal, watch that will never need batteries. Overstock.com currently has these for under $100. They’re very hard to find here in the U.S.A., and tend to sell out rapidly. The only negative item I can list about these watches is that they need to be worn daily, as the the self-winding power “reserve” won’t last beyond 24 hours without wrist movement. I …


Two Letters Re: Shocking Facts About Wolves, by Steven UP

Jim- Unlike anyone else that has written, including Steven UP, I have lived in Western Montana my entire life, save a few travels around to world. I also grew up hunting and fishing here (we were, well, poor when I was a kid. I think I was eleven before I ever ate a beef steak. I thought red meat came form the woods in Fall!) As to the primary concern of wolves over-running farm in a SHTF scenario, that will be the least of your worries. As to the idea that elk and deer populations are being decimated by wolf …


Odds ‘n Sods:

SurvivalBlog reader Jim K. suggests stocking up on this mondo tire sealant.    o o o Ready Made Resources, (our biggest advertiser) is brokering the sale of a very hard to find upgraded P-10 self-contained NBC shelter. He is selling it on behalf of an acquaintance. When sold new, these shelters sell for $100,000 with all of the options included in this one, such as the 1,000 gallon water tank and Level 4 protective entry door. (Cutting torch and .308 bullet proof!) These very rarely come up for sale in used condition, so don’t miss this chance to buy one …