Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. Most of these items are from JWR’s “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective. Today, we look at the current chicken egg shortage, and food price inflation. Precious Metals: The spot and futures prices of silver and gold broke out late Friday (January 13, 2023.) Though there will probably be a bit of profit-taking in the short term, I expect to see some solid gains for precious metals in coming …



Preparedness Notes for Sunday — January 15, 2023

Today is the anniversary of the 2009 “Miracle On The Hudson” engines-out emergency water landing of US Airways Flight 1549.  That pilot was cool, calm, and collected, under pressure.  God Bless You, Sully, wherever you are. — Today is also the birthday of Dr. Edward Teller, who worked on the Manhattan Project, and later co-invented the hydrogen bomb — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 104 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending …



The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — January 14, 2023

On January 14th, 1526, the Treaty of Madrid was signed by the Habsburg emperor Charles V (Charles I of Spain — pictured, in a portrait painted by Titian) and his prisoner Francis I, king of France, who had been captured during the Battle of Pavia in February 1525.  King Francis was held prisoner until the conclusion of the treaty, when he was allowed to return to France. This treaty came from what some might describe as “an advantageous negotiating position.” — They of course waited until Friday the 13th — just before a three-day holiday weekend and the annual SHOT …


Comfort for the Burned and Wounded, by C.J.

Editor’s Introductory Note: The following is a eview and summary of a book by John W. Keim. This article is intended for informational purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice. Get any patient with severe burns to a hospital emergency room, immediately. If you have an interest in herbal medicine or just want to be prepared if modern medical care is not available in the future, I recommend reading this wonderfully informative book that I discovered a few years ago. The book is titled “Comfort for the Burned and Wounded”, by John W. Keim. Mr. Keim is not …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the Lord, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbour; Or have found that which was lost, and lieth concerning it, and sweareth falsely; in any of all these that a man doeth, sinning therein: Then it shall be, because he hath sinned, and is guilty, that he shall restore that which he took violently away, or the thing which he hath deceitfully …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — January 13, 2023

On January 13, 2012, the Costa Concordia, a cruise ship carrying some 4,200 people, ran aground and capsized off Giglio Island, Italy; 32 passengers were killed. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 104 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a …


Economics & Investing: JWR’s Predictions for 2023

Today, in a special edition of this column are JWR‘s economic, finance, and market predictions for 2023 and beyond. — Bottom line up front (BLUF), I believe that  2023 will be seen as a year of recession, layoffs, and stagflation. Consumer inflation will be rampant, but some assets will deflate, as the economy contracts. In the longer term, the recession starting in 2023 may develop into a general economic depression. Perhaps the era will someday be characterized as “The Depression of the late 2020s and early 2030s.”  Now, for the details: Precious Metals: With inflation continuing at a rapid clip, …



Preparedness Notes for Thursday — January 12, 2023

On January 12, 1528 – Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family was crowned king of Sweden (Gustav I.) On January 12, 1737,  John Hancock was born. He was the first signer of the Declaration of Independence. January 12, 1879: The British-Zulu War begins. British troops, under Lieutenant General Frederic Augustus, invade Zululand from the southern African Republic of Natal. January 12,1908: A wireless message is sent long-distance for the first time from the Eiffel Tower in Paris. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 104 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this …


My Approach to a Semi-Auto Scout Rifle – Part 2, by Swampfox

(Continued from Part 1.  This concludes the article.) Before the Test – Make Your Own Ballistics Gel For ballistics testing at home, there are several options. At the time of my Mini-14 tests, I did not have any ClearBallistics gel or other commercial choices. If you want to do this a lot, perhaps buying a kit would be a good investment. I was short of time, so I whipped up some Knox gelatin. It is easy to do, but it takes a little time and patience. If you are going to be doing a lot of testing, you will need …


The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at some new compact off-grid power system options. Off-Grid Solar Generators on Display at CES Trade Show Over at PV Magazine: Off-grid solar generators on display at US trade show.  A …