SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, we focus on railroad transport in the American Redoubt region: passenger, freight, and even scenic excursion trains. Idaho Construction continues in Idaho’s busiest track confluence: Second rail bridge at Sandpoint. o  o  o Lakeside Idaho City Is America’s Hottest Housing Market in New WSJ/Realtor.com Index …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“In particular, the State has arrogated to itself a compulsory monopoly over police and military services, the provision of law, judicial decision-making, the mint and the power to create money, unused land (“the public domain”), streets and highways, rivers and coastal waters, and the means of delivering mail…the State relies on control of the levers of propaganda to persuade its subjects to obey or even exalt their rulers.” –  Murray N. Rothbard, The Ethics of Liberty



Recipe of the Week: Joe’s Big Batch Chili

The following chili recipe comes to us from SurvivalBlog reader Joe T. Joes says: “This recipe is for making a large quantity of chili to store in the freezer for future use. You will need one large 4 gallon kettle or two 2-gallon kettles.” Ingredients 5 pounds of dry beans 6 pounds of lean ground beef 3 pounds of sausage 4 quarts of tomatoes/salsa 3 quarts of water 40 garlic cloves 7 tsp of cumin 7 bell peppers 7 small onions 17 Tbl chili powder 1, 6 oz can of tomato paste 10 Tbl brown sugar 10 beef bullion cubes …


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. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at how copper is leading a commodities boom and general price inflation. (See the Commodities section.) Precious Metals: Palladium Tops Record $3,000 Amid EV-Demand Surge, Supply Chain Pressure o  o  o Tom C. sent a link to a fascinating video interview: Why has silver price not yet spiked from demand, …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“In March, the hedge fund Archegos struck an iceberg. In just two days, the highly leveraged fund went from “business as usual” to total collapse. Performance rapidly degenerated; the fund was unable to meet margin calls; its bankers seized its collateral; the fund was out of business. Archegos lost everything. Although Archegos was held only by founder Bill Hwang’s family, its saga offers broad investment lessons. Victories can be hazardous. They present temptation enough for retail investors, who frequently, as the saying goes, confuse brains with a bull market. After making a couple of winning trades, it’s natural to assume …


Preparedness Notes for Sunday — May 2, 2021

On May 2, 1945, the Soviet Union announced the fall of Berlin and the Allies announced the surrender of Nazi troops in Italy and parts of Austria. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 94 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 …



The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. And round about the throne …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — May 1, 2021

May 1st was the birthday of Pastor Archie Mitchell — a man whose civilian life was torn by both World War 2 and the Vietnam War. It is also the birthday of the late Joel Rosenberg, a Canadian-born novelist and gun rights advocate (born 1954, died June 2, 2011). He is not to be confused with Joel C. Rosenberg (born 1967), another great novelist and the author of The Last Jihad series. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 94 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic …


April 2021 in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance, and the factors that affected gold prices. What Did Gold Do in April? Gold started April around the $1,720 mark, and spent the first half of the month in choppy trade below $1,750. This changed on April 15, when Joe Biden unloaded a pile of sanctions against Russia for cyber espionage and election interference. This gave gold the breakout it had been looking for. Gold hit a six-week high early, breaking heavy resistance …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those –or excerpts thereof — in this column, in …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And when the people saw him, they praised their god: for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hands our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, which slew many of us. And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison house; …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — April 30, 2021

Camerone Day is celebrated on April 30th every year — the French Foreign Legion’s most important holiday. Today is also the birthday of sci-fi novelist Larry Niven (born April 30, 1938). Along with Jerry Pournelle, he co-authored the survivalist classic Lucifer’s Hammer. April 30th is also the birthday of Ed Yourdon, who was born in 1944. — New listing through Survival Realty Brokerage Services: A manufactured home on 18 acres in Sabine Parish, Louisiana. Has a four-acre pond, shop, and more. $179,500. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 94 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. …


The Innate Value of an Apple Tree – Part 2, by Northwoods Prepper

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) Developing a pest-reduction process is better when understanding your enemy. For example, the Apple Tree Maggot can be found in the lower 48, while the San Jose Scale is limited to California. Use the internet to evaluate what insects are in your area. Traps are often multispecies and can significantly reduce infestation. There is a great article on Rural Sprout (https://www.ruralsprout.com/apple-tree-problems/) regarding apple tree problems with pictures identifying insect infestation and the damage they can do to apple trees. One last thing to say about infestation and insects and that is it …