Preparedness Notes for Saturday — May 29, 2021

On this day in 1780, the treatment of Patriot prisoners by British Colonel Banastre Tarleton and his Loyalist troops led to the coining of a phrase that defined British brutality for the rest of the War for Independence: “Tarleton’s Quarter.” Tarleton and his Torries proceeded to shoot any and all Patriots that had surrendered after the fall of Charleston. The Patriots lost 113 men. The slaughter of the surrendered troops became a propaganda victory for the Continentals and Carolina civilians who had been terrified of Tarleton and their loyalist neighbors now rallied to the Patriot cause. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest …


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, …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a man; And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself: That the Lord may continue his word which he spake concerning me, saying, If thy …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — May 28, 2021

Today is the birthday of the late Major General (MG)  Victor Joseph Hugo Jr., who passed away last year. He was born 28 May, 1931, and died 11 May, 2020. In an obituary piece, Ray Oden wrote: MG Victor Hugo died in May and was interred at Arlington National Cemetery on 13 November 2020. The OSS Society produced a 13-minute video as a fitting tribute to him. MG Hugo was at the tip of the spear for so many important missions in the Army and after his retirement, and many are recounted in this short video. It is very much …


The “Reasonable” Dictators of D.C.

The congressmen and executive branch bureaucrats of the District of Columbia (DC) — a.k.a. The District of Criminals — are now fully exercising arbitrary and capricious powers. While supposedly operating within a constitutional framework, their dictates are becoming more and more draconian, and often downright absurd. Their latest proposal is a  “high capacity” magazine ban. I’d like to illustrate the absurdity of such proposals with an analogy: Let’s say that you live in the mythical country of The Republic of Freedonia. Freedonia is a constitutional republic with individual rights enshrined in a much-vaunted but two-century-old Constitution. Among these rights is “freedom …


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 second-hand car prices are soaring. (See the Tangibles Investing section.) Precious Metals: U.S. Congressman Seeks Full Audit Of America’s Gold Reserves. o  o  o Some interesting history, from Vince Lanci: Gold is Money. Silver is More. Economy & Finance: Here’s what’s in Republicans’ new $928 billion infrastructure counterproposal. …



Preparedness Notes for Thursday — May 27, 2021

On this day in 1861, Chief Justice Roger B. Taney of Maryland issued the Ex parte Merryman decision, challenging the authority of President Abraham Lincoln and the U.S. military to suspend the writ of habeas corpus in Maryland. On May 27, 1813, former President Thomas Jefferson wrote former President John Adams about the loss of their mutual friend, Dr. Benjamin Rush. Reflecting upon the loss, Jefferson wrote, “We too must go; and that ere long. I believe we are under half a dozen at present; I mean the signers of the Declaration.” Dr. Rush was instrumental in the reconciliation of …


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 Saber Rattling in the Arctic. More Saber Rattling in the Arctic H.L. sent this: Russia Warns US & NATO Over Increased Military Activity In Arctic. Meanwhile, the view of NATO …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Whenever the legislators endeavour to take away, and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any farther obedience, and are left to the common refuge, which God hath provided for all men, against force and violence. Whensoever therefore the legislative shall transgress this fundamental rule of society; and either by ambition, fear, folly or corruption, endeavour to grasp themselves, or put into the hands of any other, an absolute power over the lives, liberties, and estates …


Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — May 26, 2021

May 26th is the birthday of Randall Hank Williams (Hank Williams, Jr.) He was born 1949. When not touring, he lives Somewhere in Montana, so he qualifies as a Redoubter. He reportedly has a large gun collection which is heavy on Sharps rifles and rifles that have factory letters showing that they were originally shipped to Montana. His song A Country Boy Can Survive is practically a survivalist anthem. His father was just 29 when he died, and despite a couple of close calls, Hank Jr. is now well into his golden years, so he may yet live to a …


SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

This weekly column is a collection of short snippets: practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. We may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. o  o  o Our own Pat Cascio forwarded this disturbing news: It Begins: Fully Vaccinated People in Oregon Must Show Proof of Vaccination Status in Order to Enter Businesses Without a Mask. o  o  o Reader “Bear” wrote: “I liked a recent article by Angelo Codevilla. Anyone who quotes Alice’s Restaurant gets bonus points from me, but the real idea …



Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — May 25, 2021

On May 25th, 1787, The Constitutional Convention convened in Philadelphia with George Washington presiding. The task of the peaceful overthrow of the new American government as it had been defined by the Article of Confederation eventually led to the United States Constitution that is so abused today. — 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. …


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 some grizzly bear encounters. (See the Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming sections.) Region-Wide Calendar of County Commissioner Meetings regarding Greater Idaho o  o  o Seven rural counties in Oregon that voted for Trump have voted in favor of effort to secede from the …