Letter Re: In Extremis, Compunctions Dwindle

Sir, I know that seeing this attitude is not news to you, but I read this article and thought it may be helpful for the SurvivalBlog readers as reinforces what you and others have long said: that all bets are off in regards to morality and standards by the average Joe who has gone without food for a few days. This tale of post-Typhoon Yolanda includes the gripping quote: “I am a decent person. But if you have not eaten in three days, you do shameful things to survive.”  In any event, I thought you might find the link useful. Thank …


Economics and Investing:

Reader Mark J. mentioned a Silver and Gold Payment Calculator. This is a very handy site for calculating gold and silver coin transactions Starved of gold, Indians may import record volumes of silver IEA: Shale Boom is Only Temporary, we’ll Soon be Relying on Middle East Again Items from The Economatrix: Jim Willie:  Gold Fever: Coming Global Currency Reset Will Double Gold Overnight! 10 Facts About The Growing Unemployment Crisis In America That Will Blow Your Mind We’re in a worse position than in 2008: Marc Faber


Odds ‘n Sods:

Since Toronto’s Mayor Ford is such an out of control individual that I recommend he be nominated for honorary membership in Mayor Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns Gang. He would fit right in.    o o o Safecastle is continuing their last Mountain House cans sale of the year, with maximum allowable discounts, free shipping, and some special loyalty reward bonuses for buyers club members. The sale ends on November 20, 2013.    o o o Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large) spotted this: Dressed to not kill: Garrison Bespoke’s bullet-proof business suit    o o o Saudi nuclear …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Not he alone, nor the family that gathers at his table – But all men everywhere, fighting for Freedom’s cause, Are richer for his work. For the food he does not buy is theirs to have… In camps, in ships on every bloody sea, On battle fronts where food is life itself…. And in those dark and hungry lands now being freed – Where food is more than life… Where food means tyranny’s long hoped for end. The seeds of Victory are planted in his garden…" – An unattributed poem engraved on statue dedicated to World War II Victory Gardeners


Notes from JWR:

The central Philippines have been completely devastated by typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda. I heard from a reader there that even some islands that were a hundred miles away from the path of the center of the storm may be without power for several more weeks. This will surely trigger a major public health crisis. Please pray fervently and give generously. Oh, and I didn’t see this political spin coming, but this news article from Disarmed Old England certainly fits in with the globalist/statist agenda: Typhoon Haiyan: gun culture of the Philippines hinders relief efforts. (Thanks to reader J.B.G. for the link.)


Your Retreat’s Privy, by Stephanie M.

Have you considered an outhouse/privy as part of your preparedness plan? If you could no longer flush your toilet because you were having plumbing problems,   or your commercial water supply was cut off and you didn’t want to use your water stores for flushing, do you have a good backup plan,practical even for long term? Going in a bucket with a toilet seat attached to it in your bathroom is one option, but then you have to keep dumping it somewhere. This doesn’t seem like a good long term plan to me. Now, if you happen to have a …


Letter Re: Advice on Buying Legislatively Resilient Guns

James, As a daily reader of your blog, I’ve read over and over again about how Pre-1899 guns are legal. The Internet is full of such advise dating back a long time. However, I still fail to see how that would add much protection against confiscation. The ATF has seized Airsoft guns and police confiscated muzzleloaders from one home in my area after one resident (who was not the owner of the weapons!) was arrested there. The list goes on from there and contains nothing that shows that law enforcement makes any distinction between antiques and modern guns. I believe …



Letter Re: Remembering Dear Aunt Flow

Dear Editor, I really do appreciate Kali for bring up our Dear Aunt Flow because is something I don’t think a lot of women have thought about. I did want to bring up a concern I have about using tampons and menstrual cups that I don’t think has been brought up yet which is the risk of toxic shock syndrome. From what I remember learning in nursing school it’s basically when bacteria gets introduced into a dark moist place in the body is allowed to grow and gets into the bloodstream  through thin skin and becomes life threatening. I’ve heard …


Economics and Investing:

I noticed that spot silver just took a dip to below $21 per ounce. For those who don’t dollar cost average, this would be a good time to make a purchase. From OSU’s Socratic Club: A couple of good illustrations of the perils of socialism. G.G. suggested: Larry Kotlikoff Asks “Is Hyperinflation Around The Corner? By way of Ol’ Remus (who is now back to regular weekly posts): 36 Times Obama Said You Could Keep Your Health Care Plan Items from The Economatrix: Huge Cracks In US Financial Fortress, Petro-Dollar Final Death Throes U.S. Unfunded Liabilities: The Coming Big Squeeze …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Bruce Z. suggested a free and fairly comprehensive wiki-like source for PDFs of U.S. Army electronics manuals: Radio Nerds. Seeing the RC-292 and “Turkey Thirty” antenna manuals brought back some fond memories. (By the time I left the ASA, we were using the fairly advanced Watkins-Johnson AN/PRD-11 with an H-Adcock antenna.) I was also thrilled to a see page dedicated to my all-time favorite HF receiver, the R-390A. To start, SurvivalBlog readers should all save copies of the TA-1 and TA-312 field telephone manuals.    o o o Filipino policemen feel powerless against the of waves of Tacloban looters.    …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"One of the most dangerous errors is that civilization is automatically bound to increase and spread.  The lesson of history is the opposite; civilization is a rarity, attained with difficulty and easily lost.  The normal state of humanity is barbarism, just as the normal surface of the planet is salt water.  Land looms large in our imagination and civilization in history books, only because sea and savagery are to us less interesting." – C.S. Lewis


Notes from JWR:

Today is the birthday of USMC Sergeant Major Daniel Joseph Daly (born 1873, died April 27, 1937.) He was one of only nineteen men (including seven Marines) to twice receive the Medal of Honor. — This is also the birthday of Corporal John Alan Coey (died 19 July 1975.) He was the first American volunteer killed in Rhodesia’s Bush War. — Today we present a guest article from journalist Chuck Holton. SurvivalBlog readers will recognize Chuck’s name from the recent segment that he produced about The American Redoubt, for The 700 Club, on CBN.


My Experience in Expatriating to Panama, by Chuck Holton

Our family moved out of the United States in January of 2013, and so JWR’s novel “Expatriates” has been a particularly interesting read for us.  The kids are enjoying it, too. I want to share some of our experiences as expats which I believe will be helpful for your readers. The water got too hot for us on November 6, 2012.  I’m a reporter for the Christian Broadcasting Network, and was in Detroit covering the election.  What I saw there was the last straw in a long series of insults and injuries.     Detroit is the poster child for …


American Liberty at the Crossroads: Do We Sit By and Watch, or Do We Show Up and Fight?

SurvivalBlog reader B.B. suggested this piece by Mark Steyn: The Drift toward Despotism. And joining the chorus, even more stridently: The Creeping Police State. Soon after sending those links, B.B. sent this brilliant essay from Daren Jonescu: The Progressive Degradation of Freedom. Reading Jonescu’s cogent words crystallized a nascent theory that had been nagging me for a decade. It is this: America’s systemic reaction to the unspeakable horror of the 9/11 attacks was to “protect” ourselves by planting the seeds for a police state that will eventually strangle the freedom that we grew up cherishing. Each incremental step seems toward …