Economics and Investing:

Reader S.J. asked about an update on the Bullion Direct debacle that was first publicized back in June. There is a good summary on the bankruptcy here. Needless to say, this bankruptcy–which involved $25 million in physical gold purchases that were never made on behalf of customers–illustrates just how foolish it is to entrust your precious metals with any institution. Keep them well-hidden at home, folks! o o o Switzerland probes banks over precious metals price fixing o o o Over at Zero Hedge: TheWorst Part Is Central Bankers Know Exactly What They Are Doing Items from The Economics Team: …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Peter S. suggested watching Mark Steyn’s September 26 speech in at the Danish Parliament building in Copenhagen: The Danish Muhammad Cartoon Crisis in Retrospect (Video.) By the way, some of Steyn’s remarks tie in to the theme of my upcoming novel, which is titled Land of Promise. o o o Over at Zero Hedge: TheWorst Part Is Central Bankers Know Exactly What They Are Doing o o o G.G. flagged this: Intense Solar Flare Unleashed from Unruly Sunspot. (This was the big M7 solar flare seen just before and after the recent Blood Moon.) o o o Sotomayor:‘Do as …



Notes for Tuesday – September 29, 2015

September 29, 1881 was the birthday of Ludwig von Mises. (He died on October 10, 1973.) o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 60 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $10,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value), A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, DRD Tactical is …


A SHTF Guide to Mass Casualty Incidents, by W.G. Curry, NRP, TP-C

I’ve written this article with a hypothetical situation interspersed between some factual text: Your eyelids peel apart and allow dust to fall onto your eyes as you force them open and shut while rubbing them with filthy fists in an effort to washout some of the debris. The ringing noise is loud in your ears. “I wish it would stop,” you declare to yourself. A terrible ache forms in the depth of your skull. You ache all over. “What happened, where am I,” you ask? As your blurry vision begins to brighten and sharpen, you can see ash in the …


Letter: Buying Land Inside a National Forest

Hugh and Jim, I have been reading SurvivalBlog for several years now. I’m retiring next year and am currently looking for our retirement “farm”. I never refer to it as my survival retreat. I have seen several properties for sale, apparently, inside national forests. Some have even been working farms. We have several national forests here in Michigan and many people live and apparently own land inside of these forests. My questions are: What are the ramifications of owning land within a National Forest? Do I own the trees on the land, do I own the ponds, streams, etc.? What …


News From The American Redoubt:

From The East Oregonian: LaGrande man pushing for secession to Idaho. Does that map look vaguely familiar? o o o John Jacob Schmidt of Radio Free Redoubt wrote to mention that “Sparks-31” will be conducting oneof his last comms classes, in November, and in occupied territory – western Washington State. Great training! Sign up while there are still slots! o o o Officerpays for Idaho man’s fuel, gets snubbed trying to get paid back.Update: Ontario Police Chief Mark Alexander says the officer has been reimbursed by the motorist. He says a check for $60 had been mailed but was sent …


Economics and Investing:

Simon Black at Sovereign Man: The global financial system is now resting on a margin of 1.3% o o o Chart of the Day: Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index. o o o MarcFaber Warns Americans of Economic Collapse o o o Reader D.S.V. recommended this piece: Taxing Churches Would Marry Church And State Items from The Economics Team: The Next U.S. Recession Will Surprise Investors Give Your Grocery Shopping List an Extreme Makeover Glencore in Freefall as Analysts See Tougher Restructuring Glencore shares are getting obliterated and analysts say shareholders could lose everything


Odds ‘n Sods:

What do the words “Self-Sufficiency” mean to you? Well, according to one leftist think tank in the People’s Republic of Colorado, the words “Self-Sufficiency” now apparently mean: establishing guidelines for obtaining welfare handouts, tax credits, government grants, an increased “minimum wage”, “affordable (read: taxpayer subsidized) housing”, “economic justice”, and other assorted socialist claptrap. Their calculated annual “Self-Sufficiency wage” is a whopping $68,182 per year in Denver. That would be considered rock star uber wealthiness, to 98% of the world’s population. But in Denver, it apparently means just getting by. In classic Orwellian Newspeak, what used to be called “Dependency” isnow …



Notes for Monday – September 28, 2015

The current sale on Mountain House long term storage canned foods at Safecastle ends on Wednesday, September 30, 2015. Despite the recent rush of orders, they are offering 35% to 38% discounts. And, unlike many other Mountain House sellers, Safecastle actually keeps most varieties in stock and ready for immediate delivery. (Many of these other sellers are now building a multi-month backorder list. As of September 24, the Mountain House factory was reportedly 95% sold out of their canned foods due to the recent high demand.) o o o Today we present another product review.


Pat Cascio’s Product Review: Day One Response Water Filter

Depending on which survival expert you talk to, they all have a slightly different list of things you need in an emergency, and what order you should do things. Some say shelter is the first thing on your list, followed by fire, then water, and lastly food. While all of these things are important, and I have no argument with them, one of the first things I would recommend is that, whatever brought on your emergency should be looked at closely. If a tornado is headed your way, the first thing to do is get to safety – whatever the …


Letter Re: Traditional Hand Tools

Dear Editor: Here are some observations on non-power tools: Get lots of can openers because they all fail. Older US-made ones from yard sales will last longer. Also stock US-made government issue “P38” openers as backups because they always they always work. Egg beaters and hand drills with an idler gear on the back side are more durable, not just from the support but because they are better quality to begin with. Antique shops are high $ place to shop for hand tools, estate sales are best, next generation often has no clue about grandpa’s “junk”. I found a quality …


Letter: Drought in Western Retreat Areas

JWR: Has the recent drought in the western United States caused you to change any of your “Recommended Retreat Areas”? – T.I.A. JWR Responds: No, it hasn’t. There is an old saying: “Climate is what you expect, and weather is what you get.” I do not believe that the current drought in the northwest is any evidence of any long term climate change. We are simply in an El Niño weather pattern that most likely will last only another year or two. The El Niño weather pattern has temporarily shifted the jet stream, disrupting seasonal rains, particularly in California, where …


Recipe of the Week: Butternut Squash Soup, by C.S.

This a recipe for a soup made from cooked and then pureed butternut squash. Ingredients: 4 ½ pounds butternut squash, halved lengthwise, remove seeds 1/3 cup butter 2 large leeks ¾ tsp. dried thyme 5 cups chicken stock or broth ¼ tsp. salt 2 Tbs. brown sugar ½ cup sour cream 2 ½ Tbs. chives, chopped 8 slices bacon, fried crisp-crumbled Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Place the squash, cut side down on a baking sheet and bake until tender, about 40 minutes. Cool slightly. Using a spoon, scoop out the squash from the skin and set aside. …