Odds ‘n Sods:

Geoff S. sent this article on large-scale greenhouse farming: Farm flourishes on Alaska tundra. (Of course to be able to afford all of those greenhouses, it helps to live where strawberries sell for $6 to $9 per pound.)    o o o I noticed that Ready Made Resources has added some very effective smoke grenades to their product line. Don’t confuse these with the small, commonly-available pyrotechnic toys. In contrast, these ones really crank out voluminous smoke!    o o o This was interesting: Know Where to Run to: The Five Best Countries With No Extradition    o o o …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“You either get out of the system or you make a major contribution of your wealth to the d*mn OTC derivative manufacturers and distributors. This broken banking system is still hiding their huge losses thanks to the political sell out by the gatekeepers of international accounting, the FASB. They have lost their souls to evil.” – Jim Sinclair


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 47 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 …


Letter Re: Some Experience With Potatoes

Good Morning Captain Rawles, How would you like your potatoes this morning? We have finished digging our potatoes and stored them. We usually plant a Lasota Red type of potato. We purchase them in 50 pound sacks at the local feed store. “Planting potatoes” are different from the potatoes you buy in the store to eat. Potatoes from the store are treated with some kind of food grade additive to prevent them from sprouting for a while. If you plant these, there will usually be very few that come up. However, if you have had them for a while and …


Letter Re: Preparedness for Hazardous Chemical Spills

Dear Sir, I work as an firefighter/EMT and Hazardous Materials Tech in the Greater Louisville, Kentucky region. I would like to provide your readership with two examples of ‘stabilized’ emergencies going wrong in the last year in the Louisville area alone. Both could have been catastrophic had it not been for quick thinking and pure dumb luck. The first incident began in late October of last year when 11 cars of a 57-car Paducah and Louisville line (a CSX owned company) derailed in the southwest corner of Jefferson County, very near Fort Knox. The cars that derailed were carrying Butadiene …


Letter Re: Mad Max Modifications: Improvised Armor for Vehicular Platforms

James, Just a note on the penetrating power of the 5.56 NATO M855 ball round on various materials.  Much ink has been wasted noting the presence of a steel or tungsten “penetrator” being manufactured inside the M855 round. It weighs about 3 grains.  It is insignificant so far as getting the bullet inside a car unless you open the door first.  True, any load in the 5.56 will make impressive wounds or even penetrate 1/4” or even 3/8” mild steel plate…as long as there absolutely nothing in the way before it arrives on target.  Put a 1/8th inch tick sheet …


Economics and Investing:

Why Supply and Demand Doesn’t Matter for U.S. Oil Greg Hunter: We’re a Long Way from the 1970’s. (Thanks to Jim W. for the link.) The Crunch In Emerging Markets May Cause The Fed To Delay Tightening. JWR’s Comment: Yes, and your local crack head will give you lots of excuses why he has delayed “tapering” his habit, too. It is obvious that our government is now absolutely addicted to creating free money. And the fact that they are foolishly creating Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) derivatives in this process is reinflating the bi-coastal housing bubble. This will all end quite …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader L.G.F. suggested: Free Readiness Resources. (It is loaded with links to hundreds of useful web sites.)    o o o An amazing tale: Nigerian cook survives 2 days under sea in shipwreck air bubble. (Thanks to F.G. for the link.)    o o o The incredible survivalist holiday of Arizona senator who took his children to deserted island with NO food or water    o o o Now That It Looks Like Immigration Reform Is Going To Pass, You Should Know What’s Actually In The Bill    o o o Is This the REAL Reason for the Government Spying …



Notes from JWR:

Camping Survival is running a sale on Wise brand storage foods, with deep discounts from June 12 to June 18, 2013. — Today we present another entry for Round 47 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) 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, and C.) Two …


Survival Tips From the May 20, 2013 Oklahoma Tornado

Let me first say thank you to all who have contributed to this blog for your columns and all your wisdom.  Without this site, my experience during the recent tornado would have been much different! For some background info, I have only been prepping for about a year. I have been an Emergency Medicine physician for over 10 years.  I treated patients of the May 3, 1999 Moore, Oklahoma tornado during my training years and I was involved in door to door search and rescue for the recent May 20, 2013 tornado. While my house was not hit, it did …


Letter Re: Some Disturbing Trends in an Eastern Nanny State

Dear Mr Rawles, I have a couple of disturbing events in my state (southeastern New England) I wish to report to you and your readers. I do not have medical  insurance.  Because of this I go to the local health  center run (until now) very well by the local hospital. and I have benefited greatly by their care. However, this past week I became quite sick, and made an appointment to be seen by one of their doctors. Upon entering I saw they have new computers and scanners. A patient must use this to check in. This is done by …


Economics and Investing:

A SurvivalBlog reader in Belgium who prefers to remain anonymous wrote to mention three noteworthy changes: “…in Belgium in the last two weeks cash transactions were limited, transactions in gold and silver were limited, and the historical weapons list abolished which [previously] allowed us to buy [some antique cartridge guns] without a permit. These had included many older military rifles such as the Lee-Enfield, Mosin Nagant, Schmidt-Rubin, etc.” Pat Cascio flagged this: Gun ammo running out in Australia as US citizens buy big. A Bitcoin documentary in the making: “Can a newly married couple survive when every living necessity can …


Odds ‘n Sods:

G.G. suggested this article: The risk of a catastrophic solar storm that would leave countries including the United Kingdom and United States without electricity for days or even months will peak in 2015, a new report claims.    o o o SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson spotted this: ‘Pro-Gun’ Ricin mailer turns out to be Hollywood anti-gunner. By her shifting stories, it can fairly safely be deduced that she was setting up her husband for arrest. Her psychological problems provide a new treble entendre to the description “Bad Actor.”    o o o House Votes to Eliminate Service …