Two Letters Re: Sewing, Mending and Altering Your Clothing After the Ball Drops

James: I would like to add a couple of things with regard to the recent article and letters on sewing.   1.  Get a button jar.  People used to save the buttons from discarded, worn out clothing and use them for repair or when making new items.  When a button hole begins to wear out even a novice with needle and thread can sew on a larger button and make the garment wearable until the button hole can be repaired. A riveted metal button cannot be sewn back on and neither can a broken button.  I have buttons that have …


Letter Re: One Year Food Supply at COSTCO

Hi JWR, Just a quick note regarding the posting of “One Year Food Supply at COSTCO”. Just in case Walt G. and others are not aware, that particular food storage system has no meat In Costco’s THRIVE special, it’s all TVP. True, there is milk and egg protein, but if someone needs actual meat, there isn’t any–it is [soy-based] TVP (textured vegetable protein).   Take care, and thanks, Steve N. in Arizona JWR Replies: There are other food storage packages on the market that do have real meat. And one alternative is to supplement with real canned meats (such as …


Economics and Investing:

Peter Schiff: A Collapse Happened In 2008, But The Real Collapse Is Still Ahead Andre D. sent: Gold buyers forced to go on waiting list Items from The Economatrix: We, As Americans, Are About To See A Major, Major Collapse In Our National Monetary System, And Our Normal Way Of Life Ron Paul On Bitcoin: If I Can’t Put It In My Pocket, I Have Reservations” ObamaCare Is A “Neutron Bomb” That Will “Decimate” Jobs In America


Odds ‘n Sods:

The editors of Mother Jones have belatedly discovered prepperdom.    o o o For the gent in Ohio who wrote to chide me that: “.308 [semi-auto]s are impractical for rapid fire shooting, and close combat.” Well, Jerry Miculek shows how it is done. Perfect practice makes perfect!    o o o Monday (May 6th) will be the last day of the Ready Made Resources 25% off sale on Mountain House canned long term storage foods. Order soon.    o o o Alan S. sent this headline from Australia: Murder trial after NSW knife man shot dead. The hand-wringing Aussie judicial …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened, And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the …


Notes from JWR:

Happy birthday to Pastor Chuck Baldwin (born 1952), of Kalispell, Montana. He has done yeoman service as a pastor. Many of his sermons are available online. I commend him for promoting the American Redoubt movement. He has exhorted hundreds of families to relocate to Montana. — Ready Made Resources is running their semi-annual 25% off Mountain House Sale. This includes all Mountain House long term storage foods nitrogen packed in #10 cans. The sale ends on May 6th, so order soon. — Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this …


Traditional Skills: What Value are You to Other Preppers?, by Blacksmith Tom

Prepper communities and compounds rely on each members worth to their group, cooking, sewing, carpentry, leatherwork, gardening. There is one skill that cannot be over looked as one of the most valuable skills/trade for a prepper to possess.  Blacksmithing.  All other crafts and trades will require once again the skills of a blacksmith to replace stolen, broken tools.  In addition to making these tools a blacksmith can also make weapons, swords, axes, daggers, spears, arrow heads.  But how would one go about obtaining these skills?  Look in your local areas for classes offered, some community colleges are now offering blacksmithing …


Letter Re: IED Awareness

I received the following from an embedded mil-blogger friend.  His personal information has been redacted: Sir,  If I may, I would like to share some information with you.  Some is based on personal experience, and some comes from experts I know and trust.  What you do with this is up to you, but I wanted you to have it to think about just in case.   First, I can commend an I-phone app (should be available for other platforms as well) that the Army had suggested to me called IED Aware.  It is actually pretty much the basic Army awareness course …


Letter Re: Penny and Nickel Debasement Bill Introduced in U.S. Congress

Sir, I often received assorted mail in flat rate VHS videotape-size USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate boxes.  I found that these will hold 27 rolls of nickels. Not near as heavy as a .30 caliber ammo can when full. Folks (like me, over 60 and female) that find the .30 cal ammo cans a bit heavy might like to use these boxes.  I just use strapping tape and run a band around the box horizontally, fill it with the nickels and then run two bands of tape around it to seal it.  They stack nicely and I can move them …


Economics and Investing:

The perception of currency inflation is derived through the contextual prism of our daily lives. For my neighbors who burn a lot of gasoline commuting more than 40 miles each way every work day, the perceived inflation rate is more than 30%, per annum. And for my #1 Daughter, who’s main commercial interaction involves .22 cartridges, the perceived inflation rate is more than 200%, per annum. And for almost everyone, the fact that 32GB iPods are deflating in price because of economies of scale is a meaningless abstraction, when groceries have risen around 20% since last year. We don’t buy …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Building Your SHTF Gunshot Survival Kit    o o o Here is a new online publication that might be of interest: The Preparedness Review. Their latest edition includes an excerpt from my novel “Survivors.”    o o o Some good news from an anti-gun state: The Connecticut State Police today released their training memorandum regarding the open carry of firearms in the state. This is a significant concession in a Nanny State where up until now many police have treated Open Carry with contempt and high suspicion, and often with unjustified detainment. (Thanks to H.L. for the link.)    o …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 46 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 …


Silver Thoughts For The Beginner, by Jay in Missouri

One doesn’t have to look far in the news today to catch a conundrum in any article talking about precious metals. If you read the news shops you will have noticed articles crowing titles like “Silver and Gold Have Lost Their Shine!” and “The Precious Metals Market Tanks!”. The strange thing is if you are to walk into any coin or jewelry shop tomorrow and ask to buy a few coins, you will most likely be told the wait time is several weeks, and you’ll be paying prices above the current silver price. While the news outlets are singing the …


Letter Re: Sewing, Mending and Altering Your Clothing After the Ball Drops

James Wesley, I have a few comments on the recent clothing article:   Good heavy work clothing is around, if you know where to look. Carhartt, Prison Blues, Roundhouse, Wild Ass jeans and Dickies to name just a few of the better known names. Treat this clothing as an investment and buy it even if its expensive as it’s worth every penny.   Buttons.  Lay in a store of metal buttons.  I can’t tell you how many plastic, conventional buttons I’ve smashed working on something.  Metal shirt and pant buttons don’t break and wear for years. Plan on making clothes using …