An Accidental Prepper, by C.J.

Last year I read JWR’s novel “Survivors” and discovered, We Are Preppers!   I did not know there was a name for it or a whole culture surrounding it.  The discovery has triggered a lot of discussion with my now adult children, my elderly parents, and my siblings.  I’ve done a lot of reading on the subject and I’ve tried to understand how and why we could get to this point by accident.   Six years ago my husband and I bought a place, expecting to retire there in 6 to 9 years.  We looked at places in a vacation area that …


Letter Re: New York Gun Ban: TEOTWAWKI is Here

Sir; The end of the world as we knew it is upon us in New York State.    New York’s recent SAFE Act legislation (see the full text) immediately prohibited the sale of what misguided politicians call “assault weapons” and any magazine that holds more than seven cartridges effective January 14, 2013.  Sales within New York were immediately halted and are now forever forbidden unless there is an unlikely repeal or successful legal challenge.  This means that if you live in New York state and wanted to get a PTR91, AR15, WASR, Saiga, or a standard capacity magazine for any …


Economics and Investing:

Charitable Giving: These Are Most and Least Generous States. But Why? Hugh D. sent: Bank of America issues `bond crash’ alert on Fed tightening fears Items from The Economatrix: Prepare For 90% Correction?  Currency War Escalating But Inflationary Targets Will Fail–World Stuck In Deflationary Super-Cycle And There’s A “Financial Catastrophe On The Horizon” World War 3 Imminent?  China Quadrupling Rice Imports In 2012–FED Printing Money Every Month In 2013–Countries Recalling Their Gold Existing Home Sales Decline As US Supply Dwindles


Odds ‘n Sods:

What’s in Feinstein’s gun bill? Better question: What ISN’T in Feinstein’s gun bill? (Not much.) Needless to say, please contact all of your congresscritters again and tell them that ALL gun and magazine bans and assorted registration schemes are completely unacceptable and repugnant to the Constitution. OBTW, where do I find one of her mythical “rocket launcher” attachments? Those sound like they’d be a lot of fun.    o o o Australian Gun-grabbers Target Bolt-action Firearms    o o o NYS targets gun law confusion. JWR’s Comment: Many of the newly-enacted laws don’t take full effect until January 15, 2014. …



Notes from JWR:

For just the next five days, beginning on January 23 and ending the morning of January 29, JRH Enterprises will donate $100 for every PVS-14 night vision monocular sold to help C.R.O.S.S. Ministries make their first trip to Sudan, at the end of January. These are PVS-14 Third Generation+ Pinnacle Autogated units with ITT tubes, Brand new with five year warranties. The “Standard” Model is on sale for $2,795 and the Upgraded Model with the higher grade tube, (the same model we use at the Rawles Ranch) , on sale for $3,095.00 PVS-14s can be weapons mounted, used on a …


The Po’ Mans TEOTWAWKI Guide, by R.B.

Useful tips and advice for the rest of us. Don’t have lots of money? Just started prepping when it hits the fan? This guide is for you. Free of charge! Tip #1: Bug-in Chances are that you won’t be in such immediate danger (dirty bomb, lava about to engulf your house, spiders like in that Arachnaphobia movie) that you actually have to leave your home. Most likely the government will stop functioning or the power grid will be down for a long time. Of course, there is always risk of civil unrest, but that is not likely to effect your …


Letter Re: Food Storage in the Southern United States

Hello, I am searching for the answer to a question I am sure has been answered, but I have not been able to locate.  I live in Georgia and have been stocking up on foods.  I have very limited storage space in the house and have started to consider the need to move food stores out to the garage or up into the attic (I have no basement).  Our summers are extremely hot.  Many foods cannot be left in the extreme heat, and I am sure people in colder climates face the inverse problem.   It is not yet a issue for me, …


Economics and Investing:

H.H. suggested this over at Zero Hedge: Oldest Bank In The World Plunges, Halted As Chairman Resigns In Aftermath Of Latest Derivatives Fiasco The Government Debt Bubble Will Eventually Burst Chinese Politicians Are Buying Billions In U.S. Real Estate Items from The Economatrix: The Sovereign Debt Bubble Will Continue To Expand Until — BANG — The System Implodes 2013:  Cheapest Gasoline In Four Years? Market Update:  “Logic Has Been Replaced By Fear, By Panic


Odds ‘n Sods:

J.R. in Illinois was one of several readers to mention The Census Dotmap. It can be zoomed in to see individual families. If nothing else, it certainly confirms the light population density of The American Redoubt. There is lots of elbow room here!    o o o Democrat Senator Dianne Feinstein To Introduce “Assault Weapons” Ban On Thursday. Needless to say, this is a good time to contact your senators and say NO WAY to civilian disarmament. Be sure to mention that magazines and ammunition have the same Constitutional protection. There is no room for “accommodation” or “compromise” on a …



Notes from JWR:

January 23rd is the birthday of John Moses Browning, (born 1855) the brilliant designer of dozens of guns including the M1911 pistol, Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR), and the venerable M2 .50 Caliber Machinegun. The latter is still in service in at least 95 countries. And I wouldn’t be surprised if it is still in service in 2100. — Today we present another entry for Round 44 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate …


Self Defense When Your Options are Limited, by L.J.

It started with a pirate story. I was chatting up an old sea captain and asking how folks might take countermeasure against the threat of pirates (think Somali-like, not Disney-like).  He explained that most pirating these days in North and South American waters is either drug related or opportunistic.  To avoid the former, avoid anything associated with the drug trade.  To avoid the latter, harden your target a little bit.  I was particularly interested in the non-firearms related aspects of this, since when cruising on the ocean, many ports of call are in countries with less than friendly firearms laws.  …


Letter Re: Four-Tier Survival for the Newbie

James, Thanks so much for all you and your family do to keep survivalblog.com going. It is a daily read for me. Upon reading “Four-Tier Survival for the Newbie,” I reminisced about what my father would say to me while I was initially preparing my bug-out bag:  “Son, you are preparing for luxury. Back when I was a boy during the Depression we used to go out camping with just the clothes on our backs, our pocket knife and a potato in our pocket. We took a potato ’cause we generally couldn’t ‘find’ potatoes.” Being in my mid-fifties now, I …


Economics and Investing:

Are we missing critical inflation data with the CPI? How the government over time has altered the CPI to under report inflation. Ben Stein on money, gridlock & more. Stein says the budget deficit will continue to grow “…until it eats us all alive.” Whither Japan Stocks and Bonds: Are Kyle Bass and Martin Feldstein Right? Is Market Collapse Ahead? Items from The Economatrix: Karl Denninger:  US Credit Rating Downgrade 2013 As 2013 Begins, Global Economy Still At Risk Of Collapse And The Downside Risks Are Gathering Force 37 Statistics Which Show How Four Years Of Obama Have Wrecked The …