Thoughts on a Recent Disaster Drill, by Ken J.

Mr. Rawles:  I run a health care facility in a particular state.  I’d prefer not to give away all details as I do have access to certain pharmaceutical supplies in the event of certain happenings due to my position in the local community.  But I’ll be as specific as I can be in this forum in the hopes of shedding some light on a recent disaster exercise.  Local authorities from the state department of health teamed up with numerous statewide personnel from various agencies to conduct a disaster simulation recently that assumed an anthrax attack on the local populace.  It …


Letter Re: Advice on In-Home Caches

James Wesley: A thought about securely storing valuables: Have several hidden storage areas/caches with the bulk of your valuables and some smaller “bait” caches.  If ever overwhelmed by thieves or the government, give up the smaller stashes to satisfy the varmints.  In the case of registered firearms, a government grab will expect to find all the registered weapons and some associated ammo so it is imperative to acquire (legally) never registered weapons and ammo for the long term if you do not already have “free” weapons. Of course in the case of thieves, the best option is vigorous self-defense. Thanks …


Letter Re: Holey Ground–The Use of the Auger in Homestead Food Production

James: I’d like to take exception to the recent article by M.S. on using augers to make plant holes. No professional would consider using an auger for planting. Augers compact and glaze the edge of the hole as they work their way down.  While this is great for post holes, it’s a death sentence for the plant roots. A far better and faster way is to use either a small backhoe  or an articulated trencher that will cut a fan shaped hole.  The spoil from the hole is broken up and now suitable for back fill.  Post-SHTF, a good quality …


Economics and Investing:

State auditor: California’s net worth at negative $127.2 billion Mt. Gox under largest DDoS attack as bitcoin price surges A Tipping Point In The Financial System Reader Lance in Michigan wrote to chime in with this sign of the times: “Yesterday I went to our bank here to begin withdrawing excess reserves and was told to come back today. While there, a woman queued up at the teller window next to me was upset that they wanted to know what she was planning to do with the $20,000 she was withdrawing. My mere $7,500 didn’t solicit the same question. My …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader R.B.S. was the first of several readers to send this: Colorado Democrat Doesn’t Understand High-Capacity Magazines Can Be Reloaded. This tells us something about the (ahem) caliber of those in Colorado’s ruling party… In my estimation Representative DeGette has put herself on a par with Congressman Hank Johnson, who was convinced that the island of Guam was floating like a raft and if it became too populated that it could capsize. Oh and speaking of geographic ignorance, let’s not forget Henry Waxman‘s brilliant understanding of the oceanic ice cap at the North Pole.    o o o A reminder …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the LORD, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies …


Notes from JWR:

The Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course can now be downloaded directly to your PC and it is priced under $20. — 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 …


Holey Ground — The Use of the Auger in Homestead Food Production, by M.S.

When planning to grow their own food, many people understandably focus on the plants. A plant, however, simply expresses its genetic blueprint to the extent it can based on the energy and materials available from the sun and soil. We can therefore state that a critical aspect of successful vegetable production is the quality of the soil. Given the limitations of either the amount of warning you might have before needing to produce food for your family, or the amount of money you are able to put toward improving your soil to the point it will yield reliably, amending your …


Guest Article: Colorado’s New Law on “Large Capacity” Ammunition Magazines, by Attorney Timothy J. Priebe

On March 10, 2013, the Governor of Colorado signed into law three new statutes that pertain to gun and magazine owners throughout the state. In this post, I will start with the addition of C.R.S. 18-12-301, having to do with “Large Capacity Ammunition Magazines”. We will first begin with the name of the bill. As many of you know, a magazine which holds more than 15 rounds is not a “Large Capacity” magazine but in many cases just the stock or standard magazine that comes with the firearm. However, if you asked my mother, who is not a gun owner, …


Letter Re: Sew You Think You’re a Prepper? Look to Your Treadle in Troubled Times

JWR, The sewing submission by TJG about Singer 66 Treadle machines is informative and “generally” relays the usefulness of such a machine, especially in a grid-down environment, however, as I have learned personally, her claims that the Singer 66 can handle THICK and BULKY items like leather and nylon is not accurate in my opinion. I learned this by buying a beautiful electric-motor-driven Singer 66 “Red Eye” model to do all the nylon web gear modifications I have always wanted to do to my gear, as the Singer 66 is indeed a tough all-steel sewing machine, yet I quickly discovered …



Odds ‘n Sods:

G.G. sent this gem: Fusion center director: We don’t spy on Americans, just anti-government Americans. In related news, here is one Baltimore cop who has swallowed the whole SPLC party line: 10 tips and tactics for investigating Sovereign Citizens. Here he warns his fellow officers not to be swayed by Constitutional and court case citations. Incredible! (Thanks to C.R. for the link.)    o o o Undoubtedly, a Darwin Awards Candidate. An important safety tip, folks: Most dynamic nylon climbing ropes have up to a 30% stretch factor, under load. Dynamic ropes should not be used for static rope applications, …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Good money must have an intrinsic value. The United States of America cannot make its shadow legal tender for debts payable in money without ultimately bringing upon their foreign commerce and their home industry a catastrophe, which will be the more overwhelming the longer the day of wrath puts off its coming." … "From the decision of the court I see only evil likely to follow. There have been times within the memory of all of us when the legal-tender notes of the United States were not exchangeable for more than one-half of their nominal value. The possibility of such …


Notes from JWR:

A Reminder: The Get Prepared Expo will be held April 6-7, in Lebanon, Missouri. I will be one of the featured speakers (via teleconference.) My lecture and Q&A session will be from 11 AM to 1 PM on Saturday April 6th. SurvivalBlog’s Back Country Editor Mat Stein will also be a speaker. They will have 100 exhibits and 80 one-hour seminars. The latter will be running six at a time for two days. — 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 …


Sew You Think You’re a Prepper? Look to Your Treadle in Troubled Times, by T.J.G.

The art and craft of sewing has begun to dwindle in popularity. However, this was not always the case. In the ancient world, and even in our own not so distant pioneer times, sewing has been an invaluable and necessary skill. In much of the last century, many young women (and some young men) were taught to sew by parents, in home economics classes, in some Boy Scout or Girl Scout clubs or even by employers. In this article, my hope is not to discuss hand sewing, but rather to impress the value of non-electric machine sewing. I myself first …