Letter Re: Water Quality in the Inland Northwest

James, I am just getting ready to explore the Pacific Northwest.  What has come to my attention is the horrific nuclear  (Hanford) and toxic metal (mining) contamination of all the rivers in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.  The Columbia River and its tributaries are a toxic soup. Even Lake Roosevelt, above Spokane is filled with heavy metals due to mining in Canada.  [Some deleted, for brevity] Thanks for all your hard work. – Barbara H. JWR Replies: To start, the Hanford Nuclear reservation sits right next to the Columbia River. It is down river from Idaho. Furthermore, the Columbia is down …


Letter Re: Smart Phone Maps

Mr. Rawles, My wife and I don’t have a lot of money and we didn’t want to pay to have a smart phone so we chose to have basic phones.  A friend recently upgraded to a new carrier and gave me his Android X with a 16GB SD card in it for $25.  I was happy cause we could use to entertain the kids on road trips or what have you.  But I recently found out that I can download Offline maps onto the SD card.  I’m sure you’ve seen an SD card for these phones.  Its about the size …


Recipe of the Week:

Rose’s Bean Hamburger Casserole Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Sauté in a large skillet: 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil 1/2 cup onion, chopped 1 cup celery, chopped 1/4 cup chopped green pepper, chopped (optional, or other chopped veggies or olives) 1/4 to 1/2 lb. hamburger (or ½ pint jar hamburger or other meat) When the meat is brown, stir in: 1 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt 2-1/2 cups cooked beans 1-1/4 cups (about 1 can) tomato soup, tomato sauce or diced  tomatoes 1 beef bouillon cube, dissolved in 1 cup hot water 2 cups cooked rice …


Economics and Investing:

Chipotle Ends the Penny Before U.S. Mint Does. (Thanks to Gregg P. for the link.) Food prices jump will hit poor, World Bank warns. Global food prices have leapt by 10% in the month of July More Monetization: Debt crisis: ECB should launch ‘unlimited’ bond buying, says OECD. Somehow, I don’t think that a country buying their own bonds is what Bing Crosby had in mind. (Thanks to G.G. for the link.) Items from The Economatrix: Charlie McGrath:  Collapse, Civil Unrest are Unavoidable The “Euphoric” Economy and Why “They” Didn’t See it Coming Into The Meat Grinder:  A “Market Meltdown …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Most of New Orleans still without power; patience ‘wearing thin’. (Thanks to G.G. for the link.)    o o o I will be a guest speaker (via teleconference) at CharlottePrepCon, on September 8th.    o o o F.G. sent this: Guns in America, a Statistical Look. The article mentions that there are more than 129,817 federally licensed firearms dealers in the United States, compared to 36,569 grocery stores. F.G.’s comment: “Is this a great country, or what?”    o o o To round out our family battery here at the Rawles Ranch, I’m looking to purchase an antique Swiss 7.5mm …



Notes from JWR:

Founders: A Novel of the Coming Collapse is still on track for release. Please wait until its release date (September 25th)–which is also our planned Book Bomb day–to place your order. Thanks! — Today we present another two entries for Round 42 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 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 …


How To Find A Post-TEOTWAWKI Job, by D.M.

The Schumer has hit the fan. Hyperinflation has crushed the economy, an EMP has disabled the United States, or some other disaster has brought TEOTWAWKI. And you’re not ready. Your retreat isn’t stocked up, or you haven’t found one that fits right. Or you have, but you’re far away from it. You’re stuck in the city when the SHTF, or you’re out traveling and you’re far away from your new home. The credit-card infrastructure has sizzled. Your credit card is only good for opening insecure doors. All you have is the cash in your wallet. Travel to your retreat, if …


Risk and Unrealistic Promises, by Seth D.

The problem so much of this country faces can be sourced back to one common practice that many of us cannot bring ourselves to face.  Unrealistic promises.  The world is full of risks, in fact life could be described as nothing but a massive risk management exercise. Will my paychecks be enough to cover my bills this month? Will I have any unexpected expenses this month? Will a plane fall out of the sky on to me? Will my business be adversely affected by Obamacare? Will the price of oil rise so high I can’t afford my commute? Will the …


Letter Re: State Government Debt Levels

James, I just finished reading one of the financial articles you linked in yesterday’s post.  The topic of the article was debt levels of U.S. states.  In it, the author broke down the debt burden of each state citizen; for example, a Californians’ per capita obligation is just over $16,000, while Texans are at a lower level of around $11,000.   So:  Two things.   First:  I think in doing this we are perpetuating the concept of the State’s (used here in the sense of a nation-state/political entity) authority to impose the public debt burden on non-sovereign individuals.  While I …


Letter Re: When the Antidepressants Run Out

Hello Mr. Rawles, In response to the Dr. S.V.’s article, which I thought was fantastic, I would like to take a moment to describe my experience with Effexor, which as the Doctor points is in a different class of medication than Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Celexa, Lexapro. That being said, the withdrawal symptoms are just as devastating and in my case began within 24 hours. My fiancé and I were on a short weekend trip to see her folks and in our rush to get on the road, I forgot to pack my Effexor. At the time I was currently taking …


Economics and Investing:

Jim W. recommended this over at International Man: After The Storm: The 11stages of an Economic Crash Also from Jim W.: Breakout Move in Silver Forecasting Global Hyper-Inflation. H.L. sent: The Biggest Reason Why California is Bankrupt Libertarian billionaire warns of ‘financial Armageddon’ after U.S. election Items from The Economatrix: Jim Rogers:  The Agriculture Industry Is Doomed Home Values Rise In U.S. For First Time Since 2010 Jack Mintz:  U.S. Worse Than Europe


Odds ‘n Sods:

Eric L. alerted me to this: New ‘Heartland’ virus discovered in sick Missouri farmers    o o o Bram mentioned this new ham radio site: Radio Preppers.    o o o H.L. sent: No Firearm Owner Is Safe: Jeff & Chris Knox tell of FBI agent sitting in prison due to overzealous justice system    o o o Yet another retreat property at SurvivalRealty.com has just sold. This one was in North Idaho, and not surprisingly it was bought by a SurvivalBlog reader. We now have about 130 listings. SurvivalRealty.com is now firmly established as the premier site for buying …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.” – Acts 20:22-24 (KJV)


Notes from JWR:

Readers in the U.S are advised that September is National Preparedness Month. In cooperation, many States have special “no sales tax” periods for many items including generators and in a few states even firearms. Some states with chronic flooding problems also give away free sandbags. Do a web search for activities in your State for National Preparedness Month. — Today we present another two entries for Round 42 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. …