Odds ‘n Sods:

Karl G. recommended a great video with yet another use for IBC totes: Building an IBC aquaponic system, along with this instructive PDF. Karl notes: “You just have to make sure that the tank wasn’t used for some nasty chemicals before making this.”    o o o Rewarding Idiots with Democratic Totalitarianism    o o o I heard about an interesting new blog from a libertarian Christian philosopher who has emigrated to Chile: The Fifth Stage Blog    o o o Havana’s blackout.    o o o Tom of CampingSurvival.com co-produced this instructional video: How-To Roast Green Organic Coffee Beans …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Between the far away past history of the world, and that which lies near to us; in the time when the wisdom of the ancient times was dead and had passed away, and our own days of light had not yet come, there lay a great black gulf in human history, a gulf of ignorance, of superstition, of cruelty, and of wickedness. That time we call the dark or Middle Ages. Few records remain to us of that dreadful period in our world’s history, and we only know of it through broken and disjointed fragments that have been handed down …


Note from JWR:

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 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 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for …


Prepping for a Different Herd, by Xaidin

I’m a prepper, however my situation is a little different than most.  I wanted to write an article explaining my unique challenges. My family has a small ranch in New Mexico.  In the old days when it rained more often we ran about 100 head of cattle.  With the drought that has hit the southwest so hard, we’re down to about 50. I know most of you are thinking, oh my goodness this guy is so lucky.  He can eat all the beef he wants when TSHTF.  The answer is yes, and no.  I had about the same initial reaction …


Secure Signals for a Survivalist, by Fred J.

This subject is a much overlooked area in the survival community and sorely neglected. I hope that the following synopses of this crucial topic will inspire an invigorating awakening in this area that I feel is vital to our collective success, without which our endeavor could well be doomed. Every country and every military around the world through the ages has employed codes, ciphers and signals as well as signets et cetera for security and authentication of messages. Sending messages via couriers, as well as during times of war and peacetime to prevent their opposition from learning their secrets and …


Letter Re: Fasting and Starvation

Dear Editor: I am a practitioner of fasting. Having learned how it feels to go without food I feel it necessary to let others know. Hunger is a good thing, but letting hunger go too long is very bad. Let me explain how this works. Hunger and starvation are totally different. Hunger is the state that tells you that your body is not receiving food. Starvation is when your body is destroying itself to stay alive. As a geologist in the jungles of South America I had the not so pleasant experience of typhoid. Most of my time there (15 …


News From The American Redoubt:

It pays not to panic: Hiker escapes Pine Creek fire by trekking over divide    o o o State Impact: Guns for growth in Idaho–Idaho aims for jobs through manufacturing arms. (Thanks to R.B.S. for the link.)    o o o Yet another gorgeous flying video from Ttabs: The Ground Below. This one was filmed near Craigmont, Idaho, where the Camas Prairie Plateau drops off into the Clearwater River canyon country. (My old stomping grounds.) And in case any of you missed it, check out one of his most popular videos: Flying Through the Story of Patriots – Surviving the …


Economics and Investing:

Smith & Wesson Posts Huge Earnings G.G. flagged this: To Save Money, Americans Buy Expired Food at Auctions Also from G.G.: More older workers making up labor force More monetization is in the works: Jim Rogers and Marc Faber Agree, Bombs Away Items from The Economatrix: Lackluster Economy Shows Stronger Pulse US Job Cuts Hit 20-month Low, But Layoffs Heavy Overseas Are You Better Off?  40 Statistics That Will Absolutely Shock You! 84 Statistics Showing The Collapse Of The Middle Class Is Real


Odds ‘n Sods:

Leauxryda sent an interesting article discussing the types of weapons used by criminals with facts that support a victim stands a better chance of defending themselves rather than passively submitting.    o o o Reader Pierre M. sent the link to a PDF of a classic public domain book that will be of interest to homeschoolers and to anyone who studies military strategy: History Of The Conquest Of England By The Normans, by Augustin Thierry. (Translated from the French.)    o o o This new group meetup page looks promising: PrepperLink Groups.    o o o You can now hear …



Note from JWR:

I’ve noticed that despite my protestations, my upcoming book Founders: A Novel of the Coming Collapse is now ranked around #700 in Amazon’s overall sales rank. Please stop pre-ordering, folks! Wait until its release date (September 25th), which is also our planned Book Bomb day. Thanks!


Talkin’ ’bout a Revolution

It is called Revolution. The pilot episode of the new post-power grid collapse television series is now available at the NBC web site, and on Hulu.com. The series will begin airing on September 17, 2012. It will air on Monday evenings at 10 PM in most time zones and 9 PM Central Time. Missing a huge opportunity to instruct preparedness, self-sufficiency, and survival skills, the show skips over the first 15 years of the blackout. And like a Kevin Costner flashback, they of course portray militias as bad guys… From the little that I’ve seen of it, I can predict …


Pat’s Product Review: Eberlestock Gunslinger II Pack

I have literally lost count of the number and different types of backpacks I have owned and tried over the years. And, to be sure, there is no one backpack that suits everyone the same. I believe backpacks are a very personal thing, and you can’t select one for someone else. Everyone in my family has a different type of Bug Out Bag – always have! At one point, when I was quite a bit younger, I used a US military CFP 90 pack – and that thing could hold something like 6,500 cubic inches of stuff. Fully loaded, it …


A Critical Thinker Book Review: Hunt Gather Grow Eat

We all benefit from the wisdom and experience of those around us. For someone with a beginning passion for a subject, a mentor is extremely valuable; and for those that have achieved a reasonable amount of competence, a respected peer can be a great sounding board for exploring issues and alternatives. For those with a general interest in self sufficiency or a specific interest in food independence, the new book from Jason Akers comes very close in replicating those relationships. His book, Hunt Gather Grow Eat: Your Guide to Food Independence, is a very readable and useful survey of self …


Letter Re: Alternative Treatments for Auto-Immune Disorders in the Absence of Traditional Health Care

Dear James, I’m a long time SurvivalBlog reader, first time responder, and serious prepper.    This article by J.F. has some excellent information but there is a glaring omission.  In most auto immune diseases, there is an assault on your body that invokes a response by your immune system. At times, such as the case of the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918, your body gets confused by various threats and “brings out the big guns, namely a cytokine storm that effectively neutralizes the threat.  Unfortunately, this also does “collateral damage” in the form of severe oxidative stress to surrounding tissue.   …