After the Shooting, by Tupreco

Your bedside clock says 3:40 a.m. You have just awakened to a sound like breaking glass.  You pick up the phone to call 911 but the line is dead.  It’s dark in the house and you ease out of bed to retrieve your handgun from the closet safe just as you have practiced dozens of times.  You wait inside your bedroom door with your ear straining to hear. Someone is down the hall sliding something on the tile.    At that instant, the 30-second delay on your security system expires and the alarm begins to peal.  Another crash in the living …


Stuff Hits the Fan 101, by Mrs. S.

I grew up in the suburbs of Houston, Texas. I was raised by a single mother who didn’t have time for much besides working to pay bills. I wasn’t lucky enough to grow up on a farm or learn canning or learn any useful survival/life skills besides how to cook Hamburger Helper and I was doing that at the ripe old age of 10. I did become a pro at making stew though and I could probably tell you 101 ways to use pasta. And thanks to my grandmother I could even crochet you a scarf if you’re lucky and …


Economics and Investing:

Ian R. flagged this must-read piece by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Global liquidity peak spells trouble for late 2012. Bruce Krasting: America is Using Tricks to Hide a Debt Crisis Worse than Greece Bill Whittle: The Vote Pump Lee M. sent this: Banks foreclosing on churches in record numbers Another incipient muni bankruptcy: Stockton residents watch their port city slip away: “Within three months, the Central Valley city of 300,000 could become the nation’s largest municipality to file for bankruptcy…”


Odds ‘n Sods:

Tomorrow (Wednesday, March 14, 2012) is the last day of Ready Made Resources’ sale on Mountain House canned freeze dried foods. They are offering 20% off and free shipping. The sale ends at midnight Eastern time, so order soon!    o o o The Free Film Girl has created a list of freely downloadable public domain survival and preparedness-related videos that might be helpful.    o o o Homeless by Choice: How to Live for Free in America. (Thanks to SurvivalBlog’s Poet Laureate G.G. for the link.)    o o o This has some terse, straightforward wording: House Concurrent Resolution …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"There is no nation on earth powerful enough to accomplish our (the United States) overthrow.  Our destruction, should it come at all, will be from another quarter.  From the inattention of the people to the concerns of their government, from their carelessness and negligence, I must confess that I do apprehend some danger.  I fear that they may place too implicit a confidence in their public servants, and fail properly to scrutinize their conduct; that in this way they may be made the dupes of designing men, and become the instruments of their own undoing." – Daniel Webster, June 1, …



Pat’s Product Review: SIG Sauer P226 MK25

I still remember the very first “SIG” pistol that I ever saw. It was back in 1980, and I was an FFL dealer. A fellow asked me to order him a Browning BDA .45 ACP. At that time, I hadn’t heard of the Browning BDA. It wasn’t until I actually received the gun for the customer, that I discovered the Browning BDA, was, in fact, a SIG. At the time, this fairly new gun, was being imported by Browning. It just didn’t take off back then, for some strange reason – it was probably a little bit ahead of it’s time. …


Letter Re: Cabela’s Recon Hunt Software

James Wesley: I would like to let everyone know about an application called Cabela’s Recon Hunt. It has a very low cost, gives access to every map that is offered to the public. Lots of maps can be stored off line (depending on the memory capacity of your device) and one of the best features is that you can make notes that say where you saw game at certain GPS coordinates. (Or perhaps where there is a cache of supplies stashed. Though I wouldn’t label it as such.) But on a hand-held device enclosed in a Faraday cage this could …


Letter Re: Sugar and Salt Storage

JWR: As many of you out there are doing, food storage will be key to survive the future. Mylar bags with food grade buckets are a great way of storing your food and I applaud the recent article "Sugar and Salt Storage. I would like to add my own little experience so that others may possibly benefit from it. Instead of using one 2×4 across the top of the bucket, use two. Gather the top of the mylar bag, then sandwich it between the two 2x4s, using C-clamps if needed. Then fold it over for sealing, using the extra surface …


Recipe of the Week:

Notutopia’s Long Term Storage Chicken Ragout  Serves Four The dry ingredients for this recipe (everything but the chicken meat and the water) can be multiplied and bulk mixed and then vacuum packed in quart size mason jars with an O2 absorber for long term storage. 1 c dried diced or sliced carrots 1/2 c dried sliced celery 1/2 c dried diced or sliced potato 1/4 c dried sliced mushrooms 1/4 c dried sliced olives 1/4 c dried chopped onion 2 T tomato powder 1 T dried parsley 1 c dried peas 3 cubes chicken bouillon pinch of anise seed ground …


Economics and Investing:

RBS sent this: Bud Conrad: The Only Way Out Is to Inflate; Austerity not working?more money printing on the way G.G. flagged this one: Jobs Recession Now 49 Months: Longest Since WWII Matthew N. noted this article: Harrisburg to skip bond payments due next week. JWR’s Comment: Take a lesson from the sovereigns and just call it a “credit event.” No cause for alarm. Move along, folks. Nothing to see here. Items from The Economatrix: Financial Bubonic Plague Not So Fast On That Whole Economic Recovery Thing Wall Street Up On Jobs Data, Brushes Off Greek Default


Odds ‘n Sods:

M.H. sent this video: Life in a CONEX. Note that building codes in many states would restrict this, but in most of the American Redoubt states, there is no building code outside of city limits.    o o o And speaking of the advantages of the American Redoubt, read this: Jeff Knox praises ‘losers’ of Brady Center’s national scorecard.    o o o Can you spell shrapnel, boys and girls?” Family’s surveillance cameras rolling as tornado hits West Liberty. (Video is from the March 2, 2012 tornado in West Liberty, Kentucky. Thanks to Jay in Missouri for the link.) If …



Note from JWR:

Today we present two more entries for Round 39 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 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a …


A Community Action Plan, by ShepherdFarmerGeek

Introductory Note: I wrote this plan as the local Neighborhood Watch Captain and instructor for a nearby monthly Preparedness Workshop. I’m convinced of the value of having a written plan to follow in the immediate aftermath of a disaster or crisis. I’m sharing this for those sheepdogs who do not yet have a plan in hand – start with this and edit it. Make it your own. But have a plan. When it gets crazy this may help you get through it all. Be Prepared. Trust God. We can do both! FIRST 15 MINUTES Walk / bike / drive through …