Category: Current Events & Politics

Get Ready for Tariff War 2 or World War 3

This brief essay serves as a reminder, for the new year. As we enter 2025, both geopolitics and global economics are displaying some profound changes.  The Ukraine war, the fall of Assad’s government in Syria, and the ongoing civil wars in Burma (aka Myanmar), Yemen, Sudan, South Sudan, and Ethiopia all have the potential to spill over into wider conflicts. Ditto for potential invasions in Taiwan and South Korea. Meanwhile, the rise of the BRICS trade bloc, the out-of-control U.S. National Debt, global debt as a whole, and the run-up of precious metals prices are all evidence of deep-seated economic …


SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic was suggested by Avalanche Lily: Map of U.S. Gun Ownership Rates. (This map is courtesy of Visual Capitalist.) The thumbnail below is click-expandable.           JWR’s Comments: Take note that this data comes from the anti-gun website The Trace.  So I suspect that the figures are all skewed low.  When they are polled in telephone surveys, I assume that many gun owners hang up, or are reluctant to report their gun ownership. You can see how strongly the American Redoubt region ranks. If Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington were separate states, then their rates of …


Demographics, Dollars, and Our Destiny

The United States and many other Western nations are facing a demographic disaster. As I’ve mentioned before in SurvivalBlog, birth rates have fallen below the population replacement rate. In this essay, I will spell out some root causes of these demographic shifts that might surprise you, as well as some practical solutions. The primary cause of the current negative societal trends goes even deeper than a liberalized academic system, an activist mass media spouting progressive blather, entrenched D.C. “Swamp” politicians and bureaucrats, and uncontrolled illegal migration. The taproot of the pernicious weedpatch of our societal problems is monetary.  It all …


Unidentified Drones In America’s Skies? Smells Like A False Flag, by Brandon Smith

The term “False Flag” gets thrown around rather haphazardly these days and it’s important to recognize that a real false flag requires a particular end result – The public blaming the wrong culprit for an event that someone else (usually our own government) perpetrated. When it comes to the increasing fervor over major drone activity across the US, I have very little doubt that what we are witnessing is a false flag scenario. First, let’s outline what has happened so far: Drone sightings have exploded across the country involving a wide variety of devices – but the incidents that concern …


Should We Get Ready For a NFA Amnesty?

For the past several weeks, President Trump has been very busy naming his cabinet appointments.  One that is still uncertain is his choice to become the new BATFE Director. The current director, Steven Dettelbach, is a clueless anti-gun buffoon who can’t give congressmen a straight answer.  Many American gun owners are hopeful that DJT will appoint 07/02 FFL holder, gun designer, and pro-gun pundit Brandon Herrera as the new Director.  If that happens, it will surely inspire some boisterous celebration. In addition to his vows to slash the ATF’s budget and operations, Herrera has also promised to begin a series …


A “Stay Behind” Strategy for Ukraine and Moldova

This article serves as an open letter, primarily to Tulsi Gabbard, President-elect Trump’s Director of National Intelligence (DNI) designee. It would also be of interest to planners in the CIA’s Directorate of Operations (DO). Take note that rather than re-hashing some well-documented historical subjects, I will be relying heavily on quoting the InfoGalactic Wiki. Also, note that this is an article about strategy rather than tactics. – Carborundum With casualties mounting after more than two years of intense fighting in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Army is quite simply losing its war of attrition against the combined Russian ground and air forces. …


An Important Time For Giving, by SaraSue

If anyone has funds to spare, I want to remind SurvivalBlog readers that the communities in Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee are still suffering the devastation from Hurricane Helene.  Since our government failed these people, We The People have responded en masse to take care of them.  There are people still living in tents as the snow starts to fall.  Many many people have donated trailers, Buddy heaters, blankets, clothing, and food to help keep these families intact. You may ask why those people are still living in those devastated areas.  Many have no other place, or the funds, …


SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic: How U.S. presidential votes shifted from 2020 to 2024. (Graphic courtesy of Graham Kates, CBS News. See the CBS site for the full zoomable version of the map as well as interactive exit poll data and analysis by Graham Kates.) The thumbnail below is click-expandable. — Please send your graphic ideas to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.


JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: Don’t Worry, Dad… I Know The Guy That You Need To Appoint As The New ATF Director Ironically, His Name Is Brandon… News Link: San Antonio’s ‘AK-Guy’ and former Congressional candidate is gunning to be Trump’s ATF director. Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks! Unchanged: Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if …


Thoughts on Retreats: History and Land – Part 4, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: This is part of a multi-part article series on retreats written by a Christian farmer who is praying and searching for a wife. Please prayerfully consider all of the topics that he discusses. — Economics of Land in the 21st Century Arable land is no longer free nor available at reduced cost. As you learned in Part 2, over a hundred million acres of land in our country were sold for some sweat, initiative, and a small filing fee during the main Homestead years from the 1860s to the 1930s. Even earlier, land was available for a …


SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

This weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — Democrat Senator Mazie Hirono Claims SCOTUS Created Ability to Own Guns in 2008. o  o  o Reader G.C. in Southern California wrote: “I really like reading your quotes of the day.  But one thing bugs me.  I’ve seen you quote hymns but I’ve never seen you quote a modern praise chorus.  Why …


Thoughts on Retreats: History and Land – Part 1, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: This is part one of a multi-part article series on retreats written by a Christian farmer who is praying and searching for a wife. Please prayerfully consider all of the topics that he will discuss. — Preparedness Terminology History My family preparedness history goes back generations. Before the term “prepper” was used, people who were into preparedness were known as “survivalists” and even before then people were known as “retreaters.” Our survival library is very extensive covering preparedness-related subjects including original civil defense publications from the 1950s until today. I have spent many hours reading the articles …


Post-Election Report From a “Blue” City, by Dalkon

Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF): -Report from blue neighborhood in mid-size blue city in blue region of blue state -Much quieter than expected… unsettlingly quiet -No preps, contingency plans, or daily routine changes ended up being needed -Suspect private planning happening for future event(s) -Suspect collective action actors may be drawn to larger cities, for now I’m going to keep details vague for privacy, but will give you enough to sketch out some context. Even though both my spouse and I have been SB readers for over a decade, we live in a blue neighborhood in a blue city in …


The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column: More saber-rattling and general angst, in the news. Election Fears Ignite ‘Preppers’ The leftist NBC News reports: Election fears ignite ‘preppers’ already planning for the catastrophic unknown. What …


Please Pray For Our Nation

There are now just 20 days to the November U.S. presidential election. The next three weeks should be a time of concerted prayer — personally, and with your family and fellow church congregants. Blog reader L.B. suggested this prayer list published by Turning Point Academy: “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.” – Isaiah 55:6 Pray our nation will seek God in Repentance, Humility, and Prayer. Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and …