Category: Current Events & Politics

Persevering Through the Panic of 2016

The first two weeks of 2016 have been disastrous for both the commodities markets and the equities markets. Looking at the DJIA and the S&P indexes, more than $3.5 trillion has been lost on paper in just two weeks. Crude oil has dropped to around $29 per barrel. There seems to be no end in sight for the bad economic news. I expect to see further deep market declines, intraday “circuit breaker” market interventions, and perhaps even full-day trading suspensions and bank holidays. I must remind you that I’m writing this on a three-day holiday weekend. (Martin Luther King Jr. …


Letter: Stocks, Gold and Gas

HJL, My wife and I were giving a home school economics lesson at the pumps the other day. We talked to our kids about how most people live and work and the daily driving it requires. My wife and I concluded that this gas price drop has put $350 per month back in the pocket of the average neighbor around here. That is no small thing. I saw sales at my antique store rise in the last half of December and continue at a brisk pace this month. That people are buying used stuff points to the new frugality that …


Katrina– “A Wakeup Call”, by M.M.

Here’s a little insight for everyone. This is a brief synopsis of a firsthand account of why everyone should prepare for the unknown. I have been a police officer for most of my adult life in the New Orleans metro area and was working when Hurricane Katrina made landfall. The media focused mainly on the impoverished areas, but the world failed to see the whole picture. I cannot begin to describe the stress present prior to the storm making landfall. Several questions consumed me during the week leading up to this event: Is this going to be bad enough to …


Becoming An Us, by K.L.

This may sound like an odd title to a story, but for anyone who has ever tried to move to a rural setting it takes on a complete meaning of its own. Learning how to get along with and even go so far as to ingratiate yourself with the locals in a rural community is a survival skill all its own. As a matter of fact, getting to know your neighbors in a rural setting cannot only save your life when the balloon goes up, but it can save your hearth and home and be of great benefit today, tomorrow, …


Letter Re: Baltic Dry Crashes–Zero Hedge article

Gentlemen, The discussion in the Zero Hedge article Baltic Dry Crashes contains a blatant misinterpretation of the use of the AIS system. The author acknowledges that he is not a maritime expert, yet he attempts to use a maritime tracking system as evidence of his already determined conclusion. The reason the referenced map from marinetraffic.com shows no ships in the middle of the Atlantic is that there are no ports there with AIS receivers used to manage port traffic, the source of the data for this site. Using the filters for the map, you can remove ships anchored and in …


Letter Re: Algorithms

Sirs, I was particularly interested in your 1/9/16 link to an article regarding The risks — and benefits — of letting algorithms judge us. Algorithms are convenient tools and are more ubiquitous in society than you might think. Those maddening automated telephone answering scripts that lead you through a labyrinth of options that do not address what you are calling about are an excellent example. Many businesses and healthcare venues (or providers) regularly use algorithms to help them maintain a minimum standard of service. That is fine, if you are satisfied with a minimum standard of service. I tried, at …


Letter Re: Law Enforcement Officers

Everyone should get a copy of a book titled, The Third Alternative: Christian Self Government, written by Bill Burtness, A Christian with a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering. The book illustrates that when individuals operate in conduct based on moral relativism (everyone does right in their own eyes), that a large band of law enforcement is needed to keep boundaries or order within society. With that liberal creed, and with so many truths circulating – the LAW automatically becomes alive and with brut force to align everyone. However, the author insightfully points out that when individuals emulate God’s law, there …


Guest Article: Federal Reserve’s “Net Worth” Collapses 33% in Two Weeks, by Simon Black (Sovereignman)

In case it weren’t completely obvious how completely screwed up the financial system is, please allow me to introduce Exhibit A: the Federal Reserve’s own balance sheet. First, we need a quick accounting background, and stay with me, because this is important. Think about your own finances. You, me, everyone… we all have assets and liabilities. Your assets might be things like cash, your house, car, baseball card collection, et cetera. And your liabilities are loans, credit card debt, et cetera. The difference between the two can be thought of as your “net worth”. Hopefully, it’s positive, i.e. your assets …


Letter Re: Hickok45

Google is a publicly traded company, acting in their own interests. Perhaps it is time to remind folks that there are alternatives to their search engine and e-mail service that are more respectful to your privacy: Startpage.com for searches. Startmail.com for e-mail. For video content providers, consider running your own website and only mirror select videos onto social media, thereby minimizing your losses if and when they do decide to exercise their vast arbitrary powers. This is the strategy employed by other popular channels, such as the Corbett Report. –ER Update: It appears that Hickock45’s channel is back up today. …


Letter: Law Enforcement Officers

Sirs, When did “Peace Officers” become “Law Enforcement Officers”? Is not the purpose of police to keep the peace? Are laws merely meant to be the tools to enforce the peace? Why not call police “Baton, Pepper Spray, Taser Enforcement Officers”? If I spent a little time at it, I could probably come up with a list of peace keeping tools that would make a snappy acronym to rival “LEO”. I encourage people, particularly police, to read the principles of policing developed by Sir Robert Peel: Principle 1 – “The basic mission for which the police exist is to prevent …


Letter Re: The Grid Will Never Be Down in the Way You May Think! – Part 2, by X-liberal

HJL: This is a well thought out article and a new way of looking at “the grid”. I have to disagree with one point though. In the paragraph entitled “The Pattern” the last sentence says: “Now it is run by Liberal Democrats, and sadly, discrimination is the key to its access.” I humbly submit that it is not just the Liberal Democrats but also the elitist establishment Republicans as well. Truly, you cannot tell one from the other. – LL in Idaho


Blueprint for Rebuilding- Part 1, by GRC

Timelines differ, and predictions of what causes mayhem differ. One thing we all agree on is that the time to prepare grows short, not time as we modern Westerners understand it, after all our civilization was built and rebuilt over the course of 2000 plus years, but the expiration date is surely fast approaching. Each day brings thanksgiving mixed with surprise that the thin veneer of our existence has lasted another sunrise. And while those who prepare for an uncertain tomorrow welcome the opportunity to tick another item off the to-do list, the rest of the world laughs at such …


Letter: Voting – More Important Than Ever

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HJL’s Preface: The arguments laid out in this letter are good arguments, and they make sense for the most part. However, SurvivalBlog speaks with one voice and one mind on the issue of voting in the upcoming elections. There are some issues that are so important that compromise is impossible. The political establishment has created an atmosphere where practically all issues are on the table. There is very little difference between the Democrat and Republican parties today (except, perhaps, for the speed at which they push this once great country into moral oblivion.) A prime example of this would be …


The Second Amendment and Its Relevance in Today’s Society, by B.E.

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Amendment II (the Second Amendment) of the United States Constitution’s Bill of Rights declares a well-regulated militia as “being necessary to the security of a free State” and prohibits infringement of “the right of the people to keep and bear arms.” It is a controversial subject whose ramifications are still being debated to this day, over two-hundred and thirty years after it was written. Its place in the Bill of Rights as the Second Amendment is indicative of how important our nation’s founding fathers thought that right should be. It is still relevant in today’s society, despite haphazard attempts at …


Letter: Good Samaritan Bag

Hugh, I was getting together some clothes that I don’t wear anymore (amazing how they seem to shrink just hanging in my closet) to donate to Salvation Army and had a mini-inspiration. In my car I carry my Get Home Bag, first aid kit, a case of water, my EDC, a tool kit, some spare parts, tarps, and blankets. In other words, all the things a good prepper should have on hand. Then I got to thinking, what about emergencies that are less than TEOTWAWKI? Specifically, what if you come across an accident, someone who is lost and wet or …