Category: Note

October 18, 1662 was the birthday of Matthew Henry (died 22 June, 1714.)  He was a Presbyterian minister who lived primarily in Chester, England. Matthew Henry’s six-volume Exposition of the Old and New Testaments (commonly called Matthew Henry’s Commentary) is a must for the bookshelf of any serious Bible scholar. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 67 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled …

On this day in 1835, Texans approve a resolution to create the Texas Rangers– a corps of armed and mounted lawmen designed to “range and guard the frontier between the Brazos and Trinity Rivers”. After winning their revolutionary war with Mexico the following year, Texans decided to keep the Rangers, both to defend against Indian and Mexican raiders and to serve as the principal law enforcement authority along the sparsely populated Texan frontier.

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Leipzig (in 1813). This was largest battle in European warfare prior to WWI. In this battle, Napoleon’s forces were defeated by the combined forces of Prussia, Austria, and Russia. This is also the anniversary of abolitionist John Brown’s raid against the federal armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), in an attempt to start an armed slave revolt and destroy the institution of slavery. Although the raid failed, it inflamed sectional tensions and raised the stakes for the 1860 presidential election. Brown’s raid helped make any further accommodation between North and …

Today is the birthday of Chinese computer software entrepreneur and billionaire Jack Ma (born 1964.) Also on this day, in 1990, South Africa’s Separate Amenities Act, which had barred blacks from public facilities for decades, was scrapped.

The following article is interesting reading. Because I go by the precept that tangibles beat conceptuals, my general preference is still for precious metal coins (both bullion and numismatic), but I can also see the utility of hedging one’s portfolio a bit into Bitcoin. – JWR o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 67 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican …

One of my contacts who serves on a General Staff mentioned that the recent news reports about contingency plans for a war with Russia have actually under-reported the intensity of the planning effort. There is now a quite frequent shuttling of general officers around the world, to attend logistical planning meetings. My source mentioned that high level staff meetings have been going on since the Ukraine crisis began in late 2013, but they have recently intensified. If you are not yet concerned about the possible advent of World War III, then you should be. The recent policy shift toward the …

Please continue to pray for and assist those displaced by Hurricane Matthew. Substantial damage has been done all the way up into North Carolina. The topic of today’s writing contest article underscores the importance of situational awareness.  My advice is to study Colonel Jeff Cooper’s levels of awareness codes, then live them. In today’s inimical world, living in Condition Yellow should be your normal modus operandi. –  JWR o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 67 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Tactical Self-Contained …

Today’s guest article (the final installment of a four part series) reminds us that intelligence gathering and analysis is an integral part of retreat and community preparedness. – JWR

Today’s lead article by our Senior Product Review Editor, Pat Cascio, is near and dear to my heart.  This is because I and all of the adult members of my immediate family carry either Glock 30 or Glock 30S pistols regularly. I personally recommend the .45 ACP  Glock 30 pistol for all but the most frail shooters. But please heed this advice: Learn how to maintain it,  buy a practical holster for it (I prefer the BladeTech Kydex holsters), buy plenty of spare magazines for it (and half of those should be the larger Glock 21 magazines that hold 13 …

As the cleanup begins in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, and as local preppers assess what went right and what went wrong in their planning, we are reminded of a bit a Ground Truth: There is no substitute for being fully prepared early. Because once a disaster strikes a wide region, and once some key items such as generators are desperately needed, they can’t be bought even with an entire handful of gold coins. So it is better to be prepared a year too early than a day too late. – JWR

Please continue to pray for the folks in the path of Hurricane Matthew.  There was one positive note in the news about the storm’s landfall: Florida emergency concealed carry law may see first use in Hurricane Matthew o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 66 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $1,700 value), A Gunsite Academy Three …

October 7th is the day that we remember the 96 American POWs from Wake Island that were executed on the orders of the commander of the Japanese garrison on the island, Rear Admiral Shigematsu Sakaibara. The execution of those American POWs who were blindfolded and shot in cold blood, remains one of the more brutal episodes of the war in the Pacific. o o o Our thoughts and prayers are with those who are dealing with hurricane Matthew over the next few days. Stay safe! o o o Seed for Security is having a great sale. Their Super Survival Pack …

October 6 is the birthday of Thor Heyerdahl. (Born 1914, died April 18, 2002.) Although his east-to-west theory of Pacific Ocean transmigration was later disproved by genetics studies, his many adventures were still remarkable. Today is also the birthday of science fiction author David Brin. (Born, 1950.) He wrote The Postman, which was very loosely the foundation of a movie by Kevin Costner. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 66 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system …

October 5, 1703 is the birthday of Jonathan Edwards. He died March 22, 1758 and was a prolific Calvinist theological writer. Many of his writings were later collected in the multi-volume book The Rational Biblical Theology of Jonathan Edwards, edited by John Gerstner.

October 4, 1923 is the birthday of the late Charlton Heston, who was born John Charles Carter. He died April 5, 2008. He is often remembered for movies like Ben Hur, The Ten Commandments, Soylent Green, The Planet of the Apes, and the survivalist classic The Omega Man. o o o SurvivalBlog would like to welcome Max Velocity Tactical as a new sponsor in our writing contest. They will be donating a gift certificate good for any two or three day class of training. Stop by their website today and see what they offer. We are also welcoming back SafeCastle …