Category: Note

Round 65 of the SurvivalBlog Writing Contest is currently underway. This is your opportunity to wrap up your article and get it submitted to the editors of SurvivalBlog for inclusion into the contest. Here are a couple of reminders about the “rules”: You can only be awarded on of the top three prizes once per year. That means if you already won and it has been longer than a year, you can enter the contest again. Those who won “Honorable Mention” are still eligible at any time. In fact, you can win more than one Honorable Mention at a time. …

The 6th of June is remembered for both D-Day and for the birth of Dieudonné Joseph Saive (born 1899.) He was the designer of many well-known firearms including the Browning Hi-Power, the FN49 and co-designer (along with Ernest Vervier) of the very popular FN-FAL, which was issued to the militaries of more than 90 countries.

On June 5, 1933, the United States went off the gold standard when Congress enacted a joint resolution nullifying the right of creditors to demand payment in gold. FDR had previously declared a nationwide bank moratorium in order to prevent a run on the banks by consumers lacking confidence in the economy. He also forbade banks to pay out gold or to export it.

On this day, June 4th, in 1944 United States Navy Task Group 22.3 captured U-505, a German submarine and with it an intact Enigma cypher machine. This was the first time since the USS Peacock seized HMS Nautilus in 1815 that the USN had captured an enemy vessel at sea. The sub, reunited with its periscope a decade ago, is displayed at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.

On June 3, we remember those who lost their lives in China in a failed bid for freedom. In 1989, with the protests for democratic reforms entering their seventh week, the Chinese government authorized its soldiers and tanks to reclaim Beijing’s Tiananmen Square at all costs. By nightfall on June 4, Chinese troops had forcibly cleared the square, killing hundreds and arresting thousands of demonstrators. In the weeks afterward, an unknown number of dissidents were executed. The world responded with sanctions sending China’s economy into decline, but by late 1990, all was forgotten as China released a few hundred prisoners. …

On June 2, 1774, Parliament renewed the quartering Act allowing British military to stay in private homes if necessary, completing the Coercive Acts. The Quartering Act, in conjunction with the Massachusetts Government Act, the Administration of Justice Act, and the Boston Port Act, were known as the Coercive Acts. These Acts were Parliament’s way of asserting their control over the colonists after the Boston Tea Party and were one of the main motivations for the 3rd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. o o o Our SurvivalRealty spinoff has some great retreat properties, but this latest one is almost unique, straddling …

On June 1st, 1942, seven months after the extermination of prisoners began, the Warsaw underground newspaper, the Liberty Brigade, made the public announcement of the gassing of tens of thousands of Jews at Chelmno, a Nazi-operated death camp in Poland. The story came from a young man, Emanuel Ringelblum, who had escaped the Chelmno death camp after being forced to bury bodies as they were thrown out of the gas vans. The West now knew the horrific truth about the slaughter of Jews. o o o Today, we present the first entry for Round 65 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing …

May 31st, 1895 was the birthday of George R. Stewart. Prior to his death on August 22, 1980, he was a novelist, university professor, and toponymist. In the preparedness community, he is best remembered as the author of the classic post-pandemic novel Earth Abides. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 64 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 …

As we approach Memorial Day this year, it is fitting that on May 29th, 2003, 35 states declared it to be Bob Hope Day, as he turned 100 years old. Bob Hope had a longtime role as an entertainer of U.S. armed forces all over the word. He was too ill to attend the ceremonies so three of his children attended the naming ceremony along with some of his younger show-business colleagues, including Mickey Rooney. o o o I noticed one of our advertisers, Infidel Body Armor, is having a sale on Smoke Grenades – only $14.99 each. You do …

Today, we present another entry for Round 64 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 Day Course Certificate that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value), A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. …

On May 27, 1813, former President Thomas Jefferson wrote former President John Adams about the loss of their mutual friend, Dr. Benjamin Rush. Reflecting upon the loss, Jefferson wrote, “We too must go; and that ere long. I believe we are under half a dozen at present; I mean the signers of the Declaration.” Dr. Rush was instrumental in the reconciliation of Jefferson and Adams by initiating correspondence between the three of them. Both Jefferson and Adams continued to correspond until their deaths on July 4th, 1826– the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, which all three had signed …

May 26th is the birthday of Randall Hank Williams (Hank Williams, Jr.). He was born in 1949. When not touring, he lives somewhere in Montana, so he qualifies as a Redoubter. He reportedly has a large gun collection, which is heavy on Sharps rifles and rifles that have factory letters showing that they were originally shipped to Montana. His song A Country Boy Can Survive is of course practically a survivalist anthem. His father was just 29 when he died, and despite a couple of close calls Hank Jr. is now 67, so he may yet live to a ripe …

On May 25th, 1787, The Constitutional Convention convened in Philadelphia with George Washington presiding. The task of the peaceful overthrow of the new American government as it had been defined by the Article of Confederation eventually led to the United States Constitution that is so abused today. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 64 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 …

On May 24th, 1775, John Hancock was elected president of the Second Continental Congress. He is best known for his large signature on the Declaration of Independence, which he jested the British could read without spectacles. o o o Today, we present another entry for Round 64 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 Day …