Category: Odds ‘n Sods

H.D. in Ohio mentioned this fascinating paper in the medical journal Nature Neuroscience: How unrealistic optimism is maintained in the face of reality. In essence, some people’s brains aren’t wet-wired to accept the the prospect of calamity. This may explain why trying to convince some of your family members to prepare is like talking to a brick wall.    o o o Some good privacy news: High Court Rules Warrantless GPS Tracking Unconstitutional    o o o A new M9 solar flare has everyone’s attention. It is the biggest since 2005. BTW, I recommend signing up to receive free solar …

I was briefly quoted in a Reuters article that was a featured link in The Drudge Report: Subculture of Americans prepares for civilization’s collapse. The same article more extensively quotes Michael T. Snider, who writes the excellent blog The Economic Collapse.    o o o I just heard about a new blog on the scene: Prep-Blog.com. Check it out.    o o o Getting Out of Dodge, by Doug Casey    o o o My editor at Penguin Books confirmed that my nonfiction book “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” is now available Costco …

SurvivalBlog’s Editor At Large Michael Z. Williamson spotted this little gem: Kitchen Renovation: How to Make a Secret Toekick Drawer    o o o Federal official in Arizona to plead the fifth and not answer questions on ‘furious’    o o o Fairbanks man accused in ‘meat for heat’ case hires lawyer. [JWR Asks: Why is it that in many of the United States that only Native Americans can legally sell or barter wild game? As long as bag limits are respected (to maintain stable game populations), then what you do post facto with your meat from legally-harvested game should …

Solar blast heading our way.    o o o This medieval solution probably wouldn’t be used in western countries, for fear of lawsuits: Indonesian railway stringing concrete balls to deter roof riders. (Needless to say, the Indonesians are not famous for The Subtle Approach.)    o o o George S. found an interesting series of articles by a journalist in Washington, DC who wanted to buy a pistol: Emily Gets Her Gun. This is a lengthy chronicle of her travails, jumping through all the fiery hoops to get permission to buy a gun in the District of Criminals. And even …

Reader V.P. wrote to mention that advance Chapters from the new edition of “Where There Is No Doctor” are now available for download at the Hesperian Foundation web site.   Look under the ‘Downloads’ tab.    o o o Fast and Nefarious? Here is an article that reveals an even greater depth of iniquity for the Treasury Boys: Another ATF weapons operation comes under scrutiny.    o o o Kevin S. mentioned a great source of free information on metal casting: My Home Foundry.    o o o What would John Wayne think? Even the venerable .30-30 lever action is getting a …

Roman sent me a link to a fascinating blog piece the summarizes an academic paper titled Baffles and Bastions, published in the Journal of Archaeological Research. Some food for those for those of us designing defensive architecture. Note that masonry baffles also stop (or deflect) bullets.    o o o F.J. sent this one: Back in the DPRK. This article includes an interesting observation on the high cost of fuel, and families doubling up in homes that have traditional charcoal stoves. Hmmmmm…    o o o Inside A $1.5 Million Cave House. (Thanks to Judy T. for the link.)    …

Tom H. sent this: Free EMS nationwide radio scanner feeds, via Internet streaming.    o o o Clarke M. mentioned that there are some great resources for homeschoolers available at Donna Young’s web site.    o o o The 10 Worst States to Retire In: They’re Frosty and Costly    o o o With some angst, an Elle magazine writer asks: Should I Buy a Gun? (The journalist recently moved to Montana. So instead of having doubts about being unarmed, does this mean she is having Redoubts?)    o o o And just for fun, a little South of the …

B.G. sent this from Lifehacker: Use an Egg Carton to Jumpstart Your Garden this Spring    o o o Reader Pete K. wrote to to tell me that the e-book of the quasi-survivalist novel “The Walk” is presently available free of charge to Amazon Prime members, and $3.50 to others.. (It is normally $12.)    o o o Yes another good reason to save your nickels, folks: NASA Publicly Reveals LENR Research. (If successfully developed at an economical price per kilowatt, warm fusion should send the price of nickel ore soaring!)    o o o Larry H. mentioned: Why raise …

Reader Rhonda T. asks: Need an excuse to prepare? Consider this map, assembled by Münchener Rückversicherungs-Gesellschaft. (Those Germans know all about Katastrophenvorsorge.)    o o o I just heard from Tom at CampingSurvival.com that they have outgrown their warehouse, so they will soon be moving their operation into a larger one.  To do that, they need to get rid of a huge pile of inventory so they have increased the size of their closeout section, where prices have been marked at or below their cost.  Since their shipping rates are quite reasonable, this is a great way to stock your …

M.B. mentioned this: Hard Core Resiliency    o o o R.B.S. suggested a piece over at How To Vanish, titled Cloud Security.    o o o Darknet Rising: A Private, Secure and Anonymous Meshnet Is Emerging    o o o Eric B. was the first of several readers to forward me this link: Mobile phone charger that runs on water invented for ‘people who spend time away from the electricity grid’. And speaking of phone batteries, see this article suggested by Mark P.: SpareOne cellphone claims 15-year battery life, we go hands-on (video)    o o o Ol’ Remus dissects …

I was recently interviewed by Doug Belkin, a reporter with The Wall Street Journal for an article that he is writing about the growth of the preparedness movement. He mentioned that he is interested in hearing from preppers that are in unusual “outside the box” careers such as chiropractors and midwives, to ask them about why they are preparedness-minded. Send him an e-mail, if you are interested. For your privacy, I would recommend that you use a pseudonym.    o o o I heard about another nice review of my novel “Survivors”.    o o o Frequent content contributor F.G. …

K.A.F. suggested this: How to Plan a Vegetable Garden    o o o A reminder that Safecastle’s Freedom Awards Finalists are now posted on Safecastle’s blog site for public viewing and voting. One of the finalists is K.M., for his article “What is a Well-Stocked First Aid Kit?” (that appeared in SurvivalBlog.) Please post your vote on your favorite article or video before January 20th.    o o o Folks in Northern California will find this of interest: Nevada County’s 2nd Annual Sustainable Food and Farm Conference will be held the weekend of January 21st and 22nd.  The conference will …

New Jersey Will Pay You $1,000 to Destroy the 2nd Amendment    o o o Avalanche Lily forwarded me this (just across our bedroom, but routed through our VPN server in Switzerland): Northern Plains hit hard by deer-killing disease    o o o Some cogent observations by Ol’ Remus on resistance warfare: Continuity Plan    o o o And speaking of Ol’ Remus, he had a link to this: SOPA is the end of us, say bloggers    o o o Reader Scott S. wrote to tell me that my latest novel “Survivors” was recommended in an APRN article about …

Do you recall my comments in the unsuitability of Alaska as a retreat locale, for all but a few? Here is a bit more confirmation: Short on Fuel, Alaskans Now Burning Their Stuff. (Without regular resupply by sea and air, most of Alaska’s cities are like isolated islands.)    o o o For an amazing collection of maps that could be useful in choosing retreat locales, see the archives at: Oh Wow Maps.    o o o F.G. sent this news of Nanny State Illinois Nincompoopery: New Law Requires Photo ID To Buy Drain Cleaner    o o o Joshua …

Military Grade Satellite Station Up for Sale in Carmel, California. (Thanks to Doug W. for the link.)    o o o A trust fund has been set up for Sarah McKinley–the much publicized recently-widowed teenage mother in Oklahoma who shot an intruder to protect her infant son.    o o o Keep in mind that Paratus Pantry is running their Preservation Week specials, with a different specials each day from January 9th through 13th.    o o o Ay, ay, ay: Deputies say burglar dumped rare coins into coin counting machine. A son stole his own father’s pre-1965 silver, and …