Category: Odds ‘n Sods

I was interviewed by John Jacob Schmidt, for a Radio Free Redoubt podcast that just aired on Sunday. The theme of this podcast hour was “Taking The Gap”. It should soon be available for download.    o o o Reader D.B.C. sent some good news: Congress overturns incandescent light bulb ban. JWR Adds a Bit of Humor: It would have been a shame to see incandescents banned. BTW, reporters missed mentioning that enforcement of the proposed ban would have constituted racial profiling of people from South America. (Many of whom are of Incan descent.)    o o o How I …

Mrs. R. forwarded this: Todmorden. A town growing all its own vegetables…    o o o F.G. recommended a useful video on compensating for uphill and downhill shooting.    o o o Brett J. sent a link to this lengthy article: A Plague of Pigs in Texas    o o o Thad N. suggested a piece in the the excellent Random Nuclear Strikes blog: I weep for you, Scotland. (Four years in prison for possession of a knife?)    o o o Reader Rick D. spotted this video: The Deadwood Stove. (An improvement on the Grover Rocket Stove.)

One of the latest posts from our friends at Alt-Market.com: The Poor Man’s Guide To Survival Gear    o o o B.B. sent this: Egregious Department of Labor Rules Yank Youths Out of Agriculture.    o o o “Set phasers to stun.” SurvivalBlog’s Editor At Large Michael Z. Williamson notes that another bit of science fiction has become fact: A wireless taser, using laser-ionized air.    o o o K.A.F. sent this fascinating piece: Study finds how child abuse changes the brain.    o o o E.M.B. sent me the link to this interview: Joe Rogan on the Return of …

Brittany K. spotted this: Deconstructing a Safe Room (infographic)    o o o The nail that sticks up: Police seal off south China village, cut food supplies amid protests over land sales. (Thanks to Samuel H. for the link.)    o o o B.B. mentioned: Should you leave the USA before the collapse? Words of wisdom from someone who tried    o o o Until December 25, 2001, Freeze Dry Guy is offering 25% back in their Survival Bucks (Loyalty Dollar purchase credits) on Mountain House long term storage foods packed in #10 cans. They’ve also extended their sale on …

Glenn Beck’s GBTV has announced a new television series about off-grid living: Independence, USA. “Join the Belcastro Family as They Prepare for an Independent Life Off the Grid.”    o o o Cheryl N. recommended: Antibiotics and Their Use in Collapse Medicine    o o o Paulette W. suggested this piece: Dark Arts for Good Guys: The Right to Knife    o o o Judy T. sent this news from Western Washington: Poacher shoots cows with arrows in Cowlitz County

SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large “Mad Mike” Williamson alerted me to this uplifting news story about The Made In America Challenge. (Not surprisingly, the contractor lives in Bozeman, Montana, deep in The American Redoubt. Quite few of the vendors are in the Redoubt, too–such as Potlach, for their plywood.) Here’s the list of U.S. vendors that the contractor uses.    o o o Another from Mike, and also sent in by reader Eric M.: DARPA’s Shredder Challenge Solved. Obviously, using a crosscut shredder is now insufficient. Wet mulching or burning your shredder’s “confetti” output is a sure bet.    o o …

The often-cited “Selco” forum posts with first-hand accounts of surviving the war in Bosnia have been gathered and edited by the Editor of TacticalIntelligence.net: SHTF Survival Q&A: A First-Hand Account of Long-Term SHTF Survival.    o o o “The Old 16R” sent stumbled across a fascinating account while doing some research on food storage.  He summarizes: “From what I can tell from the somewhat garbled [automated] translation, it seems that a chunk of old masonry fell from the second floor of a building on the grounds of a hospital in Germany.  When the blocks fell they revealed an attic storage …

I deliberately held off on mentioning anything about the “FBI pressures the LDS cannery for lists of customers” brouhaha that was created by Alex Jones, even though I had more than 150 e-mails from readers in the past four days urging me to cover the story. Something about the incident just sounded fishy to me. So now the truth comes out, in SouthernBellePrepper’s video blog: Answers on Mormon cannery controversy. (Credit to M.D.C. for the link.) o o o Life imitates art: Police to test laser that ‘blinds rioters’. (Thanks to Morris for the link.) o o o I read …

F.J. suggested this: How To Make A Minnow Trap Out Of Soda Bottles    o o o Yishai sent this news from England: Thousands of homes without power on coldest day of winter    o o o Important safety tip: Keep shooting until your opponent is no longer a threat! Chilling 911 tapes illustrate woman shooting home invasion suspect    o o o Iran Releases Video of Captured US Drone Plane. (BTW, you gotta love their 1980s-style trucker’s hats. They look like something out of Smokey and the Bandits Revolutionary Guards.)    o o o Federal judge decides who is …

Wind turbine explodes as the worst storm for 15 years batters Northern Britain with hurricane-force gusts of up to 165mph    o o o Kevin S. suggested this: MakeUseOf Cheat Sheets    o o Some Nanny State news from formerly Jolly Olde England: Playground stripped bare by council jobsworths after play equipment falls foul of EU health and safety rules.    o o o And meanwhile in Denmark: Charge for cash transactions proposed. (Thanks to Jeff H. for the link.)    o o o The deadline for Safecastle’s Freedom Awards contest–the new Media recognition program in the area of survivalism and …

Grace H. pointed me to a wonderful mapping site for soil surveys.  This is an ideal tool for anyone researching retreat locales. Just type in a locale name.     o o o I was doing some web wandering and found an interesting piece: Former “Seasteaders” Come Ashore To Start Libertarian Utopias In Honduran Jungle. And from there, I found a link to this fascinating page: A Map Of Where All 7 Billion Humans Are Cramming Together. Note that the dot sizing used is counterintuitive–the larger the dots, the fewer people. (This illustration certainly adds credence to my exhortation to Go …

Texas Drought Visible in New National Groundwater Maps. (Thanks to L. M. for the news tip.)    o o o Pierre M. sent us a tale of the Hegelian Dialectic, Perfected: Documents: ATF used “Fast and Furious” to make the case for gun regulations    o o o File under Poor Choice of Targets: Mugger left bloodied after attempt on MMA fighter. (A hat tip to J. McC. for the link.)    o o o House Busters: Television Stunt Goes Awry, Sends Cannonball Rocketing Through Homes. Just because a technology is old doesn’t make it ineffective.    o o o …

Andrew Price (who is well-known for his Dryad Bushcraft and A-Z Bushcraft web sites) plans to make a film in New Mexico: TEOTWAWKI – a fictional documentary. I’ve corresponded with Andrew since before the days of SurvivalBlog, so I can vouch that this won’t be a typically Hollywood hatchet job.)    o o o Camping Survival has added a new closeout items section, with some amazing bargains.    o o o F.G. flagged this: Disaster preparedness leads the way in holiday shopping this Christmas season.    o o o Consider the recent headline from Japan about the Eight Ferrari pileup. …

Tina R. sent a link to a recent Dilbert cartoon that has a some biting commentary, presumably about the ongoing OWS protests.    o o o As Christmas is approaching, please don’t neglect worthy charities, such as AnySoldier.com. Please send our deployed troops your prayers, good wishes and tangible support. UnderArmor brand synthetic T-Shirts (made in both Army and USMC regulation colors) are a sure bet.  If a soldier receives too many, then the excess will be the ultimate barter item, in summer months.    o o o California demographic shift: More people leaving than moving in.    o o …

One of my consulting clients recently asked me: “Do you carry pepper spray, for bears?” My reply: No, I carry lead spray.    o o o This Glock ad makes it clear that widespread concealed carry by law-abiding citizens would be a very good thing:.    o o o Faster and Furiouser: D.E.A. Launders Mexican Profits of Drug Cartels.    o o o M.E.W. sent this: New Flu Strain, H3N2, Makes Health Experts Nervous.    o o o From reader J. McC.: Check Your Car for a GPS Tracker