Category: Odds ‘n Sods

F.G. spotted this video clip: An overview of the deFNder™ Medium Station — a remote-controlled .50 Browning Machinegun. Makes me wish I was wealthy…    o o o A reader sent a link to a farmer that has an interesting approach to home-made biofuels: Farm Grown Diesel Fuel. This gent has a lot of do-it-yourself ingenuity, but he desperately needs a spell checker…    o o o Pegging the Absurdity Meter: Taurus Tactical Operator. Are they serious? Methinks this is the ideal gun for someone who is totally ignorant about .410 shotshell ballistics. Crud, when I have to lug around …

Our friend Tam over at the View From the Porch blog pointed to one of her favorite TFL threads: Reasons to Own a Buncha Guns. This hilarious thread dates back to 1999. Oh, that mention of time travel reminds me: I’m presently just 81 pages into reading Jerry and Sharon Ahern’s new novel Written in Time, and I’m hooked!    o o o I recently received a sample of Choate’s newest telescoping AR-15/M16 stock with battery storage tubes at the cheek positions. This is a cleverly designed five-position telescoping stock that has two storage compartments with O-ring seal threaded caps. …

Jason M. forwarded this collection of photos shows what a combination of resourcefulness, desperation, and stupidity can do: Are you getting the maximum use out of your vehicle? BTW, this sort of vehicular improvisation is not solely a Third World practice.    o o o Rick H. mentioned: In an exclusive interview with CNN, Dr. August Hanning, a former head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service, said intelligence indicated that al Qaeda had already started planning to launch Mumbai-style attacks in the United States. Any bets on whether American gun grabbers like Chuck Schumer will start shouting for “more gun control” …

Nick in Indy mentioned Pastor Ken Blanchard’s recent podcast #186 “Christianity and Guns.”    o o o The Prepper Podcast show has some archived discussions of interest to SurvivalBlog readers.    o o o Kevin S. sent a link to a handy Reference Index for Biblical and Hebrew Terms.    o o o Five minutes of culture in the City of Brotherly Love: The Opera Company of Philadelphia breaks into “Hallelujah!” at a department store. (Thanks to B.B. for the link.)

Frequent content contributor F.G. sent us a priceless OK Go music video clip demonstrating effective camouflage. The Ghillie suit band members start to join in at 51 seconds into the video.    o o o Yorie sent this: Meet the Israeli Unmanned Ground Combat Vehicle – AvantGuard    o o o Alan sent me a link to a Dmitry Orlov lecture at UC Berkeley.    o o o Steve K. liked this video: Why Can’t Chuck Get His Business Off the Ground?

Le emperor sans culottes: Texas Governor Rick Perry correctly opined “…Social Security is bankrupt and is a Ponzi scheme, and if you’ve got a young 20-something-year-old, they know for a fact that they’re not ever going to see that.”    o o o Joshua S. pointed us to a good reason why you should be prepared everywhere you go — even on vacation: Hungry Ship Passengers Told to Eat Tic-Tacs    o o o Yet another member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns is facing criminal charges, this one for wife beating: Mayor’s wife takes stand to accuse Bradley of domestic …

Reader M.B. recommended a classic book that is available on-line: Narrative of a Voyage to Senegal in 1816 by Corréard and Savigny. M.B. notes: “This is a fascinating true story about a group of people who were placed in what today could be referred to as “The End of the World as They Knew It.”. The book is in the public domain. Such lessons from the past are relevant to those today in a preparedness mindset.”    o o o B.B. flagged this: Americans on Food Stamps Reach New High    o o o Reader Karl W. suggested a source …

Reader John E. mentioned a video of a stealthy-quiet solar powered battery powered log splitter, and from the same inventor: a Suzuki motorcycle converted to a diesel yanmar type engine.    o o o The Growing Threat of Food Insecurity in America    o o o Reader M.G. recommend two books: Nature’s Garden and The Forager’s Harvest, both by naturalist Sam Thayer. Here is M.G.’s description: These books provide amazing, in depth, first hand accounts of how to identify, harvest, and prepare different wild foods.  I have a dozen other wild food books, but these two are by far the best.  …

Tom M. sent us this: Alaska attack: A shot too late. The article begins: “Even as Scott Oberlitner squeezed the trigger on the .375-caliber H&H Magnum rifle and sent a massive slug flying toward the hulk of the charging Afognak Island grizzly bear, he sensed it was too late.”    o o o Deborah B. recommended and audio clip of a prescient speech by Congressman Ron Paul: “Dangerous times ahead”    o o o Garnet found a humorous article about an alligator attack.

There is an interesting new forum called Every Day Carry Central. It is essentially a forum for gear junkies with a focus on personal protection, security, preparedness and self defense related gear. They post opinions and gear reviews from people who really know what they are talking about. It is free to register on it and there are no annual membership fees, unless you want access to the buy/sell/trade forum. For an initial membership drive, on November 24th they are doing a giveaway drawing for more than $200 worth of gear just for registering on the site. If the winner …

NASA is Building a ‘Solar Shield’ to Protect Power Grids from Space Weather. (Thanks to J.V.M. for the link.)    o o o Via Reason magazine: “Researchers at Purdue University have updated their popular Impact Earth! online calculating tool. If you’ve a morbid interest in just how big an asteroid it would take to end civilization (and who doesn’t?), click on over and type in size, density, angle of impact data to find out.”    o o o Brian spotted this over at the SHTFPlan blog: Homeland Security To “Regionalize” Emergency Supplies Over Next 90 Days    o o o …

Some good advice from Dr. K.: The Challenges of Medical Preparedness in a High-Tech Age    o o o Larry in Ohio flagged this: Carry a Cloaking Device for your Cell Phone anywhere you go. Decent protection from EMP, too…    o o o A reader mentioned the interesting Informed Citizen News videos available at YouTube.    o o o This definitely qualifies as an “Odd” item: Masked man nabbed on flight to B.C. from Asia. The accompanying video has some additional details.

US Coal to Gasoline Plant Will be the Largest in the World. The $64 question is: What will be the real EROEI ratio for this production process? If it is not any better that that for corn ethanol, then we may be witnessing little more that political grandstanding.    o o o Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish Department: ACORN Files for Bankruptcy. (A hat tip to Ross H. for the link.)    o o o AmEx (American Expatriate) forwarded this: FEMA’s data collection and analysis of national preparedness information stalled    o o o The folks at Internet Grocer (aka …

Jim C. spotted this: The BBC bunker they don’t want you to know about.    o o o Greg W. recommended an article on inclement weather performance of American arms in Korea.    o o o Reader Rick H. a link to a web page that describes how to make 9 volt DC LED flashlights. Rick added this proviso: “When soldering the LEDs try to use a low wattage soldering iron (30 watts or less) and use a couple of small clip-on heat sinks, alligator clips, or crocodile clips (for our British cousins) to protect them from thermal damage.”

“LT” pointed me to a sticky post in the Survival section of NorthEast Shooters forums. It’s a long post with lots of pictures, on primitive fire-making.    o o o Reader NLC sent this: NASA Now Ready to Detect World-threatening Solar “Storm of the Century”    o o o Say it ain’t so! Harley-Davidson to make motorcycles in India. Hopefully this production will be sold only in India. (A hat tip to F.G. for the link.)    o o o The bedbug infestation rate is getting worse, especially in the eastern U.S. You can sleep relatively tight, by checking the …