Category: Odds ‘n Sods

Surprise, surprise: Retail Food Prices Jump Five Percent in 2nd Quarter We also read Consumers paying higher food prices as corn prices soar , and Biofuel demands keeps agricultural prices high, OECD-FAO report    o o o Some strange summer weather in London, England.    o o o Our friend Tom at CometGold.com recommended this article: Cioffi’s Hero-to-Villain Hedge Funds Masked Bear Peril in CDOs. Tom’s comment: ” ‘Move along, nothing to see here…’ (Insert footage of Detective Frank Drummond from Police Squad! standing in front of an exploding fireworks factory).”

Remember that there is now just one week remaining for the $500 Interceptor Body Armor (IBA) vest special from BulletProofME.com. July 12th is the deadline. Anyone who has shopped for body armor knows what a great deal $500 is for a new Interceptor vest. Don’t miss out on this deal. OBTW, I recently received another recommendation for the company: ” I thought you would like some more feedback on your new advertiser, BulletProofME.com. After extensive searching for a vest supplier last year I bought one from BulletProofME.com. Because I had never purchased a vest before I had a lot of …

From ABC News (by way of Matt Drudge): Secret Document: U.S. Fear that a Terror “Spectacular’ is Planned for this Summer    o o o Adam in Ohio sent us a link to an animated cartoon on YouTube, about Post-Peak Oil Preparedness. Adam’s comment: “It’s too close to reality for most of us.”   o o o Commentary from securities market analyst Tony Jackson: Myth that could undermine credit derivatives.    o o o I just heard that JRH Enterprises (one of our most loyal advertisers) has on sale a couple of scarce original PVS-14 Gen-3 night vision units, normally …

“T” recommended this article on “Chameleon” weapons, over at Noah’s DefenseTech blog.OBTW, the comments that follow the article include some interesting links.   o o o RBS sent us this unusual survival story: Man survives after nearly being sucked out of plane    o o o Rob at Green Mountain Gear mentioned that he currently has a special on HK91/G3 Alloy magazines in new, unissued condition. Rob notes: “Some of them might have slight handling marks from moving around the world over the years. The first 20rnd magazines I pulled look simply awesome! Hit them with a little degreaser and …

The book currently at the top of my reading stack is: “Bulletproof: A History of Armored Cars and the Colorful Characters Who Ran Them, Rode Them, and Sometimes Robbed Them”, by James L. Dunbar and Robert Grant Kingwell. A fascinating book to read, but a bit expensive to buy for a personal collection, and not likely to be used as a reference. So try to get a copy through your local library, as I did. (Here in the hinterboonies my family takes full advantage of the inter-library loan system.)   o o o Rourke sent us a link to a …

One of my heroes is is economist John Mauldin. He publishes a free e-newsletter that I consider a “must read” for anyone that closely follows investing and economics issues. In his most recent “E-Letter”, John commented on the Bear Stearns sub-prime debacle (That I’ve also discussed.) Here is a quote:”The Center for Responsible Lending estimates that 2.2 million borrowers who got subprime loans since 1998 either have lost or will lose their homes through foreclosure over the next few years. This includes one of every five borrowers who got subprime loans in 2005-06, a default rate unmatched in the history …

An article published in The Lancet confirms that taking the herbal remedy echinacea can reduce the risk of catching a common cold by 58%   o o o By way of Matt Drudge come this news story from Florida: How do you prepare for “a bolt from the blue”? (Florida is the nation’s lightning strike capital.)   o o o Remember that there are now less than two weeks remaining for the $500 Interceptor Body Armor (IBA) vest special from BulletProofME.com. July 12th is the deadline. Anyone who has shopped for body armor knows what a great deal $500 is …

I got a note from the Western Rifle Shooters Association today. They’ve offered a free scholarship to the first 10 SurvivalBlog readers who send an e-mail to westernshooters@gmail.com with the word “SurvivalBlog” in the subject line, for their upcoming Kooskia, Idaho shoot/clinic on July 7-8. All they ask is that if you say you are going to be there, be there. (Don’t take a place and then not show.)   o o o Reader Tim. L. mentioned that Dr. Hans F. Sennholz (whom I quoted yesterday) passed on to the great reward on June 23rd. He was a great Austrian …

Two different readers have mentioned this book catalog. Lindsay’s Technical Books. An assortment of unusual books with tinkering “how to” information. They should be a SurvivalBlog advertiser! o o o Police bust coin melting racket in Kolkata (West Bengal)

Reader Harvey J. sent us a link to a web site that ties in nicely with our recent posts about utility uses for bicycles: Hauling Cargo by Bike   o o o We’ve recently added two new Affiliate Advertisers: 1.) TotalVid. They provide a wide range (thousands) of instructional videos via high speed Internet download. Many of these videos are for practical do-it-yourself skills. They offer a free trial subscription. Check them out. And, 2.) KeepYouSafe. They provide off-site backup of crucial documents for both businesses and families. Oh, and speaking of our Affiliates, I should also mention that Nashbar …

This news story caught my eye. Buffalo Man Lives in Underground Bunker. On a somewhat related note, the folks at Walton Feed have an interesting web page titled: “The Granddaddy Of All Underground Storage Areas “   o o o Home Sales in US Hit Slowest Pace in Four Years. Don’t say that I didn’t warn you. This “downturn” may very well be the beginning of a housing market collapse that will last a decade.    o o o Commentary from the International Herald Tribune: Finding doomsday asteroids.    o o o From WorldNetDaily: Untreatable Tuberculosis threat ‘apocalyptic scenario’

The UN does it again: Remember when the UN appointed Libya to head their Human Rights Commission? That was ironic. The latest outrage is that the UN has just appointed Zimbabwe to head the UN Commission on Sustainable Development. Is this some kind of cruel joke? The economic masterminds of Zimbabwe have absolutely wrecked the nation’s once-thriving economy. Basic commodities are chronically in short supply. Commerce and agriculture are in shambles, verging on total collapse. They have turned a major food exporter–once “the breadbasket of Africa””–into a food importer, with hundreds of thousands of their citizens malnourished, and thousands now …

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Reader “Alfie Omega” flagged this new article: Gas at $6 per gallon? Get ready. (Congress has an expensive “solution.”)   o o o Sean M. forwarded us this one: Solar Shingles Could Power Tomorrow’s Homes. Sean’s comment: “It would difficult to keep these clear in the winter in snow country. But it is discrete, so you won’t be screaming ‘Hey, I have power’ to anyone passing by.”    o o o For those of you that asked about promotional clips for the upcoming Sarah Connor Chronicles television series, for some reason they were removed from YouTube, but are still available …

U.S. Economy: Housing Starts Drop; Slump May Persist. Notice how the 20% slump in housing starts in the western U.S. was buried in the article? After reading the entire article, I think that it would be better titled “US Economy: Housing Market Enters Death Spiral.” But of course I’m the pessimistic type.   o o o China sells more US T-bonds. I’ve said it before: the U.S. Dollar is doomed.    o o o From MayoClinic.com — West Nile virus: Signs and symptoms    o o o Our friend Tom at CometGold.com sent us this: Bear Stearns Staving Off Collapse …