Category: Odds ‘n Sods

More on Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), mentioning beehive population losses up to 70%: Mysterious disappearance of US bees creating a buzz   o o o Remington Arms has been sold to Cerberus Partners    o o o From the new, improved, Democrat party-dominated U.S. Congress: A bill to create a “Department of Peace and Nonviolence.” George Orwell saw it coming. Don’t miss Section 102, which includes: “(5) analyze existing policies, employ successful, field-tested programs, and develop new approaches for dealing with the implements of violence, including gun-related violence and the overwhelming presence of handguns” Gee, I always thought that handguns …

Polk mentioned a recipe from, of all places, Black-Rifles.com, for do-it-yourself yogurt.   o o o S.F. mentioned this from Milspecmonkey.com: Videos from the recent SHOT show, demonstrating the Lula magazine loaders, and MagPul’s fully ambidextrous gas piston-operated lightweight .223 with quick-change barrels. Meanwhile, Bushmaster has introduced their own gas-piston operated AR-15 variant. (Which would be my choice if I owned a .223.) Oh, and in related news, the U.S. Army won’t be replacing the M4–or even retrofitting with HK-416 uppers.    o o o An income tax in Florida? One of just nine U.S. states without a personal income …

From the Wall Street Journal (by way of SKaiBlog): Crop Prices Soar Pushing Up Cost Of Food Globally   o o o GG sent us this article link: Diet of tarantulas saves hikers lost in jungle    o o o Until May 31, Safecastle Royal buyer’s club members can take 30% off the list prices on all Montague folding bikes and accessories (with a minimum purchase of $100). They are listing seven bike models, including the popular “Paratrooper.” Discounted prices range from $349 to $1,431, with free shipping.

The U.S. real estate implosion begins, in earnest: A house costs less than a car in Detroit. The recent shift in the real estate market (which I predicted two years ago) has led me to believe that the best way to buy land these days is to watch and wait for bargains, particularly bankruptcy sales and foreclosures. The foreclosure rate jumped 13% in the past two months. I expect this trend to continue, especially as millions of sub-prime ARMs reset. to higher interest rates. There will be a lot of foreclosures to choose from–including some good rural retreat properties–as the …

Bigger than you think: The story behind the recent U.S. pet food recall.   o o o Political Correctness run rampant: Anti-gun zealots oppose Navy SEAL memorial statue.    o o o Reader Ben L. mentioned that he came upon a “do it yourself” solar-power web site. Ben says: “Personally, the 40 watt/Xantrex XPower 1500 rig (most all the equipment in a case with attached cart) looks darn good.” OBTW, similar pre-packaged systems are available from Ready Made Resources. (A loyal SurvivalBlog advertiser.) They even offer free consulting on system sizing and design!

Reader RBS sent this: Solar radio bursts interfere with GPS. His comment: “This is just one more reason why one should not place faith in modern technologies.” Have a map and compass as backup and know how to use them.   o o o From The Herald Sun: Australian scientists warn of dust bowl disaster    o o o The Army Aviator mentioned two web articles, the first from Reason on the Hit and Run: A Missouri legislator is seeking restrictions on the sale of baking soda.The other was this news story: Present to Michigan Kids Its not long after …

My mention yesterday of South African military surplus 7.62 mm NATO ball ammo prompted several readers to write me to ask for my recommendations on surplus ammo dealers. I recommend: AIM Surplus, Cheaper Than Dirt, Dan’s Ammo, J&G Sales, Midway, Ammunitionstore.com, Natchez Shooter Supply, and The Sportsman’s Guide. Of these, the last that I heard that had any South African 7.62 mm NATO was Cheaper Than Dirt, but they now seem to have dropped it from their catalog. But you might want to give them a call to ask if they still have any left on hand.   o o …

Quoting AllAfrica.com, economist Richard Daughty (a.k.a. “The Mogambo Guru”) commented on the dire straits of the hyperinflated Zimbabwean dollar: “…in local currency, ‘current gold producer price stands at Zim$16,000 per gram.’ This is the producer price, which works out to Zim$497,655.63 per ounce.” The Mogambo notes that the Zimbabweans that invested in gold back before the currency inflation began in earnest are now thankful for their foresight. My observation: Someday you may be similarly thankful. Just plan ahead. If you haven’t done so already, diversify your investment portfolio into gold and silver. Sleep soundly.   o o o S.F. in …

As mentioned over at The Claire Files, there is a family in Pasadena, California, that feeds themselves with just the produce from a garden on their small suburban lot. They even have excess to sell to restaurants!   o o o Reader RBS mentioned this commentary from Pastor Thomas Horn: Does God Have An Emergency Preparedness Plan?    o o o Hawaiian K. recommended “A good, puncture-resistant bike tire.”

In a recent e-mail, frequent contributor Michael Z. Williamson noted that the Rock River Arms AR10 (The “LAR-10”) variant accepts inexpensive FAL magazines–both metric and inch pattern (L1A1), and is reasonably priced. He also mentioned that despite the looming specter of the H.R. 1022 Federal ban, there are still some bargains in military surplus.308 rifle magazines. Notably, Mike found a source for used FAL magazines for just $5 each, and I found used HK91 (G3) steel magazines for $7.99, and alloy magazines as little as $1.20 each! (HK G3 magazines will also fit CETME rifles.) Stock up, folks! o o …

Reader T.L. asked where he can get Castile Soap via mail order. It is available from Survival Enterprises. They sell the same Dr. Bronner’s Brand soap that I’ve carried on my backpacking trips since the 1970s. (Castile soap is ideal for backpacking, because a little bottle goes a long way!) The microscopic type “ABC-1-2-3” labels make interesting reading. (Odd doctrine, but hey, the gent has the freedom to put whatever he wants on his bottles and packages.) BTW, I heard that Survival Enterprises also still have a good supply of a few remaining varieties canned long term storage foods.   …

From WorldNetDaily: “The most extensive study of the effects of nuclear detonations in four major U.S. cities paints a grim picture of millions of deaths, overwhelmed hospitals and loss of command-and-control capability by government.”   o o o SurvivalBlog readers in Pennsylvania should be aware that there has been a draconian firearms registration bill introduced in he state legislature. If this is a concern, please contact your legislators!    o o o Kurt mentioned this nifty web site about big game hunting with air rifles.

Michael Z. Williamson sent this: Jakarta Floods Linked to Illegal Construction. Mike notes: “Something to watch out for in a collapsing or collapsed society is failure of drainage and other infrastructure. Floods are messy and spread diseases.   o o o RBS sent this story of a local government running roughshod: Brooksville, Florida proposes to foreclose homes and seize cars over less than $20 in parking tickets.    o o o Rourke (the moderator of the Yahoo Jericho Discussion Group) pointed us to a web page that shows how to convert a typical drill motor into a hand crank generator. …

Hawaiian K. mentioned an article about a piece of “appropriate technology”: Multimachine — a truck-parts-based machine shop for Africa    o o o Any of you that have copies of my recent non-fiction books should update them with our new mail forwarding address. Please see page 207 of Rawles on Retreats and Relocation (Appendix B) and page 239 of SurvivalBlog: The Best of the Blog – Volume 1 (Appendix A)–they should both get penned with this new mail forwarding address: James Wesley, Rawles c/o Elk Creek Company P.O. Box 303 Moyie Springs, Idaho 83845 USA I have just updated the …

Eric S. mentioned: India Mark II extra deep hand pump by Suksha Exports   o o o Reader RBS sent us this bookmark: The California real estate meltdown begins: Foreclosures up 79% and “short sales” up 10 times from last year’s figures.    o o o Speaking of foreclosures, reader JLM sent this: Foreclosure Wave Bears Down on Immigrants. It includes this frightening statistic: “Nationally, 375,000 high-interest-rate loans were made to Hispanics in 2005, and nearly 73,000 of them are likely to go into foreclosure…”