Category: Odds ‘n Sods

I mentioned this about a year ago, but it bears repeating: By SOP, any firearm that comes out of our vault here at the Rawles Ranch is immediately loaded. Everyone in the family assumes that any gun seen anywhere here at the ranch is loaded at all times, and it is always treated as such. Avoiding any ambiguity helps reduce the chance of accidents.   o o o Michael Z. Williamson noted: a piece at Bloomberg.com that includes some useful background on silver supply/demand fundamentals: Artemis Hedge Fund Seeks $300 Million for Silver Boom    o o o Vic at …

Readers MPI and MWR both suggested listening to the Jim Puplava interview of economist Michael J. Panzner, the author of the book “Financial Armageddon.”. (Free audio podcast download. Scroll down to March 3rd–second hour.)   o o o “Kon Tiki” mentioned this video clip: A compressed air powered car being proptotyped in France.    o o o P.R. and J.B. both reminded me to mention that used concertina wire is often available at military surplus auctions. There are 37 pallets of used concertina wire up for auction right now at Fort Lewis, Washington. Those auctions end at 5 p.m. PST …

Ben L. sent this: Shell to Offer a Biodiesel Fuel in Europe Made From Wood Chips and Straw   o o o A tidbit from The Daily Reckoning: “Remember, for a good part of America’s history, every dollar in your pocket was a dollar backed by gold. So it’s not so crazy to ask yourself… if America has 8,180 tons – or nearly 261.7 million ounces – of gold in reserve… how many dollars does that buy? The answer will shock you. When dollars became unhinged from gold, the printing presses at the Fed cranked up. By 1980, for every …

Michael Z. Williamson found this news story for us: A Glitch in the Financial Matrix: How Heavy Trade Volumes and a 70-Minute Time Lag Wreaked Havoc Upon the New York Stock Exchange   o o o Mike F. points to an opinion piece first published in 2003 that he asserts still has relevance: Dollar vs. Euro — Weapons of mass destruction    o o o Hawaiian K. forwarded this article from The London Observer: Now the Pentagon tells Bush: climate change will destroy us. The article begins: “Climate change over the next 20 years could result in a global catastrophe …

Chuck G. (a regular content contributor) sent us this: The Plunge Protection Team gears up for a possible derivatives crisis. I’ve warned you about derivatives, so don’t be surprised when you see trillions of dollars get wiped out, overnight.   o o o SurvivalBlog reader Doc Holladay notes: “The wife of a fellow doomer buddy has a booming business as a professional seamstress doing alterations. I opine that her livelihood is pretty secure, as she is covered up in work. I’ve four of the treadle sewing machines I’ve refurbished. The old Singer treadle sewing machines use the same bobbins as …

A warning from veteran economic analyst Harry Shultz, by way of BULL!, (Not Bull)   o o o Desert T . mentioned this New York Times article on honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD).    o o o Today we welcome our newest banner advertiser, East Tennessee Sterilizer Service. This company sells state of the art reverse osmosis water purifiers, and has some very hard to find medical equipment at great prices. They even have a few ultra cold medical freezers, which are only rarely found on the surplus market. Give them a call at: (423) 295-4531.

I’ve added a few more Affiliate Advertisers, including 1-800 GET LENS and the bookseller Chapters.indigo.ca in Canada. These join our big list of established affiliates that includes Lehmans.com, US Cavalry Store, Nitro-Pak, and Northern Tool & Equipment. (Those four generate more revenue for SurvivalBlog than all of the other affiliates, combined!) Of course, please give our paid (scrolling banner) advertisers your business first. But if they don’t have the products you are looking for, then please next patronize our affiliate advertisers. When you place an order via the web links from our Affiliates Page, we get a little piece of …

Matt in Texas sent the link for this Acres USA article in PDF format on the Prehn method for spring development: Milking Water from the Hills   o o o Frequent content contributor M.P. sent us this one: The Case Of The Vanishing Bees–Beekeepers In 22 States Report Insects Disappearing In Huge Numbers    o o o “Going, going…” Rob at $49 MURS Radios tells us that his supplies of the used MURS radios that he has been selling at $49 each is dwindling fast. He reports: “I expect only another few weeks of availability at the current rate of …

Simon M. mentioned that following Mossberg’s lead, the newly-minted “we’re conservatives, honest!” management at Smith & Wesson has jumped on the “survival kit” band wagon. They now offer “Disaster Ready” kit packaging for four variants of their Glock-like Sigma Series 9mm and .40 S& W pistols. Simon says: “I see that the kit is missing a good knife and a holster. I hope there is a good flint in the Pocket Survival Pack. Now if they did one of these [kits] based on there M&P15 (AR-15) that would be a bit better.” As previously mentioned in SurvivalBlog, S&W already offers …

Ralph H. pointed us to this article: Cheap solar power poised to undercut oil and gas by half   o o o Mike in Seattle recommended this “must read” piece at The Market Oracle: US Housing Market Crash to result in the Second Great Depression   o o o SurvivalBlog reader Doc Holladay notes: “A possible relocation area is the vicinity of the Big South Fork National Recreation Area in Kentucky/Tennessee. This is about as isolated as it gets east of the Big Muddy.”

I just had a phone conversation with my brother. He mentioned that a power surge in the local utility lines caused $220 in damage to his washing machine. It seems that microcircuits are ubiquitous in household electronics and appliances. Its not just your computer, televisions, radios, and and stereo that are at risk. Your automatic bread maker, your washing machine, and perhaps even your dishwasher use vulnerable microcircuits. His advice: Spend $100 and buy a few high quality surge-arresting power strips. Even better would be the Automatic Voltage Regulator (AVR) variety that automatically trip in the event of a brown-out. …

Wow! Have you noticed the spot prices of silver and gold in the past few days? If you think that you’ve “missed the boat” on precious metals, you are wrong. I still predict that spot silver is heading past $40 per ounce in the next few years. I’ve said it many times, but it bears repeating: Diversify your investments into precious metals, especially silver.   o o o An alternative for those of you that live in gun-grabbing Nanny States: .50 Caliber Air Rifles. BTW, these might be a nice addition to every survival gun battery, since they will allow …

Two different readers mentioned this short essay by Peter Schiff on U.S. indebtedness and the encroaching foreign ownership of U.S. corporations: Selling Our Cows To Buy Milk   o o o “J Eagle” mentioned that MSN Money has a current article listing property tax rates by state. This is an important data point to consider when choosing a state for a retreat or for retirement.    o o o Our correspondent in Brazil recommends the survival novel “Wolf and Iron” by Gordon Dickson. Used copies are often available dirt cheap on Amazon.com.

S.F. in Hawaii found a web page about a very interesting “castle” monolithic dome home. S.F.’s comments: “Nice view from the roof. And the little holes for a rifle?. Good commanding view and a bulletproof/fireproof concrete home, to boot “   o o o Thanks to Ben L. for sending this news story: More from inflation-ravaged Zimbabwe: Mugabe Throws Lavish Birthday Party as Zimbabwe’s Infrastructure Crumbles. My comment: Clearly, times were much better back when the city now dubbed “Gweru” was called “Gwelo.” Remember Rhodesia!    o o o Homeland Security analyst Stephen Flynn: U.S. not prepared for the next …

Jason in North Idaho pointed out this article: Mogadishu’s fathers turn to the gun — again. Jason’s comment: “It looks as if the Africans know that the only way to guarantee one’s safety is to take the responsibility into their own hands–and I notice that the elitists want to change that.”   o o o We could see this one coming from the now Democrat-controlled congress: H.R. 1022: To reauthorize the assault weapons ban. Note that unlike its predecessor, this law would include a total import ban on 11+ round magazines, regardless of year of manufacture. If this legislation troubles …