Economics and Investing:

Omen of times to come: Lady riots after EBT card fails – Submitted by RBS.

HJL’s Comment: We’ve seen this sort of thing before. In October of 2013, the EBT system went down in much of the nation. It only took a few hours for word to spread as the welfare roles abused the vouchers and emptied the shelves of many stores, wreaking havoc along the way.

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This financial bubble is 8 times bigger than the 2008 subprime crisis

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Derailed! A June Rate Hike Is Off

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Video: Brexit – The Moment of Truth. Sent in by A.D.

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SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Hillary Clinton Posted Names of Hidden Intelligence Officials On Her Email

JWR’s Comment: This miserable excuse for a human being belongs in prison rather than the White House.

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SurvivalBlog reader R.T. sent the link to this video in on the Orion cooker that he picked up at an Ace Hardware store for $139. It looks pretty interesting.

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Reader Rob commented on the Raspberry Pi camera link: “You can also use the RaspPi with the new FLIR lepton module. I’ve built a couple of these up and they make nice little units. All up, under $300 for a true FLIR sensor and the ability to see heat signatures in the dark.” – We are hoping he writes an article for us on this.

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Utah Sheriffs Threaten To Arrest Rangers If They Try To Close Public Lands – Sent in by B.B.

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For those who thought DNA was the definitive identifier: DNA testing isn’t always scientific. The error rate is truly appalling when you consider how many are convicted on DNA evidence. – A.D.

Guest Article: Open Source Intelligence, by Samuel Culper

In light of an election season, economic conditions, and domestic stability particularly vulnerable to disruption, we should examine a distinct possibility. Under Title 10 of the U.S. Constitution (as described in Title 18, USC Section 1385), the President has the authorization to order military forces to support civil authorities and to aid domestic security efforts. These operations are referred to as Military Assistance to Civil Disturbances.

After the Watts Riots of 1965, the U.S. Army drafted a plan for the Defense Department, codenamed Operation Garden Plot. Since then, U.S. Presidents have authorized both regular army and national guard troops to take part in Garden Plot during the 1992 LA Riots, as well as after 9/11. The Garden Plot document notes that:

During domestic civil disturbance operations, federal military forces will confront members of the civil populace participating in group acts of violence antagonistic to authority. These acts can fall anywhere along a broad spectrum of violence that encompasses individual acts of terrorism, riots, and insurrection.

Part of our jobs in using intelligence to support SHTF community security is identifying potential scenarios and describing how they could impact our security. It’s not enough to just be aware that Military Assistance to Civil Disturbances (MACDIS) is an available course of action. We need to run this scenario through the Intelligence Cycle so that we can identify early warning indicators and be able to forecast realistic expectations of the future. We can be best prepared when we can achieve early warning of what to expect.

Military Assistance to Civil Disturbances is about restoration of order. Given this broad mission, potential activities include:

  • Dispersing unlawful assemblies, where we can expect less-lethal weapons, like tear gas, rubber bullets, and skirmish lines. As quickly as possible during an emergency where MACDIS could be authorized, we need to start mapping out which areas are affected by the disturbance and drawing conclusions about the use of force. Beyond that, we need to identify how the presence and escalation of force will affect our community. Will homes in the area be placed on lock down, preventing you from bugging out, or could you experience mobs or rioters being pushed from a nearby area into your community?
  • Patrolling disturbed areas is another activity we’d expect during MACDIS, hence the importance of mapping out known locations where there are ongoing disruptions. We should have generated intelligence requirements by now and should begin satisfying those requirements: strength, disposition, weapons, equipment, and vehicles (to name a few) in use by the military force. The more we know about what’s out there, both in terms of troops and rioters, the more prepared we can be.
  • Preventing the commission of unlawful acts is standard practice in responses to civil disturbances. Keep in mind that law enforcement and military forces may not be concerned about protecting commercial or private property. As an intelligence guy, that’s one thing I’m interested in: what are the boundaries of their operations? What’s their standard operating procedure, or what orders have they been given that define what they can or can’t do.
  • Providing a quick reaction force (QRF) might be necessary where a disturbance has an element of mobility. For instance, if rioters avoid areas where troops are present, a QRF may be required to have a very quick response to a moving target. Another common use of QRF is when current forces are overwhelmed and need some support. When we battle tracked the Ferguson riots, we located where additional tactical teams were staged. Knowing that information could have been very useful if we lived in Ferguson, MO.
  • Distributing essential goods and providing aid to the populace is a common practice we’ve seen, especially overseas. These aid distribution locations are places we need to have on our map, so that we can maintain an accurate security picture. These are places that might incur high traffic and increased potential for violence, so we may need to avoid these areas if we’re going to bug out.
  • Maintaining essential services can include guarding critical infrastructure or otherwise ensuring that essential services help keep the peace. One of the worst ways to compound a civil disturbance is the disruption of essential services, like water and electricity, thus creating more unrest.
  • Establishing traffic control points (TCPs) and cordons is a frequent practice to control the flow of traffic in an area. We saw numerous TCPs when battle tracking the Ferguson riots, and we were able to map them. Identifying and mapping these TCP locations is a must, and keep in mind that TCPs may not always be static. We employed 10-15 minute snap TCPs in Iraq to moderate effect when trying to screen locals for contraband and weapons.

Certainly the topic of martial law is more profound in this community, and unfortunately Military Assistance to Civil Disturbances is often confused with martial law. There’s a large difference. For starters, martial law has only been implemented twice in the nation’s history– once on a national level during the Civil War and again on a regional level during World War 2. Military assistance to civil disturbances has occurred numerous times.

Only the President or Congress can declare martial law, whereas federal military assistance is requested at the state level, and the Attorney General advises the President on the appropriate use of force. While military forces will participate, a Senior Civilian Representative for the Attorney General (SCRAG) remains in control of MACDIS operations, and a military representative directs the use of military force to achieve goals outlined by the SCRAG. All state and local law enforcement agencies remain under the control of state civilians. Identifying who these officials are and which military units will participate in MACDIS operations could help us determine potential courses of action for the operations. And the more we know about what is likely to happen (versus what’s unlikely to happen), the better prepared we can be.

This article originally appeared on Forward Observer

Two Letters Re: Hunting for Self Sufficiency

Hugh,

DK may want to investigate joining a private hunting club that leases or owns their own private land to allow hunting boar year round and of course other game in season. – Lone Prepper

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Hugh,

The statement “In spite of that, all Florida public lands only allow boar hunting for a few weeks of the year in special WMAs” is kind of misleading. In reading this, it sounds like a person is only allowed to hunt hogs at certain times in certain areas and with a permit; this is not true.

This statement applies only to public lands and WMA (wild life management areas). During certain hunting seasons, such as muzzle loader, you can only use a muzzle loader and archery (only a bow). They do limit hog hunting for specific seasons (like spring turkey) and allow no lights at night on public land. Other than specific times that coincide with other hunting seasons, hog hunting is allowed year round on public land. You would only need a permit to hunt hogs, if you are hunting on public land, in a WMA, and during a specific season.

On private land, all bets are off with year round hunting, no license and no limit. Hogs are nuisance animals and very destructive. I’ve never had a problem finding private land owners who are very happy to have you kill as many hogs as you can, as long as you are mindful of their property. Lights at night, trapping, and baiting are also allowed on private property. – D.D.

Economics and Investing:

Can Bitcoin Uber The Fed? Gilder Says Gold Standard Is Coming Whether Central Banks Want It Or Not

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The Startling Truth About How Working Families Are Truly Faring In This Economy. – Sent in by B.B.

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Funniest BLS Report Ever. “Only a captured government drone could put out a report showing only 38,000 new jobs created, with the working age population rising by 205,000, and … report the unemployment rate plunged from 5.0% to 4.7%, the lowest since August 2007.” – Warning: Some inappropriate language.

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What Will Happen When Brainwashed Middle Class Americans Lose It All?. “Just when did I get here, and how?” – Sent in by P.M.

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SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

Odds ‘n Sods:

SafeCastle has a shipment of dehydrated whole eggs (military surplus with a shelf life of 10+ years) along with a great deal on Mountain House Foods. Stop by and check it out.

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An interesting commentary of Hillary by Judge Andrew Napolitano: Hillary on the Ropes – C.T.

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Coming Destruction? Alan Greenspan Warns “Venezuela Under Martial Law and America Is Next”. Sent in by RBS.

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Believe It or Not, the Pentagon’s Cybersecurity Priorities Haven’t Changed in a Decade. Submitted by T.Z.

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Professor Says American Patriots More Dangerous Than Foreign Terrorists – B.B.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“O Lord, my strength, and my fortress,
and my refuge in the day of affliction,
the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say,
Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity,
and things wherein there is no profit.
Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods?
Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know,
I will cause them to know mine hand and my might;
and they shall know that my name is The Lord.”
– Jeremiah 16:19-21 (KJV)

Notes for Friday – June 03, 2016

On June 3, we remember those who lost their lives in China in a failed bid for freedom. In 1989, with the protests for democratic reforms entering their seventh week, the Chinese government authorized its soldiers and tanks to reclaim Beijing’s Tiananmen Square at all costs. By nightfall on June 4, Chinese troops had forcibly cleared the square, killing hundreds and arresting thousands of demonstrators. In the weeks afterward, an unknown number of dissidents were executed. The world responded with sanctions sending China’s economy into decline, but by late 1990, all was forgotten as China released a few hundred prisoners. It was then business as usual. We should remember this every time we buy an object “Made in China”. If people didn’t buy them, there would be no market for it.

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Pantry Paratus is hosting 2 free webinars for people who already own a dehydrator but get frustrated with it or don’t use it that often. No matter what brand or model owned, there will be information to help you make the most of it. Register for your preferred date and time: Making the Most of that Dusty Dehydrator.

May in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran of Gainesville Coins

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review,by Steven Cochran of Gainesville Coins where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover the price action of gold and examine the “what” and “why” behind those numbers.

What Did Gold Do in May?

Gold began the month with another run at the $1,300 mark but was unable to break through after several attempts. This failure changed sentiment among speculators, leading gold lower. The Federal Reserve, thinking that the markets had stopped listening to them, started an all-out media blitz to stoke fears of another interest rate hike next month. This campaign, combined with a weaker British pound and euro, boosted the dollar. As a higher dollar means lower gold prices, it only helped speculators in their decision to close out their gold bets.

Gold spent the last part of the month successfully testing $1,200 before recovering. Gold prices will likely remain in a holding pattern ahead of the Fed’s policy meeting and the Brexit vote in the UK.

Factors Affecting Gold This Month

Brexit

The battle for British hearts and minds continues, ahead of the June 23 vote on whether the UK should secede from the European Union or not. It seems that each poll gives the opposite answer than the previous one. One fact that may indicate the “Leave” side is eating into the “Remain” side’s lead is recent action with English bookies. William Hill bookmakers reported that +85% of referendum bets over the long [Memorial/bank holiday] weekend was for “leave” and this has required them to shorten their “leave” odds. This drama has led the British pound lower, helping to strengthen the U.S. dollar.

Fed Summer Hike

The uncertainty over the Brexit vote (as British polltakers are notoriously inaccurate) should keep the Fed from raising rates in June. The Fed meets just eight days before the Brexit vote. If the UK votes to leave the EU, there will be severe market disruptions and uncertainty. Other anti-EU political parties would take a successful Brexit as the sign to head for the exit themselves. This could force the Fed to immediately reverse the rate hike, causing even fewer people to believe them in the future. Even so, all the chatter from Fed heads has the odds of a June rate hike at 32%, up from 2% at the first of the month.

July is also a possibility, with odds at 58%, but the Fed meeting occurs in the middle of the Democratic Presidential convention. Any decision will be condemned by one side or the other as politically motivated.

Dollar Strength

The Fed strongly pushing the idea of a June or July rate hike has been the biggest influence on the dollar this month. The drop in the British pound over Brexit and the euro over deflation fears has also lent strength to the greenback. One headwind has been the strong demand for the Japanese yen as a safe haven currency. This is hurting the Japanese economy, so the central bank has been trying to talk down the exchange rate.

Saudi Arabia And 9/11

The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism (JASTA) Act, allowing family members of those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks to sue Saudi Arabia. To pay any judgments awarded by U.S. courts, Saudi assets in the U.S. could be frozen and liquidated.

The Saudis called the bill “Satanic” and threatened to sell $750 million in U.S. Treasuries to destroy the U.S. bond market. There are a couple of problems with that evil plan. Firstly, they only own $116.8 billion in Treasuries (even the Cayman Islands owns twice that); secondly, where would they invest that money? EU bonds have negative interest and so do Japan’s. Maybe the Saudi government could use the cash from a Treasury sale to pay the contractors they have been giving IOUs for payment.

Of course, this is just one headache the Saudis are getting from the U.S. this month. A grassroots movement to release the hidden 28 pages of the 9/11 Commission report is rapidly gaining ground. This would provide the “smoking gun” to find Saudi Arabia guilty of supporting the 9/11 hijackers, nine of which came from Saudi Arabia.

Too bad for the Saudis that they need the U.S. more than we need them. The release of the hidden part of the 9/11 report and the resulting lawsuits would probably lead to tremendous instability in the kingdom, giving Daesh (a.k.a. ISIS) the opportunity to start a revolt against the Royals. With the dismantling of bank secrecy laws, there are no longer numbered Swiss bank accounts for storing ill-gotten gains. The U.S. could ask other countries to freeze Saudi bank accounts for payment of 9/11 lawsuits. Storing gold bullion in a vault leased by a shell company could be the best option for the decadent princes to quickly move their riches to safety.

Negative Interest Rates A Plus For Gold

Record-setting gold demand in Europe is being fueled by a host of dangers all coming together. Negative interest rates by the European Central Bank has depositors pulling their savings out of banks. The threat of a Brexit or the threats from millions of immigrants from the Middle East overrunning the nations of the EU are also adding to uncertainty and safe haven demand.

The same fear of negative interest rates have fueled a remarkable event in Japan. Citizens, afraid that banks may start charging negative rates on deposits, have withdrawn their savings and hidden it at home. Over 40 trillion yen ($360 Billion) is estimated to have been withdrawn out of the banking system and stuffed into futons. This is 8% of Japan’s national GDP hiding in homes.

On the Retail Front

Everyone’s favorite barometer for U.S. silver demand– U.S. American Silver Eagle sales– ended with sales for May just a whisper shy of 4.5 million coins. Total ASE sales through the first five months of the year is 23.4 million coins. If the current rate of demand continues through the year, a mind-boggling 56 million ASEs will be sold.

Let’s hope that the U.S. Mint doesn’t decide to choke demand again this year by cutting off sales or rationing coins.

This month, the Austrian Mint released its sales total for 2015. The Mint sold 1.32 million ounces of gold, an increase of 45%. It also totally blew away 2015 American Gold Eagle sales, which came in at 801,500 ounces.

Market Buzz

Illegal gold mining is a plague across the third world, from South America, where is causes rainforests to be burned down and rivers full of mercury, to South Africa, where deadly gang wars erupt a mile beneath the surface in abandoned gold mines.

The saga of the Texas Gold Depository continues, as proposals start being tendered for the construction of the building. It’s been over a year since the bill authorizing the Depository was signed into law, but the wheels of government turn slowly.

The European Central Bank is confused and irritated that people will not pay negative interest rates for corporate bonds. Really? They actually thought people would do this?

Speaking of central banks, Bill Gross says that QE4, which he calls “helicopter money” for the government, will begin in the next year or so.

Hedge fund manager David Einhorn has taken a stake in gold, saying that all these central bank shenanigans will boost gold’s value.

Another big Wall St. star tells people to dump stocks and grab gold. Stanley Druckenmiller said that people who look at gold as a metal instead of a currency are wrong.

Even George Soros is selling stocks and loading up on gold.

On the other side of the world, Zimbabwe, which is still amazingly messed up, has come up with a plan to address the shortage of U.S. dollars in the economy. It’s going to print its own. Backed by a $200 million loan from the Africa Export-Import Bank, these “bond dollars” are supposed to be claims on that loan equal to the face value of the bill in U.S. dollars. Of course, there is only President Mugabe’s promise not to print a trillion of these, so lots of luck getting people to accept them.

Chavez’s socialist utopia in Venezuela is collapsing around the ears of his successor, Nicolas Maduro. The government is so broke it can’t pay for the chemicals needed to treat its crude oil in order to sell it. The economy is dead, and the people are rioting in the streets yelling, “We are hungry!” We can only hope that some of the people trapped in this nightmare learned to prepare ahead of time, like American preppers.

China’s plan to take over the global gold market continues, as ICBC– the biggest bank in China (and largest in the world)– bought a giant London gold vault from Barclays Bank. The underground vault, in a secret location, can hold up to 2,000 metric tonnes in precious metal. ICBC also recently joined the new London Gold Fix, making it the third Chinese bank on the 13 member committee.

Alan Greenspanwarns that growth in entitlement programs are outstripping productivity growth, leading the Western world to disaster: “We have a global problem of a shortage in productivity growth and it’s not only the United States but it’s pretty much around the world and it’s being caused by the fact that the populations everywhere in the Western world, for example, are aging and we are not committing enough of our resources to fund that.”

Looking Ahead

June will be all sorts of volatile, with the Fed policy meeting, the Brexit vote, and the increasing blowback against the flood of illegal immigrants in Europe. A successful Brexit will bring fears of independence movements erupting across Europe. On the other side of the world, worries about a “hard landing” for the Chinese economy will roil markets and cause commodity prices to fall. Globally, the G7 countries are already accusing each other of currency devaluation through QE and negative interest rates.

We end this month wondering if the guy who built Hillary’s email server used to work at the Fed, as Reuters reports More Than 50 Security Breaches Recorded at Federal Reserve.

Letter Re: Hunting for Self Sufficiency

Hugh,

I am not sure how far the writer is from the Georgia Border, but you can hunt feral hogs year round, 24/7, with night vision, flashlight; it doesn’t matter. Farmers in Georgia do have issues with these non-native animals that were introduced for sport hunting in the early days of this nation. If you can find a farmer that would allow you to hunt (and if Georgia is not that far from you), you should be able to take quite a harvest. You can even hunt over bait with these critters. I am amazed that Florida would only allow hog harvest for a few weeks a year, as they do reproduce rapidly and are destructive. The cost of an out-of-state hunting license and transportation may be cost prohibitive, but if they are not consider butchering them yourselves. They are not that hard to process, although the skin is very thick– twice the thickness of deer. WOW, the meat is sweet; it’s some of the best tasting meat I have ever had. Good luck – RT in Georgia.

Economics and Investing:

SurvivalBlog reader T.T. sent in the link to this interview with Felix Zulauf in which investing, markets, and gold are discussed. Monetary Stimulation Creates Bubbles, Not Prosperity Nor Growth.

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Greece to co-produce Kalashnikov rifles with Russia – H.L.

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Puerto Rico’s U.S. Rescue Won’t Come Soon Enough to Halt Default

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Silver Will Move The Most of All The Metals

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SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

Odds ‘n Sods:

At least Two Shot In UCLA “Gun Free Zone” – Let me get this straight. Two people are killed with guns in a “gun free” zone in a nearly “gun free” state. Of course, the responders had guns as well. It appears to me that the only people who didn’t have guns were the victim and potential victims. – DSV

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Another article about Venezuela: ‘We can’t go on like this’: Shortages, economic crisis make Venezuela a nation of lines. We are headed down this same path. How are workers supposed to wait in line for food when they’re at work? Do they take the day off and miss a day’s pay? If they miss work, they’re losing the money they need to buy over-priced necessities. – C.L.

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For the DIYer: Raspberry Pi IR Wi-Fi camera – K.S.

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Police are filing warrants for Android’s vast store of location data – T.Z.

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U.S. Immigration at 15-Year High With 3 Million Arrivals Over the Past Two Years – B.B.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Of course most people underestimate the warrior characteristics of the Anglo-Saxon and Norman peoples anyway. It takes a heap of piety to keep a Viking from wanting to go sack a city.” – Jerry Pournelle, in a reply to a reader’s e-mail in Chaos Manor Mail #141, February 19-25, 2001