Sig Sauer P226 Scorpion, by Pat Cascio

My first exposure to any Sig Sauer firearm came in 1980, shortly after I was married and I opened a gun shop in my home. Later, I moved to a regular store front location. A customer asked me to order him a Browning BDA .45 ACP handgun. I readily admit, that back then, I had no idea what the BDA was. I knew the Browning name but wasn’t familiar with the BDA (Browning Double Action) model. After some research, I found out that the “Browning” BDA was manufactured by Sig and imported into the USA by Browning. I was impressed with the BDA, for the most part, other than the heel mounted magazine release, which is popular in Europe though not so much here in the USA. I remember the BDA being a bit blocky to my way of thinking; however, it felt good in the hand, real good. It wasn’t until that customer went out shooting and invited me along that I fired that Browning BDA, and I fell in love with the Sig line of handguns. I’ve been a big fan ever since.

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Sig Sauer now manufactures most of their firearms in the USA these days, instead of in Europe. For some reason, there was thinking back in “those” days that firearms made in Europe were better than those made in the USA. I totally disagree with that line of thought, then and now! Given a free hand, we can build just about anything better in the USA than can be built in other countries. I’m unashamedly pro-USA!

Over the years, I’ve owned many different Sig Sauer firearms– long guns as well as handguns. One thing that has always stood out is the superb accuracy of Sig firearms. I never had one that couldn’t really group, if I did my part. I’ve always liked the Sig P226 line and have owned many different variations over the years. This newest P226 that is under review here is the “Scorpion”, and I’m here to tell you that it has some well thought-out features.

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The Scorpion is available in 9mm and .40S&W. My sample, as requested, is the 9mm version. The gun comes with a 4.4-inch barrel. However, there is a treaded version for suppressors that is 4.9 inches long. The overall height of the Scorpion is 5.5 inches. It is 1.5 inches wide and has an overall length of 7.7 inches. SIGLITE night sights are standard issue. The gun weighs 34 ounces with the aluminum frame and stainless steel slide. The finish on the Scorpion is Flat Dark Earth in color Cerakote. Standard magazine capacity is 15 rounds; however, I use 18-rd Mec-Gar magazines in my sample. The trigger pull is typical DA/SA– double action/single action. The first shot is fired double action, when the trigger is at rest, and the trigger pull is 10 lbs, and it’s VERY smooth. Single action trigger pull is 4.4 lbs; however, you can fire the first shot single action by simply cocking the hammer back.

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Some of the features on the Scorpion, that aren’t on the standard P226, are:

  • cocking serrations on the slide,
  • Elite beavertail on the frame,
  • integral Picatinny rail for lasers or lights,
  • front strap checkering, and
  • Hogue G10 Extreme Piranna grips, that I love.

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The trigger is the SRT– Short Reset Trigger– that you don’t have to allow it to travel so far forward to reset after each shot. This makes for faster follow-up shots. And, as already mentioned, the special Flat Dark Earth coating on the gun that is really eye-catching also helps protect the gun from the elements. The Scorpion has the Sig decocking lever on the left side of the frame and the slide lock/release. The magazine release button is checkered and angled, too.

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The gun comes with two 15-rd magazines, and spare magazines are readily found just about every place. I have a good supply of genuine Sig 15-rd mags in my supply, and as mentioned I also have some of the Mec-Gar 18-rd mags that don’t extend very much below the frame of the gun. For my money, these are the mags to use. They provide you with three more rounds with very little more length added to the gun. The Scorpion also has a massive external extractor. I don’t know if this is on all Sig 226 handguns or not, but I don’t see a shell refusing to extract from the chamber with this hummer. It is big!

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For a full-sized, duty-style handgun, the Scorpion can be concealed, with the right holsters and covering garments. I carried the Scorpion for two weeks, in a Blackhawk Products www.blackhawk.com CQC thumb break holster on my right hip. The gun rode nice and tight against my body in the heat of the summer. For law enforcement or military use, I would carry the Scorpion in the Blackhawk Tactical Thigh holster, which is one of my favorite rigs. It allows the gun to ride below the waist, in the event you are carrying a long gun, and it won’t interfere with the long gun. I added two Blackhawk mag pouches to the thigh rig, with two more 18-rd Mec-Gar magazines. Once properly adjusted, this setup is fantastic. For survival, this would be a great rig and handgun in my humble opinion. I carry either +P or +P+ hollow point rounds for self-defense. Of course, no gun maker warrants their firearms for +P+ ammo, but the P226 Scorpion can handle higher pressured ammo, in my opinion. For practice, I shoot standard pressure FMJ ammo, when blasting paper targets.

I ran more than 500 rounds of various 9mm ammo through the Scorpion, and there were zero failures of any sort. The gun just kept right on perking along. I also mixed different types and brands of ammo in the magazines, and there were no failures to feed or fire. This is always a good test. Many guns, if you mix different brands and types of ammo in a magazine, will stutter and not feed the next round. The Sig sailed through this test several times.

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From Black Hills Ammunition I had their 115-gr JHP +P load, 124-gr JHP +P, 115-gr Barnes TAC-XP all-copper hollow point +P load, 124-gr JHP, and their 115-gr FMJ loading. From the folks at Buffalo Bore Ammunition, I had their 147-gr JHP Subsonic load, 147-gr FMJ FN Subsonic load, 147-gr Hard Cast FN Outdoorsman load, 115-gr Barnes TAC-XP +P+ fodder, and their 124-gr +P+ FMJ FN “Penetrator” ammo. So, I had a great selection of ammo to run through the Scorpion.

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I did some draw and fire exercises, using both the Blackhawk hip holster, and the tactical thigh holster. I do this from time-to-time, to stay on my game and get a feel for different holsters. The hip holster allowed me a slightly faster draw than did the tactical thigh holster. However, I’m not kidding myself, if someone has the drop on me, I’m probably gonna lose if I have to draw against a gun that is already out. However, faced with a life or death situation like that, I’d draw, because only 25% of people who are shot with handgun rounds actually die. So that means, a person has a 75% chance of living. So, go for it, I say. I put a small piece of skate board friction tape on the release button on the tactical thigh holster, and it made it much easier for my trigger finger to find the button under stress. It’s a quick and easy fix that only cost a penny or two. All of my Blackhawk Tactical Thigh holsters now have this small piece of friction tape on the holster’s button for releasing the handgun. (Even old dogs can learn new tricks.)

As I mentioned early on, Sig firearms are known for outstanding accuracy, and the Scorpion didn’t let me down, if I did my part. I tested all of the above ammo, firing over a sleeping bag, over the hood of my pick-up truck, with the paper target 25 yards down range. Again, if I did my part, the Sig and the ammo did what it was supposed to do. I only had a few groups that were over three inches, and I think those groups were my fault, not the gun and ammo. Doing my part, I got several groups down there in the 2 1/4 inch range, and I think the Scorpion can do even better. My shooting was done over the super hot summer we had in the western part of Oregon, and I don’t tolerate that kind of heat. So, I know I wasn’t at my best. I can see the Scorpion, with the right ammo, and me on my game doing a little better– shooting inch and a half groups. The overall winner was the Black Hills 124-gr JHP load, followed by the Buffalo Bore 147-gr Hard Cast +P Outdoorsman load, and tied for third place is the Black Hills 115-gr JHP +P and the Buffalo Bore 147-gr FMJ FN Subsonic loads. Honestly, there were no bad groups or bad ammo. The gun can shoot, and it shot very well with any of the ammo I put through it. On a good day, as mentioned, I can see the Scorpion with the ammo it likes best, shooting inch and a half groups, single action.

I like the extended beavertail on the frame, as it allows me to get a higher grip on the gun and it helps prevent the gun from rolling “up” during recoil, not that the 9mm round is punishing; even the +P+ loads weren’t a problem for the Scorpion in the recoil department. The SIGLITE night sights are outstanding, and I did a little bit of low-light shooting, too. They really stand out. I should mention that the front of the squared-off trigger guard is checkered, for those who place the index finger of their off-hand in this position. It used to be all the rage, however I don’t know of anyone who uses this grip any longer on a handgun.

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If you’re not familiar with the decocking lever on many of the Sig handguns, this will take a little training to get used to. Muscle memory is just all it is. When you are done firing and you are ready to re-holster, you press down on the decocking lever with your thumb, and it safely drops the hammer, making the gun safe to re-holster. Don’t ever holster with the hammer cocked!!!

I liked the Hogue G10 Extreme Piranna grips so much that I got a pair for my Sig P229. These grips grip your hand back. There’s no chance of dropping the gun under any weather conditions. These grips just feel fantastic. I passed the gun around to quite a few people, and the first thing every one commented on was how great the grips felt in their hand.

The Flat Dark Earth Cerakote finish is something I really liked the look of. It’s very “tactical” to my mind, and of course it provides added protection against the elements. The slide is stainless steel and the frame is aluminum to help fight the elements, but the Cerakote just adds another layer of protection.

Sig Sauer quality never comes cheap. Full retail on the P226 Scorpion is $1,313. Then again, you ARE getting a Sig, and I don’t know that I’ve ever been disappointed in any way with any Sig Sauer handgun I’ve owned or tested. The Scorpion is no different. Is the Scorpion worth this kind of money? You betcha, it is! Save your pennies, if you have to, but this one is worth every red cent, even at full retail! If you’re looking for an “End Of The World” handgun that won’t fail you, then look no further, and if the Scorpion model isn’t to your liking, then check out one of the many different P226 models that Sig offers. I’m sure you’ll find one that suits your taste perfectly. The only “problem” I have now is that this sample isn’t going back to Sig; so, I’ll have to save my own pennies now and buy it.

Recipe of the Week: Stuffed Green Peppers

Ingredients:

  • 5 to 6 green peppers
  • 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
  • 1 Tbsp. chopped pimiento
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 (12 oz) can whole kernel corn, drained
  • 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp. prepared mustard
  • 1 (10 3/4 oz) can condensed cream of tomato soup

Directions:

  1. Cut a slice off the top of each pepper and remove the core seeds and white membrane.
  2. In a small bowl, combine beef, onion, pimiento, salt, and corn.
  3. Spoon beef mixture into hollowed out peppers.
  4. Stand peppers up in a slow-cooking pot.
  5. Add Worcestershire sauce and mustard to soup. Pour over peppers.
  6. Cover pot, and cook on low 8 to 10 hours.

Makes 5 to 6 servings.

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Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:

Reader J.C. wrote to mention that Enola Gay posted a Dublin Coddle recipe in the excellent Paratus Familia blog. She made it one evening, and she and her husband thought it was delicious. She baked it at 400 degrees F for 50 minutes, and it turned out perfect.

Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. Thanks!

Two Letters Re: The 9mm Parabellum vs the .40 Smith and Wesson vs the .45 ACP, by B.F.

Hugh,

I enjoyed BF’s “The 9mm Parabellum vs the .40 Smith and Wesson vs the .45 ACP”. It brought back some great memories of my police days and the El Presidente drill we conducted at the end of our range sessions every year. I can attest to his results. When I came on the job in the 1980s, we were issued Ruger .357 Magnum handguns and carried .38 +P rounds. In the early 90s, we went to 9mm because “the criminals are outgunning us with their semi-autos”! In the early 2000s, we went to S&W .40 because “the 9mm doesn’t have enough stopping power!” Within the last year (I’m retired for a few years now), my old job went to .45. I don’t know why, but “everyone else is doing it” so it must be the thing to do! Me, I’m back to a 3” Ruger GP100 .357 with .38+P ammo. Old habits die hard, I guess. Anyway, regardless of what I was carrying that particular year, I consistently shot the same times with any of the three guns I used over the years. Our drill was slightly modified from the original, requiring two reloads and a total of at least 10 rounds, more if you had any misses, and we only scored by time. We loaded up with four rounds each in our gun and first mag, then six in the last mag. We shot a total of five steel targets from roughly six yards out: two hits on each of the targets to your right, reload, two on each of the targets on your left, reload and fire until you hit the center target one time. I never considered myself a great shot, but I have good hand/eye coordination for fast reloads, and my bad habit of slapping the trigger didn’t hurt me in those close distances so one other officer and I traded 1st and 2nd place in the department back and forth over ensuing years. On our best days, we were coming in just under 10 seconds with no misses and the two reloads, working out of Safariland Level III duty holsters and covered mag pouches. Ah, the good old days! – Spolight

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Team,

It’s not the kinetic energy of a bullet that drops an assailant, ever. It’s stopping the heart from pumping blood, stopping the brain from giving instructions, or causing so much pain that they quit. Shot placement does that, even with a 22LR. – G. Guy

HJL Adds: This is always a good reminder, but we should also remember that the margin of acceptable error with larger calibers is also larger. The trick is to find the balance where you are using the largest caliber that you can while reliably hitting exactly where you aim.

Economics and Investing:

Peter Schiff Exposes The Real Problem Facing The Fed – Link sent in by B.B.

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Millennials will not save the housing market: 50 percent of Millennials have less than $1,000 in savings. A large number are mired in student debt.

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Items from Professor Preponomics:

U.S. News

High Impact Market Possibilities After First Federal Reserve Rate Hike (24/7 Wall Street) Article Quote: “One very good thing about history is it is always there when you need to review how an economic event could play out against the existing landscape for investing.”

A Top JP Morgan Strategist Thinks the Fed “Misunderstood a Rate Hike’s Effect on Markets” (Business Insider) Hint: Although the U.S. economy may be able to adjust to a rate hike (and some will even benefit), the results of a rate hike may be non-linear. Article Quote: “If you hike rates, this slows the rate of lending and spending, helping to cool an economy that may be running too hot and approaching bubble territory. It’s not that simple…”

December 16th: When the End of the Bubble Begins (Contra Corner) Article Quote: “Yellen and her posse better pray for a monetary Tonto because they are riding headlong into an ambush in the canyons of Wall Street.”

Mises Institute’s Week in Review (Mises Institute) Article Quote: “Can the economy survive whatever small bump the Fed deals out? Perhaps, but any temporary stability doesn’t change the inherent instability of our current monetary regime.”

One Economist Thinks the Fed Shouldn’t Hike Rates (Business Insider) Commentary: Certainly among the myriad challenges in trying to understand “what comes next” are the following: 1) that the underlying assumptions of existing models may no longer apply (or may require adjustment); and 2) that the data on which decision makers rely has been corrupted by policies which result in market distortions for which there is no accounting. The bottom line is that no one knows for sure, but we’re all about to find out and there are likely to be a whole host of unintended consequences and market complications. Some of these effects may be felt immediately. Other effects may ripple through the system over the course of time. This is what happens when markets are engineered.

International News

Russia Plans $40 a Barrel Oil for the Next Seven Years as the Saudi Showdown Intensifies (The Telegraph) Article Quote: “Russia is battening down the hatches for a Biblical collapse in oil revenues, warning that crude prices could stay as low as $40 a barrel for another seven years.”

Personal Economics and Household Finance

Porch Pirates Stealing Holiday Deliveries (CNBC) Article Quote: “…a nasty practice that’s become common enough to warrant a new term: porch pirates.” …and a suggestion in follow up for SB readers: Consider a post office box for secured delivery of all your mail. Beyond Christmas deliveries, protection for your bank or other financial statements, bills, and other correspondence is important throughout the year.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Our SurvivalRealty spin-off site gets some very unusual retreat property listings, but this new one on Hawaii’s Big Island is incredible: Private Cave Bordering Forest Reserve in Tropical Paradise

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SurvivalBlog reader R.H. wrote in response to Five Intelligence Essentials for Preparedness and Community Security, by Samuel Culper with a link to an article describing how to turn a computer and a TV tuning dongle into a police scanner capable of receiving trunked radio traffic.

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J.N. writes in: “Gun haters point to recent mass shooting and froth at the mouth demanding new anti-gun legislation to stop such future massacres.

But, the Washington Post– that monument to antigun agenda journalism– has admitted in print, in detail through its “fact checkers”, that NONE of Obama’s proposed gun control initiatives would have stopped those mass shootings!”

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Google Files Patent for “Needle-Free” Glucose Testing Technology – What could possible go wrong here?! – Sent in by D.S.

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Flu Flop: Another Year of Dangerous CDC Lies

Guest Article: Five Intelligence Essentials for Preparedness and Community Security, by Samuel Culper

Intelligence is a poorly covered topic in our the preparedness community, largely because there just aren’t enough former intel guys willing to teach on the topic. Although the work of intelligence can consume your life while preparing for SHTF, there are several small things you can do today in order to become more prepared. If you’re spending hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of dollars on things but aren’t studying the threats in your area, then there’s a good chance that you will suffer from strategic shock; in other words, you may be exploited in a way that you hadn’t anticipated.

Here are five ways that you can better prepare for community security through intelligence.

  1. Maps – You simply must have maps of your area of operations (AO).  In order to understand the mission of community security, you’ll need to identify just what your AO is. In other words, you need to know the boundaries of what you’re going to protect.  Identifying the AO is the first step in a line of several steps that we’ll cover later in the article.

    Step into any tactical operations center, or TOC, in Iraq or Afghanistan and you’re likely to see several types of maps of the AO.  The first map we’ll need is a topographical map at 1:24,000 scale available from the USGS.  Printing off a map at your home or office printer is better than nothing; however, what’s best is having a large map hung up on the wall.  You’re going to need at least a 24″x36″ map, if you want to be the best prepared.  You’ll also be interested in having plenty of street maps and imagery of the AO, too.

  2. Police Scanner – Scanning local emergency services frequencies is the absolute best way to get up-to-the-second intelligence information during an emergency.  Unless you live in an area where this traffic is encrypted, you’ll have access to some of the same information that law enforcement does.  When it comes to making informed, time-sensitive decisions, a police scanner will be your best friend.  They’re expensive, however, I highly recommend the Uniden Home Patrol 2.  It’s my police scanner of choice for several reasons, one of which is because, unlike other scanners, its screen shows me what agency is transmitting.  That goes a long way in my ability to determine the area of transmission.
  3. Intelligence Preparation of the Community – I modified the Army’s Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield for civilian use in my book, SHTF Intelligence, and designed Intelligence Preparation of the Community (IPC).  Once we have our maps and map overlays set up, we need to identify and mark on our maps any critical infrastructure in the area, along with what’s called the human terrain.  Critical infrastructure includes police and fire stations, government buildings, power plants, and fuel depots (among many others), and the human terrain includes community leaders and demographics (among many others).  We need to pay attention to the people, places, and things that keep life-as-we-know-it up and running, and we need to not only know exactly where they are in relation to our AO, but also how they’ll affect our AO.  Doing the legwork now in order to understand the community is a top priority for the S2, and this step never ends.
  4. Threat Analysis – We need to begin identifying threats in our AO, which includes threats from outside the area that have the potential to migrate into the AO.  Threats are broken down into four categories:  conventional, irregular, catastrophic, and disruptive.  Once identified, we begin developing intelligence requirements so we can learn more about each threat and provide better analysis.  If you don’t know the threat, then you can’t defend against it, and if you can’t defend against it, then it’s going to eat your lunch.  In other words, understand each threat as he understands himself.  In the Military Intelligence Creed, that would be “find, know, and never lose the enemy.”
  5. Early Warning Intelligence – Once we’ve identified and analyzed current and potential threats, it’s imperative for us to find ways to provide early warning for them.  For current threats, our greatest early warning, in general, will be the effects of the SHTF event, which are likely to cause criminal behavior.  But beyond that, how can we develop tactical early warning intelligence?  Having “eyes on” our community’s avenues of approach is one of the best ways.  Through our threat analysis, we should know from what direction these threats will migrate and, therefore, we need to identify these threats as they’re migrating as quickly as possible.  For potential threats – that is, threats that have yet to arise – we need to begin looking for “indicators” of their activity.  We might begin looking for tagging on signs and walls, gang-related clothing and hand signs among the populace, noticeable surveillance of potential targets– anything you’d expect to happen before an attack occurs.  If we can identify these indicators soon enough, then we’ll be a leg up on the competition and know they pose a threat to us before it’s too late.

Samuel Culper is a former Military Intelligence NCO and contract intelligence analyst who spent three years in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He’s the director of Forward Observer and the author of SHTF Intelligence: An Intelligence Analyst’s Approach to Community Security.

Guest Article: The 10th Amendment – The Last Bastion of Liberty, by Will Lehr

In this age of increasing federal overreach, one can feel the hand of the government perhaps more than any other time in our albeit short history as a nation.  Thanks to criminal actions from bureaucrats, constitutional violations such as the Patriot Act have become the new law, eroding our liberties on this soil with each passing day, much like a sand dune standing against a series of crashing waves.

So here we are.  What do we do now?  Some are taking action against the system.  Some want to peacefully non-comply just enough to not be thrown into a cage.  It is in times like these when creativity saves lives and fortunes.  We must look to existing logistical solutions already in place.  

Ironically, the very justice system that allows atrocities can be used to protect us.  The legal system in this country is fragmented such that a decentralized power structure shows its value.  Starting with state statute going all the way into local county and sheriff jurisprudence, there are numerous layers to the law in this land.

States’ rights and their protection have a rich history in this country.  This has been debated with great fervor since the creation of the constitution. Today, we see nullification alive and well, as states enact laws to protect civil liberties, limit federal interference, or simply increase revenue.  From legal tender laws to gun laws, to refugee acceptance, to NSA spying, some states have been leading the charge in flexing their muscles of independence.  

We’ve had states, like Utah and Texas, literally introduce competing currency systems to the U.S. dollar.  Utah, Maine, and even California have shutoff resources like water to NSA facilities.  Texas is suing the federal government over forced refugee acceptance.  South Carolina is attempting to nullify SCOTUS ruling on gay marriage.  On a localized level, we recently had a county sheriff in Idaho stop the VA from confiscating the guns of a veteran citizen of his county.

These are just a few examples.  Everywhere we turn today, we see states pulling away.  The level of disdain on the individual level is near an all time high as well.  A recent poll revealed that only 1 in 5 Americans trust the government.  Do you see a trend developing here?  Let this be a source of hope, if you’re concerned about worst-case scenarios.

You can use what’s called an LLC IRA, a type of self-directed IRA whereby the IRA account purchases a limited liability company (LLC).  This LLC acts as an investment holding company that you manage but is owned by your IRA.  This allows you to take the assets from your retirement account  and place them into an entity created, bound, and protected by state statute. Many use this structure to invest in gold and silver bullion coins that can legally be stored at home.  You can issue loans from the LLC, invest in private companies, manage investment real estate, hold cash, and do almost anything.  

In the worst-case scenario of government confiscation of IRAs, this structure could provide an escape hatch to the individual. If the assets are not held within the system they cannot be frozen with a click, and they cannot even be located in many cases.  This shelter allows the assets to be completely removed from the system without taxes or IRA penalties associated with withdrawing.  The IRA assets are only taxed later in retirement, when you distribute or withdraw them from the IRA for personal use.

The confiscation risk to IRAs is real.  In the face of the next financial collapse, the $15 trillion IRA and 401k industry will be targeted as the source of the next bailout.  It will surely be dressed up as a “Save America Bond” or something similar so that it will be gulped down hook, line, and sinker by the masses.  Basel international banking laws have been changed, moving cash deposits to the red side of the balance sheet; they are now liabilities.  The legal framework is in place to allow an all out overhaul of the IRA/401k industry.  Protect yourself while you still can.

Sincerely, Will Lehr Managing Partner & Co Founder Perpetual Assets

Resources:

Letter Re: Keep Your Bicycle Running in Tough Times, by S.H.

Dear Editor

S.H provided an excellent reminder of a vital survival and prepper resource: the bicycle. I would like to add a few points. Commuters, tourists, and utility riders carry loads over various distances and terrain at non-athletic pace, so look to their example.

When selecting a bicycle, look for standard components such as tire size. MTB 26″ and Hybrid/touring style 700c are both common sizes. 29″ is the same as 700c. 27″ is not the same as 700c but may be your local standard for a similar fast/utility wheel. Bike shops now sell MTBs in 27.5″, which is a new standard (based on a boutique French size). It is non-standard and best avoided for prepper use. Folding bikes are never as strong but useful for vehicle carry. 20″BMX tire is std.

Avoid transmissions with very high number of rear sprockets. 8 or 9 is good. 10 or 11 is racing tech.

Practicality demands fixing luggage to the bike frame, so look for threaded eyelets for rack and fenders. Full suspension bikes lack luggage fitments. Commercial rear racks are all pretty good. Aluminium is the usual material but steel is used on premium expedition models such as Tubus. Commerical bags, esp touring grade ones, are very good and use quick-release, locking hooks that are reliable.

A trailer expands bike usefulness hugely. Commercial ones are good. For children, use a child trailer; for cargo, pick a flatbed. You will be able to shift far more than you can lift, eg, logs, tools, materials. This will save you using fuel for non-essential purposes, or will save a horse for heavy lifting jobs.

Modern puncture-resistant tires may seem expensive but are always worthwhile. Schwalbe Marathon Plus is the gold standard but cheaper Marathon is a good and common model.

Assemble some bike spares and tools: tires, inner tubes, chains, spokes, patch kits, spare nuts and bolts, spare pump. Chain-tool, crank tool, sprocket tool. Carry a repair kit or walk.

In a vehicle-based scenario, consider bicycles to be your life raft: not ideal, but better than swimming. If you work in a city, experience in London and Tokyo shows that everyone wants a bike as soon as transportation troubles become apparent. Shops sell out within hours of a “get back home” event.

Be realistic about budget. Bikes are safety critical and can be worked hard every day, so don’t underspend. If you live within 10 miles of work or shops, you can incorporate a bicycle into your life now, and get free fitness training whilst saving on gas. – M.W.

Economics and Investing:

SRSROCCO REPORT: U.S. Ponzi Scheme & Peak Silver

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An anonymous short-seller called a company a ‘Ponzi-like real-estate scheme’ and the stock has crashed 65%

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Items from Professor Preponomics:

U.S. News

Fed “Stimulus” Has Made Inequality Worse, Hurt Economic Growth (Cato Institute) Article Quote: “…Fed policy has contributed to the rise in income inequality in this country. It has also resulted in misallocation of capital in ways that will only be fully discovered when the policy is reversed.”

High-Yield Hedge Fund Stops Redemptions (WSJ via CNBC) Quote: “Icahn, an activist investor, also renewed his repeated criticism of the high-yield market, calling it a “keg of dynamite that sooner or later will blow up.” He contended that some junk bond funds lack necessary liquidity and investors need to know more about their risks.”

The Governor of Alaska Calls for INCOME TAX (USA Today) Spoiler Alert: When there is no way to reconcile state finances short of serious cost cutting measures, the solution (in the eyes of the government) is simple: just call for more tax revenue.

Yellen Interested in Climate Change and Risk to Financial System(Washington Examiner) Presented without further comment except to say that this leaves me nearly speechless.

International News

China Has Officially Joined the Currency Wars (Contra Corner) Commentary: Devaluation of the yuan may be coming. In fact, this writer suggests, it may be unavoidable.

Personal Economics and Household Finance

The Fake IRS Phone Scam is BACK (Clark Howard) Reader Alert: Sophisticated phone scammers have scammed 1,000 people out of $5M. In some cases, they impersonate local law enforcement and threaten people who don’t pay up immediately with imminent arrest. As difficult as it is to imagine falling for this, many people do. Educate and warn your friends, family members, and co-workers.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader JBG sent in yet another reason to avoid Social Web Media. While you may not live in Thailand, the record still exists. Once it’s there it’s permanent.

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Wound-Stopping Battlefield Sponge Gun Now OK For Civilians, Too – Sent in by T.P.

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Pete in Switzerland suggested this great six-minute educational video: PSK – Personal Survival Kit – Maxpedition EDC Pocket Organizer

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Does anyone else out there ever find it ironic that the majority of the population of what were the original 13 colonies are so quick to want to jettison the very rights their forefathers fought so hard for? Connecticut Governor Announces Gun Ban – RBS

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Red or Blue: What Happens When YOU Are Put On A List? “If You’re On That List, Your Right Is Cancelled” – B.B.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.” Luke 4:16 (KJV)

Notes for Saturday – December 12, 2015

Today, we present another entry for Round 61 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $1,700 value),
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper with a hammer forged, chromlined barrel and a hard case to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR type rifle to have quick change barrel, which can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools and a compact carry capability in a hard case or 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Gun Mag Warehouse is providing 20 Magpul pmags 30-rd Magazines (a value of $300) and a Gun Mag Warehouse T-Shirt; (an equivalent prize will be awarded for residents in states with magazine restrictions),
  6. Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  7. The Ark Institute is donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package (enough for two families of four) plus seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate (a $325 retail value),
  8. A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo,
  9. KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304, and
  10. Two cases of meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Second Prize:

  1. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  2. A FloJak EarthStraw “Code Red” 100-foot well pump system (a $500 value), courtesy of FloJak.com,
  3. A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  4. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  5. A $300 gift certificate from Freeze Dry Guy,
  6. A Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 value),
  7. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  8. A pre-selected assortment of military surplus gear from CJL Enterprize (a $300 value),
  9. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
  10. Safecastle is providing a package of 10 LifeStraws (a $200 value)

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A $245 gift certificate from custom knifemaker Jon Kelly Designs, of Eureka, Montana,
  3. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. APEX Gun Parts is donating a $250 purchase credit,
  8. Montie Gear is donating a Precision Rest (a $249 value), and
  9. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).

Round 61 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

But first, here is an editorial by SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor:

The Myth of The Gun Show Loophole: The Statist Perversion of Our Language Continues

I’ve mentioned this before in SurvivalBlog, but recent events make this worth repeating: The statist gun grabbers drone on and on about a “gun show loophole” as if it were some ground truth, just like saying a phrase like “humans are mortal.” But just what is this “loophole” they are talking about? It is in fact perfectly legal commerce between private citizens of the same state. This is not a “loophole”. Rather, it is merely the exercise of free trade in used household goods between sovereign citizens within their own states. Gun shows are a time-honored tradition in free exercise of our Second Amendment rights–not some sort of dodgy maneuvering.

The leftist whiners–including President Bolt Hold Open (BHO)– are again begging congress to apply the Interstate Commerce Clause to restrict intrastate sales. That is just plain extra-jurisdictional and hence absolutely unconstitutional. (Does the phrase “No nexus” mean anything to them?) In light of the U.S. v. Lopez decision, there is no way that the Commerce Clause can be contorted to fit their expansive view.

The statist Overlords inside the DC Beltway have become famous for perverting our language. These are the same perverts who have intentionally re-invented words like “grass”, “marriage”, “phobia”, “hate”, “fairness”, and even “poverty” to advance their political agenda.

I’ll end with a quote:

“How strangely will the tools of a Tyrant pervert the plain Meaning of Words!” – Samuel Adams

(Permission to re-post the full text of this particular post is granted, as long as a link to SurvivalBlog.com is included.) – JWR