A Top-10 Prepping List, Multi-Tool Not Included – Part 3, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 2.)

5. TOILET

Now that we have a warm house, food, water, and a way to defend it all, we need a workable sanitation system. Many preppers won’t have enough water to waste it flushing toilets so an outhouse or composting toilet will be necessary. Regardless of whether you have a flush toilet or something else, find a way to save the urine. Not only is it the best garden fertilizer, it will also speed up the composting process as well. Best of all, fertilizing the pile with urine allows us to add things which we can’t currently compost. This includes all of our waste paper and cardboard, and high-carbon organic matter like straw, sawdust, and cornstalks. The composting bacteria need lots of nitrogen which urine provides.

Unlike feces, urine is sterile when it is first excreted so there’s no bacteria to worry about when handling it. If we’re just composting our kitchen waste without some of these high-carbon organic materials, at the end of a year the final amount of composted humus will be surprisingly small. Compared to today, our kitchen waste will be even less when we’re needing to get every molecule of nutrition we can from what we eat. No more trimming the tops off carrots, peeling potatoes, trimming the fat off meat, and no more leftovers. When breaking virgin soil to create or enlarge a garden, we’ll need a large compost pile to provide the necessary humus to speed up the soil-improvement process.Continue reading“A Top-10 Prepping List, Multi-Tool Not Included – Part 3, by St. Funogas”

Gold and Silver’s Rise are Actually Symptoms of the Dollar’s Demise

Today, in place of our usual Economics & Investing news column, we offer some brief commentary from Senior Editor JWR:

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I’m often irritated to hear the mainstream financial media report on the gold, silver, and platinum markets.  In reporting the ups and downs of the spot and futures metals markets, they seem oblivious to the bigger picture.  The metals are all now in primary bull markets. They blithely report: “The price of gold rose today…” But the rise (in Dollar terms) of gold, silver, and platinum are actually symptoms of the U.S. Dollar’s demise. In fact, all of the world’s fiat currencies are tumbling, vis-a-vis the precious metals.  In the myopic view of the financial reporters the metals are “rising“, but it is really paper currencies that are falling.  In real purchasing  power, the metals are mostly holding their value or gaining slightly. But conversely, the banksters’ Funny Money is rapidly inflating and starting to show its real value — which in fact is… nothing!

We must remain confident that in the long term, gold and silver will rule and the world’s paper currencies will be used for kindling or for toilet paper.

Most SurvivalBlog readers have already hedged their investment portfolios with precious metals. And those of you who haven’t done so should get on board right away.  With a spot price over $4,000 per Troy ounce, it is now nearly too late to invest in gold. But both silver and platinum are both relative bargains.  I recommend stacking them deep.

Watch the silver-to-gold price ratio closely. Whenever gold soars up to more than 85 times the price of silver (as it just did, early this week) then that is a good time to ratio trade out of gold and into physical silver. Conversely, if gold drops to less than 20 times the price of silver, then that is a good time to ratio trade out of silver and into physical gold.

There are still real Nickels

if you are on a limited budget and cannot afford to buy silver, then at least stack some rolls of nickels.  The lowly “nickel” five-cent piece is the last circulating U.S. Mint coin that still has a base metal content that matches its face value. (They are actually composed of 75% copper and 25% nickel.) All other circulating U.S. Mint coins have been debased. Even the U.S. pennies are now frauds. Those minted since 1982 are zinc slugs with just a thin copper flashing.

You can obtain nickels in bulk at face value, at your local bank.  Just ask your local teller for a few boxes of nickels, at a time.  Each box contains 20 rolls, and each roll has 40 coins = $2.00. (Thus, a box has 800  5-cent coins = $40.)

Let’s face it, folks; With gross and chronic Federal overspending, the un-backed U.S. Dollar is doomed.

Pay no attention to the know-nothing Talking Heads on CNBC.  They are just cheerleaders for Wall Street and the Banksters. They have no clue about genuine market fundamentals or genuine monetary fundamentals.

Stack them deep

The Bottom Line: Precious metals are real money, but fiat currencies are mere tokens that can be printed at will. Trust your gut. Do not expect governments to suddenly become fiscally responsible and balance their budgets. Stack your precious metals deep. Either hide them well, or use them for “ballast” in the bottom of your gun vault. Do not lose your nerve when you witness drops in precious metals prices. That is just a sign of market manipulation. The short sellers love to try to manipulate thin markets. Presently, the mainstream pundits are badmouthing gold and silver, and wagging their fingers at their 5% to 7% corrections. But those profit-taking corrections came right after bull market rallies that saw 20% to 30% gains!

Diversifying Your Portfolio

Speaking of profit-taking: Many of you reading this bought silver below $15 per Troy ounce, and gold below $1,200 per ounce. If you decide to now take some profit on a small portion of your precious metals holdings, then I strongly recommend that you don’t leave the proceeds in Dollars, or put them in Dollar-denominated investments. Instead, I recommend that you immediately diversify and invest the proceeds into another tangible investment, such as:

  • Productive farm, ranch, or timber land,
  • Quality guns and common caliber ammunition
  • Top-quality Swiss self-winding watches
  • And perhaps if you have the garage space, a restored 1960s classic car.
Some Closing Numbers

I’ll close this brief essay with some numbers to ponder…

The Thursday, October 30, 2025 spot market:

  • Gold
    $4,050.50
  • Silver
    $49.22
  • Platinum
    $1,637,70 

And for comparison, here was spot, back on November 1, 2023:

  • Gold:
    $1,985.00
  • Silver:
    $23.04
  • Platinum:
    $922.60

 

 

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — October 30, 2025

On October 30, 1864, in the midst of both a mining boom and the Civil War, Helena, Montana was founded.

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On this day in 1938: A nationwide panic over the War of the Worlds broadcast.

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October 30th, 1735 was the birthday of President John Adams. (Some sources cite his birthdate as October 19, 1735.)

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 121 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  2. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  3. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  4. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.
  5. Harvest Guard is providing a 200-Piece Bulk Mix Pack of their Regular and Wide-Mouth Reusable Canning Jar Lids & Gaskets. This is a $161 + shipping value.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  3. Preparedness author Jennifer Rader is offering a $200 purchase credit for any of her eight published food storage and medical preparedness books, including the Good Eats at the TEOTWAWKI Café series, the Armageddon Pharmacy series, and the Medicine Surrounds Us series.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $970,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 121 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

A Top-10 Prepping List, Multi-Tool Not Included – Part 2, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 1.)

3. WOODSTOVE

Currently, only 1.7% of American homes heat with wood with an additional 7.7% use it for their secondary source of heat. That leaves 90% of Americans without a sustainable way to heat their homes if the SHTF. Don’t be one of those 90% if you want to survive your first post-SHTF winter.

Based on those numbers, for most preppers heat will be the second most difficult thing (after water) to prepare for on a long-term sustainable basis. And because it’s so difficult, it’ll be the most neglected topic among their prepping priorities. Don’t ignore it! For those who already have a woodstove, prepping will be easier: extra door-gasket cord and chimney pipe, and perhaps a backup woodstove. (Chainsaws will be covered separately.)

Other than using a woodstove or fireplace to heat with wood or coal, I’m not aware of a practical way for most of us to heat a TEOTWAWKI home for the long term. If the SHTF in December and heating is an immediate must-have, those who heat with propane or heating oil should have enough in their storage tanks to get along for a while, but see item #6 below on cooking stoves. Like any storage tank (water, vehicle gas tanks, etc) a good habit to form right now is never letting the propane or heating-oil tank get below 50%. If the feces hit the fan you’ll at least have that much to keep you warm while getting Plan B in place.Continue reading“A Top-10 Prepping List, Multi-Tool Not Included – Part 2, by St. Funogas”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, a warning on Ghost Tapping.

The New “Ghost Tapping” Card Scams

Reader C.B. spotted this, at Newsweek: ‘Ghost Tapping’: What to Know About New Scam Warning.

Army to Bring Nuclear Microreactors to Its Bases By 2028

TMZ: Army To Bring Nuclear Microreactors To Its Bases By 2028. A pericope:

“Army installations within the lower 48 states will have operating nuclear microreactors starting in the fall of 2028 if the Army’s Janus program moves forward on schedule. The addition of nuclear power will diversify the energy sources available on military bases and provide a critical enhancement to their resiliency, the Army says.”

AI Models May Be Developing Their Own ‘Survival Drive’

Several readers sent this, from the UK Guardian: AI models may be developing their own ‘survival drive’, researchers say.

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — October 29, 2025

October 29, 1929: Stocks crashed on Wall Street. This became known as “Black Tuesday”. This event triggered the Great Depression.

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October 29, 1940: Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson drew the first number – #158 – in the first peacetime military draft in US history.

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October 29th is the birthday of fighter pilot Vermont Garrison, an American who fought in three wars – WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. He was born in 1915 and died on February 14th, 1994, in Mountain Home, Idaho.

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Please pray for the residents of Jamaica and Bermuda enduring Category 5 Hurricane Melissa.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 121 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  2. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  3. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  4. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.
  5. Harvest Guard is providing a 200-Piece Bulk Mix Pack of their Regular and Wide-Mouth Reusable Canning Jar Lids & Gaskets. This is a $161 + shipping value.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  3. Preparedness author Jennifer Rader is offering a $200 purchase credit for any of her eight published food storage and medical preparedness books, including the Good Eats at the TEOTWAWKI Café series, the Armageddon Pharmacy series, and the Medicine Surrounds Us series.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $970,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 121 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

A Top-10 Prepping List, Multi-Tool Not Included – Part 1, by St. Funogas

A while back, while reading one of my daily economics blogs, I read an article on the top 25 things to have on hand in case the SHTF tomorrow.

It was quickly apparent the author was an armchair prepper at best. Many of the non-negotiable items were overlooked, some items would be good for wilderness survival but not post-SHTF survival, and others were common everyday things we already own such as warm socks. Some of the items were unnecessary gadgets.

Out of curiosity I did a search for other top-10 lists. The ones I found had the same issues. The worst one was a shameless list of the top-75 items every prepper needs which was nothing more than a collection of Amazon links the author would make money on. I saw more than one of those kinds of lists. Many things on the list clearly had nothing to do with survival of any kind other than the financial survival of the author.Continue reading“A Top-10 Prepping List, Multi-Tool Not Included – Part 1, by St. Funogas”

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters.

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Reader C.B. recommended the Pure-Gas.org website. It has a list of gas stations that sell ethanol-free gasoline. JWR’s Comment: This is the correct variety of gas to use for extended storage. Of course, add some PRI-G or Sta-bil. Do not expect any ethanol blend to store well.

o  o  o

Something published back in 2018, but still relevant: Why the Ozarks is Mecca for Doomsday Preppers.

o  o  o

From reader H.L.:  Western Civilization Depends on Men and Masculinity.

o  o  o

How To Tan a Deer Hide.

o  o  o

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — October 28, 2025

On October 28, 1628, after a long siege, the Huguenot bulwark at La Rochelle surrendered to Catholic prelate Cardinal Richelieu. A large diaspora of Huguenots (French Calvinist Reformed Protestants) began soon after. They became known as Europe’s first refugees. Facing severe persecution in France and Wallonia, Huguenots arrived in South Africa as early as 1671. By 1692, more than 200 French Huguenots had settled at the Cape of Good Hope. More than 700 Huguenot refugees arrived in Virginia in 1690s. With their wide diaspora, Huguenot surnames are now fairly common in England, Canada, South Africa, Zimbabwe, the United States, and Australia. The majority of Australians with French ancestry are Huguenot descendants. One of Avalanche Lily’s relatives in South Africa has the Huguenot surname Malherbe. – JWR

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And on October 28, 2020, a new coral reef 500 meters (1,640 ft) high, taller than the Empire State Building, was discovered north of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

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Some great news!  The fine folks usaBerkeyFilters.com just bought the Harvest Guard reusable canning lids business. It is great to hear that these important products for preppers and homesteaders will continue to be available.  And, given the solid reputation for customer service at usaBerkeyFilters.com, I’m confident that the quality control, fast shipping, and customer service at Harvest Guard will be held to the highest standards.  Please note that they are offering a special 25%-off coupon code, just until November 5th, 2025.  Enter the code LIDS25 at checkout, to get that special discount.- JWR

Today’s feature piece is by SurvivalBlog staff member Tom Christianson.  He is a full-time church pastor and a part-time writer.

A Knife, A Clip, and a Counterfeit, by Thomas Christianson

The Knife

The Kershaw Leek 1660 OL is an outstanding knife for everyday carry (EDC). It has a shaving-sharp, three-inch, hollow-ground, drop-point blade made out of 14C28N stainless steel with a four-inch, anodized-aluminum handle. The spine of the blade is 0.09 inches thick at its widest point.

The assisted opening mechanism accelerates the blade decisively into engagement with the liner lock with a satisfying snap when the flipper is activated. A tip lock secures the blade whenever it is important to ensure against accidental opening.

The knife is made in the USA, and was on sale for $99.99 at the time of this writing at https://kershaw.kaiusa.com/leek-olive.html

Continue reading“A Knife, A Clip, and a Counterfeit, by Thomas Christianson”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, reports of a helicopter crash in eastern Montana that was national news. (See the Montana section.)

Idaho

Shoshone County sheriff resigns after off-duty crash. JWR’s Comment:  Something tells me that we haven’t yet been told the whole story about her car crash.

o  o  o

Don’t trust A.I. for hunting and fishing regulations.

o  o  o

Murder suspect in custody after overnight manhunt.

o  o  o

Coeur d’Alene Police and schools crack down on electric bikes and scooters as student injuries rise.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“When I was studying at Purdue, we learned our thermodynamics from an antique steam engine. When I went back in 1964, I found the laboratories packed with the most modern equipment for the study of thermodynamics, some of which had been built by the students themselves.” – Astronaut “Gus” Grissom