Silver and the Popping of the Debt Bubble, by Hubert Moolman

We have now moved into an era of rising interest rates that is similar to a period that started in the early 1940s.

At the start of this period, the Government Debt to GDP ratio was also around 120%, close to where it eventually topped/popped.

Despite high relative debt levels and a rising interest rate environment, the US was in a good position due to the US dollar being the premier world currency as a result of the 1944 Bretton Woods agreement.

Instead, the US is currently facing a similarly massive debt liability and a rising interest rates environment, while the nations are actually about (and already beginning) to abandon the US dollar over the coming years.

During this rising interest rate environment, silver experienced a massive bull market, going from about  35 cents per Troy ounce in 1941 to about $50 USD per Troy ounce in 1980.Continue reading“Silver and the Popping of the Debt Bubble, by Hubert Moolman”

JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR:

Meme Text:

Remember That “Slow Slide Scenario”
That Survivalists Warned Us About, 30 Years Ago?

Well, Now We Are Living Through It

News Links:

Note From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks!

 

 

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,

Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”  – 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (KJV)

Mutual Assistance Group Planning – Part 2, by Survivormann99

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.)

Post-SHTF, a survival group will be dealing with issues that are certainly more important than occasional potholes. What happens if individuals within the group begin dragging their feet and refuse to help with group projects or refuse to spend time on security and common defense? From a pure expediency perspective, what can actually be done about people in a group who don’t help with projects or participate in security and defense efforts? Should a group sit idly by and allow a gang of marauders to loot the recalcitrant member’s home nestled in the center of the MAG? That simply won’t work.

It is likely that refugees will be coming from outside the community and that they will try to join. If so, what will the requirements be? Who will make the final determination of whether or not they will be allowed admission? If there are leaders who will be making these decisions, will these leaders be elected? Or will they simply be those individuals with “the most toys” and the greatest assets on which others depend?Continue reading“Mutual Assistance Group Planning – Part 2, by Survivormann99”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug-out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those –or excerpts thereof — in the Odds ‘n Sods Column or in the Snippets column. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

We’ve been enjoying some great weather, with plenty of sunshine and occasional rain showers.  Our pastures are really thriving.

This past week, I hauled nine quad-trailer loads of composted manure. Most of that went to a new 5′ x40′ garden bed on the shady side of our greenhouse, where Avalanche Lily is now planting more berries and herbs.

Avalanche Lily Reports:

Dear Readers,
Gorgeous warm bluebird skies weather early in the week with heavy rain showers at the end of the week.

I worked very hard in the greenhouse finished reorganizing it and planted more basil, cilantro, and parsley.

Jim and I created another garden bed outside of the Main gardens and planted strawberries, cucumbers,  and herbs.  I am also creating a rock garden with wild edibles and medicinal herbs. I continue to study medicinal herb books this week.  I am devouring these books.  They are keeping me off of the computer these days.

UPDATE ON FRIDAY NIGHT:  Last week, Samuel Thayer — the author of several edible wild plant books — contacted me and asked if I would like a copy of his new “Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants” for Eastern and Central North America.  I wrote back and said that I was very interested.  Jim picked it up at the post office on Friday afternoon.  When Jim returned home, he opened the mail and placed the book on our bed. The first moment that I saw it, I dropped everything I was doing and pounced on it. I have already been studying it for two hours.  Wow, wow, wow! It is a gorgeous book.  It is so comprehensive! The photos of the plants are excellent quality, the best I’ve ever seen in any plant book, and there are several photos of each plant showing, leaves, shapes, and flowers, and fruit!  It has maps of a plant’s range in the USA and in Canada.  Even though the guide focuses on eastern and central USA the maps show full ranges if a plant occurs west of the Rocky Mountains, etc. It is the BEST edible wild plant guide that I have ever seen! I highly and seriously recommend it to all of our readers! It is totally worth the cover price of $32.95. Our readers can buy directly from Samuel Thayer through his website at Foragers Harvest. I will write a more comprehensive review this coming week.

I worked on the extension gardens. Jim helped me remove the black row cover that has been on a 15′ x 50′ section of it for two years. I whacked down thistles that grew up between the edges of the row cover with a hand scythe.  Our mechanical weed whacker and lawn mower are both currently down for repairs.  I really enjoy using the hand scythes.  It is hard work, but it is quiet, a good workout, and does the job well enough.

Jim rototilled the bed after it was weed-whacked.

Our sheep were shorn recently. They look like new animals, so cute. They also are noticeably happier to have all that wool off them. Jim and I, also dosed them with Ivermectin this week.

I finished cleaning tack and reorganizing the tack room.  I just need to vacuum its floor and wash a shelving unit on its door.  I did not work the horses this week.  But I will get back at that, next week.  Horsey friend is planning a visit with us, soon.

Our contiguous neighbors have returned from out-of-state for the foreseeable future.  We are so excited and happy to have them back for a long time.  We are very like-minded and we enjoy their company very much.  Miss Violet and I joined them for a paddle in the river one evening this week.  It was a gorgeous paddle!  Our sunsets and sunrises have been spectacular, lately.  I love this weather!

I cared for a number of these neighbor’s hens during this past winter.  Their birds were happily returned to them this week.

This week so far from the incubator we have had a sizable hatching of chicks.  I’m so happy.  The hens that are still on the “forced brooding”  are doing well.  I had to retire another hen this week. I caught her eating another’s eggs during a recess when I left them for a few minutes, and then a day later she was caught eating her own eggs. I gave her remaining eggs to another hen. Very shortly most of these hens of this generation will be butchered.  I will have to keep this generation completely separate from my new upcoming chicks so as not to teach them bad practices.

WHO announced on June 5, 2023: Digital Medical Certifications are coming. You won’t be able to buy or sell or travel without it.  See Revelation chapters 13 and 14.

May you all have a very blessed and safe week.

– Avalanche Lily, Rawles

o o o

As always,  please share and send e-mails of your own successes and hard-earned wisdom and we will post them in the “Snippets” column this coming week.  We want to hear from you.

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!

My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.

Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O Lord of hosts, my King, and my God.

Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.

Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.

Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.

They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.

O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.

Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.

For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.” – Psalm 84  (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 9, 2023

Today is the birthday of Jean Alexandre Francois LeMat (1824–1883), is best known for the percussion cap revolver that bears his name. This clever design has a percussion cylinder that rotates around a central 20-gauge shotgun barrel.

On June 9, 1940 Norway surrendered to the invading German army, during World War II. The citizenry was then quickly disarmed by the Nazis, so resistance was limited. (The invaders had access to the Norwegian police gun registration lists.) To limit reprisals by the Germans, King Hakkon the 7th also ordered that only Norwegian troops operating from offshore should overtly resist the Nazis. The “H7” logo became the ubiquitous symbol of resistance in occupied Norway.

On June 8, 1942, the residents of the village of Lidice (now in the Czech Republic) were rounded up, most to be massacred the next day in reprisal for the assassination by Czech underground fighters of Reinhard Heydrich, deputy leader of the Nazi paramilitary group SS.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 107 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. 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),
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  5. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  6. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. 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.
  2. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. A $300 gift certificate from Good2Goco.com, good for any of their products: Home freeze dryers, pressure canners, Country Living grain mills, Emergency Essentials foods, and much more.
  4. 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).
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. 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 firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Montana Survival Seed is providing a $225 gift code for any items on its website, including organic non-GMO seeds, fossils, 1812-1964 US silver, jewelry, botany books, and Montana beeswax.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $800,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 107 ends on July 31st, 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.

Mutual Assistance Group Planning – Part 1, by Survivormann99

I have been involved in the preparedness movement, at least to some degree, for a very long time. I became involved in preparedness when all like-minded people were classified as “survivalists,” although there was never a universally accepted definition of exactly what a survivalist is. There still isn’t.

When that term became tainted because of certain bad actors, many of us were then classified as “preppers.” It sounded less threatening, less “Unabomber cabin.” Again, there was no universally accepted definition of exactly what a prepper is. There still isn’t.

The television series Doomsday Preppers almost always seemed bent on finding the most flamboyant and, often, kooky among the prepper movement to focus on. With the passage of time, that term prepper has become somewhat tainted. For many it smacks of a naive suburban/rural homeowner who has simply lined a basement with cases of freeze-dried food, and who has set aside firearms and ammunition while waiting for Armageddon.

For this reason, and because words do matter and often control the debate, I’ve decided that “Self-Reliant” and involvement in “Self-reliance” are terms and concepts that more fairly represent, in a very positive way, the mindset of the preparedness movement. Who could easily and flippantly criticize “Self-Reliants” and “self-reliance” without incurring criticism? At least to some degree, it would be similar to criticizing, “the flag, Mom, and apple pie.”Continue reading“Mutual Assistance Group Planning – Part 1, by Survivormann99”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at the ESG scheming of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and other pressure groups. (See the Economy & Finance section.)

Precious Metals:

Gold ETF demand turns positive in May as investors look for safe-haven assets.

o  o  o

Rick Mills, at Gold-Eagle.com: Gold Revaluation and the Hidden Motive Behind Central Banks’ Gold Buying.

Economy & Finance:

Many of the warnings in this 2021 report published by Real Clear Politics are coming true: Capitalism, Socialism and ESG.

o  o  o

EU Company ESG Disclosure Rules Set To Be Eased.

o  o  o

I found this Dan Bongino segment about the Mastercard “Doconomy” scheme linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: The Insane New MasterCard That Fights Climate Change Will Leave You Speechless.

o  o  o

The Conference Board: 2023 Banking Crisis: US By the Numbers.

o  o  o

A summary video dispelling the myths of Brexit: Superb UK Victory Stuns Entire EU.

o  o  o

Eurozone Investor Mood Darkens Due to ‘Problem Child’ Germany, Survey Finds. JWR’s Comments: The stagnant economy in Germany is an indicator of what will probably be a global recession. Plan and invest, accordingly.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Since March 2020, we may have experienced the greatest intrusions on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country. Executive officials across the country issued emergency decrees on a breathtaking scale. Governors and local leaders imposed lockdown orders forcing people to remain in their homes They shuttered businesses and schools public and private. They closed churches even as they allowed casinos and other favored businesses to carry on. They threatened violators not just with civil penalties but with criminal sanctions too. They surveilled church parking lots, recorded license plates, and issued notices warning that attendance at even outdoor services satisfying all state social-distancing and hygiene requirements could amount to criminal conduct. They divided cities and neighborhoods into color-coded zones, forced individuals to fight for their freedoms in court on emergency timetables, and then changed their color-coded schemes when defeat in court seemed imminent.

Federal executive officials entered the act too. Not just with emergency immigration decrees. They deployed a public-health agency to regulate landlord-tenant relations nationwide. They used a workplace-safety agency to issue a vaccination mandate for most working Americans. They threatened to fire noncompliant employees, and warned that service members who refused to vaccinate might face dishonorable discharge and confinement. Along the way, it seems federal officials may have pressured social-media companies to suppress information about pandemic policies with which they disagreed.

While executive officials issued new emergency decrees at a furious pace, state legislatures and Congress—the bodies normally responsible for adopting our laws—too often fell silent. Courts bound to protect our liberties addressed a few—but hardly all—of the intrusions upon them. In some cases, like this one, courts even allowed themselves to be used to perpetuate emergency public-health decrees for collateral purposes, itself a form of emergency-lawmaking-by-litigation.

Doubtless, many lessons can be learned from this chapter in our history, and hopefully serious efforts will be made to study it. One lesson might be this: Fear and the desire for safety are powerful forces. They can lead to a clamor for action—almost any action—as long as someone does something to address a perceived threat. A leader or an expert who claims he can fix everything, if only we do exactly as he says, can prove an irresistible force. We do not need to confront a bayonet, we need only a nudge, before we willingly abandon the nicety of requiring laws to be adopted by our legislative representatives and accept rule by decree.

Along the way, we will accede to the loss of many cherished civil liberties—the right to worship freely, to debate public policy without censorship, to gather with friends and family, or simply to leave our homes. We may even cheer on those who ask us to disregard our normal lawmaking processes and forfeit our personal freedoms. Of course, this is no new story. Even the ancients warned that democracies can degenerate toward autocracy in the face of fear.

But maybe we have learned another lesson too. The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government. However wise one person or his advisors may be, that is no substitute for the wisdom of the whole of the American people that can be tapped in the legislative process. Decisions produced by those who indulge no criticism are rarely as good as those produced after robust and uncensored debate. Decisions announced on the fly are rarely as wise as those that come after careful deliberation. Decisions made by a few often yield unintended consequences that may be avoided when more are consulted. Autocracies have always suffered these defects. Maybe, hopefully, we have relearned these lessons too.” – Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, in his statement included in ARIZONA, ET AL. v. ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY

 

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 8, 2023

On June 8th, 1955, British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee, who was generally credited as the inventor of the World Wide Web, was born.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 107 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. 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),
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  5. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  6. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. 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.
  2. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. A $300 gift certificate from Good2Goco.com, good for any of their products: Home freeze dryers, pressure canners, Country Living grain mills, Emergency Essentials foods, and much more.
  4. 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).
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. 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 firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Montana Survival Seed is providing a $225 gift code for any items on its website, including organic non-GMO seeds, fossils, 1812-1964 US silver, jewelry, botany books, and Montana beeswax.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $800,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 107 ends on July 31st, 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.

 

 

Exiting Babylon – Part 2, by The Watchman

(Continued from Part 1.This concludes the article.)

The third path: come out

What does it mean to “come out” of Babylon? To exit Babylon means to no longer seek the culture’s favor or approval, to no longer seek its desires, to no longer seek its wisdom or counsel, to no longer seek its good or advancement, and to put no more trust in it. It means to put as much emotional, mental, physical, and above all spiritual distance between your family and the culture. Like Gideon, we must depose the idols in our own houses (Judges 6:25-27). We must abandon the ‘truth’ that we have been fed by our schooling, the media, and perhaps by our churches in favor of Biblical truth. Our families should be conformed to the will of God, not to cultural norms or expectations. Beware of ties with anyone or anything that seeks to draw you back to the city of destruction. We are fleeing for our lives before the day of the Lord’s judgment. We must get off the sinking ship, lest we go down with it.Continue reading“Exiting Babylon – Part 2, by The Watchman”

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, we look at Gen Z’s apparent willingness to be surveilled.

Why Gen Z is Learning to Love Big Brother?

Reader H.L. mentioned this, published by The New York Post: Why Gen Z is learning to love Big Brother.

“A Cato Institute survey finds 29% of Americans aged 18 to 29 respond affirmatively when asked, ‘Would you favor or oppose the government installing surveillance cameras in every household to reduce domestic violence, abuse, and other illegal activity?'”

New Chicago Walgreens Has Most Items Locked Up

Walgreens Opens New Anti-Theft Store with Most Items Held Behind Protective Cases and Kiosks.

What Happens When the Competent Opt Out?

Charles Hugh Smith: What Happens When the Competent Opt Out?

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Government programs didn’t arise because the people demanded them or because the free market was unable to provide needed services. They arose because the politicians found them to be a convenient way to buy votes with other people’s money, a convenient way to enlarge their own power, a convenient way to reward their political cronies, and a convenient way to keep people dependent on government.” – Harry Browne