Notes from JWR:

Camping Survival’s Mountain House Sale begins today, and will run for just one week. They are offering Mountain House nitrogen-packed cans at 25% off and their pouches and long term storage HDPE buckets at 15% off.

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Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com. The current value of this roll is at least $225.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300 and 10 TAPCO polymer magazines (5 AR and 5 AK) courtesy of Armageddon Armory, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) 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, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 46 ends on May 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.

Surviving TEOTWAWKI in Hawaii, by M. in Honolulu

Hawaii is in a special situation in a potential emergency.  The island chain has seven inhabited islands (of eight major islands) that support a total state population of 1,392,313, a land area of 6,422 square miles, with an overall average density of 217 persons per square mile (11th highest in the U.S., just above Virginia, Ohio and Indiana).  Most of the population (70% or 976,372) is concentrated on Oahu with an area of 597 square miles, an average density of 1,635 per square mile.  The urban core of Honolulu has an estimated population of 340,000 (ranked 55th by population, just above Aurora, Colorado) with an area of 60.5 square miles, or just over 5,600 per square mile, similar to Syracuse, New York or St. Paul, Minnesota.  Hawaii also has about seven million visitors a year, and none of these visitors are prepared for survival in a meaningful way.

Something else differs for Hawaii, since we are 2,400 – 2,600 miles from the nearest US mainland cities and are known as the most remote inhabited island chain in the world, supply chain disruption would have a major impact on life as we know it.  How could we support our large population with supply chain disruptions?  Some background will help us understand what could be done.

Pre-contact survival in Hawaii
In the distant past, before contact (1779) with the west, Hawaii supported a population conservatively estimated at 300,000 but this did not take into account inland populations.  The peak estimates include numbers of 800,000 up to one million. 

This depended on a very organized structure where individual households were merged into a public economy, the well-known ahupua’a system.  This was established from approximately 1200 AD through contact with the west.  In theory these were self-sufficient typically pie-shaped territories that typically extended from mauka (mountains) to makai (the sea), incorporating key resource zones (fresh water, plants, animals, fish, etc.).  Ahupua’a were essentially “estates” often distributed by the rulers to loyal supporters following the successful conclusion of a war of conquest.  Ahupua’a, managed for the chiefs by a specialist class of managers (konohiki), were fundamental to the organization of early historic Hawaiian society.  Moreover, this system replaced the older (and widespread) Polynesian pattern of kin-groups with associated “houses” and ancestral estates.  In reality, the ahupua’a were not all equal in depth and variety of resources, so inter-ahupua’a and inter-island trading of specialized resources did occur with the chief’s permission and control.  So historically, it was possible to support a large population if the systems were in place.  The konohiki regulated what could be harvested and when, in order to maintain the health of the source.

Supply chain disruption
Presently 85 – 90% of all food for Hawaii is “imported” into the state by ship or air.  Although there has traditionally been lots of agricultural land in crops, much of it was dedicated to sugarcane or pineapples, most for export from Hawaii.  With the advent of cheaper labor in other countries such as the Philippines, much (not all) of this dedicated land has been taken out of monoculture agriculture.  Some of it has been converted to truck farms that supply local fruits and vegetables to local users.  Some has converted to coffee, cocoa, cashew, vanilla and other specialty, high-value products.  So supply chain disruption would have an immediate impact to everyone in the population.  Since we are susceptible to hurricanes and tsunamis, most people are prepared to survive 72 hours to seven days.  Hurricane Iniki on 9/11/1992 caused a failure of power systems on Kauai for six weeks, although schools resumed in two weeks.  It did 3 billion dollars in damage.  Many people were in emergency shelters for weeks.

9/11/2001 halted all air travel for Hawaii and most flight did not resume for five days.  Immediately, tourists stopped arriving and the ones already here were stranded for days.  I was on Kauai with friends and family, and the effect was chilling.  We were as far away from 9/11 as one could get in the U.S. and yet we were mesmerized by the event, spending every afternoon in front of the TV catching up on the news.  Many service jobs were immediately laid off; since there was an expected major slow down on people traveling even after the flights were resumed.

Most of our energy comes from oil, with a little coal.  A small percentage of our power comes from burning garbage instead of placing it in landfills.  There are some PV and wind farms on line and they are growing, now above 10% of the total used.  We have a strong military presence in the islands, with all branches represented.

In the event of any event causing a disruption of sea and air transport, the islands would have only a few weeks of food on hand.  Energy supplies would also be limited.  Water is pumped from aquifers beneath the islands and is treated, then pumped into water tanks in the hills to supply pressure to most areas.  In the event of a sustained power outage, use of water must be rationed quickly to provide only critical uses: drinking and cooking.  During a magnitude 6.7 earthquake near Hawaii Island on 10/15/2006 power was disrupted on Oahu (166 miles away) because of generator protection devices being set too sensitively.  This caused an almost 24-hour power failure to some areas, necessitating people using emergency kits to cook food and provide light.  Most all businesses were closed, so it was too late to prepare once the event occurred.  With most predicted events like hurricanes and tsunamis, there is always a last minute scurrying of some people to stock up on groceries, gas and drinking water.

Get prepared
I am prepared for these events on an everyday basis.  As an Eagle Scout I taught survival and preparedness in the 1960s.  As an adult, I have always had an earthquake / hurricane /tornado kit ready.  Most agencies recommend enough to support your family for 72 hours.  Here in Hawaii they recommend 7 – 10 days because of the delays in getting help here in case of a major disaster.
In addition, I have good stocks of food and water as well as the ability to defend and protect them.  I have many alternatives for cooking depending on the need and can cook with wood long term if required.  The shore is two miles away, so fishing is an option if needed.  We have manual transportation (bikes and wagons) if other vehicles run out of fuel.  Bug-out bags are ready and available.  Water purification supplies are at hand.  I won’t go into more detail for OPSEC reasons.

But TEOTWAWKI poses much more serious challenges.  Hawaii would have to immediately make drastic changes in everyday life.  In addition, Hawaii must bump up its level of preparedness, both on a personal, island and state level.  The state and counties have good civil defense / emergency preparedness groups in place because of our isolation.  But they are not preparing for a long, drawn out emergency of weeks, months or years.  Even in a non-emergency situation, critical parts for elevators, generators, airplanes and machinery are in short supply locally.  It can take many weeks to get these parts even with no disruptions to the supply chain.  In case of a TEOTWAWKI situation the parts would be unavailable, maybe for years, if ever.  To improve this, every level of preparedness will need to look at the risks of maintaining critical services and mitigate those risks accordingly.

This is a simple example, for cooking preparedness.  In the case of a few days or even two weeks, an individual can stockpile enough LP gas, butane, charcoal, etc. to get by.  But if the event goes on much longer, the islands will run completely out of these supplies assuming the supply chain is broken.  People need to look to other forms of cooking such as solar or wood.  Almost no one is prepared for this on a long term basis.

In the case of food supplies, it is much more complicated.  Short of relief from the U.S. Mainland or other countries, Hawaii would be in serious trouble.  Even with the farm land that is actively growing, the output is not enough to support the present permanent population, much less visitors who could be stranded here.  It also requires petroleum and power to process, preserve, and transport.  We are lucky in that we can grow most crops year-round.  To date, on my small parcel of land I grow food in a number of raised beds.  I also have fruit trees such as lemon, lime, fig, banana, papaya and breadfruit, as well as containers for tomatoes, garlic, shallots and herbs.  I’ve grown potatoes in buckets as an experiment and will soon try growing rice in 5-gallon buckets.  The raised beds allow me to grow salad greens, collards, kale, beans, sweet potatoes and most other locally-expensive crops.  There are local farms within 3 – 4 miles where bigger plots commercially grow corn, papayas, greens, mangoes, taro and many other items.  There are emerging local aquaponics systems, both personal and commercial.

Of course because we are islands we also have access to the ocean for sustenance.  The historical ahupua’a depended on three key items:  upland / inland forest, lower elevation intensively cultivated areas and a coastal zone, including local fishponds where near shore fish were trapped for harvest on demand.  A few of these fishponds have been restored and are in active use, but many have been destroyed by development.

Even with increased stockpiles of food, Hawaii will need to consider going back to a system similar to the ahupua’a system of old to be self-sufficient.  In particular, the need for fresh water must be dealt with, since growing food also depends on it.  Although many areas of the islands have good rainfall, catchment, processing and distribution of fresh water depend on the use of petroleum products to supply power.  In a TEOTWAWKI situation this would have to change dramatically and quickly.  It would be difficult to prepare individually for this since fresh water is not as easily accessible as in many mainland areas.  Most people here don’t have wells since the fresh water under islands is shaped like a lens and varies based on rainfall and how much is drawn out.  Personally I have a small solar-based desalination / purification system (http://www.seapanel.com) that can be used to desalinate a small amount of sea water (transported about 1.5 miles) or purify fresh water found nearby or gathered from rainfall.  Hawaii has no commercial scale desalination capability at present, although pilot experiments have been done.  The island of Lanai is considering setting up such a system.

I even have a small portable PV system that combined with a lead-acid deep draw battery and 12 volt pump can be used to transfer collected rainwater up the hill behind my house to provide a small pressurized system, but I am still trying to acquire a 1,000+ gallon tank to hold the rainwater.  Getting them shipped here to Hawaii is very expensive.  Solving the problem for an individual family is much simpler than for a neighborhood, a town or an ahupua’a or an island, much less a state.  But it is not enough to prepare yourself and your family when living on an island.  Stocking up a good idea, but will not be enough to weather a long-term emergency or break in the supply chain.

Permaculture principals may be a key part of the answer, since they take a long-term view of how you build a system and how to be sustainable.
Of all the areas in the United States, Hawaii needs to internalize the goal to improve both our survivability and sustainability in order to weather the future, TEOTWAWKI or not.

Letter Re: Sewing, Mending and Altering Your Clothing After the Ball Drops

Dear James,
As a former professional seamstress, I have a comment on using woolen materials for quilts.  They can successfully be washed, provided that the woolen material was previously washed before making a quilt of it, whether the wool is used as the top layer, or as the batting.

The wool should be washed in hot water, and then dried on high heat in the dryer.  It will shrink, which has the double advantage of:  1. making it much warmer; and 2. washed wool becomes somewhat felted, which makes it much sturdier and less prone to wear and pulling of threads which might catch on splinters or rough surfaces.

I have run wool fabrics through the washer and drier prior to sewing them for many years for exactly these reasons, and have nearly always been pleased with the results…except for a couple of extremely loosely knitted fabrics which over-shrank.  Still, even these would have been good for quilt stuffing.

Speaking of which, you can find woolen clothing at thrift shops which can be used for stuffing, as well as for tops.

The author also mentions using acrylic yarn for knitting.  Yes, it is cheap and warm.  However, under TEOTWAWKI conditions, it would be a disaster, since it frays and starts wearing out within a year of heavy use.  Woolen yarn is almost impossible to get any more at ordinary stores, but is readily available online – try eBay – at prices comparable to acrylic. 

Woolen yarn lasts for years, and can be re-knitted when the original item develops wear spots, as the author describes.  Doing that with acrylic is a waste of time. 

I am not a herder, but do know that tribesmen in the Arabian desert mostly live on the sheep they herd, and wear woolen clothing.  Also, the Navajo of the southwest are famous for their woolen blankets, made from the sheep they raise.  Clearly there are sheep that would do fine in the author’s desert area.  Perhaps some of your readers would know what breeds would be appropriate.

The tied quilt sounds like a really fast and simple way to make quilts under emergency conditions.

Wiggy’s is planning to offer quilting, so your readers may want to contact him. Warmly, – Janet W.

Economics and Investing:

Reader R.B.S. sent some more coin debasement news: Stivers proposes using steel for all U.S. coins – not just pennies and nickels. The compromise that the Congresscritters reach might be just dropping the penny and switching the nickel to stainless steel. The days of nickel made of copper and nickel are numbered, so stock up!

Jim W. liked this: Gold – You Better Hold It

Also from Jim: How Your Purchasing Power Was And Is Destroyed. “The fraud you’re being sold is exactly identical to going into a bakery and ordering a sheet cake.  The baker asks you how many pieces you would like the cake cut into; your options are 2, 4, 8, 16 or 32.  He then tells you that if you’re really hungry you should choose 32, because that way you can eat more pieces.”

Courtesy of H.L.: Largest Wholesaler in U.S. Sold Out of 100 Ounce Silver Bars

Items from The Economatrix:

Why The Jobs Outlook Just Got A Whole Lot Worse

The Global “Fractional” Paper Bullion Market Is Collapsing

Freely-Traded Markets Are An Anachronism:  Fundamental Rules No Longer Apply

Odds ‘n Sods:

Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large) found a link to a great video, profiling an old school, multigenerational machine shop: Central Texas Tool Co.

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A long-standing joke is that a lot of dead people cast votes in the eastern seaboard states. Not to be outdone, deceased anti-gun mayors sign petitions from the grave, again and again. In more recent news: Another one of the Bloomberg Crime Fighters goes to the Big House, for corruption: Hamilton, New Jersey Mayor John Bencivengo. And another, Former Brownsville Mayor Pat Ahumada, has just been charged with operating an illegal gambling establishment. And here are some MAIG member “Working The System” updates: Mayor Ray Nagin: Indicted, trial date delayed to October; Mayor Noramie Jasmin is seeking funds for her legal defense (Gee, why not use some of that bribe money?); Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick: still begging to be released before sentencing. (He swears he doesn’t own a white Ford Bronco); Mayor Tony Mack: Indicted on corruption charges, trial date delayed; Mayor Richard P. Corkery: Still awaiting trial on child pornography charges after two years; Mayor Adam Bradley: Wife-beating conviction overturned and will get a new trial; Mayor Eddie Perez: Still free on bond three years after getting a three year sentence, and now his lawyers are asking for a new trial, since they claim that showing the jury all of the evidence was damaging to his reputation; Mayor Craig Lowe has entered a not guilty plea after his drunken car wreck, despite some damning police dashcam footage and a failed breathalyzer test; Mayor Gary Becker has been released after serving three years on child pornography and child enticement charges but will still have five years of GPS monitoring and “community supervision”; Mayor James “Jay” Schiliro of Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Philadelphia): awaits trial on reckless endangerment, unlawful restraint, official oppression, false imprisonment at gunpoint, providing alcohol to a minor, et cetera. (His homosexual advances were not considered legal in Pennsylvania since the young man was over 18.) Despite the fact that he is being held in jail, he is still seeking re-election (how’s that for chutzpah!); Mayor April Capone Almon has been re-elected after making a show of donating a kidney; Mayor Samuel Rivera: Presumably released after serving 16 months in Federal prison and then 21 months in a halfway house; Mayor Sheila Dixon: May be returning to politics. (It seems that the disgrace of stealing charity money from the poor is just trifling and transitory, in some circles.)

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Jeff H. suggested a piece by David Hathaway over at Lew’s site: Ham Radio Freedom

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Forbes: This Is The World’s First Entirely 3D-Printed Gun (Photos)

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Bill D. sent this from his local newspaper: Preppers: Ready, Come What May, In The Shenandoah Valley. (Yet another example of bad OPSEC. If a journalist wants to interview you, then he should respect your privacy and be willing to identify you by a pseudonym. But this only happens if you insist on it!)

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R.B.S. sent: Internet tax bill targets all digital downloads

Notes from JWR:

May 8th is the birthday of American missionary and military intelligence officer Captain John Birch. (Born, 1918, died August 25, 1945.) He is considered by many to be the first American casualty of the Cold War.

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John Bush (of The Dealer Warehouse and other ventures) recently posted this sad news: “Long time machine gun and gun importer Edward Faust passed away this weekend. [He] literally imported thousands of machine guns into the US, many of you probably have a gun marked “IA CO SAC CA” which was the import mark found on the ARMEX guns. Worked with most everyone in the industry, brokered lots of deals for others. Has many ‘firsts’ to his credit, will be missed by family and friends.”

And more sad news: RIP Ray Harryhausen: 1920 – 2013.

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Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com. The current value of this roll is at least $225.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300 and 10 TAPCO polymer magazines (5 AR and 5 AK) courtesy of Armageddon Armory, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) 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, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 46 ends on May 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.

Fats and Rancidity: A Food Storage Problem, by L. Joseph Mountain

Many of the dehydrated “food storage units” available these days specify that you need a certain amount of fats or oils to supplement their unit. You probably know these units, they generally sell as “1 person, 1 year” type of packages and they contain a variety of grains, legumes, fruits and other essentials. They are generally put together with the help of nutritionists that try to deliver a certain amount of calories and essential nutrients per day. You might wonder why they don’t just include a container of oil to complete their units. Or even why we need them.

Fats (oils or lipids) are one of our bodies essential nutrients. This means they aren’t optional, we get sick and die without them. While our bodies can manufacture some of the fat we need by using other nutrients, we can’t make enough of them.

Fats are our body’s method of storing energy, lubricating joints and we need them to absorb [the fat soluble] vitamins A, D, E and K which aren’t normally soluble in water. And in times of starvation our body burns off stored fat by converting it into energy, mostly by turning it into glucose which is the favored food of our cells. Since this takes some work, and because our body favors the easiest to digest nutrition it finds, fat tends to get stored first and burned last when we have excess nutrition.

Fats are pretty chemically simple, being chains of carbon with hydrogen attached and tail with oxygen attached. Unfortunately the presence of these hydrogen and oxygen molecules aren’t all that chemically stable and the hydrogen and oxygen tend to become attracted to and run off with the milk man so to speak. They can get together with each other and create water which will induce a milky or emulsified kind of appearing oil, and this would be a hydrolysis. We often see this with oils that have been “annealed” or subject to repeated heating and cooling.

The other thing is they can combine with oxygen and we have oxidation. We also call it “rancidity” and it’s an unpleasant quality we smell and taste.  This unpleasant taste and odor is progressive, it gets worse and worse until the stuff is pretty much unpalatable. Oils and fats coat the inside of our mouths, making our taste buds more receptive to taste which is ordinarily great but if that taste is foul it’s even harsher.

Chemically when oxygen gets in the door it starts breaking into fatty acids, specifically hydro-peroxide (measured as PV) and thiobarbituric values (TBA). Unfortunately there’s no cheap do-it-yourself test kit for this chemistry at home besides your nose.

Peroxides are even more unstable and break down into ketones, alcohol and aldehydes. Think of a rotten banana Bananas are actually pretty oily and it’s partially the oil oxygenating that gives that alcohol or ketone smell.

If you have ever smelled old oil paint from a long time ago, that kind of dank smell was it. This is because we used to use things like linseed and cottonseed oil in paints and it rancidified like all vegetable oils. Once you know what that flavor and odor is you won’t forget it. Unfortunately it might be more familiar to you than you realize. Staleness is another flavor associated with rancidity but I’ve found a lot of people don’t detect it. I honestly think we’re used to it.  Foods take a lot longer to get from farm to table these days.

Some say that because we’ve gotten used to refined flours that don’t contain as much oils as well as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that some believe last longer on the shelf. In fact we’ve gotten used to leaving boxes of things like pancake mix in the cupboard for a year or more. And all the people you see buying 3 gallon jugs of cooking oil “to last all year” aren’t doing themselves a favor. And in fact we don’t really know how long that oil has been on a shelf or in a hot warehouse before it got to you. All in all it seems that buying oils in small quantities is the way to go.

There aren’t the kind of immediate health risks with rancid oils as there are from bacteria or other mean little bugs that grow on spoiled food.  Until recently we didn’t recognize any major mal effects besides loss of flavor. This is changing as we suspect rancid oils aren’t able to do their job for us chemically as effectively as we need them to ask far as vitamin uptake. We’re not sure that rancid oils don’t contribute to long term health issues like obesity as these fats aren’t as easily broken down into glucose. And there’s the feeling these oils might turn into free radicals. All of these would have long term health effect implications.

It’s worth spending a moment and making this point about brown rice, wheat berries or any whole grain flour. These all contain the germ and bran which contain a lot of fat and these create further challenges for long term storage. Low fat beans store longer than high fat ones, nuts go great in cans but nothing can stop the oils in them from rancidifying over time. This is why cheap nuts often taste bitter. They are older stock. White rice and white flours are optimal for storage. I know that’s horrible news to those of us who love our whole grains and count on their enhanced nutrition. That’s why we want to take every precaution when storing whole grains and high oil content foods.

We can slow rancidity down but we can’t stop it. The ways to slow it down are the very same general rules we use for all foods in long term storage:

1. Keep it cool. It seems a lot of people store their oils up high next to the stove. Over-stove storage is for pots and pans, not for any food product.

2. Keep it out of sunlight. Some people seem to want to keep fancier oils out on the counter. We see this with infused oils that are pretty to look at but out in the light they are deteriorating rapidly.

3. Try to keep oxygen away from it. It would be good if oil came in mylar bags with spouts like cheap wine. The advantage here is the container shrinks along with the stored product leaving less room for oxygen. A large bottle will eventually contain mostly oxygen. Consider breaking your oils out into small containers so this effect is minimized. And note that not all plastics are air-impermeable meaning that air and gases will in fact leak through it. Food grade plastics can be trusted. Glass is best.

4. Don’t let water adulterate it. The above steps help as does keeping stored foods at consistent temperatures because changing pressures won’t tend to break seals. Keeping oils in sealed containers is our best defense against water.

My personal feeling is that the less refined (read saturated) fats seem to hold up best. Cold pressed extra virgin olive oil fits the bill but so does lard. Some of these cold pressed oils will hold up for months in proper storage and lard does great in cans (no light or oxygen penetration plus it’s free of acids and flavors found in other oils). I don’t really have science to back that up with other than the shortened carbon-hydrogen chains in these newer unsaturated fats leave it more unstable. I have heard that these unsaturated fatty acids will bind to protein to form lipid-protein globs that are insoluble and I find this as credible as it is undesirable.

[JWR Adds: Canned lard products like Crisco should be avoided, since they are often bordering on rancid even when bought “fresh” at your local store. The metaliziced cardboard containers used for Crisco are permeable to oxygen. As I detail in the Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course, for long tern storage I recommend stocking up on case lots of virgin olive oil and coconut oil in full, sealed plastic bottles. These oils are available inexpensively at COSTCO and other Big Box stores. Although glass bottles are impermeable to oxygen, a plastic bottle allows oil to expand when stored frozen. (Glass bottles will shatter.) When stored frozen at 10 degrees F or lower, olive oil can have more than an eight year shelf life. Needless to say, date-mark the label of each bottle that you store, to facilitate first-in, first-out (FIFO) rotation. I hope that olive oil becomes available in gas impermeable mylar pouches, but for now, plastic bottles are the best available compromise. As I’ve mentioned before, raising livestock or hunting bears are the only sure ways to provide needed fats in long term isolation. But raising pigs isn’t for everyone. Don’t overlook chickens, since egg yolks are a good source of fat.]

Perhaps most interesting to me is how fats operate in freeze dried scenarios and upon rehydration. The fats are pretty much still there even with the removal of all that hydrogen and oxygen and I have to remind myself that in fats these are chemically bound to carbon. It’s not water, it just contains the components thereof. With normal dehydration these oils are basically unaltered and are more prone to spoilage. With freeze-drying and subsequent packaging we don’t permit free oxygen to get back in.

If your diet is severely lacking in fats and you can’t find bacon, eat more whole grains. Eggs, milk, cheese all contain it. Corn is such a wonderful source of oil that if you grow enough you can press your own oil. It’s almost hard to imagine most of us not getting enough fat in our normal habitual diet.

The cautions come in if you are utterly dependent upon your stored food and have no hope of obtaining food (with fat in it) from outside sources. Or perhaps if your diet is limited to refined starches. For me it’s hard to imagine this scenario but other preppers presume this level of isolation even for long periods. The RDA (government’s recommended daily allowance) of fat is about 60 grams so that’s about two avocados worth. Avocados are wonderful sources of dietary fat but again, most of the other foods you eat have fat as well. For long term storage it looks like the best lipid pick is good old canned lard.

About The Author: L. Joseph Mountain recently published Hidden Harvest: Long Term Food Storage Techniques For Rich And Poor. His web site is www.LongTermStorageFood.com where “articles are sometimes archived, info is irregularly updated and questions are occasionally answered.” 

Three Letters Re: Kevlar Chainsaw Chaps

James,
Thanks to George H. and George W. for their input on chainsaw safety. Yes, buy Kevlar chaps and use them.  Once getting your hands on a pair, don’t expect them to function like body armor because they have Kevlar in them.  From personal experience, they work by the chain’s cutters tearing through the outer fabric of the chaps, then pulling out Kevlar fibers, that then bind up the saw and almost instantly stop the chain from moving. Chain stops and you don’t get cut. Then the penance you pay for your lapse in judgment is taking the cover off your saw and pulling Kevlar fibers out of the works. Again, from personal experience, blue-jeans do not serve this function; although if God is watching over you, you can get your keys pulled straight out of your shredded pant pocket and they will stop the chain when they enter the saw housing. I’ve had a running chainsaw cut into fabric on my leg four times, two with chaps and two without.  I am truly blessed that none of the incidents have drawn a drop of blood.  All four times happened towards the end of the day, when I was tired, and was cutting something in an awkward position.  Think safety all the time. Also, don’t forget ear protection.  A chainsaw isn’t as loud as a gun, but consistent exposure to the engine noise can lead to slow, but permanent hearing loss.  Whatever you keep your chainsaw in, put some hearing protection in there too.
Keep your oil reservoir full and the cutters sharp. – Sean B.
 
 

Editor:
I read the article on felling trees and the follow up on chainsaw chaps. Several years ago my son and I bought two pair of chainsaw chaps from Labonville Inc. up in New Hampshire. These chaps are made in the USA and sell for less then the name brand chaps sold at Lowe’s or Home Depot. They are of the highest quality and I highly recommend them. Also you are supporting the USA and the local New Hampshire economy. See: Labonville.com or 800-764-9969. I have no financial interest in them or the company. – E.G. form North East Tennessee

 

Jim,
The other great thing about Kevlar chain saw chaps is that they save your jeans.  I use my chain saw two or three times a month on average, often in brushy areas.  I am confident that over the course of two years that the chaps have paid for themselves just in reduced wear and tear on my jeans.  – Jim B.

Economics and Investing:

Jack Spirko (of The SurvivalPodcast) has produced a fascinating behind-the-scenes video tour: What’s Going on at Mulligan Mint? Jack Spirko and I agree that Mulligan Mint is reputable. By setting up redundant manufacturing processes, they have overcome their production bottlenecks. They’ve also cleared the backlog of SBSS orders and they are about to release Jack’s Sentinel coin. This is the same mint that is producing the American Redoubt silver coin.

Items from The Economatrix:

The Biggest Price-Fixing Scandal Ever

Hiding The Unemployed: Disability And The Politics Of Stats

Gold & Silver — War Unofficially Declared on 12 April 2013

Odds ‘n Sods:

Some folks on the web had misreported this last week, without checking facts: LDS home storage centers tweaking cannery policy. (Thanks to Brad M. for the newspaper link.)

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M.V.R. recommended: Guide to Veterinary Drugs for Human Consumption, Post-SHTF.

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Cuban Economic Collapse Survivor Gives Advice On How To Keep Up Your Family’s Spirits

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Mark R. sent a link to a U.S. military Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan. ” The plan defines the department’s vision of sustainability and connects the dots between the DOD’s sustainability and energy security goals and potential operational vulnerabilities — in other words, its susceptibility to utility disruptions caused by natural disasters, attacks, grid outages, or the likelihood of energy supply reductions due to disruption in the oil supply line from foreign countries.”

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Gun salesman of the decade, or of the century?: 46,455 Background Checks For Gun Purchases Each Day Under Obama

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com. The current value of this roll is at least $225.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300 and 10 TAPCO polymer magazines (5 AR and 5 AK) courtesy of Armageddon Armory, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) 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, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 46 ends on May 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.

How Will We Deal with Five Epidemics at TEOTWAWKI?, by Philip J. Goscienski, M.D.

In One Second After, William Forstchen describes a cataclysmic scenario, a widespread EMP effect that is only slightly less devastating than nuclear near-annihilation. The protagonists in JWR‘s novel Patriots fare better temporarily because the physical infrastructure remains relatively intact for a few weeks after the nation’s economic collapse. In either scenario the five epidemics that are already under way in the United States give new relevance to TEOTWAWKI.

Epidemic (from the Greek: among the people): prevalent and spreading rapidly among many individuals within a community at the same time; widespread.

The five epidemics:
            Obesity
            Type 2 diabetes
            Osteoporosis
            Dementia
            End-stage renal disease (kidney failure)

Although it is the leading cause of death in the United States, heart disease resulting from coronary atherosclerosis is not an epidemic according to the above definition. It is not spreading rapidly but is well established and mortality
is actually decreasing slightly because of modern treatment.

Epidemic #1: Obesity
Obesity is the linchpin for the other four epidemics.
From 2000 to 2010 obesity increased by 80 percent or more in 39 states. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that by 2030 42 percent of Americans will be obese, nearly half again as many as currently bear that burden. A study from Duke University indicates that morbid obesity, a weight 80 pounds or more above standard weight, will affect 11 percent of the U.S. population. Obesity is clearly “prevalent and spreading rapidly among many individuals” as defined above.

Inactivity is a major factor in the obesity epidemic. A century ago only about 5 percent of Americans were obese but labor-saving devices and automobiles have reduced the need for physical activity for the average person by nearly 75 percent. The typical American adult or child spends 8.5 hours a day watching television and using a computer or similar devices.
Diet is the other major factor that leads to obesity. Over the past 4 or 5 generations we have replaced whole-grain products with those made from refined flour and we have increased our consumption of sugar several-fold. The average American consumes 40 pounds of sugar in soft drinks alone in a single year. When the SHTF, whatever the cause, our food supply will be severely compromised.            

One might think that the one-third of our population that is obese will be able to live off stored energy and will survive longer but they will not. The reason is that very few of them are free of medical problems. Obesity is simply not compatible with good health. There are no exceptions. To think otherwise is delusion.

Epidemic #2: Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is the fastest-growing chronic disease in the world. It affects more than 25 million Americans and 57 million more have prediabetes (defined as a fasting blood sugar between 100 and 125), half of whom are not yet aware of their condition. The CDC projects that one-third of the population will have type 2 diabetes by 2050. Among Hispanic females that number will reach 53 percent.

Type 1, early onset or juvenile diabetes, is a disease in which an autoimmune process completely destroys the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas. A severe reduction in carbohydrate intake will postpone the inevitable in some persons with type 1 diabetes but not for long. They need insulin daily in order to survive. Reduced supplies of all forms of insulin and the lack of effective refrigeration mean that their days are numbered, as described so tragically in One Second After.

Type 2 diabetes was once known as adult-onset diabetes but it has become common in adolescence and it occurs with some frequency among pre-adolescent children. Persistently high levels of blood sugar cause cells to be come unresponsive to the action of insulin. After a period of such insulin resistance the cells that produce this hormone eventually fail.

A lifetime of moderately intense physical activity almost eliminates the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Experts refer to it as an exercise-deficiency disease. Sometimes it results from a genetic disorder or from prescription medications but these are in the minority. In reality, more than 90 percent of persons with type 2 diabetes are inactive and overweight or obese. Among those who appear to be of normal weight, some fall into the category of normal-weight obese, persons who have gained fat but lost muscle. Although their weight is normal, their waist size reveals the truth because a pound of fat takes up more space than a pound of muscle.

Diabetes is a disease of blood vessels. That’s why its worst complications, heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and limb amputation are so common. These complications appear faster and earlier among children because those growing bodies are constantly forming and re-forming new blood vessels as they increase in size.

When the SHTF death rates will rise dramatically among those with both types of diabetes. Type 2 diabetics who have mild disease will fare better but most of them have
complications that will worsen without prescription drugs. Lifestyle changes can postpone the need for insulin but when metformin and other drugs become unavailable, complications of the disease and mortality will rise rapidly. 

Survivalists with type 2 diabetes should double down on their efforts to lose weight and to become physically fit. Those who can afford to stock up on medications should do so. Pharmacies will be depleted of stock as rapidly as grocery stores when the SHTF.

Epidemic #3: Osteoporosis
The incidence of this bone-thinning disorder will reach epidemic proportions by mid-century. Like type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis is an exercise-deficiency disease. It is not due to an inadequate calcium intake. Lack of calcium makes bones soft, not brittle. Two examples are childhood rickets and adult osteomalacia. The first is due to a lack of vitamin D that inhibits the absorption of calcium; the second has several causes, including chronic kidney disease. These calcium-deficient bones do not break; they bend, causing extreme bowlegs, for example.

There is a bone-building window between the ages of about 5 and 25 years during which the body completes the formation of almost all of its bone mass. Once closed, that window never reopens. The process requires two elements: moderately intense physical activity and proper nutrition. Today’s young people fail on both counts and will face an epidemic of broken hips and collapsed vertebrae when they are eligible for Medicare (if it still exists then).

Only a couple of generations ago most kids walked a lot, rode bikes, climbed trees, participated in pick-up games of various sports, frolicked on monkey bars and roughhoused. Safety concerns, urbanization, organization of sports, cancellation of Physical Education classes in school and other factors limit those activities now. Computer games and television occupy about half of their waking hours today.

Calcium is important during these bone-building years but children now drink twice as much soft drinks as milk. In the 1970s it was just the opposite. Other nutrients for making strong bones include several vitamins, magnesium and omega-3 fats but children who don’t get many vegetables but eat plenty of junk food get few of them. Nearly half of today’s adolescents are deficient in vitamin D because they spend so much time indoors.

Few people, including those in the medical field, are aware that pregnancy factors will affect the skeleton of the fetus when that infant reaches middle age. A pregnant young woman who exercises little, smokes and has poor nutrition will herself have an inadequate bone mass. Her baby will too, the evidence of that being that the rate of forearm fractures among school-age children has doubled since the 1970s.

Most adults lose bone mass year by year because of their sedentary lifestyle. Without regular, moderately intense physical activity bones become less dense and break easily in a fall. Exercise, especially resistance training, helps to restore some of the bone mass that has been lost during years of inadequate physical activity.

Why is osteoporosis a problem in TEOTWAWKI? A hip fracture almost always requires hospitalization, perhaps surgery. Even with modern medical care about 25 percent of persons with a hip fracture die within a year. Picture the scenario when the SHTF.

Epidemic #4: Dementia.

Dementia consists of two different conditions, Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is a disorder whose cause is uncertain. Genetic factors play a major role in about half of its victims. As our population ages it is estimated that Alzheimer’s disease will affect about 25 percent of the population by the age of 85.

Vascular dementia is the result of narrowing of the blood vessels of the brain. Diminished blood flow prevents brain cells from being properly nourished and removing waste products. The result is poor mental function, memory loss and shrinkage of brain tissue. Type 2 diabetes has become the most important cause of vascular dementia.

Persons with dementia require attentive personal care for their nourishment and hygiene requirements. I cannot predict what will happen to them in a TEOTWAWKI scenario but many of them have one or more chronic illnesses that require prescription medications that are likely to be in short supply. In a worst-case scenario they will have a low priority for treatment.

Epidemic #5: Kidney failure (End-Stage Renal Disease)

The kidney is little more than a collection of tiny blood vessels in close contact with equally tiny tubular structures, the combination forming a filtering system that removes waste products in the form of urine. When normal blood vessels within the kidney are replaced by those that have become deformed and scarred because of diabetes or other disease, toxic by-products accumulate within the body. A dialysis machine – what some persons still refer to as an artificial kidney – cleanses the blood in 3 or 4 treatments per week.

When the nation’s power grids fail because of an EMP or a devastating cyber attack it will take the lives of hundreds of thousands of dialysis patients with it. In 1972 there were 10,000 persons on dialysis; in 2010 that number reached 350,000, even as dialysis centers were struggling to keep up with the demand. If the CDC’s projection for type 2 diabetes, the primary cause of kidney failure, is correct that number could soar to more than a million in a couple more decades. The yearly cost of dialysis ranges from $15,000 to $50,000 per year and it will make kidney failure one of our most expensive epidemics.

There is no alternative treatment for kidney failure. Kidney transplantation, which may require a year or two on a waiting list, is not an option for millions of diabetics and it certainly will not be at TEOTWAWKI.

Dialysis units will stop working when the lights go out. Patients with end-stage renal disease will be among the grid failure’s first casualties.

Finding solutions: Genes load the gun; lifestyle pulls the trigger.

All these chronic conditions are lifestyle-related and are not due to genetics or to aging. They were either rare or nonexistent barely a century ago and not because people are living longer and have more time to acquire these diseases. Centenarians in places as diverse as Okinawa and Sardinia are slender and fit and can name their great-grandchildren. They have almost no heart disease and type 2 diabetes is virtually non-existent. Elderly hunter-gatherers don’t develop these diseases either – until they become civilized.

To be sure, if the pharmaceutical industry were to collapse in a SHTF scenario we would again face new threats from old infectious diseases but the thin and the fit would fare best. Obesity and diabetes weaken the immune system but exercise strengthens it.

Scores of posts on SurvivalBlog urge us to maintain a high level of fitness and to keep our weight, i.e., body fat, at normal levels. No one is too old to exercise and eating sensibly (quantity and quality) is not rocket science. It’s not too late to begin a healthy lifestyle. It may be the key that will help you to survive in TEOTWAWKI.

About The Author: Philip J. Goscienski, M.D. is a retired pediatric infectious diseases specialist, CPR instructor, columnist and author. His book, Health Secrets of the Stone Age, Second Edition, Better Life Publishers, 2005 has won three book awards. He has archived more than 400 weekly newspaper columns at www.stoneagedoc.com.

Letter Re: Potential for Court-Ordered Clawbacks of Physical Precious Metal Holdings

Mr. Rawles,
I have to believe that the precious metals markets are practicing their own sort of fractional reserve system.  Does anyone doubt that the markets (dealers, banks, etc) keep a small quantity on hand for physical transactions, but trade paper claims on much greater quantities?

A growing concern of mine which I haven’t seen addressed elsewhere:  What will happen when the holders of paper claims run to court because they cannot obtain the physical metals the claims represent?  Significant numbers of these claim holders are politically powerful.  Will the courts decree a clawback of the physical metals from their present holders, and a redistribution of the those physical metals amongst the paper claim holders?  The similarity to the clawback forced upon the “lucky” few who withdrew profits from Madoff’s pyramid scheme is disconcerting.

People holding physical precious metals would resist any clawback.  Physical metals can be changed in form, hidden, traded or sold such as not be recognizable from when they were purchased.  The tools to enforce the clawback would have to be truly menacing for most people to comply.

Please consider addressing the likelihood of a court ordered clawback of physical precious metals, and your evaluation on the lengths to which the system would go to enforce such a decree.

Thanks for your previous commentaries and time in evaluating this as a topic. – Andrew H. in Washington State