Precious Metals Month in Review: December 2013, by Steven Cochran

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, by Steven Cochran of Gainesville Coins. Every month, we’ll take a look at the “month that was” in precious metals, covering everything from price action, to the information that’s driving the numbers.

December in Precious Metals

December is traditionally a slow month for precious metals, and the second-best month for stocks. This trend was amplified this year, as we saw lots of good economic reports from Europe, China, and the U.S. The stock markets, already hitting highs fueled by central bank money printing, sucked cash out of bonds and the precious metals market as everyone tried to get a piece of the action. This had gold around the $1,250 level to start the month.

The second week of December saw the U.S. Mint ship out the last of the 2013 Silver Eagle bullion coins (nine days earlier than last year) to cap the best year ever in sales; and the U.S. Congress actually come to a budget deal of sorts. It didn’t touch Social Security or other hot button issues, but everyone proclaimed it was proof that Congress could actually get something done. Precious metals shot to their high point of the month on the news, even as the dollar also advanced (usually a drag on commodity prices.) Stocks took this as pretty much clinching the chances of the Fed deciding to give Chairman Ben Bernanke a taper as his retirement gift.

The Fed followed through on the 18th, and reduced the $85 billion a month in “money printing” by $10 billion. That’s only a 12% reduction, but as the Congressman once said, “a few billion here, a few billion there, and pretty soon you’re talking about real money.” Precious metals hung tough in wildly oscillating trading immediately after the announcement, but was later sucker punched to the $1,200 level, where it spent the rest of the month.

Stocks worldwide went berserk, setting new records, because the Fed promised over and over to keep benchmark interest rates at or near zero at least through 2014, even if unemployment dropped under 6.5%. It was about this time that rumors started swirling over Stanley Fischer being named to the #2 position at the Fed, when Yellen moves into the chairmanship. Fischer was Bernanke’s doctoral thesis adviser, and also taught ECB Chairman Mario Draghi and many other central bankers.

Most recently the head of the Bank of Israel, Fischer has also held top positions at the IMF and the World Bank. He is noted as an expert on hyperinflation, which may be one reason Obama offered him the copilot’s seat at the Fed.

Market Buzz

Rumors are increasing that the Indian government will ease import restrictions on gold, even as the 10% import tax remains in effect. The domestic jewelry industry has almost been wiped out, and smuggling is bringing in hundreds of tons of gold that the government is not collecting taxes on. National elections are in May, and the ruling party is now about as popular as Congress is in the U.S., so this would be a logical action to take to improve their chances of staying in power.

Supporters of “hard money” are standing by the fundamentals, as Western quick-money speculators sell their physical gold to China. Eric Sprott for example, said in a recent interview “If you believe you’re right, and the data says hold your ground, you hold your ground. Normally, there’s a pretty big payday at the end.” Some industry watchers are speculating that China’s central bank will reveal how much gold they really hold next year, as it seems they do so every five years. The last official report was for 1,054 tonnes in 2009, so 2014 would mark five years from that report.

On the Retail Front

Even though all the talking heads are going on about how no one wants to buy precious metals any more, the story on the streets is much different. Retail investors have pushed the sales both the American Silver Eagle and Canadian Silver Maple Leaf coins to new record highs this year. The U.S. Mint has announced that the 2014 Silver Eagle will not go on sale until January 13th, and that supplies will be allocated (rationed.)  Pre-orders for Silver Eagles are already a best-selling item.

The Royal Canadian Mint has brought new security features first introduced on the Gold Maple Leaf in 2013 over to the Silver Maple Leaf for 2014. The Mint recently won a Coin of the Year award for implementing similar features on their circulating $1 and $2 coins. In addition to the micro laser-engraved security mark (what some people are calling a “privy mark”,) the entire background of the new Silver Maple Leaf will have a radial line design constructed to make counterfeiting much more difficult. You can see images of the new Silver Maple features here.

Looking Ahead

Looking at the fundamentals ahead, this is what we see:

Asian demand for gold was sated in large part by outflows from Western gold ETFs in 2013. The amount of gold sold by ETFs for the year equaled 800 metric tonnes, 25% of global production. This is a trend that physically cannot continue, because the ETFs have a finite amount of gold. Since that gold is being sold to China and India, it will not come back onto the market. Where will these ETFs get gold once the price starts to rise again?

Another drag on gold supply next year will be the fact that gold prices are now at or below the all-in cost of production for many mines. Expect more mines to reduce production or even close unprofitable mines. This will lead to severe labor unrest in nations with high labor costs, like South Africa.

This may also lead to China buying even more gold mines in 2014. Chinese companies, using loans from the government, have bought up $4 billion worth of gold mines and mining companies in the last two years. While other mines are reducing production, these Chinese-owned mines are expanding production on orders from Beijing, and shipping it all back home to China. This reduces the amount of gold on the open market, but still does not satisfy all of China’s gold demand. China is now the world’s largest consumer of gold, even though it is also the world’s largest producer of gold.

A third factor that may reduce global gold supplies is the law passed recently by Indonesia’s parliament, demanding that all ore be smelted in-country instead of being shipped out raw. This presents a problem, as there is only one copper smelter of any size in the country, and Indonesia is the world’s largest producer of tin and copper ore. The Indonesian executive branch knows that this law is suicidal for the country, and is trying to find ways to help the mining companies work around it. Freeport, which runs the world’s largest copper mine at Grasberg, said that production will fall to 20-30% of maximum if the law is not amended or repealed, meaning the loss of 30,000 local jobs. Grasberg produces 3.2 million oz of gold a year as a by-product of copper mining, and this law may mean a shortage of 840,000 oz on the global gold market.
We see retail investment demand for silver continuing to grow, after a record year in 2013. If someone tells you “oh, that’s because of the price crash,” remind them that the U.S. Mint sold out of Silver Eagles in EIGHT DAYS when the new 2013s were introduced in January. That was 7.49 million ounces of Silver Eagles sold when silver spot price was above $30/oz.

Inflation will be the “monster in the box” in 2014, as the Fed seems blind to the fact that it is its own policies that have the Big Banks holding on to quantitative easing money, instead of lending it out. Since the Fed has artificially suppressed benchmark interest rates, the Big Banks have parked some $2.5 trillion in QE money back at the Fed for a guaranteed return, instead of lending it out. The big Wall St. banks earned $6.25 billion last year in interest from the Fed, on cash the Fed itself printed in the hopes it would improve the economy.

Instead of fixing the problem at its source and getting the banks to actually lend that money, some economists at the Fed want to try and raise the inflation rate on purpose, thinking that they can make it stop rising when they want to.

Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher was shocked by the idea, telling a crowd “the idea of ramping up inflation expectations from their current tame levels strikes me as short-sighted and even reckless.” Fisher said that the long-term inflation dangers that the Fed has already caused “will surely test our capacity to manage policy going forward.”

As far as official inflation rates, they have been changed in the same way as unemployment rates have, in order to hide the true condition of the economy (Check the old U6 unemployment rate, which includes unemployed people who can’t find a job, and compare it to what the government reports.)  Brent Johnson of Santiago Capital recently told people “If you believe in math, buy gold.” He explains that inflation is nested in the stock market and real estate bubbles.

More and more people are expressing concern over the stock market and real estate bubbles based more on euphoria and greed than fundamentals. In addition to Reagan’s budget director David Stockman, this year’s co-winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics Robert Shiller warns of bubbles in both real estate and stocks. Shiller is famous for predicting the “dot com” crash and the real estate crash.

The taper is a tiny drop in the bucket, and the budget deal in Washington did nothing to fix any real problems. With ever-expanding national debt, and a China that is signaling it really doesn’t want to keep buying U.S. debt, dollar devaluation grows closer.

Pat’s Product Review: Warrior Trail Training Body Armor

Many firearms instructors, myself included, have a saying that goes something like this “train the way you fight.” Meaning that, if you’re training isn’t related to real-life scenarios, you’re
doing something wrong. Outside of my basic NRA handgun classes, my other (limited) firearms training classes are geared to real-life training. When on the range, we don’t train you to stand there, squared off to a target, at a pre-determined range, and just stand there and shoot. No! Instead, my training consists of on-the-move training, as well as firing at a 180-degree area. We shoot right to left, and front to back. We shoot on the move, too – as well as from behind cover, and in the prone and kneeling position. In a real-life active shooter situation, you can’t just stand there and square-off, and keep shooting – if you don’t move, you’ll die – simple as that.
 
After the first shots are exchanged, you should be seeking cover, or changing your plane, and reloading and looking for other threats. While there’s nothing wrong with learning basic Marksmanship skills; sight picture, trigger control and follow-through, in a real-life deadly shooting, you need to be on the move, and make good use of cover and concealment if possible. Look, this isn’t the Old West, where you and an opponent stand face-to-face, and see who can draw their weapon the fastest. That will get you killed. You have to train the way you’ll fight – be it in the military, law enforcement or as a civilian gun owner. This also means using the weapon and equipment that you’d be using on the streets or on the battlefield.
 
Uncle Sam issues hard body armor to our troops, and it’s really good armor – it’s made out of ceramic and compressed aluminum (I believe), and it is designed to trap the rounds fired into it – thus, breaking-up the ceramic/aluminum plates – they are meant to be some what fragile – it’s the way they absorb the rounds – by breaking apart. However, one serious drawback to this type of hard body is that, when worn in training, these plates take a beating, and they can break or fracture when you go prone, or for that matter, if you accidentally drop you body armor carrier on the ground. Some law enforcement agencies actually have their had body armor (ceramic-style) x-rayed yearly or an CT scan used – very expensive procedures for ensuring that you hard body armor plates haven’t been damaged.
 
Today we consider Warrior Trail, a company manufacturing a patented type of hard body armor training armor – please read that again, this isn’t hard body armor, instead it is TRAINING body armor. It is designed and manufactured to the same size, shape and weight as ceramic-type hard body armor plates. If you’re on a SWAT team, for instance, you will be training the way you’ll fight – and that means wearing your hard body armor – if your department issues it. Only problem is, if your training is real-life training, your very expensive hard body armor plates can and will get damaged. You may not see the damage visibly, but the damage might be there, and if you take a hit during a call-out, from a high-powered rifle, your plate might fail – causing serious injury or death.  Training can get very expensive, if your department has to keep inspecting your body armor plates, via x-rays, CT scans or ultrasounds, and in this day and age of budget shortfalls and restraints, it can cut down on your equipment budget rapidly.
 
I received several training plates from Warrior Trail – and once again, keep in mind, that these are not actual hard body armor plates, they afford you NO ballistic protection – they are designed to be inserted into your body armor carriers – after you’ve taken out your real body armor plates. Then you can proceed with real-life training scenarios, where you can go prone, and just totally train the way things would happen in real life – without the fear of damaging your real body armor. Warrior Trail training body armor plates, are the same size and approximately the same weight as ceramic type hard body armor plates are – I know, I have hard body armor plates, and I compared them to the Warrior Trail plates – they are almost identical. Keep in mind that, different companies who manufacture hard body armor plates will have slightly different variations from one company’s plates to another company’s plates. However, all things considered, the Warrior Trail plates will feel just like your real hard body armor plates when you insert them into your vest.
 
Now, just to remind the purchaser, the Warrior Trail training plates come with a warning on them, alerting you, that you have no ballistic protection, and there is a hole drilled in the plate – this should be enough to alert the wearer that this is not real body armor – even though it looks like and feels like the genuine article.
 
Warrior Trail training body armor plates are manufactured out of a proprietary polymer material, and it is tough stuff. I did place it in a carrier, after removing the real body armor plates, and I couldn’t tell or feel any difference between the real body armor and the training body armor plates – felt the same. I also totally abused the training plates, threw them on a concrete walk, threw them down my gravel driveway – and even skidded them down my driveway, as well as throwing them against trees. While the training plates took a beating, they didn’t fail. In a “train as you fight” training exercise, you’ll think you’re wearing your real body armor plates in your carrier. Now, as an aside, make sure you switch out the training body armor plates for your real plates when you are done training. Might be a good idea for your unit or buddies, to do it all at the same time, and inspect one another’s carriers – to make sure you have put the real body armor plates back inside your vest, instead of the training plates. You can also place a Velcro patch – supplied by Warrior Trail – on your carrier, right on the front of it – to alert you that, you still have their training plates inside your carrier. PLEASE! This is important, don’t forget to switch the training plates out for your real plates!
 
If you’re a Prepper, out training with some friends, it’s a great idea to have these training plates inside your vest, instead  of the real plates – you don’t want to have the added expense of having to have your real plates inspected yearly, to know they will still provide the ballistic protection you want. Also, these training plates are a good idea if you are in a ROTC college training program, basic military training, Military Academy, National Guard unit, police, sheriff, FedGov law enforcement agent, etc. Also, they are a good idea to have when making an airborne jump, practicing water survival with your gear on, land navigation – just about any place where you’d be training wearing your real hard body armor, is where you can wear the Warrior Trail training plates in your vest.
 
Warrior Wear has a motto of their own, and it is “train as your fight – at a fraction of the cost” – and that’s something to keep in mind. Hard body armor doesn’t come cheap, and you don’t want to damage your real body armor, while out training – and not even realize you’ve damaged it. Warrior Trail training plates start at $59 per plate, and goes up from there, depending on the size. Still, this is a worthwhile investment – save your real hard body armor, for a call out or military operation – and use the Warrior Trail training plates for all of your training purposes. Don’t take a chance, you have a lot of money invested in hard body armor ceramic plates, spend a little money now, for some training plates. 

Harry’s Book Review: Emotional Intelligence

Book Title: Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ
Author: Daniel Goleman
Copyright Date: 1995
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 978-0553383713
Audio, e-book or foreign translation available:  Audio and Kindle available
Suitable for children: No.  Reads much like a college text book.  Not quite as dry, but not a book for a child.

Let me open with the qualifier that this book does not match the normal criteria for the books I typically review for SurvivalBlog.  I sincerely doubt Daniel Goleman ever had this audience in mind.  However, I think many in this audience would be well served by reading this book.

Two relatively recent posts on SurvivalBlog brought this book to mind for me. “Anticipated Traumatic Stress in TEOTWAWKI” by F. B. (11/23/13) and “We Who Are Left Behind” by M.D.L. (11/26/13) both provided great examples of how our own emotions come into play during a stressful situation.  From the “freeze” response of the strapping farm boy with a machine gun to the lack of a will to live after losing your loved ones, there are things which our own bodies do with which we must figure out how to cope.

When things go wrong with our skeletal structure or our muscles we can see and feel the problems.  Or at least with X-rays and MRIs we can.  We can usually tell exactly what caused the problem and we can create a plan to resolve it.  It is not so with our emotions.  Yet our emotions have the potential to be every bit as debilitating as a broken limb.

If anyone thinks emotions will not play a major role in TEOTWAWKI they are deluding themselves.  Unless you are one of the very rare few who are incapable of feeling you may well find yourself in an emotional mess unlike anything you have ever encountered in your life.  And you can pretty much guarantee that the majority of people you have to deal with will also be emotional basket cases. How do you prepare for that?

I will suggest that step one is developing a good relationship with God.  I know there are many who don’t want to hear that, but if you look into those who survive the worst that life can throw at them (POWs for instance) you will find that faith makes a big difference.  Even this book, Emotional Intelligence, which builds its foundation on evolutionary theory, includes a quote on the value of a belief in God.  (More on that later.)

Step two should be educating yourself about yourself, and I believe that this book offers a good start.  I don’t find it to be the perfect book, and in fact I would love to hear from other SurvivalBlog readers if they are aware of better resources.  I can imagine that either law enforcement or the military should have developed materials more appropriately focused on this element.  However, lacking a book focused on TEOTWAWKI, this is the best I know of for an analysis of what makes a person tick on the emotional side.

The book opens with discussion of the physical side of emotions, from facial expressions and blood flow patterns to the anatomy of the brain.  A good portion of this part is given evolutionary credit where I personally believe the hand of The Designer is at work, but however you got there, what you have is what you have.  This part only skims the surface and does so in easily understood terms with lots of anecdotal examples.

Goleman goes into depth on the subjects of 1) Knowing one’s emotions, 2) Managing emotions,  3) Motivating oneself, 4) Recognizing emotions in others, and  5) Handling relationships.  All of these will be very necessary skills in the event of a system collapse.

Emotions which are addressed with some detail include rage/anger, anxiety, melancholy and fear.  On the opposite side are discussed optimism and “flow”. Flow is an interesting subject all in itself.  “Getting in the groove” might be a reasonable synonym.  It is the state of mind in which one is performing at their peak level, doing a task for which they are well prepared, but which involves a degree of challenge.

There are also several pages on the subject of emotional wounds and PTSD.  This material will likely be very applicable to a TEOTWAWKI event.  The healing process discussed may be very valuable knowledge, particularly given that what seems to work best is not what I would call intuitive.  One of the best techniques used by children appears to be the reliving of the event through role play, but with a better outcome.  While parents and educators don’t want the children to even think about the event, the children are making a game of it, and apparently that game has healing potential.

Applications discussed for emotional intelligence include such things as education, marriage, management and medicine (emotion plays a role even in healing after surgery).

It should be noted that this is not a book to plan on reading through in one sitting.  To extract what is needed one needs to plan to spend a good deal of time in introspection and consideration section by section.  There was at least one part of this book which I had my wife read and consider how well it applied to me.  Expect to find out things about yourself as you read this.  Plan on spending time thinking about the ramifications of those findings.  It can be good or bad, but regardless of which, you will be better off if you know what you are working with.  If need be, you may be able to make changes now in order to be more emotionally fit for the future. One of the last sections is “Temperament is not Destiny.”  There are things you can do to alter your emotional condition.

As I mentioned already I believe there could be better books out there for this audience.  I did not read this book with the idea in mind of reviewing it for SurvivalBlog.  When it occurred to me that this book might be a candidate for a review I had to put some effort into refreshing my mind about the book.  I had been struck by the mention of God when I first read the book, and that in part because it seemed so incongruous to the rest of the text.  Indeed, I went hunting for that reference just to make sure I was not in error in mentioning it.  There is an index at the back of the book.  God did not rate an entry.  However, “Guns, danger of” did rate an entry, and that reminded me of this tidbit from the book, speaking of children born during the 1980s:  “These teenagers are the first generation to have not just guns but automatic weaponry easily available to them…” I couldn’t make heads or tails of that nonsensical statement, but I suspect it speaks to the author’s perspective and his degree of understanding on matters near and dear to this audience. s

JWR Adds: Harry is correct in pointing out the author’s apparent bias and unfamiliarity with firerms facts. Mr. Goleman is woefully under-informed. Here is a dose of truth: Fully automatic weaponry has never been “easily available” to teenagers, but semiautomatic guns have been in American homes since the early 1900s. Semi-automatic rimfire rifles were introduced by Winchester in 1903, and centerfire semi-auto hunting rifles have been quite popular ever since the introduction of the Remington Model 8 series rifles, in 1906. It is also noteworthy that semi-auto shotguns have been in common use since FN introduced the Auto-5 shotgun in 1902. Detchable magazine semi-auto rifles have been very popular in civilian use since just after World War II, when large numbers of M1 Carbines came home in dufflebags. (And there were nearly a million more sold to civilian shooters by the DCM in the 1960s.) The ratio of semi-auto rifles to traditional repeaters (pump, lever action, and bolt action) in civilian hands hasn’t changed appreciably in the past 30 years, although semi-auto handguns now clearly predominate over revolvers. What Mr. Goleman and assorted leftist do-gooders fail to recogniize is that even though per capita firearms ownership in America is now at an all-time high, both the violent crime rate and the rate of accidental deaths with firearms have been on the decline for several decades. (Although the percentage of homes with gun owners has gradually declined, the total number of guns has increased, indicating that the average size of private gun collections has increased.)

Letter Re: Cryptocoins and Prepping

James,
The more I learn about cryptocurrency, the more it reveals itself as a Godsend that could save us all from the tyranny of a central bank manipulated currency. I see this now as a revolution in civilization itself, nothing short of what penicillin or the internet has meant to us. It is new and undiscovered, just as America was in its beginnings, it is an unfolding wonderment.

When Bitcoin was starting up a few years ago, I fooled around with it on my computer trying to mine some coins, but it became apparent that I needed a lot more compute power to be able to mine very many coins at all. So I gave it up and de-installed the software. 

I certainly wasn’t going to buy any of these coins on the MtGox exchange at about $6 a coin if remember correctly. It seemed like a scam, not worth even buying 10 coins.

What I didn’t see was that the developers who designed this system had figured it all out and they foresaw what I did not, that this was going to be big, really big. I am now beginning to see what they saw. They have true genius and vision. They also love freedom.

I missed the boat with Bitcoin, if I had just bought a hundred or so coins, I could sell them today and be $60,000 richer. People are skeptical, but you can not argue with success. Bitcoins are worth something whether we like or not, or whether the government or the central banks likes it. The truth is they can’t stop the avalanche now. It’s world-wide and totally private. Even taking down the entire internet may not stop the use of crypto currency as long there are computers and thumb drives, coin can be exchanged.

I think Bitcoin is too expensive to get into, like gold at $2,000 at per Troy Ounce, so I am presently looking into mining and investing in some alternative crypto coins such as Litcoin now selling for $16.35 per coin. There are many others now, such as Peercoin, Primecoin, and Worldcoin.

Some will succeed like Bitcoin and some will fall by the wayside as the gold rush into crypto currency begins. There is room for competition, Bitcoin is limited by design in the number of coins it can produce and many have already been mined and are expensive.

There is room for other systems and the same visionaries who brought us Bitcoin are busy designing new systems as I write this.

In the near future I will be writing more about crypto currencies and will post it on Set2survive.com/crypto-coins.  Also check out the many cryptocurrency forums by doing a Google search for cyptocurrency.  – Tim T.

Letter Re: A Contractor’s Preps: Materiel Storage

Dear Mr. Rawles, 
Thank you for the article by Paul W. about contractor’s preps.  Free building supplies can often be found at Freecycle.org, there are local groups in most cities.  Also, don’t forget Habitat for Humanity re-sale stores, which have very inexpensive supplies.
Thank you, as always. – Carol D.

Letter Re: An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure for TEOTWAWKI

James,
K.M. in Ohio’s post “Ounce of Prevention…” warns that “If the needles are 1 per hole, that’s NOT Pine” is not true. The warning about Fir needles being toxic is valid, but there are one needle pines. The state tree of Nevada is the Single Leaf Pinyon, Pinus monophylla. It is found almost exclusively in The Great Basin with two subspecies in California and Arizona. Besides the needles being a source of vitamin C as with other pines, it produces nutritious and delicious pine nuts. (It also makes the perfectly shaped Christmas tree!) – David in Carson City, Nevada

Letter Re: Coal–The Other Black Gold

James,
I was in a bad pickle this summer.  A housing opportunity came by and my family moved to a nice country home in Minnesota farm country.  It’s low traffic, well sheltered from the wind on all sides by mature trees, and safe for outside pets.  There is ample space for a large garden that will produce a surplus while feeding the entire family.  Yet there is one problem.  The house, while well kept, is a century old.  It is not very well insulated, and we knew from the previous tenant that it is difficult to heat in the winter.

The heating system we inherited is a central heating oil furnace.  It is a good backup unit and we did fill the tank completely, but we knew that trying to heat the house that way would take most of our spare money and prohibit us from expanding other necessary preparations.  So before the weather got bad we decided to get a wood burning furnace.  I decided we should get a coal/wood stove, just to have additional options.  It must have been the Lord’s providence because that decision is now proving critical in this bitterly cold winter season.

We started heating the house with wood.  We got the place too late to properly harvest dead trees around the property, so we bought $500 worth of wood at $125 a cord.  Even before December we had burned through about $350 of it.  So we decided to try something different and searched for a source of coal.  About four hours away in North Dakota we found a source for lignite coal at $35 a ton!  And it’s been an absolute godsend.  Where we got 3-5 hour burn times with wood, we get 6-10 hours with coal, and it’s been a bitterly cold December!  We’ve often been in the single digits, and lows are commonly in the -10F to -24F range.  In fact the forecast is predicting three straight days of subzero temps with lows in the double digits!  Throughout all of it, we have kept the house a cozy 70F during the day and 65F at night.  And instead of $500+ a month for heating oil or $300+ for purchased firewood, it will be about $100 a month for coal!  That’s even including our inefficient purchase of only 4 1/2 tons of coal that we had to truck 8 hours round trip.  In the future we plan to get a larger rig together or hire a trucker and take a much larger delivery of coal.  I’m sure we can get the cost down to $45-50 a ton, delivered!

After my experiences I’ve been pondering how your American Redoubt region has been especially blessed with two great heating sources, wood and coal.  If you have the access and physical capabilities, nothing beats the price of your own harvested firewood.  For many that don’t have access or are up in age, coal is going to be a better choice.  Laying in a nice supply of coal would also be good insurance even if you are well situated to harvest lumber, in case an injury prevents you from harvesting.  There are large coal mines in Wyoming, Montana and Northern Colorado.  A friend of mine informed me that the prices in Montana and Wyoming are about double that of North Dakota coal, but the heat output is even better and there is less ash production, so it’s still a great bargain.   For those of you that live near Pennsylvania, Virginia/West Virginia and Kentucky, there is even higher quality [hard anthracite] coal available!

I have personally chosen a manual feed furnace as it will provide convection heat throughout the house even without electricity, and it can burn wood if I run out of coal and cannot obtain more.   For those that don’t have the time or inclination to run a hand fed stove, there are stoker coal furnaces that will automatically feed the fire from a large hopper and using a computer they will perfectly regulate your home temperature.

I find myself driving and using gasoline less and less and spending more time working on the farmstead, so coal has definitely become the “Other Black Gold” for me!  With the money I have been saving using coal, I will be able to afford to buy some yellow gold very soon!

A handy web site has a cost/BTU calculator as well as a calculator that will let you input your current monthly costs to compare what it would cost with other heating sources.  I invite your readers to check it out and see what they might be able to save by heating with coal.

The same web site also has lively and very informative discussion forums on modern and antique coal stoves and furnaces, with links at the top and bottom of the page.  Please keep in mind that the majority of members are from the Eastern States, so I do recommend keeping political talk to the proper sub forum.  My experience is that most are rough cut but good natured blue collar workers, probably many Reagan Democrats that feel abandoned by both political parties.  In that regard they are no different than many of us.  Also, many in the forums experienced the full brunt of Hurricane Sandy, and it was the push they needed to start making good preparations.  It could be that God lets such disasters occur to wake up his people to what greater tragedies may befall us in the future, and to allow us to get ready before it is too late. – Mark in Minnesota

Recipe of the Week:

Linda U.’s Cream of Peanut Butter Soup

The peanut, goober  peas, salted roasted and butter. Good stuff. Packed with protein. But the peanut is really not a nut. It is a legume in a shell that grows in the dirt. Originally from South America the lowly peanut made its way to Spain via Spanish explorers then went to Africa. From Africa it was sent to America as food on the slave ships.  Not much was done with peanuts until the Civil War. Oil and food shortages meant a new appreciation for the little legume.  Around the same time, the people of the Five Civilized Tribes brought the peanut into Oklahoma.  The property that I own was planted with a peanut crop before the Great Depression. The food that we know and love as peanut butter made its debut at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. A doctor formulated it for elderly and infirm patients who could not chew other proteins. Now one half of the peanuts grown in the US, goes to peanut butter. Normally a soup would not be the first dish you think of made from peanut butter but most cookbooks from the 19th century has a soup recipe in it.  This recipe is good for a grid down situation because of the protein content.
 
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
8 cups Chicken Broth, homemade, canned or low sodium (with more as needed)
1 medium Sweet Onion, chopped
2 medium Carrots, peeled and grated
Sea Salt or Kosher Salt and White Ground Pepper to taste
½ to ¾ teaspoon ground Red Cayenne
½ cup cooked Brown or White Rice
½ cup Creamy Peanut Butter
Fine chopped salted or dry roasted Peanuts to garnish
 
In a medium soup pot, heat EVOO over medium heat. Add onions and carrots and sauté about 5 minutes. Stir often so they don’t brown. Pour in chicken broth. Increase heat to high and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring often.  Using a blender, food processor or immersion blender puree the onions and carrots.  Return  puree to soup pot and add cooked rice, seasonings to taste and the cayenne powder. Simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in peanut butter. Ladle into bowls, garnish with chopped nuts. Serve with hearty country style bread.

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

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader F.J. sent: 33 Awesome DiY Projects for Preppers

   o o o

The folks at PrepperPress.com have added yet another book to their SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest book package. It is is the 7th book in the 299 Days series. So their package now includes all 26 of the books published by PrepperPress.com. This is a $270 value.

   o o o

G.G. flagged this sad news that should serve as a lesson: Eight die from carbon monoxide poisoning as ice storms leave tens of thousands without power for nearly a week

   o o o

Empire State Gun Owners Bracing- for Cuomo’s Confiscation Scheme. (Thanks to James W. for the link.)

   o o o

Over at Survival Cache: Survival Gear Review: Monovault

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 50 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $9,700+ worth of 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), F.) A $300 Gift Certificate from Freeze Dry Guy. G.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. H.) 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, I.) Both VPN tunnel and DigitalSafe annual subscriptions from Privacy Abroad. They have a combined value of $195. J.) KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304. and K.) APEX Gun Parts is donating a $250 purchase credit.

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 EarthStraw “Code Red” 100 foot well pump system (a $500 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) $300 worth of ammo from Patriot Firearms and Munitions. (They also offer a 10% discount for all SurvivalBlog readers with coupon code SVB10P.), E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials F.)A full set of all 26 of the books published by PrepperPress.com. This is a $270 value, G.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value). H.) EP Lowers, makers of 80% complete fiber composite polymer lowers for the AR-15 rifles is donating a $250 gift certificate, I.) Autrey’s Armory — specialists in AR-15, M4s, parts and accessories– is donating a $250 gift certificate, and J.) Dri-Harvestfoods.com in Bozeman, Montana is providing a prize bundle with Beans, Buttermilk Powder, Montana Hard Red Wheat, Drink Mixes, and White Rice, valued at $333.

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.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security., E.) A MURS Dakota Alert Base Station Kit with a retail value of $240 from JRH Enterprises. F.) Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances, and G.) Ambra Le Roy Medical Products in North Carolina is donating a bundle of their traditional wound care and first aid supplies. This assortment has a retail value of $208.

Round 50 ends on January 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.

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure for TEOTWAWKI, by K.M. in Ohio

Many SurvivalBlog contributors have discussed storable foods, nutrition, First Aid, health care supplies, supplements, aromatherapy and herbs over the years I’ve been reading SurvivalBlog. But, what will you do if obtaining vitamins and common first-aid ointments will be difficult or extremely expensive? (Think Weimar Germany) So you may have Echinacea growing in your yard. Do you know how to prepare it for use effectively? What is a common source of vitamin C to prevent the debilitating disease of Scurvy and how do you use it? In the middle of winter it will be difficult to find Plantain leaves to put on your scratches when they are buried under 2 feet of snow and dormant in the soil. What will you use if Neosporin is unavailable? How can you stop a dangerous bout with diarrhea that may be of a parasitic nature? These are just a few conditions that if left untreated in the early stages can become life-and-death situations very quickly. The old adage: ‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’, should be in every prepared mind.

Disease prevention is easy and very essential in desperate times. Good nutrition and cleanliness, especially in Winter, are essential to ward off most illnesses.  A small scratch or bite on the hand, or soreness in the teeth can quickly escalate to a life threatening situation that will require skills that not every person has. What’s worse is that you may not even know someone who has those needed skills and knowledge to help you or your loved one. So, this is another ‘plug’ for you to get to know your neighbors and community. Fill your brain with fresh learning. We don’t live long enough to accumulate all the knowledge there is for everything that can be encountered. Surround yourself with intelligent and industrious people who can help and support each other in times of need.
Dr. Chuck Fenwick said in the Medical Corps class that I took, “Wash every wound!” Using clean, fresh water is better than not cleaning a wound at all. Infection can start very quickly in a dirty wound. This is very important to remember.

Onward to addressing the ‘how-to’s of basic self care without a drugstore or internet clearinghouse to fulfill your needs.

The Disclaimer: The following is not to be considered “Medical Advice”. The author is NOT a “Medical Doctor” or “Health Care Professional”. Any use of this information is solely the responsibility of the Reader. [words in quotations owned by U.S. Federal Government.])

Regarding the use of Herbs: more is not better! Always use the recommended dosages and directed amounts from materials authored by qualified practitioners. These are already proven safe over many generations. Do not experiment unless you have studied herbalism.

Vitamins are a great stop-gap to slow down and turn around the effects of poor nutrition. But, they are very expensive and generally require extra resources from the body to digest- making absorption 50% or less and there are many manufacturers that use poor quality ingredients making many vitamins virtually indigestible. So, do your research and find supplements that are plant based which are what your body is designed to use. Pills are convenient, but liquids and water soluble powders are easier to digest making them about 90% absorbable.
This is where the knowledge of plants comes in. Winter is the most nutritionally stressful time of the year, so give special attention to nutrition to avoid disease.
 Next summer when you are out in the wilds, collect the following herbs for a nutritional herbal brew you can make while you are sleeping.

Herbal Nutritional Brew:
Dried Stinging Nettles (Urtica dioica); These provide minerals, proteins and amino acids essential for body functions. These must be picked before flowering and dried as the juice is very irritating. This is irritation avoided when they are dried because the irritating compounds are broken down when the water has evaporated. Use tools or gloves for picking. Rinse off any debris or dirt and dry in a dehydrator or warm dark place.
Fresh or Dried Red Clover (Trifolium pretense); These provide proteins, vitamins and balancing nutrients for proper endocrine functions. Pick while in full flower. The flowers are tastiest but the whole plant can be used. Clean off any dirt before drying.
Fresh preferred, or dried Pine needles (Pinus); provide more ‘Vitamin C’ than any citrus. This is one way Native Americans survived the winters without getting Scurvy. Pine needles grow 2-5 needles per ‘hole’ on the branches. If the needles are 1 per hole, that’s NOT Pine. This is important! “Fir” needles can cause miscarriage and cause upset stomach; they also suppress the desire for food. Know your Evergreens!
Dried or fresh Rose hips or leaves (Rosa); This is another option for Vitamin C. You can combine with Pine needles or use them separately. The hips are the fruiting bodies that turn red after First Frost, they have lots of seeds and some varieties have minimal flesh and many have a light fruity flavor. The flesh is where the Vitamin C is held and some varieties have very little. That’s why my first option is Pine needles. Much easier to find and no thorns. J
Dried or fresh Flowering Oat tops; (Avena sativa)This is for digestive strength, cooling irritated tissues in the gut and nourishing nerve tissues. You can grow a clump of these from seed or ask a local farmer if you can pick a few handfuls from the edge of his field. Don’t do roadsides, plants absorb the chemicals from motor traffic. Go down the field’s access road to pick; please don’t forget to ask the farmer first.
FOR THE BREW:
4 quarts water heated to a gentle boil, 4 quart canning jars with lids:
Put a Tablespoon of each herb in each jar. Pour the boiling water over the herbs. Cap them tightly and leave for several hours or overnight. In the morning pour the brew into a pan, straining out the plant material. Heat just until steamy, pour back into rinsed jars, cap tightly and allow to cool. When completely cooled, store in the refrigerator, basement or cellar.
Dosages: Adults and children 12 yrs and over- ½ to 1 Cup daily, children 5 to 12 yrs old- 1 Tablespoon to ¼ Cup Daily, Children 2 to 5 years old- 1-2 teaspoons daily.  12 months to 2 year old- ¼  to ½ teaspoon Daily. Do NOT give to infants. Safe for pregnant and nursing mothers. SEE NOTE on FIR above.
LABEL THE JARS: put the ingredients, date made and dosages. This is good for 4 weeks, unopened in the refrigerator, Once opened, use within a week.

Believe me, you WILL forget some or all of that information when you go reach for those jars. Put all of it on there so there’s no guessing.
Cold and Flu support tonic:
This is used when you suspect that you are coming down with a cold or the flu. This will support the immune system without stress. I also recommend using the herbal brew for nutritional support when feeling under-the-weather.
Gather “Heal-All” herb (Prunella vulgaris)  This is an anti-viral.
 Any kind of Mint for calming the digestive system and nerves.
 Burdock (Arctium minus) seeds or dried root, This is an immune stimulant, anti-biotic, tonic and anti-inflammatory, High in minerals and vitamins. NOTE :Pregnant women should not use this plant as a tea until last trimester.
 Elder flowers (Sambucus Canadensis) This nourishes the immune system, helps circulation and oxygen flow
Oregano (Oreganum vulgaris) leaves This is an anti-fungal anti-biotic, helps lung function and digestive weakness, ( Note: Don’t use an Oregano you bought in the baking section at the local grocery. These are often a form of Marjoram because it’s cheaper and easier to grow.) NOTE: Pregnant women should this plant as a tea. It can cause contractions.
Boil 1 ½ pints water. Remove from heat and add 1 heaping Tablespoon of each herb. Stir and allow to simmer for 30 minutes with a lid on LOW HEAT. Allow to cool overnight with lid on. Gently bring to a low boil again and remove from the heat immediately. Allow to cool till luke-warm. Strain into glass jars and add honey to taste. (You may add 1 to 1 ½ teaspoon unrefined salt, such as Himalayan or Redmond’s Real salt, for assisting the body in making its fluids)
Dosage: Adults and children 12 years and over- 2 Tablespoons 1-3 times daily. Children 5 to 12 years1 to 2 teaspoons 1-3 times daily. Children 2 to 5 years old, ½ teaspoon 1-3 times daily.  Use within 1 week. Safe for nursing mothers, Pregnant mothers do not add Burdock and see NOTE on Burdock above.

Herbal Wound Ointment for minor scratches, cuts and rashes:
Next summer pick several handfuls of the following herbs to make an all-purpose wound ointment to have all year round:
 “Common Plantain” or the Native favorite, “Long Leaf Plantain”(Plantago); This is a fabulous wound herb. It disinfects, cleanses and encourages closure of the wound. This can be used in the ointment fresh or dried.
Flowering “Yarrow”(Achillea), This has been known as ‘warriors wound wort’. It is best used dried. This helps the body nourish and close the wound. It is also anti-biotic. NOTE: Pregnant women should not use this plant as a tea until last trimester.
The ointment will be sufficient with these two herbs but I encourage you to grow some Basil for kitchen use and for medicine.
Dried or fresh Basil  ( Basilicum); This common kitchen herb is originally from southern Asia, it encourages blood circulation, is high in minerals and vitamins and is anti-fungal. NOTE: Pregnant women should not use this plant as a tea, can cause miscarriage and bleeding. But is helpful to expel a stubborn “afterbirth”.
To Prepare:
1 cup natural food oil such as-coconut, palm oil, olive oil, sunflower oil, sesame oil
-warm the oil in a double boiler or a metal bowl over a pot of steaming water and Very Low Heat
1 Tablespoon each of Plantain, Yarrow and Basil added to the warm oil
Allow to simmer in warm oil for 3-6 hours. Prepare a wide mouthed jar and lid by sterilizing it as you would for canning purposes. . (1 Tablespoon of bees wax can be added to make the ointment thicker)
When ready, pour the warm oil into the jar using a wire mesh sieve or tea strainer to remove plant material. A little plant “dust” will not affect the successful use of this ointment so don’t worry about getting out the minutia.
Label and store in a cool dark place. Use as you would any store-bought minor wound ointment. Warning: This is NOT for deep cuts which may require stitches. It will be good for one year from date of production if kept in a cool dark place.
So, what do you do with that Echinacea? A Tea is okay, but you will get the most benefit by making an alcohol extract of the roots. For those who wish to avoid alcohol, you can use edible vegetable glycerine available from the drugstore or online.
In early Spring when just beginning to grow or late Fall when the plant goes dormant but the dry stalk is still visible, dig up the roots.  Rinse in cold water to remove as much dirt as possible. (It doesn’t need to be perfectly clean, the rest will be processed out)
Remove any ugly debris from the roots, then chop into small pieces or shred with any kitchen appliance.

Echinacea Extract: (roots of “Black Eyed Susan” a.k.a. Rudbekia can be used in the same way)
Sterilize a glass jar or bottle and lid, preferably a dark colored one (blue, green or brown)
Place the chopped root in the jar and cover completely with Vodka or Glycerine.
This is your “herbal maceration”. Seal the jar and label contents and date, put in a warm dark place for 3 weeks to 3 months (longer is better). It can be used in 3 weeks if needed. Occasionally shake the jar to stir its contents.
When the macerating time is complete, prepare a clean, dark bottle and lid by rinsing with Vodka. Using a funnel and tea strainer or coffee filter, pour the extract into the new bottle. LABEL BOTTLE with ingredients/date/dosages. Extracts have an indefinite shelf-life if tightly sealed and kept clean of contaminates.
Dosages: Adults and children 12 years and older-1/2 to 1 teaspoon 1-3 times Daily, Children 5 to 12 years old, ¼ to ½ teaspoon 1-3 times Daily. Do NOT give to children under 5 years old. Use the brews above instead. Safe for Nursing mothers. Pregnant mothers take dosage for “5-12 years old”, although some herbalists would tell you not to take it at all. Make an informed choice and do research.

Finally, a brief instruction on what is a “medicinal tea”; these should not to be confused with common recreational tea beverages.  A medicinal tea is brewed 15 to 30 minutes. Longer is better but then the dosages change, so we will keep it simple. The herbs mentioned in the recipes above can be used as a tea too.
Herbs For Diarrhea:  Dried Nettles) (Urtica dioica, dried Mullein root (Verbascum Thapsus), dried Staghorn/Smooth Sumac root (Rhus typhina, or glabra, or integrifolia), dried Raspberry (black or red) root (Rubus), Dried Alder bark (Alnus); just to name a few. A pinch of dried/ powdered Black Walnut: Green Hulls (Juglans nigra) can be added if parasites are suspected. NOTE: Pregnant women should not use Black Walnut which can cause uterine contractions and other problems.
Boil water, use 1 heaping teaspoon herb per cup of water. Steep 15 to 30 mins and drink 1-3 times Daily until relieved.
Natural hard-wood charcoal powder can be added a pinch at a time up to 1 teaspoon when Diarrhea is very severe.

Note: When drying your herbs, store the finished products in glass or ceramic jars with tight lids. Label and date when the herb was stored. Upper parts of the plants can be kept for 6 months in a kitchen  cupboard or to 1 year in a cool dark place. Dried roots and barks can be stored 1 year in the cupboard or to 2 years in a cool dark place. When the herb no longer has a strong scent when opened, compost it and get a new batch.

This has been intended to give you natural, less costly options to enable you to begin practicing daily support for your health and nutrition; and to nurture creativity, independence and self-sufficiency. I hope you will be inspired to continue learning about the treasures of the plant kingdom that our Creator has provided for our use (Genesis 1:29).
Tamra Carlsen, a Christian herbalist from Minnesota said:, “Herbs are God’s little packets of super nutrition.”

Dr. David W. Christopher director of “The School of Natural Healing” in Utah said: “I truly believe that we need an Herbalist in every home and a Master Herbalist in every community.”

Further Reading and Education:
Books with recipes:

Health Through God’s Pharmacy: Advice and Proven Cures with Medicinal Herbs by Maria Treben
Holistic Herbal 4th Edition: A Safe and Practical Guide to Making and Using Herbal Remedies by David Hoffman
Growing 101 Herbs That Heal: Gardening Techniques, Recipes, and Remedies by Tammi Hartung,
A Modern Herbal (in two volumes): The Medicinal, Culinary, Cosmetic and Economic Properties, Cultivation and Folk-Lore of Herbs, Grasses, Fungi, Shrubs & Trees with Their Modern Scientific Uses by Maude Grieve
The Complete Herbal Handbook for Farm and Stable by Juliette de Bairacli Levy
Healing Wise (Wise Woman Herbal Series) by Susun Weed

Web sites:
www.herbmentor.com;
www.natural-healing-guide.com

Education:
www.heartofherbs.com
http://snh.cc (The School of Natural Healing)

Herb Sources:
www.WesternBotanicals.com
www.MountainRoseHerbs.com

Letter Re: Use of the Title Architect

Letter Re: Use of the Title Architect

James,
In nearly every state I am aware of it is unlawful and may be a misdemeanor for any person to use a title, business name, or description of business services using the word “architect”, or “architectural” to refer to one’s self or business, unless the principal of the firm is a state licensed architect. Some states take this so seriously that I as a licensed architect on several states, am prohibited to use of “Architect” and/or “Architectural” in a state where I am not licensed, or in a state where I am licensed, and my license has lapsed or I failed the renewal criteria. Illinois even goes one step further and requires any firm which wants to call itself “Design-Build” be under the direction of a Licensed Architect or  Registered Professional Engineer (PE). When I have an out of state project which does not require me to obtain an additional license, for example Idaho County, Idaho, I only refer to my self in title and contract as “building designer” to avoid the wrath of the state architects board.

For example, see this site, describing Oregon’s laws.

Every quarter the CAB, California Architect’s [Board] publishes violations, convictions and fines. A very large portion of these are for the violation of “Holding oneself out to be an architect” and the fines range from $500 to $5,000, and though I have yet to see it the state of CA reserve the right to unto 12 month jail as a Class A misdemeanor.

So you can imagine, that reading today’s posting from the contractor made my skin crawl with the repeated and even capitalized reference to the posting party as an “Architectural Designer” (as we used to say in the Army, “That’s a major NO-GO”; on that note it may be considered similar to the UCMJ section on “Impersonating an Office.”)

The precursors to becoming an actual licensed architect compared to becoming a licensed contractor in many states is as vast as the difference between becoming a doctor and an ambulance driver, and this is not an exaggeration. For example I am also a general contractor in Chicago, but it was little more than an application form, local fee and providing a certificate of insurance to become a Chicago Licensed General Contractor”

Or,

At  the very least, such as in the case of California, where there is a sophisticated contractor licensing a program requiring evidence of past experience, and a rigid exam, with legal aspects of practice, the difference is comparable to Registered Nurse to Doctor.

So while, in the post collapse world and post mass human die off, any valid experience may be respected and valuable;  in the present world your recent poster has crossed a line which disrespects those who have achieved the title “architect” and may be illegal.

The use of Architect and Architectural in title, for those in the construction industry, is only achieved after the following:
1. Formalized education at an  NAAB accredited college leading to a degree recognized by a state board as valid for licensure. (My Bachelor’s degree at U. of Illinois was enough for some states but not enough for many states so I had to go back for a Master’s)
2. Completion of  3 to 5 years of internship, depending on level of architectural degree, (Masters vs. Bachelors) validated by the national  NCARB Intern Development Program (NCARB IDP)  for verification of multi-thousand hours of experience, in over a dozen specific categories, signed off by licensed architects,
3. Achieve passing scores on all  8 parts of the national NCARB Architectural Registration Exam (NCARB ARE). Until this exam was computerized in 1996, it was 4 long lays of testing with the final day being a 12 hour long Charette to design an entire building, which passes all codes, based on being provided just a written program requirement and site plan
4. Pass any local state exam, which for some states is none to easy, for others is notorious.
5. Applied to and been accepted by that state’s Architects Review Board, passed a criminal background check, including domestic child support payment status, (sometimes with additional candidate interview process) paid the annual fees.
6. Going forward, once licensed,continuing to provide annual or biannual proof of continuing education especially Health Safety and Welfare (HSW) ed units.

Whew! Yes, all that and more! it is a lot. My Father and Grandfather were general contractors and carpenters, and I highly respect their intellect, work ethic, and experience, however, it is not the same level of responsibility as a Licensed Architect. Nearly every state has included in its charter for architects a phrase to encompass an architect’s primary duty which includes the wording “To protect the Health Safety and Welfare of the Public in the Built Environment”

This responsibility sometimes is in conflict with paying clients wishes, but must remain in the for front of an architects mind in respect to all his decisions.
I hope this clarifies use of the term “Architect” and “Architectural”

Sincerely,
D.C. (AIA, NCARB, M-Arch)

Economics and Investing:

SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson forwarded a link to a FAS and government report on rare earths.

Reader Jerry E. recommended a captivating article in The Guardian: Former BP geologist: peak oil is here and it will ‘break economies’

N.S. suggested this video:Economic Problems and the Rise of Dictators — Mike Maloney & James Turk

J.B.G. sent: Shoppers Stock Up On Rifles, Shotguns Before Long Gun Registry Begins

Moguls Rent South Dakota Addresses to Dodge Taxes Forever. (Thanks to H.L. for the link.)

Silver To Hit New Highs As The Quality Of Analysis Sinks To New Lows