Letter Re: Secession in These United States

James,
In response to the article involving the constitutionality of secession, a few other points to consider to perhaps gain a clearer view of the secession situation.  Understanding the individual states sovereignty in relation to the United states government is crucial.
 
1.  Abraham Lincoln claimed that the Union preceded the states which gave the Federal government authority over the states.  This view is incorrect as the original 13 colonies adopted the Articles of Confederation in which each state retained its freedom, independence, and sovereignty.  Each state delegated a portion of its sovereignty to the Union, thereby making the Union a creature of the state, not the other way around.  Further each state was by name acknowledged as free, independent, and sovereign in the Treaty of Paris in 1783.
 
2.  Sovereignty is indivisible.  A portion of a states authority, or power may be delegated as is seen in the 9th and 10th amendments to the Constitution.  But the sovereign state retains the right to recall its authority otherwise it is no longer sovereign.  “The powers not delegated to the United States by the constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.”- 10th amendment. In Chisholm v. Georgia (1793) the court found “To the Constitution of the United States the term sovereign, is totally unknown.  There is but one place where it could have been used with propriety.  But, even in that place it would not, perhaps, have comported with the delicacy of those, who ordained and established that Constitution.  They might have announced themselves “sovereign” people of the United States:  But serenely conscious of the fact, they avoided the ostentatious declaration….Let a State be considered as subordinate to the People:  But let every thing else be subordinate to the State”.- Chisolm v. Georgia, 2 US 419
 
3.  Shortly after the ratification of the Constitution, the federal government began its encroachment upon the states.  With the passage of the Sedition Act in 1798,  Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, (creator of the Virginia plan which evolved into the Constitution), were asked by the state of Kentucky and Virginia to  author the “Kentucky and Virginia Resolves of 1798” which nullified the enforcement of the Sedition Act within their states.  All three branches of the Federal government had conspired against the people of the states in violating their right to freedom of speech and press.  The sovereign authority of the states of Kentucky and Virginia interposed between the citizens of these states and the Federal government.
 
4.  For those states which were admitted into the Union who were not participants in the ratification, the equal footing doctrine would apply basically stating that all states shared the same powers and sovereignty as the original thirteen.  See: Pollard v. Hagan, and Permoli v. First Municipality of New Orleans.
 
5.  This now brings us to Texas v. White.  This case was decided on a 5-3 vote.  The 5 who voted as a majority were Lincoln appointees.  One of the three dissenters Justice Robert Cooper Grier, an appointee to the court by President Polk in 1846, called Chief Justice Chases opinion a “legal fiction” as he considered Texas to not be a state in the union at the time this case was being decided.  Further  Chief Justice Chase should have recused himself from this case do to himself being involved in the case in 1862 as secretary of the treasury.  There are many more details involved in this case in which one who is interested in further details should consult John Avery Emison, Ph.D. book called Lincoln Über Alles: Dictatorship Comes to America.
 
In conclusion,  as one searches out the true history of the formation of our Federal government through the eyes of the anti-federalists who foretold with incredible accuracy the results of adopting this contract known as the Constitution with its inherent flaws, one of which would be a supreme court which could interpret its own actions and laws within itself.  A court which eventually saw its actions as sovereign having no higher authority to hold them in check.  Is it any wonder that we should have such absurd decisions as that found in Texas v. White, which become the foundation for the premise of secession as being unconstitutional or at the very least, the supreme court being accepted as having jurisdiction in this area which has not been delegated to them by the states?  I would think that we have been swindled into the notion of thinking of secession as a “rebellion” and  should rather view it as a God given right which is protected under the 9th and 10th amendment to our Constitution.  In contrast the terms and phraseology used to characterize the actions of the Federal government over the past 150 years I’ll leave for the reader to decide. – C.L. from Montana 

News From The American Redoubt:

Washington’s wolf packs are spreading west to the Cascade mountain range. [JWR’s Comment: I predict that it won’t be until wolves start snatching dogs, cats and perhaps kids out of back yards in western Washington that the state legislature takes action.]

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Election maps show “shrunken” Redoubt. These maps illustrate how light the population density is here!

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A reader told me about another prepper-friendly church in Idaho: Grace Sandpoint Church.

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Montana lawmaker asks to be paid in gold. His request was very quickly denied.

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A rare event: Bank robbery in Rexburg, Idaho. SurvivalBlog reader “Jen” sent the link and mentioned: “Look at the picture of the robber leaving the credit union. He is reported to have “cleaned out” the bank after he locked all of the employees in the vault. Note how empty the bag is. That credit union had very, very little cash in it. I guess even the bank robbers are going to have to work a little bit harder. A bank run there would have been over in minutes;”

Economics and Investing:

Paul Krugman suggests a 91% top income tax rate. (If this happens, the congresscritters will see a million or more Americans go Galt.)

R.M. sent a link to article that serves as a word of warning for those who run businesses that have large cash customers: Williamsburg gun business, owner, punished by feds. R.M.’s Comment: “This is a fine shop, with great husband and wife owners.  The shop is in the lower floor of their home in tiny Williamsburg, Iowa.  Great people getting trampled by the government.”

The System Will Collapse, It Must Collapse

FHA Red Ink May Be $32.8 Billion, Double Official Audit. (Thanks to G.G. for the link.)

Items from The Economatrix:

Banks Told By Feds To Test For 12% Unemployment (See next article which contemplates a 9.1% unemployment rate just from the fiscal cliff.  It’s probably going to be worse than that.)

Industrial Production In US Drops 0.4% On Sandy Effect

Odds ‘n Sods:

November is the month of the year that new phone books are released in most of the country. Take this opportunity to lawfully collect un-used or lightly used copies of obsolete phone books that would otherwise be recycled or hauled to a landfill. A stack about 6 feet tall would make a good paper reserve for a typical family. The paper in phone books has many uses including kindling or ersatz toilet paper.

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32 dead. They have serious cattle rustlers in Africa, and they are obviously willing to kill, to protect their food source.: Kenyan Police Massacre: Residents ‘Flee Homes’. (Thanks to F.G. for the link.)

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Possible cause for concern: New sinkhole image shows ‘original edge’ of Napoleonville salt dome may be gone — Section thousands of feet tall. In case you are wondering, it is in Louisiana. Here is a map.)

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Joel Skousen interviewed by Alex Jones about relocation. (Two hour long video!) Thanks to Jim W. for the link.

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Several readers sent this: Growing concerns over ‘in the air’ transmission of Ebola

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"We have four boxes with which to defend our freedom: the soap box, the ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box." – Congressman Larry McDonald

Note from JWR:

The fine folks at Pantry Paratus have announced a Buy One, Give One (BOGO) product offering to benefit Christian Reformed Outreach, South Sudan (C.R.O.S.S.). The BOGO product offering is the Stronghold Haywire Klamper. For each one that you buy, an identical one will be sent to distribute free of charge to villagers in South Sudan. I encourage other gear vendors to do likewise. Particularly needed are earth tone or Multicam magazine pouches (AK and HK-G3), canteens with covers, hydration packs, rifle slings, and rifle buttstock pouches.

Pat’s Product Review: DPMS AR-15 Lower Receiver Group

As I’ve mentioned before in my SurvivalBlog articles, I’m am swamped with requests to do firearms articles on particular firearms. While I would love to accommodate all the requests I get, it is impossible. I know a lot of folks believe that gun writers get guns for free to write about, that simply isn’t the case. We have to request a firearm from gun companies, I either have to return it, or buy it when I’m done testing them. As much as I’d love to purchase all the firearms I write about, I can’t do it – my finances don’t allow it – not even close. So, I return many of the firearms I write about. And, many times, I have to pay for the return shipping, which means, it actually cost me money to do an article – I’m a volunteer editor at SurvivalBlog, receive no pay. So, as much as I’d love to write about all the firearms that you request me to review, I simply can’t do it. What I will do is, from time-to-time is, request some of the newest firearms that I think would be great for survival purposes – street, wilderness or end of the world survival.
 
I’ve also mentioned before that I’m a habitual gun trader – and there is one very good reason for this – I don’t have the funds to purchase all the firearms I’d like to purchase, so I do a lot of gun trading. I honestly don’t own as many firearms as most folks believe. So, with this said, let’s take a look at one of my latest gun trades. I recently ran into a great deal on a brand-new DPMS AR-15 lower receiver, with a fixed butt stock and fully assembled. My local gun shop also had a used M4 Carbine upper receiver, with the complete bolt carrier group. So, I did some horse trading, and walked out with the DPMS and unknown make of upper M4 Carbine receiver group for some testing.
 
The DPMS lower receiver had the fixed butt stock as mentioned. And, just when I needed a telescoping 4 or 6 position butt stock – my local gun shop didn’t have one in-stock. However, they did have a banned no position “telescoping” stock – which means its basically a fixed position stock, but it was going to look better on my project M4 than the fixed butt stock that came with the DPMS lower receiver. Also, the upper receiver I got in the trade – someone had did a camo job on it – spray paint – and it was painted in blue and gray – I’m assuming this was meant to be some sort of urban camo job – and whoever did it, didn’t do a very good job.
 
The first thing I did was swap out the fixed butt stock for the “telescoping” butt stock on the lower receiver, not a problem. I examined the lower receiver and everything was working as it should. I attached the upper receiver to the lower and it actually fit together snuggly – GREAT! I took the gun apart and checked the bolt and bolt carrier group, to make sure everything was there and working – it was. I examined the barrel for obstructions – none to be found. However, the barrel and chamber weren’t chrome plated. In my wet climate, I prefer a chromed chamber and barrel to help prevent rust. Also, this upper had the 11-inch barrel with the permanently attached 5 1/2-inch flash suppressor, and I’ve always just like the look of this set-up. Only thing is, with the shorter barrel, you don’t have the accuracy and longer range shooting abilities, as you’d have with a 16-inch barrel. Still, you’re good to go for a couple hundred yards. This set-up is really meant for close-up use and not longer range shooting. The upper receiver is of the A1 configuration, which means the A1 rear sight, which is a bit harder to adjust for windage than the A2 sights are, and there is no brass deflector – which isn’t a problem for me, as I’m a right-handed shooter. I cleaned and lubed the upper and put the gun back together and took it out for a simple function test – everything worked great.
 
Next up was a camo spray paint job of my own, and I used an OD green spray paint with a desert camo spray paint. All things considered, the gun looked pretty good – at least it looked better than it did with the upper receiver with the blue and gray camo paint job did. I also used a drill bit to open-up the 200-yard rear sight peep hole – I just found it to be a little bit too small for close-up and person CQB work – it took all of 30-seconds to open-up that peep hole aperture – the longer range peep sight aperture was fine. After the spray paint camo job was dry, I took the gun out to the range for some serious testing. I had a good variety of ammo on-hand from Black Hills Ammunition, Buffalo Bore Ammunition and Winchester. The first thing I did was run three 30-round magazines of the Winchester 5.56mm 55-grain FMJ ammo through the M4 as fast as I could pull the trigger and change out magazines – this really got the gun hot and it is a good function test. There were zero malfunctions at all!
 
During hunting season, there are a lot of deer hunters out in my area, so I restricted my accuracy testing to only 50 yards, with a mountain for a backstop – I didn’t want any rounds going downrange where they shouldn’t be going, and having a hunter return fire on me. I don’t do a lot of long range shooting during hunting season. But a 50-yard target would give me some idea as to how accurate this little parts gun would be. I tried some of the Buffalo Bore .223 Remington 69-gr Sniper ammo – and I was getting nice cloverleaf clusters for my efforts – shooting over a rest over the hood of my rig. Second up was the Black Hills 68-grain Heavy Match ammo – again, nice little groups of around an inch. I was starting to get impressed with this little M4 parts gun. I’ll take an inch group with this little gun, at 50-yards all day long – that computes to two inches at 100 yards. Last up was the Winchester 55-gr 5.56mm white box ammo – and I not only got one inch groups out of this ammo, I also had some 3-shot one hole groups – which was well under half an inch. At first, I thought I had missed the target with a shot or two. I repeated my accuracy testing, only to find out, I was actually getting some very small, one-hole groups with 3-shots – and we’re talking one small hole – not a clover-leaf hole, where all shots are touching – but one hole, and not a “ragged” hole – one neat little hole.
 
I repeated the accuracy testing with the Buffalo Bore and Black Hills loads, knowing that both of these loads have always been extremely accurate in any ARs I’ve tested them in. I continued to get the clover-leaf patterns with both of these loads. I went back to the Winchester white box 5.56mm 55-grain load, and continued to get the smallest groups with this load. So, I’m assuming that this barrel liked the 55-gain better than the heavier loads from Black Hills and Buffalo Bore. So, you should always test various brands of ammo, as well as bullet weights, to see which loads shoot more accurate in your guns. I was really surprised that the less-expensive Winchester 55-grain 5.56mm rounds shot this fantastic in this little parts M4. I like to use Winchester white box for a lot of my function testing.
 
Okay, so how would the little parts M4 shoot with another brand of .223 ammo? I dug out some Black Hills 55-grain remanufactured .223 ammo and ran that through the gun – it too shot one hole groups at 50-yards. So, this confirmed my belief that this barrel really liked 55-grain bullet weights the best. I also ran three 30-rd magazines full of the Black Hills remanufactured ammo through the gun as fast as I could pull the trigger – the gun got hot, but no malfunctions – this little gun was a gem. And, to those of you who don’t believe in remanufactured ammo – I’ve never had a single problem with any Black Hills remanufactured ammo – not one round. That can’t be said for all remanufactured ammo. I once had an Ultramax .40S&W round let loose in a Glock 23 – it blew the case head off the brass – and I had to dig the case out of the chamber. I wrote Ultramax about this twice – never got a reply – so they weren’t too concerned about some bad ammo – I’ll never use Ultramax remanufactured in any of my firearms again. I know that Black Hills hand checks each and every round of ammo they make – even remanufactured ammo!
 
I only wished this little project gun had a chromed bore and chamber – I mean, I can live without it, but in my wet climate, it just means I have to keep an eye on the barrel and keep a light coat of Barricade in the barrel and chamber to help prevent rust. I know many folks prefer a non-chromed barrel, as they get a little better accuracy from their ARs than from chromed ones. But unless you’re shooting in high-powered rifle competitions, you should go with the chromed barrel and bore in my humble opinion. My total investment in this parts gun, not counting the spray paint that I had on-hand, was only $520 – and that is a real bargain for an M4. I wouldn’t hesitate to take this gun into a gun fight, or use it for long-term survival. The upper was obviously well-used, which meant, at least to my way of thinking, that whoever owned it before shot it a lot – so I figured it would work for me. As for the brand-new lower receiver from DPMS – I knew it would work, too. Whenever I look at a completed “parts AR” I take a really close look at everything – some folks just don’t know what they’re doing when they assemble guns – and just because the parts all fit together, doesn’t mean the parts were “fitted” to specifications and it can be dangerous to shoot those guns. So, be advised, if you happen upon any parts ARs – take it to a gunsmith and let them check it out before you shoot it. I felt confident in my abilities as a trained military armorer on the AR, that I knew this little M4 would work properly. However, if you have any doubts, take your AR to a qualified gunsmith and have them check it out before you shoot it.
 
One of these days, I’m going to replace the non-telescoping butt stock, with a 4-position telescoping butt stock. I could go with the 6-position telescoping butt stock, but with the carbine handguard on the upper, and the barrel/flash suppressor set-up, I think the 4-position butt stock will work out better, and the gun is fast handling, too – it only weighs slightly more than 6-pounds. It would make a great bedside gun for home protection, or for use in a survival situation. And, for a $520 investment, it’s hard to find much fault in this little outstanding shooter. A person could do a lot worse, and best thing is, it really loved the less expensive 55-grain bullet loads, for best accuracy. A parts AR that always goes “bang” when the trigger is pulled, and outstanding accuracy…what more can you ask for? – SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Pat Cascio

Letter Re: Lakota Warehouse Bank?

James Wesley:
Can you provide any insight on the banking services and the Lakota [copper, silver and gold] coins from the Lakota Bank? Thanks, – Bryan E.

JWR Replies:
They are to be commended for their pluck, but their fees are high. More importantly, their arbitrary Cu/Ag/Au ratios (2/50/5,000) will certainly come back to bite them.  (Fixed ratios are a bad idea! The silver-to-gold ratio is constantly changing. I expect to see a 10-to-1 ratio by the middle of this Century. Anyone that locks themselves into a fixed bimetallic ratio is sowing the seeds of their own downfall. The Liberty Dollar folks made the same mistake. (But they were shut down by the Feds long before the fixed exchange bimetallic ratio caught up with them. In their case, it was their use of the word “Dollar” and the Dollar sign ($) that cost them.)

The concept of selling a 1-ounce .999-fine copper coin for several dollars is laughable for anything other than perhaps a collector’s piece. Copper is a base metal (not a precious metal), and its price ratio to silver is FAR, FAR, FAR from 50 to one! (Copper is priced on the futures market by the TON, rather than by the Troy ounce.)

Sadly, they will likely to get shut down by the IRS, for money laundering and/or constructive tax evasion.  The same thing has happened again and again to other warehouse banks inside the United States.  See, for example the sad story of Richard Flowers and the Christian Patriot Association.

For the present time, it is far better to anonymously buy one ounce silver rounds at just over spot on the open market and store them at home.

Recipe of the Week:

Steve in Rhode Island’s Dish With No Name

Here’s a recipe I’d like to share that’s both inexpensive and nutritious. It’s been around for years and I’m sure it goes by lots of different names. It was passed down to my Mom from my Grandmother and she fed four of us kids back in the day when prepping and just getting by was a way of life and had no name. I raised my two daughters on it and now that they are grown and it’s just the youngest and myself I still make it.
 
The great thing about this is that it makes a LOT of food and the ingredients are simple and can be bought in any market. It’s cheap and you can stock up on the ingredients as they last for years. This is a two pan meal. I can make this meal for under $3.00.
 
Ingredients:
One 28oz can of Whole Peeled Tomatoes.
Two 16oz cans of Pork and Beans. Campbells or store brand. The 16oz is average size.
1lb of Elbow Macaroni.
Optional is a diced onion and some spices. I like garlic powder, oregano, and black pepper.
 
In a good sized sauce pan, cook up some diced onion in a little oil.
Add the Whole Tomatoes and mash them up with potato masher or something similar.
Simmer, add spices, then add Beans.
Cook up the Elbow Macaroni.
Add the cooked and drained Macaroni to the sauce and mix. Let it sit for a bit.

Chef’s Notes:

Add some Parmesan Cheese to taste.
 
You’ll be amazed how good this meal is and how many people it can feed.

Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:

28 Basic Kitchen Safety Tips

The Do’s and Don’ts of Food Storage, Separation and Segregation and Packaging

Cooking with Basic Food Storage: Rice Recipes

Currently Available as Free e-Books (in PDF):

Healthy Rice Recipes For Dinner

11 Free Recipe Ebooks (in one file)

(Note: SurvivalBlog’s once burgeoning recipe queue is running low! Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. At present, holiday recipes would be particularly appreciated. Thanks!

Economics and Investing:

And you thought the upcoming 39.8% Federal tax rate sounded bad… Did you see this cliff coming? Ranchers, farmers brace for ‘death tax’ impact. The exemption drops from $3.5 million $1 million, and the rate jumps to a confiscatory 55%.

B.B. sent: Peter Schiff: Dollar Collapse Before Obama’s Out

I missed this when it aired last June: CNBC pundits admit we’re all slaves to the central bankers.

Items from The Economatrix:

Ron Paul On Secession

No Surprise!  Jobless Claims Up 78,000 Week After Election; Pennsylvania, Ohio Worst Hit

John Galta:  Gold Will Move $500 Per Ounce Per Major City

Europe’s Economy Returns To Recession

Odds ‘n Sods:

Don’t miss this: Mother Lode: Big caches of free and legal TEOTWAWKI downloads

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Reader Dave G. wrote to mention: “If ‘Superstorm Sandy’ was just a Level 1 hurricane, then how well will FEMA and the state-level disaster agencies cope with a Level 3 or Level 4 in the same region? I’ll never move back to the coast! And I’m avoiding tornado country, too. American Redoubt, here I come…”

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Preppr Bawb sent a link that he found to a UN manual on drying meat. It is only a few pages but very detailed. Looks like it was developed for Third World countries–or just what you’d expect after an TEOTWAWKI  incident.

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Congressman Ron Paul’s Farewell Speech to Congress. (Lengthy, but thought-provoking.)

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The Land of Not-So-Free Speech: In UK, Twitter, Facebook rants land some in jail. (Kudos to J.B.G. for the link.)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 43 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, 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 $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) 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. B.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) 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, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, E.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 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.), and E.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 43 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Muscovy Ducks: Sustainable Food for Post-TSHTF by Joe M.

Finding a good sustainable food supply post TSHTF has been a difficult and long journey. It’s going to be a lot more than storing dehydrated food, water and having some seeds. Eventually you will run out of food and will need a way to feed your family in sustainable way.  What are the best options of doing this? A remote retreat with several different types of livestock and a large garden all sound very nice but is it practical? Let’s go thru all of the options. In a post TSHTF situation we might have to consider mobility. Fire, radiation, large gangs or worse yet, our own government troops coming after us are just a few of the possibilities than could cause you to be highly mobile. I do believe it’s a great idea to have a remote retreat and even better if you live there full time. We also have to worry about security and maintaining a perimeter over all key infrastructure including livestock, barns, gardens, cisterns etc. We will have to maintain noise, light & smell discipline. It’s always better to avoid being a target going undetected. I would rather avoid a firefight at all cost. The sound of a generator or livestock, can be heard a long way off. It will mean I have power and or food. Same holds for maintaining light & smell disciplines. Cooking beacon or meat outside can let others know you have food. Blackout curtains will help with light shinning thru windows. The smell of a fire and or food that is cooking must also be avoided. Stealth is a key goal.

There will probably be long hard work days and or nights. This will cause us to need more calories and good sources of proteins. What are our best options?

Garden
Better have that garden already planted and know how to save seeds. There is a long learning curve with gardening. A large garden is very time consuming. There is a lot of hard work turning over the soil, planting, watering and weeding especially if it has to be done by hand. It usually takes several seasons to establish a good garden. How large of a garden will you need? A typical family of four will need between 1 to 2 acres of farmable land for use as a garden. Growing in pots or larger cans can help with mobility but the yield will be small. Drought, pests, diseases, deer and rabbits can all decrease production.  Higher calorie and protein needs will be very hard to meet with a garden. You might be an easy target for a sniper in a large open field maintaining or harvesting your garden everyday. Lot’s of work. So, having a garden as large as you can maintain is good but we will have to supplement it with some higher quality of protein. Pros: provides some necessary nutrition & vitamins. Cons: Can’t provide enough high quality proteins, hard work to maintain, poor mobility.

Fish
Fish can be raised in a pond if you have one. They can meet the protein requirements that you will need. Usually not too much work if it is already established. Raising fish in a barrel is another possibility. An aquaponic setup is another possibility. If you live in cold weather region where the water freezes you will not be able to produce year round. Pros: quality protein & fish oil. Cons: no mobility, seasonal, expensive set up costs, can be difficult to maintain, uses lots of water, water is very heavy to haul.

Small Livestock
There are many types of small livestock to consider. The best livestock will be one that is easy to care for, no special feed or supplements, reproduces fast, grows quickly, are very quiet, resistant to diseases, good mobility, no smelly waste, easy to protect against predators and large enough to feed a family of four. It would also be nice if it is easy to butcher, cook and tastes good. Let’s check out our common options:

Chickens
Pros: Eggs (protein & fat) and meat are very high quality protein. Small space, good mobility and easy care.  High production of eggs- usually one a day.                                                                                            
Cons: Hens can be a little noisy at times, need a rooster for sustainability (lots of noise). Vulnerable to predators, need a good coop for protection at night.

Rabbits
Pros: small space, reproduces quickly, good mobility, quiet, good mothers, high quality meat protein, fiber, fertilizer- that can be used immediately.                        
Cons: high maintenance, don’t like the heat, messy, may have to grow some of the feed.

Goats
Pros: Milk, good quality meat protein, fiber.
Cons: harder to handle, get intestinal worms, need to rotate fields, hard to keep them penned in, must keep them dry, will need a large quantity of hay in the winter, management problems, noisy.

Sheep
Pros: Milk, quality meat protein, wool, easy to handle.
Cons: Need to rotate fields, intestinal worms, need hay in the winter, can be noisy, management problems.

Pig/Swine
Pros: Good source of fat & quality meat protein.
Cons: Can be hard to handle, noisy, can take up a bit of space, poor mobility, can be escape artists and are messy.

Geese
Pros: Good quality meat, down, seasonal eggs. No special feed needed, good mothers.
Cons: need a large area to graze, noisy, aggressive, vulnerable to predators, 

Turkeys
Pros: Seasonal eggs, meat. 
Cons: need a large area to roam, noisy, difficult management especially when young.

Muscovy Ducks
Most ducks are very noisy. Muscovy ducks are extremely quiet. They don’t quack. They make a very soft hissing noise as a warning. They make this noise when you corner them or get too close to them. The sound is as quiet as a whisper. So they pass the first big test- noise discipline. The waste they produce is not too smelly. You will have to eventually compost it as they do produce a lot of it. Using a deep litter method, it can be done every 6 months. So they pass the second test- smell discipline. They are easy to care for. They do not need a lot of space. They are very resistant to disease and don’t require a lot of human intervention. Good fencing, minimum of 4 feet tall will help against predators. They free range/forage for their food. They do enjoy a high protein pellet food at the end of the day but it’s not necessary. They will produce eggs, meat and feathers. Feathers can be used to make pillows. They will lay between 80 to 150+ eggs a year depending upon their nutrition and if you remove the eggs or allow them to sit on their eggs. They will accumulate about a dozen or so eggs and then sit on them until they hatch. Training them to use nest boxes will help. Usually if you put their first eggs into the nest box, they will get the idea.

The process takes approximately 35 days for their eggs to hatch. They will hatch an average of ten to twelve baby ducks three or four times a year. After they hatch their eggs they will not lay eggs for 2 months. During this time they are great mothers and will spend all of their time with the baby ducks. The baby ducks will follow their mother everywhere during the first couple of weeks. The mother will protect them for older ducks that will occasionally peck at them. They can co-exist with chickens without any problems. They can eat table scraps or anything that you will eat. They forage well. They grow extremely fast. After 6-8 months the new baby ducks can reproduce.  They do not need a pond. They only need water just deep enough for a quick swim, maybe a foot to eighteen inches deep. A kiddie pool or a nice sized bucket is all that they would need. They will dirty the water fairly quick.

To clip their wings or not? They have a natural instinct to roost up high in trees or on top of the barn. They can and will fly around. Best to clip their wings after they molt, usually in the early summer. Two people are needed. One to hold the duck & one to cut the flight feathers. It does not hurt the ducks. Sort of like us clipping our nails. You cut the flight feathers on one side only. They like the shade, will eat insects and most types of grass. They like fresh water. It’s better to have a small creek then having to haul fresh water everyday. Standard poultry crates can be used to transport Muscovy Ducks. Catching them at night usually prevents as much stress as possible. The more interaction you have with them, the closer they will let you get to them. They grow really fast. Butchering usually occurs around four months of age. Wet-plucking their feathers can be a real pain. Adding a wax or a dishwashing soap can help. They are very tasty.

So Muscovy ducks are number one on my list. Since they get along well with chickens, I would include a few of them as well (no rooster). Rabbits would also be a must have. Goats, sheep, pigs and small cows are nice to have but do require a big step up in care, maintenance and are less stealthy. There is also a big learning curve as well. So if you plan on having these animals you should start now. Add as large a garden as you can care for. A garden may produce 25% of your food on average. Fruit trees and all types of berry type plants must be started now because it can take years before they will yield fruit. Bees can be added for honey and wax. Your time is going to be a big factor in any post-TSHTF situation. Lots of your time will be needed for security. Start your planning today.

High Level Fitness, by Greg K.

There are plenty of times through my day I thank God for allowing me to have a physically capable body.  Appreciation for working out, building strength and mobility to the point I don’t have to think about the movements my body goes through.  For example, carrying a laundry basket up and down stairs is something everyone should be able to do without a concern they will injure themselves.

Will I be able to perform the tasks I need to in order to survive? How long will it take me to cover the 12 miles, on foot, that are between my family and me?  Food, water and another location to move to incase of emergency are only good if you don’t injure yourself loading the car.  Time to look at another aspect of preparedness.
           
We all may end up being an athlete or participant at some point in a match of Survival of the Fittest.  The definition of “fittest” is up for debate.  Some will argue they are more fit because they have more guns. Some will argue they are more fit because they have more water.  How about the person who has prepared with the greatest balance?  I’m referring to the perfect balance of preparation of mind, body and supplies.  This leads us to the preparation of your most important tool: your body.

If an athlete is serious about their sport, they will properly train for their sport. This means they may need to build speed and strength but also mobility and stability. Caring just as much about working out as they do allowing their bodies to repair and build.  Once again, balance. 

Over-complicating anything often decreases results.  I’m going to try and highlight just a few crucial aspects of health and fitness: 
Stretching is about proper circulation more than it is about doing the splits.
A strong core will increase your chances.
This one may be obvious to some, but oxygen is very important.
Pull as often as you push.
Strength through breathing.
The sum of all these parts will lead to less discomfort.

There is a high percentage of our population that can’t touch their toes.  Don’t be ashamed if you are one of them.  Stretching to me isn’t about being able to touch your toes or do the splits.  It is about allowing blood and nutrients to flow freely throughout your body.  When your joints are able to move through a healthy range of motion, circulation is not being impeded as greatly, or at all.   When muscles are tight and start to compress a blood vessel or impinge a nerve, you will experience decreased function.  Proper flexibility or mobility will also decrease chances of joint dysfunction. Don’t make things harder on your body then they need to be.

Core strengthening is not doing abdominal crunches.  There are over 20 muscles that comprise your “core.” The easiest thing to do to strengthen your core is to draw your belly button to your spine.  This engages your Transverse Abdominis (TVA), the innermost unit of your core.   Professionals compare the active engagement of the TVA to wearing a weight belt.  You can start to do simple exercises like holding your body in an up push-up position, while drawing your belly button towards your spine.  A strong core will allow you to walk or run farther distances.  Punches that come from the core do more damage than punches from the shoulder.  The stability a strong core provides is crucial in preventing injuries while performing athletic movements. 

There is only one route to cardiovascular conditioning, and that is to do it.  Cardiovascular function is the ability for your cardiovascular system to pump blood through your body.  Increased cardiovascular function equals increased efficiency of processing oxygen. As I mentioned earlier, oxygen is important.  You will not increase cardiovascular function by reading books, planning to uncover your treadmill or going for a walk.  Start small and increase your activity in small increments.   For someone extremely sedentary, going for walks a couple times a week will increase cardiovascular function.  After a while, your body will adapt and you’ll need to work smarter.  Work smart, not hard.  Get moving, start walking or running one time around your block or to the mail box and back.  Then increase to two times, then three times.  When you stop getting winded by walking up or down stars, you know you’re making progress!

When you look to increase your strength, you need to be concerned with the muscles you can’t see, as much as the muscles you can see.  “Pull as much as often as you push” is in reference to balancing strength from front to back.  Most people have a focus on pushing when they need to balance their strength and focus more on pulling.  Pull-ups, rowing, hamstring curls, glute-bridges are all examples of exercises that can be done to create balance.  When your back is strong, you’ll be able to push more weight.  When your hamstrings and glutes (muscles of your posterior hip, aka your butt) are strong, you’ll run faster, jump higher and kick harder.  Now that you’re increasing and balancing your strength, make sure you stretch. 

Now for an exercise that can help your mind as much as your body.  Everyone when they are born has the natural instinct to breathe with your diaphragm.  When you breathe with your diaphragm, your belly raises or goes out as you take a breath in and your belly goes in when breathe out.  Lie on the ground, put your hands on your belly button and breathe in and out.  Do you feel belly raising and lowering? If you do not, you are more than likely not breathing with your diaphragm.  Practice five minutes when you first wake up and five minutes before you go to sleep.  This will help train your body to breathe with your diaphragm.  This will also give you a time to clear your mind, gain your focus and let your body relax.  Properly breathing provides your body with more oxygen. As we all know, oxygen is important.

Now let’s look at just a couple of concerns with improper breathing.  Sometimes it is good to hold your breath when performing an athletic movement.  However, when you have a strong core and you all will, you may find it easier to exhale during exertion.  Boxers and martial artists will exhale or yell when striking or when on the defensive.  Breath holding causes increased pressure in your chest and abdominal cavities and increased blood pressure.  When we breathe properly, we are giving our bodies the opportunity they need to replenish oxygen and clear the CO2 from our blood stream.   Strengthen your core so you do not have to depend on holding your breath to stabilize your mid-section.  Learn how to coordinate your breathing with movements.

When you follow a recipe to bake a cake, you’ll end up with a cake.  When you put one egg and five cups of flour together and then throw icing on top, that is not a cake.  Neglecting either stretching, cardiovascular conditioning or strength training will make it more difficult to reach your goal.  Start your cardio program without stretching and you’ll more than likely wake up in the morning feeling more discomfort than you want.  Stretch without strengthening your muscles and you may injure yourself when doing some strenuous activity.  You may not spend the same amount of time stretching that you do during your cardio conditioning or during your strength training.  That is ok, just incorporate the three in your training.

Keep your training simple and celebrate small victories along the way.  Remember mobility is just as important as strength.  Stretching is about circulation more than touching your toes.  There are proper breathing techniques a person should practice in order to not only breathe more effectively, but more efficiently. This whole article was written on the basis of balance.  The balance of your mind, body and your preparation techniques and focus.            

If you feel you are unable to train yourself, look into hiring a certified personal trainer (CPT).  Working with a CPT for even 12 weeks will be a valuable tool you will see a great return on investment.  You’ll learn proper form and if you take notes, you’ll have exercises you can do on your own down the road. When looking for a CPT, make sure they have a certification through a reputable organization.  Look into NASM, ACSM, NSCA or ACE to find a CPT.  You shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions and you shouldn’t hesitate to let them know what you are training for.  The more they know about what your goals are, the better they will assist you.

Fail to prepare and you are preparing to fail.  I wasn’t the first to say this, but like many people, I take it to heart.  For people on a budget, preparing their mind and body for survival is one of the easiest things they can do.  Cars will run out of gas and you will have to move yourself from location to location. Backpacks would be great if they stayed under 30lbs, but the reality is you will have to carry more weight than that from time to time.  Final thought of the article : Wish for the best, prepare for the worst and do not let your lack of physical conditioning put you at greater risk.